Stefan James

Engineer by Day, Fitness Coach by Night. |

[Stefan James @MackusAurelius_]

@KingAriPress You literally wrote this for me lol.

I share the same cleaning bug. I refer to it as creative procrastination: “oh gee my closet is looking so unorganized”.

I love the idea of a rotating list/time block on my schedule.

[Stefan James @MackusAurelius_]

@PolymarketDota2 It’s time for….

*Pulls dusty file down from back of bookshelf.
*Blows off cobwebs.

**Scans the lines of blotchy ink at the bottom of document.

Ah yes here it is:
—-> Aggro tri-lanes.

SF needs early levels and hates being tower dove early. Rally the boys. Bring numbers.

[Stefan James @MackusAurelius_]

@KingAriPress Successful poem and confirmation email for me as well!

I’ve been really enjoying your writing tips btw.

[Stefan James @MackusAurelius_]

Don’t worry, the bowl of berries was full before I started cooking,

[Stefan James @MackusAurelius_]

The best part of an early morning workout

Aside from checking off a box that helps align your choices for the rest of the day

Is…

A BIG breakfast!

[Stefan James @MackusAurelius_]

@DerrickEmpowers We’re getting there! Another 64 F day today!

How are you doing dude?

[Stefan James @MackusAurelius_]

Spring has sprung! High of 71 F today!

Got my patio furniture set ready

[Stefan James @MackusAurelius_]

@GeneralAndrews @HopeForTheDay Let’s go!! Hope you have a great turn out and big support!

[Stefan James @MackusAurelius_]

@OlindeLou @jockowillink @danvasc2 @AnjanetteVuuren @AgathasRealm What a great song, and a powerful message. I spilled a little coffee while smiling & tapping along 🤣

[Stefan James @MackusAurelius_]

That’s been a sweet spot I’ve found lately as welll, like a light 200 calorie carb-up, and give it 45-60ish minutes.

My favorite so far is NitroSurge. It’s a little cleaner, little less jittery, and avoids that like over-sweet caffeine rush that some give.

I only use about a 1/2 or so scoop, and add in some electrolytes to get a little more hydration, taking that pre-workout (20 minutes or so after I eat a little oatmeal/fruit).

I also take creatine: I add about 3g to my pre-workout NitroSurge (lol cheesy brand name) and electrolytes, and then 1g separate with my post-workout breakfast, in a capsule form. (So 4g daily).

[Stefan James @MackusAurelius_]

@crogers_htown @troywojick @BloatMcQueen @RealSeanithan @StanBrowney @CoachDanGo @ted_ryce @tyromper @flabbytofit99 @JeffCatholic Happy to help!

[Stefan James @MackusAurelius_]

Using carbs strategically around training sessions might be a good lifestyle tweak opportunity.

My thought is: it seems like you’re intuitively eating quite well for your body already (as indicated by your historic leanness). And so, to get a little bump up such that you��re putting on muscle, I’d have you make sure you were eating breakfast before working out so you’re sparing the glucose, and getting some good nutrition in afterward as well with a more even protein: carb split.

Think like: if you’re hitting your calisthenics in the AM, I’d suggest adding in 1cup of oatmeal with some berries (little honey is fine too) pre-workout, and then a couple of eggs with some toast/potatoes/cereal post-workout.

Adding carbs in for you, strategically around your workout, will help give you plenty of energy and keep you in a slight surplus. Then it’ll just be a matter of dialing in a little using some long-term data tracking (if you’re going that route ofc).

It doesn’t sound like your day to day job is all that active haha, otherwise (say if you are in like construction work or something as an example) I’d take a bigger look at your overall diet because then it may be about adding in carbs strategically in the evenings to recover from busy work days as well as overall weekly calorie to make sure calories are enough in general.

But given a less active job, that wouldn’t be as much of an initial concern, I think the first place to start would be making sure you’re getting carbs around your workout sessions, when do you typically workout and what time (roughly) do you eat meals?

[Stefan James @MackusAurelius_]

@troywojick @BloatMcQueen @RealSeanithan @crogers_htown @StanBrowney @CoachDanGo @ted_ryce @tyromper @flabbytofit99 @JeffCatholic Haha all g dude I was teasing, I didn’t mind the tag at all. No problem man, happy to put some thoughts together for ya!

