I feel surprisingly good so far. The IF has been easy with copious amounts of coffee and Rockstar Zero carb. My pre-workout supps are great and my strength is still increasing. My brother actually said he was gassed tonight and we cut the workout short by one shoulder exercise.
Push (Chest/Shoulders)
BB Decline BP - 5X5 @ 215
Standing Military press - 3X8 @ 110
Pec Deck - 3X12 @ 135
Bent over lateral raise/front raise superset 2X10 @ 15/25
DB Pullover 2X8 @ 60
Had an “enormous” post-WO meal of fat free cheese, chicken breast and egg whites all skilletted together. Gonna slam a casein/whey (80:20) shake before bed.
I am not taking measurements and I feel the mirror is the best way to gauge progress (abs). The scale will show a dramatic drop from last weekend and I plan on weighing in Saturday morning. Refeed will be that afternoon/evening.
I asked some of the guys on the site about whether it would be intelligent/beneficial to split my refeeds up into two days per week rather than one large refeed. I’ve had issues in the past with lethargy and bloating after a massive 600-800 carb refeed.
After reading some of the Natural Hormonal Enhancement stuff (recommends two days of carb loading per week, last two meals of the day), I’ve decided to give this a shot…mainly because tomorrow is quads/calves and I really want to kill it on squats haha!
Here’s what I did tonight (attached screen shot)…I am still following the intermittent fasting technique and am eating in a 5 hour window each day for shits and giggles. Martin Bercham has had fantastic success with this by making lean gains, increasing insulin sensitivity, and controlling hunger when dieting.
I feel full, satisfied, and am not bloated. I’ll report back tomorrow on the leg workout!
When I carb up, I really never try to stick to the traditionally clean sources like potatoes, wheats, fruits, etc. I’ve found equal results from processed food sources so I eat basically whatever I want and aim for a number of CHO. I’ve found glycogen uptake is actually faster with higher GI carbs and I don’t feel any intestinal pain. I did a carb up with Cinnamin Toast Crunch and sweet potatoes once and felt horrible stomach pain.
I tell you what though, the frozen yogurt was awesome. The place actually gives you a receipt with the nutrition info printed on it. A large froyo with pineapple and strawberries was 66 carbs, 0 fat.
What up Joe! I’ll have to give those fruits a try for my next carb up…but Red Mango froyo is gonna be a staple.
You’ll learn how your body responds to different calorie/macronutrient levels. I personally LOVE carbs for the way they make me feel in the gym, at the office, walking to the bus, and most importantly the taste! I could give up fat for carbs easily.
I’ve been extremely productive this week at the office, which is awesome because this economy has nothing but bad news for a small business like ours. Not worrying about when and what and how much to eat has increased my productivity…especially coupled with caffeine.
I’m going to stick to the twice weekly carb up and do them the day following my workout, on an off day. I have been able to maintain strength this way in the gym and not feel like shit just walking around.
New iPhone tomorrow so I’m gonna play with the video camera feature on our next workout session! Vegas is less than 3 weeks away…gotta stick to my plan, which is kick ass so far!
Chins 4Xfail then drop @ 35
Dips 4Xfail then drop @45
Seated dumbell curl/tricep extension supersets 8X3 @ 42.5/37.5
Got an amazing pump today even with the low-ish volume. My cheat meal at the Mariner’s game turned into my 2nd refeed of the week, so I’ll delay my next one until Tues after my Pull and Push workouts. I had a big back of cracker jacks (no peanuts), a bbq chicken sandwich at the game, then a couple beers, grilled chicken tenders and sweet potato fries (small portion) at a brewery afterward. I’m going to limit the mini-carbups to twice weekly. So tomorrow through Monday will be PSMF. I am looking visibly leaner in the mirror at the gym (yes I’m a little vain) so that’s definitely gratifying. I will post pics Monday of my one week progress.
Messed around with the iPhone tonight and got a video of a set of WG Pull ups Nothing fancy but a pretty sweet new feature!
Day 8 - Pull (Back/Hams)
I’m pretty sick but I forced myself to get into the gym after a mini-refeed last night. I will chalk the cold up to overtraining/undereating, thus I’m convinced I need to up the cals. I’m shooting for a more moderate carb cycling approach…not a drastic change but I’ll be eating ~500-1,000 more cals a day on training days.
Deads 5X5 1X5 @270 4X5 @ 265
WG pullups 3X8
SL DB deads 3X10 @ 30
DB Rows 3X8 @ 85
Lying leg curls 3X12 @90-100
Cable rows Superset with Cable crunch 3X12 @ 110/3X20 @ 90
The video may not have uploaded but I’m going to put my trust in the T-Nation elite and believe I can lose fat with higher calories. I’d like to be in as much of an anabolic state as possible, while losing fat…and I realize there is only a limited time (PWO window) that this is possible while in a caloric deficit.
So my BMR is up near 3,500 on a lifting day. A 1,000 calorie deficit sounds much more moderate than the PSMF idea I began this log with.
I guess there’s another school of thought on looking like a lifter…eat in a caloric surplus and fill out! That might be my problem…I have the mentality of a fat guy. I’m afraid to up my cals for fear of spiraling down the road that got me fat in the first place. Will eating clean/balanced solve that problem? I know my diet before was heavily based on fat/carbs and lacked ample protein. Sounds pretty familiar doesn’t it America?
I’d like some feedback based on my current physique and goals. Goals are to lose fat (~10%), look more vascular, lose my love handles, and have abs year round. I know this might get me flamed on these boards, but it’s the honest to god truth.
I don’t you’re too off from 10% for one. You definitely don’t need to do a PSMF to get there, a moderate deficit should work just fine. My opinion is that you should drop your training volume to just enough to retain strength, create a deficit with diet and a bit of cardio, and eat enough to stay sane and train properly. I can see that with your current training and diet, I know that I would hit the wall fast.
