Alio's Kick Ass Program

I've been taking an apple with me to work, so I have something to eat when I get hungry.

Also, at work, we've got a big box of oatmeal, so thats my breakfast. Much better (and cheaper :beer: ) than an egg sandwich.

 

I kind of went backwards this summer too. I still worked out and ate well, but not as near hardcore as I had been, and I went out for coffee alot, and it has plenty of sugar and calories.

Went from 260 (Summer 2007) to 198 (May 2008) now I am at 203.

Back at school and back on track at the gym. Still, it sucks to have gone backwards this summer.

 

good for you guys....it's more of a lifestyle change, and it usually takes about 3 weeks to get into a good routine where you won't cheat and eat the nearest Whopper w/cheese in your vicinity.

If you guys are lifting weights along with your diet change....I recommend trying a supplement called No-Xplode...it's fantastic and carb-free. When i started my first cycle back in May...i was benching about 150lbs for my last set on flat bench......I've been going about 4 days a week religiously since then....and i just started my 2nd cycle of No-Xplode (giving myself about 2 months in between cycles)....and now i'm benching 225lbs for my last set of flat bench....and I have a tonne of energy.

Now...i haven't lost a tonne of weight...maybe 10lbs at the most....but i defenitly put on muscle...which aids in losing weight for the long run.

Good luck fellas!

 

I got pretty lazy myself this Summer, but still managed to eek my way to a 400 bench, 500 squat, and 600 deadlift (it's been my goal since November of last year).

Anyways, funny that you guys are bumping the thread today for fat loss reasons, as I too have begun my diet as of today. I'm aiming for about 3000 cals on training days, and 2500 on my rest days... I will adjust my calorie intake as I find necessary as I gauge the results I'm getting. My diet is pretty lean and will focus mainly around the consumption of chicken breast and green fibous veggies.

This is my second cut this year; my first began on New Years and lasted roughly a month and a half, over the course of which I shed around 40 pounds of fat.

If anyone cares to see what either of my diets look like, I'd be glad to post them.

 

Good bump. Moving into new place Saturday, figured it was time to eat healthy again as well. Getting ready to start my days @ 6am for working out. I'll be missing summer in a week.

 

Words! Thangs are going pretty good for Young Scruggs too. I've been having that Flax seed meal / skim milk / protein / peanut butter shake for lunch most days, after my daily session on the stationary bike, followed by a light dinner. No Soda.

6' -- about 205 (currently). My short term goal is 190, long term 175 - 180

I'd like to start jogging and some light lifting around 200, that should help me turn the corner.

Oh, and I'm drinking less beer. VODKA!

I try to limit any fatty foods and beer for Sunday -- A guys got to live, no?

 

Alio, Ive been a fan of this thread for quite a while because you addressed a very serious issue and from the looks of it, you know your stuff. While I took a slighty different approach then what you presented, I had some great results in a short period of time.

OK, so the old Scikotics of May 2008 weighed in at about 174 lbs at 6'1. I had been teetering between that 180 for a while now, but it was more of a couple pounds of fat then anything. I wasn't in shape. At 22, I should be in great shape and more physically active. So I decided to make a bet with my lady. She wanted to lose some pounds, I wanted to gain some. Given I know how much motivation she has at the gym (or lack there of), I spotted her some pounds. My goal was to gain around 18 lbs, and all she had to do was lose 9. Of course, my weight had to be muscle, it couldnt be from pounding down bottles of coke and throwing back some potato chips. So there was part of the motivation. Try it yourself. We all know that the hardest thing about exercise is getting started. Believe me, once you start, and begin to see some significant results, you wont be able to stop. Exercise is contagious. This was the fuel to feed the fire.

My eating habits changed quite a bit.

