Week One Of The 30-Day Lean Body/Lean Bulk Challenge

by Dr David Minkoff March 17, 2024 6 min read

Welcome to Week One of the Lean Body/Lean Bulk Challenge!

In this article we cover what metrics to keep track of, dialing in your macros and workouts, and what to expect during week one.

METRICS TO KEEP ON A WEEKLY BASIS

While a Dexa Scan for muscle and body fat mass is great, not everyone can do these, and they are not always accurate.

If you would like to do a Dexa Scan, do one before starting and one at the end for the best accuracy.

But there are two other things to keep track of that tell no lies, besides the increase in weights you are lifting.

Get a cloth tape measure and take these measurements on your first morning:

Your waist, around your bellybutton
Your biceps, flexed, around their highest point.
Your triceps, not flexed, around their widest point.
Your shoulders, all the way around your chest and back, with your arms against your body.

Note down the exact measurements, down to the fraction.

Next, go to your mirror and take front and side pictures of yourself.

And make sure you note the exact place you are standing when you take the pictures so you can take them again.

Each week you will take new measurements and note these down, and take new pictures to compare.

Many people don’t see a difference in the pictures the first week or two (though others do), but the 30-day before/after pictures are quite obvious, and the numbers on you’re measuring tape won’t lie.

WHAT TO EXPECT DURING WEEK ONE

In the first week of this challenge we have several things happening.

We’re trying to switch our diet so our bodies are getting what they need to build lean muscle without the excess calories or hormone-triggering foods that would cause fat gain.

With this comes restructuring our cells so they will use the foods we’re giving them properly and balancing or increasing hormone levels so our body will prioritize building lean muscle over body fat.

We’re addressing digestion, which is crucial to our overall health as well as building muscle, as we need our cells to receive all of the nutrients and vitamins we’re consuming.

You will be consuming a lot of whole food proteins, which your stomach is probably not used to receiving, and it will need extra help until it builds up enough stomach acid and enzymes of its own.

So make sure you’re taking your digestive enzymes with each meal during this.

We’ll also be working to dial in our exact macros.

And we may be experiencing some cravings.

GETTING OVER ANY CRAVINGS

If you did the Fat Loss Challenge, or have ever done a diet to lose body fat, you know that the first hurdle to jump is the cravings.

These are cravings for sugar, if we’ve been on a higher sugar diet, as well as for food in general if our hunger hormones and/or digestion are off, telling us we need more food than we actually do.

If you have a significant amount of body fat to lose, you will want to start with the 30-Day Fat Loss Challenge. That’s what that program is for and it’s very effective.

It gets you through these cravings the fastest, as well as bringing the most fat loss.

And it will set you up very well for the Lean Body/Lean Bulk Protocol.

But if you’re ready to go here, even with some excess body fat, that’s fine. The excess will come off along the way.

But even without much excess body fat, the first hurdle may still be cravings.

These should pass in the first week just by following this protocol and are the strongest during days 2-5.

But we need to ensure we don’t mistake these for actual hunger, as hunger determines when we increase our macros.

Cravings will be mainly for sugary foods or junk food, or even processed foods that contain more sugars than we think they do.

Hunger is when our body actually needs more nutrition in order to recover from our workouts and grow.

If you’re craving more sugar, this is cravings. The macro ranges in this protocol are designed to cover all needs, and if we need to raise macros we raise all equally.

But if you’re craving more protein, or feel exhausted, then we raise our macros.

DIALING IN YOUR MACROS

These are the supplement and macros by goal for this program:

Each of the above covers dialing in your macros. But I’d like go over it again here.

Once cravings are gone, any feelings of hunger won’t be false, but will be because your body actually needs more food.

But if you’re hungry during the first week, work on dialing in your macros according to the protocol, and do so right away. Don’t wait.

Just increase all macros by multiplying each one by 1.05, or by 1.10 if you’re very hungry.

Some (very rare) who already have significant lean muscle may have to multiply by as much as 1.5.

So if you look at the macros and already know this isn’t enough, then just multiply as above.

If you need to increase them again, do so by multiplying again by 1.05.

And I don’t care how many times you raise macros if you’re hungry, as long as you do so according to the ratios given.

Possibly this is needed food, possibly not.

It doesn’t actually matter. Because even if you gain a little during the first week, as long as you stay in those macros, you’ll lose it again in the next week as your muscle building will catch up to it.

So don’t worry about that. The rule is: we’re never hungry on Lean Body/Lean Bulk.

We want things balancing in your body and it takes this adjustment period.

You may also find at the beginning that they’re too much, or that you increased too much.

That’s also fine.

Just multiply all macros by .95 or even by .9. This keeps them in the correct ratios.

If you increase and decrease a few time during week one that’s fine. Real cravings will pretty much be gone by the end and you’ll know what is actual hunger and then increase based on that.

But in the end, don’t worry about whether you have cravings or hunger. If you know it’s cravings, ignore it and it will son be gone. But if you’re not sure, raise all macros. Any excess body fat created will come right off again, and it won’t be much doing it this way.

By the end of week one we’ll have these dialed in and then we’re rolling. Then we increase based on hunger only.

And we always increase the we’re hungry.

DIALING IN YOUR WEIGHTS

This is simpler than it sounds.

If you’re already an experienced weight lifter, you likely know where you’re at or how to find it.

If you’re starting out or getting back into it, just follow the first week weight levels during the first week. This will ensure you don’t go too high and injure yourself, and will allow you to find which weights are right for you.

By the end of week one you will know, just make sure to keep track of where you are at at the end of each workout so you can refer back the next week.

Alright, calculate your macros and buy your food if you haven’t already, and then let’s take some measurements and get to the gym!

If you're new to this, here you can find The Introduction To Lean Body/Lean Bulk.

This will explain everything, so you understand exactly what we're doing and what you need to do to prepare.

Alright, let's have som fun!

And if you have any questions, make sure to join our VIP Group where you can ask any question you have and get only the best answers.

Index To The Lean Body/Lean Bulk Guide:

Introductory Articles:

Getting Started:

Supplements & Macros By Goal:

Workout Regimens & Exercise Videos:

Week One:

Metrics & Key Data For Week One
How BCAAs Build Body Fat & Lower Health Over Time
The Importance Of Complete Protein Digestion

Week Two:

Week Three:

*These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. These products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.