Yeah, who likes fat cells squatting in our bodies anyway ... the bums ... 
Hope your day is a happy one as well, Chillen!
M
Hope your day is a happy one as well, Chillen!
M
The ChillOut Log
- Thread starter Chillen
- Start date
- Status
Right Leg Picture:
I took a quick pic, just for you Phate. It is low quality, and in a bad position, but a pic nonetheless.
My wife will not take my leg pics for me, so I am left to my own personal devices, temporarily.
I only have a half-mirror in my home and its in the bathroom (where I have taken all of my previous pictures from).
This is rather poor quality, and at a bad angle.
But it will give a general idea. My ham strings are rather gross (LOL), looks like a series of small ropes meshed and tied together, especially when I am a little dry. I will show this picture too.
Well, without further a do here is the right leg thigh in a "bent position" un-flexed (162 lbs). I can't wait when I weigh about 172, and the added 10 pounds will do in the next few months.
When standing straight, there is separation and an excellent tear drop at the knee; I just need to get a friend to assist in taking some front view pictures. I will see what I can do. Meanwhile, I hope the low res, bad quality picture will do, until I can find something better. You can faintly see the line separation from the top of the thigh going down toward the knee (angle of and quality of pic is terrible). When I post the front view, it will be much more visible.
I made one change in the leg workout the last two weeks. I disregarded the DC recommendation on going straight sets with front squats, and implemented a RP-20 for 20 for 2 sets, with a progression consequence. It is pretty dang tough, but I am tougher. I am going to stick with it for next couple of months and see what happens. This is the only part of DC I have implemented and modified thus far.
Phate:
There ya go, guys and gals. I will post better quality and clearer pics later on. Like the white t-shirt and underwear? LOL.
Best wishes
Chillen
I took a quick pic, just for you Phate. It is low quality, and in a bad position, but a pic nonetheless.
My wife will not take my leg pics for me, so I am left to my own personal devices, temporarily.
I only have a half-mirror in my home and its in the bathroom (where I have taken all of my previous pictures from).
This is rather poor quality, and at a bad angle.
But it will give a general idea. My ham strings are rather gross (LOL), looks like a series of small ropes meshed and tied together, especially when I am a little dry. I will show this picture too.
Well, without further a do here is the right leg thigh in a "bent position" un-flexed (162 lbs). I can't wait when I weigh about 172, and the added 10 pounds will do in the next few months.
When standing straight, there is separation and an excellent tear drop at the knee; I just need to get a friend to assist in taking some front view pictures. I will see what I can do. Meanwhile, I hope the low res, bad quality picture will do, until I can find something better. You can faintly see the line separation from the top of the thigh going down toward the knee (angle of and quality of pic is terrible). When I post the front view, it will be much more visible.
I made one change in the leg workout the last two weeks. I disregarded the DC recommendation on going straight sets with front squats, and implemented a RP-20 for 20 for 2 sets, with a progression consequence. It is pretty dang tough, but I am tougher. I am going to stick with it for next couple of months and see what happens. This is the only part of DC I have implemented and modified thus far.
Phate:
There ya go, guys and gals. I will post better quality and clearer pics later on. Like the white t-shirt and underwear? LOL.
Best wishes
Chillen
Last edited:
October 4th, 2008: "Thoughts for the Day" (1)
I advocate being able to be consciously aware of your inner-self, and making an inference to the separation of feelings and coupled thoughts, in order to bring a separation of the negative and positive in order to bring assistance in handling the same.
(Chillen) (thus the statement below)
Desire
Desire is one of the great paradoxes of being human. We find desire both at the heart of our greatest joy and of our greatest suffering. Sometimes we are empowered and uplifted by our desires, and at other times we feel enslaved to them.
(The Ego, Attachment, Victimhood and Empowerment.)
Desire can be a friend in diet and exercise, there is no doubt, but it sometimes can enslave your other personal desires---be careful with it, manage it, process it correctly, or it will process you potentially the wrong way
(Chillen)
The body is without a doubt, an accumulation of its past history. The body you have at this very moment is, part, of this accumulative result
(Chillen)
"One cardinal rule in behavioral medicine is that unless it is interfered with, your body knows exactly what it is doing and always does the best thing it can do under the circumstances. Consequently, if you are overweight, you may reasonably assume that the extra fat itself is your body's best adjustment to the circumstances you are providing."
(Jill Johnson)
YOU have the POWER to change this accumulative result in the future:
"No matter who you are, no matter what you do, you absolutely, positively do have the power to change."
(Bill Phillip)
And yes, exercising and dieting does deprive you:
"Living a healthy lifestyle will only deprive you of poor health, lethargy, and fat."
(Jill Johnson)
You can assist yourself in many ways by having a program set in training and dieting:
Physical activity is an excellent stress-buster and provides other health benefits as well. It also can improve your mood and self image, and can stimulate dynamic and creative intellectual activity.
(Jon Wickham) (Chillen revised)
========================================================
Living life is sometimes tough to do, but you've got to work at living, you know?..........
To live takes guts; it takes energy, vitality, it takes thought and intellectual ability.
We have so many negative influences out there that are pulling us down. You've got to be strong to overcome these adversities and, never, never ever stop!
Warmest regards to all of you,
Chillen
I advocate being able to be consciously aware of your inner-self, and making an inference to the separation of feelings and coupled thoughts, in order to bring a separation of the negative and positive in order to bring assistance in handling the same.
(Chillen) (thus the statement below)
Desire
Desire is one of the great paradoxes of being human. We find desire both at the heart of our greatest joy and of our greatest suffering. Sometimes we are empowered and uplifted by our desires, and at other times we feel enslaved to them.
(The Ego, Attachment, Victimhood and Empowerment.)
Desire can be a friend in diet and exercise, there is no doubt, but it sometimes can enslave your other personal desires---be careful with it, manage it, process it correctly, or it will process you potentially the wrong way
(Chillen)
The body is without a doubt, an accumulation of its past history. The body you have at this very moment is, part, of this accumulative result
(Chillen)
"One cardinal rule in behavioral medicine is that unless it is interfered with, your body knows exactly what it is doing and always does the best thing it can do under the circumstances. Consequently, if you are overweight, you may reasonably assume that the extra fat itself is your body's best adjustment to the circumstances you are providing."
