Time for change. The Last Post for this transformation contest

I've been thinking about it seriously now for over 2 weeks but I feel its time to knock TT on its head for the time being.

I still love the TT principles. It is an amazing program for fat loss and it is a program I sincerely believe in. However, I still do not have enough muscle mass on me to get that ripped look I long for and will undertake again. whether it is a maintenance program or to melt fat again is a future question.

I expect I will enter another contest in future times however, I do feel that for someone of my size and fitness level, gaining muscle is the right approach at this time of my life. You can always read my other blog at www.gethealthywithneil.blogspot.com.

So til the next contest, thank you for reading and see you again soon.

Yesterday's weigh in and changes to my training schedule

Its been a good couple of weeks since I posted an entry so thought I would do so tonight.

I didnt post last week's weigh in result which was 77.3kg/23.3% bf. yesterday morning's reading was 77.4kg and 23.7%. Last weeks fat % increase was a bit dissappointing but I can live with it.

I have finally managed to secure myself a job which started last week, which now means I cannot workout on a Friday morning (afterall, getting Lydi to nursery is the priority and I can train on a Saturday, either at home or the gym).

I am therefore tinkering about with my schedule. last week was Mon, Wed, Sat. This week will be Tues, Thurs, Sat. On Sunday I went in for a legs and abs day where I did barbell lifts to exhaustion and seated leg presses. I was quite happy with my results as I managed an 8 rep set at 79kg for deadlifts, and a 10 rep set on the leg press at 170kg. Plus I could really feel my heart rate pumping after both. I did one of my 4 exercise ab circuits (3 circuits) comprising renegade row/push up combo with 18kg DBs, leg raises, side plank + lateral raise combo and straight leg ball pass. I really enjoy doing abs circuits like these as they only take a few minutes per circuit to do and really tone the core.

There is now only 6 weeks of the TT challenge remaining. I must admit I have been far from strict with my diet in terms of alcohol. Plus my new job is working for the logistics part of a dairy company, who make chilled products for cadburys, so there has been some chocolate temptation.

That said I have managed to keep on track nutritionally by eating whole foods as recommended by my gurus CB and VDM, and will continue to do so.

I am finding it difficult not doing cardio, but then again, I am now a bit more wary of time, so that is not really too much of an issue.

I will close the post for now. I will get a TANITA reading done when my program is due for change again on June 29. Will keep you posted

Eating for mass is hard!!!

Given my change in direction and doing the mass building program instead of fat loss, I am finding it hard to keep my calories up.

Furthermore, I am not sure what is best to do to maintain my physical conditioning. On the mass building program CB suggests (in fact, insists) on no cardio or intervals. VDM however suggests to minimize fat gain, do some low intensity cardio immediately after your resistance program or do intervals 2 to 3 times a week. However to gain muscle you need to be in a calorie surplus.

Oh its so confusing.

I have really leaned down over the last 3 months, and my muscle tone and definition is so much better since I discovered TT. However, I am still quite skinny in certain areas, such as my biceps and my shoulders are still very weak. My legs are strong tho and I have rediscovered swimming again!!!

Does anyone have ideas how to eat the calories so my muscles can develop, yet keep the fat off? Please remember that I am still a skinny "fat but not so fat as I was" guy, and I do put fat mass on quite quickly!!!

All comments are appreciated

A major change of direction

This follows on from my earlier blog today.

I'm now down well below 12 st and the lightest I've been since for 20 years!!! I'm really proud of that achievement, and I can tell that I'm one of the fittest people in my age group at the gym.

Having downloaded TT at the end of March and doing the fat loss program, and based on my tanita readings rather than my home scales I have shed over 5% of body fat in 10 weeks. Again something I am really proud of.

However, since downloading Vince Del Monte's No Nonsense Muscle Building, I'm just itching to build some size, particularly in my abs arms and to strengthen my right shoulder which still feels very week after injury over 15 months ago.

I am not going to abandon TT completely however, as Craig has some mass-building workouts and that is what I am going to do next. And I still want to be in this contest as I think it has at least helped me cut down on alcohol.

Ok so here are my goals.

1. To build 8lb muscle mass over the next 8 weeks.
2. Using a metabolic calculator I will need to be consuming 3,500 calories per day. Having done a nutrition log using fitday.com, I think I can quite easily achieve this. Although it will be really strange changing from eating 2 thirds of that over the last 10 weeks.
3. My ideal "ripped" weight is 175lb. I know I wont be ripped from just adding a few pounds of muscle, but that is the long term goal, and having done my reading, I may have to bulk up to 14st again and then cut down. but then that will be at least 6 months down the line, and I will see how things go at that time.
4. I will aim to keep my body fat below 21% according to the Tanita machine and to stay under 180lb by the end of the next 8 weeks.

