First Rule: Don’t Get Hurt – How to Keep Training for Life

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First Rule: Don’t Get Hurt – How to Keep Training for Life

If you’ve ever been sidelined by an injury, you know the pain isn’t just physical—it’s mental, too. Watching your hard-earned gains fade while you’re stuck on the bench? That’s brutal.

So let’s be real. Injuries suck. They derail progress, kill momentum, and turn passion into frustration. That’s why your first goal as a lifter isn’t just to make gains—it’s to stay in the game.

Now, will training always carry some risk? Yes. But the goal isn’t zero risk—it’s minimal risk. We’re trying to push our limits, not get wrecked by them.

Here’s how to train smart, train long, and avoid the injury trap.

First, What Is an Injury, Really?

An injury is simply damage caused by stress your body wasn’t ready for. Could be sudden—like a muscle tear from too much force. Or it could build up over time—like nagging tendinitis from doing too much without proper recovery.

Either way, the damage is real. And the more we can train intelligently, the less likely we are to end up broken.

Here’s your game plan:

1. Strive for Optimal Form

Not perfect. Optimal. There’s no such thing as flawless technique—but there is a right way to move that puts tension where you want it and keeps vulnerable joints safe.

And listen closely: Injuries often happen when your guard’s down, not during the heavy lift, but when you’re re-racking the weight or picking up a plate.

Don’t just lift with good form—live in good form.

2. Don’t Do Too Much Too Soon

Progress takes time. Trying to jump from A to Z might work once…until it doesn’t. That’s how chronic overuse injuries sneak in. Think stress fractures, tendinopathies, joint flare-ups.

Instead, stack small wins. Go from A to B. Then C. Then D. Boring? Maybe. But effective? Always.

3. Know When to Back Off

Not every session needs to be a PR. Bad sleep, stress, poor nutrition—these things tank recovery and increase injury risk.

Don’t ignore the signals. If your body’s screaming “not today,” it’s smarter to scale back than to power through and pay the price.

A light day today beats three weeks off tomorrow.

4. Don’t Force What Doesn’t Feel Right

We’re all built different. Long limbs, short torsos, past injuries—these things matter. Just because a movement works for someone else doesn’t mean it’s right for you.

Barbell back squats don’t feel right to you? Do dumbbell bench split squats, or try the leg press. Bench pressing bothers your shoulder? Try dumbbells or cables.

You’re here to build muscle—not prove something to your gym bros.

5. Train for the Long Haul

You can go all-out for a few months and see some gains—or you can play the long game and make gains for decades.

This is a lifetime pursuit. We want to be doing this when we’re 60, 70, even 80. So train like someone who plans to be around that long.

And yes, progress requires pushing yourself. But it also means knowing when to push—and when to pull back. That’s the difference between reckless and relentless.

Brickwall’s First Rule: Don’t Get Hurt

Push hard. Train smart. Think big picture.

If you can stay injury-free, you’ll outlast, outlift, and outperform just about everyone around you. Most guys flame out because they don’t respect this rule.

So respect the process. Build slow. And build forever.

Sources

American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS). Safe Exercise. OrthoInfo. https://orthoinfo.aaos.org/en/staying-healthy/safe-exercise

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans, 2nd Edition. (2018). PDF Link

Every Training Session Is a Championship Game

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Start showing up like it matters—because if you’re serious about building muscle, every single training session does matter.

Think of your training like a championship series. Each workout is a game. Each game affects the final outcome, big time. You only have so much time, you don’t have time to lose. You’ll have a longer career than a pro athlete, but you still need urgency. You don’t have time in the grand scheme of things.

Every training session is a brick. And over time, those bricks build something undeniable. But you need to show up ready to go to stack those bricks.

So prep, train, and recover like a pro.

Show up like it’s the playoffs. Execute like it’s game 7.

Then celebrate like a champion—maybe with a protein shake and a little flex in the mirror.

This isn’t just working out. This is building something championship-worthy.

So what’s it going to be? Next session how are you showing up…like it’s a pickup game? Or game 7?

I Ditched My Smart Watch for a Simpler, Less Techy Casio

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Sometimes, you just gotta say “screw this” to all the tech crap and go simple. No tracking, no apps, no invisible judge on your wrist telling you you’re lazy. So I ditched my fancy smartwatch and grabbed a Casio W219H for under 20 bucks. And damn, it’s been a breath of fresh air.