(Jill Johnson)
YOU have the POWER to change this accumulative result in the future:
"No matter who you are, no matter what you do, you absolutely, positively do have the power to change."
(Bill Phillip)
And yes, exercising and dieting does deprive you:
"Living a healthy lifestyle will only deprive you of poor health, lethargy, and fat."
(Jill Johnson)
You can assist yourself in many ways by having a program set in training and dieting:
Physical activity is an excellent stress-buster and provides other health benefits as well. It also can improve your mood and self image, and can stimulate dynamic and creative intellectual activity.
(Jon Wickham) (Chillen revised)
========================================================
Living life is sometimes tough to do, but you've got to work at living, you know?..........
To live takes guts; it takes energy, vitality, it takes thought and intellectual ability.
We have so many negative influences out there that are pulling us down. You've got to be strong to overcome these adversities and, never, never ever stop!
Warmest regards to all of you,
Chillen
October 6th, 2008: "Thoughts for the Day" (1)
High carbs, low carbs, moderate carbs – depending on who you talk to, you will likely hear one of these recommendations being touted as the optimal approach to maximum fat loss.
So what's the truth?
The truth of the matter is that there is really no one best way. Each of the above methods has been used by countless people – from bodybuilding and fitness competitors all the way to your every day gym rat – and used successfully at that.
In actuality, how many carbs you are eating is not the key determinant of your fat loss progress; calories are. More on that later though. The key to successful fat loss is paying attention to your body, following a plan designed for your body and making the necessary adjustments to your program as your body changes. (I bet you haven't heard that statemet before.....eh? Brotha and Sista's?!)
With that said, a nutritional strategy that includes both carbohydrate and calorie cycling in a structured plan built around your training program could be just what you're looking for.
Let's take a closer look at this carbohydrate issue first.
Truth be told, there are benefits to having a fair amount of carbs in your diet and there are benefits to keeping them low. So why not use both strategies?
Rather than choosing one or the other, why not get the benefits of both by cycling your carbohydrate and caloric intake throughout the week? By cycling your carb intake you get the best of both worlds. Assuming you keep your protein and fat intakes relatively constant, and only manipulate your carb intake, you are automatically cycling calories as well. The first benefit to doing so is that it keeps your body from adapting to what you are doing. Your body will always try to adapt to what you’re doing and the further you move away from your natural set point, the harder your body is going to try to pull you right back. This is just in part related to the regulatory hormone, leptin.
Leptin levels are related to things like insulin, your caloric intake and your current level of body fat. Think of it as one of the big “fat-loss decision makers”. The leaner you are the lower your circulating levels of leptin are going to be. Under more normal circumstances, higher body fat, maintenance caloric intake, etc., leptin levels are higher. However, while on sub-maintenance calories, and particularly on low-carb diets where circulating insulin levels are low, leptin levels drop and they can drop quickly. Decreased leptin levels cause a cascade of other regulatory changes, namely a decrease in thyroid output and metabolic rate, as well as an increase in catabolic hormone activity and appetite. In an attempt to become more efficient, your body will try to adapt to make your newly lowered caloric intake its new maintenance intake; that is, it will make the necessary changes needed to do the same amount of work on less energy. Unfortunately, this usually means having to continuously lower calories to maintain fat-loss progress, which inevitably makes it very hard to hold onto all your hard-earned muscle. None of this sounds too good does it? There has to be a better way, and there is. Planned and structured days of high calories and high carbohydrates may help with this.
As previously mentioned, there are benefits to both low-carb intakes and to high-carb intakes. When carb intake is drastically reduced you create a temporarily greater caloric deficit. In addition, low-carb intakes result in decreased levels of circulating insulin, increased levels of the fat-burning catecholamines and therefore a much heightened rate of fat oxidation. Quite simply, when insulin levels are low, you create an environment in which fat is more likely to be used for energy. Low muscle glycogen, as a result of decreased carbohydrate intake, obviously results in depleted muscles, but there are benefits to this as well. Low muscle glycogen tends to promote a higher rate of free fatty acid burning. Result? More fat loss.
On the flip side however, most people do not enjoy eating few carbs for very long. While there are clearly benefits to doing so, there are other things that need to be considered. Chronic low-carb intake can actually impair insulin sensitivity and promote insulin resistance. As already noted, low-carb intakes result in overly flat, depleted muscles and gym performance typically suffers. Throw in a day of high carbs and your muscles fill out, you find yourself more vascular, your workouts are great, and you look and feel much better. There is also research to support the fact that these higher-carb/calorie days may stimulate leptin production, which as we already noted is an important player in the fat-loss game. Carbohydrates are also very protein sparing – meaning they prevent protein from being oxidized as fuel – which is of paramount importance when retaining all your hard-earned muscle is a priority.
In addition to the numerous physiological factors, there are psychological variables that need to be taken into consideration as well. How you feel on a diet is arguably just as important to your progress as any other variable. There are not too many people that enjoy looking flat and depleted all the time. And lets not forget one of the reasons most people can appreciate – carbohydrates simply taste good.
To recap, in order to take advantage of the benefits of both higher and lower carb intakes, we want to fluctuate our carb intake from high to low throughout the training week. The simplest way to set this is to just cycle your carbohydrates and calories according to your weekly training schedule. For example, assuming four workouts per week, you might have your high days on your two big workouts, medium days on your two easier workouts, and low days on your off days.
PRACTICAL STEPS There is no one best way to cycle carbs or calories. In fact, there are many, many different permutations that can be used successfully. Here is just one example that you could use as a template. Feel free to tweak it to suit your needs if necessary.
First off is caloric intake. Determine all the macronutrient totals (protein, carbs, fat, and calories) for the medium day and then just let the carbohydrate intake change the calories for the high and low days. So, assume the medium day is a standard dieting day. As an aside, but a valuable note to keep in mind, there are many different calorie equations you can use – however be aware that they all have the potential to be off by as much as 20%. So for the sake of simplicity you could just assume maintenance to be approximately 15x total bodyweight and subtract 20-25% to create a healthy caloric deficit. Remember, if you are not progressing based on your caloric intake, simply adjust it up or down until progress resumes. Next up is protein. I am sure we are all in agreement that we need to eat sufficient amounts of protein when trying to lose fat and maintain muscle, so set it anywhere from 1.0-1.5g/lb of bodyweight and split it up evenly throughout the day. You are going to have three carbohydrate intakes – one for high days, one for medium days, and one for low days. Carbohydrate intake for the medium days is going to be set at 1.0g/lb of bodyweight. So now we know our calories, our protein and our carbs. All that remains is to figure out how much fat we’re to eat. In this case, fat simply serves as a caloric ballast. Simply make up the rest of your calories from fat. Your protein and fat intake from these days will stay constant throughout all three days. On your high carb days, set your carb intake at 2.0g/lb of bodyweight and finally for your low days it is going to be minimal as you’re only eating fibrous vegetables; no starch type carbs at all.
