Came here to say I’m down 18lb as of this morning, but that’s 1/3 of what @s.gentz has lost. 
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18 lbs is awesome. If I wasn’t dieting for a show this diet would have looked much different than the route I chose. Keep it going!!!
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Nicely done, man! Nothing anyone else does diminishes our own success. That’s a huge accomplishment. Well done.
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It is much harder on the kidneys to digest because it is higher in uric acid. The kidneys have to work harder to remove and excrete those than they do with chicken/fish, both of which are lower in acid.
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why dont they teach you things like this at gym school…LOL
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I know I’m starting to get real lean when I feel right across my abs all the time.
Sticking to macros/micros and getting most carbs from fruits and veg + essentially zero junk works I guess. I’m sitting at about 80ish fully hydrated
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I’m entering the weight loss phase where I feel both small and fat, down 16+ lbs so I know I’m at least less fat than I was but it’s not super encouraging.
In any case, I figure there is no point going halfway and turning around so I’ll keep getting less fat and hope the smallness feeling subsides.
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You know it will! The beginning phase is the worst, but lean into it long enough and it pays off handsomely.
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That’s it mate, always forward never backward.
The summit always looks far away, but if you focus on the few metres in front of you and motor on, you’ll always be able to go further than you imagine
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Thanks @kleinhound and @T3hPwnisher, appreciate the motivation and insight from 2 guys who clearly know how to get lean!
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My updates:
Went to the doctor for my annual physical. Got blood work done, and all is well there. A couple of things:
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I weighed in a 177 (with clothes and hydrated). My resting heart rate was 47, and my blood pressure 118/65. My doctor was surprised my resting hr was so low, but this is the norm for me and relaxed on the couch it’s even lower. That said, I am prone to dizziness when I stand up fast. I have fainted a few times in my life. Anyone else get this? It’s probably a mixture of being in shape and genetics, I guess.
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My doctor says I am very muscular, and that I should not take any protein supplements and not get any bigger. She said that at my age (50) that it will cause problems if I get bigger. I am not that big, though, but also don’t have plans to get bigger. Still, I thought it was a bit of stretch to say that to me, given 5’9” 175 lbs in not a big person.
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I switched from tuna every day for lunch to meat (beef or chicken) about 6 months ago. My cholesterol is up to 219 (from 180 the last few times), and my LDL is up to 131 (from 95 the last few times). I’m still easily within the standard range, but will switch it up again to more fish and less red meat.
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Still chipping away at the training. CrossFit + garage strength work + running.
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Can only relate to number 1). With resting HR in low to mid 40’s, low blood pressure and weighing 70kg/154lbs at 6"2 in my late teens / early 20’s I was prone to dizziness. I’ve only full bore fainted once and that was the wake up call I needed. I kind of knew when I was red lining it with my bodyweight/health.
I guess that doesn’t solve your problem (if you consider it as such and are concerned), but even now 10 years old, 30kg heavier, blood pressure in normal range and a resting HR nearer to 60 than 50) I am prone to the occasional spell of dizziness. I have yet to find a correlation to diet, as I tend to sip on electrolytes in lifting sessions and season my food with salt, so hesitant to increase my intake. Maybe it is genetics and something we have to live with? Curious to hear anyone else’s input.
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This kind of stuff can be relayed to your ears too.
I don’t know how exactly it works but something about the ears is related to balance and the feeling of vertigo. My mother in law gets bad vertigo and can faint if she stands up to fast.
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I’ve had the balance problem related to the inner ear. I was told by the Doc that in my case it was due to the liquid in the inner ear becoming slightly thicker.
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It’s super hippie, so some folks will buy in and some won’t, but my wife got real bad vertigo for awhile after my son was born. So much so that she needed help once because the “spells” would last for a long time. Anyway, she cut out gluten and it cleared up. We can’t prove anything, but that was the one variable she changed, and she’s been good to go.
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No leg shot so it doesn’t count. LOL
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After I started lifting intensely in my teenage years, that happened to me with alarming frequency. I asked my doctor, an eminently practical German. His response was, and I’m closely paraphrasing, “Eat some medicinal potato chips. If that doesn’t help, eat more. If even that doesn’t help, come back.”
More sodium in my diet was the cure even though, as an active teenage guy, I didn’t watch my diet at all.
As an adult, I had vertigo from different causes. An ENT specialist told me imbalanced inner ear fluid can cause vertigo, which can be cured by walking uphill, aka hiking, at least three times a week for at least 20 minutes a session. You don’t sound like you have vertigo, though.
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I had the same problem within a few months when I started deficit dieting.
Literally did this and it solved the problem, I tend to add salt to meals at least once a day and I never seem to see any reoccurrence.
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My doc informed me that low blood pressure mixed with low resting heart rate causes this. I aggressively salt my food and make it a habit to consume 2 electrolyte drinks a day to get after this.
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