Sunday, April 1, 2012
Fitness Nirvana blog moved
My website is up, even though most of it is still under construction. If you want to see the blog, go to www.fitness-nirvana.com/fnblog You can sign up to be a member, or you can just enter your email and follow. I am looking at moving my blogger blogs to the new site, but its not very high on my priority list right now :) Hope to see you all at Fitness-Nirvana!
Sunday, March 25, 2012
Things could have been worse!
This week, I was bad. I stayed pretty true to my diet, but had a few extra cheat days.... in fact, I had more cheat days than normal days, which usually spells disaster for the week. Wednesday AND Thursday, I indulged in post-work happy hours, had a couple beers and food that is just all around not very good for you. I took my cheat day early this week, on Saturday, and enjoyed my Grandmother's home-cooked Italian feast. I mean it.... pasta, bread, meatballs, sausage, home-made ravioli, chicken parm, salad, cheese, wine, dessert... it was well worth it. I couldn't possibly count the calories, but I'm sure it was well over 1500 in the one meal. That was the last thing I ate until 10:00 am the next morning :)
I also tracked my calories, which I will put in a separate blog entry on my new website when I get it up and running! Right now, its under construction and I'm pouring all of my free time into it. Considering moving this blog to that site, but I'm not sure yet. Will keep you posted. For now, feel free to check out what I have so far - it really isn't much at all, but lots and lots to come! www.fitness-nirvana.com
So, results: With all that, I still managed to keep the same weight. This week, I even saw numbers from the BIA as low as 9.3 - but that was while I was soaking wet, and the morning of a fast. I didn't move much in body fat either. Here's what I have for the week
I also tracked my calories, which I will put in a separate blog entry on my new website when I get it up and running! Right now, its under construction and I'm pouring all of my free time into it. Considering moving this blog to that site, but I'm not sure yet. Will keep you posted. For now, feel free to check out what I have so far - it really isn't much at all, but lots and lots to come! www.fitness-nirvana.com
So, results: With all that, I still managed to keep the same weight. This week, I even saw numbers from the BIA as low as 9.3 - but that was while I was soaking wet, and the morning of a fast. I didn't move much in body fat either. Here's what I have for the week
| Weight | 153 lb. | Loss/Gain |
| Body fat % | 10.65% | 0% |
| Chest | 34.5" | 0" |
| Waist | 30.5" | 0" |
| Hips | 36.75" | +0.25" |
| Thighs | 21" each | 0" |
| Biceps | 13.25" R, 13" L | 0" |
| Neck | 14.75" | 0" |
Not bad. My ass apparently grew a little... but I'm looking forward to getting back on track and seeing even better results. With the Lean Gains type diet I'm doing now, I'm looking to start seeing increases in numbers over the next 4 weeks while seeing the body fat drop slowly over the next 2 months.
This is a hell of a lot of fun, and I'm sure hoping everyone is finding this useful!
Sunday, March 18, 2012
Week 5, Interesting...
SAs I continue the IF experiment, I get more and more intrigued. I'm continuously doing research on the latest fads, and "new break-through research" because many of these fads and "ground breaking research studies", while being full of shit, have a little bit of truth behind them. They have to or else everyone with any knowledge of the subject will be able to immediately discredit their claims and they'd never sell a product ever again. But... most of them are masters of advertising, and pump you up with false information, claiming that they "started out just like you" (to build instant rapport) and tell you stories of how they were either super fat, had no idea what their feet look like, or were so skinny that they struggled carrying a gallon of milk - and now... they are competing in Mr. Universe competitions and did it all by following a few secret steps that are so simple (and they are) only found in the pages of their latest click-bank product. Well, as you know, my job is to filter out the bullshit of these fads and "break-through" products, discredit the false claims and hog-shit "workout of the month" and show you that some of these techniques may work, but are just tools to break through plateaus. I'm buying and sorting out the facts from the myths so that you don't have to. And I love every minute of it!
So, in this week's research, I've come across something that's been around a while, and people actually get pretty good results with. It's called Lean Gains. It's geared towards the people that want to put on lean muscle, drop body fat, and look like a muscle anatomy chart. It's a program based on IF with DAILY intermittent fasting using the 16/8 method. That is, 16 hour intermittent fasts with an 8 hour feeding window. For the average person, this is very do-able, and most people actually do this without even knowing it. I mean, if you eat dinner at 6:00 pm and miss breakfast because you're in a rush, and grab a quick snack at 10:00 am, then you're on the schedule. The part I don't like is that they strongly suggest supplementation - something I am vehemently against. When you fast, you supposedly lose muscle mass (I don't refute that claim) and suggest that taking Branch-Chain Amino Acid supplements (BCAA) helps minimize muscle loss. These are basically engineered amino acids that are incomplete proteins, and are designed to quickly bond with growth hormone in your body to repair and build muscle very quickly. They work pretty well, but I will not inflate the over-utilized supplement market for fast artificial gains. What I am doing though, is investigating whether or not a 16/8 type of IF is beneficial on days when I'm not doing a full 24 hour fast. Shortening your fast window doesn't produce as good of hormone boosts as a full 24 hours, but its something to consider. Not sure if I'm going to attack this full on just yet. I really want to finish the 12 week experiment and see where that lands me.
So, I'm sticking with the same Saturday workout addition, and 2 day a week, 24 hour fasts on Tuesday and Thursday. 1 cheat day towards the beginning of the week (Sunday or Monday) followed by the same workout routine of Stronglifts 5x5. This week, I had an impromptu lunch offer with my sister and her husband on Tuesday. That cut my fast from 24 hours to 18 hours, which is still pretty good. I'm not letting my diet dictate my social life, except when it comes to peer pressure of eating a whole pizza and drinking a half keg of beer! Use good judgement for christ sake. On Thursday, I cut the fast down to 23 hours mainly because it fit in a little better with my chores for the week and me getting out of work a little bit early. The difference between a 23 and 24 hour fast is virtually negligible.
So, results? Still pretty good. I feel like things are really stabilizing now after 5 weeks. Weight loss has slowed (but I don't care about that number at all). Fat loss is slow, but still there. I lost a few inches this week, and remained relatively the same weight. That's a good indication that fat loss is there, but not so much where it affects your total body weight. It's also a good indication that a little bit of lean mass was added. Lean mass gains are slow and really can only be measured over periods of months, rather than days or weeks. So, without further discussion, here's my results for this week.
Some things to point out. I, again, used the Navy body fat calculation and also recorded my results with the BIA meter. The results were slightly different, but not enough to really raise alarm. The BIA meter indicated 11.3% The Navy calculation showed 10.64% These numbers are close enough for me, and I figure I'm actually in the 10.8 - 11% range. Pretty close to what I expected.