I've been thinking long and hard about this decision, and I think it will help me get those 6 pack abs I really want. I will have more muscle mass to burn the fat, boosting my metabolism. Its just not going to happen overnight and I really think that adding muscle to my frame is the best course of action since I know I have the toolbox to really cut down when the time is right.

So, although I have done TT 2k9 today (a complete upper body workout), I will be starting TT Mass at Home (although it will be done mainly at the gym) on Wednesday from workout B (lower body). Resting tomorrow and eating big!!!

The next step will be to do TT for meatheads (god I hate that phrase) for weeks 9 to 12.

OK, its 11pm and I got the munchies so having a protein shake with some milk, and a cheese sandwich.

I can relax and get some sleep now!

So what does this all mean then?

I'm really puzzled. I've been continuing monitoring my weight at home and today I weighed in at 11st 9lb (74.2kg) and 22.5% body fat. So thats down 1.3% in 4 weeks and I have lost 2kg (4.5lb) of body fat based on those measurements. Not great shakes but still heading in the right direction

However, as I was starting a new program (TT 2k9) I again took the opportunity of getting measured on the TANITA monitor.

This time it says 11st 11lb 18.6% body fat (equating to 2st 2.8lb), and according to that, I apparently I have gained 1lb of fat. Also my 3lb weight loss appears to be 3lb of water plus 1lb muscle minus the 1lb addition of fat. How is this possible?

I don't know whether this offers any explanation, but I have started another creatine loading cycle (started Fri), and the weather over here in the UK has been exceptionally hot which would give some explanation of the water loss, but the last 2 points are totally the opposite of what I want to achieve. In any event I thought that creatine was supposed to draw water into your dry muscle mass, so surely it would have been reasonable to expect my muscle mass to stay the same, if not increase?

I've not been monitoring my calories but have stuck with the East Stop Eat program with 2 24hr fasts per week and limiting my alcohol consumption, and doing some non-interval cardio for 30-40 mins twice a week on off days. I abandoned a fast on Saturday evening to take advantage of the warm weather and started another fast after lunch. I must admit I don't think I ate a lot on Sunday and I felt quite light headed all today. I hope this little blip doesn't mean I'm starting to go catabolic. I think it best that I abandon ESE for this week and see what results I get next week.

I'm also thinking about whether it is the right time to also abandon fat loss, and start building muscle to reduce my fat %age. I don't know I'm getting confused. I think it best I stick with this tt 2k9 program til I complete the chart in 3w time and review it again.

Monitoring Results. The Tanita Body Composition machine.

I thought I'd do a quick post tonight. I took the opportunity of getting my composition done at the gym today as I am sure that after reading a blog post by Joel Marion, that my scales at home arent really that accurate when it comes to the body fat gauge.

I did get it done on the 4th May when my fat reading was 19.4% whereas on my scales it was 23.8%. Quite a difference really. Anyway, I am pleased to say that on the TANITA it was down to 17.7% a drop of 1.7% and 4.2lb in 18 days. I've also looked at the fat free mass after deducting body water that is still 2st 9lb, as it was before so I am maintaining my muscle too.

All good news, and heading in the right direction.

I am really thinking that in 9 weeks time I will be down to about 14% body fat. That has got me thinking, do I need to bulk up a bit? I am reviewing my goals and the possibility of tinkering with the plan I started off with. I only have 1 week left on 2k8, so its now worth having a think of which TT program I will follow next. It seems pointless doing one of the mass building programs as there is no point chasing gaining muscle when I am eating on a fat loss program and diet.

I have also decided to purchase Vince Del Monte's No Nonsense Muscle Building, ready for when I finish the TT transformation. It really is a great e-book in terms of its factual content and goes into greater depth of factual information than Craig's programs do. The only thing is I have done calculations of my metabolic rate, and to bulk up I am going to need to consume 3500 to 4000 calories per day!!! That will be hard as I'm struggling to put 2500 cals in at the moment. I've just got so used to eating for fat loss now that it is going to be strange changing to the eating for mass plan!!!

I'm just going to mention a couple of workout related items. I did my chin-ups without assistance. Given I could only manage 5 max, but I am so glad I am giving it 100% and dumping the assistance which I dropped to 12kg in my non TT workout, and was in effect unassisted! I am going to work on them twice a week on off days, as it is one strength target that I must achieve by the end of this contest. Intervals were done on the bike today at 14 easy 16 hard.

