Muscle Ups!!

Finally, I've found a great page on the blog  Beast Skills detailing explicitly how to do a muscle up on both rings and a bar, fast and slow.  I learned a lot of technique from this post.  Now I'm gonna go out and work on it!

Rusty Moore's "Shrink Wrap Effect"

I do not think it would be right for me to post a link for the download of Rusty's book Visual Impact, but I did find this pdf openly about his Shrink Wrap Effect strategy and think it is fine to repost HERE.

In it Rusty explains how to get that lean, cut, and very muscular look.  And it does not involve just cutting or bulking, but a careful combination of the two, in the exact opposite sequence as traditional bodybuilding routines tell you.

Give it a read.  I highly recommend it and this is what I am working on right now.

Leg Press PR!

Maxed that shit out.  900 lbs of plates on the thing: 10 45lb plates on each side.  There was no more room.  Went in there feeling saucy and went straight to the leg press machine.  I am working on Phase II of Visual Impact and this is a good way to start.  I want to work on muscle density all over my body, with my legs being the least of my concerns (obviously).  I only plan on doing one leg exercise on leg days (probably leg press because I like it so much).

Here's how it went down:

*Warm up calisthenics air squats x10, then a warm up leg press set with 2 45s on each side x10.  Worked slowly and deliberately.
*8 45s on each side 1 set of 5 reps
*9 45s on each side 2 sets of 5 reps
*10 45s on each side 1 set of 5 reps
*9 45s on each side 2 sets of 5 reps (actually tried for another 900lb set but couldn't lift the press)

YEAH.  Successful day.  Just goes to show you that not doing any leg work in the gym for a week can result in coming back stronger and fresher.  I should of taken a pic; I'll get one next time I go for it in a couple days.

My Fitness Goals

The only thing I enjoy more than setting goals is achieving them.  So, that being said, it's time to set some goals to work on over the next few months.

1.  Visual Impact.  This is my big one.  I have set out a doable schedule/timeline for success using a customized VI program to achieve my physique goals, and I am going to follow through.

2.  Rowing.  I was doing some rowing sprints today for my HIIT workout after lifting and I have to say, I am actually pretty good.  My body is built perfectly for it: tall, strong, and great endurance from years of elite triathlon racing.  Of course, with my personality, the first thing I did was look at American Records for indoor rowing.  I have NO interest in trying to do a 2000m sprint, but 500m is definitely possible.  According to this sheet, American Rowing Records, I can be in the top-10 recorded American times if I get under 1:27.  I can have the American Record if under 1:17.7.  May not be in the cards unless I actually dedicate to training, but hell I'm gonna go for it.  I did a 1:35 on my first ever try, which is respectable.  But after my (much improved) performance today, I am confident I can crack the top-10.

3.  Bar-Baron.  This is going to be HARD, but I want to eventually qualify as a Bar-Baron in the Bar-Barians.  The criteria are as follows...nothing to laugh at:
a. 40 Dips
b. 20 Pull-ups
c. 50 Push-ups
d. 5 Muscle-ups
All in under 6 minutes.  FUaarrk man, that's tough.  By the time I get that I am going to be STRONG.

Okay, I think I have my hands full for a while.  

Recipe: Berry Protein Smoothie

This is by FAR my favorite PWO shake and by FAR the healthiest shake I can think of.  The amount of anti-oxidants combined with the 50g fast-absorbing whey protein pack a potent punch on your starving muscles after a good hard lift.  All in all, it weighs (wheys) in at around 400-500 calories (depending on your amount of berries), with about 50g protein and 40 - 50g carbohydrates, no fat (not good for PWO absorption).

Here we have it:

2-3cups of frozen mixed berries (no sugar added)
2 scoops chocolate ON Whey protein
about a cup of water (add more or less depending on your preferred consistency)

And viola!! Blend it up in a blender and you have a THICK protein smoothie that tastes like chocolate and berries.  Nothing better.  I love this.  

Visual Impact: My Strategy

So I just finished reading Visual Impact and I have to say, I am excited to get started!  It is after 9pm and I am actually considering running over to the gym to get in my first lift of the program.  Alas, I have work to do yet before bed so I must wait until tomorrow afternoon to lift.  I will look forward to it immensely.

One of the things that Rusty explained in VI is HOW & WHY each phase of his program is structured the way it is: what type of muscle am I developing and how/why I am I going to do it?  This method goes hand-in-hand with the encouragement to tailor the program to your individual body type and placement in the aesthetic journey.  Obviously not everyone is a skinny little hardgainer needing to put on 20 lbs of muscle before doing an intense cut.  Therefore it is not appropriate for everyone to spend the same amount of time on each phase.

After some self-reflection, I realize that I personally do not want to gain any more muscle.  I am perfectly happy with my size and I think my body is too.  I seem to be returning to a certain size after a few days no matter how much or little I end up lifting.  No, I could use some good density training and dieting to get to where I want to be.

Basically when I go to the gym I get that great pump from the high reps but I do not maintain it.  My muscles always end up back around the size they've been for the last two months of lifting: they are not growing.  I think this probably has a lot to do with several things:

1.  My body is at a set point and is comfortable here.  And I am fine with that.  Muscularly, I like the size of my muscles.  I can fill out a fitted, stylish (size M) shirt quite well.  Even though in my current progress pic I may look a tad skinny even, I can assure you I am not.  At 6'4" I actually tower over the guys in the gym and when lifting and pumped, my arms are just as big as, if not bigger than, some of the stockier, bigger looking gym rats.  This just goes with the territory of being a big guy.

2.  I do not routinely eat above maintenance.  On occasion I have been known to eat very large quantities of food, but not normally.  And when I do eat these binges I just get bloated and put on BF, which is then back to normal within 5 days of regular eating.  Otherwise, I feel my best (which I think is super important) when not counting calories but eating right around maintenance.

