Going to try a cut...

[NEFLRick]

I'm not a BB or anything but have always been big. Started TRT about 2 months ago and have gotten bigger. Haven't had my BF checked but I'm sure I'm upper 20s to low 30s. I want to drop 10% BF and I know it's mainly my eating. I don't eat horribly, just eat too much of what I eat.

Anyway, I hate veggies...always have. Been supplementing with green food capsules. My wife has been doing the juicing thing and doing well on it. I'm thinking of trying a 10 day juice fast them juicing and adding protein after that (to not lose any more muscle mass). I know I'll drop the fat but wanted to know if anyone else has done anything like this.

I don't want to lose too much muscle (I like being a big guy) so I want to ensure I do what I can to maintain what I've got while cutting. I understand I'll lose some and I'm ok with that. Honestly, if I drop 10%--and I can live with how I'm doing it--I may actually shoot for lower and possibly do an old man's competition (I'm 44 now). I've always been able to build muscle but have never made an effort to get cut up. But I'm getting ahead of myself.

Just looking to se if anyone else has tried anything like this.

Thanks.

[--->>405<<---]

im 39 and was 26%body fat 2 years ago when i joined this site and also started TRT. my current avi was taken a week or 2 ago. you can do it man! it actually only took me 6 months to cut down to about 12%bf.

if i were you i would not just drink juice and eat meat. u know u can lose fat while still eating a normal diet. dont get me wrong, juicing is good for supplementation, but u want to incorporate real food too.

also 10 days is not gonna do a whole lot IMO. not a good way to go IMO.

have you ever run a proper cutting diet?

have u read this:
http://forums.steroid.com/nutrition-...1-cutting.html

[NEFLRick]

im 39 and was 26%body fat 2 years ago when i joined this site and also started TRT. my current avi was taken a week or 2 ago. you can do it man! it actually only took me 6 months to cut down to about 12%bf.

if i were you i would not just drink juice and eat meat. u know u can lose fat while still eating a normal diet. dont get me wrong, juicing is good for supplementation, but u want to incorporate real food too.

also 10 days is not gonna do a whole lot IMO. not a good way to go IMO.

have you ever run a proper cutting diet?

have u read this:
http://forums.steroid.com/nutrition-...1-cutting.html

Oh I know I can do it in other ways. I'm thinking of juicing because, first of all, 10 days will clean out the crap in my system and second of all, I'll get the good stuff I need. Also, I'm not concerned about the muscle I'd lose in just 10 days because it's so short.

Going forward, my thoughts are, the juicing will give me the good stuff I don't get and adding the protein should help keep me from losing the muscle I've gained.

Most importantly, I need to change the way I eat normally. I mainly eat meat and potatoes. No veggies. I don't like them. Don't want to eat them. In fact, just plain can't in many cases (just puke them back up). Been that way since I was a kid.

Also, being half Polish and half Irish, I like potatoes...a LOT. I eat too many. They're not good for trying to have a lower BF. I need to get myself off the potatoes and I can't really just ween myself off them, I need to cut them out (at least) for a good while. Get into better eating habits, lose BF at the same time and be in a position where I won't put it back on.

Kinda like I tell people when they ask me what they should eat (Nobody looks at me and thinks, this is a fat guy. I'm just a big dude, lots of muscle but too much BF). We all know what we should eat, but we want someone to tell us we can eat other things we want to eat. I know what I need to do, but can't get myself to do it. This is sort of a jump start tog get to better habits.

[--->>405<<---]

well lets get it in gear then man!

juicing for supplementation is a good idea for sure. BTW u can still eat potatoes, u just need them in the right quantity. after all, a potato is simply a carb and u need carbs.

what are ur complete stats? age, weight, height, bf%..

