Saizen's Journey to Getting Ripped

[saizen]

Hey guys, normally i'm not one to keep a journal but based on how great and encouraging everyone else is @ bb.com I'm goin to keep one for myself for my own records and it would be great if you all would read it too.

I've played basketball consistently all my life and I've never been "fat fat" but i've never really been defined. I started lifting weights for about 2 months maybe a year ago and I bulked up about 10-15lbs pretty quick then stopped and now i look the way i do in my avatar. I just graduated from san jose state with Electrical Engineering through that six years i basically ate 2 super high carb meals aday (ex. rice, hawaian food), thx to my metabolism i'm not a ballon. Now that i'm done and i'm working 9-6pm i'm fed up with the way my body looks and feels, and i'm so out of shape for basketball.

Now I'm ready to do something about this, I'm going to get down to about 185lbs from 200lbs and dip below 10% bf then get some good muscle mass going (nothing too bulky). I know I can do this..I'm athletic, and a big goal setter. But to make sure I don't flake I'm making this journal..if you read it, AWESOME i'd love to hear your input, if not, i won't get butt hurt..this is simply a motivation tool for myself. I'm starting off two weeks into this already so here we go.

[saizen]

Taken from a post I made last night. I weigh 200lbs and i'm 6feet tall right now. *Note* All my weight lifting is circuit except for when i do my legs kind of.

Here's my workout:

Monday: AM: -15min jumprope(60sec fast jump 30sec rest swinging rope)

PM: -Chest/Back circuit training using dumbells and pulldown machine 8-12 reps/2-3sets 30-90sec rest between sets (depending on muscle)
-HIIT (5 liners/suicides/ect. at the basketball court 90sec rests, aboslutely kills me so far!)
-25-35min of shooting around at moderate pace (so tired when i'm doing this after HIIT)

Tuesday: AM: -same as monday

PM: -Arms(tri,bi,shoulders,forearms) circuit training
-Same after HIIT routine as monday, still shoot for 25-35min after

Wednesday: AM: -same as monday

PM: -Legs(leg extensions_3sets, calf raises_4/5sets, horizontal squat machine_3sets, dumbell squats_3sets
-Only do 65-75% max on regular HIIT routine only do 3 sets

Thurs: Identical to Monday

Friday: Identical to Tuesday

Saturday: Identical to Wednesday, no AM jumprope

Sunday: Rest, sometimes 5 on 5 basketball with the guys

Doesn't seem like much rest i know but i'm holding out great so far and I've lost a notch on my belt and i can see my two pack when i flex now lmao >.<

Here's what i eat:

meal 1(right after AM jump rope): 4egg whites, proteinshake (20g protein no carbs)

meal 2: peanut butter jelly sandwich w/ whole grain bread

meal 3 (lunch): 2 chicken breast fillets, 2/3 servings vegetables, 1 serving rice

meal 4: lunch meat sandwich (3 pieces of sliced turkey breast and grain bread)

meal 5: peanut butter jelly sandwhich (400 cals believe it or not)

preworkout: 20g protein shake no carbs (30 min before workout)
postworkout: 20g protein shake no carbs (right after workout)
meal 6: same as lunch

*I'm taking Hydroxycut (on my first week of it) 3 times a day as prescribed: 1) 15min before AM workouts 2) 30 min before lunch 3) 30min before PM workout*

OK sorry for the long winded post but this is what I'm doin to try and meet my octoberish goal of <10% bf. I'm kinda worried about my carb/protien intake (enough, too much?) and my total caloric intake. On my maintenence i put myself as "very active" so i'm at 3500 calories burned per day but i'm eating like 2400-2600 cals a day(i'm never hungry with this amount..hydroxy maybe).

[saizen]

Ok i've discovered the concept of macros...and that is something i'm going to have figured out by next week. I don't even know what ratios i should go with ..prolly gonna see about 40/40/20 or something...need to do more research hehe. But for now I'm sticking to this meal plan (i bought all that food i better freakin' eat it all before i decide to change up haha). Seems to be working...i'm doing the taboo and weighing my self every morning lol today it said i'm down from 199.7 -> 198.2 lol..whatever it's up and down to early to tell i guess. on my body space or photobucket imma keep weekly pictures of my self for tracking.