So far, still liking the IF technique. There's a few things I want to incorporate that I will borrow from the lean gains program. First is looking at balancing my macronutrients properly. If you don't get enough protein, you won't build muscle. The rule-of-thumb has always been 1g per lb of body weight... I don't really like that rule. Once you get up to about 180-200 lb, that's a LOT of protein, and could actually start damaging your kidneys. Lean Gains suggests even more than that!! I really don't think that's a good idea... however, with my diet, I really don't feel like I'm getting enough protein either. I haven't been tracking calories (bad, bad, bad!!) but estimate about 120 g per day. Starting this week, I'm tracking all calories that I possibly can (cheat meals can be hard because if you grab a piece of pizza at a local shop, chances are you can't find the exact calorie amounts... good thing its only 1 day a week!).
The second thing I'd like to borrow from Lean Gains is carb cycling. I am a firm believer that your need carbs, every day. I will not accept the fact that one macronutrient makes you any fatter than another. A bad, improperly balanced diet does that, not a bagel you eat twice a week... Carb cycling is a tool to maximize results, not a way to sustain yourself. The basic principle is that on workout days, you eat more carbs than on non-workout days, and that's pretty much it. Eat higher fat foods and meats like steak and fish on your off days (so you get the calories) and more carb dense food with leaner protein, like chicken, turkey, tuna, rice, and potatoes on your workout days for energy and recovery. Lean gains suggests its OK to eat carb heavy food before bed, but I still disagree. When you sleep, your digestion slows way down making it a dangerously good time to store those carbs as fat.
So, what EXACTLY am I doing? Pretty much the same thing I've been doing with a few tweaks. I'm going to shoot for two 24 hour fasts on Tuesday and Thursday. On workout days, I'm going to be eating lots of protein, carbs, and fibrous vegetables like broccoli, asparagus, and chard. On off days, I'm going to be eating less carbs and more fats, good fats of course, like nuts, eggs, etc. I'll be tracking calories much closer as well. I'm also going to recalculate my caloric needs for muscle gain. I'm not sure my target of 2500 are accurate, and really want to make sure I'm doing what I should be doing. I don't want focus on just fat loss through calorie deficit when the biggest fat burner, muscle, is being ignored.
So thats it for this week. We'll see what happens and what there is to post about next week :)
So, in this week's research, I've come across something that's been around a while, and people actually get pretty good results with. It's called Lean Gains. It's geared towards the people that want to put on lean muscle, drop body fat, and look like a muscle anatomy chart. It's a program based on IF with DAILY intermittent fasting using the 16/8 method. That is, 16 hour intermittent fasts with an 8 hour feeding window. For the average person, this is very do-able, and most people actually do this without even knowing it. I mean, if you eat dinner at 6:00 pm and miss breakfast because you're in a rush, and grab a quick snack at 10:00 am, then you're on the schedule. The part I don't like is that they strongly suggest supplementation - something I am vehemently against. When you fast, you supposedly lose muscle mass (I don't refute that claim) and suggest that taking Branch-Chain Amino Acid supplements (BCAA) helps minimize muscle loss. These are basically engineered amino acids that are incomplete proteins, and are designed to quickly bond with growth hormone in your body to repair and build muscle very quickly. They work pretty well, but I will not inflate the over-utilized supplement market for fast artificial gains. What I am doing though, is investigating whether or not a 16/8 type of IF is beneficial on days when I'm not doing a full 24 hour fast. Shortening your fast window doesn't produce as good of hormone boosts as a full 24 hours, but its something to consider. Not sure if I'm going to attack this full on just yet. I really want to finish the 12 week experiment and see where that lands me.
So, I'm sticking with the same Saturday workout addition, and 2 day a week, 24 hour fasts on Tuesday and Thursday. 1 cheat day towards the beginning of the week (Sunday or Monday) followed by the same workout routine of Stronglifts 5x5. This week, I had an impromptu lunch offer with my sister and her husband on Tuesday. That cut my fast from 24 hours to 18 hours, which is still pretty good. I'm not letting my diet dictate my social life, except when it comes to peer pressure of eating a whole pizza and drinking a half keg of beer! Use good judgement for christ sake. On Thursday, I cut the fast down to 23 hours mainly because it fit in a little better with my chores for the week and me getting out of work a little bit early. The difference between a 23 and 24 hour fast is virtually negligible.
So, results? Still pretty good. I feel like things are really stabilizing now after 5 weeks. Weight loss has slowed (but I don't care about that number at all). Fat loss is slow, but still there. I lost a few inches this week, and remained relatively the same weight. That's a good indication that fat loss is there, but not so much where it affects your total body weight. It's also a good indication that a little bit of lean mass was added. Lean mass gains are slow and really can only be measured over periods of months, rather than days or weeks. So, without further discussion, here's my results for this week.
| Weight | 153.5 lb. | Loss |
| Body fat % | 10.65% | 0.75% |
| Chest | 34.5" | 0.25" |
| Waist | 30.5" | 0.25" |
| Hips | 36.5" | 0.5" |
| Thighs | 21" each | 0" |
| Biceps | 13.25" R, 13" L | 0" |
| Neck | 14.75" | 0" |
Some things to point out. I, again, used the Navy body fat calculation and also recorded my results with the BIA meter. The results were slightly different, but not enough to really raise alarm. The BIA meter indicated 11.3% The Navy calculation showed 10.64% These numbers are close enough for me, and I figure I'm actually in the 10.8 - 11% range. Pretty close to what I expected.
So far, still liking the IF technique. There's a few things I want to incorporate that I will borrow from the lean gains program. First is looking at balancing my macronutrients properly. If you don't get enough protein, you won't build muscle. The rule-of-thumb has always been 1g per lb of body weight... I don't really like that rule. Once you get up to about 180-200 lb, that's a LOT of protein, and could actually start damaging your kidneys. Lean Gains suggests even more than that!! I really don't think that's a good idea... however, with my diet, I really don't feel like I'm getting enough protein either. I haven't been tracking calories (bad, bad, bad!!) but estimate about 120 g per day. Starting this week, I'm tracking all calories that I possibly can (cheat meals can be hard because if you grab a piece of pizza at a local shop, chances are you can't find the exact calorie amounts... good thing its only 1 day a week!).
The second thing I'd like to borrow from Lean Gains is carb cycling. I am a firm believer that your need carbs, every day. I will not accept the fact that one macronutrient makes you any fatter than another. A bad, improperly balanced diet does that, not a bagel you eat twice a week... Carb cycling is a tool to maximize results, not a way to sustain yourself. The basic principle is that on workout days, you eat more carbs than on non-workout days, and that's pretty much it. Eat higher fat foods and meats like steak and fish on your off days (so you get the calories) and more carb dense food with leaner protein, like chicken, turkey, tuna, rice, and potatoes on your workout days for energy and recovery. Lean gains suggests its OK to eat carb heavy food before bed, but I still disagree. When you sleep, your digestion slows way down making it a dangerously good time to store those carbs as fat.
So, what EXACTLY am I doing? Pretty much the same thing I've been doing with a few tweaks. I'm going to shoot for two 24 hour fasts on Tuesday and Thursday. On workout days, I'm going to be eating lots of protein, carbs, and fibrous vegetables like broccoli, asparagus, and chard. On off days, I'm going to be eating less carbs and more fats, good fats of course, like nuts, eggs, etc. I'll be tracking calories much closer as well. I'm also going to recalculate my caloric needs for muscle gain. I'm not sure my target of 2500 are accurate, and really want to make sure I'm doing what I should be doing. I don't want focus on just fat loss through calorie deficit when the biggest fat burner, muscle, is being ignored.
