PH 2014 Goals, Progress & Transformations Thread

[Art0ir]

TheJimi said:

Well done!

Always good to hear of folk beating their PB's. Keep that focus and momentum

I failed my year-end target this year, although my training focus has shifted slightly and I haven't been training for it, so I don't feel too bad about it.

Thanks! I only started training for strength 8 weeks ago.

First picture is me in August, second after working my ass off and running a massive calorific deficit for 8 weeks, on October 4th. Took a week off then started proper



Have added another 4lb since then and been enjoying the strength shoot up since.

[chris watton]

Art0ir said:

Thanks! I only started training for strength 8 weeks ago.

First picture is me in August, second after working my ass off and running a massive calorific deficit for 8 weeks, on October 4th. Took a week off then started proper



Have added another 4lb since then and been enjoying the strength shoot up since.

That's great, and in only 8 weeks!

[pilchardthecat]

Hoofy said:

I'd have forgotten to measure it, I'm sure.

Attach a cushion to the roof then you can gently bump your head on it for amusement value. I've been known to do toe-to-bar leg raises and poke ceiling tiles with my toes in gyms before.

Yeah i've stubbed my toe on the roof in various gyms plenty of times

[Hoofy]

pilchardthecat said:

Hoofy said:

I'd have forgotten to measure it, I'm sure.

Attach a cushion to the roof then you can gently bump your head on it for amusement value. I've been known to do toe-to-bar leg raises and poke ceiling tiles with my toes in gyms before.

Yeah i've stubbed my toe on the roof in various gyms plenty of times

I thought you didn't do any ab work!

[pilchardthecat]

Hoofy said:

pilchardthecat said:

Hoofy said:

I'd have forgotten to measure it, I'm sure.

Attach a cushion to the roof then you can gently bump your head on it for amusement value. I've been known to do toe-to-bar leg raises and poke ceiling tiles with my toes in gyms before.

Yeah i've stubbed my toe on the roof in various gyms plenty of times

I thought you didn't do any ab work!

They way i do them (from the top of a pullup rather than hanging) its more of a shoulder/lat exercise

[Hoofy]

pilchardthecat said:

Hoofy said:

pilchardthecat said:

Hoofy said:

I'd have forgotten to measure it, I'm sure.

Attach a cushion to the roof then you can gently bump your head on it for amusement value. I've been known to do toe-to-bar leg raises and poke ceiling tiles with my toes in gyms before.

Yeah i've stubbed my toe on the roof in various gyms plenty of times

I thought you didn't do any ab work!

They way i do them (from the top of a pullup rather than hanging) its more of a shoulder/lat exercise

Ah, yes, because the final 90 degrees not only hits the upper abs but requires you to push "downwards" (relative to your body) using the lats. Like a tucked front lever.

[pilchardthecat]

Hoofy said:

pilchardthecat said:

Hoofy said:

pilchardthecat said:

Hoofy said:

I'd have forgotten to measure it, I'm sure.

Attach a cushion to the roof then you can gently bump your head on it for amusement value. I've been known to do toe-to-bar leg raises and poke ceiling tiles with my toes in gyms before.

Yeah i've stubbed my toe on the roof in various gyms plenty of times

I thought you didn't do any ab work!

They way i do them (from the top of a pullup rather than hanging) its more of a shoulder/lat exercise

Ah, yes, because the final 90 degrees not only hits the upper abs but requires you to push "downwards" (relative to your body) using the lats. Like a tucked front lever.

Exactly

Super slow negatives with a pause/hold are a good assistance thingy for front levers too

[Hoofy]

pilchardthecat said:

Exactly

Super slow negatives with a pause/hold are a good assistance thingy for front levers too

Yeah, I'm not doing too badly with them now.

[chris watton]

I have to admit, one of the best things I have noticed after 6/7 months training and diet is none of my old clothes no longer fit, or rather, they fit like a large refuse sack, so I have had great fun in buying a whole new wardrobe with smaller sized shirts and trousers!

Used to barely fit into 36" waist trousers, I now need a belt for 34". Would love to try and get down to 32", but try as I might, I have been stuck between 76-80kg for about 6 weeks now, dammit!

