How I Met My Girlfriend

What's going on everyone? Welcome to today's video. It's another beautiful day in lockdown in London. Look at that beautiful sun. It's my little outdoor setup. So today we're gonna sit down, we're gonna have a little chat. I posted a Q&A on Instagram, we're gonna answer them over here. So right now I'm just on my little vlogging camera, but look at the setup that we are doing for the Q&A. Getting nothing but the best quality here on this channel, so give it a thumbs up and let's get into it. Hey, let's get right into it. Question number 1, how are you dealing with the lockdown? This was asked a lot, and I have to say I'm dealing with it pretty well. You know, I've got like, it's actually perfect timing that I moved into like this dream apartment of mine. You know, I got a great kitchen, I got all my workout equipment outside, it's nice and spacious. I've set up the office in there, which is just ideal. I got the home cinema, I got Linda here with me behind the camera, and so it's really good, and I'm very grateful for that, you know, and it's just good timing. Good timing. Good timing to have a world pandemic. It's good timing that when I moved into, you know, an apartment that I absolutely love, that we're now forced to spend all our times inside. So I'm dealing with it very well, and I'm very grateful, which is something that we're going to go into later on. So a few questions about how to stay positive during the virus. But yeah, so I'm doing great, really. I can't complain. Favorite place to drop in Warzone: Call of Duty? I like to just chill in the lumberyard, or the dam is very nice and calming, and just ease my way into the action. I'm a noob, by the way. Got my first win on BOR solo the other day, so I'm just saying, it was a big moment. Maybe I'm not a noob anymore. Would you say you've lost gains throughout this lockdown? I would say I have not lost significant muscle. Like I said in my whiteboard video, it's actually quite difficult to lose large amounts of muscle. Like, I've been training for 10 years. Do you think in 3 months that's just gonna wipe out my progress? No, especially I've got pretty decent equipment here. I've got like decent set of dumbbells, kettlebells, pull-ups, dips, uh, can do loads of bodyweight stuff as well. I'm definitely gonna maintain all my muscle, gonna lose a little bit of strength, but that's just gonna be down to some neurological factors. So your body kind of forgets the motor patterns of doing movements like squats, bench, deadlifts, all those barbell movements. But you'll regain those gains very quickly. So once I get back in the gym, week or two, I say I'll be back to normal. But yeah, I'm doing good here. My arms are looking like less pumped, but you know what? Could be worse. Could be worse. You know, we'll survive. Does Linda enjoy being your Insta-girlfriend? Yes, she does. Linda helps me so much with recording, like even just making sure I'm in focus. She takes all my pictures for online content, so she helps me massively with that. And there's also a question that, you know, why isn't Linda in more of the vlogs? And when we first got together, like, she's not a YouTuber, okay? She's not even like a social media influencer, whatever you want to call it. So the last thing you want to do is start sticking a camera in someone's face, you know? And I don't think it's also the best idea to constantly be plastering your relationship online. So yeah, Linda loves what I do. She's so supportive and Maybe drop a comment, leave the video a like, and she'll get in the videos more. How about 5K likes on this video and we'll do a couple's Q&A? Yeah! Okay, deal, right? 5K likes on the video, Linda will get on the camera. Okay, perfect, right? There you go. Are you still gonna do a show after this whole period? Big question and— Ruined my Q&A. Does anyone else just order so much random shit off Amazon? Like, seriously. The question was, are you still gonna do a show after this whole period? So, I was talking about this. Caroline O'Mahony because we're meant to be doing the same show and competing around the same time. We're saying after this lockdown, the last thing I want to do is go into a strict prep. And I think like everyone's kind of feeling that, like once this lockdown is over, everyone wants to go out, be social, have fun, travel. And like, it's— I think that's a very important thing to do. I'm obviously gonna compete again sometime in my life. I just need to find the right time. But right now it's just so uncertain. And yes, just crazy times. I really did not see this coming. Like, you guys saw the first like 5 or 6 episodes. I was so motivated to prep. I was in such a good position. Like, me at like day 30 out of 90 of my prep was like just exactly where I wanted to be. I knew I was going to bring my best after that 90 days, and then this just happens. But you know, it's all right. Like, worse things could happen. And yeah, you just got to be grateful and have a bit of perspective. So I'm not too worried about it, and I'll square off some time to compete again when the time is right. Will you be doing any more books? That is a good question. And