you are definitely on the right track and i am looking forward to seeing you in your next contest.
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Alright, dropped almost 2 pounds and currently down to 157. Decided to continue cutting slightly for the next few weeks. Why do that so close to a prep? I’ll tell ya. After cutting down to 159 from 165 over the course of 5ish weeks, I was able to maintain that 159 for 3 solid weeks on my maintenance nutrition plan, without any cardio at all. 2500 cals a day, ~250g carbs a day. So, knowing that I can maintain weight on that plan, I decided after letting my body relax and maintain for 3 weeks, why not cut a few more pounds before my prep? But, the key is to do it in a stress free way, without lots of cardio or calorie cutting. I want to be fresh heading into my prep and make sure I am recovering and still giving myself an opportunity to grow. Enter Mag-10, the most versatile, secret ninja of supplements.
SO, starting last week, on my 2 off days, I’m doing Mag-10 and cardio until dinner. Very easy to do, I haven’t changed a thing about my training day nutrition and am not doing cardio on those days. Here’s my protocol on an off day:
-HOT-ROX AM and PM. Typically I never take fat burners in the off season and only take them towards the end of a prep, but I figure it’ll help on these days. I had some left from last season, figure I’d put them to use. Again I am not taking them every day, only on these Mag-10 days.
-4 Mag-10 pulses throughout the day from morning until ~6pm.
-30 minutes of medium intensity cardio on the elliptical early afternoon (Mag-10 pulse before and after, BCAA during.)
-Protein and fat whole food meal for dinner and pre bed. Dinner is usually eggs and veggies, pre bed is cottage cheese, peanut butter and Metabolic Drive protein.
I was originally planning on doing Mag-10 all day, but decided to do the two whole food meals because by night time I am very hungry and the whole food meals help me sleep better, as well as aid recovery. The Mag-10 obviously is awesome for recovery, so even though I’m creating a massive caloric deficit on those days, there’s no risk of muscle loss at all, and not only that, it’ll aid my growth and recovery. The no carb Mag-10 cardio days also make my body ready to absorb and use the carbs and nutrients I eat the next day and keep insulin sensitivity rocking and rolling. Last week I lost a pound and a half, and it was really very easy to do. I’m going to keep up this protocol for another 2 weeks, then go back to maintenance, no cardio, and allow my body to relax before starting the prep in January.
Right now sitting ~157. Looking at my prep weight log from last year, I started at 164, and it took two months to get to 157. We’re aiming for 143-145, so if I can start my prep at ~155, we can really have a controlled, slow and steady prep that should ensure I get to the level of conditioning needed. I was close last year but still couldn’t get to that final level of leanness, this year I am leaving NO CHANCES. Starting a prep with only 10-12 pounds to lose, hopefully we’ll arrive early, get some good refeeds in and come in undeniable.
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I told rob yesterday that the way things are going, he’s gonna reach his stage weight before we even start his official prep -lol
S
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Love the idea of backing of the calories for a couple of days bit like the 5/2 diet, giving the digestion system a bit of break can’t be bad.
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Yeah, definitely a slightly modified 5/2 style, and since I’m still getting my normal cals and carbs on training days, the 2 off days make a big difference. Also agreed about the digestion system thing, gets rid of any bloating from the week, although since modifying my protein intake and easing back on veggies just a bit, that’s been more under control as well.
So did you back off the protein and increased the carbs on a normal day? Find I get bloated if I over do it with things like broccoli or any other cruciferous vegetables, sticking with plain white rice seems okay for me. I have started to add a spoonful of fermented cabbage to most things to help with digestion. Did have a few gut issues a while back had to go on a heavy dose of antibiotics to kill everything but it also smashed my good bacteria which caused all sorts of problems, a good probiotics did help, but its still not right a year later. Can be a bit annoying when you feel you smash it in the gym but your not absorbing proteins and carbs right and your spinning your wheels. (maybe I am using that as an excuse)
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Couple videos from quad workout yesterday. Strength is going up as weight goes down, always a good sign that no LBM is being lost.
Squats I did 4 sets, 255x10, 285x10, 305x10 and 335x10, the 335 was a nice PR. This vid is my 3rd set of 305x10.
Leg press this was my 3rd set out of 3, 1,025x20 (20 plates plus the platform). Squats I’ll do sets of 10 usually, and leg press is 15-20 range. I could go heavier but doing low reps on leg press aggravates my knees. The video angle isn’t the best to see range of motion, I come down to 90 degrees with my legs to ensure I’m keeping all the tension in the quads and not letting it get into the lower back. Some folks come back too far in the leg press because they feel if they’re not going super deep they’re not working it properly, but truthfully on leg press if you come back too far past 90 degrees it’s very tough to keep tension in the quads without distributing it elsewhere.
