Just tried the Sour Cherry flavor of jack3d today...DAMN! It is the freaking bomb! Try it...I implore you. Best tasting pre-workout I've ever had (and I've had them all)

Bear in mind, this is purely subjective. Please do not contact me with any hate mail if you disagree.

 -The Management

As some of you know, I was living on the east coast and went through a divorce late last year. Shortly after the wife and I split, I met a girl from the west coast. To spare you all the boring details, I packed up my **** and moved my happy ass across the country to be with this girl. Now, she is a bodybuilder (yes, she's a member here...no, I won't tell you who she is), but I decided to leave the BodySpace community because, let's face it...some of the flirting I was inclined to do was probably not appropriate. After about 14 months together, she and I decided to end it, so I packed up my **** again and this time, I came back to my REAL home...south Louisiana. While it pains me the cause for my return, it's wonderful to be back here among friends and family. In just the two weeks I've been home, I've seen all of the closest people in my life more (and had more alcohol, but that's going to stop lol) than I had in the two years prior.

So, here I find myself starting anew in the wonderful city of Baton Rouge, which is amazingly different from the way it was when I left it 7 years ago. The past 14 months with my girl were wonderful and enlightening. I learned SO much about nutrition and lifting...she truly is a wealth of knowledge. I'm considering this my new starting point. The past few months have been bad (I eat when I'm upset, and not tilapia and greens, either), but I'm starting from scratch now and I'm doing it with so much of a better understanding of what works for me and what I have to do. I can't wait to see what the next few months have in store for me!

Anyway, for those of you with whom I chatted with on a daily basis, I'm sorry I left...I hope you understand. I'm back now and am ready to kick ass with all of you. I'll see you around soon

Do work.

J 

Ahh, the immortal words of Mr. Billy Joel. They are ringing oh so true for me now.

Those of you who know me (not just the passing BS BS convo...yes, I intentionally used BS twice for two different acronyms), know that I've been in a not-so-healthy relationship for a while. Well, it's now officially ending. I signed a lease agreement for a new place that I'll be moving into next week, at least until I figure out what I want to do when I grow up. lol.

This is totally for the best and was a mutual decision, so I neither expect nor desire sympathies. Plus, I look at it this way...now I can finally clean up my diet and really set in my workout routine since I won't have to worry about feeding other people or their schedules.

Now, I just pray things can be kept amicable.

The future will be good...just taking it one day at a time.

J

WARNING***if you have issues reading about the act of urinating or anything at all about the yellow waste-matter excreted by the kidneys, then read no further***

As some of you know, I was at one time taking Animal Cuts. I loved this product and the diuretic in it really helped me drop some excess water I was holding on to. Well, I don't like to stay on thermos for too long, so I'm not taking it anymore, but I wanted to try another diuretic to drop some more water that's keeping me fluffy.

In doing my due diligence, I read some great things about a product called Xpel. Many competitors use it before a show and models use it before a shoot, so it must do it's job, right? Well, it does...perhaps a little too well. I started taking this stuff last week and was going to use it for two weeks or so, then cycle off it. Below is a chronicling of my experience with it.

Tuesday morning, I start with my 4 pills. Almost immediately, I notice an increase in my trips to the bathroom (for number 1, people...let's keep this mature...ok, too late). That could have just been a psychosomatic response, but i did notice a change in frequency. That afternoon I took my other 4 pills. Nothing else changed in my daily routine. I drank my usual gallon of water and exercised like I always do. That night, I certainly got up in the middle of the night more frequently to use the bathroom.

Wednesday morning, I pop my 4 pills. Today is the day I really start feeling different. Not only am I peeing more, but it seems that I'm not emptying my bladder enough when I urinate. because literally as I'm washing my hands (yes, I wash my hands every time I pee, as should you), I feel the need to go again. When I do, I only manage to get out a few drops, but it has to come out. Take my 4 pills that evening and wonder what the hell I am getting myself into.

Thursday, same routine. This day, however, I notice a new symptom of my urination woes. I no longer have the ability to "hold it". Once these pills kick in, when you feel the need, you don't walk, you RUN to the bathroom. No "pee pee dance" will save you. I was in the gym doing step ups on the boxes and i felt the urge. I figured I would wait until the end of my set to go. No, sir. It was coming and I was defenseless against it. Literally dropping my dumbbells and hauling ass to the bathroom and barely made it to the bathroom in time. That would have been nice....to be known as Justin Pee Pants in the gym.