-I threw away 8 bags of Potato Chips that were in my cabinet. Man was the lil lady pissed. I didnt care.
-I stopped eating fast food, ever!
-I stopped drinking beer.
-I ate a variety of meats ( Chicken, pork, and lots and lots of red meat)
-I drank water like it was the cool thing to do. Water for me was vital, and you will see why in a few seconds.
- I increased the # of meals I ate per day. ( working out consistently increases your appetite)
- I cooked more fresh vegetables with my meats, and often ate pastas late night so I could have the energy in the morning to work out.
- I Started taking creatine. With it, I drank 2 glasses of water with every serving i had. I usually took 3 pills before, and 3 after my workout. I dont know much about NO Xplode or all these other supplements. I know from personal experience that creatine works.

This was a typical workout day for me. I wake up, eat a quick meal. Oatmeal was usually a good choice, or some corn chex with a whole banana sliced up inside of it. I pop my creatine pills, wait 1 hour before heading to the gym (this gives it time to enter you bloodstream) and continue with my daily errands until the 1 hour mark arrives. I usually get to the gym around 10-11 AM, work out for only 40 minutes. Thats right! For a guy trying hard to beef up, that isnt alot of time. Everyday before I leave, I wrote out a list of workouts according to my muscles I want to work out for that day. It usually consists of 9 or so workouts. I usually group together Chest, Triceps, Legs on 1 day, and then Biceps, shoulder, and back on the other. I do abs at home on the days I don't hit the gym.

Keep a log. Know what weights you are lifting everyday, and continually try to increase every week. If something is too easy for you, throw on another 25 lb plate. I usually workout at a fast pace ( 9 exercises in 40 minutes means less then 5 minutes per, including set up and walking to the next station.) I usually rest at most 30 seconds in between. I try to get a sip of water between every exercise. Bring music ( ipod, MP3) to keep yourself motivated. None of this fruffy Bryan Adams crap. Bring some serious workout music, or whatever gets your pumped. Push Yourself! When I finish, I go home, and prepare my POST-WORKOUT Meal. It usually consists of 3 eggs and some hash browns. I gotta have my potatoes. Then I make a small, but very heavy protein shake. High on Whey Protein, mixed with filtered water and ice. Im usually full until about 3 or so, which is when I will make myself a small snack. Maybe a Turkey Sandwich with some Avocado. Here is a key thing....PREPARE YOUR OWN MEALS. Luckily for me, I am a very good cook and know what tastes good, and is healthy at the same time. I usually cook chicken or pork for dinner, depending on else I have in the pantry. Dinner at 630 is just about right. I usually end up eating a bowl of pasta around 10 or 11 ( I stay up late) and then crash out anywhere between 1-3. I drink nearly a gallon of water per day. It keeps me hydrated, and its very important to drink water with creatine, because it can cause some serious damage if you dehydrate yourself.

here is my weekly Schedule:

Monday - Run with my friend- 3.5 miles in the foothills on a very nice trail.
Tuesday- Do nothing. I play softball at night with 2 teams. That can be my workout
Wednesday- Here is where my week really begins! Workout hard for 40 minutes.
Thursday- See Wednesday
Friday - See Wednesday
Saturday- See Wednesday
Sunday - Go swimming, have fun. Do some simple reverse pushups on the ledge in the deep end of the pool until I cant do anymore. Do pushups on the ledge out of the pool until you cant do anymore. Then on the deck, do some regular pushups until you cant do anymore.

A few random notes. If im bored at home and am watching tv or such, i will play tug of war with my dog, using just my forearms to pull the rope. It seriously burns after a while. If I am going out with friends, I will grab my 25 lb. weights before I hit the shower and hit 3 sets of 20. It takes a few minutes and gets your arms all toned before hitting the bars....( sounds funny, but do this enough times, and it will increase your muscle mass and tone) Another thing. STRETCH. Alot of your strength comes from flexibility, and it also reduces your chance of getting injured. If you get injured, you cant get big. Simple as that.

So here we have 2 and a half months later. Scikotics went from a shameful ( ok, not so much) 174 lbs. to a new 193 lbs. in that short period. Just by eating well, taking creatine properly, and working out hard. Motivation is the factor. Find what gets you in the mood to workout. For me it was writing a workout, and bringing some jams to the gym. That and knowing that my 39 dollars a month is being put to good use.

