Chris Powell

Dad | BS Exercise Science | CSCS | IFBB Pro🏆 | NYT Bestselling📚 | EWL 📺 | Founder: The KEPT App | Nonprofit: @move1m

[Chris Powell @RealChrisPowell]

Love this one from @textmarcus!!

I preach about muscle a lot, and here's why: it's not about aesthetics. It's about how well we get to live. Our muscle is working for us in ways we never see in the mirror.

It helps us handle blood sugar, it gives our body a reserve to pull from when we're seriously ill, and strong legs keep us on our feet when life trips us up.

And it doesn't stop at the neck. When our muscles contract, they release molecules called myokines, and some of them nourish the brain. That's the physiological side of why staying strong helps us stay sharp as we age.

Here's what I want you to take from this:

1. You don't need big muscle. Keeping the muscle you have counts. But if you can grow it a little, that’s always a plus 😉
2. Lift a couple of times a week and keep it simple.
3. Never lifted? Start light and build slowly. It's never too late to begin.

The more muscle we keep and the more we move later in life, the more independent we stay and the more we get to enjoy the people we love most. I'll keep sharing these fascinating little animations so we can all move forward with the education we need to live fully 💙

You've got this!! 💪🏼

#MuscleIsMedicine #StrongerForLonger #LiftToLive #HealthSpan

[Chris Powell @RealChrisPowell]

Over 400,000 people studied. Women got a bigger drop in mortality risk, at lower weekly amounts, from both cardio and strength training. Why? Nobody knows yet. Guys, no competition: anyone who starts moving wins. Credit @dr.williamwallace 💪🏼

[Chris Powell @RealChrisPowell]

We're seeing more and more of these beautiful transformations using a walking pad!!!

Shout out to @hayleigh_fit for changing her life and sharing what actually moved the needle for her - and the walking pad is right at the top of her list - and mine too!

That first-time-on-the-belt moment is real. I wobbled through it too, and it feels strange for about a day. Then it just becomes part of your workday, and the steps pile up while you're busy doing something else.

Her top five:
👉🏼 Walking pad
👉🏼 Water
👉🏼 Protein
👉🏼 An intentional morning routine
👉🏼 Fiber

Here's your takeaway. Pick ONE from that list and do it today. Not all five, just one. If you do 15% of it, you're a step closer than you were yesterday.

Another takeaway: if steps feel like a chore, find a way to stack them on top of something you're already doing, like computer work, calls, emails, or a show you love.

NOTE: One more thing I want to share for anyone new to the walking pad:
I always have a hand resting on my desk when walking. When typing, i just rest my wrists on the desk. Just any part of your body touching a stationary object (like a desk) can help you remain aware of your position so that you don't drift and stumble. Trsut me, it can happen 😬

Cheering you on, my friend. Save this for the next time you need a nudge, and send it to someone who's ready to start steppin'. 💪🏼

[Chris Powell @RealChrisPowell]

10K steps is the "magic number" that's been debunked as the be-all-end-all. Hit it anyway, you're crushing it.

Stephen Olson's per-step calorie formula is now built into my burn calculator. Comment BURN and I'll send it to you. 👊🏼

[Chris Powell @RealChrisPowell]

Day one was hard. Day two was hard too. She went back anyway. @watch.nik.get.fit built a lifestyle on the days she didn't feel like it. Make that day smaller, not skipped. Ten minutes still counts. 💪🏼

[Chris Powell @RealChrisPowell]

Our bodies are built from ingredients that were around long before there was an Earth. Hard to take care of something well if you've never stopped to be amazed by it. Tonight, look up for one full minute. No phone. 💪🏼 (via @ianboggz)

[Chris Powell @RealChrisPowell]

Seventy pounds down is incredible. But watch what she can DO now: the balance, the coordination, the strength. Pick one movement that's hard for you and practice the simplest version for a few minutes today, tomorrow, and the next day. Credit: @_gamebreakerfitness 💪🏼

[Chris Powell @RealChrisPowell]

I sent this to my daughter Ruby first. Seeing what may be coming gives her a head start. Guys, we need more understanding, patience and compassion for the women we love. Send this to a woman you care about today. Thank you @drmaryclaire 🙏🏼

[Chris Powell @RealChrisPowell]

Shout out to @Christinehobson60 for being such a badass.
Christine, I love your message and I'm here to help spread it!!

Most of us start training because of the mirror. The ones who stay with it usually figure out the real payoff is somewhere else entirely... Like, the rest of your life 🙌

It's the morning you move without thinking about it. It's bouncing back faster after a long day. It's saying yes to the small stuff you used to talk yourself out of, like the stairs, the walk, getting down on the floor with the grandkids.

That's what a stronger body quietly hands back to you, and honestly it doesn't get talked about enough.

Your takeaway for today: pick one everyday movement you'd hate to lose, and train it on purpose this week. Sit-to-stands, carrying groceries, getting up off the floor. Small reps now keep the big stuff available later.

