About what I eat. I eat around 1200 cals everyday for 4 weeks now and have lost 15 lbs. I know a lot is probably water weight. I haven't seen any ill effects of it yet. I go to the gym 6 days a week and haven't really felt sick or anything like that. For reference I'm at 6'2" 263 now.

1200 will slow your metabolism down eventually. Eating below maintenance, no matter how much, will eventually slow it down. How quickly is a matter of the degree and length of the deficit. You're going to need to do refeed days. And those days should be high carb, low fat. Not only will this help stave off a slowing metabolism, it will reset your ghrelin and leptin levels, which play a huge role in hunger. That will help prevent you from just going nuts one day and eating everything in sight.

1200 a day with a once a week carb load is doable, but difficult. I would suggest starting out with more calories and going down slowly from there. A 500 calorie per day deficit from food alone will net you a pound a week loss, and then anything you get from exercise will just be a bonus. I know how much you can just want to have it over and done with, but doing so in a slightly more controlled descent is probably going to be more efficacious in the long run.

One do you think the controlled decent is better because of the lessened risk of splurging and re-gaining the weight? Or is there another reason?

As for the carb load (assuming once a week with the 1200 calories a day), how many carbs are we talking? And what would be the caloric intake on said day? (Rough guide would be appreciated.)

I think yes, it's less risk of splurging, mostly because when you go SO low for SO long, your hormones go crazy and it's hard to think straight. At that point, it's not just hunger you're fighting. You're fighting biological urges from your body to eat quick, high calories, which is super difficult to ignore. It's not impossible, but it's easier to indulge once in a while on those urges than wait until they become a freight train you can't stop.

Also, it will prevent the metabolism from slowing as quickly. So, really even though you think you're setting yourself back by eating so much, you're only helping, and you'll see it on the scale.

I would do about 400-600g carbs that day, adequate protein (1g/lbs lean mass), and minimal fat (max of 70 or so grams). Caloric intake somewhere around 3,000.

400 - 600 grams?!?! That is a lot of damn carbs.... suggestions on the foods to take in on said days?

By the way, thanks for the input. I am a constant lurker of this thread and your opinions will definitely be ones I consider.

It's not a TON, but it's enough (also, you have to base it on how big you currently are, and not how small you want to be). Anything rice-based is good, as those tend to be low fat. Pasta with ground turkey meat sauce is good. Popcorn with limited butter. Fruits. Cereal with skim milk.

Why not just eat regular eggs instead of whites and nix the cheese? You have like zero healthy fats in your diet. Fats are needed for proper thyroid and hormone functions. Low carb and low fats together are a bad idea. Those are your two energy nutrients, and when you nix them both while keeping brotein high, your body will turn to brotein for energy consumption. This is why low carb diets have higher fat consumption, usually around 50% of total calories minimum, so your body sees fat as its primary fuel and breaks down bodyfat during periods of high caloric deficit. The high protein, low carb/low fat 'crash diets' work, but can't run for any extended period of time.

^ Truth ^

You could supplement a little olive oil (1 tsp) in every protein shake to help with that, as well.

I guess my thinking on that was to keep calories low and cholesterol low.

I do use olive oil though in my cooking, but I imagine that is not nearly enough fat to offset such a low fat diet as you infer above.

The cholesterol scare is mostly an american thing. It is more genetic than diet so I would not worry much about it.

Yup. Your body makes more than you ingest. Take some fish oil to keep the good cholesterol up and add to your good fats. The ratio of good to bad is more important than the total cholesterol number.

Day 16:

http://i247.photobucket.com/albums/g...7211084366.jpg
http://i247.photobucket.com/albums/g...7216C628EE.jpg

Workout:

Depletion #2

Leg Extension - 3 sets, 15 reps
Leg curl - 3 sets, 15 reps
Machine Bench - 3 sets, 15 reps
Lat Pulldown - 3 sets, 15 reps
Lateral Raise Machine - 3 sets, 15 reps
DB curls - 3 sets, 15, 20, 15 reps
Incline Machine - 3 sets, 15 reps
BB row - 3 sets, 15 reps
Tricep Rope Extension - 3 sets, 15, 15, 20 reps

Followed with a double header of indoor soccer. Didn't sub out, either, so I had plenty of energy in the legs. Still going to do a final depletion tomorrow, mainly focusing on legs, and probably a once-over on the rest of the body. I went a little bit over in carbs today, so I may need it.

Nutrition:

No fasting today. Woke up and had a shake.

