Progress Photos

[AC242]

That's phenomenal. Big motivation for me.

[buckiaj]

Awesome work man. I know it's been a roller coaster! I've lost and gained the same 20-30 lbs for the last 4 years and I'm FINALLY doing it for real now. Not there yet... about 5 months in.. but it's a work in progress. I also just started lifting, after simply just dieting.

I have those doubting thoughts as well. I use them to try to reach my goals faster, without setting myself up for too much disappointment.

Inspired.

thanks man. I think what most people who start any kind of transformation fail to realize and often times why they fail, is they don't realize the ups and downs that come with this. It is not linear. It does not happen fast. And there will ALWAYS be setbacks.

[buckiaj]

I have gotten several PM's from people asking my questions about my diet/nutrition/etc and I wanted to point out a couple things.

1. Earlier in this thread I have written a few posts detailing what my current plan is. I don't mind the PM's with questions, but odds are decent i already wrote your answer in this thread

2. I wanted to make it very clear, that when the weekend comes and i do my re-feed/cheat days, its not like i spend 36-48 hours just laying around on the couch, eating pizza and ice cream. My gym sessions are cranked up in intensity and so is my cardio. When i'm in a consistent cut cycle, my cardio is very light and usually kept to jogging/waking about 2 or 3 miles in the afternoon (i lift in the morning). When I have my cheat days, I do not f@ck around in the gym. I make sure each one of those extra calories do the following:
a) If its cardio, i make sure that calorie surplus is put to use to help improve my 10k time
b) If its lifting, i make sure that calorie surplus is put to use by lifting either more weight, or more sets.

I can promise you, there is a huge difference between cheating on your diet vs. planning those cheats and using them to your advantage. If nothing else, I feel so much more in control of things if the cheat meals are there for a reason.

Last week for example, I ran my best 10k time at a little over 50 minutes. Then i proceeded to jog another 2 miles after that. Thats 800 easy calories burned and it felt great.

[buckiaj]

Just a quick update to my thread this morning.

I'm down to just under 162 lbs this morning, and i think the seperation in my abs are a little more defined than they were a few weeks ago. I'm going to wait one more week before throwing up some more progress photos. I still think its going to take another 10 lbs to drop down to 10%BF, but hopefully i can hit that in about 12-14 more weeks just in time for the majority of summer.

Someone asked me the other day, what my #1 motivation is right now. I thought about it for a second, and it dawned on me that i've NEVER, in my entire life, EVER been comfortable with my shirt off in public. I still don't quite feel like i'm there.

If i drop 10 more lbs, i can promise this entire board. I will be comfortable.

[Revolutionize]

Just a quick update to my thread this morning.

I'm down to just under 162 lbs this morning, and i think the seperation in my abs are a little more defined than they were a few weeks ago. I'm going to wait one more week before throwing up some more progress photos. I still think its going to take another 10 lbs to drop down to 10%BF, but hopefully i can hit that in about 12-14 more weeks just in time for the majority of summer.

Someone asked me the other day, what my #1 motivation is right now. I thought about it for a second, and it dawned on me that i've NEVER, in my entire life, EVER been comfortable with my shirt off in public. I still don't quite feel like i'm there.

If i drop 10 more lbs, i can promise this entire board. I will be comfortable.

Great work, bro. Can't wait to see the updated pics.

[01lowbird]

great job man! trying to hit 10% by sept 1st of this year, started cutting june 16th last year. I hope you nail your 10% soon, best of luck! Repped!

[HammerE]

Total Respect - very motivational - I am hoping to tread the same path and am inspired by your post / pics / success.

[ABOMBZ]

I have gotten several PM's from people asking my questions about my diet/nutrition/etc and I wanted to point out a couple things.

