Drizzt is done with cutting for the year!

[teamfatboy]

Wow - a good day all 'round - passed the exam, and a wicked bench PB for the year! Congratulations :clap: :jive: :dancing:

[rose]

Good stuff Sir :nod:

[drizzt]

Thanks TFB & Rose Freckin stoked, great way to finish the cut, and awesome lead into Xmas/New Years break on quite a high \:D/

Diet

Supariliac: 5mm (average of 5, 5, 5). Lowest yet, good timing!

Haven't been writing the diet out lately because it's a bit tedious (I'm sure it's even more tedious to read :pfft:), but I think it'll help if I decide to do this in future to be able to look back and see what I was eating and what could've been improved if nothing else.

So, here it is, 2nd to last one for the log:

• 
  0700 - Oats (2/3rd cup)*, sliced pears (1/2 can)
  0900 - Mito*
  0930 - Almonds (100g), 3 x fish oil caps, multi vit
  1100 - Yoghurt (1 cup), half can peaches*
  1230 - Chicken breast (250g cooked weight)
  1300 - 30g WPI (pre-workout)
  1400 - 42g WPI (post-workout)
  1430 - Mito
  1530 - Chicken breast (250g cooked weight), 3 x fish oil caps
  1630 - Almonds (50g)
  1830 - Steak (350g pre-cooked weight), 3 x fish oil caps
  2130 - 30g WPI (water)
  2300 - Casein (water)

Comments

• *Carrying on from the "forgetting to split Mito pills properly" debacle, I didn't have any for my usual morning serve at home, so had to have breakfast first, then wait until I was in at work to have my first serve of mito. Don't think it should've effected things too much...
  *Had slightly more oats than normal to compensate a little for not having any eggs. Probably should've had more, but it was the morning, and my brain doesn't function that early... :naughty:
  *The peaches and yoghurt combo was great I thought, because the sodium content of both was quite low - and the peaches were already open from Friday :pfft: Forgot about them so they were ready to sack.
  *In lieu of Rice - which in hindsight I probably should've loaded carbs today, my bad - I had a chicken breast. I'll have rice tomorrow. The manual also suggests you can "have foods other than the ones suggested in this diet, but not to eat so much at one time as to approach the point of feeling full". But meh.
  

So diet was ok, in hindsight I probably could've - and should've - had a few more carbs throughout the day, another oversight on my part but to be honest, I'm not too fussed.

You'll also notice that there is still a bit of sodium in the diet - WPI and casein in particular - but again, I'm not following the diet from the handbook to the letter, more using it as a "suggestion" for the final days.

I also made an effort to limit water intake, and spread it out across the day. Obviously made allowances when I needed to down pills and for my protein shakes, but tried to time water intake with meals and not have a bottle that I'm constantly sipping on (which I usually do). Didn't do this to the point of dehydration though...

Tomorrow I'll try and eat as often as possible with small meals but will back off when I start to get full. I'll still avoid sodium as much as I can, but not at the expense of protein shakes.

Cardio

So following on from a great day, I had an awesome boxing session. Hadn't been since last Monday (missed my Weds session last week due to study/exam).

Warmup: 5mins skipping, stretches, 2 mins skipping (skipping alternates fast and slow periods)

Heavy Bag: Only 4 people there today, so we got our own bag and our own space which was cool. Did 10 x 2min sets of various combinations (with 1mins rest in between sets) - 1 of the sets was particularly hard where we had to throw continuous hooks for 30secs, then sprint 30secs (sprinting on the spot while "sprinting" with your hands on the bag ), continuous 1-2s for 30secs and then 30secs sprint again to finish. That was one of the sets thrown into the mix around the middle and it was great :grin: Got a damn good sweat on overall

Cool down: Fairly easy, consisted of 1 x 15 situps (linked legs with partner), 1 x 15 pushups (facing partner, slapping hands at top of press up) and then repeat - push ups were a little tough after the chest session today, but managed them quite well. Then stretches to finish.

My class on Wednesday is the last class the gym runs for the year, so I'll go to that. Doesn't really effect this log though as it's the day after my cut finishes, so this is effectively my last cardio session for the cut

Sweet, see you tomorrow for the final day \:D/ 8) :wave:

[Chillicat]

Congrats! You've done really well, and I'm especially impressed that you've stuck with it during December - my so called 10 week cut pretty much died after 5 weeks, so you've done really well!