So thats it for this week. We'll see what happens and what there is to post about next week :)
Sunday, March 11, 2012
After 4 weeks...
I feel great! After recovering from the flu, I feel like things are starting to stabilize. My body is getting used to doing hard work in a somewhat fasted state (Finish my last meal around 6:30 or 7 pm, work out at around 5:30 am, that's about 11 hours of fasting), but not sooo fasted that I start to feel a little weak.
I'm sitting here right before breakfast on Sunday morning, and was pretty excited about the results, so I decided to write this post before I eat (and for those that know me, I am unlikely to do anything before I eat :))
So what did week 4 look like? Well, both weight and body fat are slowly decreasing. I start to get nervous when I hover near the 150 lb mark. I start to feel like that's a little too light, and starts to impact my working weights that I'm lifting. Nonetheless, I'm getting there, and trying to take an optimistic point of view. For example, during the week while fasting, I've seen body fat numbers as low as 10%, which are a little different than the numbers on weigh-in day. I accept that % errors are a part of life when dealing with equipment and methodologies that are less than perfect. I may work out a mathematical equation to normalize these errors and make a best guess at what the numbers actually are... stay tuned for that. In the mean time, I decided to take a gander and see what I can find as far as other means to estimate body fat %, and I found a fairly reliable calculation (within 1 - 3% error of a water displacement test) developed by the US Navy. Calculation estimates are great because they aren't affected by things like hydration level, but are bad because they try to stuff everything into a "one size fits all" calculation. It takes into account height, waist measurements, and neck size for males, using ratios between them to come up with a fairly accurate ballpark guess. Enough with that banter for now. Later on, you'll see why I brought this up.
So, what did I do this week? The only small change I made was adding a short workout on saturday. I usually don't like to workout 2 days in a row, and it would be so much easier to not do that if the week was 8 days long... which it isn't. I wanted to add a 4th day so that I can ensure that I do all the exercises twice each week, and not impact my recovery time. On monday and friday, I did workout B (Squat, overhead press, dead lift), wednesday I did Workout A (Squat, Bench, Rows), and on Saturday, I added a workout C (Power cleans, Bench). Power cleans hit the legs and back pretty hard, so its a good exercise to do while not squatting and still works the back, so its not too bad if you don't row that day. I like this routine better because on the strict ABA, BAB routine, you can go up to 5 days without doing some of the strongest lifts: Bench and Deadlift. Exercises that work smaller muscle groups harder like the overhead press, can safely be done within 2 - 3 days of recovery without impacting recovery. I wanted to ensure that I did the lifts I'm struggling with (bench, and press) twice each week, but not overload myself during the normal workout.
Ok, so I added a day - even though I said in the last post that I would just add a workout on each A and B day to bench and press 3 x each week... why? Well, first, to keep my workout to a reasonable length, I had to drop all my exercises down to 3 sets. That hurts when you can actually do 5 sets at a certain weight. Second, the recovery time was not good. By Friday, I was struggling with working weights that I normally crush! I didn't like this. Recovery is good. I'm not 18 anymore...
With these changes, and sticking to the 2-day a week 24 hour IF diet, I'm seeing pretty good initial results. I weighed in today at 153.5 lb, and dropped about .5% body fat. That's a good pace, and I will gladly accept it. I did drop some inches this week that were right on par with my predictions last week. Don't remember what I said? I said I expect lean mass to stay relatively the same, while dropping to around 11% body fat, and losing some inches from my chest and hips. The results? I'm at 11.2% body fat, lost 1/4" off my chest, waist and hips. Lean mass was relatively the same, but I did lose a little bit 136.79 to 136.31 lb. So.. here's the results:
So, I talked a little bit about the navy body fat calculation that I found. I've been using that the last two weeks, and I talked a little bit about why I've been using it. I personally think it's a little more accurate than the bio-electric impedance device mainly because it correlates better to the overall numbers I'm seeing. For example, in the past few weeks I've been seeing a decrease in waist, hip and chest size but still seeing the body fat readings as high or higher than before I started, which doesn't make any sense. Also, the calculation gives me the same result whether I am fully hydrated, whether its 8:00 am or 9:00 pm. Take a look at the table below: I recorded my weight and body fat readings from both the bioelectic impedance device and the Navy calculation. Both are similar, when you compare it to the second table, showing the measurements of key body areas, the calculation makes a whole lot more sense.
I'm sitting here right before breakfast on Sunday morning, and was pretty excited about the results, so I decided to write this post before I eat (and for those that know me, I am unlikely to do anything before I eat :))
So what did week 4 look like? Well, both weight and body fat are slowly decreasing. I start to get nervous when I hover near the 150 lb mark. I start to feel like that's a little too light, and starts to impact my working weights that I'm lifting. Nonetheless, I'm getting there, and trying to take an optimistic point of view. For example, during the week while fasting, I've seen body fat numbers as low as 10%, which are a little different than the numbers on weigh-in day. I accept that % errors are a part of life when dealing with equipment and methodologies that are less than perfect. I may work out a mathematical equation to normalize these errors and make a best guess at what the numbers actually are... stay tuned for that. In the mean time, I decided to take a gander and see what I can find as far as other means to estimate body fat %, and I found a fairly reliable calculation (within 1 - 3% error of a water displacement test) developed by the US Navy. Calculation estimates are great because they aren't affected by things like hydration level, but are bad because they try to stuff everything into a "one size fits all" calculation. It takes into account height, waist measurements, and neck size for males, using ratios between them to come up with a fairly accurate ballpark guess. Enough with that banter for now. Later on, you'll see why I brought this up.
So, what did I do this week? The only small change I made was adding a short workout on saturday. I usually don't like to workout 2 days in a row, and it would be so much easier to not do that if the week was 8 days long... which it isn't. I wanted to add a 4th day so that I can ensure that I do all the exercises twice each week, and not impact my recovery time. On monday and friday, I did workout B (Squat, overhead press, dead lift), wednesday I did Workout A (Squat, Bench, Rows), and on Saturday, I added a workout C (Power cleans, Bench). Power cleans hit the legs and back pretty hard, so its a good exercise to do while not squatting and still works the back, so its not too bad if you don't row that day. I like this routine better because on the strict ABA, BAB routine, you can go up to 5 days without doing some of the strongest lifts: Bench and Deadlift. Exercises that work smaller muscle groups harder like the overhead press, can safely be done within 2 - 3 days of recovery without impacting recovery. I wanted to ensure that I did the lifts I'm struggling with (bench, and press) twice each week, but not overload myself during the normal workout.
Ok, so I added a day - even though I said in the last post that I would just add a workout on each A and B day to bench and press 3 x each week... why? Well, first, to keep my workout to a reasonable length, I had to drop all my exercises down to 3 sets. That hurts when you can actually do 5 sets at a certain weight. Second, the recovery time was not good. By Friday, I was struggling with working weights that I normally crush! I didn't like this. Recovery is good. I'm not 18 anymore...