1. Earlier in this thread I have written a few posts detailing what my current plan is. I don't mind the PM's with questions, but odds are decent i already wrote your answer in this thread

2. I wanted to make it very clear, that when the weekend comes and i do my re-feed/cheat days, its not like i spend 36-48 hours just laying around on the couch, eating pizza and ice cream. My gym sessions are cranked up in intensity and so is my cardio. When i'm in a consistent cut cycle, my cardio is very light and usually kept to jogging/waking about 2 or 3 miles in the afternoon (i lift in the morning). When I have my cheat days, I do not f@ck around in the gym. I make sure each one of those extra calories do the following:
a) If its cardio, i make sure that calorie surplus is put to use to help improve my 10k time
b) If its lifting, i make sure that calorie surplus is put to use by lifting either more weight, or more sets.

I can promise you, there is a huge difference between cheating on your diet vs. planning those cheats and using them to your advantage. If nothing else, I feel so much more in control of things if the cheat meals are there for a reason.

Last week for example, I ran my best 10k time at a little over 50 minutes. Then i proceeded to jog another 2 miles after that. Thats 800 easy calories burned and it felt great.

Best thing you've said so far in my book when it comes to planning your meals/nutrition +rep again lol

[buckiaj]

Great work, bro. Can't wait to see the updated pics.

great job man! trying to hit 10% by sept 1st of this year, started cutting june 16th last year. I hope you nail your 10% soon, best of luck! Repped!

Total Respect - very motivational - I am hoping to tread the same path and am inspired by your post / pics / success.

Best thing you've said so far in my book when it comes to planning your meals/nutrition +rep again lol

Thanks everybody for the words.

I threw reps out to who i could, a few of you I have to spread it around first.

[Min125]

sub for inspiration.
Great job so far and can't wait to see you reaching your goal! Good Luck!

[buckiaj]

Well, I'm here posting today with a major confession of a holy binge weekend. Friday I had a great weigh in and I was completely craving a big meal friday night, which was in my plan anyway, but i ended up going about 1,000 calories over my friday goal. Then saturday's cheat day spilled over into Sunday with some friends in town and watching basketball and getting caught up with the Green beer for St Pattys day. Overall, I ended up consuming about 11,000 - 12,000 calories between the 3 days and only made it into the gym one time.

feelbadman

But, i'm back at it today. I'm going to fast until 7pm then eat about 400-600 calories of tuna/eggs/broccoli.

I know I need to be better than this to reach my goals, but i'm not going to beat myself up about it. Its over now, and i just need to move on and get back to business.

[Revolutionize]

But, i'm back at it today. I'm going to fast until 7pm then eat about 400-600 calories of tuna/eggs/broccoli.

I know I need to be better than this to reach my goals, but i'm not going to beat myself up about it. Its over now, and i just need to move on and get back to business.

We all (or at least most of us) have those set backs. At least yours only lasted the weekend, rather than weeks or months. You have the right attitude. Just forget about it and move on. It's not going to make a huge difference in the grand scheme of things. Hey, it may have even provided a nice boost in leptin (although I'm not sure it would happen that quickly).

[buckiaj]

We all (or at least most of us) have those set backs. At least yours only lasted the weekend, rather than weeks or months. You have the right attitude. Just forget about it and move on. It's not going to make a huge difference in the grand scheme of things. Hey, it may have even provided a nice boost in leptin (although I'm not sure it would happen that quickly).

Thanks Bro, appreciate the words.

But yea, i'm just going to keep my head down, and pretend like it didn't happen. Debating on whether I want to skip my weigh in this week as to avoid the possible negative feedback, or wait til next week.

I'm going to hit the gym hard this afternoon and try and ride that anabolic wave!

[kylebarbaro]

wow man im absolutely impressed.. this is very motivational..can I ask what you did in the very beginning to start shredding the fat? how long did it take you? Right now im 5'5 and around 156 pounds, and alot of it is body fat, im very loose and soft all around and it sucks.. any pointers? seems to me like your doing the right thing

[ImAVelociraptor]

Patience and consistency.

Stay patient and stay consistent and they will come.

^This times 100. Awesome job man, makes me jelly looking at those progress pics. Very inspirational and definitely one of the better transformations I've seen.

Poverty reps inbound.

[DefiningMoments]

honestly, my biggest enemy has been complacency and peer pressure. Once you hit a certain weight/size, people really come at you from both directions to slow down and to 'relax'. After a while, you start to listen and believe what they are saying. Then all of a sudden, you have put back on 10lbs. feelsbadman.