[drizzt]

Thanks CC I'd be lying if I said it wasn't a struggle at times, I think on the odd occasion I strayed a bit from the diet it was actually a good thing - kept me sane, kept me interested. I think I would've been more focused and dedicated if I had had a tangible goal as a target (e.g Competition, family gathering etc) as opposed to just giving myself a deadline to work towards... I've found it's sometimes hard to motivate myself for something that isn't actually "there". Dunno if that makes sense or not :pfft:

Shite, my cold is really taking off today - coughing, sneezing and spluttering everywhere. Bit of a bugger for this to come on the last day of the cut (although it has been building up for a few days now) but I suppose better now than mid-way through :shrug:

[teamfatboy]

I've found it's sometimes hard to motivate myself for something that isn't actually "there". Dunno if that makes sense or not :pfft:

Yep it makes sense - I know exactly what you mean, like "if it isn't real, it doesn't count". I'm going to be trying a lot harder to make my goal stick this year. :pray:

Shame about the cold, tho... it's still doing the rounds of folks in my building too :-(

[drizzt]

Day 30: 22/12/09

IT'S THE FINAL DAY! I'll start this off with a bit of a preview of the gym session

That's right, 89.6 today Well, actually, I cheated a little and took my shoes off :pfft:

Was 90.2 with shoes on - I just wanted to get under the 90 mark to prove I could :shifty: Although I was wearing a fairly heavy hoody too which could've accounted for the extra couple hundred grams This also featured in the session:

190kg... but I'll get to that in a bit.

Weights

As the pic above eludes to, it was back day today. Feeling good, decided to attempt some more PBs for the year, being the last week of weights and all...

• Deadlifts* (sets, reps, weight)
  1 x 7 @ 100kg (warmup - technique focus, hip/heel drive)
  1 x 3 @ 120kg (warmup - technique focus, hip/heel drive)
  1 x 3 @ 150kg
  1 x 2 @ 170kg (PB for the year)
  1 x 3 @ 182.5 (new PB for the year, double Bodyweight )
  1 x 1 @ 190kg (new PB for the year)*
  1 x 3 @ 140kg (sumo - not quite drop but close to it, pretty much failure)
  1 x 10 @ 100kg (sumo - as previous set)
  Wide Chins
  1 x 8 @ Bodyweight
  1 x 6 @ Bodyweight
  2 x 5 @ Bodyweight*
  "Prone" Rows
  1 x 10 @ 60kg
  1 x 10 @ 65kg*
  1 x 8 @ 70kg*

Comments

• *New PB (for the year) again on Deads :grin: Last week's lift @ 165 was the previous best for the year, so to smash that by 25kg on the final day of my cut, I'm incredibly satisfied with. I'm actually very confident that I could've got 200kg up if I had managed the leadup sets better, but 182.5 was my target - because it was double my bodyweight - so I'm happy to have bettered that at all.
  Just felt great at 182.5, so stopped the set short (probably could've got more than 3 reps otherwise) to attempt the 190 and it came off. TBH though, it was a tough lift and I don't think I could've lifted any more at that weight. I'm sure 200 will be hit early next year
  Also, used a belt for sets 3-7 which was a great help. No straps though which I'm proud of, my grip is showing no sign of failing under these weights just yet
  *For the Wide Chins, I actually intended to do them weighted, but the one belt available to add load to chins/dips was in use for my first 2 sets, and then when I finally grabbed it it didn't have the hook on it (carabiner?). So I'd had enough of the messing about and just did an extra set instead.
  *Prone rows - final 2 sets I rested on the 8th and 6th reps respectively to eek a couple extras out. Form was great to start with but started to cheat with a bit of bis movement towards the end, and wasn't quite getting it high enough. Happy with it though.
  

Workout was a little short, but again, begun to run out of time. Would've liked to have added some hyperextensions and pulldowns into the mix.

SO, PBs for the year are dropping like flys at the end of my cut. Can't wait until legs either tomorrow or Thursday where I'll attempt another PB for the year. Unfortunately slightly outside of this log, but if anybody is interested I'll add it in just because

Diet and final pic to follow tonight

[ohjoshua]

congrats on 190kg!

how long have you been training?

when you say PB for the year... does that mean you have lifted that weight in the past?

