Day 57 of 112, half way there...

so today is day 57... im officially half way there, well yesterday was technically half way, today is the down hill day, 56 was the peak, 57 starts the down hill cruise to the end... NOT REALLY. starting today it gets harder, im not exactly happy with my results so far, well i am, but i know i should have more results by now, so im upping the intensity a bit, more carbs, more cardio, more super sets and tri sets... the reason for more carbs is because ive been carb cycling for the past 4- 6 weeks and i dont think the results are any different from when i diet with high carbs, i actually think the results are worse. when my carbs are low then my body doesnt get the calories it needs to heal from the workload that i put it through, so the body goes into panic mode and thinks its being starved, and what happens then is it slows down the metabolism starts to store fat and feed on muscle, which is not what we want... so im putting the carbs back in my diet slowly, starting at around 225 grams a day, then depending on how i feel ill add another 25-50 grams a day... because im adding more carbs then im gonna have to add more cardio and more work out intensity to make sure i use the carbs or else ill store them, which is something else i dont want to happen...
so im going to join another gym, im gonna join anytime fitness so i can do some cardio at midnight after work before i go home and go to sleep, i might even do some 2 a days now... of course ill still be doing my day time weight training at nautilus... im a little excited about joining another gym and seeing what kind of equipment they have... wish me luck...

Day 53 of 112, Leg Day Refreshed...

so im almost half way into my diet, and im feeling a bit flat, so to combat the dullness of the routine ive enlisted the help of my trainer Tabetha... ive worked out with her off and on for over a year and a half now, she always does a good job of mixing up my routine and making me do things out of my norm that i dont particularly like to do (which is a good thing) like tri-sets and such... so today we did legs, with a bit of abs and lower back... abs and lower back are a bigger part of leg day than youd think, they aid in squats, dead lifts and so on a good deal... so we do them together to tie them all in...
today we started with a short jog on the treadmill to warm up, then went straight into a tri-set of squats, leg presses, and box jumps. we did 4 tri-sets of those. then did 4 super sets of lunges, and dead lifts, and then finished legs with another 3 super sets of hack squats and leg extensions... then i did 4 sets of 20 with 110 pounds on the big crunch machine (which i call the crunch master, cause when weighted enough it really puts a nice bit of stress on the entire core i think), and 4 sets of weighted low back extensions... so it turned out to be a really great, and a little over 90 minute workout... that i look forward to doing again next week...
today really put things in perspective for me, and refocused my focus... it was a workout that i needed, and im really glad i did it (although ill be limping till monday, thanks Tabetha :)
this is what bodybuilding is all about, you diet your ass off 24/7 regardless of whether or not your bulking or cutting weight, you workout till you wanna puke, then push further, and when things get rough and you feel like youve hit a wall, you go back to the drawing board change things up a little bit and bust through that wall with full force...

Day 52 of 112 The Fight/ The Dream...

The Fight...
The further into the diet you get, the more you start to feel like each day is a fight, a fight against yourself... after all this fight is my mind vs my body, and each days challenge is to keep going. you drowned out the emotions that are telling you to quit, or the thoughts that tell you youre not making enough progress, those thoughts come everyday. some days you feel like your doing great, some days you feel like you look like crap. those are the bumps and bruises of this fight, but really if you dont let them get to you, who or what can stop you from reaching your goal. who chooses your destiny, who determines whether or not you win this fight, you do... no one else can say start, stop, slow down, or maybe this is too much. no one else can tell you the weights too heavy, or your doin too much. so in short, its you vs you, or as i said before your mind vs your body. thats the fight of the next 8 1/2 weeks, as you dig deeper into your fight, your body says your tired, but your mind and heart say keep fighting... be that monster everyone thinks you are, show your mental strength, show the world where you stand, youve come to far to budge now.. thats what this fights all about...

The Dream...
i have this reoccuring dream, its me the very last day of my 16 weeks. im standing in the mirror evaluating my progress, in the distance i hear cheers, and boos, but i cant see any of my progress, the mirror is just dark smokey grey, then behind me a curtain raises, my name is called and i step onto a stage filled with smoke, blinding lights come on and i wake up... this is the dream that i have over and over, almost every night, kind of vain right... now this dream could mean a number of different things, good and bad.. to me im gonna say this dream is telling me to keep pushing, only at the end can i truly know the outcome... this far into the diet your mind starts wander, and you cant stop thinking about the end and whats its gonna be like. when actually im not really worried about the outcome, i just cant wait til this ones over so i can take my month and a half long rest and start another diet. during the rest ill still be lifting, ill just change my diet and eat maintenance calories instead of being at a deficit. ill reevaluate some, make some changes, and see what else i need to do... this is the never ending cycle of my dream... keep pushing, and never wake up...

