The Original Online BODYBUILDING SUPPLEMENTS FORUM. Advanced Techniques. Pro Tips & Insights. The Best Advice!

Famine - Day 2

I woke up this morning and had gained a pound!! This was perplexing, as I only ate 7x my bw yesterday. I chalked it up to all of the water I'm adding (almost a gallon a day).

I was a little hungrier this morning, and only running on 5 1/2 hours of sleep, but I held out for a while on the food. I'm more of a night owl, so if I can make a good portion of my calories last well into the evening, I think I'll be fine. My calories are at 1450 so far today, and I'll wolf down a baked potato with olive oil and steak sauce before I crash, so my calories will still be just around 7x bw. I should probably shoot for 8x, but I'm totally satiated, so why add more before I need it?

As far as hunger goes, I'm doing pretty well, especially for a guy who pigs out, drinks soda, and passes out on booze a good percentage of the time. I'm still towing the line quite easily, although I have noticed a slight lack in acuity/attention span, which could be the badass stimerex-es I'm taking now. This stuff rocks, but if you don't like the wire or jitters, stay away from it!!!

My legs and back were pretty tender today, but I managed 10 min. on the elliptical machine and then jumped straight over to the treadmill, where I did some intervals for another 20 minutes and kept my hr at an avg of 147 bpm. Being as sore as I was, this took just about all the willpower I had left. After that, I spent 10 minutes in the sauna, got a tad lightheaded, and called it a day. I can't wait to lose a bunch of this damn fat, so that my body becomes much more functional again!!

Also, I picked up some lecithin capsules today, as I couldn't track down any granules. Is this sufficient, and how much should I dose (capsules are 400mg each)?

Can't wait to tear it up tomorrow; it looks like a good challenge!!

Thanks again!!

Consider 2 lecithin caps at each meal.

Odd they're in caps but supremely beneficial during this time...

Famine - Day 3
I woke up this morning and was still a pound heavier than Day 1. WTF??
I must be gaining muscle, even though my caloric intake has been about 7x bw the entire week (no soda, no cheating, etc.). I feel a bit thinner, and I feel better, so I can't explain it. It's actually been a bit refreshing, as I'm used to being drained from eating such an atrocious diet. Today, my ex-gf asked me if I was back in the gym...

A. This is your body telling you it appreciates the break from over-feeding, etc.. You were definately due

As far as the fast, all is well. Plenty of fruits and veges. As stated previously, I'm a little addled, but I don't know if that's the stimerex-es or not. So far, I haven't had a very difficult time, aside from the intense workouts. I'm on track with calories, water, supps, and fatigue (5 or 6 hours/night).

My hr doesn't seem to have risen yet, although my readings were off before. I wish my multistix would get here!! One thing of note (not to be disgusting), my stool appears "oily" and liquefied and will come on full force at any time!! I don't know what this indicates, but I know what Rob meant about lots of tp in another post!! Too much fish oil?

A. Likely a function of toxins being flushed. Enjoy the experience. Strive for maximum thrust

Regarding my concentration levels, it definitely affected my workout tonight, and I pretty much blew it. I totally forgot that I was supposed to be hitting sets of 8-10 reps and was focusing on the 4-6 rep range (I realized this about half-way through). Additionally, I don't have a spotter, so I'm used to using db movements. This caused me to have to figure out what my barbell lifts were on the spot, as I had no idea. Being over-eager, I failed on my incline set at 185 lbs. (one rep), causing me to drop way down and re-evaluate the last couple sets (my rotator cuff is still screaming at me). Plus, by the time I changed plates around and moved benches three times, my 1 minute rest periods were blown out of the water. So, the workout was garbage, but I put intense effort into it and tried to make the best of it. I did pull it together for tri's, and that part went according to plan. I know Rob said NOT to go to failure during famine, but I’m having a hard time with that, given my enthusiasm.

Upon consideration, I realize now that I should’ve spent a good month back in the gym preparing, before jumping straight into this program, but I still feel like I'm progressing despite the fact. I was thinking of pushing the famine out to Sunday if I don't start seeing more symptoms, but I scheduled the plan to ease up for 4th of July weekend. My only worry is not tearing down my body enough for the feast and ecdy's to be as efficient. It's all a tad frustrating, but I'm over "hump day," and looking forward to the last 2 days!! I'm committed now!!

A. You'll likely be feeling it soon if not already.

Q: Should I do anything more drastic to achieve proper catabolism or do you think I'll be ripe by Friday (gaining muscle during famine is counterproductive, right?)

A. No, the intent should never be drastic (although I know what you're getting at). The whole goal here is to disrupt homeostasis and create the stress necessary for adaptogens to exert their effects.

I DO want you to exercise caution on that last workout as it is INTENSE to say the least. Your health is most important so keep that in mind. You can't make gains when you're sick/injured so please be mindful.

Otherwise, great work and you'll be done shortly...

RobRegish wrote:Consider 2 lecithin caps at each meal.