Hydroxycut- Man this stuff is wicked..been on it for 3 days now...and every time i pop one it's like i feel super excited haha. It makes me feel good while working out and gives me some good energy. I'll be goin from 1pill 3x daily to 2pill 3x daily starting tomorrow (hope i don't have a heart attack haha). Seems to be working though.

Jumprope- Haha 2x daily workout was a spur of the moment idea of mine..all i do is basketball stuff for aerobics so i need to shock my body with something different i guess. Gettin' up 1hour early to do this is a bitch, but as soon as i look at my belly i roll out of bed hehe. Man it sounds easy but once you get goin it's hard to keep jumping over the damn rope today i got all tangled up, need more practice...Very good workout and i feel it in my legs and shoulders, sweating like a pig too.

Circuit training then Running lines then basketball drills- This is the fun part that i look foward to all day feel like im highschool varsity practice again lol...anyways it's my lunch break at work i'll post how this part of my workout went tomorrow morning. Laters ya'll

[saizen]

hey guys good morning. Well yesterdays workout went super good, my legs are still soar from the jump roping i did yesterday morning so now they are even worse today. So bad, that when i woke up this morning i almost fell down haha. I practiced the jump rope motion when i woke up and my calves were way to soar ( i swear) to complete my usual morning jump rope routine so i went back to sleep, i feel like i cheated but I think it's best to give my body proper time to rest right?

HIIT- Ok yesterday's HIIT seemed so much harder than usual, but i still got through it. Every time i add another rep in i feel that much closer to throwing up lol. I need to buy a stopwatch so i don't have to think about counting to 90sec inbetween intervals. I'm about to stop doing liners on the basketball court and step it up a notch by doing HIIT at a track. I'm thinking 3 sets of 1min sprint into 2 min jog with 5 min rest inbetween(5times/week). I used to do something like that in highschool it had me running 5min miles in no time. Every 4 weeks i'll add a rep. What do you think?

Hydroxycut- At the rate i'm losing weight with this stuff i'll be 50lbs next month ****! I'm down to 195.8lbs, i was freakin' 200lbs on monday!!! I'm noticing a slight difference in my body, all the fat seems to be leaving my back first(look at body space pics). I notice a big difference in how my clothes fit though. I need to buy new basketball shorts! But damn...i don't fall asleep till like 2-3am, well i dont try to sleep until then..but still.

CHANGEUP- I'm thinking about changing up my current resistance routine, i made it randomly with little experience. I'm thinking of tryin' this 16week program located on iwantsixpackabs.com Not because of the six pack but because of the type of exercises he's doing. Home exercises with chin up bar and elastic strength bands, perfect for someone like me w/o a gym membership(been using my works crappy gym). I'm moving to japan in october for 2 years for my new job and having home exercise looks nice...and this guy got freakin' ripped off them. Well that's it for today, **** still need to check my diet and see if it's 40/40/20 lol

[saizen]

good afternoon ya'll Well I feel good i was able to do jumpropes this morning just fine..actually i was goin crazy with it today, i was having fun with it. I was doing double jumps, high knees, all of 'em. Let me tell you something, my energy and fitness has noticibly gone way up. Yesterday after lifting my legs were still hurting but i still had an urge to go shoot around at the court and i decided to skip HIIT for fear of overtraining my calves. At first my legs hurt like hell but when i got warmed up i was goin at a noticably higher pace that i used to do. the point i'm tryin' to make is that HIIT WORKS, i'm in some good basketball shape now. Wish i could say the same for my body though lol.

HIIT- skipped it..best believe i'm going to do it today though haha

Weights- Getting stronger, a little bit. No big news in this department other than i'm soar as hell all over haha.