Friday, repeat of Thursday. This time I was cognizant of the closest facility at all times and didn't press my luck.

Saturday morning, I went for a walk/run in my neighborhood. Thank God my subdivision is still being built out, because I literally had to stop about every mile to pee...even if it was just drops...and it much easier (and more enjoyable, I might add) to pee on new construction than to worry about a homeowner chasing you away with a shotgun.

That was the straw that broke the camel's back on my relationship with Xpel. It works, ****ght, just too potent for me. If you try it, just keep an eye out for the closest bathroom wherever you go. And for the love of all things holy, don't try and hold it.

Another tip from your buddy, J.

I always change up my routines every so often to keep things fresh, but last week I tried something totally different. A friend of mine on here, DrLynn, recommended this (and if you don't know her, you NEED to see her page...her body looks like it was chiseled out of marble by Michaelangelo himself). Anyway, she recommended switching to a low-weight/high-rep routine for a week and WOW, did I love it. I did push/pull supersets, usually at about 60% or so of what I normally lift and did it for between 12 and 20 reps per set. It KILLED! I didn't think i'd be sore afterwards, but hells yes, I was! My joints loved the time off from the torture of heavy lifting, too. This week, I returned to my normal routine and I had not lost any strength at all (which I was concerned about).

I think I'm going to incorporate this into my routine every few weeks. If you're looking for something to mix it up, give that a shot. Your joints will thank you, too. lol

Holy Mary, Mother of God. I took Jack3d for the first time today and WOW did I crush my workout. I lifted more than I ever have (but that may be in part because of the 2 hot girls who got on the bench next to me at the end of my workout, which gave me incentive to extend mine. lol). I did chest and back (supersets) tonight. I usually don't quit until I can really do no more reps and at that point, I'm so exhausted that my 5 minute cool down seems like it is a burden. Tonight, even after extending my workout, I felt like I could keep going. My back and chest were toast, but I felt like I could have jumped in the squat rack and started on my leg routine. The energy I had was amazing! I was a little jittery, but damn, it felt good while I was lifting.

I'm going to give it a week or two before writing up an official review. I'm going to do a comparison between Jack3d, SuperPump, White Flood and NOXplode, since I've tried them all. So far, though, Jack3d is insane!!

So, those of you that know me know that I'm a programmer. Being as such, I'm very math-oriented, so I decided to jot down a formula for those of you who may boil eggs as much as I do. Like to hear it, here it go:

5 eggs + 1 pot boiling water + 1 non-attention paying man = exploding eggs

Like many of you, I LOVE my egg whites. I usually eat 10-12 a day (5 or so scrambled for breakfast and 5 or more hard boiled throughout the day). Well, this morning, I was boiling my eggs as per usual and I had to get on a conference call and thusly, I forgot about the stove. Suffice it to say, the POP I heard and the burning smell that had made it's way up the stairs instantly reminded me. Once I got downstairs, I swear it looked like a freaking egg war zone. There were hard-boiled eggs all over the stove, the range hood, the freaking cabinets, and yes, the CEILING. It was like an egg grenade went off in the pot. You ever want to get egg in every single nook and cranny of your kitchen? Now, you know how.

I know weight is not the method we should use to judge ourselves. That being said, I had still set a goal to be 175 by my birthday. Seeing as that my birthday is Friday and I'm stuck at 178, I've come to the realization that I'm not going to make my goal (not unless I want to spend the next two days on the toilet. Lol).

I'm setting a new goal now. I'm shooting for 173 by the end of July. That's five pounds in three weeks. I know it can be done but I want to make sure and get rid of the bad stuff and do it the right way. I have been slacking on my cardio in months past but no longer. July is officially my month to get my **** together and step it up.

I'm running windsprints in the morning before the heat gets too unbearable and lifting in the evening. Get ready for a new me at the end of July.

Thank you to all of my friends here who motivate me. You guys rock!

