AllPro: A Simple Beginner's Routine part VI

[nightanole]

Hey nightanole, started my new cycle with two heavys a week today. All I can say is it went awesome, pre-workout nutrition makes all the difference. I had 1 scoop whey, a banana and a pbj sanwhich and 3g l-arginine and I went full blast through all the sets.


I didnt do 3 sets of work sets on squat/bench/row cause I wasnt really comfortbale with the heavy weight on the squats but maybe friday I'll try that....

The 3 sets is recomended, not required. If you are an advanced novice you need the volume to push progress. A complete n00b might be able to get away with 1 set for a few cycles.

[nightanole]

Hi nightanole, I have been following your auto regulated AllPro workout and 7 weeks into it. However, as I am trying to cut from around 20 - 25% bodyfat at 180 pounds on around 1700 - 2000 calories a day I feel very weak and have noticed very little progress in my body fat side. I have dropped down in the scale by about 5 pounds but look the same from where I have started. I also think I might have messed up my body a bit when I when on a extreme cut during my teenager years when I was called fat so hardly ate stuff. So I dropped weight, looked smaller but still carried on that fat and have little no almost none muscle mass underneath.

I just wanted some advice on what to do or should I continue what I am doing and I should start seeing results soon? I have attached some pictures of how I look.

My Lifts

Squats - 95 - Progressing
Bench - 85 - Progressing
Rows - 95 - Progressing
OHP - 60 - Stalled
DL - 95 - Progressing
Curls and SUR - 60 Stalled
CR - 95 - Progressing

Age 19
Height; 6'0
Weight; 180
Body fat around 20 - 25% I think

Thanks for helping me and others out.

Your numbers are low, but inline, and your OHP weight is great.
You look about 20%, which is prime for StartingStrength.

Honestly is up to your short term goals. A six month plan would be to eat just enough to push progression (10% every 4-5 weeks). You will end up recomping and will need to slowly increase the carbs to keep up with progression, and the fat will lean out to 13% in that time frame, and you will add about 8lbs of muscle.

Your problem on stalling is the diet. As i said, 100g of fats/protein and 200-300g of carbs, as the min. At your age and weight, once you start squatting over 250lbs and benching body weight for 10, you will need over 3000cals to maintain weight/performance.

Do you really want to get to 13% at a 180lb start? That would put you at 165lbs at 6foot with the same lifting stats. It doesnt sound like a good goal. I look a like a reject from the walking dead at 5.10 and 160 at 13%, so 5lbs and 2" is gonna look worse.

But any way that is your current written goal, drop from 180@20% to 165@13%. That would take about 3 months at 1lb a week and odds are you could still add 20-25% to your lifts in that time frame while cutting the weight.

[cheekybody]

Your numbers are low, but inline, and your OHP weight is great.
You look about 20%, which is prime for StartingStrength.

Honestly is up to your short term goals. A six month plan would be to eat just enough to push progression (10% every 4-5 weeks). You will end up recomping and will need to slowly increase the carbs to keep up with progression, and the fat will lean out to 13% in that time frame, and you will add about 8lbs of muscle.

Your problem on stalling is the diet. As i said, 100g of fats/protein and 200-300g of carbs, as the min. At your age and weight, once you start squatting over 250lbs and benching body weight for 10, you will need over 3000cals to maintain weight/performance.

Do you really want to get to 13% at a 180lb start? That would put you at 165lbs at 6foot with the same lifting stats. It doesnt sound like a good goal. I look a like a reject from the walking dead at 5.10 and 160 at 13%, so 5lbs and 2" is gonna look worse.

But any way that is your current written goal, drop from 180@20% to 165@13%. That would take about 3 months at 1lb a week and odds are you could still add 20-25% to your lifts in that time frame while cutting the weight.

Thanks a lot. My main goal is to get my fat down but also look good, not a stick. So would it be better to just eat at a maintenance with the macros you have suggested and increase when weights are stalled for 6 months then after either cut or bulk? or just cut down to 165? Thanks again.

[nightanole]

Thanks a lot. My main goal is to get my fat down but also look good, not a stick. So would it be better to just eat at a maintenance with the macros you have suggested and increase when weights are stalled for 6 months then after either cut or bulk? or just cut down to 165? Thanks again.

