OLB 2008: Shredded
If you’ve followed my blog, you know about my operation lean bastard during 2007, which started on June 8 and ended in early October. During that time I went from 167.6 lbs at 16.15% body fat to a pretty lean 157 lbs at 6 % body fat. Once upon a time I used to be around 200 lbs at 12 to 14% body fat. But since I have damaged lungs (scar tissue) and asthma, I now prioritize my health and keeping my body fat as low as possible. The less dead weight I need to carry around, the better.
As for muscle mass, I have to take it very slow since muscle tissue needs to be oxygenated and my lungs can’t handle any drastic jumps in body weight. As I said, I prioritize my health and well-being.
Although I had a nasty infection and sinusitis in November, I managed to stay in the 6 to 7 % body fat range. And on January 2, 2008, I began yet a journey to get rid of that last stubborn and interspersed fat.
Goal: To get close to competition condition and get most caliper readings within the 1 to 2 mm range.
Diet breakdown: Ketogenic diet with fat-loading (90g daily) to achieve fat adaption during the first week (getting the body used to burn fats for energy.) After the first week, about 1400kcal on rest days and 1800 kcal on training days - for those of you who actually count calories. About 180g to 230g of protein daily and about 55g to 70g of fat, 25g from fish oil (omega-3) and the rest from vegetable sources. At least 25g of fibre daily. 15g of BCAA before and 20-25g during training. I’ll give you more and specific details as the diet and journal progresses.
Training breakdown: 4-5 full body workouts a week for the first 2 weeks and thereafter a regular upper and lower body split with a 2 on 1 off approach. No cardio at all during the first four weeks due to the low calorie intake.
Stats as of January 2, 2008 (first day of diet):
Morning temperature: 36.8 C / 98.24 F
Resting pulse: 68 BPM
Morning weight: 72.5 kg / 159.5 lbs
Chest/Back measurements (across nipples): 112 cm / 44.1”
Waist (widest area, across navel): 81 cm / 31.89”
Upper arm: 41.6 cm / 16.38”
Thigh (middle): 59.5 cm / 23.42”
Calf: 41.3 cm / 16.26”
Caliper measurements:
Chest: 3 mm
Abdominal: 4.5 mm
Thigh: 7.5 mm
Bicep: 1.5 mm
Triceps: 4 mm
Subscapular: 6 mm
Suprailiac: 4.5 mm
Lower back: 7 mm
Calf: 2 mm
Midaxillary: 3.5 mm
Body fat calculations:
Parrillo 9-sites:
Body Fat percentage: 6.77 %
Lbs/Kgs of Body Fat: 10.80 lbs / 4.91 kg
Lean Body Weight: 148.70 lbs / 67.59 kg
Jackson/Pollock 7-sites:
Body Fat percentage: 4.66%
Lbs/Kgs of Body Fat: 7.43 lbs / 3.37 kg
Lean Body Weight: 152.07 lbs / 69.12 kg
Stats as of January 9, 2008 (after one week):
Morning temperature: 36.8 C / 98.24 F
Resting pulse: 67 BPM
Morning weight: 70.8 kg / 155.8 lbs (down 1.7kg or 3.74 lbs, mostly due to loss of intracellular fluids)
Chest/Back measurements (across nipples): 110.5 cm / 43.5”
Waist (widest area, across navel): 79,8 cm / 31.42” (down 1.2 cm or .47”)
Upper arm: 41.5 cm / 16.34”
Thigh (middle): 58.6 cm / 23.1”
Calf: 40.3 cm / 15.87”
Caliper measurements:
Chest: 2.5 mm (-0.5)
Abdominal: 4 mm (-0.5)
Thigh: 6 mm (-1.5)
Bicep: 1.5 mm
Triceps: 3 mm (-1)
Subscapular: 6 mm
Suprailiac: 3.5 mm (-1)
Lower back: 7 mm
Calf: 2 mm
Midaxillary: 3.5 mm
Body fat calculations:
Parrillo 9-sites:
Body Fat percentage: 6.15 %
Lbs/Kgs of Body Fat: 9.59 lbs / 4.36 kg (-0.55kg / -1.21 lbs)
Lean Body Weight: 146.22 lbs / 66.46 kg (-1.13 kg / -2.48 lbs)
Jackson/Pollock 7-sites:
Body Fat percentage: 3.90%
Lbs/Kgs of Body Fat: 6.08 lbs / 2.76 kg (-0.61 kg / -1.35 lbs
Lean Body Weight: 149.72 lbs / 68.05 kg (-1.07 kg / -2.35 lbs)
Thoughts: I’ve seemed to have lost about 2.4 lbs of “lean body mass”. Since I’m on a ketogenic diet (less than 20-30g carbs/day), this loss is credited due to loss of glycogen and intracellular fluids, which is reflected in my measurements. It’s simply impossible to lose muscle mass in one week, especially when you lift weights and your strength remain at the same level or even increase. At next week’s weigh in, this should have stabilized.
