Don't try this at home, kids.

I recently started working with a trainer. I’ve always had trouble putting on muscle mass (called “scrawny” in high school).  My trainer told me that doctors sometimes prescribe testosterone for people with HIV. Do you think this is something I should consider? Would it help me put size on faster? —Rob, Pasadena, Calif.

Most people know that testosterone (like growth hormone) is an androgen that your body produces, so you need to see a doctor to determine if your natural levels are in keeping with a “normal” medical reference range.  This is really the first question you should be answering, i.e., “are my natural levels of testosterone too low?”

It may also be worth kicking around some questions developed by St. Louis University to screen for androgen hormone deficiency. You can answer the questionnaire here

If your natural levels fall below the normal reference range, you should weigh your options. There are many new delivery methods available—from patches, gels and creams to injections—so be sure to have a robust discussion with your provider.

Incidentally, there are other many hormones which can be screened by your doctor, including thyroid hormone, growth hormone, and free/total testosterone. These levels could also be checked and taken into account before making a decision.

I’d do everything you can to enhance your natural levels of testosterone. Make sure that you are eating a balanced diet, taking a multivitamin, getting enough sleep, and avoiding excessive caffeine, alcohol and nicotine. While it’s true that supraphysiological levels of testosterone and growth hormone will increase lean body mass, reduce fat, and improve well being—the long-term effects are largely unknown.

Also, ask your trainer to customize your workout. For instance, there’s some evidence that “multiple joint” exercises, (such as the bench press and squat) may play a role in higher levels of post-workout testosterone in the people who do them.

Ever since I first discovered bodybuilding in 1992, I’ve been amazed at how lifting weights truly grounds me. It’s kind of similar to what my friends say about yoga or meditation: it brings me a sense of clarity and peace.

In an eastern sense, my “western” weight room is my dojo; the weights are my sensei. Students of karate or meditation may relate to encounter some of the same lessons I’ve learned in my western dojo:

Enter only when you’re ready. Lifting weights is hard work, and doing it properly requires focus and discipline. Anything less, and at best you’ll have a lousy workout. At worst, you’ll thoroughly embarrass yourself or die. Enter the dojo only when you are 100 percent ready to give it your all—including your mental concentration.

Leave the Blackberry behind. The dojo is no place for texting.

Be in flow. During a hard, effective set, I feel a certain unawareness of the activity around me. Musicians, actors and athletes call it being in the “zone.” Mihály Csíkszentmihályi, a Croatian born psychologist and author of Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience defines being “in flow” using the following characteristics:

1. Concentration and focus: a high degree of concentration with a limited field of attention (you will have the opportunity to focus, and to delve deeply into it).
2. A loss of self-consciousness.
3. A distorted sense of time: (your subjective experience of time is altered).
4. Direct and immediate feedback (success and failure in the course of the activity are apparent, so that your behavior can be adjusted as needed).
5. The activity is neither too easy nor too difficult (challenge and ability level are balanced).
6. A sense of personal control over the situation or activity.
7. The activity is intrinsically rewarding, so there’s an effortlessness of action.
8. You become absorbed in the activity, and focus of awareness is narrowed down to the activity itself.

Do it for the sake of. When you’re in the gym, remember: this is all for you, so make the time in the dojo your own. You’re not there to impress your trainer, your spouse, or other gym goers. Do it because you choose to.

Clean up after yourself. After a workout, dojo trainees conduct a ritual cleaning of the space. This reinforces the fact that aside from the obvious hygenic benefits, the dojo are supposed to be supported and managed by the students themselves, not the instructors. So pick up that spray bottle and wipe down your equipment. It’s just good karma.

The gym thrusts upon us all sorts of awkward social interactions. Let’s demystify some of these weird situations.

A NAKED STRANGER STARTS TALKING TO YOU IN THE LOCKER ROOM
Unless you know the person, it’s impolite for him/her to be in your personal space while in the locker room. Politely ask him to step away into a zone where you feel more comfortable. If he persists in talking to you, brevity is key. Replying with short answers will indicate your disinterest in extending a conversation. Even better: try a blank stare. If they persist, a polite, “I’m sorry, but I gotta get going” is an good response

SOMEONE IS WEARING SUNGLASSES
In his workout book, “No Excuses” actor Antonio Sabato Jr. swears by wearing sunglasses in the gym because he says it help him concentrate. I’ve known actress Faye Dunaway to wear sunglasses while bench pressing and while I don’t recommend wearing sunglasses in the gym, it’s more embarrassing for the person wearing them. What to do? Don’t say a peep.