"Youve got to save your own life, no one can save it for you." kai Greene...

Day 50 of 112: Pain...

another day of aches and pains, thats the bad thing about the weather change. the sore joints and muscles that we live with everyday get worse, more intense and not to mention stiff... the only thing you can really do is stretch more, warm up more, get sufficient rest, and push through the pain... youve got to remember that without pain there is no growth, you have to hurt the muscle to trigger the hormone release that tells the body to grow and get stronger... you work the muscle to complete failure, you force the body to grow and strengthen to adjust to the workload your forcing it to move everyday... then the rest comes into play, because the body needs the rest to heal... sleep, thats what we need the most, thats when our body works to heal all the damaged muscle cells...
although, good solid sleep has been avoiding me lately... towards the middle of the 16 weeks i start to get anxious, and it gets hard to sleep. i toss and turn all night, and come morning time when the clock goes off i dont want to budge, because i didnt get enough solid sleep... and i know if i could just get another hour of sleep, my knees and back probably wouldn't hurt so bad... plus my knuckles, this time of year some mornings, i cant close my fists, trust me its really lovely... but i still get up, make breakfast, get the boy ready and we head to the gym... gotta stay focused on the goal, no matter how bad the aches and pains are... hell some days i enjoy the pain, it lets me know im alive during this non stop routine. eat sleep train, thats how the week goes, but i cant complain i love this life style... i wouldnt trade it for anything, im living my dream, how about you?

Day 44 of 112... Diet tips.

its tuesday, and its back day...
ive been waiting for today for a week, its my favorite day... deadlifts, barbell and dumbbell rows, and plenty more... i try to do at least 30 sets sometimes 35, i like to make back day a long and painful day. after all its a large muscle group, gotta, make sure all the muscles get hit...
this weather sucks... a lot of people have trouble staying in a groove this time of year when the weather gets colder, it gets dark earlier, and we start to get close to winter... but what else is there really to do, might as well start gettin ready for next summer now people... its a depressing time of year, its cold, and theres not as much sun to keep you feeling good... might as well hit the gym and do work to make yourself feel better (trust me it works)...

now for some diet tips... im gonna give you a list of some foods that are a good source of the 3 macro-nutrients that will help you reach your goals, and fight off the winter time fat we all gain...

Protein (group 1)... (at this serving size youll usually stay under 4 grams of fat.) try to keep servings between 4- 6 oz...
6oz of lean steak...
6oz of 95% or better ground sirloin (wal mart has 96/4, pretty sure kroger does too)
6oz of ground turkey...
6oz of chicken breast (skinless)...
6oz of pork tenderloin...
6oz of tuna...
6oz of turkey breast...
2 whole eggs, and 2 egg whites (if going low fat egg whites are great, but moderately the fat in the yokes is not bad for you, just dont over do it)
1/2 cup fat free cottage cheese...
20- 26 grams of protein powder in water...

good carbs (group 2)...
4oz of kidney beans...
small sweet potato...
4oz of brown rice cooked...
4oz of broccoli...
4oz of baked beans (low sugar)
4oz of black beans...
unlimited salad with a dash of oil and vinegar (dressing is what makes salad bad check the labels)
4oz of spinach...
6oz of green peppers...
12oz of cut celery...
6oz of cut asparagus...

snacks (group 3)...
2oz bag of peanuts...
2oz bag of cashews...
2oz of beef jerkey...
6oz of yogurt...
4oz of fat free cottage cheese...
hard boiled egg...

now try to build your daily meals from these lists... like so...
breakfast- 1 item from groups 1 2 and 3...
snack- 1 item from group 3...
lunch- 1 item from groups 1 and 2 plus a light salad...
snack- 1 item from group 3...
dinner- 1 item from groups 1 and 2 plus a salad...
bedtime snack- im always gonna stick with fat free cottage cheese or a good casein protein powder, before bed because they both break down slowly and will keep your muscles feeding while your body is at rest and normally in a fasting state...

