The “ZZZ” playbook for MORE muscle
Here’s what I wish someone had told me when I started training: sleep is not a bonus. Sleep is the most anabolic thing you can actually do nightly without the use of steroids.
The night everything felt different
It was a Tuesday, i think. Training had been fine, not special. I’d already told myself the lie we all do (“i’ll get an early night, 100%”) and was mid scroll when I forced myself to put my phone down, showered and slept asap.
I made it stupidly simple:
Brush teeth, get a hot shower, open a real book.
Bedroom set to cold without duvet, cosy under it.
Night mode on everything. Phone on the other side of the room like it owed me money.
I woke up before my alarm feeling… bliss. Squats MOVED. The pump felt crazy. Hunger was quieter. Nothing else changed, same program, same macros, different sleep quality. I ran that exact night on repeat for a week. PRs didn’t rain from the sky, but everything felt 10/15% easier. Which, if you care about lifting, is HUGE.
Jet lag, gremlins and the “coach in my ear” trick
Fast forward: I’m on a late flight with multiple crying babies, landing at stupid o’clock. Old me would white knuckle the next day with coffee IV and a heroic failure of a leg day. New me plays boring but unbeatable:
Morning light the next day (even if it’s cloudy, even if I look dead).
Short walk, moderate training only, no PR hunting.
Two meals before I even consider sleep.
Same cool, dark and quiet cave at night.
If the 11pm gremlin whispers, I literally say out loud: “Not tonight.” Then I brush teeth. Brushing is my “scene change” once the mint hits, I’m done eating because anything I try to isn’t a pleasurable experience.
Is it glamorous? Not really. Does it save my lifts? Every time.
“But I’m a night owl”
Me too! Here’s how I tricked myself without pretending I’m in bed at 6pm like a Victorian child:
I slid bedtime 30 minutes earlier every few nights, not all at once.
I set a wind down alarm (mine says “close the laptop or lose tomorrow”).
I made the bed a two thing zone: sleep and… extracurricular activities. Work and scrolling happen anywhere else.
Not perfect. Just better. And “better” compounds.
Final takeaway
Sleep is not glamorous. It doesn’t look good in a Instagram reel. But it’s the difference between working hard and getting paid for the work. If you want help setting this up around real life, shift work, travel, the 11 pm gremlins, that’s literally what my coaching is for: train hard, sleep smart, eat like a human and let the results stack.