Hydroxycut- This stuff is funny. I lost another pound i'm now 195.0 lol. I'm starting to notice big time definition in my shoulders and my back even my abs now. I love it. Man this stuff keeps me up too long at night though i hate that. Also it makes me nasueas sometimes during the day, it's all good though i'll be on it for another 3 weeks and i'll take a break again. More positives than negatives. I have to force my self to eat every meal i consume throughout the day, still at 2400-2500cals a day

I'm in the best shape i've been in for like 2 years..in a matter of 4 weeks crazyness. I can't wait to see what happens two months from now. I finally found a long term body goal...i don't care how long it takes imma get like this. Took this guy 16 weeks lol, i'm also gonna follow his resistance and HIIT training routine starting monday i'll post it later.

[saizen]

Hey guys having good weekend? Man i got crazy last night..went to this club and binged on vodka and redbulls...felt kinda bad about that..haven't had a cheat in a while but whatever. I'm down to 192 from 195 the day before!! I know it's not just the hydroxycut, it's my crazy diet and cardio routine. I'm feeling good, and my body is starting to tighten up, i'll have an update picture really soon.

HIIT- I did HIIT a little different yesterday, i pumped my self up and said "SCREW IT..LET's TAKE IT UP A NOTCH!" So instead of 90sec rest between sets i did 60seconds lol. I thought i was goin to pass out at the end, seriously. I collapsed at the end haha. After that was done and i caught my breath and started shooting around and ended up in a 4on4 game. Super cardio yesterday not to mention i still did my jumpropes that morning. I plan on doing HIIT today at 60seconds again today , and rest tomorrow, that will put me at 5x /week HIIT.

Jumprope- I really enjoy this now that i'm starting to get better at it. It really gets my heart rate goin and the sweat pumping. I can't describe it, you just get into this rhythm in your head and start jumping with it, very therapeutic lol. I noticed this when i was doing it this morning(afternoonish...slept in haha).

Diet- This is easier than i thought to stick to, i can't cheat even if i wanted to. Only things i have to eat in the house are the things that i'm supposed to be eating. I have lots more energy eating 6x a day. I'm loving it so far.
It's working really well so far so i'm not going to change it at all for the moment.

Weights- I'm really excited about starting up my new routine on monday, but until then i'm goin to hit up the gym later this evening for part2 and work on my chest/back.

Overall i've noticed a pretty decent change in my body, i just can't seem to shake the fat off my lower abdomen(it's goin down ..but not as much as the other parts) and my arms. It's comming off my back, legs, and my upper abdomen like crrrazy though. I've gotten kind of addicted to this lifestyle, it's all i think about these days. hehe, kind of cool and scary at the same time. See ya tomorrow with another update. Good luck to you all in your programs too

*Note* Due to lack of sleep for 3 nights (tues.wed.thurs) i got super tired on friday and couldn't handle the nauseated feeling the hydroxycut gave me so i had to go home early and take an hour nap, after that i felt like a million bucks. Nobody said this would be easy haha.

[saizen]

Morning ya'll! Got lots to talk about today. First off my weight loss streak finally broke, am up to 192.2 from 191.8 (not a big deal) I recently have started reading "burn the fat, feed the muscle." I must say, that book is PACKED full of information EVERYONE should know before they start any kind of fat loss program. It's not overwhelming either, he lays it on you in steps. I'm in the progress of cleaning my diet up further and yes, i FINALLY have my macros calculated. I've made some visual progress that i can finally see with my crappy camera. go here to see it. I took a break on sunday as in i didn't do any exercise at all, just ate my 6 meals like a good boy haha.

http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=3787151

Diet- When i get off work i'll post a jpeg of the excel sheet i made of my diet. I have it all figured out down to the gram now. i'm doing 45/45/10 at the moment. I'll now begin "zig-zagging" as well. 3 days at 2400 cal and one day at 3100. We'll see how that goes.

Body fat %- I'm sooooooooooo confused about this, i bought a BIA calculator (bioelectrical impedance analyser) and it put me as ...drum roll please...a staggering 27.8% and says i'm heavily overweight. That was a reality check...i'm not too sure if it's right though. I'm still not phased out by this and i will continue to stick to my goals like white on rice hehe. I'm seeing results visually and the way my clothes fit. When i look in the mirror and flex i have a 4pack and i can see the cuts in my chest and shoulders, and my back looks pretty cut too, also my calves are ok. so 27.8% i would think i'd look like a complete round pear.

