New Year's Resolution

Happy Holidays Ladies and Gentlemen,

My name is Eric, and I live in Orlando, FL. I am 27 and an Endomorph. I've been putting off the gym most of my life because I was a very extroverted person and always wanted to do fun things with another person. However, over the course of my life I've learned that the only person you can truly rely on is yourself. I have worked on every facet of my life to achieve the things I wanted, yet always put my body last. I have a great job, wonderful house, a nice car, great friends, and a body I am not happy with.

Over the last few months I've really changed my attitude toward the gym and have been going 3 times a week like clockwork. Its amazing in just 3 months how my decisions toward diet, nutrition, and training have changed. I don't even want to cheat unless its on my cheat day. Food Shopping has taken on a whole new meaning, and my food budget is cheaper than ever. It's amazing how much you save by not going out to eat.

I found this site purely by accident. I was doing a search on cardio activities for HIIT and I came across a thread here by Twin Peak on Carbohydrate Cycling. I read his 1st release, 2nd release, and FAQ, and the cards fell into place. I've been ghosting for about a week now looking over mda1125's reviews and information and thought it was time to sign up.

I've decided 2005 is the year I will be making some real changes, and I've signed up for a 16 week cutting competition starting January 1. I'm 200lbs with 25% BF and I'd like to get down to 17%BF. I think this is attainable considering I am very new to weight training, and 1lb a week does not sound too unreasonable.

Note: The following is my foundational training and diet, and is subject to change pending the expanse of my knowledge over the course of my personal studies.

Here is my variation MAX-OT weight training routine:

M Chest, Triceps, Calves
T Cardio, Abs
W Legs, Shoulders, Traps
Th Cardio, Abs
F Back, Biceps, Forearms
S OFF
Su OFF

Here is my variation Carbohydrate Cycling diet:

M Low Carb
T No Carb
W High Carb
T No Carb
F Low Carb
S High Carb with Cheat
Su No Carb

Here is my nutrition/supplementation:

Multivitamin
EFA Oil (Fish,Flax)
Whey Protein
E/C/A Stack

Here is the foods I will be eating (non cheat)

Apples
Egg Beaters
Chicken
Oats
Spinach
Olive Oil

Cardio will be a mixture while I try to find what feels and works best for me.

I feel that this combination will work best with my lifestyle and I look forward to see how my body reacts to carbohydrate cycling. In my weight training I plan to focus more on achieving the correct form while gaining strength. I am an extremely competitive person by nature, and I believe making this not only a competition with myself, but with others, will help me achieve my goals. What will be the hardest thing for me? Giving up my PWO Shake on MWF. Oh Sweet Chocolate Shake!

I look forward to speaking with all of you and wish you the best for 2005.

What a great plan Eric.

1- Well thought out
2- Obtainable goals
3- Reasonable expectations
4- Good training plan
5- Cardio is a good idea
6- Carb Cycling will do wonder for rapid yet safe weight loss

I think if you follow this, you will gain muscle, strength and end up with a body fat percentage you are happy with. HIIT is a great choice for the cardio as it won't eat up the calories you need for heavy training but it will help boost your metabolism quickly. More intense, shorter duration cardio will be better in the long run for muscle gains and fat burning then 45 minutes on a machine just going moderate. Some of the Max-OT guys do 15 minutes of HITT 2x a day.

Welcome to DB!

Killer plan. I think a lot of people could follow it, modify as appropriate and make progress too. It's simple yet covers the fundamentals.

Marc C. David - NGA CPT
Author of NoBull Bodybuilding
www.nobullbodybuilding.com

Thanks mda,

I've been doing quite a bit of reading and research, and although I'm not finished tweaking this plan, I feel it is a great foundation for Beginners and returning Intermediates. This is also ideal for people like me who LOVE doing the weights and HATE doing the cardio. This is also why I feel that HIIT plays a great role for those of us who are not fond of long sessions. I will also expand upon this by saying my MWF workouts will incorporate light to medium stretching and my TTh workouts will incorporate medium to heavy stretching. I've been thinking about incorporating rowing with HIIT as rowing is more of a full body workout, and it could be thought of as not only your cardio, but as a warmup after initial stretches to really get your body pumping for the rest of your workout. In this case I'll be increasing my HIIT by 1 minute per week.

HIIT Rowing 30 second intervals

Week 1 5 minutes
Week 2 6 minutes
Week 3 7 minutes
...
...
...
Week 14 18 minutes
Week 15 19 minutes
Week 16 20 minutes

Thanks again, and mda I'd love to make this an ongoing conversation, comparing our research. I think it would be very beneficial toward my training studies.

Eric

Hey Kam, start a training journal so we can follow your progress. You've got a killer plan and it'll be nice to see your results.

IRONMAN366

Is it ok if I post my entire results after my competition is over?
I promise you it will be completely comprehensive.
I'll be reviewing this forum weekly, but now that I have done all of my research and planning, most of my time with be spent on personal reflection and tweaking my plan. But please feel free to ask me any questions while I'm in competition and I'll try to answer you to the best of my ability.

Here are some hints to gain muscle and lose fat AT THE SAME TIME, especially for beginners (like me):

Get your blood work done, and speak with your doctor ASAP
Forget all the supplements and pills
Get your daily Multivitamins and EFAs (I take 2tbsp daily)
Eat CLEAN and OFTEN (REAL food 6 to 7 times a day) (1 cheat meal or 1 cheat day depending) (NO SNACKS)
At least 1 gallon of water a day (Diet Soda is for special occasions, too much milk gives a softer look, I drink only water even in my shakes)
Rest Days and optimal sleep are extremely important (7-8 hours sleep) (I currently do 3 days on, 4 days off)
Stretch before, during, and after your workout (before and after your cardio too)
Do your cardio like you're in the olympics, do your weight training like you're in the superbowl (WORK YOUR FRIGGIN A** OFF)
Take the extra time to examine your form, even if it means adjusting the weight down a little (you'll know what I mean with lateral raises)
PWO Shake is not only great for after intense weight training, but tastes great too (as directed by your cutting/bulking plan)

A couple of things I do personally which I don't see mentioned much in general:

Make sure your breathing technique is down (In through the nose, out through the mouth, deep breaths) This will help with your High Intensity recovery and resting heart rate. I always make sure you concentrate on meditation and breathing in between my sets because my sets are so intense its like wind sprints (technically your weight traning could be considered 1 big HIIT session)
Try to keep your days as low stress as possible, take the extra time out to help others, as it will make you feel like a better person. I believe that a less stressful environment promotes a healthier wellbeing.
Less TV time, More outdoor time

Some other things more off topic which I am doing for myself during, and at the end of the competition:

Dress to kill, all the time
Reward yourself with gifts instead of food (I got Aqua Di Gio cologne by Giorgio Armani, and it gets tons of comments)
Look into more self improvement (healthy tanning, teeth whitening, hair removal)
Read more
Take a class in something you really like (I want to learn portuguese or spanish since I love hispanic women, esp brazilian women and I'm in florida)


I hope this helps for now.

Eric aka Popeye (1lb of spinach a day)

Welcome to DB and the world of Carb Cycling. Best of luck.

http://www.designersupps.com
Email: steve @ designersupps.com
Peak Physiques™

INTELLIGENT DESIGN IS COMING, register now at

http://www.intelligentdesignmag.com