[Beethoven]

Hey Neflrick happy new year. 405 is right. However not eating veggies makes it difficult. I'm going to start a cut also, and like you I also don't like veggies but have made peace with them because it's a necessary tool. Whenever I have cut, I concentrate on food, whole food because it's lower in calories and high on nutrition. I've gotten rather big also lately and going to have to cut about sixty pounds so I'll be right there with you. I've seen that there's a lot of support here along with knowledge to help you get there. Good luck.

[NEFLRick]

I'm 6' and 290. Don't know what my BF is but I'm guessing it's around 30. It's all around my belly. Upper body, arms and legs are ok. Then again, I'm 44.

I know potatoes aren't BAD for you, I just love them and eat too many. Just being honest with myself. Gotta cut them out for a while.

Been doing the green food capsules to supplement for my lack of veggies in my diet. But I know I need to do something drastic to get myself kick-started in the right direction.

[--->>405<<---]

dang man.. pretty big guy. have u read the cutting sticky i posted above? interested to see your game plan:

total cals per day
macro nutrient split
complete diet
cardio regimen
training split

[NEFLRick]

dang man.. pretty big guy. have u read the cutting sticky i posted above? interested to see your game plan:

total cals per day
macro nutrient split
complete diet
cardio regimen
training split

Yes, I'm a big dude. Recently started TRT (about 2 months) and getting bigger quickly. I'm half Polish so I think that's where my size comes from. My original lifting buddy (I moved away) used to say, "If I didn't know you, I'd think you were on steroids ! You eat, you grow, you don't eat, you grow..." Even at 44 I seem to do alright.

In fact, when I was suspecting low T I was looking for someone in my area to go to. Started talking to a guy at the gym I go to and he told me he was on TRT and the doc he went to. When I told him I've never touched anything, you should have seen the look on his face. He was like, "Really!!?? I could have sworn you were using!"

I guess, technically, I am now using on TRT.

But seriously, I do want to drop some BF. I've had great success cutting when I keep my total calories at (or below) 2,000/day. Currently, I'm not counting but I'm getting much more than that.

I eat a lot of meat and potatoes. I eat a LOT of chicken breast. Fish once a week (or so) and some red meat. I do eat sausage and some bacon as well (mmmm....bacon......). And I eat potatoes with just about every meal (I know I know...).

Don't really eat junk all that much. I mean, I can, but I don't usually crave it. I like some fruits (mainly apples and oranges) but haven't been eating as much of that as I should lately.

Used to do 30-45 mins of cardio 4x a week but have gotten away from it due to time issues. Will be adding it back in some how.

Currently train 5x/week. Chest, back, legs, arms and shoulders is my order of days. I lift heavy making my heavy set(s) 6-8 reps.

I know I need to add back in the cardio and not worry about the heavy stuff as much while fixing my diet. But my plan is to try and change my REGULAR diet. I don't want to just do a cut, if you know what I mean, I want to make it as permanent as I can.

I'm planning on starting my new thing on Monday. We'll see how it goes and I'll have to post it up here. My plan is to only do juice for 10 days. That should cleanse out the crap in my system (adding in some chia seeds once a day should also help). Obviously, I'll lose some BF and a little muscle but that's why I'm keeping it to 10 days. Long enough to cleanse but not so long as to make me lost a ton of muscle.

Then I'll switch to doing juices and adding clean protein (fish, chicken, etc.). At this point I plan to count calories. I don't want it too low but I (obviously) want it low enough. I'll probably keep it around 2,000 calories again. But that will be a moving target until I get it dialed in for optimal loss of BF while retaining as much muscle as I can.

As I said, I'll add back in the cardio and adjust my weight training a bit.

I'm sure it can work, I just have to have the strength to do it.

[NEFLRick]

Going to start my cut tomorrow. Looked at the sticky here about BF % and, according to that, I'm more like 25% (or maybe a little lower). I have some separation in muscles in shoulders/arms and fat around the mid-section. Waist is larger than my hips. Not much fat on legs, etc. So I guess I feel better about that....nah, not really.

