Transformation 5.0

Eating Enough, Transition, and Steve Maxwell

Bodybuilder

While a large percentage of Relentless Transformers come in search of weight/bodyfat loss, you will hear “eat more!” come out of my mouth 10x as often as “eat less!”.  Ironic, right?

When I say this it’s in attempt to combat the nasty, conditioned diet cycle that is so baked into our culture.  The one that wears hunger like a badge of honor (because it must mean weight loss).  And pardon me for beating a dead horse, but the one that wears scale results like a badge of honor.

In the end, all consistent hunger will do for you is result in eventual binging and rebounding.

I also say this because when you’re eating the right foods, it’s easy to eat less than you think.  When the predominant food groups are well sourced meat/fish/eggs, varied greens and vegetables, healthy fats, fruits, and starches, you avoid the hyper-palatability of packaged/processed foods.  When you prepare most of your own food, you avoid the density of many restaurant dishes.

Many look at what they’re eating and see full, richly colored plates of food.  The assumption is – wow, I’m eating a lot!

Today is a reminder to check your quantity.  Make sure that you are fueling yourself properly.  When you do this, your body will respond with more than just results.  It will respond with health (the most important metric, no?), increased immunity, increased energy,  etc.

Will you lose any short-term results by not going hungry?  Quite possibly.  The sooner you realize that you’re in this for the long haul, the better.  When you do, I’ll be waiting.

Transition #1

Week 2 has arrived, and it’s time to change gears.  Bulking.  Growth.  Hypertrophy.  Yes, it’s Hulk smash time.

Two main fundamentals contribute to growth: more food and more strength volume.  Sleep also becomes more critical.

I know that my weakness will be the food fundamental.  It’s difficult for me to intake enough calories to grow fast and furiously.

Acknowledging that weakness, I’ll both be upping my efforts to eat more and lowering my expectations slightly.  I’m ok if this ends up being a moderate growth phase because I won’t be walking around uncomfortably full.  That’s not the feeling I want while training clients.

I’ll be playing close attention to measurements and fatigue levels these next few weeks.  I’ll embrace the inevitable soreness that accompanies higher strength volume, while assuring that it doesn’t cross the red line.

Day 7 Recap

The exercise world changed gears accordingly and introduced the first growth-oriented workout:

  • 3x through: Alternating grip pull/chin-ups, leg press, dumbbell chest press.
  • 3x through: Single arm dumbbell row, dumbbell walking lunge, dumbbell seated overhead press.
  • 3x through: Triceps rope press, standing dumbbell bicep curl, single leg calf raise, cable side-to-side chop, cable slow press
  • 1x through: Dumbbell farmer’s walk (for distance), assorted lower back mat work (supermans, swimmers)

Steps checked in at 12,435 and miles at 6.02.

Sleep checked in at 8 hours and 6 minutes, with 1 awake minute and 8 restless minutes.

How about that nutrition?

Breakfast: grass-fed greek yogurt (Wholesome Dairy Farms), raw cacao nibs, chia seeds, (new addition) coconut flakes, and banana.  Alongside Italian Roast black gold.

Day 7 Breakfast

Lunch: 4 free-range eggs, whole avocado, kimchi, chopped bacon in rainbow kale and tomato salad, and white sweet potato.

Day 7 Lunch

Pre-Workout: only the Raw Tea (none of the others were consumed).

Day 2 Workout Fuel

Post-Workout: Grass-fed whole milk (Maplehofe Dairy Farm).

Day 7 Post Workout

Dinner: Duck breast, cherry reduction (chef Marissa rocked!), plantain, and green beans.

Day 7 Dinner

Daily Fuel

One of my go-to podcasts is the Joe Rogan Experience, and recently he hosted one of the best in the exercise business, Steve Maxwell.  They almost immediately did a sequel, so you have 6-hours of content to peruse if you like what you hear.  He is both episodes #491 and #504.

In my own personal training, I’m constantly evaluating the risk vs. reward of certain exercises, and it’s encouraging to hear Maxwell go down the same line of logic.  While they talk varied topics, including MMA (Maxwell trained some legends), you’ll glean exercise and nutrition gems if you stick with it.

It’s a beautiful day in Philadelphia, and the stage is set for a good one.  Let’s go get it and take the next step on a milestone journey!

 

Image Credit:  http://promotehealth.info

 

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3 Comments

  • Reply
    Steven
    June 4, 2014 at 10:45 am

    If someone has the transformation goal of weight loss, isn’t “bulking” counterproductive? I would expect adding lean body mass while lowering body fat would keep weight steady at best. Then not seeing progress on the scale a demotivator. I’m doing my own mini-transformation and planned to not add in any major strength work until I”m much closer to my weight target (another 10lbs or so). I’m sticking to mostly cardio for now.

    • Reply
      Relentless Roger
      June 4, 2014 at 2:07 pm

      That’s a complex question Steven! The first thing I’d recommend is re-framing your goal from losing 10 pounds to losing 10 pounds “of fat”. That distinction ties better to your physique and your health versus just the scale weight alone.

      For example, if long-term you gained 5 pounds of muscle and lost 10 pounds of fat (-5 on the scale), you may look better/leaner/stronger than losing 10 pounds of combined muscle and fat (-10 on the scale).

      The bulking phase that I’m attempting is applicable to the minority of transformers, so it’s certainly not necessary. However, no matter your goal, I’d recommend at least including 1 fundamental strength session per week to keep you functional, healthy, and well-rounded. Stay strong!

      Best of luck with your mini-transformation. Keep us posted!

  • Reply
    33% Complete: A Look Back
    June 21, 2014 at 2:12 pm

    […] reminder to eat enough during your own health […]

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