Oh yes, if there is every a day to go crazy and eat whatever you want, its SUNDAY. I usually pig out that day because its the day before I go on my long run, and when I am at home with the families, and the food is there to be eaten. Pick a day of the week that you can throw out the healthy diet. Just stick to that day, and you will be fine.

 

I just plan on cutting out all of the fast foods, which were getting to be a lot.

I've stopped getting my egg & meat sandwiches for breakfast and I either eat a yogurt or a bowl of Cheerios for breakfast now.

I've stopped getting the lunches at work mainly due to $$$. $6.75 for a sandwich was getting to be a little absurd. Now I just stick with one of those Deli Creations steak wraps (only about 280-330 calories per) which are half the price and fill me up pretty good.

My dinners are my biggest problems, but I'm starting to make some chicken or pork mostly. I'm not a great cook so that doesn't help. Once I can actually make veggies that taste ok and not from a can I'll be ok...lol.

My workouts (since I just started on Monday) consist of mainly doing some Perfect Pushups 3 times a day. I feel it more in my arms and chest than I did when I tried lifting weights. I have an eliptical machine for my cardio but I can't last on it long. I want to shed some weight first before going on that again.

I'm mainly just easing into it for now. I know if I go full throttle into it I'll hurt myself and then I'm back to square one. I'm giving myself a couple of weeks and then I'll increase my frequency and add some weight training in as well.

Baby steps for me

 

My roommate swears by N.O. Xplode and some Xenadrine thing. I've always been hesitant to use things like this, because they don't seem.. healthy.

 

i would swear by the old xenadrine the had the Euphedra in it. I saw my friend, who we all called Chubz, go from 250 lbs to 185 with decent workout and diet, in only 6 months. FUCK!

but yea, they are unhealthy.

 

This has been my healthiest summer in 20 years. I never thought Id be posting a success story in either this thread of Alio's or my fat bastard diet thread whatever I had. But this summer Ive done very, very well. Accomplishments include going from zero excersise to running/walking an average of 5 miles a day, went from 223lbs to 190 as I type, lowered my BP from 150/80 to 120/80, lowered cholesterol from 196 to 156, and havent had a cigarette since April. Actually alll of this started in April.

None of my clothes fit me. My pants are hangin off me like im a white hip-hop kid. I am at the point where I feel horrible if I dont go runnin or when I eat shit. I allow myself a couple days of more eating but I dont go asswire when I do. I am usually the first one to point out my shortcomings and mishaps but this time I gotta give myself a pat on the back.

 

I've found most supplements that aren't vitamins to be complete scams, with creatine and nitric oxide topping the list. Even whey protein, which I'll admit is a pretty hefty staple of my diet, isn't at all necessary.

Regardless though, as I said before, here's my current cutting diet, which I began earlier today, which has me consuming a little more than 3000 calories and 400 grams of protein per training day.

Meal 1
one scoup whey in glass 1% milk- 230 cals, 32g protein
everything bagel -270 cal, 10g protein
glass oj - 120 cal

Preworkout
one scoup whey in water - 120 cals, 24g protein
banana - 120 cals

Postworkout
one scoup whey in glass 1% milk- 230 cals, 32g protein
glass oj - 120 cal

Meal 2
12oz chicken - 300 cals, 75g protein
everything bagel - 270 cal, 10g protein

Meal 3
12oz chicken - 300 cals, 75g protein
everything bagel - 270 cal, 10g protein

Meal 4
12oz chicken - 300 cals, 75g protein
12oz broccoli - 100 cals, 12g protein

Casein before bed ("Meal 5")
2% low fat cottage cheese - 360 cals, 48g protein

I posted this so people might learn about some of the more subtle nuances that go into creating a successful diet... it's really a lot more scientific than you might think. Although my diet is pretty tedious and would probably not be an enjoyable one for most, I've learned to suppress my urges in favor of what works best and what is healthiest for me.

Some things to consider when creating your own diet:
1) My BMR is about 3500 calories. This means that if I consume 3500 calories a day, I will maintain my current weight. Your may be higher or lower depending on your fitness level... I recommend you look up your BMR online... there are plenty of BMR calculators which would give you a rough guide as to what your own is. But if there is a starting point as far as creating your own diet goes, then determining your BMR is it.

