READ TIME: 5 Minutes

This week, I’m keeping it lean — just like my abs and your macros should be.

No fluff. No filler. Just four bite-sized takeaways to help you train smarter, eat better, recover faster, and think sharper.

👀 Here’s what’s inside:

• A smarter way to train your hamstrings (without the balancing act)
• The high-protein hotel breakfast that keeps my diet on track
• How I’m turning a heart issue into a cardio comeback story
• The hair growth serum that tanked my recovery (and what I learned)

Let’s dive in. 🚀

Pillar #1 – Training: A Better Way to Do Single-Leg RDLs

If Single Leg RDLs feel more like a circus act than a leg exercise, you’re not alone.

Balancing on one leg while hinging at the hips can make it hard to feel your hamstrings working — especially on Tonal. The cables and constant tension makes balancing more difficult.

Enter the Kickstand RDL (aka B-Stance RDL).

✅ Both feet stay on the ground for better balance
✅ You still load one leg at a time
✅ Hamstring & glute gains without the balancing act

🎥 Here’s a short video on how to do it correctly on Tonal or with free weights. Watch below 👇

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Pillar #2 – Nutrition: My Go-To Travel Breakfast

Most people eat like absolute garbage when they travel...

They act like calories don’t count in airports, hotels, or business events. But as one of my clients (who travels 3 out of every 4 weeks) put it:

Business travel isn’t a vacation. And you’re not a dog or a child — you don’t need a treat just because you’re away from home.

Here’s the exact breakfast I ate every single day on a recent work trip to Scottsdale with my wife:

🥚 Egg white veggie omelet – High protein, low calorie, keeps you full
🍞 Dry or lightly buttered toast – Adds texture and carbs for balance
🍓 Fresh fruit – High volume, low calorie, packed with fiber and antioxidants

(Potatoes are typical here, but fruit is the smarter swap: fewer calories, more fiber.)

This meal hits all the macros, keeps you full, and gives you a ton of wiggle room for dinner, where portion sizes, alcohol, and social pressure are more likely to derail you.

Pro tip: Start the day healthy while you’re in control so dinner doesn’t derail you.

Pillar #3 – Mindset: From Setback to Adventure

A few months ago, I got hit with something unexpected:

A 10.6% PVC burden and irregular heartbeat.

(Part genetics, part me not doing enough cardio.)

But for someone whose main training goal is hypertrophy or building muscle, this was… not ideal.

I had two choices:

1. See it as a setback
2. Treat it as a challenge — and a new adventure

I chose the second.

Instead of forcing the same approach, I shifted:

💪🏻 Strength training: Now 3 days a week, shorter, more efficient workouts with upper body emphasis.

❤️ Cardio: 3 days a week, focusing on increasing my VO₂ max and heart health by building a foundation with Zone 2.

😴 Rest: 1 full day off to support recovery & adaptation.

Low VO₂ max is actually one of the strongest predictors of early death. Stronger than smoking, diabetes, or high blood pressure (Mandsager et al., JAMA 2018).

So yeah… it matters.

The first few Zone 2 sessions were brutal. Thirty minutes felt like a marathon. But I slowly built up to 45… then 55… then 60 minutes.

Crazy as it sounds, I've even started enjoying them!

I added Netflix to make the sessions easier. I also restructured my strength days to match my recovery needs.

All this led to me seeing progress, and like Tony Robbins says, “Progress is happiness.”

Most importantly, I embraced the process.

I didn’t let it derail me, instead I let it redirected me.

Sometimes growth means pivoting, not pushing harder. Especially when your health forces the issue.

Pillar #4 – Recovery: Great Hair, Terrible Recovery

A few weeks ago, I started using a topical hair growth serum that I learned about from Bryan Johnson (AKA The Don't Die guy).

It had all the heavy hitters: finasteride, minoxidil, caffeine, melatonin, etc.

The good news? It worked.

I noticed a huge decrease in shedding confirmed not by lab tests, but by the most scientific tool of all: the shower drain.

The bad news? My energy and libido tanked.

I couldn’t figure out why considering, I was...

• Sleeping 8+ hours
• Eating clean
• Not drinking
• Taking more IV drips than Joe Rogan

Worse, my HRV plummeted and my recovery was in the toilet no matter what I did.

I even contacted Whoop support to let them know my strap was clearly broken... because there’s no way these stats belonged to me.

Finally, it hit me…

💥 It was the serum. 🤦🏼‍♂️

Minoxidil (the strongest ingredient) can:

• Increase resting heart rate (Olsen, 2002)
• Potentially lower HRV (Kloner et al., 1980)
• Worsen palpitations or PVCs in some individuals (Dunn et al., 1980)
• And in some cases, lower energy and libido (Carbone, 2020)

I didn’t want to believe it because, honestly, I don't want to lose my hair. But I finally pulled the plug (pun intended).

Within a week of stopping the serum:

✅ HRV went up
✅ Recovery went green
✅ Energy and libido came back
✅ My heart felt better

(The shedding came back but so did, let’s just say, other vital functions. 😉)

Lesson?

Be careful if using minoxidil. Sometimes optimizing health means making the hard call, even if it means trading some vanity for vitality.

Remember, action is the difference between dreaming and succeeding. See you next week.

Time for action,
​Coach Jackson

Founding Tonal Coach
Amazon #1 Best-Selling Author
San Francisco Magazine's “Best Trainer For Abs”

P.S. If you’re ready to take your health, fitness, and mindset to the next level, here are two action items:

✅ Apply for my coaching program: I’ll help you lose fat, build muscle, and feel unstoppable. Submit an application here.

✅ Share this email: Know someone who’d benefit from these tips? Forward this email to them and send them this opt-in form.

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References:

1. Mandsager K, Harb S, Cremer P, Phelan D, Nissen SE, Jaber W. Association of Cardiorespiratory Fitness With Long-term Mortality Among Adults Undergoing Exercise Treadmill Testing. JAMA Netw Open. 2018;1(6):e183605. doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2018.3605
2. Olsen EA. Topical minoxidil in the treatment of androgenetic alopecia. J Am Acad Dermatol. 2002;47(5):755–763. https://doi.org/10.1067/mjd.2002.124088
3. Kloner RA, Chatterjee K, Parmley WW. Minoxidil-induced hemodynamic effects and reflex sympathetic stimulation. Am Heart J. 1980;99(4):507–511. https://doi.org/10.1016/0002-8703(80)90580-8
4. Dunn FG, Espiner EA, Nicholls MG, Ikram H, Scoggins BA. Haemodynamic and hormonal effects of minoxidil in essential hypertension. Br Heart J. 1980;43(5):549–558. https://doi.org/10.1136/hrt.43.5.549
5. FDA Minoxidil Label – Drugs.com label
   (See “Adverse Reactions” section – includes palpitations and tachycardia)
6. Carbone DJ.Finasteride and sexual side effects: how much do we really know? J Clin Aesthet Dermatol. 2020;13(2):30–32.
   ​https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7030863/​