Remember the truth of the matter is that there is no one best method for fat loss. Carbohydrate and calorie cycling is just one logical and effective way of approaching it. Many who opt for this kind of approach find it very easy to follow as you get a few days a week where you get to eat some fun carbs, and like I said, who doesn’t like eating carbs?
Article Source: Erik Ledin, B.Kin, CSCS, CISSN
========================================================
Do all the good you can, by all the means you can, in all the ways you can, in all the places you can, at all the times you can, to all the people you can, as long as you ever can.
(Wesley)
Let's Chill in some interpretation:
Does this seems like a daunting task to accomplish? Only to limited minds.
You would have to have the energy and the patience of a super human to act like this every day, all day----------> But why not try?
Easier said then done, but certainly worth the effort.
Why wouldn’t you want to be the best person you can be?
Sure, we’ll all have moments, even days where we are far from perfect, but isn’t that part of being human?
A better way to look at it might be to just put as much effort into being the absolute best you possibly can, and then push it just a tad more. I can make difference and it will all be worthwhile. Try it out sometime.
Best wishes to all,
Chillen
Carb Cycling: The Fat Loss Plateau Buster
High carbs, low carbs, moderate carbs – depending on who you talk to, you will likely hear one of these recommendations being touted as the optimal approach to maximum fat loss.
So what's the truth?
The truth of the matter is that there is really no one best way. Each of the above methods has been used by countless people – from bodybuilding and fitness competitors all the way to your every day gym rat – and used successfully at that.
In actuality, how many carbs you are eating is not the key determinant of your fat loss progress; calories are. More on that later though. The key to successful fat loss is paying attention to your body, following a plan designed for your body and making the necessary adjustments to your program as your body changes. (I bet you haven't heard that statemet before.....eh? Brotha and Sista's?!)
With that said, a nutritional strategy that includes both carbohydrate and calorie cycling in a structured plan built around your training program could be just what you're looking for.
Let's take a closer look at this carbohydrate issue first.
Truth be told, there are benefits to having a fair amount of carbs in your diet and there are benefits to keeping them low. So why not use both strategies?
Rather than choosing one or the other, why not get the benefits of both by cycling your carbohydrate and caloric intake throughout the week? By cycling your carb intake you get the best of both worlds. Assuming you keep your protein and fat intakes relatively constant, and only manipulate your carb intake, you are automatically cycling calories as well. The first benefit to doing so is that it keeps your body from adapting to what you are doing. Your body will always try to adapt to what you’re doing and the further you move away from your natural set point, the harder your body is going to try to pull you right back. This is just in part related to the regulatory hormone, leptin.
Leptin levels are related to things like insulin, your caloric intake and your current level of body fat. Think of it as one of the big “fat-loss decision makers”. The leaner you are the lower your circulating levels of leptin are going to be. Under more normal circumstances, higher body fat, maintenance caloric intake, etc., leptin levels are higher. However, while on sub-maintenance calories, and particularly on low-carb diets where circulating insulin levels are low, leptin levels drop and they can drop quickly. Decreased leptin levels cause a cascade of other regulatory changes, namely a decrease in thyroid output and metabolic rate, as well as an increase in catabolic hormone activity and appetite. In an attempt to become more efficient, your body will try to adapt to make your newly lowered caloric intake its new maintenance intake; that is, it will make the necessary changes needed to do the same amount of work on less energy. Unfortunately, this usually means having to continuously lower calories to maintain fat-loss progress, which inevitably makes it very hard to hold onto all your hard-earned muscle. None of this sounds too good does it? There has to be a better way, and there is. Planned and structured days of high calories and high carbohydrates may help with this.
As previously mentioned, there are benefits to both low-carb intakes and to high-carb intakes. When carb intake is drastically reduced you create a temporarily greater caloric deficit. In addition, low-carb intakes result in decreased levels of circulating insulin, increased levels of the fat-burning catecholamines and therefore a much heightened rate of fat oxidation. Quite simply, when insulin levels are low, you create an environment in which fat is more likely to be used for energy. Low muscle glycogen, as a result of decreased carbohydrate intake, obviously results in depleted muscles, but there are benefits to this as well. Low muscle glycogen tends to promote a higher rate of free fatty acid burning. Result? More fat loss.
On the flip side however, most people do not enjoy eating few carbs for very long. While there are clearly benefits to doing so, there are other things that need to be considered. Chronic low-carb intake can actually impair insulin sensitivity and promote insulin resistance. As already noted, low-carb intakes result in overly flat, depleted muscles and gym performance typically suffers. Throw in a day of high carbs and your muscles fill out, you find yourself more vascular, your workouts are great, and you look and feel much better. There is also research to support the fact that these higher-carb/calorie days may stimulate leptin production, which as we already noted is an important player in the fat-loss game. Carbohydrates are also very protein sparing – meaning they prevent protein from being oxidized as fuel – which is of paramount importance when retaining all your hard-earned muscle is a priority.
In addition to the numerous physiological factors, there are psychological variables that need to be taken into consideration as well. How you feel on a diet is arguably just as important to your progress as any other variable. There are not too many people that enjoy looking flat and depleted all the time. And lets not forget one of the reasons most people can appreciate – carbohydrates simply taste good.
To recap, in order to take advantage of the benefits of both higher and lower carb intakes, we want to fluctuate our carb intake from high to low throughout the training week. The simplest way to set this is to just cycle your carbohydrates and calories according to your weekly training schedule. For example, assuming four workouts per week, you might have your high days on your two big workouts, medium days on your two easier workouts, and low days on your off days.
PRACTICAL STEPS There is no one best way to cycle carbs or calories. In fact, there are many, many different permutations that can be used successfully. Here is just one example that you could use as a template. Feel free to tweak it to suit your needs if necessary.