3.  I mentally and physically feel the best on a low-carb diet.  I understand that carbs are anabolic when timed correctly, and I think my overall lack of consistent carbs is one of the reasons I don't put on a ton of mass.  And when I do eat carbs I just feel gross and bloated... negative feedback.  It makes me want to eat less carbs.  I really enjoy eating high fat, high protein Paleo nutrition mixed with IFing.  This diet is not anabolic but it keeps my mental focus sharp and I have a ton of energy.


If anything, my muscles are kind of puffy and rounded.  I'd like to work on getting them denser and more angular.  For this reason, I am going to customize the VI program and begin with 21 days of Phase II, which puts the focus on Power/Strength development, keeping the reps in the 4-5 range with heavier weight in order to cultivate muscle density.  There will also be some Accumulated Fatigue training so I may see a little muscle growth, but honestly probably not.  However, I think my muscles will look bigger as they increase in density and my BF levels drop with the low carb eating.  The only carbs I will focus on eating will be directly PWO, with my favorite berry/protein smoothies.  I will post the recipe soon.  I have the three day split up on the "Training Program" tab.  There will be two ON days and one OFF day.  I will repeat this for three weeks.

I am doing this for a shortened time because honestly, I am chomping at the bit to cut and I don't want to go through the whole program and end it in 6 months in February, when I am wearing sweaters and coats and never taking my shirt off. And like I said earlier, I have the amount of muscle I want. But, mentally I am not ready to diet and I think three weeks of strength and power focus at maintenance calories will be perfect for building my confidence to do the diet in Phase III.   I am being realistic with myself.  And I CAN'T WAIT for the sarcoplasmic gaining phase after the Phase III cut!  This will be when I really focus on gaining muscle and I will see the big gains.  At the beginning of that phase, I will be very low BF% and a tad small actually, so the body will respond very well to the creatine and muscle growth training.

So, overall, I am very excited, and want to say a thank you to Rusty for writing this book about getting that toned, Hollywood look.  I DON'T want to look like a meat-head.  There are some great tips in the book.  And I will most likely sub in my favorite body weight exercises for some of the weight lifts (for ex. I feel handstand pushups will be WAY more effective than certain shoulder presses).

Anyways, overall this customized VI program should take me 3 + 8 + 4 = 15 weeks (3.5 months) to complete.  And that point I will be cut as a mofo and jacked (in the aesthetic way).  Let's see...this puts me at around Halloween as being in the best shape of my life.  Actually I will probably be in the best shape of my life well before this but it will only get better until Halloween!

Let's do it! Tomorrow, Visual Impact begins with Legs, Back, Biceps, & forearms!

Visual Impact Program: Intro

I've just bought Rusty's Visual Impact Muscle Building program and am going to start on it tomorrow.  I am still reading through it but it is exactly what I am looking for: a program focused not on "getting big" but on getting cut up with dense, angular muscles for that movie star look.

It will also be good for me because I am a very impatient person and want everything yesterday, especially when it comes to results from training or a diet.  Ironically, this trait causes me, more times than not, to prematurely ditch the program I am on before I actually see any results. In doing VI, I am going to consciously work on being more patient with the process, which is over the course of several months.  If I stick with it and do it correctly, I will see the results, and it won't take until the very end to see them.  I am sure they will be evident soon and only increase in magnitude the further I get into the program.  By the end of the 4-6 months I am looking to cut up and maintain the low BF so that my skin has a chance to adjust to the new tightness so it will "shrink wrap" around my muscles and be more likely to stay, establishing a new set point for my body.  I also have not found any really good reviews of this program so if I get through it and chronicle my way through, I will have a very valuable site for Rusty's potential clients.

Let's get started!

Hell ...

... the more I think about it, the more I don't even want to be on a schedule at all.  I want to do dynamic, how-you-feel-today training.  And I will.  I'll shoot for an hour a day or more.  If I feel like Parkour training, then I will do it.  If I feel like lifting weights, I will do it.  None of this schedule bullshit.  Bodyweight instinct training could be just what I need.  It will help me maintain an infinite freedom in the midst of a ton of strict training.  I train hard when I train so the intensity will remain high.  I want to learn this new skill of Parkour and I want to master my bodyweight, be able to run fast and jump high, vault myself over obstacles and jump off of shit and survive, and climb up impossibly high things.  THIS is cool and THIS is what I am going to focus on while I get ripped.

Instinct training will let me cultivate my creativity and let me run free within the confines.

4x7 training module.  This will be the extent of my scheduling.  No rest days, just easier days and days where I go balls-to-the-wall:

• Workout 1: No Intensity
• Workout 2: Low Intensity
• Workout 3: Medium Intensity
• Workout 4: High Intensity

Hannibal & Barilla

I'm gonna start doing a ton more of this stuff.  Want to get jacked on a budget and functionally strong.  These guys got it on lock.

Re-examining my training

After several weeks doing traditional BB training, I am beginning to question its validity and effectiveness for achieving the physique I am looking for.  I've come to realize that my current routine is only giving me a "pump" where I looked jacked during and directly after my workout in the gym then look average again later, especially after several days not lifting.

Basically, I am looking for a routine that will increase the density of my muscles and help me drop my BF down to around 5%.  At this point, I'd like to do the minimal work and dieting to maintain this physique year-round so I am never too far off of looking sharp and cut any time of the year.  This will take a lifestyle mentality.

I am convinced that IF is the way to go in terms of lifestyle & diet interaction.  I just think that lifting 6 days/week is too much and right now I am not going to have the time to do this every during the next 6 weeks, possibly the busiest I will ever be in my life.

Right now I am reading Rusty Moore's report from FitnessBlackBook.com entitled The Vacation Body Blueprint http://www.fitnessblackbook.com/Vacation-Body-Blueprint.pdf.