so I wrote that book, The Game Plan, just to cover all the basics. And the main reason was actually to reach a new audience, the audience that isn't watching YouTube videos, the audience that isn't on Instagram. So different crowd altogether that are kind of like, you know, might walk into a shop and come across my book. So kind of a more mainstream audience because it's just always been my goal since day one to get more people lifting, more people hitting the gym, and more people like actually knowing what they're eating and being mindful of their nutrition, their calories and macros. That's always been the goal since day one. And I wrote that book to get all that, that information that you'd find on YouTube and in the kind of YouTube bodybuilding community, but that you wouldn't really see in a bookshop too much. So I did that, you know, the book sold really well, but in terms of income and You know, what I do online and ebooks and guides and apps are always going to be the way forward for me. So maybe in 10 years I'll write like a book that's nothing to do with fitness, like just a book about my life, like X-rated version. I don't know, I'm sure I'll write another book in my lifetime, but I've got like big things coming in terms of the, the app world and the online fitness world. So, so much, so much more to do. Which is your favorite gym you ever trained at and why? Campy Raw Gym. So, had to think about this, and in no order, Alphalete Gym, not just saying that, Christian isn't holding a gun behind my back, like in the back room there. Alphalete is legit one of the best gyms I've ever trained at, and I cannot wait to go to Alphaland. That'll probably be one of the first trips that I go on as soon as Donald Trump allows travel to the US. I'll be going to Texas to catch up with all my Texas buddies. Gold's Gym in Venice is just an experience. Like, if you were to ask me, What my ideal day would be, be to wake up in Venice, you know, go down, get a little bit of froyo for breakfast or some pancakes, digest, go for a lift in Gold's Gym, get some sick photos, meet some cool people there, then walk down the beach and go for a poke. There's like this sick— it's called like the Poke Shack on Venice. It's unbelievable. And just people watch and then watch the sunset. That's probably like my ideal day. We have done that. I've done that many times, and it's the best. I'm like peak happiness if to choose a London gym, without a doubt, King's Gym. It's a little bit far away, there's just two of them in London. They're like proper warehouse feels and the lighting is just amazing. It adds at least 10 pounds of muscle. And to add to that, I was actually just talking to the guys from Raw there and obviously all gyms in Ireland are closed down and it was just recently announced that gyms will be closed down until August 10th, which is one of the last things to open, which is killing me. But you know, it is what it is. But anyways, August 10th, it's going to be like gym Independence Day. I'm going to fly back to Dublin, so that's going to be great. And I can't wait to go back. When you travel, how do you find a good gym and ask for temporary membership? Oftentimes when I'm going somewhere, especially like America, gyms will like reach out to me and they'll be like, hey Rob, you know, watch your videos, seen you're in the area, let me know if you want to get a lift in. So the gym community is super friendly like that. If not, I'll always just pay the day pass because trying out a new gym is actually one of my favorite parts of lifting. Like, that's one thing I miss so much as well. Is the actual experience of going to the gym. Like, I can do bicep curls standing in my back garden or standing in the gym, and it's just completely different even though I'm doing the same thing. So it's a whole experience. It's choosing your gym outfit, it's making your pre-workout, it's, you know, calling your buddies and you're all going up together, it's the music, it's the atmosphere, it's, oh, maybe I don't have this machine in my gym. Going to the gym for me is just like an experience, and I think it's one of the best feelings in the world when you leave the gym after an amazing workout. And, um, so yeah, I love trying out new gyms is basically what I'm trying to say, especially in different countries. How much does gains impact success with the ladies? Now I'm about to give you the red pill here, okay? So many people be like, it's all about personality, oh, you know, it's all about character. True, true, that's the main thing. But if you get two guys with great personality, even personality, even levels of confidence and ambition and all that, if one of them is physically fit and physically healthy and the other isn't, that's obviously a good thing. That's obviously a bonus. Like, how can people say being physically fit is— it will not help with the opposite sex? So yeah, it absolutely does, but obviously it's not the main thing. Oh yeah. You gotta make her laugh as well. You gotta make girls laugh. What has life taught you so far? This is like— that's like the title of a book. Like, you could like write a book on that. If I was just