Again that is up to you.
Your choices are:
Cut for 90 days to get down 165 and add odds are 20% to your lifts
Eat just enough to push progression and recomp for 6 months

Its all about your short term goals. The six month plan will be much easier. However you can get a 4 pack in 90 days if you work harder, and then spend the next 90 days doing the eat to maintain progression thing. In the end the results will be about the same at the six month mark.

[cheekybody]

Again that is up to you.
Your choices are:
Cut for 90 days to get down 165 and add odds are 20% to your lifts
Eat just enough to push progression and recomp for 6 months

Its all about your short term goals. The six month plan will be much easier. However you can get a 4 pack in 90 days if you work harder, and then spend the next 90 days doing the eat to maintain progression thing. In the end the results will be about the same at the six month mark.

Ok, thanks a lot, really appreciate the help. Will let you know how things are going in about a months time.

[briancl2]

Thanks for the response. I really like my progress so far. I started light with squat and am progressing pretty quickly.. so I should make up some ground there.

90 seconds or less rest, you could even do 60 seconds. If you start pushing 2-3min it will slowly bury you on this particular program when weight changes happen.

I'm strict on the 90 seconds between working sets because I understand the need to stay consistent in this auto-regulated program. However, I'm usually taking 2-3 minutes between my final warmup set and first working set. This may be all in my head, but I want to have a full tank to do that first work set because I know the next ~3-4 minutes of workset/90s rest/workset are going to be taxing.

You can add any weight you want, its just optimal to add 10% since that is going to push your rep total down 7-8 reps for a little DUP work. Adding 5-10lbs a pass on a bulk may cause you to pass each session. Some people like that, and its fine to do that, but its not optimal since you never have that super heavy phase where you are getting used to the new weight. 5x5 people spend most of six months in the same rep range, so small increases in weight is ok as long as you know when to deload.

So if I get this right.. by increasing less than 10% I'm possibly making this too easy at the beginning of a cycle. So perhaps I should just go with 10% and do as much as I can with good form.

[nightanole]

Thanks for the response. I really like my progress so far. I started light with squat and am progressing pretty quickly.. so I should make up some ground there.



I'm strict on the 90 seconds between working sets because I understand the need to stay consistent in this auto-regulated program. However, I'm usually taking 2-3 minutes between my final warmup set and first working set. This may be all in my head, but I want to have a full tank to do that first work set because I know the next ~3-4 minutes of workset/90s rest/workset are going to be taxing.



So if I get this right.. by increasing less than 10% I'm possibly making this too easy at the beginning of a cycle. So perhaps I should just go with 10% and do as much as I can with good form.

The time limit is only for sets, not warmups or time between exercises. You are also allowed 2 breaths at the top of each rep to rebrace etc, about 5 seconds tops. No point in just doing 12 squats in 20 seconds with one breath. Id rather it take over a minute so you learn to brace.

The smaller weight increases are not making it easier at any point since its just rep goal. What is happening is instead you are bumping more often. You would be perfectly fine doing 2.5lbs per session while hitting 24 reps every session. The only time this would hold you back is if the small weight bumps were not enough to keep you in the 24 rep range, or the first set ended up in say the 15 rep range.

[dundis]

Hi guys,
I was on this workout a while back. I'm in IT and recently got into Android app development and I have just finished an app that keeps track of your AllPro workout. It's in beta for now. If you want to check it out and have some feedback I would appreciate it. It's on Google Play and the link is in my signature or click on my profile, about me section and you can find it there. I don't have an iOS version.
Thanks.

[jbfast]

Can i follow this exact routine while cutting or should i modify it? Thank you!

[nightanole]

Can i follow this exact routine while cutting or should i modify it? Thank you!

Its meant to be started on a cut. You get to 13% bf (flexed abs) and then start a slow bulk. Its why progression is a bit slow at the beginning and then real fast at the end of the program.

[alboss]

Hi guys,
I was on this workout a while back. I'm in IT and recently got into Android app development and I have just finished an app that keeps track of your AllPro workout. It's in beta for now. If you want to check it out and have some feedback I would appreciate it. It's on Google Play and the link is in my signature or click on my profile, about me section and you can find it there. I don't have an iOS version.
Thanks.

it says not found

[achrafitou]

Hi nightanole, thanks for this great thread.

I'm on the 4th week of my second cycle and I'm afraid I'm going to fail my test next week (again).