Anyway, hoping to get down about 10% (or more).

So I'm going to do the cleanse this week (juice only) as long as I can find something I can stomach. If not, clean protein, cut carbs back to a better level, etc. Increase my cardio work as well. I'll start a thread tomorrow to keep track of it. Make me somewhat accountable.

[--->>405<<---]

i noticed u mentioned eating 2000cals per day. in theory, you should be able to lose fat eating a fair bit more than that. when having to reduce a substantial amount of body fat (or any bnody fat for that matter) u dont want to start ur cals too low because u will have mo room for tweaks down the road.

here we estimate maintenance cals at approximately 15cals per pound of lean mass.

maintenance calories: Your calorie maintenance level is where your body is at when you consume and burn the same number of calories.

i think u said u weighed 290lbs. lets assume ur 30%body fat (an over estimation according to your analysis) then:

290 x .7(% lean) = 203(lbs lean mass)

203 x 15 = 3045cals (rough maintenance)

this number is typically an under estimation for required cals of a man who trains and does cardio several days per week (which is why we use it). to lose fat a caloric deficit of no more than 500 cals per day from this number should be sufficient to drop fat at an acceptable rate. now i think u can see why i posted it??

[NEFLRick]

i noticed u mentioned eating 2000cals per day. in theory, you should be able to lose fat eating a fair bit more than that. when having to reduce a substantial amount of body fat (or any bnody fat for that matter) u dont want to start ur cals too low because u will have mo room for tweaks down the road.

here we estimate maintenance cals at approximately 15cals per pound of lean mass.

maintenance calories: Your calorie maintenance level is where your body is at when you consume and burn the same number of calories.

i think u said u weighed 290lbs. lets assume ur 30%body fat (an over estimation according to your analysis) then:

290 x .7(% lean) = 203(lbs lean mass)

203 x 15 = 3045cals (rough maintenance)

this number is typically an under estimation for required cals of a man who trains and does cardio several days per week (which is why we use it). to lose fat a caloric deficit of no more than 500 cals per day from this number should be sufficient to drop fat at an acceptable rate. now i think u can see why i posted it??

I'm glad you brought this up. I have a question about BMR.

Ok, I know how to figure it out and there are lots of sites where it will calculate it for you. My question is, BMR doesn't seem to take muscle mass into account. I have a lot more muscle than the average adult male. Muscle burns calories pretty well from what I understand. I figured my BMR out but, how accurate is it really? I mean, the calculations are based on an average adult male I'm guessing, right?

[--->>405<<---]

I'm glad you brought this up. I have a question about BMR.

Ok, I know how to figure it out and there are lots of sites where it will calculate it for you. My question is, BMR doesn't seem to take muscle mass into account. I have a lot more muscle than the average adult male. Muscle burns calories pretty well from what I understand. I figured my BMR out but, how accurate is it really? I mean, the calculations are based on an average adult male I'm guessing, right?

BMR formula is pretty standard for everyone. there obviously be a bit of variance due to different metabolisms. the train of thought is Lean Mass is what burns calories. Lean Mass is everything in your body that is not FAT. muscles, water, bone, etc..

the post i made above calculates the amount of lean mass u have based on 30% body fat. i over estimated ur bf% in order to give u slightly less lean mass than u said u have in order to make sure we dont have ur calories set too high, but also to show u 2000cals for your weight is too little. when u use BMR to predict maintenance cals u can run into error because u have to use an activity multiplier to figure out your TDEE. these multipliers tend to be on the high side.

just FYI here is the sticky that deals with TDEE and BMR but i suggest u go the route i set up for you.
http://forums.steroid.com/nutrition-...penditure.html

i will calculate ur maintenance calories at 25% body fat here:
290lbs 25%bf

290 x .75 = 217.5(pounds lean mass)
217.5 x 15 = 3262calories (rough maintenance)

DEFICIT = 3262 - 500 = 2762cals (the number u should start at IF you truly are 25%bf and 290lbs and have no idea thru trial and error what ur actual maintenance cals are)..

