New Course/Learning Experience/Outside Expertise

So, my endless efforts and constant shifts in approach have proven fruitful. While they haven't brought me to my goal, they have taught me inestimable lessons.

I had cut my calories too early in the process. Taking in 1800 or so calories while at 9.3 body fat left me no where to go in terms of calorie reduction. Any added training (especially cardio) resulted in my body conserving fat. In point of fact, once I realized this and stopped dieting and exercising for a few days (this took place after 2 weeks of energy balance and intensified cardio and lowered calories - see previous posts) my body fat dropped to 8.9%. My muscles seemed to inflate as if to say they were starved.

At the behest of Marc Plano (my personal trainer and expert in fat loss) I've taken a week off from both exercise and dieting. As much as this is psychologically difficult, I trust that this course is wise in that it's given my body the opportunity to reset its thermostat. My goal now is to stack on muscle, to literally gain muscle weight and some fat weight. I'll do this by weight training three days a week and doing a minimal of cardio all while incorporating more fats and calories in general into my body. Summer is still 8-12 weeks away, so, it's really propitious that I'm not at 5-6% bodyfat since it's about 28 degrees outside and impossible for anyone to see me in such peak form.

Tomorrow I go to pick up my nutrition and exercise plan. I'm excited to learn more about my body and the process of radical fat loss. My only fear is that I'm going to stack too much muscle on my short frame.

Sensory Acuity/Ideal Weight

So, something great has come out of the energy balance of the last two weeks. I've come to realize that I'm in synch with my body, that I can actually feel if my bodyfat percentage is down, whether or not I'm in energy balance. This dawned on me this morning. A couple of weeks ago I knew intuitively that I had broken through to single digit body fat before having my BF reading taken. Both last week and this week I knew that I would not be any lower. In fact, I could tell that I'd be just a hair higher this week. Moral of the story; Know thyself! There is a spiritual awareness of your body's health, it's fitness, its leanness, etc. Also, one can tell just about how much food to eat to keep that nice tension, the buzzing of the metabolism and the burning of fat. This sensory acuity is precisely what it takes to become a master in the art of losing body fat.

I'm keeping my calories stable this week (around 2,000 more or less). I'm going to cycle my carbs every third or fourth day (i.e. refeed) and I'm upping my cardio to 40-45 minutes a day. We'll see how we're doing by Wednesday or Friday of next week. I've got a good feeling.

As of this morning I weigh 158 lbs. My ideal weight at 6% bodyfat (provided I don't lose any lean muscle, of course) would be 154 lbs. If I were to take this to the limit and attempt to reach 3% body fat, I'd way 147 lbs. I simply do not have enough muscle on my body to look good at that weight. So, I'll be content with 6% or a little below that.

Such calculations are determined using the following formula:

http://www.burnthefatinnercircle.com/members/240.cfm?

It's also important to keep in mind what Tom Venuto has brought out in Burn the Fat, Feed the Muscle - namely, "It’s very difficult to lose more than 1.0 - 1.5 pounds per week without losing some lean body mass. Seeing the numbers makes the case for slow weight loss even more clear."

This means I'll have to inch-worm my way down in bodyfat and weight, perhaps losing no more than .5 lbs of fat a week until I'm at 154 lbs. (i.e. eight weeks of work).

Stuck in Energy Balance?

It's Friday and the scale hasn't gone down. (158.5) I've been keeping my diet flawlessly (around 2,000 calories or a bit less) and cycling my carbs every 4-5 days so as to refeed my body. I've cut down my cardio to a half hour a day. My last two bodyfat reads for two consecutive weeks were 9.3. If today I'm not lower than that, I'm going to keep my food intake the same and do more cardio. It's the moment of truth and I've decided to approach it very scientifically and dispassionately. If I don't get the results I want, I will have gotten some great information in terms of what does not work. I'll be blogging the results later in the day.

UPDATE

I was right.

Last Week Of February

Last week of February and I'm feeling super lean. I've kept to my diet about 97% percent of the time. Weight has remained pretty much the same, but the abs are totally exposed - especially in the am. We'll see.

UPDATE

Ok...the data are in. I'm officially in the single digits of body fat percentage. This morning the calipers read 9.3%. Ah...the thrill of victory!

Counterintuitive Progress

Since Monday I've upped my daily calories by about 200-300. I've also limited my cardio to only a half hour a day - most of which is low intensity. Today I hopped on the scale and weighed 160 even. I feel super muscular and my abs are really starting to appear. Even in the evening after 6 meals my abs are still visible.

Bodybuilding is often counterintuitive, I've found. You'd think doing more (as in dieting more rigorously, doing more cardio - and in some instances lifting weights more often) would get you more results. But the precise opposite is often the case.

So, I get to eat more (which not only makes my body look more muscular and leaner, but also has given me more energy and revitalized my face), exercise less and look better. It's a no-brainer.

Making Adjustments According to Results

So, I've decided that my early start at peak fitness is really propitious in that it gives me plenty of time to figure out how my body works. As Tom Venuto sagaciously suggests, the bottom line is really about your results and that according to them, one must make adjustments. It's getting the right energy balance that produces fat loss. That's the key distinction. It's not a question of simply doing more or eating less (although that is obviously the underlying principle to successful fat loss). One must also eat enough and not burn too much. Too few calories or too many burnt calories will not result in successful fat loss. (i.e. Biggest Loser)

A female bodybuilder informed me yesterday that she did not lose the last of her fat until she upped her daily calories to 2,000. The increase in calories fed her muscles. They, in turn grew and ate up the remaining fat on her body - body fat that would not go away when she was consuming 1500 calories a day.

This to me is very fascinating. It's counterintuitive, to say the least. So, what I'm going to do is up my calories by, say, 200 a day. I'm going to keep my cardio between 30-40 minutes a day. Plus, I'm going to hit my weight training very hard. Next Monday I'll have my body fat measured again and adjust my diet accordingly. I'm not concerned with "weight." I'm concerned with body fat percentage only.

Some Changes

Per Kimberly Anatra's request, I'm going to cut down my cardio a bit (half hour a day - maybe a bit more). I'm also going to eat a larger breakfast. Today I had 3/4 cup of oatmeal for breakfast instead of half a cup. The caloric value of my breakfast was 484 calories. My mid-morning meal, however, will be a scoop of protein powder (120 calories) and half a banana (70 calories) for a total of 190-200 calories.

Having skipped cardio yesterday and slept most of the night, I feel incredible this morning. Body is super lean, too even though my weight is up about a 1lbs and a half.