Don’t get me wrong—smartwatches are cool toys. Tech’s done some awesome things for us. But tracking every damn step and calorie? That shit’s exhausting and makes you feel like garbage. My watch was always lurking, waiting to call me out: “Only 2,293 steps today, loser? I thought you had more fire.”

Enter the Casio. This bad boy doesn’t give a damn about steps, heart rate, or notifications. It just tells time and date, lights up when it’s dark, and that’s it. Like a kettlebell or a ‘57 Chevy Bel Air, it’s old-school badassery, no gimmicks.

The world’s obsessed with tech, but sometimes you gotta rebel and strip it down. When smartwatches become sentient and start thinking they’re the boss, I’ll be there, clocking gains and busting their silicon ass with my Casio on—screaming “I told you so!”

You ever feel tech’s got you by the balls? Maybe it’s time to slap on something real and remind yourself who’s boss.

Building Muscle – What’s Going On Under the Hood? Why Can We Build Muscle? And How to Effectively Build It

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Building Muscle - What's Going On Under the Hood? Why Can We Build Muscle? And How to Effectively Build It

Have you ever wondered what’s going on under the hood when it comes to building muscle? And why we can actually build muscle? And also, maybe most importantly, how to effectively build muscle?

That’s what we’re going to dive into.

Let’s peel back the layers, open up the hood, and figure out how this thing works—like we’re wrenching on a ’57 Chevy Bel Air.

Just What the Heck Actually Is Muscle?

Muscle is contractile tissue—a form of soft tissue that your brain commands to pull on your bones via tendons. This is what lets you move at a joint.

Any movement—walking, picking up your kids, or lifting weights—relies on this process.

You can move in many ways, at many speeds, all because of muscle (plus tendons, bones, and other systems, of course).

That’s about as deep in the weeds as we need to go.

Why We Can Build Muscle

We know what muscle is. So why can we get bigger muscles?

It comes down to one word: adaptation.

When you impose stress on your muscles—say, by lifting weights—your body adapts by improving its ability to handle that stress. That’s where hypertrophy (muscle growth) comes in.

What Triggers Muscle Growth?

  • Mechanical tension: Lifting weights or creating strong muscular contractions through a full range of motion.
  • Muscle damage: Microtears can occur from eccentric loading (the lowering part of a lift).
  • Metabolic stress: That burning pump you feel is a buildup of metabolites—lactate, hydrogen ions, etc.—which may contribute to muscle growth.

Note: Current research shows that mechanical tension is the primary driver of hypertrophy. Muscle damage and metabolic stress can support it, but they aren’t essential for growth.

Recovery: Where the Real Growth Happens

All that hard training just sets the stage.

The real magic happens when you’re resting and recovering. This is when your body repairs muscle fibers—and if conditions are right, it overcompensates and builds back bigger and stronger.

But that only happens if:

  • You’re training hard enough to warrant adaptation
  • You’re giving your body the raw materials (food)
  • You’re allowing proper recovery time (low stress, good sleep)

It’s also important to note that muscle growth is slow. You build a tiny bit of muscle after each proper workout. So think in terms of months and years, not days or weeks.

How to Build Muscle Effectively

We’ve covered the what and why. Now here’s the how.

1. Actually Train

A lot of guys at the gym aren’t really training—they’re going through the motions, like they’re browsing Netflix.

Your body resists change. It wants homeostasis (status quo). So to force muscle growth, you’ve got to challenge it hard enough so that it has to respond.

That means:

  • Lifting close to failure
  • Staying mostly in the 3–15 rep range
  • Using sensible rest intervals

You should feel like you’ve been in a fight after a good set. Muscles burning, breathing heavy, face twisted up. If you’ve never let out a few involuntary curses at the end of a set…you’re not there yet.

Bonus: Two Types of Muscle Growth

There are two primary types of hypertrophy:

  • Myofibrillar Hypertrophy: This increases the size and number of the contractile units (myofibrils) in your muscle fibers. It’s associated with strength and density—think powerlifters or gymnasts.
  • Sarcoplasmic Hypertrophy: This increases the volume of fluid and non-contractile elements (like glycogen and sarcoplasm) in the muscle cell. It’s what gives that full, pumped look.