THE GYM BECOMES A FASHION SHOW FOR IMPOSSIBLY TIGHT CLOTHES & FETISH GEAR
This really is a fashion issue. Since 2006, I’ve seen a resurgence in denim, tiny, see through shorts, wrestling singlets, and in Hollywood, even a guy being led around on a dog collar. As with sunglasses, however, none of these fashion choices really intrudes upon your personal safety. Modern day workout clothes are breathable (or wicking) to prevent overheating. Spandex and lycra are helpful to prevent chafing from repetitive movements (e.g., in cycling or spinning). Unless someone’s attire is patently inappropriately revealing, try not to stare. And read the next question.

A GUY KEEPS STARING
Most people stare in the gym because they’re interested in watching you work out or because, as Paris says: “You’re hot.” Both of these reasons should be flattering, but it’s not always the case. An ex of mine told me that as a younger man, guys would stare in the gym to the point where he developed a complex. “I thought something was seriously wrong with me,” he said. “I didn’t understand why everyone was looking at me.” Today, he has more self esteem, saying: “I’m just a hot guy who others like to watch for inspiration.”

If someone’s boring a hole through me, I’ll acknowledge them by smiling politely, which usually discharges the energy. If they persist, consider saying: “I notice you watching me; did you want my autograph?” As you both laugh, introduce yourself, then abruptly end the interaction by saying: “Have a good workout!”

SOMEONE DOESN’T WIPE THE SWEAT OFF THE EQUIPMENT
Assume she forgot to wipe it off, and if you feel confident, approach the individual and kindly point out that he/she might have missed cleaning up the equipment. You can also ask the maintenance team to follow up. It’s ultimately the responsibility of the facility to ensure the equipment is sterile and MRSA free.

SOMEONE WON’T SHARE THE EQUIPMENT
Busy gyms usually enforce a 30-minute limit on cardio equipment. If your gym has a time limit and someone’s extending their stay, ask a manager to handle it. A gym employee reminding a member of the time limit will go a lot further in the long run. If someone’s on the weight machine you want, ask how many sets are remaining. If she replies with three or more, ask if you can “work in” (alternate) for a couple of sets. To be a good “work in” buddy, observe the weight they’re lifting and set it back to that weight before you hand off the equipment.

THAT BRUTE DOESN’T RE-RACK HIS WEIGHTS
It’s not uncommon to leave a couple large weight plates on a machine like the bench press. Set a good example and take pride in always replacing the weights on the rack where they belong and other people will follow. A good gym should have enough staff on the floor to keep the place from becoming a weight wasteland.

A NEWBIE HAS POOR FORM
If he/she’s endangering your safety (e.g., bench pressing without clips, so a plate could fall and hit your foot) then you must say something. But it’s not your responsibility to correct their form. If you’re just being overly conscientious because you’re concerned about his safety, alert one of the certified trainers on the floor and allow him/her the opportunity to give proper instruction. Trainers will value the opportunity to pick up a new client.

When Jerry O’Connell finally “arrived” in Hollywood, his life wasn’t the only thing that had changed—his body did, too. He tells Men’s Fitness:

Today Jerry looks great. He works hard in the gym, (and I know, because I’ve spotted him pumping weights and doing cardio at Equinox). But he’s also developed discipline around his eating habits. Instead of ordering a pizza after a long day of work, now he has a salad with fat free dressing.

The real secret to his hard body? Jerry stopped augmenting his diet with junk food and additives.

“‘Additives are bad,’ he said. “I found that just by cutting out booze, salt, and dressings, the fat just drips off you.’”

Photos by Men’s Fitness

HEY SAM: What’s a deadlift? —Tristan

The dumbbell deadlift, properly performed, is an excellent exercise to develop the back, core, glutes and hamstrings. To perform this exercise, observe the following training points:

1. Stand with feet about 8-inches apart and a dumbbell at each side of your feet.
2. Knees slightly bent, back straight and head up, bend at waist and grasp the dumbbells with both hands. Inhale on the way down.
3. Exhale and stand erect with the dumbbells in both hands while arms are locked out.