New game plan- Yup, installed the home chin-up bar yesterday now i'm all set to start the new plan. I'm doing this:

mon-fri = AM-> jumprope,

PM-> 400m dash followed by 800m jog (3 reps)

tues & thurs. -> 5vs5 basketball (found a court...FINALLY!! with people) cutting back on the amount of basketball i play per week since i'm now doing a way more intense HIIT program ...don't wanna do TOO much cardio.

mon,wed,&friday - resistance training (supersets) www.iwantsixpackabs.com has the VERY detailed weekly program that i'll be following. if u don't wanna click the link this week i'll be doing:
squats(own bodyweight)
chinups
...ummm i can't remember the other 3 but it alternates between upper and lower and has a **** load of pushups involved haha.

ok guys see ya tomorrow!
P.S. i know i don't have a lot of replies (none), but i see that i have a good amount of views, thx for taking the time to read my stuff!

edit <<just did a tape measure test and i came out to be 16% bf , which sounds more reasonable>>

[saizen]

hello. Well to start things off i'm up to 193.2lbs and i'm not worried one bit about that, because i know i'm eating right and sticking to my cardio and weights. I might have to go out and buy new underwear pretty soon LOL it's starting to get all baggy on me. (too much info...meh whatever it's MY journal) In the mirror, i feel like i have increased muscle size but i'm sure it's just the fat melting away, i have new cuts on my shoulders and legs that i can kinda notice My stomach is down to 34'' as well. I feel like i'm having decent progress, while having fun at the same time. I'm feeling alot better when i play basketball, losing weight and weight training reeeeally helps with sports. I'm sure i'll be dunking again in the next month or so!

Diet- Decided to not zig zag as it seems what i'm doing right now is working JUST fine.

The new weightlifting plan- HOOOOLY ****!! yesterday was about the hardest,painful(muscle burn), and tiresome resistance training i've had in my life. At the end of it my legs were aggresively shaking and i had to sit down for about 5 minutes before i could move again. Here's what i did:

-20pushups
-20squats(just bodyweight, no weights)
-rest 1 min (repeat superset 3 sets)

-(he says do 15pullups) I'm 193lbs and can only manage 5 at the time..i need to improve to 6-7 on wednesday.
-5pullups (i didn'nt even have enough air in my lungs i was dying lol)
-20one leg staggered squats
rest 1 min(repeat superset 3 sets)

-15 reps of "don't know the name of it" (i got down into pushup position then got back up basically)
-planks 45sec (at this time i'm about ready to pass out)
rest 1min(repeat superset 3 sets)

it looks so easy on paper till you freakin' do it ..OMG wow
after this i went to go play basketball 4on4 for abut 40min(still did my jumpropes in the morning too lol) My legs felt like pudding after that, and as i'm writing this they are soar soar soar! Forget 5x/week hiit..i can only handle 3x per week at my current condition haha.

-Cardio
Today is the moment of truth. I'm gettin' back on the track for the first time since highschool (6 years ago). I'll be running 400m dash (8-9level) then jog 400m(not 800m like i said yesterday ..typo) i'll repeat this sequence 3 times then cool down for 5min. if i still have gas afterwords, i'll go play basketball..i hope i do. I'll let you guys know hehe. this will be done tu,thur,sat. (not mon-fri ..i bit off more than i could chew)

-comments
I don't know why but i have a lot of confidence in myself to be able to achieve my goal of 9% , it's been a big reason why i've been working so hard.
The results keep comming, see you tomorrow! thx for reading.

[L1GHTWEIGHTBABY]

damn man, he's ripped -- any idea what his diet is like?

[saizen]

your standard 6meal a day meal..lot less calories than what i can take cause he's short haha but yeah i'm tryin' to do the EXACT same thing.