In it, Rusty points out the best way to achieve my goals while maintaining a lifestyle.  It reminds me of Mark Sisson's Primal Blueprint Fitness, and I am intrigued and am going to try it.  Both experts advocate manipulating diet more than overtraining the body.  Maintaining muscle mass and cutting off that last 5-10lbs of BF will make the body look a lot more ripped and subsequently bigger, even though you are lighter and smaller.

Here is what Rusty says, in terms of training every week.  He does a 2 day split.



"Day #1: Back, Chest, and Abs
Day #2: Shoulders, Triceps, and Biceps
*I pick 2-3 exercises per body part
*3-5 sets of 3-5 reps per exercise
*I never train to failure
*I follow this with 15-20 minutes of intense HIIT"

And he also advocates the Crazy Eight workout.

"1. 60 Jumping Jacks: Done as fast as possible, but make sure
you do full jumping jacks.
2. 15-20 Spiderman Pushups: I'm just doing normal pushups
until they become too easy. Typically it is a breeze for me to do
40+ pushups, but it is much tougher when you do these with zero
rest in between jumping jacks.
3. Walking Lunges: I take 20 steps total. This is the easiest part
of the workout in my opinion.
4. Spiderman Climb: I do a total of 20 of these (10 per side) I
really feel these in my abs and obliques.
5. Wall Squat: Do for 45-60 seconds. This hurts! Don't rest your
hands upon your legs, since it makes it easier.
6. Planks: Do for 60 seconds. Tough after doing all these other
exercises without rest.
7. Burpees: Make sure and do a full pushup at the bottom and
explode as high as possible at the top into a jump. I'm still kind of
uncoordinated with these…probably because I'm "smoked" at
this point!
8. High Knees: Done as fast as possible. Do 50 total. I just count
when my right leg hits the ground for 25. It is hard to count both
legs for 50 since you are going fast. You will be dying about 1/2
way through."

Seems like a great "quick-fix" workout for me when I'm crunched for time.

However, Rusty also points to the necessity for a 3-5 week period of intense dieting and training, where you train for around an hour every day and keep a caloric deficit, in order to go from 9-10% BF (where I am now) down to contest ready fitness (4-5%).  I am going to devote the next three weeks to this.  It will bring me to where I want to be, then I will maintain.

Calorie-wise, I need to shoot for a daily intake of 190 (my weight) x 8-10 = 1700-1900 calories per day.  Over the next 3-5 weeks I will realistically lose 5-10 lbs of BF.

At this point, I feel it is best to do low-carb, but not super-strict keto.  I will eat carbs but they will consist of my berry protein smoothies and carbs I get from salads.

I want to structure my weeks somewhat like this:

M - Back, Chest, and Abs + 15-20 minutes HIIT
T - AM Sprints + PM Shoulders, Triceps, Biceps 
W - Parkour skill training (1 hour) + Crazy Eight Workout
TH - Back, Chest, and Abs + 15-20 minutes HIIT
F - Shoulders, Tris, Bi's, HEAVY Leg Press + Walking for 15 minutes PWO
S: Parkour skill training (1 hour) + Crazy Eight Workout
SU: Walking 1 hour

My brother gave me a Parkour training book for my birthday and I've always wanted to get into it.  These guys have the type of physique I am looking for and a mad awesome skill set.  For my resistance training days, I'd like to wean myself off of the weights (except for very heavy stuff) and go toward being awesome at body weight exercise (pullups especially) like the Bar-barians.  I really think I can believe a cut physique doing this stuff.

Nutrition-wise my plan will be this:  I will eat within my 1700-1900 cal window daily, the vast majority of which is going to be high in protein and fat.  Carbohydrate will come from berries and salad/vegetables.  Protein sources will include steak, chicken, fish, whey powder.  Fat sources will include almond power butter (my concoction), pork rinds, bacon, eggs, chicken skin, cheese.

The daily plan will consist of fasting as long as possible then working out fasted.  I'll wait between 30-60 minutes before either having a meal or my PWO shake, depending on the day.  It looks like two days/per week I will have to do my workout in the AM before Physics lab, so I will stop eating a lot earlier the night before in order to get a good fast in and workout first thing in the morning, followed by a shake an hour later.  Those days will be two shakes then dinner (like Rusty does when cutting).  The dinner will probably be my fav Cobb Salad from Chopped Greens or something similar.

The other days will be a morning fast, workout around 1pm, shake, then dinner, spread over a couple hours.  

Day 13

Went on a 4 hr hike today at Old Rag Mountain in VA today with my brother and father.  It was an awesome workout and awesome way to spend quality time with my family.  Ate lots more carbs today because of the strenuous hiking (it was very strenuous).

Here was today:
10: 2 apples + pork rinds
2: (@summit) trail mix and tuna steak
4: Kind bar
6: 15 Wegman's Sesame Asian wings + container of powdered PB + 4 oz Colby cheese + small apple

Tomorrow, I go back to low carb eating and get back into Keto over the coming days.  Interestingly, with the higher carbs today, my stomach is upset right now (@ the end of the day) and I am looking forward to go back to keto soon.  I actually do not miss carbs at all.

Day 12 - Rest Day

So today was a rest day and dessert day.  I spent the day in DC getting lunch with a friend in the Senate.  First time in the Senate bldg and I have to say, I felt pretty important strutting around in there.  Made a couple useful contacts for down the road; looks like the DoD may be interested in using us in some advisory capacity somewhere down the line.  After my meeting, I went over to my senator's office to say hi, but he was out.  Met his aide though and we talked for a while.  All in all, it was worth the trip...the 104 degree heat, the ridiculous traffic, and the 4 hour metro/car ride home, 35 miles.  Haha.  I had a good time though, seriously.