[tarmyg]

Muscle burns calories pretty well from what I understand.

Q: One of the more common perceptions in some fitness circles is that strength training individuals lose weight because one pound of muscle can burn approximately 30-50 calories per day. Is this claim valid?

A: It is true that muscle in its resting state is similar to an idling engine and burns energy (fuel) in the form of calories. However, according to reputable scientific research conducted on the subject, the actual number of calories burned by a pound of resting muscle in a day is considerably less than 50.
In fact, the caloric expenditure that can be attributed to lean muscle mass is not very significant. For example, muscle tissue has been observed to burn roughly seven to 10 calories per pound per day, compared to two to three calories per pound per day for fat. Therefore, if you replace a pound of fat with a pound of muscle, you can expect to burn only approximately four to six more calories a day. Given the fact that the average person who strength trains typically gains approximately 3 to 5 pounds of muscle mass over a period of three to four months, the net caloric effect of such a training regimen is very modest-only 15 to 30 calories per day (the equivalent of a few potato chips).
Despite the limited calorie-burning potential of muscle, strength training should be an integral part of any exercise program aimed at weight management. Here are just a few of the weight management-related benefits of strength training:

• Helps to prevent or minimize the loss in lean body mass that is typically a by-product of dieting.
• Burns calories (i.e., a modest caloric expenditure of approximately 150 calories per average 30-minute training session.
• Strength training favorably affects an individual’s overall body composition, resulting in a greater proportion of lean tissue relative to fat tissue. This training adaptation helps to enhance both functional performance capabilities and physical appearance.

The bottom line, however, is that the most effective way for you to capitalize on the calorie – burning potential of your muscles is to actively use them.

Source: Dr. Cedric X. Bryant, ACE’s Chief Science Officer; ACE FitnessMatters, Mar/Apr 2006.

Thanks
~T

---

Follow my personal story here on this blog: An honest journey
Trophy Husband - a countdown timer

[NEFLRick]

BMR formula is pretty standard for everyone. there obviously be a bit of variance due to different metabolisms. the train of thought is Lean Mass is what burns calories. Lean Mass is everything in your body that is not FAT. muscles, water, bone, etc..

the post i made above calculates the amount of lean mass u have based on 30% body fat. i over estimated ur bf% in order to give u slightly less lean mass than u said u have in order to make sure we dont have ur calories set too high, but also to show u 2000cals for your weight is too little. when u use BMR to predict maintenance cals u can run into error because u have to use an activity multiplier to figure out your TDEE. these multipliers tend to be on the high side.

just FYI here is the sticky that deals with TDEE and BMR but i suggest u go the route i set up for you.
http://forums.steroid.com/nutrition-...penditure.html

i will calculate ur maintenance calories at 25% body fat here:
290lbs 25%bf

290 x .75 = 217.5(pounds lean mass)
217.5 x 15 = 3262calories (rough maintenance)

DEFICIT = 3262 - 500 = 2762cals (the number u should start at IF you truly are 25%bf and 290lbs and have no idea thru trial and error what ur actual maintenance cals are)..

Thanks. I came up with the 2,000 calories from estimating (obviously) and using BMR previously. I had cut some weight last year and was doing well on that but I also weighted a little less at the time. So this makes sense based on the math but also seems like it should work for me to lose weight in practice. Also looks like I was running a little lower than I should have at the time.

[NEFLRick]

Ok, just an update and explanation of what I'm doing right now.

First of all, I'm finishing up a 5 day juice fast, meaning, I've had nothing to eat since Sunday evening and have just had juice (and my normal supplements) for caloric intake. Now, before everyone gets all crazy on me, hear me out.

