Challenging your body more during each workout builds conditioning, muscle tone and strength. This will make your overall physique far superior than it was back in January. (It better!)

 

But those who started too hard, too fast or too soon have probably burned out by now. Know your limits while pushing further with each workout.

 

In this phase, we're going to take it up a notch with circuit training. Circuit training breaks plateaus--sticking points in muscle growth--while revving metabolism, burning fat and stimulating muscles. By the time November approaches, you can expect more endurance, more muscle definition and faster recovery.

 

WORK THIS: Cardiovascular Training: Time to rev this up by incorporating more speed. Whatever your cardiovascular training is--running, rowing, jumping rope--do it a little faster.

 

Resistance Training: Accelerate this to improve on muscle growth and definition. For the next two months, you need to speed this up. The greater intensity will provide stronger pumping of blood to the muscles, improving localized muscular conditioning.

 

Circuit Training: Short, sweet and to the point. Basically, circuit training combines cardio training with resistance training. You pick one exercise for each muscle group, then work the exercises in succession, resting only a minimal amount of time between each.

 

This will increase your cardiovascular system's strength and tone your muscles while using body fat for energy. It should take only 30 to 35 minutes.

 

Start every workout with 15 minutes of cardiovascular warm-up. It gets your heart rate in a target zone.

 

After the 15 minutes, immediately start your resistance training. Don't rest! Staying in your target heart rate makes your body burn its fat for energy.

 

Choose one exercise for each major muscle group: chest, shoulders, back, biceps, triceps, thighs, calves and abs. Do 20 repetitions within 30 seconds, resting only 15 to 30 seconds between each. Go as heavy as you can for 20 reps.

 

Do eight to 10 exercises to complete one circuit. Work up to three circuits per workout. Do this five times per week and you'll be peaking your physique!

 

TARGET THIS: Deltoids: After your circuit training, get psyched to work your shoulder muscles--the deltoids.

 

Take a pair of dumbbells and sit on a bench. With your arms hanging down at your sides, raise the dumbbells laterally to shoulder height while breathing out. Lower them slowly while breathing in. Repeat this movement for eight reps.

 

Then raise the dumbbells forward until shoulder height--repeat the same way for eight more reps. Immediately raise the dumbbells to your shoulders--press overhead for eight reps. This'll set your delts on fire! For maximum build on your delts, try to work three nonstop sets per workout.

 

EAT THIS: As you are inching your way toward reaching your potential and maximizing what God has given you, keep this key element in mind: Eat food compatible with your body.

 

How do you know if your current diet is compatible with your body? Well, if you have digestive disorders or constant drowsiness, it's time to take a hint and change up that diet.

Eat lean meats, vegetables and some dairy to get more protein. Try to eat 1-1/2 grams of protein for every 2 pounds you weigh.

 

Include fruit at each meal. Work toward balancing your protein, fats and carbohydrates. But make sure to eat carbs during the day when your body is active--not as you gear down for the night.

 

You should be drinking at least half your weight in water every day by now. Keep up with the multiple vitamins, antioxidants and liquid trace minerals.

 

PRAY THIS: God placed responsibilities on our shoulders. As men of faith, our natural order is to lead. But with leadership comes accountability. Challenge yourself to live a lifestyle of leadership by pursuing Christ one-on-one.

 

Then let's move in confidence to become accountable leaders. The beauty of being men of faith is that everything centers around God, not us. Knowing that takes away the pressure of failure.

 

Paul tells it like it is in Philippians 1:6, "Being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus" (NIV). Press on, guys!