When I woke up I had intended on doing a full body lifting workout with the compound lifts but was too exhausted, which is a good sign that a rest day is in order.  Plus with my long day in DC I can say that I made the right decision.  My dessert consisted of cheese and berries and a 90% dark chocolate Lindt bar; so freaking good.  First time trying 90% and that is definitely the line that no one should cross.  It is awesome, but I wouldn't go a % further.  Tomorrow morning we are heading to Old Rag Mtn for a 7.5 mile rock scramble.  Should be a great time and some awesome exercise!

Day 11

Just got back from a great lift doing Shoulders and Arms.  Felt super tired this morning and didn't want to go to the gym but once I got there and got into the workout everything got way better, and now I feel great.

It's funny because when I look at myself in the mirror at home I feel like I look skinny.  But when I get to the gym and start lifting, especially on arms days, I tower over all the other dudes in the gym.  Those guys who look big but are 5'10" or so look small next to me when I actually go and walk by or stand by them.  It's funny how important a frame of reference is.  I am starting to really enjoy my body, thanks to lifting, and am loving how everything is filling out and chiseling down, slowly but surely.

Keto is also AWESOME.  I'm eating super satisfying foods, not counting calories, just eating til I'm satisfied.  And I'm losing a little BF every day.  I'm keeping my protein very high because I do not want to lose any muscle mass.  I am still very sore though, which means I'm not recovering as well as I was when drinking carbier PWO drinks, but I can live with that.  I had a Muscle Milk today, which had about 10g carbs, today, which is better than the zero carbs PWO yesterday so I should recover a tad better.  Still contemplating whether or not I am going to do the carb up this weekend or not.  Can't really tell if I am in ketosis yet.  Maybe I should wait another week until next weekend. But maybe not.  I am doing a hike/trail run on Saturday so I will need the carbs.  Maybe I'll just fast up until the hike then take in the carbs during it.

Day 10

Had a little lapse in internet connection there for a couple days but I'm still going strong.  Down to 190lbs and getting leaner by the day.  Keto has been very enjoyable!  I love eating steak, cheese, chicken, and sour cream all the time.

Just bought a huge jug of ON Whey (Chocolate) at Vitamin Shoppe.  Tastes really good.  I made some great power almond butter the other night mixing 7 scoops of the protein in with two containers of natural almond butter.  It is tasty and super nutritious.  High in fat and protein.  Each serving (2 tbsp) is 222 calories and has 15g FAT and 16.5g Protein and 6g carbs.  Great for a snack or treat after dinner or whenever I need those extra calories.

Today I got to the gym and did a leg and back workout, which basically consisted of a ton of HEAVY leg pressing and calve work and a ton of pullups and ab work (mostly leg raises).  I'm super sore right now, which I'm certain has to do with the low carb thing, but it's not too bad.  I can handle it.  Trying to keep my carbs under 30g per day to get into/stay in ketosis.  Don't know if I'm there yet but whatever.

Okay, I'll check in again tomorrow.  Planning on hitting a Shoulders/Arms workout pretty hard tomorrow morning.

Day 7 - Keto Begins...

Today's my first day with the Keto experimentation.  I am enjoying it so far.  Definitely not hungry; the fat and protein combo sure fills you up.  Here are the numbers I will be shooting for on a daily basis: I need around 170g Protein to maintain my muscle mass, <30g trace carbohydrate, and about 210g Fat per day.  This should put me between 2500-2700 cal/day, which with daily training/movement, will result in a fat loss (obviously coupled with the fat burning effects of the keto as well).

Here's my nutrition for today:

10: 5 eggs, 9 strips bacon [800 cal, 65g Fat, 56g Protein]
1130: Vermont summer sausage [500 cal, 45g Fat, 36g Protein] + some random sample cheese @WFoods
115: package of bacon [630 cal, 50g fat, 35g protein]
5: 3.5oz pork rinds +diet soda [420cal, 27g fat, 48g protein]

Totals = [about 2500cal, 190g fat, 180g protein]

Pretty good for the first day!  Definitely enjoyed my choices.  I've been exhausted today though.  I crashed and had to take a 3 hour nap this afternoon.  My heart was racing pretty fast and I was hot.  But that also may have something to do with the fact that the room I was sleeping in had the sun shining in thru a huge window.  Feeling a tad bloated, but really not too bad, I think just because of the high salt in the bacon and pork rinds that I was eating today.  I will have to find keto choices that are lower in sodium.  I'll continue drinking a lot today and hopefully flush a bunch of it out.  I'm sure once the flood gates open I'll be peeing every 10 minutes.

I had a great idea for a good food to eat on this diet.  I want to find a good raw macadamia nut butter (WF doesn't carry any, surprisingly) and make a power nut butter.  I'll take that jar of mac nut butter and mix it with 4-5 scoops of chocolate protein powder and some ground flax seeds (for fiber) and maybe some heavy cream and water.  It should make some awesome, thick, creamy power nut butter, high in protein and fat that I can enjoy eating.  It'll be high in calories and satiating which will be nice because I prefer a small eating window every day on LeanGains fasting and I'll need some really high quality calories about an hour after my workouts during the week.  Should be great!

Day 6 - Leg Press PR!

Today's been a great day, this week has been great actually.  I PR'd on my leg press today, doing 8x855lbs.  Went for 905 but couldn't get it up ... that's what she said.  I thanked my father for his strong farm-boy genes.  Anyways, also this week, my friend and I think we've uncovered a large-scale Ponzi scheme, potentially worth hundreds of millions of dollars or more, I gave an essentially off-the-cuff presentation in Spanish, and will be finished with my summer course on Monday.  I worked out every day and kept a solid diet all week.  (I told/texted all of this to a girl who I've been talking with recently when she asked how my week was, and I haven't heard back from her.  Maybe I scared her?  Haha, whatever.) We've also been moving forward quickly at the company; Life is Good.