First off is caloric intake. Determine all the macronutrient totals (protein, carbs, fat, and calories) for the medium day and then just let the carbohydrate intake change the calories for the high and low days. So, assume the medium day is a standard dieting day. As an aside, but a valuable note to keep in mind, there are many different calorie equations you can use – however be aware that they all have the potential to be off by as much as 20%. So for the sake of simplicity you could just assume maintenance to be approximately 15x total bodyweight and subtract 20-25% to create a healthy caloric deficit. Remember, if you are not progressing based on your caloric intake, simply adjust it up or down until progress resumes. Next up is protein. I am sure we are all in agreement that we need to eat sufficient amounts of protein when trying to lose fat and maintain muscle, so set it anywhere from 1.0-1.5g/lb of bodyweight and split it up evenly throughout the day. You are going to have three carbohydrate intakes – one for high days, one for medium days, and one for low days. Carbohydrate intake for the medium days is going to be set at 1.0g/lb of bodyweight. So now we know our calories, our protein and our carbs. All that remains is to figure out how much fat we’re to eat. In this case, fat simply serves as a caloric ballast. Simply make up the rest of your calories from fat. Your protein and fat intake from these days will stay constant throughout all three days. On your high carb days, set your carb intake at 2.0g/lb of bodyweight and finally for your low days it is going to be minimal as you’re only eating fibrous vegetables; no starch type carbs at all.
Remember the truth of the matter is that there is no one best method for fat loss. Carbohydrate and calorie cycling is just one logical and effective way of approaching it. Many who opt for this kind of approach find it very easy to follow as you get a few days a week where you get to eat some fun carbs, and like I said, who doesn’t like eating carbs?
Article Source: Erik Ledin, B.Kin, CSCS, CISSN
========================================================
Do all the good you can, by all the means you can, in all the ways you can, in all the places you can, at all the times you can, to all the people you can, as long as you ever can.
(Wesley)
Let's Chill in some interpretation:
Does this seems like a daunting task to accomplish? Only to limited minds.
You would have to have the energy and the patience of a super human to act like this every day, all day----------> But why not try?
Easier said then done, but certainly worth the effort.
Why wouldn’t you want to be the best person you can be?
Sure, we’ll all have moments, even days where we are far from perfect, but isn’t that part of being human?
A better way to look at it might be to just put as much effort into being the absolute best you possibly can, and then push it just a tad more. I can make difference and it will all be worthwhile. Try it out sometime.
Best wishes to all,
Chillen
Last edited:
Here is an interesting post for those of you with some unwanted abdominal fat, and a brief explanation on the:The Omentum.
If you look in the core area of this picture, you will see a "yellow" sack. This sack (so-to-speak) is called: The Omentum. Its "primary" purpose is to store fat as converted by the body.
Basically its somewhat quilted (as it were) into little pockets which are filled with fat; the Omentum is suspended from the stomach and the colon, and overhangs in front of the intestines, but behind the core (abdominal muscles)--------------> like an apron. One of its purposes is to provide protection to the internal vital organs. The "contents" of the Omentum can grow and shrink in size, but it does not disappear. And, other still smaller "Omenta" (that can also contain fat deposits), take residence in various crevices among the--------abdominal "inner" area.
Through these, when there is fatty material in the blood (say converted due to excess calories--just to "over simplify" this), a deposit is made in these convient places, from which is readily available again to be reabsorbed (into the body for energy, and other uses) in time of want (like deficit in calories, etc, etc).
Its close proximity to the liver, pancreas, spleen, colon, and intestines, is by design purpose.
Some persons with large so-called beer bellies, can (again, just keeping it to the body, and simplifying this), blame their Omentum.
This is a very "simple" explanation on purpose. Now, you know reasonably why we tend to store fat in the core area. It is basically by design, though it is stored all over the body (which is termed differently).
Best wishes
Chillen
Hi Chillen, I thought fat was known as adipose tissue no?
Chillen
I've reached a plateau where I think I would benefit from incorporating carb cycling into my routine. What you laid out a couple of posts above makes sense and I will probably give it a try. Quick question though: am I assuming that on near-zero carb days you dont take anything but protein for your PW nutrition? I.e. no simple sugars?
Cheers
Xav
I've reached a plateau where I think I would benefit from incorporating carb cycling into my routine. What you laid out a couple of posts above makes sense and I will probably give it a try. Quick question though: am I assuming that on near-zero carb days you dont take anything but protein for your PW nutrition? I.e. no simple sugars?
Cheers
Xav
I can not comfortably say for certain, if carbohydrate cycling would benefit you. I say this because I am not privy to your diet history (or what diet manipulations [calories/macro-nutrients] you have tried), nor know your corresponding fitness activities.
I am not saying it will not work, I am just not ready to commit to going right to this method of diet approach without knowing some personal background. It is possible you may not have to do this, then again, this method could benefit you greatly.
Zero carbohydrates, means just that: None. However, (with the aforementioned paragraphs in mind), you may not have to restrict yourself to this level. And, I certainly do not recommend this at the moment.
Cycling (or "timing") Carbohydrates can apply to consuming carbohydrates around pre and post workouts, and when activity levels are a bit higher as compared to when activity is lower.
IMO, it is best to moderately restrict your carbohydrates slowly (and adjust as you get feedback). It is possible just a modest adjustment is all that one may need. I am not saying this in your case, but making the point that it just may not take something "drastic" to break a plateau. It just depends on the personal circumstances. Additionally, it may not even take an adjustment in carbohydrates to break this plateau.
Best regards,
Chillen
Last edited:
Xav:
I answered your question in this manner for many reasons.
Your problem could "possibly" be solved by simply changing parts of your program ("not necessarily" increasing volume), to a high energy impact (and I not talking cardio in the definition of high energy impact) type of program (which a lot of fat loss seekers miss, when just applying FBW's to their routine) coupled with a simple calorie tweak, and manipulating carbohydrates....."may" not be necessary.
One could theoretically expend more calories in less time (dependent on the program their changing from of course). When I first started my fat loss quest, I could eat carbohydrates any time of the day and even before bed--as long as my calories were correct, I lost fat tissue. When my body fat become low, this was a different beast all together. I was fighting two beasts. One: My body fighting me to hang on to "its body fat it determined as low and began to "covet" strongly. Two: Me as the Beast. I won. It lost. I had to lower carbohydrates (sub-30 grams), increase Protein and Fats, increase the high energy impact part of my program, in order to get down to 8 percent--the first time. The second time (using the data from the first), it was easier as I knew what to expect and what to do. I have a very efficient body. It will pack it on and take it off relatively easy (unless BF is at about 10%).