Justin

A little background on my fitness life first…

 

In 2006, I began working out. I had lifted randomly before that, but it was more of me jumping on machines with no real structure to anything. In 2006, I got a trainer and really started working out. After 2 years I had gotten to be in pretty good shape, although admittedly, my workouts were still rather half-assed. I would go in and talk to people, never really focus on my workouts and never worried much about nutrition. Well, after some personal issues in early 2008, I quit working out altogether. Over the course of the next 2 years, I became a sedentary, fat, miserable person. That brings us to 2010.

 

January of 2010, I made a commitment to myself. I hated to be one of those “New years resolution� people in the gym, but I was determined to stick it out and not just for a month like most of them. Given that I had worked out before, I already knew what my body responded to, so I built my routines around that. The other difference was that this time, I was DEDICATED! I have really cleaned my way of eating and the past couple of months I have gotten even more strict with it and watching my macros. Now, when I work out, I’m completely in my own world and I don’t leave until I can’t do another set…no more half-assed workouts. Just sweaty, hardcore, intense workouts.

 

Being a programmer, I’m obviously very math-oriented, so enough with the banter…let’s get to the numbers, shall we?

 

At the beginning of January, I weighed 200 lbs and was 26% bf, which gave me 148 lbs lean muscle and 52 lbs FAT.

 

In 6 months, I have lost 1.5 inches in my chest, 4 inches in my waist, 1 inch in each thigh, and .25 inches in each calf. I have also gained .75 inches to each upper arm and gained .25 inches to each forearm. Net result: 8 inches of the bad stuff lost and 2 inches of good stuff gained.

 

At the end of June, I weigh 178 lbs and am 13% bf, which gives me 155 lbs lean muscle and 23 lbs fat.

 

Total net result: 22 lbs lost = 29 lbs fat GONE and 7 lbs lean muscle packed on.

 

Now, I know that many people have accomplished far more in less time, but I’m pleased as punch with what I have done. My goal for now will be about 170 lbs at 9% or so bodyfat. I can make it…I WILL make it. Starting July, I will be upping the cardio, which is an area I have severely neglected. The easy stuff is gone. It’s time for me to **** or get off the pot. Just wait until you see me in another 6 months. J

 

Thank you to all my friends out there and your wonderful words of encouragement. You guys give me the inspiration to do this and I appreciate every last one of ya.

 

Justin

My first week was not too bad. I don't have access to the systems that I need in order to do what they hired me to do, so I'm attending meetings and twiddling my thumbs the rest of the day. It makes the day go by slowly (and makes me miss my bodyspace family that much more), but at the rate they're paying me an hour, I'll put up with it. lol. Hopefully next week I'll be in business.

I think I'm going to like it. Seems a good company and good people. The system I'll be working on, I have over 8 years of experience with, so it should be easy for me to walk in and kill it. I just can't wait to be back and working form home again...this office thing is for the birds

I miss everybody!

So here's my review of Animal Cuts. I finally finished my last 2 packs yesterday. I know that there are mixed reviews about thermos in general. Personally, I say "to each his own". If they work for you, use 'em. I'm still not at my goal weight/bf %, but I'm closer than I was 3 weeks ago thanks to Animal Cuts. So here's the skinny...

Essentially, you get 3 weeks of pills (2 packs a day). If you've ever taken anything from Universal, you know they love to make you swallow a crapload of pills with each pack. Animal Cuts has 9 pills per serving. It actually helps with your water intake since you have to swallow so many damn pills every day. Sneaky bastages. Animal Cuts is an appetite supressent/stimulant/diuretic all in one. One of the cool things about it is that the pills are color coded, so if you don't want to take the stimulant or the diuretic, you can take those out. Me? I took the whole kit & caboodle. Now, I'm also taking creatine, so my creatine would counteract some of the diuretic, but I didn't feel like messing up my routine.