My stats are already quite low:

Squat 65 kg (143lbs)
Bench Press 40 kg (88lbs)
Rows 55 kg (121lbs)
OHP 22.5 kg (49lbs)
SL Deadlift 65 kg (143lbs)
Barbell Curl 23.5 kg (51 lbs)
Seated Calf Raise 65 kg (143 lbs)

I'm 176cms (5"9) and 71.2kg (157lbs) and around 19-20% Bf I guess. I started cutting around 1900kcal (120p, 25c, 140f) a day for a week now to get back to 68kgs in 3 weeks or 4.

Am I doing something wrong? Do you have any suggestions for me?

Thanks in advance

[nightanole]

Hi nightanole,

Am I doing something wrong? Do you have any suggestions for me?

Thanks in advance

Yea, stop running a keto diet on a fatigue program. 200-300 grams of carbs, or you are not going to make it far. if you want to run below 200g of carbs (and that is LOW) you need to run a program with a 4-5 min rest between sets, and 3-5 sets.

Base diet is 100g of fat/protein and 200-300g of carbs, you go below that and you will not have a good time.

[Andygog]

I've got a problem in that I can't work out at weekends or Wednesdays. Has anyone tried running the light day straight after the heavy day? I've found all the beginner routines are mon/wed/fri. I'm hoping that at least as All Pro has a heavy/light/medium structure it won't kill me if I do

Mon - Heavy
Tue - Light
Thurs - Medium

or

Mon - Heavy
Thurs - Light
Fri - Medium

Has anyone tried this? I've read about the 2 day/week setup, but it doesn't sound like its possible to run this for long.

[nightanole]

I've got a problem in that I can't work out at weekends or Wednesdays. Has anyone tried running the light day straight after the heavy day? I've found all the beginner routines are mon/wed/fri. I'm hoping that at least as All Pro has a heavy/light/medium structure it won't kill me if I do

Mon - Heavy
Tue - Light
Thurs - Medium

or

Mon - Heavy
Thurs - Light
Fri - Medium

Has anyone tried this? I've read about the 2 day/week setup, but it doesn't sound like its possible to run this for long.

The alternate pattern is heavy heavy with 72 hours min between workouts. Long term it is recommended to 3 sets on the first 3 exercises to make up the volume. Test day is always 2 sets.

The hardest session of the week should be the one after heavy day, with your pattern it is not. You can always switch to another program with just A and B workouts, and just pickup where you left off.

[Andygog]

The alternate pattern is heavy heavy with 72 hours min between workouts. Long term it is recommended to 3 sets on the first 3 exercises to make up the volume. Test day is always 2 sets.

The hardest session of the week should be the one after heavy day, with your pattern it is not. You can always switch to another program with just A and B workouts, and just pickup where you left off.

Thanks. Ideally, I want to get more than 2 days a week in. Unfortunately, the usual suspects in terms of beginner routines are A/B full body workouts so that's going to be difficult. Maybe I'll have to try an upper/lower split that I can alternate.

Thanks again.

[dundis]

it says not found

You can now find the app in the Play Store. It's available for everyone. I updated the link in my signature.

[nightanole]

You can now find the app in the Play Store. It's available for everyone. I updated the link in my signature.

I can add this to OP once we hit 9000 posts again.

Im sure this over complicates it:
90 second timer
slots for the 2 accessories
Notes or RPE scale for each lift
failed set section
Some type of motivation such as a calculated 1rm. here is the math:
http://www.timinvermont.com/fitness/orm.htm

For the old folks it might be nice to be able to print the days workout so they dont have to smash their $400 phone/tablet

[achrafitou]

Yea, stop running a keto diet on a fatigue program. 200-300 grams of carbs, or you are not going to make it far. if you want to run below 200g of carbs (and that is LOW) you need to run a program with a 4-5 min rest between sets, and 3-5 sets.

Base diet is 100g of fat/protein and 200-300g of carbs, you go below that and you will not have a good time.

I'll start following your advice 120p/300c/100f for about 2600cal. That seems a lot but maybe that's what I need.

Thanks again

[Ladyeclectic]

Hey folks! I'm just starting out my training and, yeeeeeeah, I'm pretty weak. Also, I've had knee problems in the past that prevented (either physiologically or psychologically, it's probably some of both) me from doing things like squats and leg extensions because my knees ground. It doesn't hurt, but I didn't want to make them any worse. Anyway, I recently discovered the TRX straps at my new gym and I'm in love (never knew I'd love squatting this much!!), but I do want to get into lifting eventually using barbells and weights. ATM I'm probably 140lbs overweight (goal is 150, although I'd be happy at this point 180) so can I get some tips on how to modify this plan so that any squatting exercises can be done on something like TRX or with minimal impact on the knees? I'm sure this topic has been discussed to death on here, but I'm up to page 8 and no dice so I thought I'd skip to now and see if folks might have advice. Thanks!!!