With these changes, and sticking to the 2-day a week 24 hour IF diet, I'm seeing pretty good initial results. I weighed in today at 153.5 lb, and dropped about .5% body fat. That's a good pace, and I will gladly accept it. I did drop some inches this week that were right on par with my predictions last week. Don't remember what I said? I said I expect lean mass to stay relatively the same, while dropping to around 11% body fat, and losing some inches from my chest and hips. The results? I'm at 11.2% body fat, lost 1/4" off my chest, waist and hips. Lean mass was relatively the same, but I did lose a little bit 136.79 to 136.31 lb. So.. here's the results:
| Weight | 153.5 lb. |
| Body fat % | 11.2% |
| Chest | 34.75" |
| Waist | 30.75" |
| Hips | 37" |
| Thighs | 21" each |
| Biceps | 13.25" R, 13" L |
So, I talked a little bit about the navy body fat calculation that I found. I've been using that the last two weeks, and I talked a little bit about why I've been using it. I personally think it's a little more accurate than the bio-electric impedance device mainly because it correlates better to the overall numbers I'm seeing. For example, in the past few weeks I've been seeing a decrease in waist, hip and chest size but still seeing the body fat readings as high or higher than before I started, which doesn't make any sense. Also, the calculation gives me the same result whether I am fully hydrated, whether its 8:00 am or 9:00 pm. Take a look at the table below: I recorded my weight and body fat readings from both the bioelectic impedance device and the Navy calculation. Both are similar, when you compare it to the second table, showing the measurements of key body areas, the calculation makes a whole lot more sense.
Body Fat Numbers Over Past Month
| Date | Weight (lbs) | BI body fat% | Navy body fat% |
|---|---|---|---|
| 02/06/12 | 167 | 12.9% | 14.41% |
| 02/11/12 | 163.5 | 13.00% | 13.36% |
| 02/16/12 | 160 | 11.00% | 12.83% |
| 02/26/12 | 156 | 13.00% | 11.75% |
| 03/04/12 | 155 | 11.80% | 11.75% |
| 03/11/12 | 153.5 | 11.30% | 11.20% |
Body Measurements Over Past Month
| Date | Chest (in) | Waist at navel(in) | Hips around glutes(in) | Neck (in) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 02/06/12 | 36.5 | 32.5 | 38 | 15 |
| 02/11/12 | 36 | 32 | 38 | 15 |
| 02/16/12 | 35.5 | 31.75 | 37.5 | 15 |
| 02/26/12 | 35 | 31 | 37.5 | 14.75 |
| 03/04/12 | 35 | 31 | 37.25 | 14.75 |
| 03/11/12 | 34.75 | 30.75 | 37 | 14.75 |
So, as you can see in the second table, week by week, my measurements are decreasing. In the first table, the body fat reading from the BI device has a downward trend, but is kinda fluctuating a little; week two and four, my measurements went down, but the body fat went up, even when my weight decreased... This is not the case for the Navy calculation. This calculation shows a steady decrease, except in week 5 when I stayed the same. This is much more believable, and just judging by how my clothes fit, and how I look in the mirror, this is closer to the truth. So, I'm sticking with that!
Stay tuned for next week's results. Based on the results I'm seeing so far, I'm going to stick with this a little longer and push it out to 12 weeks. So that's 8 more weeks of this experiment (2 months puts me in May, the perfect time to have cut away all that extra fat... hopefully put a little muscle on too so I don't feel too ashamed to take my shirt off at the beach :D )
Finally, my predictions for next week: I expect to lose a lb or two at most, maybe even no weight at all. I'm thinking the body fat number will drop down into the 10.8% range, and maybe lose a small amount of inches on the hips and chest, not expecting too much off the waist. Lean mass should stay relatively the same.
Stay tuned for next week's results. Based on the results I'm seeing so far, I'm going to stick with this a little longer and push it out to 12 weeks. So that's 8 more weeks of this experiment (2 months puts me in May, the perfect time to have cut away all that extra fat... hopefully put a little muscle on too so I don't feel too ashamed to take my shirt off at the beach :D )
Finally, my predictions for next week: I expect to lose a lb or two at most, maybe even no weight at all. I'm thinking the body fat number will drop down into the 10.8% range, and maybe lose a small amount of inches on the hips and chest, not expecting too much off the waist. Lean mass should stay relatively the same.
Monday, March 5, 2012
Week 3 results
After 3 weeks of testing the IF theory (well, lets call it 2 because the week I was sick pretty much ruined everything) I'm seeing results that are along the lines of what I expect. Body fat readings are definitely going down. Lean mass appears to be going down too. This is not what I was hoping for. In reality, I don't think it's that bad... and definitely not unexpected. People make outrageous claims, anything to buy their product or try their system. Two truths I have witnessed first hand to be true: 1. You can't gain muscle without a little fat, and 2. you can't lose fat without losing a little muscle. Both are directly related to calorie intake - calrioes out.
So, to recap, I've been using Monday as a cheat day. This is to raise leptin levels and kick the fat burning furnace into gear. I think this is an accurate technique. I usually see the biggest fat loss in the first 3 days after a cheat. For example, last week, I saw my bf reading as low as 10.0% It was also as high as 13% For the last two days it was steady around 11.8 - 12.3% I'm assuming this is the most accurate number.
Mmmmm cheat day! Today I had the normal breakfast: eggs, uncured bacon, oatmeal with blueberries, and a half grapefruit. Snack I had Greek yogurt with raspberries, almonds, and a banana. Then the fun began. I had a cheese steak for lunch with a tastykake :) Then for dinner, a quarter pounder w/ cheese, small fries, and a sierra mist natural (made with real sugar). I probably should have splurged and got the large fries... Next week.. I think I'm gonna do pizza :) A nice calzone sounds amazing!!
So, here's a look at this weeks results. I did drop some inches, not much weight, and not much fat, but I did lose a little in these three areas. here's what it looks like:
Weight: 155
Body fat: 11.8% (1.2% drop from last reading)
Chest: same at 35"
Waist: same at 31"
Hips: dropped 1/4 inch. 37.5" to 37.25"
Legs: almost identical. R=21" no loss, L 20.75" dropped .25"
Arms: lost 1/4" R=13.25" (from 13.5"), L=13" (from 13.25").
I'm not really thrilled about losing inches around my arms... I think they are tiny enough, and would actually like to grow in that area, but first thing's first. One area you can't really put a measurement on: my pants fit much nicer - they were starting to get a little tight when I was up in the 165 range just 4 weeks ago. I'm down to my post-P90X numbers, but still know I'm stronger because after P90X I couldn't squat 190 lbs, or deadlift 225 lbs... now I can. On the opposite end of the spectrum: my disappointment is that right now, I'm plateaued at almost every exercise. I haven't broken the bench barrier of 120 lbs for 3 weeks now. My overhead press hit 100 lbs, then crashed hard... to 90 lb. Squatting is making good progress, but I'm taking some weight off to fix my technique... at higher weights, good technique is crucial so that you don't hurt yourself. This is the same story for my deadlift. Barbell Row is making progress - still at 145 lb, but that's as much as I've ever rowed before. A true PR!