answering off the top of my head, just do it all. Experience as much as possible. And life, the older you get, the faster it goes. Um, so really just get out there, get stuck in, try loads of different things. If you're lucky, you'll find something that you're really passionate about. And then just do that loads. So yeah, experience it all. And like, even like the bad experiences, like kind of relish in them. Like that's character building, that's gonna make you into who you are. So that's what life has taught me, so get stuck in. Rob, what type of career would have been most suited to you in a pre-social media age? So when I was in school, before like smartphones were even invented or social media was even popular, I actually wanted to own a nightclub. Or like a hotel or something like that. I don't know why, I just, I think I played like Grand Theft Auto or something and I was like, "Nike Leboner, Rob Lipsett, nice." And so that's what I wanted to do when I was younger. Then obviously I discovered fitness and got into the online world and everything. Go watch the 10-year transformation video if you kinda want my story on that. But yeah, so I guess like something social that involves people and be running something, something entrepreneurial, so yeah. And also another one that was asked a lot is what would I be doing if it wasn't fitness? I think it would be something again to do with social media and it would be to do with events and marketing because that's what I'm interested in. How do you stay motivated during lockdown? Again, one of the most asked questions and kind of the answer is like, I don't. Like there's some days where I literally achieve nothing. Like there's some days at the end of the day I'm just like, I'm a waste of space. So, you know, I'm not gonna pretend to be like this Terminator, super motivated the whole time. It's not the case at all. It's such a weird time, and it's like we don't even know what date it's ending at, so it's very hard to have something to work towards, and it's hard to have, you know, we can't see the ending. So motivation is difficult, even for me. But with that said, luckily I do have a few projects going on. Most of my work is done online, so I can still keep doing that. And then I do, you know, work out in the back garden there, back patio, whatever you want to call it. But yeah, motivation comes and goes, and really what you want to work on is your self-discipline. That's what's going to get you out of bed in the morning, that's what's going to get you exercising. So yeah, work on your self-discipline really. But yeah, I'm not motivated the whole time. And on top of that, like, you know, I'm like training less and less intensely, and I'm relaxing on my diet a little bit. So like, you know, get your work done, keep looking after yourself, But, you know, don't beat yourself up if you're not as productive or motivated as you usually are. Besides the gym, what's the biggest thing you've missed during lockdown? Alright, the obvious ones like gyms, restaurants and stuff, but it's like, I miss people. I miss like walking into like a pre-drinks and being like, "What's up, man? Haven't seen you." Or like a bar and you just see your old friends. Like, I miss like people watching. I miss like sitting in a restaurant and having like atmosphere. You can order the food from the restaurant, like everywhere is doing delivery now, but like I miss the actual atmosphere. Of people. So yeah, I miss people and places. That's the answer. Do you need to be shredded to do a fitness page? So this is a common question people ask, is do you need to be, you know, shredded to start an Instagram or YouTube, or, you know, to be a personal trainer, do you need to be in really good shape? You can be in really good shape, you could have the best abs and the biggest biceps, but that doesn't equate to knowledge. So oftentimes there's a ton of personal trainers I know, and you know, they're not in the best shape. They don't look like pro bodybuilders, but they're super knowledgeable, and that's what makes them a good personal trainer. Now, does it help if you've also got knowledge and you're in really good shape as well? Of course it does. That's going to be hugely beneficial. You don't have to be shredded or in mad shape to start out on social media. I certainly know I'm not the biggest, leanest, or the strongest. I put a lot of effort in my content and connecting with my audience. So does it help? Yes, of course it helps massively, whether you're online or an in-person PT. It even probably helps you motivate your clients if they see you walking the walk along with talking the talk. My final answer on that is no, that being in good shape doesn't automatically equate to being a good trainer or being very knowledgeable. But it does help. Dream car? Okay, now it's always been the Audi R8, okay? And like, I just think it's like, you know, Lambo is a little bit over the top. I'd be like worried to drive that down to shop, or the Urus, but a little bit more accessible. But now maybe I'm getting old, but since moving to London, I've been seeing G-Wagons everywhere and they just have a presence. Like when they