For some reason I do seem to feel that the Friday workout on this program doesnt seem to be as intense as the rest of the week. I dont know. maybe its cos of the ball rollouts that I am using as a substitute for the ab wheel. This hasnt been my favourite routine out of the 3 I have done so far, but it will all be over this time next week.

Got a nice weekend worked out. going in first thing to do the "power lifting" well its not power lifting really its just me doing some supersets with as much intensity as possible. Following that with the swim intervals. In the evening, I'm going to do the body attack class.

I was contemplating whether or not to have an ESE day tomorrow, but given my progress this week I may not fast. I am going to have to fight the temptation for wine if not!!!

enjoy your weekend readers

Weigh in results, and some advice I should have listened to.

Well here it is and the results are 76.9kg (no change) and 23.2% body fat (0.1% increase which is negligible). The reason for no change is too much alcohol last week, and the big food binge that followed on Saturday evening! That despite 2 24 hour fasts.

It's not usual that I put something on here that is not related to Tubulence Training or Eat Stop Eat or to promote someone else's programs, but I got this email on subscription from Vince Delmonte (whose No nonsense muscle building program I also promote) on Wednesday and really should have taken his advice! I think it just about sums it up really.



In any event, I have had a re-think on my fasting strategy and by habit, I usually drink on Wednesday and Saturday nights. So it therefore seems sensible that I move my strategic 24 hour fasts from Mon/Tue and Thurs/Fri to Wed/Thurs and Sat/Sun, especially as Thursdays and Sundays are scheduled active rest days. I've already overcome the psychological barrier of not eating, so if I tie in not eating and not consuming alcohol, I should crack the habit that I have found impossible to break. Agree?!!!

Unfortunately I came up with this great brainwave about half an hour ago after starting today's fast at 1:30pm!!! So, I will continue with this one until it ends tomorrow lunch time, and do the next one over the bank holiday weekend, commencing the Wednesday & Saturday pattern in full from next week.

Going back to the TT 2k8 workouts (Workout A for a monday) I got through this pretty well. I did some guilty cardio in the form of the body attack class at the gym (I must admit I hadn't dont that for over 10 days so it was an enjoyable class even though I didn't push it as hard as I would on a Saturday evening). Set a new record for the close grip decline pushups at 23 reps for the final set. I used 16kg DBs for the DB deep step up that preceeds it as well so I am definitely improving strength wise. I just have to become disciplined and not drink any beer or wine until my birthday on June 4 and keep burning fat and building strength.

Anyway that wraps up this week's update.

Keep working hard to those who are in the contest.

Neil

A pleasing start to the day.

I'd started the day with the best intentions of getting to the gym for 6:30 this morning, but I was a little later going to bed last night than I had originally planned, but not to worry, this morning has been pretty good.

The first thing I did was weigh myself. I have gone down from 78.5kg/173lb to 76.9kg/169lb in a week. Even better my bodyfat %age decreased from 23.9% to 23.1% as result of a .9kg/2lb fat loss. Wow I'm really pleased with this result. I was a bit concerned about last Wednesday's wine consumption, but it does show how focusing that little bit harder on your nutrition can make a difference.

My workout went ok today, although I had a bit of a problem with the DB lunges. My technique wasnt the best its been and I felt that my ankle ligaments in my left side were hurting a bit. I tried 22kg DBs as I had done the exercise at that level before, but next week I think I am going to drop down to 16kg and concentrate on technique. However, I have set a new personal best for decline close grip push-ups at 20 reps. Really pleased with that!

This also showed when I went on the treadmill. I didnt even complete the warm up 3 minutes so I felt it was safer to use the cross trainer. That was much more comfy for my ankles, and I completed the interval training set at levels 15 easy/17 hard as last week. It was still very tough.

I have definitely found a missing piece of the puzzle with intermittent fasting. I would never have even entertained considering it had I not read the advice of many of the fitness writers whose newsletters I subscribe to. However, I just new that there was something missing, and something more than just cutting down on alcohol. Brad Pilon's Eat Stop Eat book gave me the courage to experiment with fasting, and it is defintely (well for me anyway,) a worthy purchase.

I'm going to close this little snippet by saying I will do my best to stay focused on what I want to achieve. Another 2lb fat loss this time next week will be very pleasing.

Stay focused and workout & eat SMART.

Neil

Weeks review of TT 2k8

Thought I'd do a quick post today.

I've completed the weeks workout and have a few thoughs on the workouts.