Odd they're in caps but supremely beneficial during this time...

Sorry, Rob! Not caps - soft gels at 400mg's.

Yeah, understand. I much prefer the bulk granuals but use what you have...

Famine - Day 4:

I woke up today and forgot to test my hr. On the bright side, I am back down to 240 lbs, which isn't much, but it's better than going the other direction. As a guy trying to do a recomp, even if I am gaining some muscle, it's a little disheartening to watch the scale move up during a fast!!

As for diet, I did seem somewhat hungrier today, but I'm so motivated that I'm sorta thriving on the hunger pangs, knowing that results are the corner. It's the end of my day (I'm a night owl) and I've still got another 700 calorie meal left to eat, according to my daily intake @ 8x bw (in all likelihood, I'll probably just wolf down 400-500 calories before bed and call it a good day). I've found that, for me, I can make a decent tasting/low calorie soup with extra broth/veges/water/jalapeños, and it fills me up for awhile at only a few hundred calories.

In the gym, I hit the elliptical for 15 minutes with a fair amount of effort and jumped over to the bike for another 15 minutes. I was pouring buckets of sweat, so I took advantage of it and hit the sauna for a short time. As tiring as it was, I felt great when I was done. I tried not to go too strenuous today, as I could still feel a little fatigue in my legs from Monday, and I want tomorrow to rock!!

On the whole, I'm feeling pretty good. There is a part of me that wants to move on to the next stage already, but for now I'm just savoring the discomfort of all things famine. And, to be honest, I'm really dreading tomorrow's workout!! It's a little over my head, which should dial me in just right for the transition.

Questions:
1. I've been only focusing on the famine phase so far, but I'm moving into feast on Saturday, and I'm wondering if I am supposed to re-feed per the book for the first 3 days, or at a different amount (like the 100/70 rotation you recommended), since I'm going for a recomp?

2. I've received my bpms already and am wondering if you could sketch out a decent plan of attack for this combo, with my goals in mind?

3. How do I know what my maintenance level is, as I've never dealt with this before?

***Hey Bro, if you need a guinea pig for 3.0, since you're gearing it towards recomps, I'm all in!! I'm sure it's proprietary info, but either way, I'm grateful for all your help thus far!!!!!

Questions:
1. I've been only focusing on the famine phase so far, but I'm moving into feast on Saturday, and I'm wondering if I am supposed to re-feed per the book for the first 3 days, or at a different amount (like the 100/70 rotation you recommended), since I'm going for a recomp?

A. Full out refeeds for the first 3 days. In truth, you can refeed for the first 10-14 days with little fat gain.

2. I've received my bpms already and am wondering if you could sketch out a decent plan of attack for this combo, with my goals in mind?

A. BCAA loading protocol #2 as per BP guidelines

Run the Adaptogen N for 3 weeks straight at 2-3 caps/night, then M-F only with weekends off for duration of Feast

2-3 caps of KA a day. On training days, one about an hour prior to the workout and one immediately after with your post workout drink. On off days, consume your 2-3 caps with your highest CARB meals.

You can tinker with the BIU either preworkout during Feast prior to your heaviest workouts or save it for the cruise. Fantastic broad spectrum adaptogen and leads to a very "crisp" mind/muscle connection and CNS upon hitting the weights.

***Hey Bro, if you need a guinea pig for 3.0, since you're gearing it towards recomps, I'm all in!! I'm sure it's proprietary info, but either way, I'm grateful for all your help thus far!!!!!

A. I'll keep that in mind

Oops, I think I added question #3 while you were responding. You're too quick!! As always, Thanks again!!

Famine - Day 5

I woke up this morning weighing in at 238 lbs., which is the first time the scale's headed in the right direction all week. My rhr is down to 63 bpm, which I found odd, since it's supposed to go up (chalking this up to my unique circumstances). I also received my multistix today and discovered that I'm not getting rid of much protein yet, although I was fine everywhere else. Of course, I wasn't heading into the BP overtrained, like most folks, so I believe this week has been plenty adequate to throw my out-of-shape body into an alert state.

I hit the gym tonight with only 570 calories for the day, just to squeeze out that last bit of effort before this glorious weekend. It worked. I performed my first set of squats with just the bar to warm-up the joints and a real light seated row. Then, I went head first into this miserable workout. I was only squatting 95 lbs, while rowing 120 lbs, but it was enough to make me light-headed, with a not-so-faint feeling of nausea. I thought the bi's would be the easy part, but by then I was ready to quit. Bottom line: I stayed focused on how great it would feel to finish this week strong, and I completed every set and rep (only 12 reps/set). I did have to pause a few times in the 4th and 5th squat sets, but I made it. I hit the sauna for 10 minutes and got the hell outta there!!

As for diet, today's been easy. I didn't really have it as bad as it sounds for others, but I'm really craving MEAT (especially red meat)!! I've got a couple small meals left tonight, and then I'm gonna enjoy tomorrow's feast!!