Over the past 5-6 months, i've tuned all my doubters/closet enemies and have focused on what I WANT and what I WANT to achieve.

If there was one thing I would like to convey to anyone who considers themselves bodybuilders and are just starting out.....this sh!t is 95% mental and you need to be doing this for yourself and nobody else. Because, fact of the matter is, your biggest success's will not come externally (friends, attention from opposite sex, etc) but internally.

wish I could I rep again. Relate to this so much x1000

[Kellybeans1980]

Jay, you said 11-12000 calories and my jaw dropped. It would take me forever to eat that much. lol it's crazy how much more guys eat.

You know, I LOVE seeing that you're a normal person. You know what it's like to struggle and what it feels like to overcome. I'm SO incredibly inspired by your drive and humbled by your ability to admit a road block. I have been making excuses for myself for too long. Ready g the last few posts really kicked me in the butt. Anyways, hope your fast is going well. And if you wanna call me at 6am your time and yell at me to get out of bed and get my butt in gear I'd be your best friend forever. lol

[buckiaj]

Jay, you said 11-12000 calories and my jaw dropped. It would take me forever to eat that much. lol it's crazy how much more guys eat.

You know, I LOVE seeing that you're a normal person. You know what it's like to struggle and what it feels like to overcome. I'm SO incredibly inspired by your drive and humbled by your ability to admit a road block. I have been making excuses for myself for too long. Ready g the last few posts really kicked me in the butt. Anyways, hope your fast is going well. And if you wanna call me at 6am your time and yell at me to get out of bed and get my butt in gear I'd be your best friend forever. lol

Always good to hear from you Kelly (hopefully our Buckeyes can make a run in the tournament the next few weeks)

But yea...i really feel like the past week or so, I have been spinning my wheels trying to get back on the train to my next goal of getting close to 10%. But, as always, I'm going to keep my head down and keep grinding.

To everyone else - I always say, never say you'll start tomorrow, but start today. No excuses. Well, today is the first day of Spring, what better day to start than on a new season?

Make today your first step towards who you want to become.

No excuses. Make it happen

[buckiaj]

wow man im absolutely impressed.. this is very motivational..can I ask what you did in the very beginning to start shredding the fat? how long did it take you? Right now im 5'5 and around 156 pounds, and alot of it is body fat, im very loose and soft all around and it sucks.. any pointers? seems to me like your doing the right thing

Honestly, at the beginning, I just counted calories and aimed to get at least 150 grams of protein per day while I lifted weights and did a little cardio.

As I went along, I started to fine tune things as I hit plateaus. But for the most part, it just boiled down to calorie counting. I hate to make it sound that simple, but really, thats what it is.

Count your calories, lift heavy @ss weights, eat your protein and rest. Rinse, repeat and be patient.

[TimS5]

Great stuff

So i'm reading alot about cheat meals

should I schedule a cheat day? because at the moment I 99% stick to my diet

or is it better to stick to my diet.. ?

[buckiaj]

Great stuff

So i'm reading alot about cheat meals

should I schedule a cheat day? because at the moment I 99% stick to my diet

or is it better to stick to my diet.. ?

Cheat Meals can only help you lose fat in the following ways:

1. It mentally keeps you focused (leptin levels improved as well) and away from binging and going back to your everyday caloric surplus tendencies
2. You are still under how many calories you burned that day after eating said cheat meal

Otherwise, they are still more calories than your body needs and your body will still store those extra calories. With that being said....i'm also a big believer that if you push yourself in the gym before/after these cheat meals/days you could possibly take advantage of the anabolic properties of being in a calorie surplus (aka, maybe build some muscle). But, i think that is probably still pushing it as its very hard to build muscle over any short term period.

Bottomline really is that cheat meals/days, if you decide to do them, should still be calculated/formulated into your weekly deficit/plan.

If you have hit a plateau and you can't get thru it. Sure, maybe throwing in one big cheat/re-feed day could help push you thru it. But, its not likely. More calories, is still more calories.