You have to learn your body.
If you wish we can discuss your diet and program, and see what we come with.
I still have to get around to Eric's post. Work is driving me banana's.....Oh....I am already a nut......LOL.........
Post your information, and lets see what we have to work with.
Best regards,
Chillen
I answered your question in this manner for many reasons.
Your problem could "possibly" be solved by simply changing parts of your program ("not necessarily" increasing volume), to a high energy impact (and I not talking cardio in the definition of high energy impact) type of program (which a lot of fat loss seekers miss, when just applying FBW's to their routine) coupled with a simple calorie tweak, and manipulating carbohydrates....."may" not be necessary.
One could theoretically expend more calories in less time (dependent on the program their changing from of course). When I first started my fat loss quest, I could eat carbohydrates any time of the day and even before bed--as long as my calories were correct, I lost fat tissue. When my body fat become low, this was a different beast all together. I was fighting two beasts. One: My body fighting me to hang on to "its body fat it determined as low and began to "covet" strongly. Two: Me as the Beast. I won. It lost. I had to lower carbohydrates (sub-30 grams), increase Protein and Fats, increase the high energy impact part of my program, in order to get down to 8 percent--the first time. The second time (using the data from the first), it was easier as I knew what to expect and what to do. I have a very efficient body. It will pack it on and take it off relatively easy (unless BF is at about 10%).
You have to learn your body.
If you wish we can discuss your diet and program, and see what we come with.
I still have to get around to Eric's post. Work is driving me banana's.....Oh....I am already a nut......LOL.........
Post your information, and lets see what we have to work with.
Best regards,
Chillen
Last edited:
Hi Chillen! Oh my goodness, tried again to send you a note and I get this message, "Sorry, must have 5 posts or be a member for this long, yada, yada, before you can send a message. GOOD LORD! SO...I think this is post # 5 which means I MIGHT be able to send you a message soon!Carb Cycling: The Fat Loss Plateau Buster
High carbs, low carbs, moderate carbs – depending on who you talk to, you will likely hear one of these recommendations being touted as the optimal approach to maximum fat loss.
So what's the truth?
The truth of the matter is that there is really no one best way. Each of the above methods has been used by countless people – from bodybuilding and fitness competitors all the way to your every day gym rat – and used successfully at that.
In actuality, how many carbs you are eating is not the key determinant of your fat loss progress; calories are. More on that later though. The key to successful fat loss is paying attention to your body, following a plan designed for your body and making the necessary adjustments to your program as your body changes. (I bet you haven't heard that statemet before.....eh? Brotha and Sista's?!)
With that said, a nutritional strategy that includes both carbohydrate and calorie cycling in a structured plan built around your training program could be just what you're looking for.
Let's take a closer look at this carbohydrate issue first.
Truth be told, there are benefits to having a fair amount of carbs in your diet and there are benefits to keeping them low. So why not use both strategies?
Rather than choosing one or the other, why not get the benefits of both by cycling your carbohydrate and caloric intake throughout the week? By cycling your carb intake you get the best of both worlds. Assuming you keep your protein and fat intakes relatively constant, and only manipulate your carb intake, you are automatically cycling calories as well. The first benefit to doing so is that it keeps your body from adapting to what you are doing. Your body will always try to adapt to what you’re doing and the further you move away from your natural set point, the harder your body is going to try to pull you right back. This is just in part related to the regulatory hormone, leptin.
Leptin levels are related to things like insulin, your caloric intake and your current level of body fat. Think of it as one of the big “fat-loss decision makers”. The leaner you are the lower your circulating levels of leptin are going to be. Under more normal circumstances, higher body fat, maintenance caloric intake, etc., leptin levels are higher. However, while on sub-maintenance calories, and particularly on low-carb diets where circulating insulin levels are low, leptin levels drop and they can drop quickly. Decreased leptin levels cause a cascade of other regulatory changes, namely a decrease in thyroid output and metabolic rate, as well as an increase in catabolic hormone activity and appetite. In an attempt to become more efficient, your body will try to adapt to make your newly lowered caloric intake its new maintenance intake; that is, it will make the necessary changes needed to do the same amount of work on less energy. Unfortunately, this usually means having to continuously lower calories to maintain fat-loss progress, which inevitably makes it very hard to hold onto all your hard-earned muscle. None of this sounds too good does it? There has to be a better way, and there is. Planned and structured days of high calories and high carbohydrates may help with this.
As previously mentioned, there are benefits to both low-carb intakes and to high-carb intakes. When carb intake is drastically reduced you create a temporarily greater caloric deficit. In addition, low-carb intakes result in decreased levels of circulating insulin, increased levels of the fat-burning catecholamines and therefore a much heightened rate of fat oxidation. Quite simply, when insulin levels are low, you create an environment in which fat is more likely to be used for energy. Low muscle glycogen, as a result of decreased carbohydrate intake, obviously results in depleted muscles, but there are benefits to this as well. Low muscle glycogen tends to promote a higher rate of free fatty acid burning. Result? More fat loss.
On the flip side however, most people do not enjoy eating few carbs for very long. While there are clearly benefits to doing so, there are other things that need to be considered. Chronic low-carb intake can actually impair insulin sensitivity and promote insulin resistance. As already noted, low-carb intakes result in overly flat, depleted muscles and gym performance typically suffers. Throw in a day of high carbs and your muscles fill out, you find yourself more vascular, your workouts are great, and you look and feel much better. There is also research to support the fact that these higher-carb/calorie days may stimulate leptin production, which as we already noted is an important player in the fat-loss game. Carbohydrates are also very protein sparing – meaning they prevent protein from being oxidized as fuel – which is of paramount importance when retaining all your hard-earned muscle is a priority.
In addition to the numerous physiological factors, there are psychological variables that need to be taken into consideration as well. How you feel on a diet is arguably just as important to your progress as any other variable. There are not too many people that enjoy looking flat and depleted all the time. And lets not forget one of the reasons most people can appreciate – carbohydrates simply taste good.