listen to this and eat from these lists strictly, and have 1 cheat meal a week, plus GOOD exercise, and some cardio, and i promise youll lose weight, at a good pace, which is a slow pace 2-5 pounds a week... this is a real life healthy diet not a biggest loser diet where they lose 15 pounds a week, thats unhealthy... remember this is a lifestyle choice, losing a large amount of weight is not a 1 month trip... its a long journey that is WELL WORTH THE RIDE, trust me i lost 130 pounds... GOOD LUCK...

i feel i should add that this isnt the exact diet that i follow... when i cut weight due to my body weight, muscle mass, and level of exercise i eat more than this and cycle my carbs... but this is a good basis to start for the average person...

Day 43 of 112... 99's and Ones...

"there are 2 kinds of people in this world. the 99's and the 1's."

"the 99's... thats what i call em, 99 out of 100 people cant fathom what i do. they scratch their heads, cant believe my dedication to this great sport. many dont even think that this is a sport, or that i have a life. never let others define your life for you. this is what i have chosen, this is the road ive taken, with all the potholes, bumps and turns. the 99's they cant commit 100% to being their best, to step up one day and stand tall among the giants..."

thats an entry from the animal journey book...

an entry that pretty much says it all... people judge, and dont understand why we spend so much time focusing on our health... people think we're vain, and think we spend too much time looking in the mirror "admiring" ourselves... i look at it like this, im an artist, my body is my canvas, and the weight room and my diet are my brushes and paint... im not looking at myself in the mirror to admire myself, im checking the progress of my art...
everyone judges, and yea it gets annoying, but if i did everything to please everyone, when would i find time for me... ive come to the conclusion that the 99's or the judges just judge because they cant find the strength within themselves to stick to a plan, and work towards a goal to better themselves... so let em judge, cause inside theyre really just mad at themselves...
so to the 99's... im not mad at you, keep judging me... believe me i use it for strength...

Day 42 of 112... Beauty of Bodybuilding...

today is my rest day... wish i didnt have to work then id be able to rest. i just thought id get on here and leave a video, this video is one of my favorite videos, it always gets me motivated to hit the gym when im too tired or not feeling well...
tomorrow is shoulder and trap day, and i cant wait to get up in the morning and start my week, all weekend ive been visualizing my work out and what im gonna do tomorrow... im gonna do 4 or 5 sets of everything, except my last exercise, im gonna do 7 sets on that one... fst 7 style, to get the blood pumping and force growth...
ill start with rotator cuff warm ups, then front raises, arnold presses, wide grip barbell up right rows, seated smith machine presses (front and behind the neck), then ill finish shoulders with 7 sets of lateral raises... then ill move on to 5 sets of seated dumbbell shrugs, and 7 sets of barbell shrugs...
then on tuesday when i do my partial dead lifts, and bent over rear delt rows, my traps will also get hit pretty hard with those exercises... tuesday is back day this week, and i do rear delts on back day to tie them in... so im really looking forward to this week, im gonna try to up my intensity a lot this week... ill keep you posted and we'll see how it goes, im feeling really good about this weeks work outs...

Day 40 of 112... Routine, and Selfishness...

so the routine is suffering lately, the workouts are going good, but theyre off timing which bothers me... i know what your thinking "hows that bother you, its not that serious" "other things are more important"... yea i hear that all the time, well let me break it down for you... its not more important, nothing is... to me this is the world, my world at least... you have no clue how frustrated i get when my routine is interrupted, or set off just a little bit... i like to go to the gym at the same time every day, i like to eat at the same time every day... i eat the same thing every day... bodybuilding is a sport in which routine is VERY important. you cant just get up, lounge around for awhile, eat a bowl of cereal go to the gym for 20 minutes, then go to McDonalds and make a day of it...youve got to have some kind of stability in your day... not neccisarily for fitness in general, but for bodybuilding you need a routine, its a lot different from normal every day fitness... its a lifestyle, 24/7...
heres how the routine goes...