On to the important part...the results. After 3 weeks, I lost a little over 3.5 lbs without making any other changes to my lifestyle. I ate a little less because of the appetite suppressant, but not 500 calories a day less (which is what I would have to kill to drop a pound a week). Some of the weight was water, of course, but I'm VERY pleased with the end result. 3.5 lbs gone...no lean muscle loss and I feel much leaner. Had I actually done some extra cardio while I was on it, I know the results would have been outstanding, but dammit, I'm working on it. (Sidebar: I really think Hell is nothing but an endless row of treadmills and ellipticals)

The only negative about it was that it made me sweat...a lot. It's to be expected, of course, taking a thermo in 90+ degree Southern heat and humidity. I may have ruined the armpits of a couple more white t-shirts while on Animal Cuts, but it was well worth it for me.

Now, to get my ass in gear and pick up the cardio and lose the last few. I hope this review was helpful to some of you. Overall, it's a good product from a good company.

Word.
j

Something about the beach can take any crappy situation you may be plagued with and make you forget about it...at least temporarily. Maybe it's the beautiful sight of the sun as she rises over the Atlantic horizon...the wonderful feeling of sand beneath your toes...the salty smell of the ocean combined with the obligatory sunblock...the sounds of the whitecaps crashing against the shore. I guess it's sensory overload. Then again, it could also just be copious amounts of tan, scantily-clad women.

Come on. You didn't really think I'd keep it sweet and innocent, did you?

Needless to say, my day at the beach was much needed and did not disappoint. When I win that lottery, I'm buying a place on the beach somewhere. And you all are invited

Much love to my bodyspace friends.

J

Yes, my new Jeep vibrates when the engine is on. What did you think I was talking about, you pervs?

Well, I've wanted a Wrangler forever. My mom would never let me get one when I was young, because any vehicle that has no roof is dangerous (yeah, because that thin sheet metal would definitely protect me if I flipped my car). Once I got out of the house and on my own, I could never get one because I always played in bands. The Wrangler was never big enough to fit all my musical equipment, so I opted for the Grand Cherokee (which I still love, by the way). Of course, a few years ago, they introduce the longer wheelbase Wrangler then ultimately the 4 door. Hmmmm. Now I could actually fit all my stuff in the back, but alas, my Grand Cherokee is paid for...could I really justify a new car note when I don't need one? Well, after a few years, I said f*ck it. You only live once, right? They were running crazy deals this weekend for Memorial Day (0% financing, ftw), so I got a beautiful dark green Wrangler. Next step? Lift it 3 inches and squeeze some 35" tires underneath her. Damn, she'll be sexy then.

Yeah, maybe I should not have spent money in this turbulent economy, but hey...it's a freaking Jeep, not a Porsche.

Before you scoff at the 32 (almost 33...hint hint) year old man talking about lifting his Jeep as if he were a 17 year old boy, remember where I live...I'm in Redneckville, USA. The only people who don't lift their Jeeps and trucks here are the soccer moms that should not be driving vehicles that large in the first place. I gotta fit in, right? Don't want them calling me a Yankee. lol

I hope everybody has a great weekend. I have a date with a Jeep and a beach.

So I had me a crawfish burl (I know it's "boil", but we pronounce it "burl" this weekend with my neighbors who also happen to be from South Louisiana. They got about 120 pounds of crawfish shipped up overnight. This may sound like a lot, but most of that weight is in the shell which you don't eat. Now, for those who have never seen a crawfish, I put up some pics. Think of a lobster but really tiny and much better-tasting.

Basically, you put them in a huge pot with some salt (a LOT of salt) and a bunch of spices and let them boil until they are done. We usually throw in sausage, potatoes, and a slew of different veggies (mushrooms are the BEST because they soak up the spices) and let them cook with the crawfish.

Once done, drain em...dump them on a table...open a cold beer and enjoy.

A little taste of home, and damn was it good

So I have had a few people asking to see more of me. Not like that, you perv! Yes, YOU. Rather, it's been people asking for more music clips. I certainly love playing, so I would gladly put up clips of me playing all freaking day long. The problem is my voice...it sucks. So over the past week or so, I have attempted several songs and I could never get them to my liking. After a few failed attempts, I decided to remove the part that was making them suck! My voice!

A friend of mine loves DMB almost as much as I do, so I decided to record some of my favorite Dave tunes. Even if I could sing well, chances are I couldn't sing and play most of Dave's stuff...that man is a monster.

So, check my profile. Give her a listen. Just a sampling of some Dave tunes. I hope you like, and if you don't...well, I tried.