Very excited about working out this week, and fixing my form problems. I know this will help me gain the strength I need to break these plateaus! As a side note, I've stopped pressing and benching on the same day. It was physically exhausting, and I couldn't push nearly as much weight as I normally can. Yeah, I was doing it more often, but in the end, it really wasn't doing much for me. I'm focusing on the heavy hitters: Squat, Deadlift, Bench. I'm sticking with the 3 day, 5x5 routine and then adding in Power cleans and a second set of either Bench or Overhead press/Deadlift on Saturday. This adds a few bonuses: 1. I get to work on my weakest body areas twice each week, rather than working one area just once that week (bench or overhead press). 2. I'll be squatting more often which is a great strength builder, and not sacrificing the power clean bonus. 3. I'll also get to deadlift twice each week. My favorite exercise!
Alright! we'll see what happens next week. I will be monitoring my progress all week, but only reporting next sunday or monday... I'm crossing my fingers to possibly see a dip below 10% sometime this week. Here's hoping!!
Cheers
So, to recap, I've been using Monday as a cheat day. This is to raise leptin levels and kick the fat burning furnace into gear. I think this is an accurate technique. I usually see the biggest fat loss in the first 3 days after a cheat. For example, last week, I saw my bf reading as low as 10.0% It was also as high as 13% For the last two days it was steady around 11.8 - 12.3% I'm assuming this is the most accurate number.
Mmmmm cheat day! Today I had the normal breakfast: eggs, uncured bacon, oatmeal with blueberries, and a half grapefruit. Snack I had Greek yogurt with raspberries, almonds, and a banana. Then the fun began. I had a cheese steak for lunch with a tastykake :) Then for dinner, a quarter pounder w/ cheese, small fries, and a sierra mist natural (made with real sugar). I probably should have splurged and got the large fries... Next week.. I think I'm gonna do pizza :) A nice calzone sounds amazing!!
So, here's a look at this weeks results. I did drop some inches, not much weight, and not much fat, but I did lose a little in these three areas. here's what it looks like:
Weight: 155
Body fat: 11.8% (1.2% drop from last reading)
Chest: same at 35"
Waist: same at 31"
Hips: dropped 1/4 inch. 37.5" to 37.25"
Legs: almost identical. R=21" no loss, L 20.75" dropped .25"
Arms: lost 1/4" R=13.25" (from 13.5"), L=13" (from 13.25").
I'm not really thrilled about losing inches around my arms... I think they are tiny enough, and would actually like to grow in that area, but first thing's first. One area you can't really put a measurement on: my pants fit much nicer - they were starting to get a little tight when I was up in the 165 range just 4 weeks ago. I'm down to my post-P90X numbers, but still know I'm stronger because after P90X I couldn't squat 190 lbs, or deadlift 225 lbs... now I can. On the opposite end of the spectrum: my disappointment is that right now, I'm plateaued at almost every exercise. I haven't broken the bench barrier of 120 lbs for 3 weeks now. My overhead press hit 100 lbs, then crashed hard... to 90 lb. Squatting is making good progress, but I'm taking some weight off to fix my technique... at higher weights, good technique is crucial so that you don't hurt yourself. This is the same story for my deadlift. Barbell Row is making progress - still at 145 lb, but that's as much as I've ever rowed before. A true PR!
Very excited about working out this week, and fixing my form problems. I know this will help me gain the strength I need to break these plateaus! As a side note, I've stopped pressing and benching on the same day. It was physically exhausting, and I couldn't push nearly as much weight as I normally can. Yeah, I was doing it more often, but in the end, it really wasn't doing much for me. I'm focusing on the heavy hitters: Squat, Deadlift, Bench. I'm sticking with the 3 day, 5x5 routine and then adding in Power cleans and a second set of either Bench or Overhead press/Deadlift on Saturday. This adds a few bonuses: 1. I get to work on my weakest body areas twice each week, rather than working one area just once that week (bench or overhead press). 2. I'll be squatting more often which is a great strength builder, and not sacrificing the power clean bonus. 3. I'll also get to deadlift twice each week. My favorite exercise!
Alright! we'll see what happens next week. I will be monitoring my progress all week, but only reporting next sunday or monday... I'm crossing my fingers to possibly see a dip below 10% sometime this week. Here's hoping!!
Cheers
Tuesday, February 28, 2012
Week 2 of IF
So, I'm a couple days late on posting results, but its been a crazy busy week. Issues with the girlfriend and living situation, getting over being sick... BUT I am finally getting around to posting. I've been working hard and sticking to the experiment. Last week, I decided not to fast on Tuesday as I was just getting over my flu bug and thought it was best to keep myself satiated.
So, I started out with fairly bonkers results from the week before because of getting sick and apparently that wreaking havoc on my body fat reader. Things have stabilized a bit now that I'm feeling better (still not 100%, but more than 80%, which is good enough for me right now.
I did incorporate one day of fasting on Wednesday night through thursday night - 6 pm to 6 pm, a full 24 hours. I went from my bf reader thinking I am at 14% bf to it thinking I'm 12.6% bf. I did manage to drop 3 pounds and lose some inches. The inches are the keys that I'm looking at. Unless I get a professional skin fold test done each week, I can not trust the bipolar results of the body fat meter as much as I'd like. Unfortunately, its the only tool I have at the moment that is functional.. that's mainly the reason why I've been keeping accurate measurements of key body areas over the last few weeks. So, without further adieu, here's the results:
Weight: 156 lb
Body Fat: 12.6 %
Chest: lost .5 in - 35.5" to 35"
Waist: lost .75 in - 31.75" to 31"
Hips: Same, still 37.5"
Thighs: R and L lost .25 in - 21.25" to 21"
Biceps: Same, still 13.5" R, 13.25" L
Targets - I'm hoping that I see another decent decrease in body fat %. I know once you get down to about 10% these bioelectric impedance devices really start to wig out. Once I look at the results and feel like I'm in that range, I'll probably go to the local clinic or university and have a professional skin fold done, just to see how the results stack up.
I'm expecting to be around 11% by next week, and around 154 lb. I'd expect to see the chest and waist decrease a little, and the biceps and thighs remain relatively the same.
As far as the effects on my working weight for my strength training, I see a little difference, but nothing I'm too alarmed about. My squat and deadlift are just as strong as they were 2 weeks ago. I set a new personal record on the barbell row and on the power clean (140 lb, and 115 lb respectively). My bench and OHP are suffering a little, but they always suffer after I hit a plateau. I've decided to train on these exercises more. I do a 3x5 set of bench and overhead press each day, rather than leaving 4 o 5 days in between them. I've been doing stronglifts long enough now to know that I feel the long days in between exercises are hurting my progress, and its not merely a lack of rest and recovery. I will try this for one month and see how the progress looks.
Until next week, ciao suckaz!
So, I started out with fairly bonkers results from the week before because of getting sick and apparently that wreaking havoc on my body fat reader. Things have stabilized a bit now that I'm feeling better (still not 100%, but more than 80%, which is good enough for me right now.