2) There are 3500 calories in a pound... thus, if a person wants to lose a pound a week (the safest recourse as far as weightloss goes), they would decrease their daily caloric intake by 500 (a caloric deficit of 500 calories multiplied by 7 days in the week = 3500 calories, or one pound of body fat). Similarly, if a person wants to gain weight, they would try to maintain a caloric surplus, by adding 500 calories to their BMR.

3) You can see my diet is high on protein, moderate on carbs, and low on fat. This is because, through my own personal experience, I have determined that this diet type works best for me. However, it is recommended that a person consumes their macronutrients (in terms of grams) as follows: Protein 40%, Carbs 40%, and Fat 20%. Since a gram of protein and carbohydrates both have 4 calories each, whereas a gram of fat contains 9 calories, you're roughly looking to have a diet that's geared 1/3 to each type of macro (calorie wise).

4) You'll want to split your meals up from the American standard of 3 large meals per day to having 6-8 smaller meals per day. The human body can only process a given amount of protein every few hours, and if you split your protein consumption up throughout the day, you can ensure your body takes advantage of all the protein you consume, instead of just discarding it. In other words, eat 30-50g protein per meal. Another benefit of splitting your meals up is that you'll be able to control your appetite easier, and you won't be as hungry throughout the day.

5) Speaking of protein intake, in general you want to make sure you take in 1-2g protein per pound bodyweight per day.

6) Preworkout and postworkout nutrition is extremely important. In fact, these are probably the most important meals of your day. This thread from bodybuilding.com explains it perfectly (http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=272067). But if you're too lazy to read it, basically what it tells you to do is consume protein and carbohydrates both immediately prior to and immediately after your workout... look to my own routine for an example of how to do so. I do highly advise a read of that thread, though, in order to more accurately tailor your diet to your own lifestyle.

7) It is important to realize the difference between two different types of protein powders, both very important in your fitness endeavors. You'll want to consume both whey protein and casein protein, though at different times in the day. Whey protein is a very quick-release type of protein, and it digests immediately upon consumption... this makes it ideal for consumption immediately post workout, when your muscles have been torn up and are seeking to rebuild themselves. Casein, on the other hand, is a slow-digesting protein, taking up to 6 hours to fully digest. For this reason, it is best to consume this protein before you sleep... when you sleep, you're depriving your body of nutrients for the entirety of the 6-8 hours you're unconscious. By consuming casein protein before bed, you're making sure your body is constantly obtaining nutrients throughout the night. Casein is sold as a protein powder at most health and nutrition shops, but it generally isn't very palatable. So if you don't like it, look for casein elsewhere... for example, casein can be found in many dairy products, in particular cottage cheese of any type, so give that a shot instead.

Anyways, I really hope this write up helps some people, and that I didn't write it all for naught. Some of it may have already been discussed in earlier pages of the thread, but whatever... if it has, it just goes to show you the importance of it. Any questions, feel free to ask.

 

Awesome writeup, 1028. Definitely useful.

 

Atta Boy JOHNNYD!!

I have had pretty good summer myself....but the last few weeks I have been drinking a lot more because I am leaving again for school after being back home with my boys for the last 2 years.....

Anyway, in the last 4 months or so I have gane from 185lbs with a bit of a gut and no real definition to 165 (lower than I want to be) with pretty tight shoulder/chest/arms and just the last stubborn bit of belly-button area fat that prob will never totally go away because I don't think I'll be able to give up beer and I have schoolwork to focus on.

After about a month at school on my own diet and after my weekly routine is set, I will start to bulk again. Lean meats, lots of protein, pretty much the same diet I am using to cut but way bigger quantities. If I can be a fit 180 I think I'll be good.

 

Just wanted to update:
Today I had a bowl of oatmeal for lunch.

I just took an ~2.5mile walk, the second half of which involved me carrying a rather large relay back to my office. I've also taken to walking from work to Penn Station in the PM, rather than taking the subway.