[petropietro]

Hi all,

Great thread - read plenty, learnt lots.

I've read the sticky by Emma Leigh but having read through this I've got a bit of confusion over the nutrition.

I'm 6'4" 215lbs. I'll upload a photo at some point for judgement but since January when I started to get in shape I've been weighing myself weekly using a body fat scale (I know they're not accurate by any means but as a weekly guide).

At first I was just eating healthier for a few months. Then I started on All Pros and am about to finish cycle 2. Love the programme. Bit annoyed with myself for not taking progress photos (will start at the end of cycle 2 test day and continue at the end of the next few cycles) but I feel I've lost some fat and maybe a smidge of muscle but nothing too obvious at all!! Complete beginner to weightlifting so this programme has been a great introduction.

All Pros

My embarrassing lifts for someone who is my size and I have naturally a fairly big frame - without the muscle! i.e. I reckon I could progress quite well after a year of solid training:

Squat 120lb (C1) to 140lb (C2)
Bench Press 60lb (C1) to 80lb (C2)
Bent-Over Row 70lb (C1) to 90lb (C2)
Overhead Press 50lb (C1) to 50lb (C2)
SLDL 60lb (C1) to 80lb (C2)
Barbell Curl 60lb (C1) to 60lb (C2)

I don't do calf raise as my calves are pretty sizeable already. I probably could go heavier with SLDL but I'm concious I really start to feel it in my lower back towards the end of the reps - at the start it's fairly easy. Worried about injury here which will impede my sports that I do on non-weight days.

I work out at home using adjustable dumbbells so where I've said barbell it's not, it's dumbbells but, say barbell curl 60lbs - that's actually 2 30lb dumbbells.

The squats I hold a 70lb dumbbell in each arm down by my side. I know it's not a direct comparison to the squat and the goblet would be more likely but I figure I'll get to 90lb dumbbells in each hand and see if I want to sign up to a gym with a squat rack going forward. Sure I could go up to 90lb next cycle - my legs are much much stronger than my upper body due to sports.

Nutrition

I calculated my TDEE as being about 2,500 cals. Going on a cut to reduce body fat by dropping cals to 2,000 whilst trying to hit the macros of roughly (typical day looking at MFP app):

240g of protein (960 cals)
40g of fats (360 cals)
130g of carbs (520 cals)

Hmm - that's 1,840 cals but it says I hit 1,944 cals so there must some other things in there too.

Weight / body fat

Going by the inaccurate bodyfat scales there seems to be sensible progression in body comp.

Starting in January without All Pros til later:

220lbs | 23% body fat | 160lb LBM

To now:

215lbs | 18% body fat | 167lb lbm

So, 5lb drop in overall weight but with an increase of 7lb in muscle mass which equals a very rough fat loss of 12lbs in 5 months. I think that seems almost reasonable just purely on looking at body comp although it's difficult to envisage what 12lbs of fat loss and 7 lb of muscle gain looks like. I guess what I'm saying is, I feel I've gotten stronger and my clothes feel better so it makes sense. More so than a measly 5lbs overall.



All this aside - my questions are:

1) bearing in mind my weight / height and having read the comments in this thread, I'm now thinking I'm having too much protein and not enough carbs (or fats for that matter). Thinking I should change my macros for the next cycle??

2) are my lifts being impeded with the use of the dumbbells in the squats too much?? Having spent a loada money on the adjustable dumbbells I'd be reluctant to sign up for a gym and that added cost whilst they're sitting at home gathering dust (tight budget here).

I was originally thinking I'd get to 2 x 90lb dumbbells on bench press after however many cycles and then at that point go to a gym to continue progressing.

Am I on the right track do you think??

Any comments or observations will be v v much appreciated! Don't want to impede any fat loss, muscle building gains!!