So here's today:

Walk/bike warm up ~10 minutes.
Leg Extensions 6x300lbs (Maxed out the machine)
1x210 Leg Curls (left hamstring is sore from yesterday's sprinting so I didn't do any more)
4x8 squats
Leg Press - worked my way up to 8x855lbs (about 15-20 mins total)
Calf raises 4x10 heavy DBs
Walk CD

Nutrition:

1030: PWO berry smoothie w/2 scoops protein
1130: Cobb Salad from Chopped Greens
145: bag of Pork Rinds
6: All-u-can-eat salad bar (lots of greens, bacon, cheeses, apples, olives, 3 whole eggs, sprouts, etc)
730: bag of pork rinds

...

And tomorrow begins my Keto Diet experience for cutting.  I've read most of the stuff (of any quality) that I can find on the internet and I'm looking forward to it.  Hoping to get real cut with it.  Basically just have to drop my fruit from my diet, and can still even keep the berry smoothies PWO apparently as long as they are minimal on the berry side.  I'll post a pic of myself tomorrow morning at the one week mark.

Paleo Infographic

Keto Diet

So I've been reading a bit about the Keto Diet on bodybuilding.com over the last few days and I think I may give it a shot.  Honestly, I don't think it will be that difficult.  I already eat "Primally" for the most part and focus most of my intake on protein anyways.  I'll just have to make the shift from the fruits that I eat regularly over to more fat.  Eating enough fat will be the most difficult part I think.

So as I understand it, the Cyclical Keto Diet entails the following:

1.  Sunday through Friday you consume next to NO carbohydrates (<30g/day), getting them mostly from greens, veggies, and trace carbs associated with the meat and fat products.
2.  You workout normally, lifting regularly, and consume a whey protein shake religiously after the workout.  You shouldn't consume fat right after the workout, just protein.  (I've also read opinions that you should have carbs with your PWO shake).
3.  You eat whatever the f--- you want during that Sunday-Friday period as long as it is fatty, has no carbs, and can get around 175-200+g of Protein daily as well.
4.  On Friday night thru Saturday night, you consume the vast majority of your intake from carbohydrates (I've read as much as 1900-2000g!!) in order to reload your glycogen stores and therefore allow yourself reserves to draw from during your workouts the following week.
5.  You get cut as shit because you essentially "hack" your body into burning fat as fuel, not just dietary fat, but obviously your body fat as well.  Then on your carb reload day, you don't eat any fat but your body continues using fat because it needs to reload glycogen and it has been programmed to burn body fat now.

Sounds like a good gig for me.  I love eating fatty meats, eggs, and pork rinds.  Like I said, the hardest part for me will likely not be the carbs, it will be getting enough fat in my diet.  I get super nauseous every time I look at (and obvi consume) coconut oil so that is out of the question.  I like butter but don't really cook anything that would require it.  I LOVE bacon, so I'm gonna eat a shit ton of that with eggs.  I love chicken skin as well, so I guess I could eat whole chickens from the market.  Okay well, I am going to begin it on Sunday, my rest day.  Tomorrow I will just do what I normally do.  I'm planning on doing a double in the gym so I will not want to shock my body too much.

However, on the CKD, I predict that I will not be doing much or any cardio...just won't have the energy.  I walk about 3 miles every day anyways around the city so that will be a good amount of cardio for me.  I won't need to (or probably want to) do the sprints and stuff anymore if I stick to this.

Day 5 - Cheat Meal

Today is Friday and I wanted to do my cheat meal today, but I didn't want it to be a full-on junk food binge obviously, so it is actually pretty healthy, and I am satisfied, which I think is what we ultimately shoot for with the cheat meal, a psychological alleviation from otherwise more stringent guidelines.

Here's my nutrition for today:
1230: Small Green Apple
1-145: 20x100m sprints in the field
2: smaller berry smoothie (2 scoops protein) + small green apple
5: Whole Foods: 2 large turkey burgers w BBQ sauce + large sweet potato w/walnuts on top, 88% dark chocolate bar, bag of pork rinds ... mmmm
6: berry smoothie with 3 scoops protein

Total I estimate around 2400-2600 kcal... actually pretty great!  Still gonna drop BF today, especially after the sprinting!  Protein is probably around 210g, so right around where I need to be.  Needed higher carbs today because of the sprinting, plus it was my cheat meal so of course it's going to having more carbs.  The great thing is that it ended up being all low-GI carbs.  Great!

The sprints today were great.  My body needed a rest from the iron; my back and arms are pretty sore from yesterday, which is why I skipped my planned swim this morning too.  I find the extra sleep a lot more beneficial than anything.  I admit that I probably don't rest enough anyways so skipping that morning cardio is probably not a bad thing.  I don't want to have more rest days though because I love to workout every day; it is what I look forward to.

Quotable

"The Brave may not live forever -- but the cautious do not live at all!" 

Day Four

Rolling right along.  Today was Back & Biceps day, one of my favorite combos to work.  Got a nice pump right away.  Here it is:

• T-bar rows – 4×8-12 2 drop sets on the last set
• Reverse grip pulldowns – 3×12
• Standing DB rows – 3×12
• Seated cable narrow grip row (superset) – 3×12
• Behind the neck pulldowns – 3×12
• Deadlifts superset with straight bar standing pulldowns – 3×5-12
• Standing BB curl (superset) 3×10-12
• Cambered bar rollouts 3×10-12
• Standing Concentration curls (superset) – 3×10-12
• Rope crunches – 3×10-12

More or less.  I added stuff to it, like more reps and more sets on certain exercises and got pretty heavy with some of the stuff.  I supersetted most of the back exercises with BB bicep curls.  Arms and upper back are toast right now.  Had a difficult time turning the steering wheel in the car, haha.  That's how you know you got a killer workout.  