Yep that’s exactly what I did, I find I react the same if I eat too many veggies. I definitely still eat a couple servings a day, but I used to eat a LOT of vegetables to try to curb hunger and it just bloats me and adds unnecessary scale weight that makes it hard to gauge progress. I went from getting 1.5(ish)g protein per pound of bodyweight, dropped it down to 1.1g. Carbs I was then able to increase a little, and keeping fats around 50-55g per day. All that allows me to get a lot of carbs in, even on my maintenance days I feel like I’m eating a ton. My current maintenance macros are (and again these are my macros, not that they’ll work for everyone, just showing the numbers):
250g carbs
180g protein
55g fat
On a high day I’ll drop protein to 150g and raise carbs to ~325g, lower fats to about 30g, all incidental fats from bread/finibars/granola and such, no direct dietary fats on high days.
I find the moderate protein keeps me way less bloated, and I still get enough to build and maintain, leaving more room for carbs. Carb sources I typically do well with and they don’t really bloat me much as long as I don’t go crazy on veggies or too much protein, usually 6oz lean meat or fish. I don’t eat much sweet potato anymore because it’s a little rough on the stomach, but white/brown rice, Dave’s Killer Breads (they’re fantastic if you can find them), bagels, sprouted granola and fruit are my usual carb sources.
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Thanks for the reply Rob well explained, I am the same as you with sweet potato, I love it but gee do I pay for it later with bad wind and cramps.
Today I have had a crack at a really low day just protein shakes (Pea Protein) feeling pretty good will have a normal dinner protein and fat consisting of eggs and baby spinach . Back to normal medium carb feeding day tomorrow.
Wow 325g on a high day and your keeping that lean, I think your right on with the carb cycling always tricking the body.
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Nice, how’d that wind up going? Notice any difference in how you felt after the next medium day? I notice after a low day, the next day it takes me a little while to feel back to myself, and the day after that I usually feel pretty good. This is more during a prep when carbs get very low on the low days.
Yeah, for me the carb cycling is key to get away with that many carbs considering my height/weight, it took a while to figure out how to do it right. If I drop dietary fats for the day to very low (maybe ~15-20 for the day between Finibars and small amounts of incidental carbs), lower protein to 1g per pound, I can really enjoy a lot of carbs on a high day. I also make sure to place my high days on leg days, and always after a low day so my body is ready to utilize the carbs. I also am keeping carbs moderate on my medium days, so the high day is a nice bump and works well. Additionally, I take a double dose of Indigo-3G those days to make sure all of those delicious carbs are going to good use!
T Minus 3 weeks until prep begins, excited to get started. I’ll be starting a new prep log after the new year, this one will be wrapping up with just a couple more off season posts.
I’ve spent the past few days constructing and analyzing and overanalyzing my nutrition plan for the beginning of the prep, sending to Stu for his thoughts, couple more revisions and I think we’ve got a good one. After recalculating my TDEE with my new lifestyle (meaning sitting around on my butt all day writing music, not walking around much other than taking the dogs out a few times) my calories need to be a little bit lower than I thought to create a decent deficit to ensure some movement during the first week. We’re starting with two short HIIT workouts a week but no steady state cardio, so we need to be sure to have a reasonable deficit to start, about 15%. I’ll be at roughly 2,050 cals on a medium day, 1900 on a low day and 2200 on a high day to start. Keeping fats to a low but healthy level, and carbs as high as possible.
Currently sitting at 157 even, my scale weight hasn’t changed in the past week or so but I’m definitely tightening up, my wife commented this morning she was surprised how lean I’m looking, and she always tells it how it is. Considering I started my prep last year at 165, we’re in a good place. Based on last year we’re aiming for an aggressive 143, which is only 14 pounds away. It won’t be easy, but definitely will be easier than 22 pounds and well worth staying leaner in the off season.
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Probably went over the top with the pea protein made from yellow peas it did upset the stomach later in the day.
Might have to look at another alternative protein source.
Wanted to ask you about your high carb day, I am starting to find the more carbs (on a high day) I have the more I’m looking for sweet things later in the day, chocolate is my downfall and on a high day my will power just diminishes. Interesting I was reading an old thread that the EyeDentist did a while back he was using carb cycling as well but on his low day backed of the protein and really upped the fats, pretty much ate 11 tablespoons during the day and had a normal dinner. Had a go at that myself because I’m always trying something and found that the higher fat day removed all my temptation for sugar later on in the day obviously the fat was keeping my full ended up around 1700 calorie for the day which was a good drop from my baseline.