Trutein + MCT oil shake
2 lbs grilled shrimp + 3 bell peppers + salad + fat free dressing

Totals: 1175 cals, 71g carbs, 16g fat, 191g protein

You ever try fat free cottage cheese + sugar free lime jello mix? I lived off that shit when I did Lyles RFL diet about 3 years ago. Its really good.

No, but that sounds delicious!

Started Wendler's 5/3/1 on Monday - pretty excited. I'm doing the Triumvirate assistance work.

Nice! That's a fantastic program. I love it, and I love that variation (Although, my favorite is still Boring But Big). Good luck!

See good results? Did you train 3 or 4 days a week? I'm doing 4 a week, I did Bench/Assistance Monday, Squat/Assistance tonight, Military/Assistance tomorrow, and Deadlift/Assistance Saturday. I'm following the more conservative programming (.65, .75, .85) on week 1 etc. I just couldn't bring myself to do the Boring But Big but it seems to be pretty popular.

My results were okay. I tend to respond better to a little more frequency, so it was a little low on the program. But, I did make progress.

I did 4 days a week.

The only reason I did Boring But Big was for time-saving purposes. I often had to lift and then get straight to a soccer game, so it's just easier to do BB Bench and then stay there for a while instead of jumping to something else a few times.

Yeah, I'm kind of worried about lack of frequency since I'm not advanced but I've heard good things and wanted to break the monotony, so I'll give it a chance.

Provided you start low enough and follow the spreadsheet (you're using a spreadsheet I hope), there's no way you won't progress.

For week one I just used a calculator lol. Wendler didn't have a spreadsheet set up in the e-book.

Use this one; it's amazing.

http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showth...7563303&page=1

Day 17:

http://i247.photobucket.com/albums/g...2AA3A37BD6.jpg
http://i247.photobucket.com/albums/g...2AA9AE35E5.jpg

Workout:

Did a minor re-depletion workout because I went too high on carbs yesterday. Didn't do much, and nothing to cause a lot of crazy fatigue. Just super light weight done really slowly.

Leg Extension - 3 sets, 15 reps
Leg Curl - 3 sets, 15 reps
Machine Fly - 3 sets, 20 reps
Reverse Fly - 3 sets, 20 reps
Shoulder Press - 2 sets, 15 reps
Bicep curls - 2 sets, 20 reps
Cable Crunch - 3 sets, 20 reps
Leg Extension - 3 sets, 20 reps
Leg Curl - 3 sets, 20 reps

Nutrition:

32 oz grilled chicken breast + salad
Casein shake

Totals: 1262 cals, 28g carbs, 18g fat, 246g protein

[QUOTE=Silock;9778754]Use this one; it's amazing.

QUOTE]

Nice!

[QUOTE=lead_block;9778760]Just take your time with it and remember its slow progress. Also don't leave out the conditioning. Hitting a hill 2x a week definitely counts as additional leg work.
I've been on it for the last ~8 months, using more of a bodybuilding assistance template.

Even out that soccer tan!

[QUOTE=Aspengc8;9778810]Are you doing the bodybuilding assistance listed at muscle and strength (I can't post the link). I emailed Wendler about it and he said they F'd the whole program up. I'm not doing hills or the sled/prowler now because I'm officiating several nights a week right now and am already putting enough stress on my body. I'll be done officiating in a couple weeks though.

[QUOTE=lead_block;9779529]No I'm doing my own assistance program. Usually 3-4 exercises per bodypart, 3-4 sets ramping up to a all out set. I've done his rest-pause assistance before that that will get you brutally strong.

Day 18:

http://i247.photobucket.com/albums/g...C6C3C770D4.jpghttp://i247.photobucket.com/albums/g...C6D5AAF0E0.jpg
http://i247.photobucket.com/albums/g...C6DE17C1A7.jpghttp://i247.photobucket.com/albums/g...C6E4E05574.jpg

Workout:

Soccer. 45 minutes or so.

Nutrition:

Grilled shrimp
Canned chicken + fat free mayo & light mayo combo

Totals: 1285 cals, 31g carbs, 22g fat, 236g protein

Tried Clay's idea of fasting, but could only do it for 2 days. I lost 1 lb in that time. Not bad. I'm down 6.7 lbs and I have 5 more days.

Also, Silock I need some input.

No matter what I do, I always have just a little bit of baby fat below my belly button. Even when I was in high school and ran track/football I still had that.
My abs are fine, but I could never firm the tummy section.

Any workouts to fix this?

This is the only real workout I've done to try and conquer it, which burns and feels great, but I think I need more.

http://fitbie.msn.com/sites/default/...nch-a-male.jpg

Silock's answer. You need to lose bodyfat, which comes from calorie burning. You cannot spot reduce an area of fat with exercises. Crunches target your abdominal MUSCLES but will not remove the fat covering them.

