“A man is a success if he gets up in the morning and goes to bed at night and in between does what he wants to do.” —BOB DYLAN

ALPHA TRAIT #2 Confident—But Not Cocky

• Fat doesn’t make you fat. It’s necessary for hormonal balance. • Heavy weights don’t make you bulky. Don’t fear them; they are your friend. • Yoga is not just for girls. Yeah, we said it. • The bench press is not the king of all chest exercises (try the push-up). • There are muscles in your legs. Work them—especially your hamstrings and glutes. •

The Alpha understands that anyone who can’t be a little self-deprecating is taking life—and himself—too seriously. He’s humble and hungry, but he gives himself credit where it’s due. And he never, ever loses faith in himself.

Rule #3. Embrace ego as a mechanism to become more confident.

The hardest part about this entire book won’t be the workouts, the diet, or finding a way to make time for all the sex you’ll be having. It’s going to be letting go of ideas that you “know” are facts.

That’s one of the main reasons why diets with protein are so great; the more protein you eat, the more calories you burn. Carbohydrates are less metabolically active (about 6 to 8 percent burned), and fats are the least metabolically active (about 4 percent burned) despite being the highest in calories and great for your testosterone levels.

If you want to eat, go for it. And if you’re concerned about potentially losing a little bit of muscle, then follow our lead and take BCAAs (Branched-Chain Amino Acids, the building blocks of protein). They are not necessary, but they get the job done. And what’s more, researchers from Syracuse University found that simply adding amino acids before

When you accept who you are and appreciate who you can be, your confidence immediately becomes much more genuine, your insecurities become less potent, you create more control, and you experience more success.