I did incorporate one day of fasting on Wednesday night through thursday night - 6 pm to 6 pm, a full 24 hours. I went from my bf reader thinking I am at 14% bf to it thinking I'm 12.6% bf. I did manage to drop 3 pounds and lose some inches. The inches are the keys that I'm looking at. Unless I get a professional skin fold test done each week, I can not trust the bipolar results of the body fat meter as much as I'd like. Unfortunately, its the only tool I have at the moment that is functional.. that's mainly the reason why I've been keeping accurate measurements of key body areas over the last few weeks. So, without further adieu, here's the results:
Weight: 156 lb
Body Fat: 12.6 %
Chest: lost .5 in - 35.5" to 35"
Waist: lost .75 in - 31.75" to 31"
Hips: Same, still 37.5"
Thighs: R and L lost .25 in - 21.25" to 21"
Biceps: Same, still 13.5" R, 13.25" L
Targets - I'm hoping that I see another decent decrease in body fat %. I know once you get down to about 10% these bioelectric impedance devices really start to wig out. Once I look at the results and feel like I'm in that range, I'll probably go to the local clinic or university and have a professional skin fold done, just to see how the results stack up.
I'm expecting to be around 11% by next week, and around 154 lb. I'd expect to see the chest and waist decrease a little, and the biceps and thighs remain relatively the same.
As far as the effects on my working weight for my strength training, I see a little difference, but nothing I'm too alarmed about. My squat and deadlift are just as strong as they were 2 weeks ago. I set a new personal record on the barbell row and on the power clean (140 lb, and 115 lb respectively). My bench and OHP are suffering a little, but they always suffer after I hit a plateau. I've decided to train on these exercises more. I do a 3x5 set of bench and overhead press each day, rather than leaving 4 o 5 days in between them. I've been doing stronglifts long enough now to know that I feel the long days in between exercises are hurting my progress, and its not merely a lack of rest and recovery. I will try this for one month and see how the progress looks.
Until next week, ciao suckaz!
Monday, February 20, 2012
The Flu messes with everything!
Well, I know I promised I'd be posting results from the past week of experimenting with IF. And I had every intention to (as you can see by the check-ins over the last week). Things were looking pretty good, but then something horrible happened... something that will ruin every fitness plan... I got the flu. It is that time of year, and I'm not surprised that I've come down with it considering I've moved to a colder climate this winter. Results are extremely contradictory. And somewhat unbelievable when you think about it logically. I thought about postponing publishing my results, but that would go against everything I believe in. I will, however preface them with the following caveat: I am pretty sure that even if you ate junk food for 3 days straight, your body fat will not jump 5% in 3 days while simultaneously losing inches at almost all measurement points on the body. The one thing that is believable, though, is that Bioelectric Impedance Analysis (BIA - those little hand grip body fat calculators) are very sensitive to hydration level of the subject. When you're sick, you really can't drink enough fluids... especially water. And the past 3 days, I certainly did not drink enough. So when I stepped on the scale and saw "160 lb." I was cautiously optimistic. Then I took my bf reading.... 16% !! Are you shitting me? on Thursday, it was 11%!
On Thursday, I was ready to preach about how well things were working, how great I feel, etc. But sadly, today, I have to post the bizarre results with an asterisk.
Weight: 160 lb
BF %: 16 % *
Target caloric Intake: 2500 calories
Chest: lost 1/2 inch ( 36" down to 35.5" )
Waist: lost 1/4 inch ( 32" down to 31.75" )
Hips: lost 1/2 inch (38" down to 37.5" )
Thighs: lost 1/2 inch R 3/4 inch L (22 to 21.5" and 22 to 21.25" )
Biceps: lost 1/4 inch each (13.5" to 13.25" and 13.75" to 13.5" )
It just doesn't make any sense to me. You can't gain that much body fat and lose lean mass at the same time, and you can't lose body fat and gain a ton of lean mass in that short a time period.
So whats the plan? Re-baseline. I was still too sick to make it in for a Monday morning workout. I'm going to continue with my workout on Wednesday and Friday. I am not planning to fast on Monday night - Tuesday evening. I will fast on Wednesday evening - Thursday evening. and hopefully things will level out by then. Once my hydration levels are stabilizing, I have a feeling things will get back to normal. I will repost results next week.
Current conclusions: I think the IF is doing what its intended to do. I think I would have seen spectacular results had I not been sick for the past 3 days. I'm not ready to declare success or failure. I chose to do this experiment for 1 month to get some trend data behind it. One week won't do that for either case. I'll stick it out for another 3 - 5 weeks and see how the overall trend looks. Stay tuned!
On Thursday, I was ready to preach about how well things were working, how great I feel, etc. But sadly, today, I have to post the bizarre results with an asterisk.
Weight: 160 lb
BF %: 16 % *
Target caloric Intake: 2500 calories
Chest: lost 1/2 inch ( 36" down to 35.5" )
Waist: lost 1/4 inch ( 32" down to 31.75" )
Hips: lost 1/2 inch (38" down to 37.5" )
Thighs: lost 1/2 inch R 3/4 inch L (22 to 21.5" and 22 to 21.25" )
Biceps: lost 1/4 inch each (13.5" to 13.25" and 13.75" to 13.5" )
It just doesn't make any sense to me. You can't gain that much body fat and lose lean mass at the same time, and you can't lose body fat and gain a ton of lean mass in that short a time period.
So whats the plan? Re-baseline. I was still too sick to make it in for a Monday morning workout. I'm going to continue with my workout on Wednesday and Friday. I am not planning to fast on Monday night - Tuesday evening. I will fast on Wednesday evening - Thursday evening. and hopefully things will level out by then. Once my hydration levels are stabilizing, I have a feeling things will get back to normal. I will repost results next week.
Current conclusions: I think the IF is doing what its intended to do. I think I would have seen spectacular results had I not been sick for the past 3 days. I'm not ready to declare success or failure. I chose to do this experiment for 1 month to get some trend data behind it. One week won't do that for either case. I'll stick it out for another 3 - 5 weeks and see how the overall trend looks. Stay tuned!
Thursday, February 16, 2012
Check in #2
It's about 21 hours into the second fast of the week. I have a slight headache but I've heard thats commo for the first couple fasts. Not anything major. It does feel like a withdrawal headache though (almost like wheb I went off the Cymbalta for good).
Today, when I woke up, I weighed 157 lbs. This was before anything to drink too. Body fat % dropped by a full 1%. When fasting, you lose a lot of water weight I have read. I'm estimating my actual weight is about 160. That puts me right on track with my expectations. Look for official results on Sunday morning!!
Wednesday, February 15, 2012
Check-in
Just wanted to do a quick check-in. I did a 24 hour fast monday-tuesday as planned. Wasn't as hard as I thought. Some hunger pangs, but mostly just an inconvenience. Tuesdays dinner was amazing though!! By the end of the fast, I dropped 2 lbs. Mostly water weight as when fasting, you retain less water. Sunday is the big day though. Main number to look at will be lean mass.
Until then!