It sounds funny, but I haven't been this motivated or worked this hard in a long time. It feels great!! Of course, it's only just beginning...

Last few questions and then I'll leave you guys alone till Monday:

1. How do I figure out what my maintenance calories are?

2. I don't have time to order waxy maize. Can someone recommend an awesome post-workout drink that I can get at vitamin shoppe or gnc (I already have protein)?

3. Ok, it's 4th of July weekend, and I'm not gonna lie, there's gonna be some drinking going on!! I still want to track my results, however, and I'm wondering how I would classify hard liquor like rum? Or would it be better to just drink beer? I don't want to lose ground.

4. Apparently, my sodium levels are pretty high consistently (according to livenation). Outside of water retention, what can this do to my gym/diet efforts?

Thanks again and have a happy 4th!! Freedom is NOT free!!!

Great work on making it through!!

1. How do I figure out what my maintenance calories are?

A. Generally speaking, bodyweight x 10 is a good estimate. This varies of course based upon somatype but it's a decent guage

2. I don't have time to order waxy maize. Can someone recommend an awesome post-workout drink that I can get at vitamin shoppe or gnc (I already have protein)?

A. You could go with Gatorade powder (not the premade drinks which are high fructose corn syrup - the powder is dextrose). Consider 75g of gatorade powder/dextrose, 25g of fast acting whey and 20-25g of BCAA to round out the mix.

3. Ok, it's 4th of July weekend, and I'm not gonna lie, there's gonna be some drinking going on!! I still want to track my results, however, and I'm wondering how I would classify hard liquor like rum? Or would it be better to just drink beer? I don't want to lose ground.

A. Some social drinking with beer is fine. Not much hurts insofar as dirty bulking during the first 10 days. List it as a carb

4. Apparently, my sodium levels are pretty high consistently (according to livenation). Outside of water retention, what can this do to my gym/diet efforts?

A. You'll likely be a bit stronger due to the bloat. Embrace the bloat

Thanks again and have a happy 4th!! Freedom is NOT free!!!

A. Amen to that. Props to all of our service men and women! Please make it a point to introduce yourself and say "thank you" this weekend.

Day 6 - Feast

I had too much fun over the holiday weekend and reveled in my new feast menu and alcohol. Monday, I went to the river all day and had a blast!! I woke up Tuesday, ready to get back to it, and felt a tad sick with a new pain (cramping?) to the left of my stomach. Due to this, I skipped the gym for the next couple days, just to be safe. Today, I still have some cramping/pain, although it has subsided a bit, so I made myself perform the first workout. My weights were a little lighter than they should've been, but I wasn't sure what to expect after the famine week and feeling under the weather.

Here are the results:
EDT Workout
db bench press - 65 x 6
x 6
x 6
x 6
x 6
x 6

incline pullovers - 65 x 6
x 6
x 6
x 5
x 5
x 4

incline db curls - 25 x 6
x 6
x 6
x 6
x 6
x 6

Suicides - 80 x 6
x 6
x 6
x 6
x 5
x 5


My calories are on track for my maintenance day, although I haven't figured out how to dial in the proper macros goals (especially protein vs. carbs). I'm tweaking some things toward this end, trying to find my rhythm. I may have to include more protein shakes and bars, as it seems most food sends me in the wrong direction. Tomorrow will be the real challenge, as my caloric goal (70% x maint. level) is actually lower than my famine diet goals. Yikes!!

I'm taking the bpms, and have been pretty religious about staying on track. I don't notice any difference yet, aside from more/better sleep, although today was only my first workout. The BIU seemed to help me get through the workout pretty well, but I can't wait to feel the rise in testosterone and its effects!!

Q:
1. I'm taking the BIU before my workout, and I'm curious if I can take it on cardio days also, or will the effects be diminished due to overuse? Also, if I pickup another bottle for the cruise, will my body have gotten used to it as well?

2. Is there a limit to the amount of protein I can/should ingest in a particular meal?

Thanks again for Everything!!

Q:
1. I'm taking the BIU before my workout, and I'm curious if I can take it on cardio days also, or will the effects be diminished due to overuse? Also, if I pickup another bottle for the cruise, will my body have gotten used to it as well?

A. You can certainly take it on cardio days. It's effects build with time so no down regulation..

2. Is there a limit to the amount of protein I can/should ingest in a particular meal?

A. Suggest 30-50g. Highly dependent upon your training demands at the time and overall protein intake for the day. 30-50g is your sweet spot..

Day 7 - Feast

Today went well. My caloric goals were at 1694; I hit 1676. My macro %'s added up to 47p/31c/22f - a lot closer to my goals.

30 min. of interval training, with 50% on elliptical/50% on stationary cycle.
Solid effort/lots of sweat!!

I'm excited for tomorrow, as I've never done Romanian DL's before (I haven't even done regular DL's in 12-13 years).


No questions today!!


Welcome back, Rob, and Thanks for checking in on us while on vacation!!

You bet. And it's GREAT to be back!