Since I’m already pretty lean and most of my remaining fat is old hardened and interspersed fat, fat loss should now be tough and slow. A loss of just above 1.2 lbs is very good. I’m pleased with the progress so far.
Example of my diet on a typical training day during the first four weeks:
7.30: Wake-up, take morning temp and resting pulse
7.45: Egg omelet with onions, spinach, peppers, tomato, 3g fish oil, 1 cup of coffee
10.30: Pre-workout: 15g BCAA, 3g creatine, 5g glutamine, 1.5g Vitamin-C
10.45: Training
11.15: Mid-workout: 40g BCAA, 3g creatine, 5g glutamine
11.45: Post-workout: 15g BCAA, 40g Whey protein, 20g glutamine, 1.5g Vitamin-C
1.00: Lean red meat, broccoli, carrots, tomato, asparagus, peppers, 5g fish oil
3.30: Afternoon coffee with 15g whey (as a fake coffee latté)
6.00: Lean red meat, eggs, olive oil, onion, spinach, cucumber, lettuce, 5g fish oil
10.00: Casein shake, milled flaxseeds, 7g fish oil
11.00: Zink, Magnesium, Antioxidants
11.30: Sleep
Stats as of January 16, 2008 (after two weeks):
Morning temperature: 36.8 C / 98.24 F
Resting pulse: 66 BPM
Morning weight: 70.3 kg / 154.66 lbs (down 0.5kg or 1.14 lbs since last week)
Chest/Back measurements (across nipples): 110.4 cm / 43.46”
Waist (widest area, across navel): 78,8 cm / 31.02” (down 1.0 cm or .40”)
Upper arm: 41.9 cm / 16.49”
Thigh (middle): 58.5 cm / 23.03”
Calf: 41.0 cm / 16.14”
Caliper measurements:
Chest: 2.5 mm
Abdominal: 3.5 mm (-0.5)
Thigh: 5 mm (-1)
Bicep: 1.5 mm
Triceps: 3 mm
Subscapular: 5 mm (-1)
Suprailiac: 3 mm (-0.5)
Lower back: 5.5 mm (-1.5)
Calf: 2 mm
Midaxillary: 3 mm (-0.5)
Body fat calculations:
Parrillo 9-sites:
Body Fat percentage: 5.41 % (last week 6.15 %)
Lbs/Kgs of Body Fat: 8.37 lbs / 3.8 kg (-0.55kg / -1.22 lbs)
Lean Body Weight: 146.29 lbs / 66.49 kg (+0.03 kg / +0.07 lbs)
Jackson/Pollock 7-sites:
Body Fat percentage: 3.31 % (last week: 3.90%)
Lbs/Kgs of Body Fat: 5.13 lbs / 2.33 kg (-0.43 kg / -0.95 lbs)
Lean Body Weight: 149.53 lbs / 67.97 kg (-0.09 kg / -0.19 lbs)
I’m glad to see that everything is going in the right direction. My “glycogen depleted body weight” also seems to be stabilized as my LBM remains pretty much the same compared to last week. Another 1.2 lbs fat loss and .4” off my waist is really good at this level considering that I do no cardio, walking or any exercise besides lifting weights. I will however include some lighter aerobic work and increasing interval running as I begin to raise the calories in two weeks. This pairing of increasing exercise and calories slowly over time is called metabolic/energy flux and increases the expenditure of calories trough up-regulating metabolism. This will allow me to continue burning fat while eating more and possibly start re-gaining some muscle mass.