[saizen]

Ok good morning. Had some trouble gettin' my ass up this morning to do my jumpropes but i managed to get up haha. It starting to feel routine to me and that's a good thing. Wake up ...weigh in (191.8 BACK DOWN AGAIN!! lol)...brush teeth..get dressed and go jumprope. Also my waist is down from 34" to 33.5" not big enough gap for me to care but it still is a change. I need a better camera, the one i'm taking pictures with now isn't doing my improvements justice..trust. Any how here's my updates on my workouts

HIIT- reemember yesterday how i was all touting doing some crazy ass 400m sprint then 400m jog for 3 reps...yeah that's me again biting of more than i can chew. So i make my way down to the track yesterday after work. there's people doing their mile runs and foot ball practice in the center of the track. So i start doing my light pace warm up. Then...BAM i take off!! i get to about 300m before i feel like i'm bleeding from the inside..make my way to 400m and start jogging, and not lvl 6/7 i mean like 3/4 i wasssss soooo winded. i crawl my way around for the 2nd dash and i only manage to go about 100m before i'm (literally) forced to jog 100m and dash 100m like i should of done in the first place haha. I do this for about 2 more reps. I was kinda upset with myself, but realistically looking back at it...i had this upset comming. So for now i'm goin to do 100m dash 100m jog..cause that's all my body can handle at the moment. I'll keep you posted when i try this again on thursday.

Weightlifting- HELL NO, didn't do it yesterday, my thighs hurt every step i take haha, it might have effected my HIIT performance. I do however have to lift today..pray for me..that workout is extremely difficult for me haha. I'm up to 6 pull ups from 5 ..i've been practicing randomly throughout the day.

Basketball- WOW, i don't get tired anymore playing halfcourt..period. Energizer bunny i swear, i need to figure out a way to still include my lines into my weekly schedule...i don't wanna loose this stamina i've worked so hard to gain. I feel soo much faster and light on my feet, hell i lost 10lbs i should right?

that's really all for today , keep you posted tomorrow peace!!

[Hotmoltenlava]

HIIT- reemember yesterday how i was all touting doing some crazy ass 400m sprint then 400m jog for 3 reps...yeah that's me again biting of more than i can chew.

Hey!

Nice work in your log. You definitely have the fire burning.

HIIT is definitely something that you have to build on. Give it some time and just try to do a little better each day. If you have to start easy now and then improve from there, do it. You will be amazed with what you can do in a month. With any high intensity cardio, you have to build on it. Don't expect to kick ass immeadiately. I run 6 miles for cardio now, but I had to start out much, much lower. Just do a little better each day.

Body fat %- I'm sooooooooooo confused about this, i bought a BIA calculator (bioelectrical impedance analyser) and it put me as ...drum roll please...a staggering 27.8% and says i'm heavily overweight.

You don't look like you are 27%bf. Those BIA calculators are not very accurate. If you really want to know, go to a (your) gym and have them test with calipers. If you want, start at 27% with your calculator and then just chart your progress. At least you will be able to see it drop (or not). That will tell you whether or not your routine is working. Don't trust the scale. I'm currently 20% and busting ass to 10%, so I will be watching. I'd like to look like the picture you posted too. I will.....

Have a good one.

[saizen]

Sry guys missed an update lol. Anyhow i'm up to 194.2lbs as of this morning but.....I've lost 1% body fat since i started measuring myself...haha my hips went from 43 to 39 inches SUPER fast, i guess that's where my fat is comming off first...wish it was my abs though. Everything is good with me though i feel good and started taking my last dose of hydroxcut 2 hours earlier and man ...now i can finally go to freakin' sleep. I am noticing new cuts all over my body (cept my abs haha). LOL ..lil' secret...in the right light i can kinda see that vein taht goes down your bicept wooooo!!

HIIT- still goin strong. The other day at the track I did 100m dash then walk 100m ..i did this for about 5 laps. It was intense but I think i'm going to do 200m dash for more intensity. I'm gettin' in a lot more shape so I might start doing basketball liners on my lifting days and track sprints on my off days. I'll listen to my body and see if i can make this happen.

Jumprope- This stuff is funny, it is actually helping my foot movement when i play basketball haha, crazy huh? I can now do 2min jumps with 30sec rests for 20 minutes(from 1min and 30 sec rest at the start). I'm improving alot on this.