To recap, in order to take advantage of the benefits of both higher and lower carb intakes, we want to fluctuate our carb intake from high to low throughout the training week. The simplest way to set this is to just cycle your carbohydrates and calories according to your weekly training schedule. For example, assuming four workouts per week, you might have your high days on your two big workouts, medium days on your two easier workouts, and low days on your off days.
PRACTICAL STEPS There is no one best way to cycle carbs or calories. In fact, there are many, many different permutations that can be used successfully. Here is just one example that you could use as a template. Feel free to tweak it to suit your needs if necessary.
First off is caloric intake. Determine all the macronutrient totals (protein, carbs, fat, and calories) for the medium day and then just let the carbohydrate intake change the calories for the high and low days. So, assume the medium day is a standard dieting day. As an aside, but a valuable note to keep in mind, there are many different calorie equations you can use – however be aware that they all have the potential to be off by as much as 20%. So for the sake of simplicity you could just assume maintenance to be approximately 15x total bodyweight and subtract 20-25% to create a healthy caloric deficit. Remember, if you are not progressing based on your caloric intake, simply adjust it up or down until progress resumes. Next up is protein. I am sure we are all in agreement that we need to eat sufficient amounts of protein when trying to lose fat and maintain muscle, so set it anywhere from 1.0-1.5g/lb of bodyweight and split it up evenly throughout the day. You are going to have three carbohydrate intakes – one for high days, one for medium days, and one for low days. Carbohydrate intake for the medium days is going to be set at 1.0g/lb of bodyweight. So now we know our calories, our protein and our carbs. All that remains is to figure out how much fat we’re to eat. In this case, fat simply serves as a caloric ballast. Simply make up the rest of your calories from fat. Your protein and fat intake from these days will stay constant throughout all three days. On your high carb days, set your carb intake at 2.0g/lb of bodyweight and finally for your low days it is going to be minimal as you’re only eating fibrous vegetables; no starch type carbs at all.
Remember the truth of the matter is that there is no one best method for fat loss. Carbohydrate and calorie cycling is just one logical and effective way of approaching it. Many who opt for this kind of approach find it very easy to follow as you get a few days a week where you get to eat some fun carbs, and like I said, who doesn’t like eating carbs?
Article Source: Erik Ledin, B.Kin, CSCS, CISSN
========================================================
Do all the good you can, by all the means you can, in all the ways you can, in all the places you can, at all the times you can, to all the people you can, as long as you ever can.
(Wesley)
Let's Chill in some interpretation:
Does this seems like a daunting task to accomplish? Only to limited minds.
You would have to have the energy and the patience of a super human to act like this every day, all day----------> But why not try?
Easier said then done, but certainly worth the effort.
Why wouldn’t you want to be the best person you can be?
Sure, we’ll all have moments, even days where we are far from perfect, but isn’t that part of being human?
A better way to look at it might be to just put as much effort into being the absolute best you possibly can, and then push it just a tad more. I can make difference and it will all be worthwhile. Try it out sometime.
Best wishes to all,
Chillen
Anyhow, just wanted to say Hi and see how you are. Didn't my new girl thread turn out great?!!! Lot's of nice things were said, and some great support. I think I am the President of the Chill fan club though, so everybody needs to scoot it on over, HA HA!!
Hope you are well. I think I might ask for some diet advice from you soon. Still working on the mind over body thing. Ok, off to do more reading while my little girl is napping. YAY for free moments when I can get them
T.Hi Chillen! Oh my goodness, tried again to send you a note and I get this message, "Sorry, must have 5 posts or be a member for this long, yada, yada, before you can send a message. GOOD LORD! SO...I think this is post # 5 which means I MIGHT be able to send you a message soon!
Anyhow, just wanted to say Hi and see how you are. Didn't my new girl thread turn out great?!!! Lot's of nice things were said, and some great support. I think I am the President of the Chill fan club though, so everybody needs to scoot it on over, HA HA!!
Hope you are well. I think I might ask for some diet advice from you soon. Still working on the mind over body thing. Ok, off to do more reading while my little girl is napping. YAY for free moments when I can get them
Hey! I thought you left. I haven't heard from you for a few days.
.Sure, ask any dietary question you want and I will try to answer it for you!
Fire away, baby!
It was great to hear from you!
Stay happy and personally content, young lady.
Chillen
Ahem....Uh, sir? Go check your Pm's, would ya???
I did, Young lady........
:animal2
Ike, ike,,,,ike,,,,,,.......>
Currently I am surrounding myself with a lot of reputable reading material. Additionally, I am developing a new diet and training journal, and providing some finishing touches on my goal refinement. I have been pretty hardcore and tunnel visioned on this the last couple of days, and have purchased some new fitness equipment for my home gym. I will be working on this material and a few other tangibles, and my posting on the forum will be spotty until I am finished.
I am going to gain an additional 10 pounds this year (from 162 to 172-ish), and so ripped, I can cut paper, and nothing is getting in my way. It sure in the heck isn't going to be education, you can count on that.
I purchased Lyle McDonald's Ultimate Diet 2.0 and other book material, and plan on doing a lot of reading, and personal revisions (if necessary).
Time to rock-out.....this year.
It begins in: Preparation.
I love Lyle already.....LOL......"A quote from LYLE McDonald" from the Into and 1st chapter opening:
Face it, you're normal. Well, more normal than you like. Even though you've trained like an animal, taken all the supplements and done everything you're supposed to, you're still closer to normal than not. Sure, you carry more muscle than the average person on the street (which isn't saying much) and you're leaner too (which is saying even less). You're as healthy as it gets (physically anyhow) and your doctor is thrilled. But we both know that there's that nagging voice that isn't satisfied: normal isn't the same as content. Either you don't have as much muscle as you'd like or you can't get rid of the last little bit of fat. How do I know this? Am I psychic? Have I been watching you through your window? No.
In short, dieting to low body fat levels sucks. Actually, dieting sucks across the board but the real problems start when
you start to get far below normal. So what's normal?...........
Healthy bodyfat levels are considered to be 11-18% for men and 18-25% for women. To the body-obsessed, except maybe at the lower levels, that's still fat. Male bodybuilders (and other athletes) think in terms of sub-10% bodyfat levels, females typically in the low to mid teens....
Researchers would probably debate the validity of such beliefs but who cares; if you believe it, it's true to you.
