#GROWvember by G Diesel 

The objective was always simple: get big and strong. Take the foundation Mom and Pops gave me, and make it better. One day at a time. One workout at a time. One meal at a time. One shake at a time. That steady incremental progress spoke to me on a fundamental level as a kid. All these years later, it still does. 

At GCode, we were early adopters of the concept of “The Winter Arc”. But for us, we called it #GROWvember, basically launching on Halloween and powering through the holidays. Taking the good vibes and extra calories of the coldest season, and converting them into gains. Getting gassed up and punching the gas while every one else pumps the brakes and takes breaks. 

It is the perfect time to double down on everything you love about the iron lifestyle—to eat big and get strong and not sweat the small stuff. Here are some basic GROWvember tenets to serve as reminders—rules to make this the most productive Winter Arc of them all.

The Ten Mass Commandments 

  1. Eat Big. You’ve gotta eat big to get big. It’s that simple. Back in the day I made a poetic statement about a basic muscle-building fact: “The difference between the freaks and the flock is the fucking fork.” The catalyst for getting big is your training, but the raw material of your mass experiment is food. Old-fashioned, stick-to-your-ribs, grub like Ma Dukes used to make. Hearty homemade meals like tacos, burgers and fries, pasta and meatballs, steak and potatoes, chicken and rice, eggs and toast. Everything-but-the-kitchen-sink gainer shakes that you make in a blender. From now until the New Year, “Eat Like The Man” and don’t sweat the calories, other than to ensure you’re ingesting a surplus of quality food daily.
  2. Get Strong. “Throw another pie on the bar.” That’s gotta be the goal. Train as heavy as you can with good form. Get a spotter if need be. But to get your body to react, you must apply adaptive stress it hasn’t recently endured. Give your body a reason to grow by wading out into that deep water of the heavy iron and put those extra calories to good use.
  3. Focus on the Basics. Barbells and dumbbells. Like the big dudes have been using for a century. The movements that worked for them will work for you. Don’t get caught up in the fancy exercises of social media fads. You don’t need a “glute machine” or “pull day B” or any of the other bullshit you see these “science based” frauds using to poison the minds of the next generation. Repeat after me: If Arnold, Dorian, Ronnie or Jay didn’t do it, you don’t need it.
  4. Quality Over Quantity. With mastery comes efficiency. You don’t need two hours in the gym. You don’t require a hundred sets. More isn’t better, better is better. Target the muscle group with precision bombing, push yourself, prioritizing the bread-and-butter basics and get out of the gym. Growth happens in the other 23 hours of the day. I train six days per week because I love it. As such, if I am expected to recover, my sessions can’t be marathons. As a mentor of mine Greg Long would say, use your training to “drive the nail”. To explain that metaphor, once you’ve done that properly, continually hammering the wood is completely counterproductive.
  5. Keep It Moving. In your quest to eat and train big, do not abandon your cardio. A body that has cardiovascular endurance, proper circulation and keeps body fat at bay, is one primed to grow and perform optimally. I aim for anywhere in the range of 20-45 minutes per day, six days per week—utilizing whatever modality I prefer on a given morning—bike, treadmill, elliptical, stairs, going for a run or an outdoor hike. Doesn’t matter, just get it in and get the blood moving. I also do my best to participate in sports and compete when the chance presents itself, even if it is just in the process of coaching my daughters. It will only help the cause of creating a bigger, stronger, better conditioned athlete. Athlete always being the operative word.
  6. Train on Holidays. As a high school and college kid at the Brigantine Fitness Center, my first favorite gig, I would always take the available shifts on holidays. The conditions were ideal. Thanksgiving and Christmas were perfect—the gym was quiet, the vibes were immaculate and I knew there would be copious calories consumed all day while watching the NFL or NBA. I would smash the iron and then spend the rest of the day recuperating, recovering and eating everything in sight. It was the perfect environment for growth. If I could bottle that up, I’d be a billionaire. 
  7. Always Be Training. Consistency is KING. Each workout is a catalyst for anabolism and an opportunity to trigger new growth. So don’t miss. We will make time for that which is important to us, so prioritize your workouts. In a 168 hour week, the minutes you spend in the iron temple are precious and sacred, and should be regarded as such. My split for the longest time has been six days per week, because I love this shit, and I would always rather be guilty of doing too much instead of not enough. Over time it simply becomes an extension of who you are, a part of your routine that you can’t function without.
  8. Train with a Friend. Transmitting to my daughter Beans what it is to live on a mission and cultivate a dream, I explained to her, if my real friends didn’t play ball, I would make them into ballplayers. If they didn’t train, I would drag their asses to the gym. I needed to do what I needed to do, and if they were going to come along for the ride, they’d have to work with me. As such, the work at hand would become the culture of our relationships. And that was a beautiful thing. If you have even one true and loyal friend who has your back, cherish them. If they can be your lifting partner and trusted spotter and join in on your process, all the better.
  10. Supp Strong. On every single training day, I fuel up properly with the essentials. At the bare minimum, VICE, RISE and EDGE. My pre aminos and multi. That way, I have all of the bases covered and my most basic boxes checked. Around the holidays, the caloric intake is massive, so the key for me is to optimize my workout and ensure I have all of my critical micronutrients taken care of. The purpose is to prime the pump, deplete glycogen for the many carbs to follow and to ensure all the biochemical anabolic processes have the raw material they require.
  11. Iron Therapy. This time of year, for various reasons, can be tough for many. In this way, the time invested in the gym is even more critical. Sometimes you have to train angry. And that’s OK. Some days we are sad or lonely, stressed or anxious. At these times, the weight room provide a valuable outlet, one that allows us to channel often destructive forces into productive actions that build us up better than ever before. Embrace the priceless opportunities for “iron therapy”funneling your frustrations into a constructive outlet that heals and creates. I am infinitely thankful for the many blessings of the weights, so many of which have nothing to do with muscles.

Prioritize your training, your goals, your ambitions. Allow this time of year to be defined by your gratitude for the many gifts we take for granted, and for the massive progress that’s possible when you truly focus and make no excuses.

“Michael would shut down everything outside of basketball and just train. Three workouts a day: workout, golf break, workout, lunch, golf break, workout, dinner, bed. Every day. No commercial shoots, no promotional tours, no events. He just worked because he knew better than anyone else that all the outside stuff resulted from hard work on the inside, not the other way around. Shoe deals and commercials don’t make you an icon. Being unstoppable makes you an icon. And being unstoppable only comes with hard work.”- Tim Grover

This is the week of Thanksgiving, #GROWvember is upon us and we are settling in to the winter arc. Take advantage of this opportunity to accelerate your gains and double down on all the things that first made you fall in love with the iron. While everyone else is chilling, you’re building. While the turkey is in the oven, you’re setting the table for progress few have the dedication and determination to ever achieve. A new reality is within reach, greatness is in your grasp. Put on your black hoodie, your work boots and beanie and let’s get it.