Most well-rounded training stimulates both, but the emphasis depends on how you train:

  • Lower reps (3–6) and heavy weights = more myofibrillar
  • Moderate reps (8–15) with volume = more sarcoplasmic

Want the best results? Blend both styles into your routine. Train heavy some days, and pump up the reps on others…and remember to always use impeccable form any amount of reps you do.

2. Train Consistently

Muscle growth is a compounding process. That means you need consistency.

Like I said earlier, think in terms of months or years.

What about frequency? How many days a week should you train?

3 days is too little, there’s just too much to do. 4 days you’re getting there. Think 5-6 days a week for real results.

Note: This doesn’t mean training each muscle 5–6 times a week. It means hitting certain muscles in turn 5-6 days a week so you can spread your volume out and blast each muscle group throughout the week.

Tip: What matters most is your total weekly volume per muscle (10+ hard sets/week per muscle is a good target). If you choose to train 3 days a week, you’ll have to do a lot more each training session, possibly hindering focus and intensity.

If you think you don’t have the time, then take a long, hard look at what you’re doing throughout the day. You’ve got more time than you think if you cut down TV, scrolling, and texting.

A home gym, a gym at your apartment complex, or a gym at work can also really help in this regard.

3. Eat (Like You Mean It)

Muscle is made of amino acids (protein), and building it requires energy. You must give your body what it needs to grow.

This means:

  • High-protein intake (~0.7–1g per lb of body weight)
  • Carbs and fats for fuel and hormones
  • Micronutrients from whole foods for health and proper function
  • Fiber for digestion and health

Focus on:

  • Meat, eggs, dairy
  • Fruits and vegetables
  • Whole grains
  • Healthy fats and oils

And yes—you can eat cheeseburgers and pizza. Just not only cheeseburgers and pizza.

4. Be in a Slight Calorie Surplus

To build muscle, you need to eat more than you burn—just slightly.

Too little? No growth. Too much? Fat gain.

Stick to a modest daily surplus (200–300 calories above maintenance).

5. Periodically Cut

You can’t bulk up forever, or you’ll end up round and soft.

Cycle in short cutting phases—eat slightly below maintenance to shed body fat while maintaining muscle. Keep training intensity high, and protein up.

6. Live Lower-Stress

Cortisol, the stress hormone, is catabolic—it breaks things down. Chronic high cortisol hinders muscle gain and promotes fat storage.

To reduce cortisol:

  • Sleep more
  • Limit caffeine
  • Manage work and life stress
  • Meditate
  • Chill out and channel Zen Slacker sometimes

Growth hormone and testosterone thrive in low-stress environments.

7. Sleep Like a Champion

If you’re not sleeping 7–9 hours a night, you’re leaving gains on the table.

Sleep supports muscle growth by:

  • Increasing testosterone and growth hormone
  • Repairing muscle tissue
  • Reducing cortisol
  • Restoring mental clarity and drive

Sleep is not optional. It’s the foundation.

Final Word

Building muscle isn’t complicated—but it’s not easy. It takes hard training, focused nutrition, consistent recovery, and discipline over time.

You’ll be sore. You’ll be tired. And you’ll wonder if it’s working.

But one day, you’ll see it. The thicker chest. The bigger arms. The stronger lifts. And it’ll all be worth it.

Do the work. Build the muscle.

Sources

Schoenfeld, B. J. (2010). The mechanisms of muscle hypertrophy and their application to resistance training. Journal of Applied Physiology, 108(4), 1–10. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20847704/

Morton, R. W., Murphy, K. T., McKellar, S. R., et al. (2022). A systematic review, meta-analysis and meta-regression of the effect of protein supplementation on resistance training-induced gains in muscle mass and strength in healthy adults. Sports Medicine, 52(5), 1085–1101. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35187864/

Grgic, J., Schoenfeld, B. J., Davies, T. B., & Lazinica, B. (2019). Effects of resistance training frequency on gains in muscular strength: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Sports Medicine, 49(5), 793–807. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30558493/

Dinyer, T. L., et al. (2022). Weekly Sets Per Muscle for Maximizing Muscle Hypertrophy: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Frontiers in Sports and Active Living. https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/sports-and-active-living/articles/10.3389/fspor.2022.949021/full

Kravitz, L. (n.d.). How Do Muscles Grow? University of New Mexico. https://www.unm.edu/~lkravitz/Article%20folder/musclesgrowLK.html

Walker, M. (2017). Why We Sleep. https://www.sleepdiplomat.com/author