Thoughts and facts from the past week:
This weekend I had two small re-feed days. I noticed that my morning temperature had dropped 0.2 degrees Celcius and I felt somewhat tired and a bit frozen. I increased the calories by about 800 kcal daily over two days, mainly by adding some more protein and some carbs. The carbohydrates came from adding one orange to breakfast and one to the meal after training. I also added some maltodextrin to my post workout shake. I.e. the carbs were increased at crucial times during the day (nutrient timing/partitioning.) The added protein came from some extra red meat and eggs, spread through the day. The fat intake stayed pretty much the same since I eat only clean foods. The day after the re-feed days my temp was back to normal and according to today’s measurements I lost just as much fat as I did the first week. In other words it all goes according to plan.
Stats as of January 23, 2008 (after three weeks):
Morning temperature: 36.8 C / 98.24 F
Resting pulse: 66 BPM
Morning weight: 71 kg / 156.2 lbs (up 0.7 kg or 1.54 lbs since last week)
Chest/Back measurements (across nipples): 110.5 cm / 43.5”
Waist (widest area, across navel): 78.8 cm / 31.02” (no change)
Upper arm: 41.9 cm / 16.49” (no change)
Thigh (middle): 58.7 cm / 23.11” (up 0.2 cm)
Calf: 41.1 cm / 16.18” (up 0.1 cm)
Caliper measurements:
Chest: 2 mm (-0.5)
Abdominal: 3.5 mm
Thigh: 5 mm
Bicep: 1 mm (-0.5)
Triceps: 2.5 mm (-0.5)
Subscapular: 5 mm
Suprailiac: 2.5 mm (-0.5)
Lower back: 5 mm (-0.5)
Calf: 1.5 mm (-0.5)
Midaxillary: 3 mm
Body fat calculations:
Parrillo 9-sites:
Body Fat percentage: 4.84 % (last week 5.41 %)
Lbs/Kgs of Body Fat: 7.56 lbs / 3.44 kg (-0.37kg / -0.81 lbs)
Lean Body Weight: 148.64 lbs / 67.56 kg (+1.01 kg / +2.35 lbs)
Jackson/Pollock 7-sites:
Body Fat percentage: 3.06 % (last week: 3.31%)
Lbs/Kgs of Body Fat: 4.78 lbs / 2.17 kg (-0.16 kg / -0.35 lbs)
Lean Body Weight: 151.42 lbs / 68.83 kg (+0.86 kg / +1.89 lbs)
Today marks the third week of the diet. This past week didn’t really turned out as thought. I had a planned re-feed day on Saturday since I spent most of the weekend with my good friend Pia who visited Västerås. On Sunday I felt a cold sneaking up on me so I stuck to about 2200 to 2400 kcal a day and close to 100 grams of carbs from Saturday morning to Monday night to aid recovery and support my immune system and the healing process. I resumed the diet on Tuesday and got about 1500 kcal and only 25 grams of carbs from veggies (which is mostly fiber.) It actually turned out really well as the cold and its symptoms went away and I’ve seemed to have lost about 0.8 lbs of fat this week.
Most of the increase in LBM is probably due to intra cellular fluids from eating more calories and carbs for three days and with only one low carb day before taking measurements. One day isn’t really enough to lose all of the gained water weight (even though 100g of carbs a day won’t fill up any glycogen stores.) Anyway, we’ll know for sure next week, as I’ll continue with a low calorie, low carbs plan until then. After that, I’ll begin to increase the calories (and post workout carbs somewhat.)
The important thing though, is that some of the caliper readings were lower this week. The bad news is that the problem areas didn’t change at all. But with only four real days of dieting, that was pretty much expected. This coming week I’ll add in Yohimbe HCI at 7.5mg three times a day. The yohimbe will help with releasing fatty acids from the old hardened fat stores.
Some comparison shots between January 6 and January 23:
From the front. Unfortunately I had no good picture from Jan 6, so this will have to do.
From the side. It’s difficult to stand in the exact same position and to get the same kind of lightning.
From the back. I did not pull the shoulders back in the latest pic and the bouncing flash was somewhat strong. But you can still see the improvements in the lower back and the legs.