Program assessment for fat loss... >>

[Bluestreak]

The goal here is fat loss.

I'm 5'6", currently 148-lbs (I started at 187-lbs in April '03). Thanks to the cruelty of family genetics, I'm still approximately 17-18% body fat, mostly centered on the midsectional region. I've gained significant muscle since beginning last year, but nothing massive as yet nor do I plan to develop a bulking/mass building strategy just yet. I want "leanness" for the coming summer season, which lasts much longer than other parts of the country being that I live in central Florida.

Until now, I've monkeyed with different versions of what's below... but this is the next step to "take it up a notch" in my development to lean out for summer.

Here's the program...

Cardio three to five mornings a week (first thing in the morning, 5:30~6am-ish, depending on how many mornings I can get up so early), on the treadmill, varying intensity/speed/incline to aid fat loss, working at about 50-70% of max heart rate for 45 minutes. HIIT may be possible later, but I'm still rehabilitating a broken foot and knee injury. This injury does slightly limit me in the cardiovascular and leg-training area.

Monday: Legs
Tuesday: Shoulders/biceps/abs
Wednesday: Cardio only (usually 2x that day, morning and night)
Thursday: chest/triceps/abs
Friday: Back
Saturday: light workout, cardio and abs/biceps in same session
Sunday: rest or one cardio session (if I haven't worked in enough during the rest of the week)

Weight-training workouts are later in the day, 5:30pm or later.

Supplementation: Effervescent creatine w/ALA (a poor man's version of Nitrotech, but it works for me). I'm about to end a three-month creatine cycle and normally take one month off. I may not go back to creatine until after I reach my fat loss goal - if that's a good idea. Not quite sure. NO2. I know NO2 isn't very popular here, but I have been on and off of it for significant amounts of time and have found that it does produce a pronounced effect for me. And I get it cheaply from a good source, so it's not a major financial investment.

I have been advised by reputable sources that with creatine use, ab work should be more frequent, done with more reps at slightly lower intensities. It seems to have worked; the muscle hidden beneath the fat on my stomach is significantly increased and denser. I work out biceps twice a week because they're a smaller muscle group that I want to see increase more, they recover very quickly for me and they have increased significantly in size with a twice-a-week schedule for them.

The diet... a typical day.

#1: 5:30~6am, Creatine w/ALA. Water.
#2: 8am, Protein shake
#3: 10am, lowfat yogurt
#4: 12:30pm, soup (usually chicken w/veges and rice or noodles)
#5: 3:30pm, Protein shake, meal replacement or engineered nutrition bar
#6: 4:30~5pm (but varies depending on when I leave the office), 1/2 protein shake, one hour before workout.
#7: 6:00~6:30pm, Other half of protein shake immediately after workout
#8: 7:30pm, Lean steak or chicken (4~5 oz) with a potato and broccoli

Varying this diet is tough because I am the world's pickiest eater and don't care for many "body building staples" such at tuna (fish of any kind for that matter) and eggs. I can eat them, but I know myself; if I eat things I don't like begrudginly I will just turn myself off to the whole bodybuilding process. I've come way too far for that.

Water intake is over a gallon per day (more like 1.5~2 gallons), spread out through the whole day. Sometimes I will have a glass of skim milk (8~12 oz) near bedtime, otherwise I find fasting the 10 hours from 7:30pm to 5:30am seriously affects my performance at morning cardio.

Total daily caloric intake is about 1600 for me. Any less and I find I become a mindless zombie and at my job, that's not an option.

Tell me what you think - please pick this apart and give me your best thoughts, other options I may not have thought of, etc... when I get home later, I'll snap some digitals and post them.

One more thing... I'm giving myself a goal-date of July 3rd to make 10% BF.

Thanks in advance...