8am- wake up...
8:10am- animal pak (vitamins) and other various supplements...
8:15am- meal 1...
8:30am- shower...
9am- 25 gram protein shake, take pre workout supplements, and leave for the gym...
9:30am- workout...
11:15am- post workout soda, animal pak, and post workout supplements... (the soda is for the fast digesting sugar and the insulin release to shuttle the nutrients into the muscle.)
11:40am- 50 gram protein shake (which is meal 2)...
12:30pm- meal 3...
1pm- start cooking the rest of my meals for the day and start getting ready for work...
1:30pm- shower...
2:45pm- leave for work...
3:30pm- meal 4...
4pm- work...
6pm- meal 5...
8pm- meal 6...
10pm meal 7...
12am- leave work...
12:30- 45- meal 8 (bed time 60 gram protein shake, and supplements)
1am- go to sleep...

thats how my day looks... or so, thats how it looks most of the time, those are the good days when everything goes as planned. that happens maybe 4 days out of the week, the other 3 im runnin around like a chicken with his head cut off to get everything done and trying to fit other things in that people throw on me at the last minute, which normally frustrates me and ruins my whole day... so that brings me to selfishness...
i come off as selfish, im not really selfish, or i like to think not at least... but in order to achieve my goals, and be happy in the long run, i have to be selfish... i have to put my goals, and my daily routine in front of everyting in order to fit it all in... im sorry, thats just how it is, and when it gets interrupted, i look like the ass because im mad that my routine was just messed up... but im not an ass, i just have to be to keep my 16 week diet in check... i have to take food and supplements with me everywhere i go, to make sure the diet routine is followed to a T, i have to make sure i get to the gym 5 to 6 days a week to make sure all my body parts get hit correctly and thoroughly...

i take this very serious, and i work very hard to achieve the goals that i have... if im sick ill call in sick at work, but still go to the gym... tired, head hurts, bodys sore, doesnt matter, im still going to the gym, and im still gonna have a good intense workout... because i want this more than anything i can ever think of... this is my life, i am my motivation, and this is what i want to do... i need support, but in the end only i can make it happen...

"the separation of talent and skill is one of the greatest misunderstood concepts for people who are trying to excel and who have dreams that want to do things... talent you have naturally, skill is only developed from hours and hours and hours of beating on your craft..." Will Smith...

there are no magical fixes, its all ...up to you...

day 33 of 112... 12 weeks out, carb cycling...

so its been a couple of weeks since i last updated my blog... sorry.
i started a new job and i had to get used to my new schedule...
im officially less than 12 weeks out, im coming down pretty well, and still keepin the muscles full. i started carb cycling 2 weeks ago, and of course thats been a little rough, and pretty draining but i keep going... i go Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday very low carb, around 120- 150 grams a day, then Thursday and Friday i go high around 350- 400 grams a day to replenish the glycogen stores in my muscles, and to boost the metabolism... then Saturday and Sunday i go moderate carb, around 200- 250 grams... but i always keep my protein intake high, around 350 -400 grams, and fat intake around 50- 80 grams... pretty much forcing my body in and out of a state of ketosis and making the body burn body fat for energy... also on my 2 high carb days ill have 1 cheat meal each day, that also helps boost the metabolism...
like i said i feel like im coming down pretty good, and at a pretty good pace... of course i need to do more ab work... but my shirts are getting looser and thats a good thing... today is arm day, im about to get ready to hit the gym... should be a good day since im high carb today and ill have more energy...

im having fun and im really excited for the next 11 and a half weeks... and now that ive got my schedule down pat, i can keep my blog updated, so keep following...




i eat when im not hungry, train when so tired i feel dead...
push through the barriers, quittings not an option, its all in my head...

sleep, its important, but ill get plenty when im dead...
you dream when your asleep, but you cant achieve anything at rest...

Day 16 of 112... DEDICATION...