Happy holidays to you, too! Keep killing it! 🎄🎉

[Stefan James @MackusAurelius_]

This reminds me of a conversation I recently had at the gym. This might not apply to you at all Troy but I have struggled in the past with discipline, and someone asked me about maintaining consistency/avoiding burnout, how to not fall off the wagon and lose momentum after too many holiday cookies haha.

I told them:try not to get too caught up with the numbers.

I think it’s great to have and set a real target and use the science and data to point toward the process, but I like happy scale because it lets you take a little step back from the outcome fixation kind of “shadowy” underside of too much data.

Don’t let tracking diminish the fun of lifting heavier stuff, and looking sexier in the mirror, and having your partner/spouse notice: you know?

That’s where I then land with finding the “sweet spot” which tends to look like:

- if I lift 3-4 days a week, allow myself burritos with my wife on the weekend but otherwise eat quite clean and low-inflammatory (oatmeal, fruits, eggs, veggies, rice, beans)

I look sexier, it’s maintainable, and I’m heading in the right direction using data to check in and keep me honest about how many scoops of oatmeal I’ve been eating, haha. 🤣

But I also let myself enjoy the holidays (this might not apply to this conv. Troy) and don’t reinvent the system I jut step back into it and trust the process

That’s where I like to then dial in on achievement-oriented goals: like what’s a cool feat of strength you’ve always wanted to do? That’s a focus that would coincide well with your goal of gaining muscle.

Like what if you tried to add 90lbs to your deadlift? Or bought a dip/pullup belt and worked up to 90 lb weighted pull-ups? That would be pretty badass haha.

For me when losing weight it was a single pull up haha, I was a big fella at my heaviest and that felt like a really ‘tall’ challenge. I happen to be 6’4”, so at my heaviest 317 lbs that’s a lot of man to move up and down on a pull up bar haha.

So when I had the most success it was like: “here’s my target, here’s the system, but then here’s that fun strength/exercise goal (pull-ups) that will help me view this not as punishment but something to get excited about. But again I’ve tended to struggle with discipline, so that’s how I’ve kind of “gamified” it.

[Stefan James @MackusAurelius_]

What have I been tagged in @troywojick 🤣

I’ll throw my hat in the ring @BloatMcQueen . More is always better, I’ve always heard 🤷🏻‍♂️

Troy I scanned other folks’ responses and you got some good advice.

My input would be: from what I’ve seen you seem like quite a lean guy, if I were working on a program with you I’d want to know more about your day-to-day energy outputs and be tactical with any kinds of cardio. As in, are you a big hiker? Runner? Remind me what you do for work? (You can always DM me if you want, I know you know!)

I ask to get a bearing on your natural flow of energy during the week, because to put on muscle we would want to factor in what (appears) to me to be a high metabolism individual (but maybe I’m projecting because I’ve tended to struggle with my weight lol 😂). Which would just mean potentially some extra oatmeal and eggs for your muscle gain goal.

Putting muscle on is definitely achievable for you, and I handily agree with linear progression, protein bump, and calorie intake as being the primary mechanisms.

There are lots of great free TDEE type calculators, to get an estimate of your natural metabolism based on your body weight. I’d start there and follow the aforementioned +300ish calories as a baseline, and adjust after about 3-4 weeks.

If you’re really wanting to hit it with that next level or intention, I recommend an app called “happy scale” and get in the habit of weighing in every 2-3 days, the app plots your average weight change allowing more useful data and you can adjust calories accordingly.

[Stefan James @MackusAurelius_]

That’s interesting, makes a lot of sense worded that way!

Reminds me of the oft-overlooked idea in the weightlifting world: the importance of mobility and myofascial release, but not ONLY for recovery

Increasing output capacity (power, strength, even endurance) through the whole ROM: as tension is released and the body is better able to fire the right motor neurons and accompanying muscle fibers

Soft tissue, the real MVP 🔥

[Stefan James @MackusAurelius_]

@RamonaM2025 This moved me to tears, thank you

[Stefan James @MackusAurelius_]

@georgehayworth @thenicklavery What a great cause, George! I've seen this firsthand during my time in. I hope this finds its way to anyone in need of it!

[Stefan James @MackusAurelius_]

@OlindeLou @VAudgeirsson @henryb_84 @MemeVibe05 @AgathasRealm @bozartz5 @ronaele_k So good!!! 😊