How devastating are the effects of booze to a workout plan?I have fixed most other issues in diet and exercise,but can't stop the beer just yet.

It's not "my" idea. I got it from Silock and NewChief.

It's proven science.

You should fast every other day to hit your goal.

Don't puss out.

I'll have to continue doing this. I'm just now finishing my 2nd week, so I assume it will take at least 3 or 4 more weeks before I start seeing noticeable results.

This x 10000000000

Abs are made in the kitchen.

I don't even really do ab work. My abs are made with diet and lifting heavy compound shit.

Depends on how much booze.

"Some" is just fine. Too much can lead to a drop in testosterone, but that requires drinking enough that you get pretty drunk pretty often.

But more basically, your body has NO WAY to store the energy from alcohol, so it is burned off for energy before ANYTHING else. So, just be aware that whatever you drink is replacing calories from food. In moderation, this is perfectly fine. But, by drinking too much, your food will preferentially be stored as fat.

I've had a beer on every one of my "carb up" days. No ill effects.

So long as you budget for it in your calorie balance, it's perfectly fine.

Hope that helps.

Fasting is good, but I get serious cravings after about 36 hours. I'm scared I'll crash and burn like this.

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/yqCKhWx8PkM" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

My wife started training with a new chick at our gym who is a total badass. I've watched her workout and have been amazed at the level that she pushes herself to. Found out she was an Olympic level sprinter on scholarship at the UofA I'd worked out in the same room with this trainer for a few sessions while she was working out.

Anyway, she told my wife that I was "a beast."

Felt pretty good to have a badass athlete say that about me.

Just eat small, protein filled meals after a 16 hour fast. Stay as low on the calories as you can. Below 1200 is fine, if you can do it.

And yeah, you're probably going to crash out of this at some point. You didn't really have a plan going in, and you're on a crazy short timetable. Not a recipe for lasting success.

I've reconciled myself to never really getting the ripped body I could due to how much I drink. I'm still in good shape and have a good body, but I won't be ripped like Silock as long as I'm drinking two or more drinks a night. I'm okay with that.

Well after this timetable is over, I'm gonna try to keep on this diet. Working out 3x a week and eating healthy. I just don't want to gain the weight back like most people do when they try quick fixes.

Yeah I think alternate day fasting + 0 carb would be the most efficient way to burn fat without going crazy.

3some make it happen

Her face isn't all that attractive to me. Absolutely amazing lower body, though.

Wendler came out with a Beyond 5/3/1 book. Not sure all the changes from the previous one's but supposed to offer way more variety and tips to tweak the program to your liking. Thinking about getting it but wondered if anyone else had gotten it yet and if the differences are really worth the purchase?

http://articles.elitefts.com/trainin...y-jim-wendler/

[QUOTE=lewdog;9783551]Wendler came out with a Beyond 5/3/1 book. Not sure all the changes from the previous one's but supposed to offer way more variety and tips to tweak the program to your liking. Thinking about getting it but wondered if anyone else had gotten it yet and if the differences are really worth the purchase? QUOTE]

I bought the original 5/3/1 book a few days ago and pretty much everything listed in there was stuff he had posted online but just came together in his book. I don't know if Beyond 5/3/1 is any different.

Day 19:

http://i247.photobucket.com/albums/g...3c443993d3.jpg
http://i247.photobucket.com/albums/g...27094a58d6.jpg

Workout:

Took it somewhat easy so I didn't stress my body out too badly for tomorrow's power workout. Just used heavier weight and stopped 2 reps short of failure.

Leg Press - 2 sets, 8 reps
Leg Curl - 2 sets, 8 reps
BB Bench - 2 sets, 10 reps
Seated Cable Row - 2 sets, 8 reps
Incline BB Bench - 2 sets, 8 reps
Pulldown - 2 sets, 10 reps
Lat Raise - 2 sets, 12 reps
DB Curls - 2 sets, 8 reps
Tricep Rope Pushdown - 2 sets, 8 reps

Nutrition:

Carbed up a little harder than usual, but still within the 8g/lbs guideline.

Iso Sensation Shake x 2
Oranges
Pancakes w/ sugar free syrup
After dinner mints
Cornbread
Boulevard beer!
2 sweet potatoes
Rice cakes
Pasta w/ grilled chicken
Angel food cake w/ sugar free syrup and fat free Cool Whip
After dinner mints

Totals: 6,556 cals, 1,253g carbs, 43g fat, 237g protein

Day 20:

Bloated up nicely. Yay. /sarcasm

http://i247.photobucket.com/albums/g...C23C8D0F56.jpg
http://i247.photobucket.com/albums/g...C24274205C.jpg
http://i247.photobucket.com/albums/g...C247659889.jpg

Workout:

Well, the GOOD news is that I'm not losing too much muscle and/or my CNS isn't getting fatigued. The BAD news is that progression on most of my lifts has pretty much stalled. My top sets on my 5-rep lifts were mostly failed (deadlift was a struggle, and lost form badly, squat was the only "easy" one).