drive down the street, they're like, they're like home. So I now think I want to get a G-Wagon, matte black or matte army green. We like walked by this one the other day and just fell in love with it. So yeah, G-Wagon is currently what I'm obsessed with. Or a nice Range Rover. So how do you keep a positive attitude and mind even on days when you're feeling down? And I also got asked, how do you keep a positive mindset during lockdown and quarantine when all this is going down? I was kind of like thinking about not giving this answer because like it's kind of weird, but like I'm just a weird person and I, I'm, I think deeply on certain things. I do a very positive mindset as well, which is like kind of like my default now, but Here's what I think of, okay, and it's kind of dark, it's kind of weird. I think of all the horror and the terrors, the war. Like, if you ever read a book on World War I or like a documentary, it's like, it's insane, like the struggles people go through. The earth is an insane place, like the evil, the horrible stuff has happened in the history of mankind. And you think of all this evil and suffering The way I— what I say to myself is like, how dare I complain? Like, how dare I have the audacity while I sit in my lovely flat in London when there's just people going through so much hard things in the world? And I'm very self-aware of how easy we have it. And if you're on Wi-Fi watching this, you've probably got it pretty easier than a lot of people in the world too. So I just apply a bit of perspective and think deeply about the suffering that goes on in the world and just be very grateful. And once you get this like deep level of kind of gratuity that it's very difficult to not be positive, and it's very difficult to complain. And when you, when you're thinking about like how grateful you are to be in the position you are and you find yourself complaining, you kind of like check yourself. I'm kind of like, what, what are you doing? Like, shut up. Like, how dare you? Um, so that is kind of how I keep a positive mindset. It's a little bit weird. Yeah, you can say I'm strange, but that's just how my mind works, I guess. So yeah, no excuses. Be happy. If you got food in your fridge and Wi-Fi and heating in your house, you're doing well. You're doing well. Would you ever consider moving to the United States? If so, where? That was where I was actually working on moving, and then we ended up deciding on London, um, because it's just so much paperwork and so much red tape to move to the United States, and then the whole visa application actually got closed down with this pandemic. So I'm kind of glad I chose London in the end, because with Irish, you can just move to London and, you know, just rent somewhere the same place you'd rent somewhere in Dublin. It's an hour between the two, and, you know, you don't need like a visa or anything. You just move over. It's very simple to move. There's a lot of Irish in London. A few of my best friends are here, um, so like I don't even feel like homesick or feel like far away. But one day I would love to live in the US, and I would live in either LA or Texas. LA just because, like, you know, it's amazing, it's so cool. But Texas is, you know, also an amazing place too, and I have so much connections there. So be one of the two. And I've just heard the quality of life in Texas is great too. Why did you start YouTube, and when did YouTube become your full-time job? So I kind of touched on this in the 10-year transformation video, and I started it because I watched so much American YouTubers, and I was like, "Ah, no one in Ireland is really doing this." And still, I encourage more Irish people to start YouTube. I said this 5 years ago, like, there's videos of me saying this. It's such a gap in the market, you know. We're very, like, kind of afraid to put ourselves out there oftentimes because, you know, Irish love to slag each other off, like, that's okay. And, you know, you just got to understand that's the Irish humor and you got to embrace that. But I think way more Irish people should start YouTube, and there's a huge gap in the market there. And when did it become my full-time job? Within about 7 or 8 months, maybe 6 months, and it started to make more than my main job, my office job. I was working 9 to 6 at a desk. And so when YouTube made more than my— what I earn per month is then when it's safe to leave, pretty much. And that's my advice if anyone is thinking about quitting your job, is wait till you've got a side hustle that's making more than your main job. So wait till it's safe to do so. Also guys, if there's any new like up-and-coming Irish YouTubers that I should check out, it doesn't matter if they're not into fitness, uh, please comment them down below. I love seeing other Irish creators and supporting them. Who was your first sponsor? How'd you get it? Love your videos, man, such a genuine guy. Thank you. Like, I'm not actually like just calling myself genuine, like I'm not like making up these questions. And my first sponsor was NXT XT Nutrition, which again is an Irish brand. And it was just like, we had a few mutual friends and it was just a