16 days in, im feeling good... workouts are picking up, starting to get a little more intense everyday, which is a good thing... today was arms, biceps, triceps and forearms... i love working triceps, unfortunately i didnt get to put the time into them today that i would have liked, but still got a good workout... seated tricep presses are my favorite, 75 pound dumbbell over head, yea thats where i live...
i see all types of different people in and out of the gym, you have your die hard gym rats who would be at the gym during Armageddon (those are my kind of people). you have the rich ladies who are bored just trying to kill some time and get the body that will turn heads, cause thats their fix. theres the treadmill people who come in and hit the treadmill for an hour and walk or jog while reading a magazine, ill never understand how they do that but to each his own i guess. you have the people who are training for a profession, hobby or certain sport. you have the health conscious people who are just tryin to live healthier. you even have the guys who come into the gym with hair all gel'd up and work out in polo shirts and flip flops and spend more time flirting than doin work (these annoy me the most (insert jersey shore commercial). my point is you come across all different types of people, all joined together by the same thing for the same thing... to achieve a goal that can only be achieved by hard work and with cold steel...
you hit the gym hard a few times, and you get a sense of accomplishment that people dont understand until theyve put in some time and earned some blisters... bodybuilding isnt for the faint of will, its not just a sport, its a job, a 24/7 calling... every second of the day counts, you dont clock in and out, theres no half time, no innings, and no time outs... looks, i dont do this to look good, i do this because i love waking up and visualizing my goal and day by day watching myself get closer to that goal... i am the competition, i am my competition, the only person who can stop me is me... i go to the gym when im tired, and i lift when im so sore i can barely lift my arms, i do squats soaked in sweat with sweat in my eyes, i deadlift until my hands bleed and i bench press until the bar bruises my chest (true story)... yea i love this sport... bring on the next 96 days...
good night...

Day 15 of 112...

so its been a few days, let me recap...
friday i did arms, and saturday was shoulder day... and sunday i rested and did some yard work, yay...
ive tweaked my diet a little bit this week, and pulled some carbs from the daily routine... the bad thing is right now im burning so many calories im always starving, and im still eating like a horse, gotta love dieting... i guess burning all those calories isnt a bad thing, since the goal is to slim down a little bit...
i also changed my split this week from the split that i said i was gonna start to use, but i felt my front delts were being hit indirectly and directly too many days in a row, which can cause me to over train them and as a result they wont grow as id like them to... so the new split will look like this...

monday- chest, and abs... (focus on upper chest)
tuesday- arms (biceps, triceps, and forearms)
wednesday- legs...
thursday- chest, and abs... (focus on lower chest)
friday- back...
saturday- shoulders, and traps...
sunday- cardio or rest...

with my split like this ill be able to give my shoulders more rest before shoulder day, which will help them grow better, and lower my risk of injury... plus it will give me more time in the gym to focus on each bodypart, and more time for cardio, so its a win win...

so im 2 weeks in, with 14 weeks to go... the body fat is coming off pretty well, while the body weight is staying about the same... so id say im on track, since the first 4 weeks is mainly about building muscle... of course muscle is heavier than fat so as the body fat comes off and the muscle grows the body weight doesnt really change much...

today i cut carbs out of my dinner, and cut some back on a few other meals, tomorrow ill do the same and then wednesday ill put them back... then thursday and friday ill cut back again and over the weekend ill carb up... ive decided to go ahead and start carb cycling a little early to try and boost metabolism... we'll see how it works...
so its off to bed a little early tonight... see ya tomorrow.

Day 11 of 112... Chest day.

today was chest day, the second chest day of the week... i work chest twice a week because its been a trouble spot for me, when i lost all of my weight i lost a lot of size and strength in my chest... which ive mostly got back in the last year of bulking, but in order to keep the size while i diet down i want to keep hittin chest hard to maintain the size... so i go twice a week, first day not as intense as the second so i dont over train... and the goal for the chest is width just like back... im not so much worried about strength as i am size, so every set i do on the bench i aim for 6- 8 reps, even when i go heavy...
today i started with cardio warm up, then the pec deck flye machine for chest warm ups, 3 sets of 15 with a medium weight to start the blood flow and get the muscle ready for the bench press... i then moved to the flat bench, and did one warm up set of 10 reps with 135 lbs, then i went up to 215 for 2 more sets of 8 reps, then added 30 pounds for 2 more sets of 6... then pulled the 30 off for final set of 8 reps, keep in mind when guys bench 300 or more pounds they rarely go over 3 or 4 reps, sometimes not that many... then i moved on to the incline bench and did the same...after inclines i did 6 sets of incline dumbbell flyes, and topped the workout off with 6 sets of cable crossovers... for a total of 27 sets... not a bad day at the office, told ya old school, nothin special just blood and sweat... no tears, cause when you cry you get sympathy, when you sweat you get results... (dont even try to steal that lol)
friday im gonna do cardio and arms... im gonna put a little extra focus on forearms tomorrow, havent hit them hard for awhile...
ill go ahead and cut it short tonight, i have a job interview tomorrow after i leave the gym, need the sleep... wish me luck...

