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...