Saturday, February 11, 2012
Intermittent Fasting
Its been a while since my last post (I should really stop opening with that line...) but the most recent research I've done has become more and more appealing to me, that I thought I would blog about it.
I first stumbled across this topic from email news letters from people promoting their "latest and greatest state-of-the-art, cutting edge, you're-doing-it-all-wrong, everything-they've-told-you-is-a-lie" product. I've done a very good job completely ignoring them, but one topic kept coming up, and for the hell of it, I've decided to dig in and learn a little bit about this new (but not really new) concept: Intermediate Fasting.
Fasting goes against everything I've been preaching. If you buy into the whole "5+ small meals to boost metabolism" this is going to sound completely insane. But what if I told you that was all a lie? Well, I'm not going to do that - it's not a lie, but it may not be as true as I originally thought. You see, it does work - being well fed is never a bad thing, but in my research, I'm becoming more and more sold on the fact that some fasting can actually be very beneficial.
In his book/paper/article "East Stop Eat", or ESE, Brad Pilon discusses an age-old concept, but new to the "Western world" of fasting. He goes into the benefits of intermittent fasting (IF) for 24 hour periods. To summarize, the result of fasting is the following: decreased insulin levels, increased growth hormone, decreased blood glucose levels, increased lipolysis and fat oxidation (more on this!), and increase in epinephrine and norepinephrine. Some of this is actually related to your fat loss :)
Lipolysis is the release of fat from the fat cells, and fat oxidation is the process of fat being "burned" for energy. Fasting helps with this for an obvious reason: without food, your body is forced to use its fat stores as energy. The bonus: your body also releases more growth hormone after 18 hours of fasting... the awesome part about this? Aside from building muscle, growth hormone actually acts as a receptor that bonds to the fat cells. When it does this, it makes it impossible for fat to be stored in the cells. Think of it as a temporary plug in the fat cells that disallows fat from ever bonding with the fat cell... the result is less fat is stored in your body, and is used by your body.
So, wtf dude - you just told me in older posts that after 3 hours your body goes into a "starvation mode" and you immediately begin to lose muscle mass and your body clings to all things fat and stores as much of it as it can because it thinks its "starving". Why are you changing your story now, you bastard!
Well... I'm not really changing the story, just ... fixing it. See, the starvation response does happen, but after doing some extended research, I've come to agree with the fact that it doesn't happen THAT fast. Try like 3 days, as opposed to 3 hours. That's a BIG fuck up on my part. The fact is that multiple studies have shown that even fasting for 36 hours up to 72 hours, your metabolic rate doesn't change. Your Resting Metabolic Rate is what it is - whether you eat or not, your body needs to do things like breathe, pump blood, etc. What DOES change is Basal Metabolic Rate. This contributes more to your energy expenditure while active: walking the dog, climbing stairs, cooking din.. well not while fasting. This slows down when you don't eat for long periods of time (probably more than 3 hours, but much sooner than 24 I would imagine). The full story? It doesn't slow down much. In fact, if you fast for 24 hours, then eat your in your "normal" way (3 meals, 5 meals, 8 meals, whatever) you will hardly notice the difference. People that want you to buy a product will tell you that everything is a lie, and that the only way to do it right is within the pages of their latest fad are, well... lying business men. Their research is solid though; to sell anything, it has to be backed by some research, and this certainly is. I'm on board with the concept, but of course, I'm going to try it first before I go and preach that its the greatest thing in the world.
SO what's the plan? Go a day without eating, then what? Well, not exactly. I recently bought a product that I actually have no intention of using - I just bought it for the information, and the thought process behind what its selling. Wise investment? Maybe, I'm not sure yet. But here's the plan: rather than do a hybrid of ludicrous fasting/non-fasting intervals and strict workouts that may or may not help the cause, I'm going to continue what I do for my training, and I plan to eat at least once a day, every day, but still get my 24 hours of fasting in. Here's the plan:
Sunday: Eat Normally - bring in my 2500+ calories I'm shooting for to build mass.
Monday: Black coffee at 5:00 am, Gym at 5:30 am, big breakfast at 7:00 am. Cheat day until 6:00 pm (i.e. get my 2500+ calories, but from whatever I want including pie, ice cream, brownies, cheese steaks, etc). Begin 24 hour fast
Tuesday: Fast until 6:00 pm. Big dinner full of proteins, carbs, fats. Late night snack about an hour before bed.
Wednesday: Black coffee at 5:00 am, Gym at 5:30 am, big breakfast at 7:00 am. Eat normally until 6:00 pm (i.e. get my 2500 + calories). Begin 24 hour fast
Thursday: Fast until 6:00 pm. Same big dinner, and late night snack as tuesday.
Friday: Black coffee at 5:00 am, Gym at 5:30 am, big breakfast at 7:00 am. Eat normally.
Saturday: Eat normally.
Workout: Sticking with the Stronglifts plan. I can't say enough about how much I enjoy doing this routine!
Wait!!! Did I read Monday correctly??
Yes, yes you did. A cheat day is a good thing. It not only gives you the release you need to indulge in the foods you love, but it has a purpose. Eating foods like pizza and other junk in mass quantities releases a hormone called leptin. Leptin can be powerful, but only if you don't let it get out of control. When you eat a lot of calories in one sitting, leptin is released to take care business. It increases your thyroid output, increases your BMR temporarily, and helps take care of the mass quantity of calories you just ingested. Think of Leptin as the SWAT team that takes care of business in a no-bullshit kinda way. The three things I mentioned is what "turbo charges your metabolism". But the effects are temporary - when leptin levels drop, so does your fat loss. It takes about 5 days for these levels to fully deplete.
So why don't I just gorge once per day?
Well, the higher your leptin levels are, the less you will actually want to eat. Think of the last time you ate too much... did you feel like eating again in 3 hours? 5 hours? the next day?? Exactly. Think of it this way: every so often your brain sends a text message to its bff, leptin, and says "dude, am I hungry?". Leptin replies "no, you fat bastard, you just ate 3/4 of a cow. Chill bro!" So, you gorge yourself too often, two things can happen: you just don't want to eat any more and you don't get the required calories for the day, or you force yourself to eat, and do a much more dangerous thing: psychologically condition yourself to eat when you're full - which makes overeating a possible and incredibly dangerous side effect.
As a side note, low leptin levels is the main reason that fat loss plateaus, especially in individuals that only have a short way to go. As leptin levels decrease, your fat loss power goes with it, so it becomes harder to lose that "stubborn" fat that just wont' go away. So in short, do it once a week, and make Leptin your bitch! As a side note to a side note, I chose Monday as a cheat day because its immediately followed by a fast. This makes the fast easier, and at the same time hits the body fat with a double-whammy: high leptin levels and forcing your body to burn fat for energy. Ka-BOOM!