Day 10 of 112, plus workout split...

wednesday, day 10 of 112, 102 to go... well i guess technically 101... today was leg day, lovely leg day... we have a love hate relationship, i love leg day because of its importance, the amount of calories it burns or should i say consumes, and because of the sheer pain it causes... and i hate it for the same exact reasons... see leg day uses so much more energy because your legs are so much stronger than the rest of your body, so you have to push them so much harder to get results, plus you use more muscles, such as back and abs, calves everything... in turn you burn many more calories than any other day... when squatting, and leg pressing you use abdominal muscles, and help keep your midsection good and tight... when i lost all of my weight i owe a lot of the success to squats, i was doing legs twice a week and sometimes 3 times a week then... but i also didnt know the importance of rest and recovery then so i didnt build large leg muscles like id like, i just toned them and overworked them...

so anyway, on to the splits...

when im prepping i like to try my best to keep my workout split to the point that each body part thats worked gets a full days rest before its indirectly hit while working another body part... so ill be changing my split next week and it will look like this...

monday- chest and biceps (ill usually work forearms this day too)...
tuesday- back and triceps...
wednesday- legs...
thursday- chest and abs
friday- shoulders (including traps) and cardio...
saturday- cardio and rest or optional bodypart that may need work...
sunday- on sunday i may just do cardio, or i may rest depends on how i feel from the week...

monday, tuesday, and wednesday i dont do much cardio, i just crank up the intensity with supersets since im working 2 bodyparts, and ill do light cardio as a warm up... wednesday ill warm my legs up with 10- 15 minutes walking on a high incline usually around a 10 -12... the rest of the week usually 30-45 minutes of cardio which ill try to change it up as much as possible to keep me from getting bored since i dont enjoy cardio very much... 
i wont go too much into which exercises i do on these days because i try to change them every week... muscle confusion is the principle for that, your body is very smart and if it gets used to a certain routine it will stop responding to it after awhile... ill keep the core exercises the same such as bench press, incline bench press, squats, leg presses, lat pull downs, barbell curls, and so on... each week ill rotate between bench barbells and dumbbells, for instance if i start chest with flat bench press this week ill follow it with incline dumbbells, and next week ill start with incline barbell bench press and follow it with flat bench dumbbells and so on... ill do the same for legs, one week ill start with squats and the next ill start with leg presses...
for back i love to do partial deadlifts, these do wonders for the way your lats hang, they also work your forearms and traps a lot too...
when im cutting weight i dont do high reps and lower weight, i keep the reps in the 8-12 range depending on the body part, and i keep the weight as heavy as i can take it... heavy weight built the muscle, heavy weight will maintain the muscle... i dont believe in fad workouts, im old school... the difference between my cutting weight and gaining weight work outs is the tempo and the intensity...  a higher tempo with less rest will burn a lot of calories... if the diet is in check a ton of cardio isnt needed as bad... my favorite saying is "abs are made in the kitchen not the gym"...
thats basically it for my workout split, ill change my split every few weeks also, but normally this is the basics of it...

Day 9 of 112 + the weekend... plus some diet advice...

so saturday i did arms, and cardio... not a bad day, kind of bland, could have been better. had to rush cause i had family obligations that day so the workout suffered a little bit... sunday i did cardio with my wife, then rested the rest of the day... monday i did a medium chest day, and some abs and cardio... the reason i did a medium weight chest day is because i work chest twice a week, so one day i work it medium, then the other i hit it heavy and hard... today i worked back, and i hit back hard, because my goal for back is the wider the better, so i think of my back as a giant brick wall when im working it... heavy lat pull downs, heavy seated rows, barbell rows, dumbbell rows, cable pull downs, and machine pullovers to the total of 30- 35 sets... now im tired... today i want to  break down dieting a bit...
the hard part about dedicating yourself to a 16 week prep, is you have to schedule your life around your workouts and your diet, and not vice versa... see to the normal dieter small things like where your eating out, when your eating, or how long your in the gym doesnt matter as much. but to someone trying to grow and lose body fat at the same time, and prep for a lifestyle, its a huge deal... one missed meal, or one missed workout means a lot to a bodybuilder...
bodybuilder, thats what im working towards, thats my goal... so i count every calorie, every condiment, and every second im in the gym... every workout... right now my short term goal is to build muscle and burn fat, so for the fist 4 weeks of my 16 week diet ill eat just enough calories to build muscle, ill try to hit maintenance calories perfectly, or just a bit above... then 12 weeks out ill start carb cycling moderately, around 180- 200 grams of carbs a day  monday and tuesday, then wednesday ill drop carbs almost completely all except breakfast... thursday ill put them back moderately, friday ill drop them again... and saturday and sunday ill carb up to around 350-400 grams a day, to boost metabolism... and depending on how i feel i look ill cycle all the way to 4 weeks out... then at 4 weeks out if i feel the cycling is burning enough body fat ill keep cycling, and just boost up the cardio... but if i feel its not ill drop carbs to 150 grams a day monday through wednesday, thursday ill carb up to 300 grams, then friday and saturday back to 150 grams a day, and sunday ill carb up to 300- 350 grams... keep in mind during all this carb cycling im keeping my protein intake to around 350- 400 grams a day...
the reason for keeping the protein so high is because protein is the only macro-nutrient used to build muscle... if your not getting enough carbs or fat to burn for energy then your body is gonna burn muscle and body fat so to combat your body from burning muscle you eat plenty of protein to keep building muscle while your body burns body fat for energy while your cycling your carbs between high and low...