Here's my nutrition for today: 

1230: Protein Shake, 2 scoops w/water 

1-2: Lift

230: Berry/Protein smoothie (2 scoops protein), large wild grouper steak, grilled

330: Blue Cobb salad from Chopped Greens + Diet Coke
630: 2 Bags of Pork Rinds ...mmm

FULL

Total today is around 2200 kcal, 270g PRO, 70g CARB, 85g FAT

Hoping this will expedite the cut and maintain muscle b/c of how I am eating big around my lifts.  I'm going to try and think more about my state-of-mind and certain things that I am thinking about when I go to train every day, just so I can start making these posts more interesting.  However, what I did and what I ate ARE pretty useful, especially when looking back on this to see how I got to where I am about to go.  

Weekly Plan for 6/28/2011 - 7/3/2011

I'm jumping the gun a little bit here with posting next week's plan right now, since it is only Weds, but my motivation is up and I may as well put it here so I don't forget or lose it.  Here's the plan:

Monday: Chest and Back

• 75 wide grip chins to start, focusing on form and contraction, as many sets as needed to complete # of reps.
• Dumbbell press, T bar row superset: 4X10
• Incline dumbbell press, deadlift superset: 5×5 HEAVY
• Wide grip pulldown, close grip pulldown, seated incline cable flye superset: 4×8-12
• Seated cable row, pec deck superset: 4×8-12
• Dips: 5 sets to failure.

Tuesday: Bi’s/ Tris

• Straight Bar Curls- 3 sets x 8-10 reps
• Alternating Dumbbell Curls- 3 sets x 8-10 reps
• Alternating Dumbbell Hammer Curls- 3 sets x 8-10reps
• Cable/Rope Hammer Curls- 3 sets x 12-15 reps
• Close Grip Barbell Press- 3 sets x 8-10 reps
• Ez Bar Cable Press Downs- 3 sets x 8-10 reps
• Rope Extensions- 3 sets x 10-12 reps
• One Arm Reverse Grip Cable Extensions- 3 sets x 12-15 reps

Wednesday: Legs

• Squats: 6×8-12
• Dumbbell lunges: 5×15 HEAVY
• Leg press, jump squat superset: 5×8-12
• Leg extension, hamstring curl superset: 5×15
• Instinct calf training for 30 minutes, variety of rep and set schemes, light to heavy weight
• Instinct ab training for 20 minutes

Thursday: Shoulders

• Dumbbell press, upright row superset: 3×10 HEAVY
• Behind the neck Smith Machine press: 3×10 HEAVY
• Front raise, rear delt machine flye superset: 4×8-12
• Lateral raise triple drop set: 5×15-10

Friday: Arms

• Tricep dips 3×10 (giant sets)
• Close grip bench 3×10 (giant sets)
• Close grip E-Z bar curls 3×10 (giant sets)
• Concentration curls 3×10 (giant sets)

Saturday: AM Misc

• Plyometrics for 20 minutes, Sprints 10x100m
• Ab instinct training for 20 minutes
• Calf instinct training for 30 minutes

PM Full Body

• Clean & Jerk
• Leg Press – HEAVY, go for PR
• Romanian Deadlifts
• BB Shrugs – HEAVY
• Calf Raises - HEAVY

Day 3

Another day in and a decent workout.  It has got to be around 100*F outside today and very humid here in Durham.  I began the workout with 10x100m sprints outside across a soccer field then did 3x10 each of burpees, pushups, ATG squats.  The first couple sprints were pretty difficult thanks to those really heavy leg presses yesterday.  By the end of that I was in a flop sweat...good warm up.

After that I went inside to lift and did a Chest and Triceps workout:

*Chest cable flys 3x10, 3x8
*Incline DB Press 3x8x50lb
*Flat DB Press 3x8x65lb
*Decline DB Press 2x5x65 (getting pretty tired by this point).
*50 pushups
*Tricep Pulldowns 4x8x60lb
*30 pushups

After that I was pretty tired and ready to be done.  Here is my nutrition for the day, around 2800 kcal total:
AM: Fast
1230PM: 2 small Granny Smith Apples
1245-145PM: Workout
2PM: SMoothie, bag of berries, 4 scoops protein
245PM: 5 eggs, 11 strips of bacon
330PM: Cobb salad from Chopped Greens
FULL (Gotta love Leangains.)

I've been super tired lately b/c of a ton of mental strain with classwork and work-work issues and a ton of thinking, so while I've been meaning to do a morning workout, I haven't yet been able to pull myself out of bed that early to do so.  Tomorrow I will make another attempt and head to the pool for a swim to do 50m sprints.  There are few better feelings in the world than the feeling after you've had a satisfying swim.  This will also rev my metabolism up for the entire morning and keep me burning that stubborn BF in my abdomen, basically the only area I need to lose fat in.

My arms are beginning to striate with veins, a good sign that BF levels are dropping and muscles are growing in them.  I'm still experimenting with LeanGains and what the most optimal way to eat on a daily basis is.  I'm going to go back to the site and review the protocol once again.

Day 2

This blog is quickly becoming one of my favorite things to update throughout the day, and I am looking forward to my workouts in the gym each and every day.

Today was much better diet-wise, completely "clean." Here's what I had:

AM: Fast - Premium Insurance Caps by Hammer Nutrition for all my vitamins & amino acids
1245PM: 2 medium sized chicken breasts
1-215PM: Lift [Shoulders and Calves]
230PM: Post-workout Smoothie -- 1/2 bag frozen strawberries, same with blackberries, 3 scoops protein powder, water
3PM: 2 small chicken breasts w/salsa, 1C oats with 2 scoops protein
8PM: 2 Chicken Breasts

Here's my workout (Shoulders & Calves Focus):

*Upright Rows 4x8x50lbs
*Lateral raises 4x10x10lbs directly after rows

*3x15 explosive jumps

*Shoulder Press 4x8x40lbs ...directly to...
*DB Shrugs 4x10x90lb DBs

*DB front raises 4x10x20lbs
*Leg Press (Calf focus) 4x warm-up sets, then 2x8 @765 lbs (can do more apparently, still testing out my leg strength, my legs are pretty strong from all the cycling I've done).