Conclusion
I want to point out that what I posted in the past does work. I have proven this by doing it myself. The point here is try something new and at least think of the possibility that maybe something else works too, just as well (an open mind is hard to come by in the fitness world). If you're on board, let me know, I'd love to hear your results. I will be experimenting with this as well, and will post some results weekly. To start, here's my current state:
Weight: 163 lb
Body fat %: 13%
Lean Mass: ~142 lb
Target caloric intake: 2500 kCal
I first stumbled across this topic from email news letters from people promoting their "latest and greatest state-of-the-art, cutting edge, you're-doing-it-all-wrong, everything-they've-told-you-is-a-lie" product. I've done a very good job completely ignoring them, but one topic kept coming up, and for the hell of it, I've decided to dig in and learn a little bit about this new (but not really new) concept: Intermediate Fasting.
Fasting goes against everything I've been preaching. If you buy into the whole "5+ small meals to boost metabolism" this is going to sound completely insane. But what if I told you that was all a lie? Well, I'm not going to do that - it's not a lie, but it may not be as true as I originally thought. You see, it does work - being well fed is never a bad thing, but in my research, I'm becoming more and more sold on the fact that some fasting can actually be very beneficial.
In his book/paper/article "East Stop Eat", or ESE, Brad Pilon discusses an age-old concept, but new to the "Western world" of fasting. He goes into the benefits of intermittent fasting (IF) for 24 hour periods. To summarize, the result of fasting is the following: decreased insulin levels, increased growth hormone, decreased blood glucose levels, increased lipolysis and fat oxidation (more on this!), and increase in epinephrine and norepinephrine. Some of this is actually related to your fat loss :)
Lipolysis is the release of fat from the fat cells, and fat oxidation is the process of fat being "burned" for energy. Fasting helps with this for an obvious reason: without food, your body is forced to use its fat stores as energy. The bonus: your body also releases more growth hormone after 18 hours of fasting... the awesome part about this? Aside from building muscle, growth hormone actually acts as a receptor that bonds to the fat cells. When it does this, it makes it impossible for fat to be stored in the cells. Think of it as a temporary plug in the fat cells that disallows fat from ever bonding with the fat cell... the result is less fat is stored in your body, and is used by your body.
So, wtf dude - you just told me in older posts that after 3 hours your body goes into a "starvation mode" and you immediately begin to lose muscle mass and your body clings to all things fat and stores as much of it as it can because it thinks its "starving". Why are you changing your story now, you bastard!
Well... I'm not really changing the story, just ... fixing it. See, the starvation response does happen, but after doing some extended research, I've come to agree with the fact that it doesn't happen THAT fast. Try like 3 days, as opposed to 3 hours. That's a BIG fuck up on my part. The fact is that multiple studies have shown that even fasting for 36 hours up to 72 hours, your metabolic rate doesn't change. Your Resting Metabolic Rate is what it is - whether you eat or not, your body needs to do things like breathe, pump blood, etc. What DOES change is Basal Metabolic Rate. This contributes more to your energy expenditure while active: walking the dog, climbing stairs, cooking din.. well not while fasting. This slows down when you don't eat for long periods of time (probably more than 3 hours, but much sooner than 24 I would imagine). The full story? It doesn't slow down much. In fact, if you fast for 24 hours, then eat your in your "normal" way (3 meals, 5 meals, 8 meals, whatever) you will hardly notice the difference. People that want you to buy a product will tell you that everything is a lie, and that the only way to do it right is within the pages of their latest fad are, well... lying business men. Their research is solid though; to sell anything, it has to be backed by some research, and this certainly is. I'm on board with the concept, but of course, I'm going to try it first before I go and preach that its the greatest thing in the world.
SO what's the plan? Go a day without eating, then what? Well, not exactly. I recently bought a product that I actually have no intention of using - I just bought it for the information, and the thought process behind what its selling. Wise investment? Maybe, I'm not sure yet. But here's the plan: rather than do a hybrid of ludicrous fasting/non-fasting intervals and strict workouts that may or may not help the cause, I'm going to continue what I do for my training, and I plan to eat at least once a day, every day, but still get my 24 hours of fasting in. Here's the plan:
Sunday: Eat Normally - bring in my 2500+ calories I'm shooting for to build mass.
Monday: Black coffee at 5:00 am, Gym at 5:30 am, big breakfast at 7:00 am. Cheat day until 6:00 pm (i.e. get my 2500+ calories, but from whatever I want including pie, ice cream, brownies, cheese steaks, etc). Begin 24 hour fast
Tuesday: Fast until 6:00 pm. Big dinner full of proteins, carbs, fats. Late night snack about an hour before bed.
Wednesday: Black coffee at 5:00 am, Gym at 5:30 am, big breakfast at 7:00 am. Eat normally until 6:00 pm (i.e. get my 2500 + calories). Begin 24 hour fast
Thursday: Fast until 6:00 pm. Same big dinner, and late night snack as tuesday.
Friday: Black coffee at 5:00 am, Gym at 5:30 am, big breakfast at 7:00 am. Eat normally.
Saturday: Eat normally.
Workout: Sticking with the Stronglifts plan. I can't say enough about how much I enjoy doing this routine!
Wait!!! Did I read Monday correctly??
Yes, yes you did. A cheat day is a good thing. It not only gives you the release you need to indulge in the foods you love, but it has a purpose. Eating foods like pizza and other junk in mass quantities releases a hormone called leptin. Leptin can be powerful, but only if you don't let it get out of control. When you eat a lot of calories in one sitting, leptin is released to take care business. It increases your thyroid output, increases your BMR temporarily, and helps take care of the mass quantity of calories you just ingested. Think of Leptin as the SWAT team that takes care of business in a no-bullshit kinda way. The three things I mentioned is what "turbo charges your metabolism". But the effects are temporary - when leptin levels drop, so does your fat loss. It takes about 5 days for these levels to fully deplete.
So why don't I just gorge once per day?
Well, the higher your leptin levels are, the less you will actually want to eat. Think of the last time you ate too much... did you feel like eating again in 3 hours? 5 hours? the next day?? Exactly. Think of it this way: every so often your brain sends a text message to its bff, leptin, and says "dude, am I hungry?". Leptin replies "no, you fat bastard, you just ate 3/4 of a cow. Chill bro!" So, you gorge yourself too often, two things can happen: you just don't want to eat any more and you don't get the required calories for the day, or you force yourself to eat, and do a much more dangerous thing: psychologically condition yourself to eat when you're full - which makes overeating a possible and incredibly dangerous side effect.
As a side note, low leptin levels is the main reason that fat loss plateaus, especially in individuals that only have a short way to go. As leptin levels decrease, your fat loss power goes with it, so it becomes harder to lose that "stubborn" fat that just wont' go away. So in short, do it once a week, and make Leptin your bitch! As a side note to a side note, I chose Monday as a cheat day because its immediately followed by a fast. This makes the fast easier, and at the same time hits the body fat with a double-whammy: high leptin levels and forcing your body to burn fat for energy. Ka-BOOM!
Conclusion
I want to point out that what I posted in the past does work. I have proven this by doing it myself. The point here is try something new and at least think of the possibility that maybe something else works too, just as well (an open mind is hard to come by in the fitness world). If you're on board, let me know, I'd love to hear your results. I will be experimenting with this as well, and will post some results weekly. To start, here's my current state:
Weight: 163 lb
Body fat %: 13%
Lean Mass: ~142 lb
Target caloric intake: 2500 kCal
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