few free supplements. I'm not even sure if the brand is still going, but I end up becoming an affiliate with Myprotein then. Then I end up signing a contract with Myprotein and kind of working my way up through the ranks really until I was like pretty much the face of the brand. And like I was on all the banners at expos and everything. And then I got approached by GHOST and I knew all the team so well, like Christian, Max, I even knew Dan and Ryan. And so there was no bad blood with Myprotein at all. I've done a video on that as well, and I just thought it was time to kind of change things up. Like, people, when I would promote Myprotein, they're like, I've seen this hundreds of times. So I decided to just go with a brand that's kind of new and interesting, but I still got love for like all the previous companies I've worked with. Like, I think that's important when you're in the social media era, is like, is never be on like bad terms with a company or someone else. It's just like not a good reflection of you. So yeah, Myprotein are great, Ghost are great, but to answer the question, NXT was the first brand I was ever with. Best moment in your London life so far? Let me see, how would I answer that one? Because there's a few moments where like, you know, I've got such cool stuff coming later in the year that I can't really talk about, so there's a few moments where I sign a contract be like boom, but I can't really go in on that. But there's a few really big moments so far, and you know, we're only a few months in. But in terms of like really enjoyable moment was actually the last time we went out, which was February 14th, Valentine's Day. We went to this place called 1947. It's like an Indian restaurant. It's like, it's really fancy, it's really nice. And you know, it's actually the last time I drank alcohol as well. And yeah, we just had a lovely evening, and then I started my prep. The day after, yeah. But yeah, so I remember just, that was like an amazing night. And yeah, definitely go check out 1947 if you're in London. It's a beautiful restaurant. And I'm also gonna do a video on like May 14th, 3 months with no alcohol, you know, how do I feel and all that. I've done it a few times in the past where I've like gone off alcohol for a while, but I've never like talked about it on video. So yeah, be good. Favorite philosopher? We follow a lot of the same sort of profiles. It's got to be either Plato or Plato. Sounds like a gym plateau. It'd be Plato or Marcus Aurelius. I don't know if I'm even saying that right too, but both of them are just savages. Seneca is also a ruthless bastard as well. I'm a philosopher now, Linda. Philosopher Lipsett. I'm a modern-day philosopher. Next question. Right, how is your life? Life is great, obviously given the circumstances. It's as good as it can be. But I was saying to Linda last night, like, we feel like we're sitting the Leaving Cert, which in Ireland, that's like our version of the GCSEs. Is that it? But it's like if we're sitting like exams and we're just waiting for it all to be over. And I think when it is all over, you know, everyone's just going to be in such a good mood and very happy and the economy is going to boom and life's going to be good again. But life is great right now, given the circumstances. I can't complain. Where are you moving to after London? Okay, we're saying seeing as we probably won't get much of a summer this year, okay? We're thinking the lease here is up in January, and I would either stay in London for another year, either go back to Dublin and buy a house, or I'd love to do like 3 months in Bali. Like, that's what we're talking about, because like it'll be hot at that time of the year, and like I'm 28 now. It's like, you know, I know you're never too old to travel, but like the older you get, the more responsibilities you have. You know, maybe you have kids, you can't just— you can't just feck off and travel Bali for a few months. So this could be like the last chance we get to kind of do that. Well, we've been there twice. We've been there twice, but like not like live there, you know, um, not like rent a place for like 3 or 4 months and like set up base there. So I think it'd be really cool to do Bali for like January, February, March, but we'll see. So there's 3 options: Bali for a few months and back to London, and Bali for a few months and maybe back to Dublin or just rent for another year in London. We'll see, gotta decide, and I'll probably decide over summer. Yolo! Wanderlust! How's lockdown affected your income? Actually, pretty not much. Pretty not much. It hasn't really affected it much at all because, well, first of all, most of what I do is based online, like 90% of it really. And then, so while some things may have suffered, such as events, you know, I can't compete can't do expos, I can't do any talks. Other stuff goes up, such as book sales have huge spike in them recently. Shout out to everyone who's picked up a copy of the book. Be sure to tag me on your story, means a lot to me. Um, app sales are still really kind of the same, and even people are buying more ebooks and guides because they want to kind of something to