As far as staying at 10%, that may or may not be realistic depending on your genetics and your goals. For instance, if you would like to do a bulk at all in the future, staying at 10% likely is not in the cards for you. It wouldn’t be for me.
Thanks yak…gotta bring myself back to reality. I agree the moderate deficit will suffice for now, but I’m having way too much fun with these workouts. So by moderate, I may have to mean ~500 cal/day deficit since the work in the gym is fairly demanding.
I did hit the wall, and got sick for the first time in probably 8-10 months. So my changes will be up the cals and stop the intermittent fasting. I bought a ton of fruit and veggies which should hold me over just fine outside the workouts. I have loads of protein too.
Day 9 - Chest/Shoulders
Definitely felt much weaker tonight than last night (all day for that matter) but I persevered through the workout with lower weights.
Incline BB Bench 1X4 @ 195 1X4 @ 185 3X5 @ 175
HS Shoulder press (should’ve done more here) 3X8 (45, 47.5, 50)
Flat DB Flyes 3X10 @ 40
Bent over lateral raise 3X12 @ 15
DB Bench 2X10 @75, 70
Called it a day and had a massive post workout meal. I’m loving these baked sweet potato fries with a little olive oil and splenda. I indulged and had a big Costco muffin.
So new eating plan for training day:
Cals 2,871
191p/372c/72f (27%/51%/22%) I’m shooting for more of a 30/50/20 macro breakdown, but calories really matter most in a deficit.
Hey man, nice to see you putting up a log here! Once you leaned down to your goal, how do you plan to gain weight while maintaining your bodyfat level? Carb cycling? IF?
Hey Taufiq! Honestly I wish I wasn’t so ADD when it came to my nutrition…I seem to change my mind too much! I would like to stick with carb cycling permanently after my last vacation of the summer (in 2 weeks). I plan on doing a 5 day depletion so I look lean at the pool
I want to see what happens when I up the cals and continue at the higher volume and frequency of workouts. I figure 2,500-3,000 cals a day with a macro split of 30p/50c/20f will be a good starting point on training days, and then swapping the carbs/protein on off days.
IF doesn’t sit well with me as I came down with a cold after trying it for 5 days, lol.
Here’s my 1.5 week update pics…I’m feeling pretty full after eating a bunch the last three days and my weight is up to 187 tonight. That number means jack to me since my weight can fluctuate +/- 8-10 lbs any given day depending on hydration, glycogen, food, shit, you get the point…
Quads/Calves - Great effing workout tonight. I went right after work because my brother is sick and stayed home to rest. It was a little more crowded but I think it provided an “all eyes on me” aspect because I upped by squat and leg press today.
Squat 5X5 @ 255 (failed on 4th rep of final set)!
Donkey Calf Raise 14,12,12 @ 280
BB Lunges 95X10 105X10 115X8
Leg Press 390X10 400X10 410X10
Standing Calf Raise 15,12,12 @ 130
I didn’t know how rich in carbs yams are! I had two tonight in lieu of sweet potatoes and it really filled me up! Had a day about maintenance level…and will probably be slightly above with my pre-bed cottage cheese and PB.
Arms - Lunch break workout and didn’t feel quite as strong as my usual evenings but made sure to have a Waterbury Super Shake beforehand. Empty gyms are nice too!
Chins 3Xdrop @ 37.5 + 1 BW to fail
Dips 3Xdrop @ 50 + 1 BW to fail
Preacher curl 2X10 1X8 RP to 10 @ 75
Skull Crushers 3X10 @ 70
DB Standing Curl 3X6 @ 47.5
Time for some much needed relaxation until Sunday when I’ll be back in for a big day of Back and Hams.
Back/Hams - My brother has missed the last THREE workouts now. Makes me feel kinda badass for training through my cold last week and sticking to the program! Went to my other gym tonight (24 hr fitness), which I recently decided to quit but the membership lasts til July 15. The bar tore up my hands pretty bad on deads.
Deads 5X5 @ 270 (nice…finally able to move up)
WG Pullups 8,6,6,5 (slippery bar…grr)
Stiff Leg Deads 1X8 @ 185, 2X8 @ 205
T-Bar Machine 10 @ 25, 10 @ 35, 8 @ 45, 6 @ 55
Seated Leg Curl 2X8 @ 115
One arm cable row (neutral grip) 10 @ 100, 10 @ 110, 8 @ 120
It’s time to buy either some straps or gloves for the deadlifts as my callouses are getting ripped apart weekly now and my grip is starting to slip on later reps.
I’ve been getting my eat on recently…a far cry from initial plans, but it’s probably a good thing after cutting for ~4 months straight. Taking in between 3-4,000 kcal a day for a week or so now. I’ll continue to eat above maintenance this week and then see what kind of water/glycogen manipulation I can pull off between July 4-9 before the trip to LAS VEGAS BABY!
A friend of mine mentioned giving up alcohol for three months after the Vegas trip and I volunteered to do it with him. Should be a good time for me to focus on making some gains in the gym!
Have you considered using chalk? They seem to get the job done, and if you’re sneaky about it, you can use it at any gym (I work out at 24-Hour Fitness). However, there are times when even chalk doesn’t help me out, so I use straps. I think straps are considerably better than gloves, but everyone’s different.
Chalk is definitely a great option, unfortunately I have a very anal retentive gym staff. I was upset the other day when one of the biggest trainers in there told us we were dropping the weight “too heavily” on deadlifts because the ladies aerobics class downstairs was complaining.
I was only doing 265 too. I’m concerned I may have to switch once again because I found a gym that’s “too clean,” lol! I can’t beat the price though
Nothing fancy but a pretty sweet new feature!