[nightanole]

Hey folks! I'm just starting out my training and, yeeeeeeah, I'm pretty weak. Also, I've had knee problems in the past that prevented (either physiologically or psychologically, it's probably some of both) me from doing things like squats and leg extensions because my knees ground. It doesn't hurt, but I didn't want to make them any worse. Anyway, I recently discovered the TRX straps at my new gym and I'm in love (never knew I'd love squatting this much!!), but I do want to get into lifting eventually using barbells and weights. ATM I'm probably 140lbs overweight (goal is 150, although I'd be happy at this point 180) so can I get some tips on how to modify this plan so that any squatting exercises can be done on something like TRX or with minimal impact on the knees? I'm sure this topic has been discussed to death on here, but I'm up to page 8 and no dice so I thought I'd skip to now and see if folks might have advice. Thanks!!!

I am not familiar with a TRX squat. The recommended alternatives are; box squats with a straight shin, goblet squats, zercher squats, and low bar west side style with straight shins. Any squat that gets a good range of motion, and doesnt allow you to favor your anterior/posterior chain when you get tired, would be a good one. As a final note, the best squats with people with damaged knees are the ones with the semi vertical shin, they are a very hip dominant squat.

[nightanole]

All this aside - my questions are:

1) bearing in mind my weight / height and having read the comments in this thread, I'm now thinking I'm having too much protein and not enough carbs (or fats for that matter). Thinking I should change my macros for the next cycle??

2) are my lifts being impeded with the use of the dumbbells in the squats too much?? Having spent a loada money on the adjustable dumbbells I'd be reluctant to sign up for a gym and that added cost whilst they're sitting at home gathering dust (tight budget here).

I was originally thinking I'd get to 2 x 90lb dumbbells on bench press after however many cycles and then at that point go to a gym to continue progressing.

Am I on the right track do you think??

Any comments or observations will be v v much appreciated! Don't want to impede any fat loss, muscle building gains!!

Holly walk of text batman.

Starting allpro diet is 100g of fat/protein and 200-300g of carbs. Since you are outside of normal (5.8-6.1) i would bump those min numbers 10-15%.

Dumbells at side is not a good squat, would try a zercher squat with a towel if you can, or look into bulgarian split squats since you dont want to do goblet and say your back is plenty strong. What you are doing is more of a trap bar deadlift.

DB bench is fine, but progress will be a bit slower, and you may have to switch to floor press.

ALLPRO is effective till you can bench 10 reps of body weight, and squat 10 reps of 1.25-1.5x bw.

[petropietro]

Holly walk of text batman.

Starting allpro diet is 100g of fat/protein and 200-300g of carbs. Since you are outside of normal (5.8-6.1) i would bump those min numbers 10-15%.

Dumbells at side is not a good squat, would try a zercher squat with a towel if you can, or look into bulgarian split squats since you dont want to do goblet and say your back is plenty strong. What you are doing is more of a trap bar deadlift.

DB bench is fine, but progress will be a bit slower, and you may have to switch to floor press.

ALLPRO is effective till you can bench 10 reps of body weight, and squat 10 reps of 1.25-1.5x bw.

Thanks for the reply man

And sorry for life history up there!!

Checked out the bulgarian split squats - they look ideal for sports performance so I'm gonna bring that in and reassess my weights (if any) for cycle 3 on them.

The nutrition I'm still a bit confused:

My nutrition calc per the emma leigh sticky is this - lemme know where I' mgoing wrong if you don't mind:

BMR using Mifflin-St Jeor and Katch-McArdle is:

Katch-McArdle

370 + (21.6 x 78 lbm) LBM = estimate of 20% body fat so 97.5kg x 0.8)

BMR = 2,055 x 1.4 Activity level due to All Pro and other sports

TEE = 2,877 cals

Mifflin-St Jeor

(9.99 x 97.5kg) + (6.25 x 194cm) - (4.92 x 33yr) + 5

BMR = 2,029 x 1.4

TEE = 2,840 cals.

SO/

Take a slightly lower estimate starting point of 2,750 cals

Trying to lose body fat so deduct 10%

Gives a rough 2,500 cals per day (nice round number - know the maths gets rounded down and down here)

Right so if you're following me we go on to my macros:

She reckons about 1g of protein per total lb of bodyweight = 215g Protein x 4 = 860 cals

About 0.5g of fat per total lb of lean bodyweight = 80g Fat x 9 = 720 cals

Rest carbs so 2,500 - 860 - 720 = 920 cals / 4 = 230g carbs.

So macros:

Protein = 215g
Fats = 80g
Carbs = 230g

Not doubting you bud but can you explain why the macros are different on All Pros??