Share this with someone you love, who you want to see live their life to the fullest! 💙

[Chris Powell @RealChrisPowell]

75 pounds in 8.5 months. @brinajean.fit saying "I freaking did it" gave me chills. Keep showing up after the first win. That's what makes it stick. 🙌🏼

[Chris Powell @RealChrisPowell]

Claim: while alcohol's being processed, anything you eat gets stored instead of burned.

Not wrong, just not the whole story. Your body treats alcohol like a toxin and processes it first, so fat burning takes a backseat for a few hours. True.

But a net calorie deficit over days/weeks/months still means you keep losing weight.

What actually derails people: the decisions we make WHILE drinking, not the alcohol itself. 👊🏼

[Chris Powell @RealChrisPowell]

Protein: hunger. Carbs: performance. Fats: hormones.

Zoom out: Calories: weight. Macros: body composition. Micros: how you feel.

6 fundamentals, that's it. You don't need a spreadsheet, just know which lever you're pulling.

(h/t @snezv 🙌🏼)

[Chris Powell @RealChrisPowell]

For years, if you'd asked me, I would've told you flat out: you can't gain muscle while in a calorie deficit. That was my answer, and I gave it a lot.

I was wrong. Here's what changed my mind.

Body fat is stored energy, and it's a dense one. If you're carrying extra fat, that's fuel sitting there. Pair a moderate deficit (not an extreme one, that word matters) with resistance training and enough protein, and your body can actually pull from those fat stores for energy while still having enough left over to build new muscle.

The people I always said this was possible for, true beginners, folks in a very mild deficit, anyone on hormone replacement therapy, still get that edge. But the door is wider than I used to think.

And if you're sitting on some extra body fat right now? That's not a setback. That's fuel in the tank. You may be in the best possible position to lose fat and build muscle at the same time.

Shoutout to @Biolayne for saying this straight out.

The science keeps moving. I'd rather stay curious and update my thinking than defend a position I set five years ago.

[Chris Powell @RealChrisPowell]

Not gonna lie, she's not wrong. 😂

The truth is resistance training doesn't have one right form. Boot camps, CrossFit, classic gym sessions, minimalist programs like my 1 Minute Muscle... it all counts, as long as you actually love doing it.

The method you'll stick with beats the "perfect" method every single time.

If you found the version you actually love, drop it below. Help someone else find theirs too. 👊🏼

Thanks for the laugh, @Sharellegrant!

[Chris Powell @RealChrisPowell]

Highest form of discipline is nutrition? I agree, but not for the reason you'd think.

Food isn't just fuel, it's culture, comfort, connection. Add hyper-palatable food + a deficit and you're fighting your own hunger hormones daily.

Real discipline isn't willpower. It's knowing your own blueprint.

Comment CALC 👊🏼

[Chris Powell @RealChrisPowell]

Had to re-listen to this like 10 times to make it all land.

Your emotions aren't the problem, they're the signal. Fear shows what matters. Anger shows the boundary that got crossed. Anxiety means you drifted into the future.

Motivation doesn't change your life. Habits do.

A warm hug of reality when you need it. 🙏🏼

[Chris Powell @RealChrisPowell]

Ryan, brother, I'm with you. 😂

Watched this clip and lost it, then watched it again and lost it even harder.

If you're a girl dad (or a girl mom, this applies to you too), you already know this feeling in your bones.

Boyfriend at 16?? Ummmm no. Maybe 26. We'll see.

Girl parents, unite. You are not alone in this one. 👊🏼

@ryanpina

[Chris Powell @RealChrisPowell]

For anyone who needs to hear this right now....

If you're not feeling it, guess what??
80% of the time, you're not gonna want to do the thing.

That part's real. Saw this from @Momolittle.fit and had to react, because the truth underneath it hits harder than the mood thing itself.

Here's where I think most of us actually go wrong: we don't fail because we lack motivation. We fail because we set an impossible bar. It's gotta be a perfect workout. Every morsel measured. A hundred percent or nothing.

So lower the bar. Commit to 30% effort and just get in it. Show up, stay the course, trust the process, that's the whole secret sauce.

Give control to the plan. Not your mood. Perfectionism will kill your progress way faster than one off day ever could.

Just show up. You'll get there.
@Momolittle.fit

[Chris Powell @RealChrisPowell]

Muscle loss between your 30s and 70s doesn't decline a little, it falls off a cliff.

Muscle isn't just about looking good. Myokines released when muscles contract may nourish your brain and support cognitive function. We're one system, not two.

A 10-min resistance circuit, a few times a week, is the start.

[Chris Powell @RealChrisPowell]

As a dad to a 12-year-old girl and a 15-year-old boy, this one got me right in the chest.

The voice in your head isn't reporting facts, it's just repeating what you've fed it until it feels true. Billions of us measure ourselves against a standard that was never real.

You can't silence it, but you can put it on trial: is this actually true?

Shoutout @Elsaqinn