This has been another up and down week, seeing 4 lb fluctuations each way.  Wow was this frustrating.  But come the official weigh-in I checked in at 204.5lbs, down slightly from last week.  It's time to tweak the diet and add in a LITTLE cardio.  Hopefully this will be the kick-start I need to get the scale moving in my favour.

Other than that everything is going well.  Strength is still on the rise.  For the first time ever I'm benching 280lbs for reps, my military press is up to 235lbs and I'm curling 165lbs as well.  Now if I could just solve my lower back issues, I would able to go full force on the legs and bring them up too.

On that note I've begun accupuncture treatment in hopes that that will provide some relief.  After two sessions I'm feeling a little less stress and pain in those muscles, so I hope this will finally bring an end to this.  The treatment itself is kind of cool.  It is a unique feeling to have needles pinned into you, lol.  Plus my chiro does some electrical stimulation to further relieve muscular treatment.  So the combination of the two makes for a fun treatment.

That's about it.  Until next time.....

What an up and down week for me weight wise.  I fluctuated about three pounds each way throughout the week, but in the end I came out of it on track.  This type of stuff can really mess with your head and rethink your diet strategy.  I just have to remember that this happens and as long as my progress pics that I'm taking every two weeks show improvements then things are good. 

My next challenge is my back.  I've been struggling most of my adult life with back pain and this week it has taken a turn for the worst.  It's very frustrating to not be able to train as intensly as I'd like.  again I have to remeber that I have 15 weeks of prep to go.  Not enough time to have to heal a major injury, so as hard as it is for me to admit, I may have to scale down on some of my exercises.

Well see how this week will pan out....until next time.....

I had a great week of training, the diet was spot on and the body responded as I hoped.  Here's the weekly update:

Weight - 205lbs

BF - 9.5%

So as it stands I have about 19.5lbs of bodyfat right now.  If I can maintain a 1lb/week loss for the next 16 weeks I should be in good shape, literally.

I'm not changing too much this week.  Cardio will stay the same.  I'll still keep the same carb cycling schedule, but will just lower the carbs on my low carb day by about 15g.  I hope this still creates enough of a deficit for the week.  We can only wait to see....

I had a great week of training, the diet was spot on and the body responded as I hoped.  Here's the weekly update:

Weight - 205lbs

BF - 9.5%

So as it stands I have about 19.5lbs of bodyfat right now.  If I can maintain a 1lb/week loss for the next 16 weeks I should be in good shape, literally.

I'm not changing too much this week.  Cardio will stay the same.  I'll still keep the same carb cycling schedule, but will just lower the carbs on my low carb day by about 15g.  I hope this still creates enough of a deficit for the week.  We can only wait to see....

I had a great week of training, the diet was spot on and the body responded as I hoped.  Here's the weekly update:

Weight - 205lbs

BF - 9.5%

So as it stands I have about 19.5lbs of bodyfat right now.  If I can maintain a 1lb/week loss for the next 16 weeks I should be in good shape, literally.

I'm not changing too much this week.  Cardio will stay the same.  I'll still keep the same carb cycling schedule, but will just lower the carbs on my low carb day by about 15g.  I hope this still creates enough of a deficit for the week.  We can only wait to see....

After my first week of prep, the strength is still on the rise and it seems like each workout becomes a new personal best, so no complaints at my end.  Here's where I stand as of today:

 

Weight - 208.5lbs

BF - 10.8%

By these measurements I have about 20lbs of bodyfat, so if I can lose about 11 lbs of bodyfat (losing as little lean mass as possible) I should come in around 5% BF.  I have a solid plan in place, so this should be very doable. 

My next update will likely be in a week.  Let's see how much progress I can make.

As of this past Saturday I am 18 weeks out from my second ever competition, the IDFA Toronto Classic.  My first contest was this past November where I placed 4th in the Novice Heavyweight division.  I've had what I believe was a successful "off season", and am now ready to start shedding the fat to reveal a new and improved physique.  I figure that by the end of this 18 week cut I should be at least 10lbs heavier than my last time around, a success for any natural competitor.

My plan includes utilizing a carb cycling diet and training wise I've started a Max OT program.  Previously I've relied on LISS cardio to burn the fat, but this time I'm going to lean more towards HIIT.  We'll see how this will affect muscle retention and recovery ability.  I just hope that it will save me from marathon 1hr cardio sessions that I've endured in the past.

 Well, I'm 3 days in and so far so good, lol.  I'll be sure to update my progress in the weeks to come.  Let's get ripped...