On Getting Ripped

Shawn Perine
Mon, 23 Jun 2014 21:00:00 -0700
Lifestyle

In bodybuilding, the term "ripped" is often applied to someone who has very little body fat. Although it may seem like a pejorative, ripped is actually high praise, because being ripped means having assiduously followed a strict diet while training hard, to achieve a lean, muscular look. "Hey, Man, you are ripped!" is music to a bodybuilder's ears.

I'm particularly acquainted with this term because I'm considered by most to be ripped. Typically I walk around in the 7 percent body fat range, and recently got under 5 percent for a photo shoot. I probably haven't been over 10 percent since I was 19, which is the last time I attempted to "bulk up," another bodybuilding term. There are definitely guys who are more ripped than me. We refer to them as being "shredded." But that's a whole other level of leanness entirely.

While I realize that most of you reading this have no desire to get down to 7 percent, and that maybe 10 percent even seems a bit too lean, you can get yourself to a low-normal body fat percentage by following a few simple rules, and by staying disciplined. In my experience, discipline is the area where nearly everyone looking to lose weight drops the ball.
Updated: Tue Jun 24, 2014

In bodybuilding, the term "ripped" is often applied to someone who has very little body fat. Although it may seem like a pejorative, ripped is actually high praise, because being ripped means having assiduously followed a strict diet while training hard, to achieve a lean, muscular look. "Hey, Man, you are ripped!" is music to a bodybuilder's ears.

I'm particularly acquainted with this term because I'm considered by most to be ripped. Typically I walk around in the 7 percent body fat range, and recently got under 5 percent for a photo shoot. I probably haven't been over 10 percent since I was 19, which is the last time I attempted to "bulk up," another bodybuilding term. There are definitely guys who are more ripped than me. We refer to them as being "shredded." But that's a whole other level of leanness entirely.

While I realize that most of you reading this have no desire to get down to 7 percent, and that maybe 10 percent even seems a bit too lean, you can get yourself to a low-normal body fat percentage by following a few simple rules, and by staying disciplined. In my experience, discipline is the area where nearly everyone looking to lose weight drops the ball.

A fair number of people approach me each month, asking how I stay so ripped, and how they can do the same. The first thing I do is ask them about their diet and training regimen. Often times they will tell me about their paleo or Atkins or other low-carb (especially processed) diet, of which I approve, and their exercise routine, which is often OK. Then I ask how strict they are about following this regimen, and that's when I begin to see chinks in the armor.

"I'll usually have a beer or two when I get home from work." "I'm really good about going to the gym, except for the past two weeks, when I haven't gone at all." "I follow a low-carb diet, except this weekend I really pigged out, and now I'm going on vacation, so I'll be eating all sorts of bad stuff."

I've heard all of the above, and more, and these are just a few of the reasons that most people don't get as lean as they want to be. Yet disparate as they are, they all indicate the same thing: a lack of commitment. A lot of us think we're committed to getting into great shape, but when it comes to getting ripped, or even just lean, you need 100 percent commitment. That means all the time. That means not going off the wagon on birthdays or holidays. That means not skipping the gym to watch the game or the season finale. Your body won't forgive you because you're on vacation: it will simply start storing fat and eating away at muscle, which is what it does when you're inactive and eating poorly.

Of course, you can schedule cheat days and days off from the gym. In fact, to achieve optimal results you'll want to do both. However, these are not haphazard affairs, and they are built-in to the grand design of your body plan.

Willpower is the order of the day when it comes to getting into prime condition. If you have it, you'll get what you want — out of your body and out of life. If you don't, you'll be wishing you did.