The V-Maker Program
The V-Maker Program is the modern guide to creating the classic male physique. It has all my thoughts and ideas on muscle building from over 20 years of training and coaching.
“My quest for the classic male physique, the one I have been chasing all this time, required more than just a commitment to the physical realm. I had to craft the process itself. The V-Maker builds a body that looks and performs. It is guided by the science of the body, but without the dogma that permeates the space.” — Excerpt from the V-Maker
In this program, I reveal everything I know to be true about lifting weights, building muscle, and the ultimate end goal of body transformation.
Although there is no cookie-cutter program or process, many fundamental training concepts that have led to the world’s most incredible physiques can be applied to the everyday gymgoer.
This program is for the natural trainer. For the layman that puts in the work every day and wants a physique to match. If you have been training for years and don’t have much to show for it, then you’ll understand why I went through the process to build this program.
If you are an athlete, CrossFitter, or weekend warrior, you’ll want a supplementary program that puts pressure on what matters the most. The muscles that provide shape and function, a body that looks and performs.
“This piece of work is my contribution to the community and my life’s work to this point. It is for anyone pursuing a well-built, muscular look with the physicality and ability to apply it. If what I say here resonates with you, continue to press on and know that your mind, body, and character will be forever transformed.” — Excerpt from the V-Maker
How the Program Works
The V-Maker is a complete program that consists of the main lifts (I call them primary movers) and a series of specialty lifts that shape the body to align with what is known as the “Golden Ratio of Bodybuilding.”
The primary movers are necessary components of any program and must be done with heavy weights to produce a constant and continuous change in the body. Without them, you’ll have nothing more than a program of bro splits and temporary pumps.
In the V-Maker methodology, the heavy lifting creates a solid foundation upon which a well-built man is formed. I believe there is simply no way around it; you must lift heavy.
Primary Movers
The primary movers are compound lifts consisting of variations of the following:
Squat
Deadlift
Bench Press
Pull-up
Shoulder Press
Row
The V-Maker program will provide cues to perform each movement and a visual depiction. Each movement also has a link to a YouTube video that acts as a guide. I did not create these videos, and I openly encourage each reader to spend time watching videos of other reputable sources. I believe there are tons of well-produced video content that are worth watching, so I did not spend the time to make them myself.
Accessory Lifts
The V-Maker accessory lifts are the core of the program. It is what separates the V-Maker from every other program in existence, and it is what transforms the shape of your physique.
“The V-Maker program is what some would call a specialty program. It applies relentless pressure to shape the muscles that will transform how you look. How do I know? Because they are the muscles that inform the Golden Ratio of Bodybuilding. They are designed with the sole purpose of building a thick and wide back, adding mass to every angle of the shoulder, broadening the chest, and tightening the waist.” — Excerpt from the V-Maker
The V-Maker accessory lifts consist of various muscle shaping movements such as the lateral shoulder raise, but also bring to life certain concepts like holds, isometrics, and pauses. Certain forgotten classics, such as the wide grip bench press to neck (aka Gironda Press), are also included since they are unmatched in what they do.
Types of Programs
The V-Maker has a beginner training template for training three days per week and an advanced template for 4–5 days per week. Each template provides a primary mover to train heavy and various V-Maker accessory lifts.
Each training session begins with a heavy lift with the primary mover as a focus. Then, you’ll transition to building and shaping the muscles that will get you closer to that classic look we all aspire to. In the V-Maker program, you are hyper-focused on getting stronger, building muscle, and reshaping the muscles that directly impact the Golden Ratio of Bodybuilding.
It may sound simple, but the simple path is the path to progress. In many ways, simple does not mean easy. People like to mix up their workouts because they get bored and lack the ability to follow through, not because of the scientific notion of muscle confusion.
Trainers everywhere love to talk about mixing it up to “keep things fresh,” but hardly anyone talks about doing the same things over and over again in the pursuit of mastery. If you adopt the mindset of a stonecutter, you will keep pounding away at the rock until it breaks. You will embrace the process, knowing that each blow is one step closer to your end goal.
“When nothing seems to help, I go back and look at the stonecutter hammering away at his rock perhaps a hundred times without as much as a crack showing in it. Yet at the hundred and first blow it will split in two, and I know it was not that blow that did it — but all that had gone before.” — Jacob Riis
Learn to Love the Process
If you keep pounding away at these principles informed by the Golden Ratio of Bodybuilding, your body will begin to change. It takes time, lots of it, and the best way I know how to ensure long-term success is to learn to love the process.
The thing you must enjoy the most is the mundanity of the day-to-day. Although some days are epic, most are repetitive, boring, and uninspiring. It is here, in the daily grind of both mind and body, that success is found. The manifestation of our life’s desires is dredged in the depths of our control if only we can let go. If only we can summon the fortitude to endure.
Like Angela Duckworth, the master of grit said, “Enthusiasm is common. Endurance is rare.”
So, the question then becomes, are you common or rare? It is easy to be common; it doesn’t require much effort. Most people are common, even if they appear to be successful.
To become someone rare, it takes grit, the combination of passion and perseverance. Success is not enough for uncommon people. Instead, they measure their days based on the standards they set for themselves.
A stonecutter might say, today, I am going pound at this rock until it cracks open and 10 hours later, he is there swinging his hammer in pursuit of the standard he set for himself. It is not the goal of splitting open the rock that keeps him going, it is the standard he set.
If you learn to love the process, the standard you set for yourself is the only thing that matters.
My passion or “burn” is to learn and grow every day, inching closer to my true potential while simultaneously pushing the limit on what that is. This program was created with a similar goal: to put relentless pressure on the muscles that make the most difference.
“Day by day, rep by rep, inch by inch, you will close the gap on your true potential, both in the gym and outside in the real world where it matters the most.”
The V-Maker is currently available for purchase here.
You can also view my Medium blog for articles on training, diet, and mindset or my publication on living a high-performance lifestyle.