Weights- I like my new home training routine..it's fast..hard...and always something new. Still to early to report gains or results other than i've gone from 5 to 8 pullups now

Diet- Ok i'm still doin the same thing but now i've added cottage cheese as a thing to eat before bed ...1/2 cup 'a day' keeps catobolism 'away'...lol

BIG NEWS GUYS..i've probably lost more than this but ever since i started calculating my bf%...it's gone down to 15% from 16% wooooo hoo. I see big differences when i flex and stuff and this alone is going to keep my desire to look my best going strong for life. Another thing i've noticed is alot of my fat at the moment is leaving my hips area as i went from 43" to 39" in one week O.o That all for now folks..stay tuned!

[saizen]

HEY!! wassup it's been a while but i'm back. I have been stickin' to the routine pretty well with a few adjustments here and there. Well i'm at 193lbs today from 194lbs last week. This is a good thing, i want slow weight loss to ensure that it's fat i'm burning. And believe me i know i'm losing some serious fat now. I am beggining to be able to see the veins on my bicep and it's becoming a lot more noticable up in my shoulder area. My waist is down to 32.5'' from 34'' haha, i sure can feel it in my pants. All my clothes feel alot baggier now. My body fat % is now 13% from 15%. So far i'm doing good. I've had dramatic results over the last half of last week. I went to san diego to see my girlfriend from wed-sun. So i went off my diet a bit, still ate healthy but i was still off my usual routine. Had a lot more carbs and a few more unhealthy meals (alcohol again i know i know sorry). The funny thing is that i continued to take my supps (hydroxycut hardcore, flax oil pills, multi-V's, and glutamine). I think i needed that change in diet cause wow i burned alot of fat somehow when i was there. I only played basketball once during that time and i lost all that fat, amazing. Anyways i'm back to my usual routine starting today.

Diet- I decided not to eat packaged lunch meat anymore cause of how much salt is in it. I went to the store this morning and had the lady cut me some fresh turkey slices instead, i hope this helps lol(more expensive though). My diet WORKS so far and i'm not changing it till i hit a plateau.

Weights- When i was away i couldn't do this so i'm going to pick up where i left off today and do week2 instead of week3, doubt i'm even physically ready for week3 anyways...this **** is H.A.R.D....i can't stress this enough.

HIIT- I played some basketball (not enough) while in san diego. My girlfriend was the first to notice how much better i've gotten and how much better shape i was in. I was whooping some ass out there on the court, feeling really good with the results of my training so far.

Cardio- Did my jumprope this morning, legs were really stiff at first but i notice my 4 day rest really made a difference near the end when i was doing 2minutes fairly easily. It might be time for me to kick up the difficulty.

Creatine- I started taking this today, we'll see how it goes haha!!

-It felt REALLY good to hear my girlfriend say wow, you look GREAT (she hadn't seen me in a month and a few weeks) I'm seeing small changes in my physique and athletic ability every week and i won't stop now. Keep you guys posted!

Changes made-

-taking Hydroxycut Hardcore now - GOD DAMN this **** is strong, although i've experience no side effects at all, except the good ones.

-taking creatine- let's attempt to put on some mass while cutting..let's "attempt"

-more HIIT intensity- i know i can work harder...i know i can!

-Better Protein- going to buy optimum 100% today...it has bcaa's in it..u can't beat that. I been taking some generic crappy (imo) protein up till now haha.

[saizen]

Hey! wassup ya'll. Well I'm done with my loading phase of creatine THANK GOD, it made me depressed somehow taking all that creatine. I had a 3 day loading phase of 15-20g of creatine. Now i can finally start taking 5g/day. I feel alot better looking at myself in the mirror by the way. My bodyfat is hovering around 13-14% right now and it gets kind of frusterating cause i want results faster. I'm working my self extremely hard and am having to force myself to take rests. Today i spent 15min this morning telling my self NOT to do my morning jumpropes as i had some soarness in my calves, and i still have HIIT at the track to do today. My goal of 9% bf has completely consumed me (in a good way..i'm still socially my self as i was before all this) and i won't be satisfied till i get it. Ok enough rambling on with the details of my program

Weights- Today i just ordered "bodylastics" as recommended in my "iwantsixpackabs" workout routine. I can't wait to receive them. I have such a hard time completing his routines, and it makes so much more sense how this can burn fat and build muscle since it is so intense. On Monday i almost threw up all over my carpet(believe it or not..this is a good thing) when i was doing my last set of planks...i can't even hold it for the 45sec he tells you too..i cramp up and get sick haha. I love this routine though...it's quick and VERY effective, i'd say it's the "cutters" dream weightlifting routine.