Perhaps more important is that it is your goal.........(and I connect to this dude, and I haven't even read the entire book yet, LOL)
As I'm fond of saying, your body hates you. Actually, that's backwards, your body loves you. It loves you so much that it will do everything in its power to keep you alive even if that means keeping you small(er) and fat(ter). Because to your body, that gives you a better chance of survival. That you want to do something different doesn't matter as far as your body is concerned.
LOL.....man after my own heart....lol
All the best, my beloved forum
Chillen
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I read the Ultimate Diet 2.0 by Lyle McDonald, in its entirety last night, and began to read another book after I was finished.
Overall I liked the Ultimate Diet 2.0, and it solidified a lot of my opinions about why persons with relatively healthy low body fat (12% to 15% for males) have a hard time removing the last small portion (normally from the lower ab region and lower back), biological functions that occur during certain types of dieting, priming and preparing the body, carbohydrate (manipulation), glucose stores, and replenishment (I am over simplifying here).
If anyone has read my posts in the past, I stated several times that I was able to eat over maintenance (and not gain ANY fat tissue). This is because, I know how my body reacts to carbohydrates when my glucose has been properly depleted, and I KNOW my body is going to absorb a reasonable amount of calories from carbs to restore this bucket (so-to-speak).
So, if I had planned outing with my wife, I "primed" myself prior to the outing (like going to Red Lobster, and making some choices other than protein to replenish the glucose).
While I am certainly not blanketing everyone, however, at the same time I know there are some persons who could benefit in knowing and understanding the Carbohydrate as it relates to glucose stores. I have personally experienced this first hand, and he demonstrates this in this book. As you know, last year (around May 2007), I had some difficulty in removing the last bit of body fat. Basically, how I managed to remove it was through calorie and carbohydrate manipulation, glucose depletion, and replenishing. I usually ran it for 7 days, and replenish for 2 days (which is a bit different than some of his outlines), until I lost the tissue I wanted off at the time).
I want to emphasize that I used this because my BF was already LOW, and it isn't necessarily an approach for one with higher body fat percentage. One always wants to take the easier method, as this method isn't an easy one, IMO.
When I performed it (and I want to point out I am extremely "over simplifying this process), I would consume carbohydrates less than 30 grams--a few days prior to commencing training. The idea behind training and its design was to deplete the glucose stores "totally" or empty it if you will. This has a severe impact on energy, mood, and endurance, and can make one feel rather "miserable". It did me, but proved well worth it. The calorie content was restricted (not too severe so I wouldn't be extremely catabolic), I would then follow it with a glucose replenishment period, and this is my point, and where Lyle seems to agree, and I quote:
(start quote) "With full glycogen depletion, the body's first priority is glycogen repletion, calorie storage in fat cells is purely secondary"
"............we also get to take advantage of another neat metabolic trick. Normally when you're eating lots of carbs, they get used for energy and fat gets stored. However, when glycogen is depleted, as it will be going into Friday, carbs go to glycogen synthesis first, and energy production second. This effect lasts for about 24 hours (or until glycogen is restored to normal levels) before it's gone." (End Quote)
In other words, a lot of calories from carbohydrates are going to be stored to "replenish" glucose stores, and one can "reasonably" eat over Maintenance, but the types of carbohydrates consumed can effect people differently (i.e whether their is or is not a lot of water retention and/or bloating--or not), and one may have to mess around with the type of carbohydrates to eliminate or reduce this possible feedback. I have experienced this first hand. After a glucose depletion, and consuming complex carbohydrates (like oatmeal, LGBR, etc), I have consumed well over 1,000 calories above maintenance (but keeping fats low) without any negative effects. A matter of fact, I felt leaner and looked better. And, Lyle supports this notion by saying (that some will):
(start quote)"..............I want to mention something else: Saturday morning can be used to gauge how well (or poorly) your carb-load went.
Ideally, you should wake up looking full and lean, with no bloatedness or water retention underneath the skin. If not, you may have eaten too many total carbs (once glycogen storage maxes out at 16 g/kg, more are neither necessary nor beneficial) or too many of the wrong types of carbs (too much sucrose or fructose)".(end Quote)
Going back to replenish glucose stores is to thwart off (again simplifying) the negative effects of catabolic state and bring in anabolic state, and still solicit the wanted fat loss.
I have always promoted the power of manipulation and knowing how to use diet and fitness education to your advantage. Again, this approach was "extremely" over simplified, and ISN't for one with a lot of fat tissue to lose. It "can be" an approach for one wanting to lose that last portion that just refuses to come off. I have learned it works for me. Additionally, this book has opened up a mainframe of other ideas and concepts for me to think about.
Best wishes
Chillen
Overall I liked the Ultimate Diet 2.0, and it solidified a lot of my opinions about why persons with relatively healthy low body fat (12% to 15% for males) have a hard time removing the last small portion (normally from the lower ab region and lower back), biological functions that occur during certain types of dieting, priming and preparing the body, carbohydrate (manipulation), glucose stores, and replenishment (I am over simplifying here).
If anyone has read my posts in the past, I stated several times that I was able to eat over maintenance (and not gain ANY fat tissue). This is because, I know how my body reacts to carbohydrates when my glucose has been properly depleted, and I KNOW my body is going to absorb a reasonable amount of calories from carbs to restore this bucket (so-to-speak).
So, if I had planned outing with my wife, I "primed" myself prior to the outing (like going to Red Lobster, and making some choices other than protein to replenish the glucose).
While I am certainly not blanketing everyone, however, at the same time I know there are some persons who could benefit in knowing and understanding the Carbohydrate as it relates to glucose stores. I have personally experienced this first hand, and he demonstrates this in this book. As you know, last year (around May 2007), I had some difficulty in removing the last bit of body fat. Basically, how I managed to remove it was through calorie and carbohydrate manipulation, glucose depletion, and replenishing. I usually ran it for 7 days, and replenish for 2 days (which is a bit different than some of his outlines), until I lost the tissue I wanted off at the time).
I want to emphasize that I used this because my BF was already LOW, and it isn't necessarily an approach for one with higher body fat percentage. One always wants to take the easier method, as this method isn't an easy one, IMO.