read during quarantine and they want to improve their knowledge a little bit. So overall, it's kind of like the same, and very grateful for that, but because, you know, obviously there's some sectors such as, for example, the travel industry which has taken a big hit. So yeah, I'm very grateful for that as well. And also, you probably heard a lot, don't put all your eggs in the one basket, diversify your income, because— and this is probably the best example of that— if one thing gets taken out completely, if a worldwide pandemic comes along and completely closes down one source of income. It's good to have a few other options. So yeah, you know, diversify your income and don't put all your eggs in the one basket. How determined are you at watching what you eat and counting calories every day? Right now I am not tracking at all. I'm still kind of like— because I've spent so many years tracking and keeping a food diary, it's like ingrained in me. Like, I will be 70 years old and I still will look at a chicken breast and be like I spent 30 grams of protein in that. Like, it's just, it's never leaving me. So I'm always mindful of what I eat. And when I look at a meal, like, it's like I'm like a robot. Like, I'll see numbers pop up. And so I'm always mindful of what I eat and try to keep my calories not going too wild. But I'm not tracking at the moment. And me and Linda, we've been getting a few takeaways and stuff and just having a nice little time in quarantine. When I'm, for example, competition prepping, tracking track every single gram of protein, carbs, and fat I consume. There's kind of like degrees of how rigid you track and how extreme you want to take your body composition. So if you want to step on stage, obviously you're gonna have to be very rigid with tracking, track every calorie you consume. Whereas if you want to tidy up your diet a little bit, loosely tracking is fine and just making better food choices. Where did you and Linda meet? I like how they spell Linda. Linda. 'Where do you and Linda meet?' So I was throwing a little get-together at my place, and okay, I've known who Linda was since I was 16 years old, okay? Like, even younger. Like, she was always— she was in a school in Kildare, like not too far away, and in my school we'd always talk about Linda, you know? We'd always like, we'd see her on Bebo and Facebook and be like, 'Whoa, look what Linda Smith posted!' But we never met. and then we've got loads of mutual friends, and then one night in October 2018, yeah, you were home from London. So Linda was living in London and she was home for one weekend only, and her friends were like, hey, can we bring someone to your apartment? I was like, yeah, fine, who is it? And they were like, oh, it's this girl Linda Smith. I was like, okay, play cool, play cool. I was like, ah, yeah, yeah, I suppose she could come up, yeah, no worries. And then so she came in and I was just amazed by her. I just couldn't take my eyes off her. And yeah, and then we just hit it off from there. So yeah, that was October 2018, and then we started going out in February 2019. So together, well over a year now. We'll do the Q&A. The people are probably— she's in her pajamas now. The people want to see the lane. Advice for a skinny guy wanting to join a gym but has low self-esteem? Just get that out of your head, okay? You're gonna go into a gym and and it's full of people that are all there to improve themselves. Okay, so it's actually gonna be quite a positive atmosphere, and everyone's gonna be focusing on themselves. No one's gonna, you know, look at you funny or talk down upon you, especially if you're in like a good gym with a good community. Do not worry about it. You'll probably end up making loads of friends there. And yeah, it's all in your head, man. Don't worry about it, and it'll be one of the best decisions you ever make in your entire life. Hopefully this video There's a few people out there who are apprehensive about starting out in the gym, and they join it because they hear this. You know, that's my mission complete. But don't worry about it. It's all in your head. And you go in there, you practice good gym etiquette, use good form, and there's nothing to worry about. And realize that when you go in there, there's going to be people from all walks of life and all levels of expertise. It's like there's always someone on day 1 of their gym journey in there. You know that you're not alone. You're not the first person to ever join a gym. Like, everyone has to start somewhere is what I'm trying to say. So don't worry about it, get that out of your head and enjoy. It's going to be an amazing journey. When can we see a baby Rob on the way? Not till I'm in my 30s at least. But I do definitely want to have kids one day. Like, I want to— see, I'm Robert Lipsett the Third, so I gotta have a baby and call him Rob again. I do. Robert Lipsett That's some Game of Thrones shit. King Rob the Fourth. So yeah, I gotta pass on the, uh, the Lipsett legacy. Was it hard to start vlogging in public when you started? Yes, especially because when I started in 2014, that YouTube wasn't kind of as socially accepted as it is now. And