Three in the morning: That's when Bodybuilding.com's video crew showed up at Kris Gethin's Boise, Idaho, digs to follow the bodybuilder-slash-businessman-slash-adventurer through a typical day. They found him already awake and preparing his day's meals. You read that right: He values fresh flavors so much that he preps every day, hours before the rest of us wake up.
But that was only one of the revelations that came from this adventure-packed ride-along with the mastermind behind DTP training and the Kaged Muscle supplement line. Grab an extra-large coffee, jump in the Jeep, and try to keep up.
Kris In The Kitchen
When Kris lived in India—a largely vegetarian country where he filmed the 12-Week Muscle-Building Trainer—he relied on fish as a major source of protein in his diet. It's no surprise, then, that today, he readily admits he's sick of the taste. But curiously, it's still a mainstay of his diet.
Fish tasting bland? Gethin prepares the catch of the day with powdered peanut butter and cinnamon.
How does he do it? His secret is to top the fish with a paste of powdered peanut butter, cinnamon, and a little water, then wrap the fillets in foil and toss them onto the George Foreman. "It tastes awesome," he offers. "All of a sudden, eating fish isn't quite so bad." In fact, he puts so much cinnamon on his breakfast, he says, "I feel like I'm having a Cinnabon."
Throwing More Plates Than A Greek Wedding Party
Longtime fans of Kris know he's always searching for new ways to surprise his musculature into growth. No weight, machine, or movement is off limits. His current tool of choice? The weight plates themselves.
If you're suspicious at first, hey, that's normal, but rest assured, you'll still feel like you've been put through the Gethin ringer by the end. In this unique shoulder workout, he starts with isolation-focused single-joint movements for the individual heads of the delts, rather than powering right into presses like many lifters do. The end result: no joint pain and a terrific pump. Who could say no to that?
But that in no way means this workout is easy. Kris combines rest-pause and extended sets to make sure you'll be struggling to get your shaker to your mouth afterward. You can get the entire Plates of Pain routine here.
Out Of The Gym, Into The Elements
The day's training isn't yet done by any means. The weather is unseasonably warm in his adoptive hometown, so Kris heads outdoors get his cardio by mountain biking in the hills above Boise. Post-workout, it's finally time for a meal of peanut-butter-and-cinnamon-flavored fish. It's cold by now, but he confesses, "I eat my meals hot or cold; I don't give a shit. You gotta control your environment, not get controlled by it."
Gethin wrapped up the day's activities with an active meditation: paddleboarding out on a small lake to free his mind, another habit he brought over from India. "For a while, I thought if I'm doing this bodybuilding thing, I can't really do anything else, especially when I was competing," he says. "But I guess now, I let myself enjoy other things."
The best kind of cardio is done outdoors, and a cool pond offers gethin an opportunity to reconnect with nature.
In just a few hours, he has tended to body, business, mind, and spirit. Who could ask for more?
The man behind Kaged Muscle marches to his own drumbeat, but he remains a great example of the well-rounded lifting life.