I did this for a few reasons:

-I don't eat badly but I don't eat everything I need to eat. I hate veggies and don't eat them.
-I wanted to clean my system out and start fresh with the actual cut.
-I wanted to get my body prepared for less calories (although not THIS few!).
-I want to start to understand if I'm eating just because I want to or because I actually need to.

Long story short, it sucks. The juice sucks. Not eating sucks. However, I'm not hungry (surprisingly) and I have much more energy than I thought I could have with so few calories. It's also a PITA cleaning up the juicer.

I also lost 17 pounds (as of this morning--start of my fifth day so after 4 days). Yes, mostly water weight, a little bit of fat and a little bit of muscle. But I was bloated because my estrogen level was high (due to TRT) and this has totally gotten rid of the bloat I was feeling (I'm also dealing with the estrogen level).

So now I'm going to start eating solid food and supplementing with the juice--still gives you a bunch of REALLY good stuff in your body. But I'm going to go more along the lines of what 405 talks about. This way, I'll lose the bodyfat (what I'm after) and retain as much muscle as possible. Will be eating clean proteins, fats, carbs. So, this weekend, I'm easing my way back into food. I expect a little bounce but not as much as if I'd done this longer (my original plan).

My goal is to lose 50lbs by the time I'm done.

Thanks for all of the info/suggestions. It's all very helpful.

[Reiid13]

Hey man , what you supplementing with ?

Your metabolism will be shaking hands with rock bottom , so id use some natty supps to elevate it

[NEFLRick]

Metabolism won't crash after only 5 days. Yes, it may have slowed a bit but not harmfully so and not so much that I need to worry about starting it up again.

Supplementing with other vitamins, etc. Nothing crazy.

[--->>405<<---]

would like to see your diet plan (food choices, quantities, total cals and macros etc...)

[NEFLRick]

would like to see your diet plan (food choices, quantities, total cals and macros etc...)

Working on that now. I'm eating clean proteins for my protein (fish, chicken, etc.) and will have red meat once a week (maybe twice). Some hard boiled eggs as well.

My challenge is carbs. I love the potatoes but I also know they're quite starchy and not the best thing in the world to eat (although they taste like it. ). I don't really like rice although I can eat it. I don't eat veggies (hence the reason for trying juicing). I plan to try and juice some for veggies but I know that's not gonna happen often (the juices are disgusting). I do like some fruits so I'll have apples and oranges.

I also want to try and keep my carb intake lower toward the end of the day. So I want to eat the bulk of my carbs for the day before it gets too late.

I want to keep my calories (daily) to the 2700ish you had figured out.

I also have been working hard on my portion control. So I'll be cooking less. Working on the details but that's the general idea.

[NEFLRick]

So, a week and a half in and down a total of 23lbs (most of which was water last week during the fast). I certainly don't expect to continue losing this quickly forever.

Here's what I'm eating:

Pre-workout
Protein shake or 2 hard boiled eggs. Also have two oranges run through the juicer.

Breakfast/post-workout
Scrambled eggs with sausage

Lunch
Protein shake or, chicken (boneless/skinless) or a hamburger. I tend to eat the bulk of my carbs at lunch (either a bun with the chicken or hamburger or a potato--baked)

Snacks
Almonds or cashews (unsalted on both). Maybe a hard boiled egg (or two) depending on how I'm feeling.

Dinner
Some sort of protein--usually chicken but also fish/shrimp. Keeping red meat down to once or twice a week. Maybe a little carbs but try and not eat them this late in the day.

Lots of water throughout the day--1+ gallons.

I plan to raise my calories a bit going into the weekend. But, right now, I'm more than full from what I'm eating.

Also, here's an article on fasting for those of you who were thinking I was crazy:

-->clicky<--

I plan to do a short fast again once my losses stall assuming it's not because I'm taking in too many calories.

Also been working on eating cleaner--grass fed beef for my beef meals, non-antibiotic chicken, etc. Expensive but worth it IMO.