At least, I think so, because my "spotter" helped WAY too much on bench. I could tell he was getting in some row work on my heavy set, but by the time I was done, I was too fatigued to get in another set. FAWK. I HATE THAT. LEARN TO LEAVE THE ****ING BAR ALONE UNLESS I TELL YOU TO. I EVEN SAID THAT.

Aside from that, my 90% drop sets are where my top sets were the week before I started the diet, and they're easy enough to complete, even after putting a lot of effort into the top set. So, I'm most likely not losing muscle, but progression just isn't going to happen. Bummer. So, I gotta switch up the training a bit. I think I'm going to switch to 5x5, sets across with lower weight. Should still allow for good working sets, but without the need to work at such high levels that I start getting burned out from stressing out the CNS too much.

Bench - 5RM (9 reps, lol "spotter"), 90% 5R (6 reps), 85% 5R (6 reps)
Dead - 5RM (5 reps, 4th with the worst form ever), 90% 5R, 85% 5R
RFESS - 5RM, 90% 5R, 85% 5R
Military Press - 5RM (2 reps, 3rd rep halfway, held for about 5 seconds, but couldn't push through it), 90% 5R, 85% 5R
BB Row - 3 sets, 5RM across

Nutrition:

4 cups Cocoa Dyno Bites + 1.5 cups skim milk
Grilled chicken breast
Iso Sensation shake
Oranges
Salad
ON Casein shake

Totals: 1937 cals, 274g carbs, 16g fat, 173g protein

Well, had some issues late lat year and put on some weight, have to stop eating when depressed... Any way, have been busting my ass the last month and a half. Wasn't dropping weight, but was putting on muscle. Dropped the post workout protein shake and am now shedding off the pounds. Was a bit surprised by this, but I guess I'll add it back in when I get closer to my goal weight and see if that ends up raising my goal weight. Biggest problem I have now is that I need heavier dumbells.

Fun times.

That doesn't make a lot of sense unless your protein shakes were made of ice cream.

I probably shouldn't have mixed it with milk, but it was good that way, lol. Outside of that, didn't make a lot of sense of to me either. But I'm going to roll with it for now.

Make shakes with water.

Day 21:

Spent most of the night and this afternoon pissing like a race horse. Coming down off the carb load, even while I was still eating carbs just released a ****load of water. Annoying, but at least the bloat is gone.

Progress is slow, but steady. I can definitely see a difference in lower back body fat compared to week 1.

http://i247.photobucket.com/albums/g...630C017C3B.jpg
http://i247.photobucket.com/albums/g...6305A79CEF.jpg

Workout:

Indoor soccer game.

Nutrition:

Salad
Grilled peppers + grilled chicken
Sweet potato
Grilled chicken salad w/ fat free mayo
2 Weight Watchers Fudge bars

Totals: 1372 cals, 155g carbs, 17g fat, 158g protein

I've lost 8.3 lbs. I have 1.7 to go by Wednesday. This is gonna be a photo finish.

I feel great though. My pants feel loose and my body feels better.

Are you going to keep this up after your event?

So a very, very vague question.

But, I am going to get back into the routine of using my fitness pal to track caloric intake. It's what worked best for me when I got down 17lbs. I'm currently down 7 and Vegas is just around the corner.

What's the best way to track the exercise portion?

I work for a flooring company - so we are in a hot warehouse and load flooring a lot of the day. Does anyone have a suggestion to track that?

Or those of you that do track it do you guys just track it when you go to the gym?

Appreciate it.

Gonna do my best. I'm not gonna go all out like I am right now, but I'm going to consume less calories and eat better.

My goal is to not get below 187 and keep it that way.

I'd recommend taking measurements when you hit your goal. BF%, waist, chest, arm, thigh....

I hit a low late last year (181) and I've been creeping up into the low 190's. This would piss me off except that my measurements are improving.

Moral of the story - weight isn't the most important piece of the puzzle.

There's no real way to track that. You'll just have to guess.

Yeah, I kind of figured.

And I know it's technically not exercise, it's kind of the easy way out. But, any sort of physical work for me is a good thing.