HIIT- I'm gettin' better at this. This is the bread and butter of my success so far. sticking to 200m dash and 100m walk, it is working good for me. I can't begin to tell you how much more shape i'm in from doing HIIT. I literally don't find myself at a complete loss of energy when i play basketball fullcourt like i used to..god, i haven't even been doing this for 2 months yet..damn!

CREATINE- Wow what an experience. I'll start of with the bad stuff.
-well, 2nd day into loading phase i got realllly depressed haha. I was like "why do i hate my life all of a sudden?"
- Everytime i took it i got super bad stomach aches...bleehhhh!!
ok now the good stuff
-2nd day of using it i went from being able to only do 7 chin ups to FREAKING 10!!!
- My biceps are a lot fuller, and now i'm not getting bloating from creatine cause i drink **** load of water
-I'm an animal on the track when i do HIIT i used to only be able to do 7 intervals and the other day i came out and did an amazing 10...i was so suprised!
-Conclusion: I like creatine, and i'll continue to use it. the stomach aches have gone away

Hydroxycut hardcore- This **** has my weight goin all over the place i got down to as low as 186lbs but now i'm back up to a reasonable 190, it's alllll water weight i tell ya. I don't feel the effects of the caffein that much since i'm so used to it. But i have faith that it's still aiding me in my quest of fat loss. I will cycle off it for 3 weeks when i finish this bottle.

Overall i'm starting to get some nice vascularity in my arms and i can see my stomach muscle when i move or talk..not just standing there yet Ok well that's it for today, another update comming shortly.

[saizen]

Hey it's been a while since my last update...about a month. I've made some good progress. Check here to see it ---> http://bodyspace.bodybuilding.com/sa...n=progresspics

This whole cutting thing and working out has really started to become a daily routine for me. It's something that i have that keeps me constantly looking forward to something. I feel better about myself, i feel stronger, and i love having this much control over my health. On to the details

Supps- I no longer take fat burners as i feel like i don't need them anymore, i have a lot more confidence in the methods i chose to lose fat. The creatine i'm taking ...it helps with my HIIT but in terms of muscle mass and stuff i don't see much of a gain which is understandable since i'm doing high reps light weight and cutting. Its prolly helping me keep my lean mass from dropping though. I'm thinking about NoXplode but everyone says it is a waste of money so i don't know. However, i'm sure the creatine i'm taking is of ****ty quality. I don't really care too much..at least until i start bulking.

Diet- I've been carb cycling for about 3-4 weeks now. At first it didn't feel like it was working but now..i'm starting to see a freakin' difference. My obliques are starting to finally come in and i hav an obvious 4pack. I've lost so much belly fat that the stubborn area on my belly button kinda protrudes a little bit since every thing else is flat. Good news about that though is that it's loose and mushy..so it's being slowly oxidized. I like this carb cycling business and i will reach my goals ( i don't know about 9% by oct. 15, but it's close) I am now down to about 11-12% bf..i'm thinking i'm closer to 11% though. My diet is extremely in check and the only time i cheat is once or twice on friday and once or twice on saturday. So in total that's 36-37 clean meals a week out of 42. I really like not being hungry all the time..which is how i used to be back when i ate like ****.

Cardio- Nothing too new here, just that i'm going from 3 to 4 HIIT sessions starting this week and that i now can do 12 intervals instead of 10. Once i get to 15 i will no longer increase the intervals, i'll begin timing myself and tryin' to improve times. HIIT isn't meant to be long. I feel like i'm in the best condition i've ever been in my life and this is only 1.5months into this...i'll be a freakin' monster a year from now...mark my words. I no longer do morning fasted cardio, it helped ...i think...but i am not noticing a slow in fat loss ever since i stopped doing it so why should i pick it back up? haha. I will make the new 4th HIIT exercise liners on the bball court. It's been a long time since i've done those and it will be interesting to see how i do.