nowadays, like, people will be walking down the street doing like Snapchat or Instagram Story or IG Live, you know, recording things is a lot more normal now. Whereas back in the day, if you're walking down holding like a vlogging camera or your phone like this, people would look at you really funny. And you know, you're starting out, you're kind of like, what the hell am I doing? So yes, absolutely, it was difficult to start, but you just gotta stop giving a shit and just go for it. And what I would tell myself back in the day when I was walking down the street vlogging, someone may turn around and be like, what the hell is that guy doing? But I'm never gonna see them again in my entire life. It kind of blows your mind when you think about it. Is reducing rest time a form of progressive overload? Big fan, by the way. Thank you. I talk about progressive overload a lot, and that's basically just, you know, progressing in your training. And there's a lot of ways you can apply progression, and essentially it's anything that makes the exercise more difficult is a form of progression. So is reducing a rest time a form of progressive overload? Yes. Okay, but we also have weight, increasing weight, reducing rest time, even slowing down tempo, increasing reps, increasing total sets and volume. But when you think about it like this, okay, what's the best way to apply progressive overload? It's weight. Increasing the weight on the bar or the dumbbells or the machine or whatever it is. And here's why, okay. Are you just going to keep reducing your rest time until it's like 2 seconds between each set? No. Are you going to keep increasing your reps until you're doing 3 sets of 100? No, that's ridiculous. Are you going to decrease your tempo so much that you're doing the movements so slow that you can hardly see that you're doing them? No. So in a practical sense, the best way to apply progressive overload is to add more weight, whereas if you're trying to do all these other variables, it just doesn't play out in a practical sense. So reducing your rest time, yes, it will make things more difficult, but there's only so much you can do. And it's also the most easy to track as well. So there's many reasons why weight, increasing weight and getting stronger, is, is the best way to apply progressive overload. But right now, in times when we're stuck in lockdown, we're gonna have to be a bit more creative and look at stuff like reps, like tempo, like reducing rest time and making things more intense. But hopefully gyms will be back one day. Cardio while bulking, or HIIT to prevent excess fat, or neither? Cardio when bulking. Basically, people talk about like dirty bulking, clean bulking, and it's all just about the surplus you're in. So you don't want to let your surplus go crazy. There's no need for it to go over 500 calorie surplus. I actually don't even recommend over 300 calorie surplus, especially the more advanced you are. And so if you want to minimize this surplus or offset it with some cardio, it's also good for your health, which is very important, then yes, for sure, that's a great way to do it. So it's not essential, but it definitely does have benefits and it will help keep that surplus a bit more reasonable. I'm all for cardio while bulking. Gotta be keeping healthy. What do you miss most about Ireland? Definitely raw gym, my family. I said raw gym before my family. What do I miss most about Ireland? My family, the gym, my car. It's like, it's still got to figure out what I want to do with that, especially like if I go to Bali or travel for a few months, I can't drive it over there. Gym, car, family, and also the kind of terrain. So like the mountains, the sea, like, you know, you can't really go on hikes in London, certainly can't jump into the sea. I hear Hampstead Heath is nice, it's got like a diving board or something. So hopefully we'll get there when things are more open again. But yeah, they're the 4 things I miss most about Ireland. Family, the people, car, gym, and kind of just the actual landscape. When eating out, do you eyeball the macros or just budget calories beforehand? Usually a mix of both. And what I like to do is, or what I recommend doing, is when you eat out, overestimate. Okay, the chefs don't care about your macros. They don't, unfortunately not. I'm like, bro, I'm on a cut, you should care about this. They just care about making the food taste as good as possible. So there'll be like extra sauce added, they'll cook it in oil, you know. So always overestimate if you are, you know, on strict cut and eating out. If not, if you're just keeping in shape, then, you know, you don't have to be obviously as extreme about things. But, um, yeah, really boat, you know, I'll save some carbs for later in the day, some fats, and then also eyeball the food. Another good one as well is like if you're, you know, you know you're meeting some friends for a big lunch, skip breakfast. Save your calories for them. Not that complicated. And especially like what I tell people to do, like in my top 10 beginner mistakes video, if you just look at your nutrition as a whole day, it makes things so much easier to picture