[drizzt]

Thanks man

With deads it's a little complicated as I haven't done them for a few years, but yep back when I used to do 'em I believe my best was 220, weighing around 100kg. So 190 isnt a pb as such, just the best I've done this year.

I've been training off and on since I was 13 (I'm now 23) Dad was a powerlifter back in the day (and later got into bodybuilding), so he got me started nice and young :nod: I went consistently up until I was about 16-17, but started slacking so my dad didn't renew my membership :oops: :pfft: Got into it again around 18-19 but have been fairly incosistent working it around rugby, moving cities and various funny working hours since then.

Last couple years have been great though now that I've settled a bit, and now even better since I've sorted my nutrition out

[drizzt]

Diet

5mm suprailiac again (5, 5, 5). 89.6kg as mentioned a couple posts up (c'mon, lemme have this one :pray: ). Mrs is coming over later might see if she can do some tape measurements if it's not too late. Compare to the ones I did pre-cut...

• 
  0700 - Mito
  0730 - Oats (1 cup!), half can peaches
  0900 - Almonds*, green tea, 3 x fish oil caps, multi vit
  0930 - 125g brown rice
  1030 - Natural Yoghrut (1 cupish), half can peaches, almonds
  1200 - 125g brown rice
  1300 - 30g WPI (pre-workout)
  1400 - 30g WPI (post-workout)
  1430 - Mito (final serve!)
  1500 - Chicken breast (250g cooked weight), 3 x fish oil caps, green tea, 125g brown rice
  1630 - Remainder of rice (about 125g), almonds
  1800 - Chicken breast (200g cooked weight), 3 x fish oil caps
  1900 - 1/2 chicken breast (approx 100g)
  

I've left it up until there as I'm not sure how the shakes are gonna go tonight - not wanting to eat too close to when I take the final photo (which I'm doing at night for consistency)

Almonds were 100g total, just picked at them throughout the day but where I've listed them above is generally where I've taken a handful or so to go with a meal.

Sacked a lot of rice today. Seems like a heavy diet but honestly I was quite hungry throughout the day! Ate regularly and felt like I had a decent energy intake going throughout the day, but was almost constantly hungry. I think it may have something to do with cutting back on the water? That's just me speculating - I probably only had 2.5 pump bottles if that today, including water for shakes and pills and didn't even finish a full pump bottle throughout my workout.

Cardio

Not really cardio per se, but did some abs when I got home - the P90X Ab Ripper X program if anyone has heard of/tried it before? It's quite tough, and I've not managed to fully complete it before (probably done it up to 20 times over the last year or so) but got very close today! Just took a rest for a few reps in a couple of the exercises - more the legs that were feeling it in the ins and outs and things like that as opposed to my abs not keeping up.

I'll post comparison pics up either tonight or some time tomorrow. Pics will be taken tonight, just not sure if I'll be back on the PC to upload em.

After I've posted the pics, I'll try and write a summary/conclusion of the log - which will probably be done tomorrow if I get time.

It's been fun! \:D/

[drizzt]

Final comparison picture:

Day 1, Before (24th November) on the left - Day 30, After (22nd December) on the right.

TBH, little bit surprised at the lack of obvious difference between the two pics. I feel I was looking better last week, maybe it was something to do with my eating in the lead up to this pic. Also not having boxing class immediately prior to the photo (as I do on Mondays) has likely effected the finish.

On the plus side, everything looks a little tighter, pecs look to be a little more well rounded, traps are bigger, veingz are coming out a little more, midsection has come in a bit and abs are slightly more defined (although I thought they looked better last week)... oh and my tan is a bit better too :pfft: Just minor improvements across the board I think.

Negatives - thinking about it, nothing really jumps to mind, it's just that I guess I'm a little bit underwhelmed. Maybe my opinion will change tomorrow morning, we'll see.

I'll probably type up a conclusion tomorrow, now, it's time for some sleep :pray: Thoughts on the final pic (good or bad ) are more than welcome.