Weights- I'm now on week 7 of this 16week resistance band training program and all i can say is that it has done wonders for me. I've lost a good bit of fat just doing these workouts. My muscle gains have been minimal if any at all due to the cutting nature of my diet. However, my chest feels freakin' hard as rocks and so do the rest of my muscles. My legs are beginning to have separation which is completly new to me..must be the HIIT. Once this resistance band training is done with I will get a gym membership and start doing ripptoe program

What's next- I'm going to easily be 9% or below bf% by the end of my 16week training program. When it ends(end of november i believe)..i'm goin to begin a clean bulk of 3000->3500->4000cals in that order till i see weight gain. I will be doing the conventional ripptoe format. Thx for reading..until next time!

[saizen]

Hey guys what's up? first off go here for progress pictures

http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=6332411

crazy huh? I can't believe it myself.

It has been 5 months since my last update? Since then I have achieved my goal of 9% and have been living in japan since october. But one thing for sure...it is really hard staying that low. Currently I bounce between 9-10%. Here is a comparison of what i looked like at my last update and now(both unflexed).

July2007

SEPT. 05 2007


FEB. 1 2008(need to take recent picture >.< )


see a difference? I am now about 177lbs from a starting weight of 200lbs.

Diet- Damn it is so much more difficult to be strict on this living in japan. But i am still managing my 6 meals a day. I no longer need to carb cycle. I am experimenting with cutting back carbs to simply lose fat ..and adding carbs to gain with great success. My metabolism is so high that it is annoying when i want to put on weight. I keep my protein intake the same no matter what. Funny thing is when i first came to japan i LOST SOOOOO much more weight..i guess my body went into shock from doing something so different. Now i have things under control and I have a fair diet based on estimation not calculation.

Supps- Taking ON Whey, Creatine(micronized), Fish Oil, Fiber, was taking muscle milk (good stuff but not for me i guess). Muscle milk was great and all but I dont like the bloated feeling i was getting and having to take a **** like 2-3 times a day haha! I am just gonna keep to the basics. The fish oil i swear is what broke my plateau of 11-12%

HIIT- I can't find a track in my new living spot so I run Hill Sprints which are just as difficult as what i was doing at the track..it's harder on my quads, and it is visually noticeable in a good way. My legs look like they've never looked before. It's great. I am doing 12 reps of 6 dashes up the hill with 45sec rest...gonna move up to 13 on saturday. Oh yeah I am now doing HIIT only 2x week...it's all my legs can handle...hills sprints are almost like weight training for you legs. God damn i'm so much faster when running cause of this. Been doing these for about 3 months now hehe.

Weightlifting- Check my Max lifts on my bodyspace..that is crazy high for me. Rippetowe has been amazing for me. However the ATG squats have been destroying my left hipflexor lol. I really have gotten a lot stronger off this. I prolly could gain more muscle if i decided to invest a small fortune in the amount of food i'd have to eat to gain weight. For one month I ate about 4500cal and I didn't gain a single pound hahahahaha. I know why..it's cause of my addiction to HIIT and supersets....i refuse to stop doing it. I never could stop doing the supersets after all. Right After ripptowe i am still doing about 3 different supersets with 30sec rests

3 sets
staggered jumpsquats x25 w/33lbs weight
pullups x10 w/22lbs weight

dips x10-15 w/22lbs weight
abs x25 (some i use weight..some i do leg drops..depends on what i'm feeling)

***since last month f***cking destroys me...people look at me like i'm a damn lunatic when i do this part*** i only do two sets of this

spiderman pushups(google it lol) x15 w/22lbs weight
burpees x20(f*ck me it hurts)

My weightlifting program is hard for me but GOD i love it

I am in a crazy amount of good shape and I have finally found a consistent group of people that play basketball on the weekends so I can't wait to test out my newly aquired fitness on them...although my skill is fairly rusty since i haven't played in a long long time. I know i won't be getting tired on the court though. That's all for now...imma try and update at least 2x per week hopefully. Damn ...i want some comments

p.s. u don't wanna know what kind of bull**** i had to go through to get my phone(all my pictures are taken from it) from america working in japan...combo of illegal and talking to japanese operators lol