in your head. Like, you've got a calorie and macro allotment for the whole day, and if you just pick that and distribute that, pick your battles how it suits you, nutrition gets so much more simple and easy. And, and doing this mindset, doing this way at looking things is one of the things that allows me to stay in good shape year-round. Really killing it today. Advice for a 22-year-old lad in today's world: self-improvement, tunnel vision, work on being the best man you can be for the next couple of years. Be selfish with your time and just be the best version of yourself. That is the best advice I could give a 22-year-old lad in today's world. Do loads of bicep curls as well. How long do you think it'll take for the world to go back to normal? I am not an expert, like, at all. I know as much as you do, really. I am very optimistic though. Like, I always just kind of hope for the best and stay positive. I'm like, "Ah, it'll all be fine." I think come August everything is going to be, you know, pretty much flowing because, like, the economy will suffer otherwise. Ireland also laid out a really kind of detailed plan, like, giving exact dates. And what exactly is going to open up on those dates. So I thought that was really good, and I hope the UK do that soon as well, because I think having those dates is key for keeping people's morale high. Like, once you have those dates to look forward to, I think it makes life a lot easier for some people. Going off the image that the Irish government put out, things will be all open come August 10th, but I don't think that the world is going to be like fully normal again Maybe ever, if not 2021, if not ever. Like, that's life, you know, the world is always changing and we're living through history, which is kind of a cool way to look at things. Relationship advice for a 21-year-old. Okay, this is a hard one to answer because obviously everyone's got like different circumstances, so I'm just gonna say what I would personally tell my 21-year-old self. And I would just say to— kind of like the advice of what I'd give a 22-year-old lad— is You know, don't get bogged down by relationships. Like, you're so young, okay? Like, if you're fighting with your girlfriend constantly and, you know, it's just really stressful on your life, like you're in a stressful relationship, get rid of it, move on. Like, odds of you marrying someone— I know there will be a few people that marry someone that you're with at 20 or 21— it's just very slim, okay? So don't, like, worry about it. Don't let it affect your life negatively. And And again, just focus on yourself. Like, these are like real coming-of-age years where you should really be kind of enjoying life, living life to the fullest, and not letting like just someone that you might not even know in a few years' time completely affect your life negatively. So yeah, relationship advice: don't take it too seriously. You're 21, you're a kid, you're just about allowed to drink alcohol in America. So yeah, you know, don't take it too seriously. What's your excitement level for Alphaland? It is huge, okay, because kind of more so than other people, like, I'm directly involved in the brand, you know. I'm sponsored by Alphalete. I have been since 2016, I think. You know, I think I was like the first athlete to sign with them, and I'm just so close with everyone behind the brand. So I'm, I'm very excited, and I feel like I'm, I'm involved. And so I can't wait till we're all back together just making content there, meeting all you you guys doing events, and it's going to be amazing. And that's one of the trips that I'm looking forward to most in 2021. Have you ever made any bad business deals or investments? Nothing like substantial, nothing like Tiger King. I'm never going to financially recover from this. Nothing like that. But I've definitely, like, you know, done some stuff where, like, it just didn't really benefit me at all, and the other person, you know, would have gotten really the benefit. Like, it wasn't a fair deal. But I've never been like screwed over completely. But there has been a lot of people that would try like take advantage of me, but I'm very wary of that. Um, so yeah, there's been a few like business deals or investments that like I haven't made a return or resulted in nothing, uh, but you know, nothing catastrophic, nothing on Joe Exotic's level. Words of advice for someone going into the fitness industry/personal training? It is kind of like what what I said at the end of my 10-year transformation video. This is my closing out words. Do it because you want to help people and improve people's life. Don't do it because you want to be like a superstar PT and make loads of money. If you actually focus on helping people and improving people's lifestyle and providing value, that's what's going to help you grow in the fitness industry, and that's what's going to make you be successful in any industry. So we're going to close things out there. I hope you enjoyed just some couch chats with Rob Lipsett. I hope it helped you pass a little bit of time in quarantine. And yes, I'll see you in the next video. Much love, keep it real, and matter.