[Hoofy]

Undereating?

How has your muscle size been in the last few weeks?

[Art0ir]

chris watton said:

I have to admit, one of the best things I have noticed after 6/7 months training and diet is none of my old clothes no longer fit, or rather, they fit like a large refuse sack, so I have had great fun in buying a whole new wardrobe with smaller sized shirts and trousers!

Used to barely fit into 36" waist trousers, I now need a belt for 34". Would love to try and get down to 32", but try as I might, I have been stuck between 76-80kg for about 6 weeks now, dammit!

Jeans I haven't been able to wear in years (32") are now loose around the waist but tight around the thighs... Tshirts and Shirts are now too tight around the chest and shoulders and stupidly loose around the mid riff. Doesn't help I have a 16" neck, even "slim fit" shirts are swimming on me.

[chris watton]

Hoofy said:

Undereating?

How has your muscle size been in the last few weeks?

Not sure I am undereating. I work from home, so am pretty static most of the day, and I make sure I get enough nutrients - I have cut out all crap (except for 2 coffee's per day with milk and one sugar) and have been running a calorie deficit diet to get rid of the bulk of the weight, which has worked. but trying to remove the last bit on the waist is proving difficult.

I have gained muscle, but I don't think I have gained 4-6kg worth in the past few weeks - although I have been working on my legs a lot more, since I bought the cage with spotters..

[Hoofy]

chris watton said:

Hoofy said:

Undereating?

How has your muscle size been in the last few weeks?

Not sure I am undereating. I work from home, so am pretty static most of the day, and I make sure I get enough nutrients - I have cut out all crap (except for 2 coffee's per day with milk and one sugar) and have been running a calorie deficit diet to get rid of the bulk of the weight, which has worked. but trying to remove the last bit on the waist is proving difficult.

I have gained muscle, but I don't think I have gained 4-6kg worth in the past few weeks - although I have been working on my legs a lot more, since I bought the cage with spotters..

What's your daily calorie intake?

[chris watton]

Hoofy said:

What's your daily calorie intake?

Ah - this is where I look foolish, as I have never counted, but I have:

2x coffees with whole milk and on teaspoon of sugar.

2 x MaxiMuscle Promax Lean shakes per day, one before one after training.

I small tin of Mackerel or sardines in olive oil

Salad (lettuce, spinach, tomatoes, cucumber) with either chicken or seafood and occasionally 2 hard boiled eggs. I have recently started to add cottage cheese to my diet, but that started last week, as training has intensified and I felt I may need the extra.

Before bed, I have Instantised Calcium Caseinate mixed in water (all shakes are mixed with water, not milk)

If I am hungry, I have nuts.

And that's it!

(I have the usual supplement capsules, multi vits, cod liver oil etc.)

ETA - Forgot to add, 2 x teaspoons of Barley Grass Powder mixed with water twice a day too - that is foul...

Edited by chris watton on Wednesday 10th December 16:24

[Hoofy]

You said you were "running a calorie deficit diet". You might not be. But yeah, you've cut out crap so that's impossible.

chris watton said:

Forgot to add, 2 x teaspoons of Barley Grass Powder mixed with water twice a day too - that is foul...

Don't eat it then.

[chris watton]

Hoofy said:

You said you were "running a calorie deficit diet". You might not be. But yeah, you've cut out crap so that's impossible.

chris watton said:

Forgot to add, 2 x teaspoons of Barley Grass Powder mixed with water twice a day too - that is foul...

Don't eat it then.

I know.. I just 'assumed' it must be a calorie deficit diet, as nothing I now eat are high in calories, are they?

When I started this, I assumed that, if I just had plenty of protein and other essential nutrients, I would use the fat on my body for the conversion to calories - is that wrong?

Edited by chris watton on Wednesday 10th December 16:53

[Hoofy]

chris watton said:

Hoofy said:

You said you were "running a calorie deficit diet". You might not be. But yeah, you've cut out crap so that's impossible.

chris watton said:

Forgot to add, 2 x teaspoons of Barley Grass Powder mixed with water twice a day too - that is foul...

Don't eat it then.

I know.. I just 'assumed' it must be a calorie deficit diet, as nothing I now eat are high in calories, are they?