*Upright Rows 3x8x50lbs

*Lateral raises 3x10x10lbs directly after rows

*Shoulder Press 3x8x40lbs ...directly to...

*DB Shrugs 3x10x90lb DBs

*DB calf raises 3x10x90lbs

*Then did a few minutes on the stair climber, but bailed on that fast and walked 10mins back to my apartment, also walked to the gym. 

It's not about how hard you can hit ...

... It's about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward.

Day One Down

Just got back from the gym, showered, and ate my evening meal.  Sitting here digesting so I thought I'd post an update.

Had a very solid lift today.  Did arms & abdominals...

• Standing BB curls (superset) x3 6-12 reps
• Two arm overhead seated db extension x3 6-12 reps
• BB preacher curls (superset) x3 8-12 reps
• Rope press downs – x3 8-12 reps
• Hammer curls (superset) x2 10-12 reps
• Close grip bench press x2 10-12 reps
• Seated concentration curls (triset) x2 10-12 reps
• Reverse grip barbell curls x2 10-12 reps
• Close-grip pushups x2 10-12 reps
• Hanging Leg Raises (giant set)
• Rope crunches
• Oblique floor twists
• Weighted sit ups x2 to failure

I split the exercises into superset doubles where I'd rep them back-and-forth, back-and-forth.  Got a great pump very quickly.  Ended with a 20 minute walk around Duke's East Campus.  As for nutrition today, not great, but not too bad either.  After giving a presentation on West Campus, I got a text from my friend that he was going to pick me up for lunch; we were headed to Pan Pan Diner, this cheap all-you-can-eat Southern Buffet.  Needless to say, I was conflicted.  Heading to a place like this is NOT the best way to begin a cut.  My stomach has been hurting for the last few days because of how awful my dietary habits have been, so I restrained myself here to two small salads with ham and bacon bits and some BBQ chicken and a few ribs.  It seemed like they actually killed the animals themselves by drowning them in BBQ sauce, so I wiped much of that shit off.  Never seen so much sauce in my life.  

That food was pretty low quality, but I guess that's what you get when you pay $7.99 for a buffet.  After the gym I made an awesome berry and protein smoothie and had two curry chicken breasts for dinner with Diet Coke to drink (another vice, but definitely my least harmful one).  I don't plan on eating any more today. I am full and satisfied.  Trying to focus on drinking a lot to flush out all of the bad shit that I've been eating so I can start fresh soon.  Drank a whole half gallon of iced green tea this morning and had some apples to try and flush with the fiber.  So here's my nutrition for the day:

10am: 2 apples + half gallon of iced green tea

1pm: 2 small salads (ham, bacon bits, cucumbers, tomatoes) + 1/4 BBQ chicken + 2 BBQ pork ribs

215-345pm: Lift - Arms and Abdominals + walk

4pm: Strawberry and Blackberry smoothie with scoop of Pea Protein and Choc. Hammer Whey

430pm: 2 4oz Chicken Breasts

Been feeling exhausted and moody lately.  Definitely diet-related.  On the right track to getting back into the swing of things though.   I plan on heading to either the pool for some 50m sprints in the morning or outside for some 100m running sprints and some HIIT work.  I'll fast through it then come back to the gym in the afternoon for Shoulders/Calves/&Cardio.  

One-Month-Cut

Going to begin my one month cut tomorrow (today is Sunday, my rest day).  I've been cooking my chicken breasts in the Foreman grill this afternoon and will store them in a big Tupperware in the fridge so they're readily available and I won't have to cook later.  This batch is seasoned with yellow curry, mmm.

My friend and I were talking about it, and we agree, if I am to get down to my goal BF of being shredded at under 7%, then I'm going to have to make some changes.  I'm ditching the dairy and gluten, they just make me bloat, as well as all of the BBQ sauces and fatty cuts of meat that I eat a lot of.  I still need to maintain a source of healthy fat in my diet, but it probably shouldn't be from dozens of BBQ wings, if you know what I'm saying.

I'm not big on peanut butter like a lot of other people, but I do like avocados and bacon.  I'll pick up some bacon tomorrow at the grocery and have bacon & eggs for dinner a couple nights this week.  Eating in will be the biggest change for me, and it will help a lot.  I've been too into eating out, even when I get tired of the options.  I guess I just love the flavor.  But flavor is not everything, especially when attempting a serious cut.  It's also SO expensive and I am on a stipend for food right now.  If anything, all the money I save on food can go toward my favorite past time, reading.  I always love buying new books!

However, I don't necessarily believe that I'll have to sacrifice flavor on this cut.  I'll be using tons of herbs and spices to keep things interesting.  Like I said, I'm already employing the curry powder as I type this post, and it smells great.

So, to the right is a pic I just took of myself today, June 19th.  Let's see the improvements on July 19th.  Actually, I will take a pic every Sunday and put it up to see a more consistent progress.

I'm probably around 9-10% BF right now.  This is after 2 weeks of BodyBuilding training, but really NO discipline in my dietary habits.  At the point of this pic, I am actually coming down off a two-day shitty food binge.  Feeling pretty bloated and gross.

So all that being said, let's get to it.  I'm shooting to look like this guy, Pham Woodbridge, in a month or two.  He's got the most perfect aesthetics I've ever seen (IMHO).

Athlete Profile: Tyler McPeak

Tyler is very inspiring to me, not only because his the physique he maintains naturally, but also because of how he has overcome his struggle with binge eating.  He is an impressive guy.  And he has begun using the LeanGains dieting protocol, with much success I might add...

You can find a link to a great interview of his on SimplyShredded.com HERE.

And you can find a link to his personal website HERE.