ill break down macro-nutrients and their purpose real quick..
protein is used to build muscle, if your muscles are in an anabolic state then the protein that your are eating is breaking down and building muscle, making the muscle stronger and making the muscle bigger... not every gram is gonna be used, some will be wasted and flushed away it sucks but its just how it works... thats why we eat so much more protein than the normal person, to build as much muscle as possible...
carbs and fat like i said before are used as the bodys energy source to push you through your day, or your workout... there are simple carbs which digest fast, pretty much too fast to be used as good energy so you dont want those most of the time, however they are good within 45 minutes to an hour post workout to shuttle the nutrients into your muscle as they are trying to heal... the bad thing is most of the day and or in most people these simple carbs will store as fat... carbs such as sugar, white potatoes or pasta and so on and so on... so for the most part you want to opt for the more COMPLEX carbs such as oatmeal, whole wheat, sweet potatoes, brown rice, and so on... these carbs are of much better quality, they break down much slower and are used for good ole sustained energy... and arent as quick to store as fat, if you are active these carbs will most likely be burned and will help your metabolism because it takes more energy to break them down...
fat on the other hand is far more touchy, you want some for energy, but you dont want alot because most people are fat sensitive and wont burn it as well, but its also a tricky situation cause if your carbs are low and your eating good fats like mono or polyunsaturated fats then you can get away with it, and even some saturated fats, because those fats in moderation will boost your testosterone production which will BUILD MORE MUSCLE AND BURN MORE FAT, and isnt that the goal after all... but im not gonna go too in depth and confuse you, which i probably already have so ill stray for a moment again...

see in the late 70's and 80's some genius decided that fat was the enemy, because after all fat is what we dont want to be... so they told everyone dont eat fat, eat carbs not fat... well what these people didnt explain to you is if your sedentary and your eating only carbs then your storing fat all day and your not building nothing... plus they told you to cut meals, so we ate 1 to 2 meals a day and starved all day, while our bodys were storing all these carbs around our midsections... sounds awesome huh, cause the less you eat the more fat you burn right... WRONG... the less you eat the more muscle you burn, and MUSCLE IS YOUR METABOLISM... so while your body is burning your precious muscle, its storing all the carbs your eating as fat, and did you know that if you dont eat you can still store fat to an extent... if your body doesnt get around 1200 calories a day then your body stores all that you have ate as fat, and also every 3 and a half to 4 hours your body starts to think your gonna starve it so it once again stores fat... so thats why we should eat smaller meals every 3 hours... cause the more you eat in moderation the faster your metabolism is gonna be... keep in mind i say moderation, your body needs a certain amount of calories a day to function properly and if you eat just under that number then your burning bodyfat for energy...
so thats partly the reason we have a country full of over weight people right now, because we were given the wrong information on how to lose weight...
so in short if you want to lose weight, you have to eat, its as simple as that... if you starve yourself you lose weight but youll lose the wrong kind of weight and you wont keep it off... and if you do your doing it the unhealthy way and sooner or later your body will let you know...
ok i think ive ranted enough for tonight... tomorrow ill break down my workout regimen and body part split...
thank you...