When I started this, I assumed that, if I just had plenty of protein and other essential nutrients, I would use the fat on my body for the conversion to calories - is that wrong?

Edited by chris watton on Wednesday 10th December 16:53

Well, if you're not moving towards your goal, then yes, it's wrong.

I'll attempt to break it down with a guestimate:

2x coffees with whole milk and on teaspoon of sugar.
200 cals

2 x MaxiMuscle Promax Lean shakes per day, one before one after training.
300 cals

I small tin of Mackerel or sardines in olive oil
150 cals

Salad (lettuce, spinach, tomatoes, cucumber) with either chicken or seafood
200 cals

and occasionally 2 hard boiled eggs.
150 cals

I have recently started to add cottage cheese to my diet, but that started last week, as training has intensified and I felt I may need the extra.
100 cals

Before bed, I have Instantised Calcium Caseinate mixed in water (all shakes are mixed with water, not milk)
100 cals

If I am hungry, I have nuts.
300 cals

(I have the usual supplement capsules, multi vits, cod liver oil etc.)
150 cals

ETA - Forgot to add, 2 x teaspoons of Barley Grass Powder mixed with water twice a day too - that is foul...
-2000 cals as you vomit it all back up.

Well, you're probably eating 2000+ calories and you've probably forgotten incidentals like the biscuit during a meeting or the sweet you grabbed as you passed someone's desk. Forgotten calories still count.

[chris watton]

Hoofy said:

Well, if you're not moving towards your goal, then yes, it's wrong.

I'll attempt to break it down with a guestimate:

2x coffees with whole milk and on teaspoon of sugar.
200 cals

2 x MaxiMuscle Promax Lean shakes per day, one before one after training.
300 cals

I small tin of Mackerel or sardines in olive oil
150 cals

Salad (lettuce, spinach, tomatoes, cucumber) with either chicken or seafood
200 cals

and occasionally 2 hard boiled eggs.
150 cals

I have recently started to add cottage cheese to my diet, but that started last week, as training has intensified and I felt I may need the extra.
100 cals

Before bed, I have Instantised Calcium Caseinate mixed in water (all shakes are mixed with water, not milk)
100 cals

If I am hungry, I have nuts.
300 cals

(I have the usual supplement capsules, multi vits, cod liver oil etc.)
150 cals

ETA - Forgot to add, 2 x teaspoons of Barley Grass Powder mixed with water twice a day too - that is foul...
-2000 cals as you vomit it all back up.

Well, you're probably eating 2000+ calories and you've probably forgotten incidentals like the biscuit during a meeting or the sweet you grabbed as you passed someone's desk. Forgotten calories still count.

Thank you for that - I have been an idiot, then - what I listed isn't helping....!

I have not had one biscuit/sweet since starting this, though - what I listed is everything.

So, what would I need to change for a real calorie-deficit diet, everything?

[Hoofy]

chris watton said:

Thank you for that - I have been an idiot, then - what I listed isn't helping....!

I have not had one biscuit/sweet since starting this, though - what I listed is everything.

So, what would I need to change for a real calorie-deficit diet, everything?

Start by logging and measuring. It probably worked well initially because you were by luck eating at a deficit but now you're nearer to where you want to be, you're lighter so have a lower calorie requirement which may mean you need to start weighing things.

The alternative is to focus on building muscle which will increase your daily requirements up to what you're roughly eating.

The latter will take longer but is easier plus won't leave you feeling guilty on the 26th December.

[chris watton]

Hoofy said:

Start by logging and measuring. It probably worked well initially because you were by luck eating at a deficit but now you're nearer to where you want to be, you're lighter so have a lower calorie requirement which may mean you need to start weighing things.

The alternative is to focus on building muscle which will increase your daily requirements up to what you're roughly eating.

The latter will take longer but is easier plus won't leave you feeling guilty on the 26th December.

Thank you for that. I don't mind looking like an idiot on occasions (especially when I merit it via my own ignorance), as long as I get things right in the end...

I think the latter of your suggestions is more valid for me, as I now train 5 evenings a week.

I was worried that if I cut down even more on my diet, I may lose some of my recent gains.....