Edit - the first pic is the comparison for the past month, so just for giggles, here is a comparison with me 2 months ago:

1 month into the cut is on the left, 2months in (beginning of Mito phase) is in the middle, and present is to the right. Back shot is just 1 month in vs today (didn't have a pre-mito shot really)

When I put it into perspective that I've been cutting for so long (end of August/beginning of September), I realize how far I've come. I thought I was in great shape a couple of months ago - and I was in pretty good shape - but when comparing the two I can see that I'm in much better shape now. And as you can see (well, to my eyes anyway!), I've packed on a bit of muscle - so I'm >5kg lighter, but much stronger both visibly and in the gym :-s

[Big john]

amazing finish mate, I could dif tell the difference. pecks dif were more fuller esp upper pecks and midsection got some good conditioning to boot :clap: :clap: :clap:

[steak]

Your hard work has paid off :clap: well done

[drizzt]

Thanks guys, your support is much appreciated :-P

I'm still a little underwhelmed by the results today :?

[rimma]

Great journal man, it has been a really good read. As for 'underwhelming' results, you just nailed a few PB's recently didnt you?

So the weights say otherwise

[drizzt]

Thanks mate, that's one way of looking at it

I'm most certainly happy with the lifts I've maintained and improved upon, just the cut down itself - visibly - for this last phase is what has underwhelmed me. Maybe it has something to do with the weights I was lifting? Dunno, just looking at the picture comparison I'm a tad "meh".

[rimma]

Well, I don't know jack shit about bbing and yet looking at those photos even I can make out definite improvement. Notably a harder look, veins standing out more, stronger core.

Overall looking fit as for summer

[Chillicat]

I'm with rimma - I also know jack about bodybuilding, but differences are most definitely visible. Good job!

[ohjoshua]

That rear double bi you are looking cut as!

[drizzt]

Thanks guys (and girl )

I guess my overall goal of being cut for the beaches has come off quite well, so in that sense I've achieved what I had hoped and I'm really happy with where I'm at.

However... I guess my disappointment might extend from having a preconceived idea of how I was going to turn out in the end, and I haven't quite reached that? i.e I set my goals to high?

Or it may have been me thinking because the weights I was lifting were continuing upwards, and the bodyweight was continuing downward, I guess I expected more of a "WOW what a difference!" kind of reaction when I compared the photos. Kind of like the difference you can see between month 1 and 3; I was expecting that sort of change between month 2-3.

Whatever it is, personally, I stand by my underwhelm-edness (if that's a word) :pfft:

That rear double bi you are looking cut as!

Thanks man, but another source of my underwhelm-edness is that rear double bi shot has shown up my right-to-left bias again. I really need to rectify this as it became quite apparent to me after I took the first bunch of cut photos. Overall though, I'm happy with how the back has turned out as it was a bit of a weak point for me previously due to poor technique on my lifts.

[Chillicat]

Maybe it's all those 'Body For Life' and similar 3 month cut pics that you see around the place - people always seem to go from fatty boombatty to Arnold in 12 weeks on those programmes - so anything less is bound to be disappointing when people claim to make such big changes in such a short time. I feel a bit the same, which is why I think I gave up on my 'half cut' halfway through - I could definitely see some results, but given the huge change in eating and the amount of effort involved, it didn't seem that the results were as good as they could have been.

[rimma]

I would guess that most everyone gets underwhelmed or impatient.

Gotta look at it as a long term process- in for the long haul!

For example, if you compared your 100kg+ bulk stage with what you have achieved by the end of this cut I think you'd see a wee bit of a difference

[teamfatboy]

Thanks guys (and girl )

I guess my overall goal of being cut for the beaches has come off quite well, so in that sense I've achieved what I had hoped and I'm really happy with where I'm at.

If you're the person I think you were - at the gym between 11-1 on Tuesday, dark clothing after the workout, I remember thinking 'Faark' or words to that effect. Maybe the pics don't do you justice ?

[drizzt]

Hmmm, I wouldve been starting my workout at 1 or thereabouts, and I think I was wearing a baggy blue sleeveless hoody lugging around a thick brown lifting belt for the deads... But was in dark shirt and pants before the workout if that's what you were meaning?

Otherwise, maybe not me? 8) I'm flattered all the same though haha

[Peachy]

Your underwhelmed??!! :shock:

Drizz your looking sharp!! :wink: (if I could wolf whistle I would :nod: )

Very impressive. Well done