Overall, I feel great. Well, except for today. I seem to have caught something from friends of ours over the weekend so I'm under the weather. No gym today.

Oh, gym schedule for me is 5 days a week (Mon-Friday). Have added cardio back in for 3 or 4 days (depending on whether I have time or not). Nothing crazy--I can't run because of injuries in the past so just walking on the treadmill. I go in the mornings after I drop my boys off at school.

I'll keep you posted on my progress. Eventually, I'll post before/after photos.

[--->>405<<---]

Have u calculated cals or macros yet? Eventually u will benfit from doing so. As u get leaner the results will requirr a closer look more than likely..

[NEFLRick]

Have u calculated cals or macros yet? Eventually u will benfit from doing so. As u get leaner the results will requirr a closer look more than likely..

Yes. Came up with what you came up with although haven't adjusted for the weight loss so far. I know most of it is water weight though so not sure (at what point) I need to recalculate.

Unfortunately, I seem to have a flu at the moment. Been down for the count yesterday and today. Not much of an appetite. No nasty stuff jut all of the other symptoms. Sucks.

Minor setback.

[--->>405<<---]

dont adjust anything until ur progress stops/slows significantly!

[NEFLRick]

So far, so good. Down a little over 30 pounds just over 3 weeks in. Also down 3" in my waist. Got a ways to go but still plugging along. Have settled into a nice routine and it's not all that hard any longer. Have gotten my portions under control and now don't even want to eat a huge portion anymore.

Got a Superbowl party coming up on Sunday. That is going to be my first cheat meal/day. I know I'll take in too much but then it's back to the grind. But this is the longest (by far) I've gone without a cheat meal. So I'm pretty happy.

[--->>405<<---]

keep it going man. be careful though..

[WheelieFreakz]

If i were training you, i'd have you pick up some t3 and clen , then have you crash cut on 1800 cals high protein (maybe no carb if you're dedicated).

Medium-High intensity fasted cardio. start at 1 mile per day. work up to 3 miles per day.

[-KJ-]

If i were training you, i'd have you pick up some t3 and clen, then have you crash cut on 1800 cals high protein (maybe no carb if you're dedicated). Medium-High intensity fasted cardio. start at 1 mile per day. work up to 3 miles per day.

Explain why??

[WheelieFreakz]

Explain why??

It will take him forever to cut on a 500 cal defecit. I use the 500 cal defecit, but only because I stay 10% or below. I used to get over 10% and I found crash cutting was the most efficient way to cut when you're high bodyfat

[NEFLRick]

Well, I've lost just over 30 pounds in just over 3 weeks. I wouldn't say that's taking me forever.

I don't need to cut a ton right away. Just trying to do it in such a way that I can maintain the diet I'm eating. Doesn't do me any good if I cut a bunch of weight by eating a lot less only to go back to eating, "normally," and put it all back on (like I've done in the past). If I were cutting for a show or something, it would make sense for me but not for what I'm doing now.

But thanks.

[NEFLRick]

keep it going man. be careful though..

Careful? I'm eating normally. Not sure how much more careful I can be.

Just joking with ya.

[--->>405<<---]

If i were training you, i'd have you pick up some t3 and clen , then have you crash cut on 1800 cals high protein (maybe no carb if you're dedicated).

Medium-High intensity fasted cardio. start at 1 mile per day. work up to 3 miles per day.

medium high intensity?? whats that? is that like a step above low high but a step below high high??

IMO that sounds like a horrible idea and lucky for NEFL ur NOT the one training him. T3 will eat muscle tissue if ur not on cycle. clen is bad for ur heart. 1800cals per day leaves him nowhere to go when hitting a plateau, and no carbs to boot?? wheres he gonna get the energy to lift?? recover?? repair?? how about replenishing muscle glycogen??

u know the idea when cutting is to make small changes when progress slows. u want to do the minimum amount necessary to keep the fat coming off, not throw every tool in the box at the problem at once, especially when u have a good ways to go to ur goal..

do us all a favor and dont give any more of this poor advice in here. SMH

[--->>405<<---]

Careful? I'm eating normally. Not sure how much more careful I can be.