MAny thanks!

[nightanole]

Thanks for the reply man


Right so if you're following me we go on to my macros:

She reckons about 1g of protein per total lb of bodyweight = 215g Protein x 4 = 860 cals

About 0.5g of fat per total lb of lean bodyweight = 80g Fat x 9 = 720 cals

Rest carbs so 2,500 - 860 - 720 = 920 cals / 4 = 230g carbs.

So macros:

Protein = 215g
Fats = 80g
Carbs = 230g

Not doubting you bud but can you explain why the macros are different on All Pros??

MAny thanks!

For home work find out what pro and semi pro players eat in order to get money to put food on the table and keep there scholarships. Its vastly different from bodybuilder's that have to pay to play, and need to shill stuff. The "myth" of 1g per pound came from studying top performers in weight lifting. There is a small problem with that. They find a 225-250lb male, that is at the peak of their muscle limits, checks out their food log, finds out they eat 250-300g of protein, "and then they just scale it down". The problem is said 225-250lb male, has 35-45lbs of extra muscle, and needs to get 4500+ cals a day. Now find me one diet of whole foods, that you can get less than 250-300g of protein, while hitting 4500cals. Ill be waiting...

Protein = 215g
Fats = 80g
Carbs = 230g

This is perfectly fine if you have a good fat profile (not getting it from only 2-3 sources) and can perform fine on 230g of carbs at 6.4. Your chosen diet has still hit all the mins required for a fatigue based program such as allpro or any other program that has a low required rest time. The only problem with high protein and low carb, is there is 2 extra "steps" to metabolize protein into energy, vs 1 extra step for fats, and no exta steps needed for carbs.

[CarlWheezer]

So how long should I wait before actually starting the program after testing for the weight I should be using? 3 days?

Also is this a good program for cutting? Will I burn out and not have the energy to do it? I've been eating about 1500 cals a day at 5'4 150 25% BF. I am not starving myself it's just from me eating so many fruits and vegetables I am stuffed lol.

[nightanole]

So how long should I wait before actually starting the program after testing for the weight I should be using? 3 days?

72 hours.

[CarlWheezer]

72 hours.

what should I expect when doing this while cutting? I am a certified beginner. I did Stronglifts 5x5 for a few months a couple years ago but that's it. I'm about 25% BF.

[nightanole]

what should I expect when doing this while cutting? I am a certified beginner. I did Stronglifts 5x5 for a few months a couple years ago but that's it. I'm about 25% BF.

You should expect to progress at the normal rate till around 13% bf (flexed abs). Then things get hard and you will need to either increase bw to progress, or continue dropping weight while eating enough to hit all the reps on 10 rep week on each cycle.

[petropietro]

For home work find out what pro and semi pro players eat in order to get money to put food on the table and keep there scholarships. Its vastly different from bodybuilder's that have to pay to play, and need to shill stuff. The "myth" of 1g per pound came from studying top performers in weight lifting. There is a small problem with that. They find a 225-250lb male, that is at the peak of their muscle limits, checks out their food log, finds out they eat 250-300g of protein, "and then they just scale it down". The problem is said 225-250lb male, has 35-45lbs of extra muscle, and needs to get 4500+ cals a day. Now find me one diet of whole foods, that you can get less than 250-300g of protein, while hitting 4500cals. Ill be waiting...

Protein = 215g
Fats = 80g
Carbs = 230g

This is perfectly fine if you have a good fat profile (not getting it from only 2-3 sources) and can perform fine on 230g of carbs at 6.4. Your chosen diet has still hit all the mins required for a fatigue based program such as allpro or any other program that has a low required rest time. The only problem with high protein and low carb, is there is 2 extra "steps" to metabolize protein into energy, vs 1 extra step for fats, and no exta steps needed for carbs.

Gotcha bud. Thanks. I think I'll up the carbs and lower the proteins then. Sounds like it's overkill on the protein and I really don't want to damage my progress on the lifts.

Hearing from you that the goal bodyfat of 13% before going on a surplus. I'd love to be at c.13% by the time of my holiday end of August. Being 18-20% now and about to start cycle 3.

With my cals of 2,500 til then, do you think 13% is realistic by August?

Should I cut more or will that damage my lifts progress?

Sticking at 2,500 cals do you think I'll gain many pounds of muscle by August? Anything noticeable? Appreciate it's tough to judge without having seen photos!!