Lower weights to the floor with legs bent and inhale.  Remember to keep your abdominal muscles contracted throughout the movement to develop a strong core.

Shredded in Barcelona in ’07 (left) and 1 year later, back in L.A.

AS A TRAINER IN HOLLYWOOD, not a week passes that I don’t hear about the “latest, greatest” TV show revolving around weight loss. Sure, it makes dramatic television, but what about people who face the opposite challenge—that is:  gaining lean body mass? Enter: Scrawny to Brawny: The Complete Guide to Building Muscle the Natural Way, a book conceived for ectomorphs, or people genetically engineered with this problem.

To put on muscle, you need to do away with the “vanity” exercises such as bicep curls and focus on the basics.

Know Thy Body Type. There are three human body types (or somatotypes).  Ectomorph (just described), endomorph, (a pear-shaped frame), and mesomorph.  The latter is the “classic” gymnast or bodybuilder type, (short muscles and thick, compact frames).  Most of us fall somewhere in the middle.  If you’ve fallen prey to the exercise and muscle magazines in your quest to become more toned and muscular, you’re wasting your money.

Train with basic, multi-joint weight exercises. Forget isolation exercises, such as bicep curls, lateral raises, calf raises. You should be doing squats, deadlifts, pull ups, bench presses, military presses, and dips.   You need to train with the heaviest weights you can safely manage with these exercises.  These exercises train the largest muscles in the body, and therefore have the most growth potential.

Slightly modify those exercises to better suit your body type. Ectomorphs generally have longer bones and this means that they have to move the weights through a greater range of motion than their mesomorph counterparts.  Therefore, it is essential to make some alterations to the traditional exercises named above to “mimic” the ROM experienced by mesomorphs.  On the bench press, ectomorphs should use a close grip (6 inches closer than shoulder width) and should bring the bar down only to about four inches from the sternum. On the squat, you should adopt a much wider stance (6 inches wider than shoulder width on each side) and point the toes slightly out, at 11 and 2 o’clock, respectively.  On the deadlift, you should adopt a closer grip, and keep the bar as close to your body as possible.  “The more vertical the path of the bar, the less strain imposed on the lower back,” say the book’s authors.

Train with intensity, but less often, getting plenty of rest. Rest is often overlooked as a pillar of muscle growth. In a nutshell, if you’re an ectomorph, it’s better to train two days a week, with maximum intensity, and plenty of rest in between, than it is to train 3-5 days a week on a “split” bodybuilding/fitness magazine style routine.

Eat more quality, nutrient-dense calories. Eat, eat, eat!  Sounds easy, but it’s one of the things many people have difficulty with.  It’s important to get several high-calorie, but nutrient dense meals, every day.  You must always, always, always…consume a protein drink after every workout.   While it may be “hard” to eat this many calories the authors suggest that it’s also hard to do a lot of things. But if you really want a bigger, more toned and more muscly body, then you need to give your body the nutrients it needs to grow.

NOW LISTEN UP, RECRUIT. If you want a leaner, harder body in time for summer, you must take action right now.  Here are a few basic building blocks to cleaning up your diet and shedding that fat. (I’ll add to this list often, so check it for updates).

Eat often, and listen to your body (eat when hungry) but get into the habit of eating 6 small meals a day and NOT 3 squares. A “meal” is considered 1 serving of carbs and 1 serving of lean protein. If you don’t eat both, it’s not a meal.  A “serving” is about the size of the palm of your hand.

Eat breakfast. Don’t ever skip it. It truly is the most important meal of the day.

Practice Zen Cheating™ (a Sam Page Fitness original). If you absolutely must cheat, I want you to get a chair, and sit in front of a mirror. Then, watch yourself while you eat or drink whatever it is you must have.  Become fully conscious and fully aware of each bite, and watch your Adam’s apple as you swallow.  This is a remarkably effective way to curb addiction.  You can cheat as often as you like, but you must practice Zen Cheating.™

Consume a meal-replacement drink containing high quality protein within ONE HOUR of weight training.

