This page may contain affiliate links. We earn commissions when you purchase through these links. Learn more

Jess Billitz

Ascent Native Fuel Whey Protein Powder Review

February 1, 2021 By Jess Billitz

A trip to the Vitamin Shoppe (or even the fitness aisle of a retail store) is supposed to be exciting. Dozens of options, flavors galore, and almost guaranteed gains on the horizon.

But then … you flip those 4-pound tubs around and scan the labels.

80mg of cholesterol?

Maltodextrin?

190 calories per serving?

Choosing a new whey protein powder winds up being a “lesser of two evils” scenario. If you want the mass, you have to make nutritional sacrifices elsewhere (right?).

Note quite.

From the “Official Sponsor of Hard Work” comes Ascent Native Fuel Whey Protein Powder. Now, does this rare “clean” supplement deliver on its expectations?

We’re about to find out!

[Read more…]

An Aesthetic Shoulder Workout for Mass (Bigger Delts)

February 1, 2021 By Jess Billitz

No matter what you call ‘em — shoulder caps, boulders, cannonballs, even coconuts (if you’re feeling a little risqué) — the shoulders are the black sheep of the upper body.

They earn a nice residual pump as you crank out incline bench presses and cable rows. But by the time you load the bar for military presses, those delicate deltoids are already destroyed.

Fight through the fatigue in the name of volume — risk overtraining or injury.

Sideline the delts altogether — never achieve bulky shoulders and that glorious V-taper.

Welcome, the newest addition to your current mass-building split … Josh England’s Cannonball Delts: The Ultimate 12 Week Shoulder Building Program.

Check out this aesthetic shoulder workout for mass (and pure deltoid destruction)!

[Read more…]

Aesthetic Calisthenics Workout to Build Dense Muscle

February 1, 2021 By Jess Billitz

The classic “gym bro” lifestyle just isn’t for everyone. Between the slamming weights, long wait times, equipment hogs, and achy recoveries, you wind up face-to-face with one brutal choice:

Bite the bullet in the name of gains?

Or sacrifice an aesthetic physique entirely?

The long-forgotten third option — calisthenics — is the middle ground we shun as “not good enough.” Push-ups and lunges could never compare to the real bench and squat … right?

Brad Borland’s Body Like a God workout puts this logic and more to the test.

Check out his aesthetic calisthenics workout to build dense God-like muscles.

[Read more…]

Ideal Male Body Measurements For “Perfect” Aesthetics

February 1, 2021 By Jess Billitz

90s-era bodybuilder and eight-time Mr. Olympia, Ronnie Coleman, brandished a 58” chest and 24” biceps in his prime. And the (somehow) still-undefeated boxer, Floyd “Money” Mayweather, touts a remarkably slimmer 40” pecs and 14.5” arms.

Both physiques are the epitome of “aesthetic” in today’s definition with:

Sub-5% body fat
Bulging defined muscles
Almost incomparable athleticism behind them

And yet, both physiques are worlds apart.

That begs the question: What constitutes a “perfect” aesthetic?

Is it reinventing yourself as Arnold 2.0 or a rebooted Steve Cook? Or is it chasing some unspoken “ideal” body measurements, like 17” biceps or 25” quads?

Let’s review the common schools of thought regarding ideal male body measurements for “perfect” aesthetics.

[Read more…]

Athlean-X TNT Workout Program [Complete Review]

February 1, 2021 By Jess Billitz

The normally-ironclad Athlean-X vault isn’t indestructible.

Unfortunate genetics and unresponsive muscles might leave you 90 days into the classic AX-1 program and wondering why your arms are still doughy, or your back is suddenly plateauing.

Or maybe you DIY your workouts and have a straggler — one muscle group that’s gone off the beaten path, stopped growing, and doesn’t seem to be coming back any time soon!

What you might need … is a little TNT.

Athlean-X’s TNT workout program gives a little TLC to an upper-body muscle that’s caught in a rut. But is this solo-muscle workout the secret to blasting plateaus and getting back on track?

Let’s find out.

[Read more…]