When I performed it (and I want to point out I am extremely "over simplifying this process), I would consume carbohydrates less than 30 grams--a few days prior to commencing training. The idea behind training and its design was to deplete the glucose stores "totally" or empty it if you will. This has a severe impact on energy, mood, and endurance, and can make one feel rather "miserable". It did me, but proved well worth it. The calorie content was restricted (not too severe so I wouldn't be extremely catabolic), I would then follow it with a glucose replenishment period, and this is my point, and where Lyle seems to agree, and I quote:
(start quote) "With full glycogen depletion, the body's first priority is glycogen repletion, calorie storage in fat cells is purely secondary"
"............we also get to take advantage of another neat metabolic trick. Normally when you're eating lots of carbs, they get used for energy and fat gets stored. However, when glycogen is depleted, as it will be going into Friday, carbs go to glycogen synthesis first, and energy production second. This effect lasts for about 24 hours (or until glycogen is restored to normal levels) before it's gone." (End Quote)
In other words, a lot of calories from carbohydrates are going to be stored to "replenish" glucose stores, and one can "reasonably" eat over Maintenance, but the types of carbohydrates consumed can effect people differently (i.e whether their is or is not a lot of water retention and/or bloating--or not), and one may have to mess around with the type of carbohydrates to eliminate or reduce this possible feedback. I have experienced this first hand. After a glucose depletion, and consuming complex carbohydrates (like oatmeal, LGBR, etc), I have consumed well over 1,000 calories above maintenance (but keeping fats low) without any negative effects. A matter of fact, I felt leaner and looked better. And, Lyle supports this notion by saying (that some will):
(start quote)"..............I want to mention something else: Saturday morning can be used to gauge how well (or poorly) your carb-load went.
Ideally, you should wake up looking full and lean, with no bloatedness or water retention underneath the skin. If not, you may have eaten too many total carbs (once glycogen storage maxes out at 16 g/kg, more are neither necessary nor beneficial) or too many of the wrong types of carbs (too much sucrose or fructose)".(end Quote)
Going back to replenish glucose stores is to thwart off (again simplifying) the negative effects of catabolic state and bring in anabolic state, and still solicit the wanted fat loss.
I have always promoted the power of manipulation and knowing how to use diet and fitness education to your advantage. Again, this approach was "extremely" over simplified, and ISN't for one with a lot of fat tissue to lose. It "can be" an approach for one wanting to lose that last portion that just refuses to come off. I have learned it works for me. Additionally, this book has opened up a mainframe of other ideas and concepts for me to think about.
Best wishes
Chillen
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I have never posted an upper back picture before; I took one this morning when I first got out of bed: (current weight: 162 pounds)
This upper back pic is with shoulders pulled back, and shoulder blades pushed toward the spine:
Photo quality is bad; apologize in advance.
I "will" be adding 10 pounds this upcoming year, and we shall see what this brings worken' dat' ass:
How could I neglect my back, when its "the main problem" (when including my wife) was what brought me to diet and fitness?
No way, baby. Not gonna happen.
I am not all abs, M-kay?
Best wishes to all of you,
Chillen
This upper back pic is with shoulders pulled back, and shoulder blades pushed toward the spine:
Photo quality is bad; apologize in advance.
I "will" be adding 10 pounds this upcoming year, and we shall see what this brings worken' dat' ass:
How could I neglect my back, when its "the main problem" (when including my wife) was what brought me to diet and fitness?
No way, baby. Not gonna happen.
I am not all abs, M-kay?
Best wishes to all of you,
Chillen
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dizzam! lol
Hey! Mist_Christi! Sup! Girl! How is it going?! I hope things are well, I will chekc your journal here in a bit. I have somethings to do first.
Here is the other one I took, its a little tighter and "harder" pull back, than the other one I posted. Crap, it looks like I am being invaded by a snake, and its going to squeeze my head and pop it like a cork, lol:
And, this one is even tighter yet, shoulders fully retracted toward the spine. I still can't get over the weird--I--in the middle of the back when shoulder blades held back toward the spine.
This should settle whether I dead lift or not.
I purchased some new equipment for my garage gyme for my training this year.
Basically, all I have ever done for the back (as far as free weights) are: The DB/BB Pull-Over, the DB Renegade Row, Bent-Over Row, the T-Bar Row, and of course the Dead Lift. In addition to: BB Shoulder Shrugs, the Upright row, DB Arm Pit Shrugs, and Incline DB Shrugs (where the shoulder blades are squeezed). I now have a Lat Pull down bar, which can double as a Tri-Push down. And, this will be a new addition, and a new stimulant in the training, which I look forward to.
Again, I apologize for the poor quality, low res. pics. Its all I have at the moment. I am getting a new camera, as soon as I decide on which one to get. Then the quality of the future pics will improve.
Best wishes
Chillen
Here is the other one I took, its a little tighter and "harder" pull back, than the other one I posted. Crap, it looks like I am being invaded by a snake, and its going to squeeze my head and pop it like a cork, lol:
And, this one is even tighter yet, shoulders fully retracted toward the spine. I still can't get over the weird--I--in the middle of the back when shoulder blades held back toward the spine.
This should settle whether I dead lift or not.
I purchased some new equipment for my garage gyme for my training this year.
Basically, all I have ever done for the back (as far as free weights) are: The DB/BB Pull-Over, the DB Renegade Row, Bent-Over Row, the T-Bar Row, and of course the Dead Lift. In addition to: BB Shoulder Shrugs, the Upright row, DB Arm Pit Shrugs, and Incline DB Shrugs (where the shoulder blades are squeezed). I now have a Lat Pull down bar, which can double as a Tri-Push down. And, this will be a new addition, and a new stimulant in the training, which I look forward to.
Again, I apologize for the poor quality, low res. pics. Its all I have at the moment. I am getting a new camera, as soon as I decide on which one to get. Then the quality of the future pics will improve.
Best wishes
Chillen
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Those are still awesome. You look strong.
And yes, things are great. I had some sweets at work today, but still managed to stay under 2kcals for the day.
And yes, things are great. I had some sweets at work today, but still managed to stay under 2kcals for the day.
Chillen, you're ripped. I can't believe your musculature. It's just awesome.
I can't speak for anybody else, but I'd LOVE to see those arms of yours
I can't speak for anybody else, but I'd LOVE to see those arms of yours
Chillen, you're ripped. I can't believe your musculature. It's just awesome.
I can't speak for anybody else, but I'd LOVE to see those arms of yours
Again, thank you ILM.
Best regards,
Chillen
- Status