Checked in at 292 this morning. I've been hovering around 300 for a long while. I will post updates here too, minus the pictures. LMAO

Thanks, bro.

No problem, chief.

Oh I agree. I fluctuate like hell all the time. I can eat well and be between 3-5 lbs. I guess it's just how you feel.

Finished the Russian Bench program today. Did not get the lifts I was scheduled to make which is disappointing, but I am only off by a bit (one of those deals where the spotter has a couple of fingers on the bar to keep it moving on the last rep). Oh, well. Going to check my max next Monday and then move on to another program. Likely the Wendler 5.3.1.

Hey, Silock

1. How long will you be on this particular diet/exercise routine and what is the goal?
2. You should post some side-by-side before/after shots whenever you finish. It's difficult to see change in the dailies.

Another 4 weeks. 7 weeks total. The goal is just to see how lean I can get. I could have done it another way, but my wife is doing it, too, and she wouldn't do it unless I did it, so I took the plunge. She wants to look her best in a bikini at an upcoming pool party, so . . . that's what's in it for her. I'm just going to see how far this regimen will take me.

I will do the side-by-side.

Anyone ever get the new 5/3/1 book?

Day 22:

http://i247.photobucket.com/albums/g...2434B3A804.jpg
http://i247.photobucket.com/albums/g...242F0DC1A3.jpg
http://i247.photobucket.com/albums/g...243AE9E8D3.jpg

Workout:

Leg Extension - 3 sets, 15 reps
Leg Curl - 3 sets, 15 reps
Chest Press - 3 sets, 20, 15, 15 reps
Seated Cable Row - 3 sets, 15, 15, 20 reps
Lateral Raise - 3 sets, 15 reps
DB Curl - 3 sets, 15 reps
Incline BB Press - 3 sets, 15, 12 reps
Leg Extension - 2 sets, 20, 15 reps
Shoulder Press - 2 sets, 15 reps
Leg Curl - 2 sets, 20, 15 reps
Incline Chest Press Machine - 2 sets, 15 reps
BB row - 3 sets, 15 reps
Tricep Pushdown - 3 sets, 15 reps

Rested a couple of hours with a walk at the dog park and mowing the lawn.

Then, played a league soccer game at night.

Nutrition:

25 oz grilled shrimp + salad
Iso Sensation shake + MCT oil

Totals: 1137 cals, 54g carbs, 18g fat, 201g protein

I'm planning on it, but I just dropped some coin on this, so I have to wait.

http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/app...r-mixed-sports

Question for you fitness buffs/faux doctors:

I've been running a lot lately (every day for at least a mile, max: 4 miles). However, I've been having problems with pain on the lower inside of my calf muscle on both legs. I notice the pain as I'm running and eventually have to slow to a walk despite not being out of breath (indicating it's not a conditioning problem). Once I start walking the muscle tightens up significantly and causes me to limp.

It's not shin splints as I've had those in the past and this is nothing like that. Could it be a hydration problem? I do drink a lot of water and unsweetened tea (I don't drink soda or coffee) but it is hot in Texas and I sweat pretty profusely.

Could it be a nutrition issue? Is there a vitamin/nutrient I could be missing out on that's causing this? I'm trying to get in better shape but it's a big detriment to my running.

Could be dehydration. What are you considering a lot of water and tea?

I'm on my third cup of tea (12 oz. a piece) for the day right now. I'll have some water with lunch (probably around 12 oz.). Another cup of tea this afternoon. I'll probably have 3-4 glasses of ice water once I get home tonight. I also drink about 16 oz. of water after run/gym.

Wow, not enough fluid for that type of activity in a cool climate. You should probably at least double it. Mix in some gatorade or pedialyte as well.

I was wondering about Gatorade. Pretty much only after exercising right? I've heard it's high salt content can be bad for you if you're not active around the same time. Any truth to that?

I'll up my fluid intake as well.

gatorade is ok if it fits in your nutritional plan. I like powerade zero, but either way get more fluids in before running. Sounds like a cramp to me.

I've never really had cramping issues before but I didn't live in hot Texas before either.

The issue with gatorade is if you get the original it is very dense in calories that will be converted to fat stores easily.

Salt is not an issue to anyone unless you are already prone to HBP.

Keep in mind what you posted as your fluid intake is about what is recommended for the average non-active adult. being active in a hot climate I would at least double it. If you are not pissing clear you are not getting enough fluids.

Okay thanks. So a low calorie Gatorade like the powerade zero that was just recommended would probably be a good supplement?

I generally feel like I'm always drinking but I'm definitely not always pissing clear so ill up it and see how it goes.

I don't think it's hydration. Sounds more like compartment syndrome.