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I can’t believe you’re only 159…
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Good luck with the prep!
also thanks for the info you provide, both in this log and else where on the forum. Since I seen your leg press video I’ve shortened my range of motion so I now stop at 90 degree, the feeling of constant tension in my quads let me know it’s a great tweak. Shifting much more weight, for more reps and with a better feeling, that’s gotta equal bigger quads!
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Yeah I would guess the pea protein might be a little rough in large doses like that, I’m sorry if I missed this, are you vegetarian/vegan? I’m assuming you are if you’re going with pea protein, but I’m sure there are other proteins out there that might be easier on the stomach.
I understand exactly what you mean. When my high day rolls around, I really enjoy it, but it can be tough sometimes because the sugars make you want more sugar! It’s not a very filling day stomach wise, I rarely feel “full” but I do feel very satisfied, more so mentally, from getting all those carbs. It can be tough when the body is screaming “more please!”, so I understand what you’re saying. My advice if you like the high carb day is just to deal with the cravings and be satisfied knowing you’re getting what you need with a carefully planned high carb day. If you like chocolate, you can certainly program some into your high day if it’ll keep you more satisfied. I wrote in a another thread I recently found “Halo Top” ice cream, game changer for sure. Today happens to be my high day, and I’m going to eat a pint of chocolate Halo Top ice cream as my last meal before bed 
Doing a keto style low day with low protein, no carbs and high fats is also a possibility as you mentioned, and it will certainly keep you more full feeling with the plethora of slow digesting fats. The keto style low day keeps blood sugars very low and stable, one thing I noticed when I did keto last prep was although I felt lots of brain fog, I almost never felt hungry.
HOWEVER, (and this is a big one) depending on your goals, a high carb day and high fat day are not interchangeable. A keto style low day would be good if you’re trying to get a low cal or low carb day in there, it’s a good way to feel full and keep blood sugar low. The reasons for a well planned high carb day are:
-To increase leptin and keep the fat burning hormones moving along (this can really only be done with carbs, glucose rich simple carbs are best for this)
-To let your body know “hey, everything is alright, don’t start slowing down the metabolism, you’re getting everything you need”
-A good kick in the metabolic butt (IF you’ve properly executed the nutrition earlier in the week and have set yourself up to utilize a high carb day.) As I mentioned earlier, I wouldn’t be able to get away with a 325-350g high day if I didn’t moderate carbs more during the rest of the week.
I think a keto style low day could be a good way to set yourself up for a high carb day if it works for you, but I wouldn’t switch a high carb day for a high fat day.
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Thanks man! Actually down to 156 now after a couple more slight adjustments, here’s a couple pics from earlier this week, after a shoulders/triceps session:
Still lots of work to be done, but currently sitting 13lbs from our goal. We may find once we get down there we need to further, but based on my beginning peak-week weight of 148 from the Hercules, we’re thinking 143 is on point. Fortunately we’re ahead of schedule and will have enough time to get down further if needed.
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Thank you very much bro! Excited to hit the ground running for sure.
That’s great man! I agree that more weight, more reps, better MMC and pump will definitely equal bigger quads! Don’t be afraid to experiment with range of motion on other exercises too. Dumbbell bench press or machine presses, dumbbell shoulder presses, are some other examples where sometimes in an effort to use a full range of motion or get a big stretch, we sacrifice constant tension in the muscle. We definitely want to get a good stretch always, but sometimes very small adjustments in range of motion can feel significantly different for the pump and TUT. This is highly individualized I think, and just takes time to experiment with in the gym.
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I know you started prioritizing arms more this past ‘off-season’ but, wow, that front double bi looks to have improved drastically (not saying it wasn’t impressive before). Arm mass and lat width on point! Looking forward to watching you dial the conditioning in once again.
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I just gotta say that doing as well as he did at last year’s Hercules has serious made Mr Stein a hungry boy. Everything he’s done since his last show has been done with one eye always on what he wants to accomplish this Spring 2017 season. Having a solid off season plan (and we shared many phone calls to discuss changes and strategies) is what has enabled him to be in such a good starting place weeks out from even starting his prep. We’ve got plans to go out for Burgers, Beers n Wings tomorrow and I was just telling him yesterday that he’s gonna have to eating an extra burger because his weight is already falling too fast.
I’m expecting big things from this guy and I know he’s gonna deliver.
S
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hey Rob! Looking at your posts, I’m curious what you think about returning to maintenance periodically during cuts. It seems like The low calorie rest days and maintenance training days might be a way to let your body reset after cutting for a long time. do you have any thoughts on returning to maintenance calories for a couple weeks in the middle of a long cut?
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