Just joking with ya.

yeh i know u said u were juicing some and 30lbs in 3 weeks is a lot! even being a fair amount of water..

[tarmyg]

It will take him forever to cut on a 500 cal defecit. I use the 500 cal defecit, but only because I stay 10% or below. I used to get over 10% and I found crash cutting was the most efficient way to cut when you're high bodyfat

Please stop giving advice as you clearly have no idea what the heck you are talking about!

Thanks
~T

---

Follow my personal story here on this blog: An honest journey
Trophy Husband - a countdown timer

[NEFLRick]

yeh i know u said u were juicing some and 30lbs in 3 weeks is a lot! even being a fair amount of water..

Oh I just did that 5 day cleanse. I lost 20 of the pounds in the first 7 days so down to a more manageable loss now. But thanks for caring. LOL!

[WheelieFreakz]

Please stop giving advice as you clearly have no idea what the heck you are talking about!

Thanks
~T

---

Follow my personal story here on this blog: An honest journey
Trophy Husband - a countdown timer

It works. I'm doing it right now because I got to about 12% in jail (no pct, bad food, no lifting). I am back up to 5' 11" 220 10-11% with the help of a little bit of tren . If you add AAS, you can actually recomp on a diet like this

[--->>405<<---]

It works. I'm doing it right now because I got to about 12% in jail (no pct, bad food, no lifting). I am back up to 5' 11" 220 10-11% with the help of a little bit of tren. If you add AAS, you can actually recomp on a diet like this

dude.. the difference between 10% bf and 12% bf is fairly negligible compared to a guy who is 280lbs and prob 25-35% body fat or more. the manner in which u go about dropping the weight is totally different.

ur statement above did NOT help your case at all.

hope u manage to stay out of jail from now on..

[NEFLRick]

So it's SB Sunday here in the States. Tomorrow will be 4 weeks since I started my cut (32lbs down and 2.5" in my waist). I'll be eating my first cheat meal since I started. Honestly, I'm looking forward to it but not as much as I once was. That's a good thing. I'm starting to change my eating habits for the long run. That's part of my goal.

But, back to the grind tomorrow.

[derekkpapa1]

Great job man keep it up- great advise from everyone above except wheelie-keep posting progress
Congrats on progress again

[NEFLRick]

Well, here's my latest, "progress," after my cheat meal (well, it was more than a meal really) yesterday.

I ate more than I have been but not nearly as much as I used to be able to. Got full much faster--I expected that. I didn't eat until I was stuffed though. I also didn't drink any alcohol but I did drink soda (my only really BAD vice although I don't drink much any longer).

I will say, even last night after eating, I could feel I'd not eaten clean. Can't really put my finger on exactly what I felt but I didn't feel like I'd been feeling since starting to eat cleanly. Felt even more of it this morning when I woke up. So, the good news is, where I'd normally be like, "I don't want to go back! I want to keep eating!" I TOTALLY want to get back to eating cleanly again to get that feeling back and to get rid of the feeling I have now. So, it's not like I'm planning my next cheat meal or anything.

The bad news is--and I knew this would happen--I retained a TON of water (6.2lbs to be exact). Shows you the power of salt. I didn't add salt to what I ate but restaurants always cook with a lot of salt and the things I ate had a lot of salt in them anyway. The soda also has some sodium in it I haven't been taking in (I drink water almost exclusively--other than the juice my wife makes me in the morning). So, yeah, I gained some weight but, the good news is, it should come off pretty quickly because it is just water.

Anyway, overall I'm quite pleased because it shows me my clean eating is doing more than just helping me lose BF, it's doing its job--to keep my body fueled with good fuel.

[Beethoven]

Keep at it Neflrick. Be joining you soon.