Ten days. No carbs. 5 workouts. RESULTS.

So, as I mentioned, eating no carbs for ten days sucked a lot of balls.

But look what happened....

Like I said, our fat calipers aren't pristine, but we used the same ones and the same method, so we were at least consistent.

BEFORE:
Weight: 185 lbs
Body fat percentage: 21.5%

AFTER:
Weight: 174.9 lbs
Body fat percentage: 14.7%

CHANGE:
Weight: -10.1 lbs
Body fat percentage: -6.8%
ALL IN 10 DAYS!!!

And who cares about all that if I don't look any different.... so.... the pictures...

Krista's gone for the weekend, but no fear! Lily stepped in with the support!



Oh, yeah.... Scotty did this thing too! Too bad he photoshopped these before sending them to me. (KIDDING!!! - but he does need to work on his back more)
No Lily support either... bitch....

Weight: From 201 lbs to 189 lbs
Body fat %: From 15.5% to 11.2%

I guess all I can say so far is.... You win round 1, Jason... you win...

Guess what I am going to go do now? You guessed it... workout... 

Let the bulking begin. Let the eating carbs begin. 

I might post a "post-workout 1 thoughts" blog if I can move. I could also do some homework....

Au Revoir 

Accelerator and eating...

Today is Day 10 of the Accelerator for Scotty and I.

That means this is the last day of no carbs.

That means my mood is improving.

I will be posting pictures and another blurb about the whole thing tomorrow (or sunday), but I wanted to touch on the whole eating aspect of the Accelerator because I am finally fucking done it. (Well, almost...)

To start, some honesty... Not eating carbs sucks balls. I go over to my buddy James' house to do homework and watch him drink chocolate milk while Dan has his leftover pasta.... I just ate my veggies.
So, that being said, it takes discipline, and a lot of it. A lot of food has carbs, and a lot of things I used to eat everyday did too. No sandwiches for lunch, no cereal or bagels in the morning. But I made it.

With that in mind, I offer some tips to anyone who will be doing this sort of thing... Some of them came from Jason, so apparently he does know what he's talking about (so far...)

First, and most importantly, when you cook food, cook lots of it, have leftovers, and pre-package it for your lunch the next day. This makes life much easier.
For example, make a massive bowl of mixed veggies/salad and pre-portion it into containers for your lunch. Then, voila. Open fridge. Grab container. Lunch made. ANDDDD you know you can eat it.
Do the same thing with meat, I make multiple chicken breasts at a time...

Easy to make turkey burgers

I also made like 12 spinach and feta turkey burgers. These puppies saved me this week. Less than 1g of carbs per burger and they taste fantastic. I am actually about to go eat the last two now... Take a look at the picture... All that is in them is spinach, feta, lean ground turkey, garlic and eggs. VOILA!!

3 seconds after hitting my plate

So, all in all, it sucks, but there are many ways around it that make it bearable and very doable. And it should hopefully be worth it.

Check back later this weekend to see the before and after shots... SPOILER ALERT - I have shredded some fat. Scotty wants me to post his as well... I guess that depends on how well he treats me between now and then...

Adios bitches. I have to go drink my dextrose water.

GET DECEMBULK HERE:

Day 5 - Cravings and sore arms...

Like I said, I wouldn't be blogging daily, but after a few more days of eating/working out like a spartan I have a few more things to say. (I don't actually know how a spartan eats or exercises, but fuck off, I am telling myself I am being a spartan).

Friday's workout (Day 3) (the second of the 2 we rotate through during the accelerator) was shitty. But the good kind of shitty. All four exercises required us to grip things - dumbbells, barbells etc.... turns out my forearms aren't the strongest part of me... Straightening my arms = sad face... However, most of that is gone now (oddly enough - after today's workout, the pain went away).

Friday's eating was fine again... minimal cravings, lots of veggies and pork tenderloin for dinner. YUM.

Oo, oo, oo!! Jason said I can eat BACON!!!! 2 slices with breakfast, but I have to count it as my fat. Works for me... this was a fucking game changer! I will probably just have eggs (mostly egg whites) and 1-2 slices of bacon with every breakfast this week. Bacon is making life easier and better.
Now for the effed-up part: Scott doesn't like bacon. Fucking weirdo.

My new breakfast buddy

That being said, yesterday (Day 4) was the hardest day eating wise. It was a Saturday, I had the day off (from school, work, WORKING OUT), and it was my buddy Nik's birthday party at night. Carby cravings were ever-present yesterday. I wanted pasta, pizza, chips, beer... you name it. I wanted it. Jason warned me this would happen, so, using my new-found self control and discipline, I still managed to eat just fine... 
Note: Crown Royal Black has zero carbs, and like 97 cals, so 1-2 oz on ice was enough to suffice. 

Onto today, Day 5. Got up at like 9:30, drank a bunch of water, went to the gym at 11. Today, we did the same workout that we did last Wednesday. Soooooooo, in like 4 days, I actually improved. I was able to do more during the "as many as possible" exercises, and more weight during the 10 rep exercises. #neuralchangesmakemefeelgood. Told you I was a spartan. 

Jason just shared this on Facebook... talk about timing

Also, Krista came to the gym today too and burned over 500 calories. Hats of to her for working hard and getting in the spirit of exercise! 