Food is fuel. Before you eat, ask yourself: “Self, what am I going to be doing for the next 2 hours?”  If you’re going to be sitting around in the house, don’t eat so much. If you’re going to be going to the gym, eat accordingly. You should think in terms of fueling your body for what you’re doing next, not eating for what you’ve already done. (more…)

HEY SAM:  You mentioned “shocking” the muscles when you work out and doing different exercises. Does that mean that every time you work out, it’s good to always change your workout, or should you be consistent and change your workout routine every couple weeks? -Joseph, Los Angeles

The body responds rapidly to any weightlifting or exercise routine. Yes, it’s important to continually challenge your muscles by “mixing it up.” When I train clients, I make sure to change up their routine (on average) every 4 weeks (or every 8-12 workouts).

The theory behind this is called “periodization” which means that workouts should be periodically changed to make them effective.

You can “periodize” your weight workouts by trying these 6 steps, in order:

• CHANGE THE ORDER. Do your current workout backwards. For example, if you generally finish by training abs, on your next workout, start with abs and work backwards.
• CHANGE THE REP PATTERNS. If you generally lift in four sets of 12, consider changing your rep pattern to an inverted pyramid (i.e., 12, 10, 8, 6, then 12) or change the number of repetitions for a given set from 12 to 15, or 20.
• PLAY WITH THE WEIGHTS. If you’ve become accustomed to a certain weight on an exercise, try reducing the weight and working with higher rep patterns with extremely strict form. Or if you’re using light weights, try “upping” the weights to heavier amounts and doing fewer reps (again, with very strict form).
• CHANGE THE EXERCISES. Probably the most obvious thing to do is to do different exercises to hit the same body parts. For example, if you’ve been doing squats, try lunges or the leg press instead.
• CROSS TRAIN. Remember that the goal of weight training, for most of us, is not to become a competitive bodybuilder, but for “real life” strength. Cross train your muscles, using circuit training, “boot camp” like classes, “core” classes, and other types of training that brings resistance work to a new level.
• TRAIN YOUR WEAKNESSES. I’m a sucker for a good pull-up, because they are by far my worst exercise. But I manage to do several pull-ups every day in my quest to improve. What are your body’s weaknesses? Be honest about them, then hit those areas in the gym with rigor and fierce dedication.

“Pride goeth before the fall” may be the mantra soon plaguing the misguided marketing team behind Gatorade, launching this lame ad campaign trying to re-brand the time-honored sports beverage as “just G”.

Or is it just a big inside joke being played out on us consumers?

Don’t they know that club kids often mix the street drug GHB with Gatorade?  It’s a problem among bodybuilders too.  Just last week, in the Philadelphia suburb of Falls Township, a bodybuilder was accused of giving GHB-laced Gatorade to a co-worker at the gym where he worked:

[GHB] is often ingested by bodybuilders to calm down after a strenuous workout. Police say it is also used as a so-called date rape drug, because it puts users into a deep sleep.

Krueger, who worked in the sales department of the club and was not a bodybuilder, did not use the drug, prosecutors said. Schwendiman allegedly offered Krueger a sip of GHB-laced Gatorade while the two men were at work but did not tell him what it was. A witness told the grand jury that Schwendiman told the victim “trust me, you’ll like it.”

Several hours later, prosecutors said, Schwendiman dropped Krueger off at a hospital emergency room, where he was pronounced dead. When questioned by the grand jury, Schwendiman allegedly denied using GHB and giving it to Krueger.

All these bad associations, plus this lame re-branding? I for one ain’t drinking the Gatorade any more. Besides, there’s newer (and more efficient) electrolyte replacement technology, such as Enlyten’s SportStrips. When placed between your cheek and gums, these tiny strips (which look like breath strips) deliver electrolytes through buccal absorption.

If you’re on Facebook, you’ve likely been “tagged” with this Internet meme, in which you’re supposed to share 25 things, facts, habits or goals that your friends don’t know about you. Like a chain letter, you choose 25 people to be tagged, (tagging the person who tagged you). If I tagged you, it’s because I want to know more about you.

Here’s my list:

1. I moved to Los Angeles 12 years ago, and while I’ve found so much success and happiness here, I miss living in a smaller town.
2. I’m trying on the idea of a life without shame.
3. A quote that’s really stuck with me:
   “Great minds discuss ideas. Average minds discuss events. Small minds discuss people.” (Eleanor Roosevelt).
4. I’m planning to enter a bodybuilding competition this year to uncover what’s physically possible if I honestly cleaned up my nutrition. I’m using a great website to track my nutrition (thanks, Eric).
5. At 6-foot-3-inches and 230 pounds, I’m somewhat clumsy and struggle with spatial awareness. Like, this week while training a client, I nearly tipped over backwards when I tripped over my own foot. Luckily, I caught myself.
6. After eight years bleaching my hair, I’m making a conscious choice to embrace the gray, a la Anderson Cooper.
7. Sex, sunsets, Bronson, and licorice. What more does a guy need?
8. I love film scores, and they’ve formed the soundtracks to many periods of my life. A few of my favorites: Brokeback Mountain, Moulin Rouge, and Run Lola Run.
9. I eat a peanut butter and jelly sandwich pretty much every day.
10. My favorite food used to be chicken fajitas, but it’s been replaced by my mother-in-law’s slum gullion, which is sublime.
11. I consider myself a Zen Christian, a term coined by my college journalism professor Michael Kirkhorn (R.I.P.) On that note, I believe that a historical person named Jesus existed, but I don’t believe he was the only manifestation of the divine. I believe there are many names for what we call “God” and that no one religious sect has a corner on the truth.
12. Speaking of college, I attended Gonzaga University in Spokane, known for its basketball team. After graduating with a double major in speech and journalism, I made ends meet working as a funeral singer.
13. I’ve performed in the following operas:  Die Fledermaus, the Ballad of Baby Doe, and La Boheme.  I’ve auditioned for both the Metropolitan and Los Angeles Opera companies.
14. The habit I’d most like to break is biting my cuticles.
15. I found a copy of Playgirl when I was 5, and shoplifted a red Speedo at age 13. Seven years later, at age 22, I came out as a gay man. I was diagnosed HIV+ at 29, after a year of performing in adult films. I’m not implying any kind of cause and effect—that’s just the timeline.  I have no regrets.
16. For the last five years, I’ve been working full time as a personal trainer. My decision to become a trainer was directly informed by my desire to take my health and fitness more seriously in the wake of the above diagnosis. But, I’m not perfect and I’m always trying to find balance and get out of my own way.
17. If I forget my headphones in the gym, I’m screwed. I work out almost every weekday, but I don’t do enough cardio. As a way to keep me accountable, I started posting photographs of the LED screen from my time on the cardio machines to my Facebook profile.
18. I’m rethinking how I feel about the terms “fag” and “queer.”  I get the whole “reclaiming the word” thing, but I reject that the words ever belonged to the gay community in the first place. How can a pejorative term ever be reconstituted as positive?
19. The physical accomplishment of which I’m the proudest is completing the 2000 AIDSRide from San Francisco to Los Angeles, which took 7 days and a whole lot of Gatorade.
20. The first book I remember reading is Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak, but I don’t really like fiction.  I have a tattoo of  the main character, “wild” Max, on my right shoulder.  My second tattoo (the word “Discipline” across my back) took four hours. The tattoos taken together represent for me the dynamic tension of my life experience.
21. The last book I read was Where’s My Fifteen Minutes by Howard Bragman—a really great read.
22. My favorite sound are “I’m home,” which is tied with the sound of a rainstorm pounding against the roof.  The two together?  Heaven.
23. My favorite quote of all time:
    “I want to beg you, as much as I can, be patient toward all that is unsolved in your heart. Try to love the questions themselves—they are like locked rooms or books written in a foreign tongue. Do not now seek the answers, which cannot be given you now because you would not be able to live them. And the point is to live everything. Live the questions now. Perhaps you will then gradually, without noticing it, live some distant day into the answer.” (Rainer Maria Rilke,  Letters to a Young Poet).
24. I don’t agree with Rush Limbaugh or Dr. Laura, but I listen to both of them. Show me an absolutist and I’ll show you a hypocrite.
25. Everyone should work in a bar at least once. It’s a microcosm for the whole world. Also, there’s no place on Earth more humbling than a porn set.