Cleaning House

I'm lactose- and gluten-intolerant.  Does this mean I avoid foods with these ingredients?  Sadly, no.  And my GI system has been paying the price.

Also, in my quest for ever-dropping body fat levels, I think my BF loss is also paying the price by slowing to a halt.  I feel sorry for my roommates as well ... eating as much dairy as I've been consuming recently certainly doesn't produce the greatest smells...

So, now that I've gotten my feet on the ground training-wise with this whole bodybuilding bit, I feel it is time to start locking-in my nutrition and cleaning it up a bit.  I'm not one for making too drastic of changes, so I have no plans of eating nothing but oats and chicken breasts for the rest of my life, but I do think I need to re-exorcise the dairy and gluten from my diet.  Quite frankly, I won't miss it after the first few days.  The bloating and farting is not pleasant.  Time for a change.  I'd also like to start getting really cut and these two food allergens are notorious for getting in the way.  They are addictive and inflammatory and provide no real tangible benefits.  I can get my calcium from broccoli, thank you very much.

I'm a big proponent of Martin Berkhan's LeanGains approach to Intermittent Fasting, http://www.leangains.com/, so I plan to continue fasting through the morning hours.  It is quite enjoyable and only enhances my workouts because I feel so light and ready-to-go.

I just bought frozen strawberries and some pea protein (no clue how good this is/how it tastes, hopefully the berries will mask any bad flavor) for my protein smoothies post-workout.  I'll basically eat lots of chicken (which I LOVE, thanks Mom ...I've eaten chicken every night since I was 2 ... slight exaggeration, but not by much) in the form of whole rotisserie-style and breasts (we have like 10lbs of frozen breasts that no one ever eats), Proats (protein-oats), sweet potatoes, berry smoothies, eggs and bacon, and probably some apples.  I also love chicken wings and cobb salads so I'll probably splurge on these every once in a while; I'll just cut out the bleu cheese (sadly).

So here's roughly what a normal day for me looks like, using IF'ing.

Fast through the morning (cup of coffee is very enjoyable and does wonders for energy during the fast ... you don't get hungry btw) sometimes I'll do a short workout in the morning ...  HIIT or light sprints or walking
- Around 1 or 2 pm, eat a salad, chicken, or some proats
- Pre-workout BCAAs
- Lift
- Post-workout, 50-75g protein with berries to taste, blended as a smoothie with water
- Dinner (soon after the smoothie ... I generally get pretty hungry within an hour of lifting), whole chicken, or several breasts with marinara or salsa, a sweet potato, and maybe another smoothie, some fruit, or chocolate proats for dessert. I try to shoot for around 150-200g of protein in my dinner.
Drink lots of water, maybe an evening coffee or diet soda.  Let the food settle in your stomach and fill you up.


Generally I aim to fast for at least 16 hours, but I like to push it, sometimes going up to 24 hours when I'm feeling saucy.  It really isn't that difficult after you get used to it.  And you maintain muscle really well while simultaneously shedding fat, but you have to make sure you eat hearty and healthy post-workout or you may run into a different scenario.

Weekly Plan for 6/20/2011 - 6/27/2011

I don't mess around.  Leave the bullshit at home ...

____________________________________________________________________________

Monday

[AM] HIIT & Sprints

[PM] Arms/Abs

• Standing BB curls (superset) x3 6-12 reps
• Two arm overhead seated db extension x3 6-12 reps
• BB preacher curls (superset) x3 8-12 reps
• Rope press downs – x3 8-12 reps
• Hammer curls (superset) x2 10-12 reps
• Close grip bench press x2 10-12 reps
• Seated concentration curls (triset) x2 10-12 reps
• Reverse grip barbell curls x2 10-12 reps
• Close-grip pushups x2 10-12 reps
• Hanging Leg Raises (giant set)
• Rope crunches
• Oblique floor twists
• Weighted sit ups x2 to failure

Tuesday

[AM] Swim Sprints

[PM] Shoulders/Calves/Cardio

• Seated sideways on bench one arm db lateral raises – 3x 10-12
• Upright rows 3×10-12 (2 drop sets on last set)
• Standing DB Laterals – 30lb x 10 (drop sets)
• Reverse pec dec – 3×12 (one drop set on last set)
• BB shrugs – 3×12
• Dumbell front raises – 3×12
• One arm cable shrug – 3×12
• Standing calve raises – 3×12
• Jump rope 10 minutes

Wednesday

[AM] HIIT

[PM] Chest/Triceps/Cardio

• Pec dec – 4×12
• Incline barbell press – 3×12
• Flat hammer press – 3×6-12 one drop on last set
• Decline press – 3×12
• Flat dumbbell fly superset dumbell pullovers – 3×12
• V-Bar press down superset with overhead one arm extension – 2×10
• Run 20 minutes intervals
• Stair climber – 5 minutes level 8.0

Thursday

[AM] Swim Sprints

[PM] Back/Biceps/Abs

• T-bar rows – 4×8-12 2 drop sets on the last set
• Reverse grip pulldowns – 3×12
• Standing DB rows – 3×12
• Seated cable narrow grip row (superset) – 3×12
• Behind the neck pulldowns – 3×12
• Deadlifts superset with straight bar standing pulldowns – 3×5-12
• Standing BB curl (superset) 3×10-12
• Cambered bar rollouts 3×10-12
• Standing Concentration curls (superset) – 3×10-12
• Rope crunches – 3×10-12

Friday

Sprints 100mx20

Saturday

[AM] Legs

• 10 minute bike warm up
• Leg extensions 3×12-15
• Squats 4×8-12
• Lying leg curl 4×12-15
• Leg press 4×12-15
• Stiff leg deadlifts with dumbells x20 (superset)
• Walking lunges x20
• Seated calf raise 4×12-15

[PM] Whole Body

Sunday

OFF