Hey all,
I've been reading through the forums for some time now and am really impressed by the support and advice you all give to each other - it is amazing, what a community! I have had some concerns with my current training and diet (and cycle), so I hope you guys wouldn't mind giving me your .02.
So, I'll start with stats:
Height: 5'6
Weight: 151lbs
BF%: approx 20-21%% (at my gym they used the BF reader that gets pressed into the arm, not the skin pinch tool, so the number may be different)
Goal: 135-140lbs
Background: I had been working hard to lose weight (pudgy kid, preferred books to sports, that whole bit) with some success, but then after a stint in Africa doing development work as an adult, I came back with way more winter insulation than I'd prefer. After starting back at the gym and eating healthier to get things rolling, I started serious training with my good friend (who, like with 11way from the 'I want to do a bikini show' thread, is a skilled amateur bb but also has a life, etc.) and after about 6 months of hard training, I dropped 2 pant sizes and lost about 11lbs - I have a stocky build and gained a lot of strength in the process. My trainer friend suggested I try gear to burn the rest of it off. So, we decided to run winny for 8 weeks (Nov-Dec 2010). I'll give the details below. He has experience using in the past and this was a whole new world to me, so I trusted him 100% - he gave me the diet and training too.
Winny cycle details:
1 millie every other day, taken in the morning before cardio. it was less frequent but then was upped to every other day
Diet and training:
6am: 1 slice rye/whole wheat toast with <1 tbsp almond butter, 1tbsp flax meal
7am: cardio minimum 45 mins in the morning
- I commute and my gym is in the city; otherwise I'd do morning cardio on an empty tank
8am-930am: 2 egg whites + 1 rice cake or baby carrots
1130am: grapefruit
1:30pm: lean protein, usually fish + salad
3:30-5:30pm: strength training + cardio (approx 30-45mins)
6pm-7pm: lean protein + salad
9-10pm: Grapefruit before bed if hungry, usually hungry.
I'm carb sensitive and gain weight quickly; we found that my weight (pre-cycle) didn't budge when I ate oatmeal. So we switched to toast.
On the cycle, I didn't mind getting up before the birds, being at the gym 2x/day - I am dedicated to getting the work done! Even sticking to the diet was not such a horrible task. But my suspicions that there was not enough carbs to keep my body from going into starvation mode kept cropping up. Towards the end, when rice cakes were replaced by baby carrots, my weight just would not budge, I had only just enough energy to get the day's training done and not much else, and the fat on my stomach was so, so stubborn. Other concerns like night sweats, constipation, etc added to the pile.
However, work and training consumed me to the point that trying to sift through all of the differing opinions and options on the internet was too overwhelming, so I just stuck with the diet and kept pushing myself. I got down to 147 lbs at the very end of the cycle, which was right before Christmas. I was quite pleased with the results overall and felt really comfortable in my skin, which was amazing. I am now a size 4/6 jeans (!). Never in my life have I had this. My avatar shows me at 147lbs.
However, now that I've taken over my diet and incorporated more carbs (1/2 sweet potato at lunch and dinner for example, greek yogurt, etc), to try and have a healthy, sustainable diet in the long term, I feel like my body is gaining weight quickly...I imagine due to the 2+ months of super low carb? It was to cut quickly, and it did cut me down, but I'm not so sure...
Just yesterday I spoke with my trainer friend and he suggested I wait until I get my period (I skipped mine on winny), then once that's done I take a 5 week cycle of var, to burn the last bit off and get down to 140lbs. I'll go 2x/day to train again no problem, I am committed, but my fear is that maintaining that low carb diet will have the pounds jump back on me once I'm done the cycle! And with the morning commute pre-cardio, my carb sensitivity and coming off winny and then onto anavar in a few weeks, I think it's time for some new opinons. I love my trainer dearly, he is all kinds of awesome, but I need some help.
Please, PLEASE help me with this, guys. I know you all are experienced and even the slightest input will make a world of difference! I apologize in advance for the lengthy post - I figured more detail leaves less ambiguity...
THANK YOU!!!