We then rushed home, at lunch, and left again for our ultimate frisbee game at 1. We got there at 12:59ish I think... and the other team no-showed. They must've heard I was on the opposing team and decided to stay home and save themselves the embarrassment. 

After frisbee and a shower, we went to the grocery store. This is fun now. You go and buy a shitload of veggies and MEAT. Pork, chicken, turkey - got em all. Then when you get home, all you have in your house is healthy food that fits the program. Eating is easier if I don't temp myself.

That's about it for now. I am tired, and we have soccer at 10pm tonight (busy day, right?)... So time to rest until then.

I am looking forward to see how much stronger I get over the next days/weeks.

Oh, and I feel thinner already... who knows if it's in my head or true... we'll see on the weekend when we re-measure everything. (I will also post post-accelerator pics then, try and keep it in your pants ladies.)

Oh, and if anyone actually reads this, and doesn't already follow Jason, do it - he knows his shit.
Website: www.jmaxfitness.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/jmaxfitness
Twitter: www.twitter.com/JasonKMaxwell

Day 2... of 30ish

Well, it's Day 2 and I'm not any bigger, so I quit.














Wow, imagine that was my attitude...

I will start by saying that I probably won't blog daily, but I will do what I can. This one will be short as not much has happened. I am a full-time student, part-time research assistant, semi-pro-intramural athlete and life gets busy.

Now onto today's thoughts:

I worked out last night, Workout A of the Accelerator. Obviously I can't post the specifics of each workout, but I will give some insight.

Long story short, from the time I left my house, to the time I got home it was about an hour... who says they don't have time for the gym!? (I know I used to). Now granted, the gym is close by, and I showered once I got home, but that's not really the point, is it? With these Accelerator workouts there are 4 exercises (in a 1a1b, 2a2b fashion) with 30 second rest periods, so it goes by relatively quickly. Also, some repetition guidelines are "as many as possible", and since I am currently a weekend, AMAP is not really that many, and not that many = less time...

Scotty on the other hand is already pretty damn strong, and he said he the workout took him 35-40 minutes... so hey, like I said, who says they don't have time for that?

The exercises are difficult, especially combined with 30 second rest periods and 5 sets of all of them... but in the words of the man himself: "getting swole ain't easy".

As for the eating, again, today didn't seem to bad, no starchy carbs is doable so far, I just have to be a little more conscious when I am going to eat something, especially a snack. What sucks is when other people eat it in front of you and it smells so damn good.
Whatever, 8 more days. (I almost guarantee I will have pasta next weekend).

Until next time (hopefully this weekend at some point)

-Tyler


P.S. I told you my support system was good... Next to me even when I blog!

GET DECEMBULK HERE:

Day 1 of Accelerator and many first times.

It’s Decembulk Time – In October.

Day 1 – Wednesday, September 19, 2012

Well, here it goes… No carbs for 10 days, then 15 workout days over three weeks.

My name is Tyler Allen, and I would not call myself a gym rat. I love sports, I play them all, and I could play them all day long. However, then it comes to the gym, I have trouble keeping disciplined about going regularly.

So, when asked if I would test subject Decembulk, I thought: “here’s a good way to force yourself to be disciplined about working out… oh, and THE BEST way to see for yourself if the best man at your wedding knows what the hell he’s talking about.”

Oh yea! Did I mention that I happen to be best friends with one of the best up and coming fitness professionals in Ontario (and probably North America, and probably the world). I know most of you reading this have already figured out that I am talking about Jason Kenneth Maxwell of www.jmaxfitness.com.

            
I have read each of Jason’s articles, and I know he knows a ton of useful information. I also worked out with him a couple of weeks ago. Long story short, we weigh the same, he lifts DOUBLE. What he says (and of course does) must work. (He also walks around in just his underwear a lot – I guess I might too if I looked like him…)

            
Now it’s my turn. Let’s make it work.

Not going to lie, I am nervous. But I am also excited.

            
Now this program requires 10 days of super strict eating (something I have never really done). Then 3 weeks with 15 days of workouts (2-a-days in the last week!!!) and of course the diet portion is still SUPER important. Now there will be lifting exercises that I have never done, but Jason will help me modify them to keep them safe, and Scotty will always be around to spot me.

            
There are also a lot of supplements suggested by Jason in this program. Since I am a beginner, and I previously owned none of them (AND I AM HELLA POOR!!), I Skyped Jason to see what I should do. He suggested the most important ones (obviously if in anyway possible, take what he tells you to take), some of which my roommate Scott (who will also be doing this) gave me for free, and others I picked up at Walmart. On sale. Super cheap. Supplements are something I have never really used, so this aspect should be interesting.

            
So that being said, I have eaten breakfast – carb free. BOOM! 1 meal down! I am going to the gym tonight with my beautiful fiancée to start that portion of all of this. Like I said, I am nervous, but with the help of Scotty (we’ll help eachother), the knowledge of Jason, and the support of Krista (and Lily!), I feel like 1 month is very doable. And let’s be serious, I will probably get huge.

Aside: I have also never blogged about anything before. All kinds of firsts happening here.

The BEFORE:

Weight: 185 lbs

Body Fat %: 21.5% (we used some free fat calipers but we'll just be consistent)

She's going to kill me for not cropping her out of the pictures, but look how close Krista was for support. These are the before pictures.

Get yours here: