How To Be Athletic AND Aesthetic

This right here is the million dollar question.

How can you be athletic AND aesthetic.

How can you perform as good as you look.

How can you look like a fitness model while also being able to perform like a football superstar.

How can you be lean and muscular while being powerful and agile.

Don't worry my young padawan, the master Jedi Souleymane has arrived to lead the way.

With training only for athletics OR aesthetics you get one side of the coin.

Aesthetics will make you look good, but you'll move like a wood plank, stiff and a slave to your physique.

Athletics will help you perform good, but your physique will be mid-tier and you won't be catching eyes.

Combine both though and you'll be a superstar anywhere you go.

You'll look like a model or celebrity while being able to move and perform like you're in the NBA or NFL.

But Why Go Through All This Trouble

What's the point of going through all this trouble.

Cause we know it's gonna take some work (or will it…)

Why train so hard, play sports, and exercise all to be athletic AND aesthetic.

Because it will:

• Keep you healthy and mobile

• Increase your longevity

• Allow you to look as good as you feel

• Get you more women

• Get you more money

• Make you more charismatic

• Get you respect

You can have your cake and eat it too?

100% you can buddy.

Cause let's take a look at both sides of the coin.

If you're only aesthetic, sure you look good but it doesn't mean much.

When you move, try to play a sport, or go ham on some bedroom cardio your movements will be sloppy.

You aren't used to moving your body through space.

This is because aesthetics is all about being muscular, proportional and lean.

And to perfect that, all you do is lift weights in the most optimal way for muscle growth.

This doesn't involve running, jumping, flexibility, quickness, or anything used in athletics.

It involves pumping a muscle and getting it just right like we're in Goldilocks.

Now take athletics.

Athletics makes you STRONG, POWERFUL, and EXPLOSIVE... depending on the sport you play.

When it comes to sports (football, basketball, boxing, etc.) you have to be strong, powerful, and explosive.

In sports like golf and tennis, it's much more technique, endurance, and flexibility driven.

But the issue comes in when it comes to the look.

No offense to people like Steph Curry, but if you take away his NBA status he's not turning heads everywhere he goes based off of looks.

All due respect to football players, but take them from their sport and a lot of them are overweight, but EXTREMELY strong guys.

That's why context is always important.

Cut To The Chase

Ok ok I know I've been rambling on and on about athletics and aesthetics.

Now comes the MILLION $$$ question.

How do we become athletic AND aesthetic.

Luckily you have just the guy for that.

I am VERY aesthetic.

AND I'm a DI football player.

I can throw down dunks and run fast, while also being able to do a full splits.

I am perfectly suited to take on this challenge.

First we need to dissect each aspect.

Being aesthetic involves 3 things:

1. Proportions

2. Muscles

3. Leaness

Proportions mean you are balanced.

Think V-taper, upper body to lower body ratio, and shoulder-back ratio, as well as your abs.

Muscles of course are how big your muscles are.

You don't want muscles as big as a bodybuilders, but you don't want to walk around looking like a twig.

You want semi-big muscles, that allow you to fill out the clothes you wear.

And leanness of course is the definition in your muscles.

The vascularity, shredded, and "pop" look that comes from having muscles while being lean.

Being athletic involves 3 things:

1. Power

2. Speed

3. Agility

Power is your applied strength.

It's how you can EXPLODE off the ground to catch a ball.

Or EXPLODE on a punch to deliver a crushing strike.

Or EXPLODE on a ball and crack a forehand.

Speed of course is how fast you are.

Are you running quickly off the line?

Are you able to run past your opponents?

Agility is the grace with which you move.

Do you change direction quickly?

Are you flexible enough to move gracefully as you play?

How Do We Get Both?

Simple.

1. Training

When a lot of you go to the gym you do simple 3x10 to progress.

That is over with.

From now on when you go to the gym you are going to focus on strength in your compound movements.

These include:

• Benching

• Squatting

• Deadlifts

• Power Cleans

• Handstands

• Pull-ups

With movements like this, use a rep range of 4-6.

Focus on moving the weight with good form, and going up in reps or weight every training session.

When it comes to isolations we are gonna use a rep range of 7-10.

These include:

• Curls

• Calves

• Shrugs

• Shoulder Raises

• Tricep Extensions

With these movements you can focus more on building muscle since these smaller muscles respond better that way.

And you'll still be able to move heavy weight, with good form.

Same as compounds, focus on doing more reps and more weight EVERY training session.

Remember muscle is a byproduct of strength.

If you can get strong in your compounds, and use this strength to move more weight on your isolations you will get STRONG and GAIN MUSCLE.

2. Running & Jumping

Running of course refers to endurance and sprinting.

This will involve either running sprints or jumping.

Run 20, 50, even 100 yd sprints a couple times/week.

Also, jump on boxes, and drop from boxes so you can gain explosive power while also being able to control it.

This allows you to apply your new strength to the movements you use in your athletics.

You will become fast and explosive by doing this and you will naturally become lean.

3. Flexibility

Put the focus on becoming flexible so you can access greater ranges of motion.

This involves stretching and working on your mobility.

This will allow you to go deeper in the movements, prevent injury, and apply more force and power.

The more flexible you are, the easier it becomes to move, and the more graceful you can move when playing a sport.

If you have ever seen a basketball player play, they are fluid and smooth in their movements.

There is no stiffness.

Only fluid movement that allows you to move gracefully while avoiding injury.

4. Play a sport.

And don't forget to play a sport you love.

Whether it be football, basketball, soccer, or tennis it doesn't matter.

Since you have gotten strong, applied this strength to speed and power, and gotten flexible.

When you play a sport you put this all together.

You will be able to run faster.

Take on contact and be stronger.

While moving with agility and grace.

This will also act as a form of long-endurance cardio.

5. Diet

When you eat you want to make sure you are eating clean nutritious foods.

Put a big focus on eating protein, fruits and veggies.

Protein will build muscle, fruits and veggies will deliver vital nutrients and act as pure energy sources.

Eat until you are satisfied.

There is no need to overeat and "eat big to get big."

Remember, you aren't bodybuilding.

Your focus is on becoming aesthetic and athletic.

This involves eating whole and nutritious foods that fuel and feed your body.

Recap

To summarize, it's easy to become aesthetic and athletic.

It requires some small adjustments to training and focusing on what you want.

1. Train in the gym to gain strength on compounds and train to gain muscle on your isolations

2. Running & plyometrics to get fast and explosive power.

3. Flexibility to access more Range of Motion & prevent injury

4. Apply your power and agility to the sports you play

5. Clean diet to fuel your body

It's not rocket science.

And it's a better way to train.

With training only for athletics OR aesthetics you get one side of the coin.

Aesthetics will make you look good, but you'll move like a wood plank, stiff and a slave to your physique.

Athletics will help you perform good, but your physique will be mid-tier and you won't be catching eyes.

Combine both though and you'll be a superstar anywhere you go.

You'll look like a model or celebrity while being able to move and perform like you're in the NBA or NFL.

In this new age you must become a Renaissance man.

You must look good and perform good while also being smart and making money.

I know, it's a lot, but it's the price of greatness.

No one said it'd be easy, or else everyone would be doing it.

Luckily there is a way to do this with only 3 hours of training per WEEK.

Stay tuned...

And stay blessed.

Souleymane.