I enjoyed monday's workout A with the forward lunges and incline presses for superset 1, rows and leg curls on the ball for s/s 2, although I wasn't sure on my technique for the deep step up so i will have another look at the exercise description before monday though.

I used the cross trainer for the intervals on levels 15 for easy and 17 for hard. It was ok but quite tiring.

Wednesday's workout was quite tricky. My inverted rows definitely need to improve and doing them with my feet on a ball made it tricky to say the least. that said I have tried my best to get my chest as close to the bar as possible. I absolutely loved the swing intervals. These are intended for kettlebells but our gym doesn't have them. So I used a 10kg dumbbell for the warm up and first round and then 12kg for the remaining 4.

Yesterday's workout C meant having to do some unfamiliar exercises so I was quite conservative with the dumbbell flys. I am sure I can increase that next week. I decided to break my comfort zone and move to the treadmill for intervals which were 30s hard with 90s rest. I had to experiment with this and eventually I have settled for 16kph hard and 11kph for the rest periods. I expect those speeds will increase next week.

Nutrition wise, I am still finding it difficult to stick to the eating plan that is on the hardcore fat loss program on TTmembers.com. That said, I took 2 24hour fasts (Monday-Tuesday and Thursday-Friday). I am confident that this will help me with the calorie count.

I'm going to be taking a rest tomorrow but I will be doing a workout that I have worked out for myself. Details of that will be posted on my general fitness blog.

I am going to move all intervals on TT programs to the treadmill from now on. I still feel personally that using the cross trainer is better for me but then again, I am going to stick to the plans and Craig's advice.

Will post the weigh in results on Monday.

Til then

Keep working hard folks

Neil

The Hard Work & Discipline Starts Today

It's official. I have entered the 5th Turbulence Training Transformation Contest!

I first came across Turbulence Training in February when I started looking at affiliate marketing for digital products specializing in Fat Loss. After reading a couple of sample workouts and Craig Ballantyne's reports and comparing them to other programs such as Vince Del Monte's Your Six Pack Quest and Mike Geary's Truth About Six Pack Abs, I had no hesitation in realising that it was a great program, and most likely the correct one for me to follow.

I finally downloaded the Deluxe program in late March, now actually 6 weeks ago. I am already a pretty fit person as I usually go to my gym at least 3 times a week and have done aerobics and circuit training classes for the best part of a year now. I was actually amazed at how effective and intense the workouts are, in particular the interval training, which replaces "long, boring, steady paced and low intensity cardio" workouts.

However, although I have found the workouts really enjoyable, there has been one area where I haven't been as dedicated as I could have been and that is in my diet, and one thing in particular, beer and wine. That said, in the last few days I have not really felt the need to consume it to excess. This contest is enough to provide me with extra incentive and motivation to succeed in my mission to banish my belly, and I have surrounded myself with affirmations to keep away from the bad habits that challenge my willpower and determination.

My entry photo (which is also my current profile on this blog) is above. I intend changing it so we can all see my progress.

Over the next 12 weeks I will be discussing my workouts, my progress, some hints and tips, on both the exercises and diet/nutrition. Nutrition is the primary factor in any fat loss program whereas exercise stimulates the metabolism to burn fat 24/7.

You will see in my sidebar that I have already detailed my starting vital statistics as at today's date.

I have set some goals for the next 4 weeks:

1. To lose at least 2kg (1lb per week) minimum over these next 4 weeks.
2. To drink just one bottle of wine on a Saturday night only.
3. To improve my upper body strength, in particular, my grip and power in my right shoulder which was weakened following injury by using a cable machine
4. Increase the weight on my dumbbell exercises by 2kg each week, and if appropriate by 5kg per week for barbell exercises.
5. Up the intensity of the "hard" part of the interval training elements every 2 weeks.

Here is the currently intended plan of routines for the next 12 weeks of the contest:

Weeks 1 to 4: TT 2k8
Weeks 5 to 8: TT 2k9
Weeks 9 to 12: Either TT Hardcore Fat Loss or TT AAA Abs (still to be decided).

For now, I am not going to bore you with the exact detail of what I did, but today's schedule was workout A from TT 2k8 and a 20 minute interval session on the Cross Traineer (Easy intervals at level 15/25, Hard intervals at 17/25). The interval ratio was 60 seconds hard to 120 s easy. I will tell you I was dripping by the time I had finished, and I was also very, very tired.

Please support me by following my blog, passing comments of support and congratulations, and the occasional ass kicking if I drift too far from what I want to achieve. It means so much to me.

Neil