Day 5 of 112...

its friday, day 5... 107 left after this one... my mind feels good, if you get through the first week or 2 of dieting you can make through all 16. thats what a lot of people dont understand, this is almost all mental... your body may do the work, and your body may hurt, but if your mind doesnt control it all youll fall apart... the key is to stay focused on the goal...

today is shoulders... and its friday, most people are excited about friday because its the last day of the work week, but mine doesnt always end on friday... at the end of the workout if i decide i didnt get enough work done through out the week ill throw in another day and ill go saturday morning and work on a lagging bodypart... if i feel like i need the rest and feel like im too drained through the workout today then ill take saturday to rest... it all depends on how my body feels... in this sport you have to learn to listen to your body, if your body says rest, rest... if your body says work, then do work...

Day 4 of 112 pt2... Midnight...

Bodybuilding...
what do i love about the sport. its the only thing i know of thats 100%, you get what you put in. if you give 100% you get 100% if you give 50 you get 50... no favortism, no luck, genetics plays a big role, but if you want it bad enough you can even overcome that... you sacrifice your time, your money, your body, daily things, fun with your friends and family, my friends want to go out and drink, but i cant cause i have to eat 3 more times before bed, and make sure i get 8 hrs of sleep. my wife wants to go out to eat, but i have to make sure we eat somewhere that i can get a steak and a sweet potato, or steak and salad cooked with no butter of course... i put in 110% to the craft that i love and i get 110 back... day by day and week by week i watch my body change as i mold myself, as i do the one thing that i love, and the one thing that i control... i walk with a limp half the week because my legs are sore, most days im so tired and beat up and sore that i couldnt fight my way out of a wet paper bag, or fight off an attack by gnats, because im so sore from my workouts that im useless... because with out pain and sacrifice there is nothing else... what motivates me to keep going, i dont even know most days, but today my motivation is me, and the sense of pride i get when i hold the weight above my head and say you wont beat me, and you damn sure cant break me... Luck, whats that? destiny, thats a crock of shit, its all up to me... i hold the key to making my dreams come true, and without dreams there aint shit else...
good night...

Day 4 of 112...

today is day 4, chest day... might throw in some biceps too. breakfast was great as usual, the biggest meal of the day 2 eggs 5 egg whites, scrambled w/ 6 slices of lean ham, and a cup of oatmeal... bout to eat my pre workout... time to get my mind right for the workout. im taking my wife with me to the gym today, her first time goin to my gym... i like to keep the gym to myself so when im there im completely focused on the goal, i try not to talk to anyone when im there, because im on a mission, im a different person when im there... but it will be a nice break from the routine to take her with me... let me explain my workouts real quick, i dont believe in fad workouts, im old school... heavy iron and countless sets and reps to complete failure until youre so engorged with blood you cant lift anymore, heavy weights built the muscle, heavy weight will maintain it... no half steppin...


i sit here on my couch its noon, im listening to paycheck game spit felonies getting my mind focused... i slept in a little longer than i wanted today, got up at 10... my last week of sleeping in, next week i start the 6 am, 8:30 am workout schedule... so this weekend i gotta get my mind ready for that, ive been lazy for too long... while i get my head straight today i cant stop thinkin about my dad when i was younger and how he was always the picture of physical strength to me, i remember working with him in the yard or on the house thinking about how i couldnt wait to be as strong as him.... my mother is who i looked up to for mental strength, she worked her ass off all of our lives to give us the things we needed, she never gave up and never stopped. to this day she still works harder than anyone i know with countless health issues she still works like a horse, thats strength... when your dieting and working out your busting your ass in the gym when your body doesnt have enough fuel all the physical strength in the world doesnt mean shit, mental takes over and you push regardless of how tired you are.. thats when your at your strongest, thats when it all matters most, you dont give up, and you dont slow down, you have a job to do, and a purpose... thats where i live...

Day 3 of 112

today is day 3, and its leg day, numerous squats, leg presses, leg ext, hack squats, and not to mention deadlifts and hamstring work... leg day is my favorite day, it means i get to carb up a little bit pre workout so i dont go flat mid workout. so for breakfast i had 2 eggs, 5 egg whites all scrambled up with 6 slices of lean ham, and a cup of oatmeal, snack was a metrx big 100 colosal protein bar, and pre workout im bout to have a 40 gram protein shake with a banana (dont feel like tuna today)...
cant wait til the workouts over so i can eat my steak... im dragging a little bit today thanks to a stopped up nose and allergys, but oh well.
time to get going...