Leucine + B6: 82% More Weight + Twice As Much Body Fat Loss in First 12 of 24 Weeks on -500kcal/day Diet W/ 2.25g Leucine + 30mg Pyridoxine - To Good to Be True?

Check your nutrition labels, I bet you get 2.25g+ leucine and 30mg of B6 from one of your supps already

I am sorry to say that and actually this is usually something that goes into the bottom line, but I do have serious doubts whether the results reported in this study can be replicated in any of you. Yes, it is a human study, but (a) the subjects, 12 men and 12 women, were obese (34.76 ± 2.57) and (b) if the mere addition of 2.25 g leucine and 30 mg vitamin B6 would have such profound effects, everyone who has ever taken a commercial BCAA product would have noticed a doubling in fat loss, already, as almost all of them contain 2.25g+ of leucine and tons of pyridoxine (B6).

So what are you saying here? Is this study a fraud?

I have no evidence that the study was a fraud and I am certainly not implying this, but you must wonder about the magnitude of the weight loss and fat loss difference between the regular and the NuShape supplemented dieters (-500kcal from baseline energy demands calculated simplistically by  1.3× result of the WHO formula for basal metabolic rate), who ingested 2x 1.125 g leucine and 15 mg pyridoxine per day (whether that's on empty is not disclosed in the paper).

Figure 1: Changes in insulin (μU/ml), HOMA-IR, waist circumference (cm), body weight (kg), fat weight (kg) after 12 (blue) and 24 weeks (orange), relative change from 12-24 weeks is indicated in % below the bars (Zemel. 2013)

According to the researchers, who have published corresponding data for rodents and an analysis of the effects of the same combination of leucine + pyridoxine on total fat oxidation (>30g increase per day in a randomized controlled study; Zemel. 2012), the specific effects on visceral obesity could be a result of the

"reductions of oxidative and inflammatory stress biomarkers, such as plasma malondialdehyde (MDA), 8- isoprostane F-2α, tumor necrosis factor-α, and C-reactive protein, as well as an increase in the anti-inflammatory marker adiponectin" (Zemel. 2013)

they observed in a previous trial after 4 weeks, even in the absence of weight loss (Zemel. 2012). This would certainly be beneficial for both the lean and the fat individual, but with already low levels of CRP, MDA and TNF-alpha as you, as a healthy follower of physical culture should have them, these changes will be so small that they are unlikely to have any visible effects on you.

There decreased weight / waist / fat loss within the 2nd two weeks in the supplement group (see figure 1, yellow arrow for the discussion of waist circumference as an example) does actually provide evidence that the effect size will decrease the learner you are... even "worse", but rather hypothetical: The effect could also be diminishing, because the human body get's used to the new steady influx of leucine and B6 and their beneficial effects on the mitochondria, Sirt-1 and AMPK expression (learn more; note: as stated in this older article of mine, it works also without resveratrol)

---

Learn more about leucine, HMB, B6, mitochondrial health and weight / fat loss in a previous post (read more)

Bottom line: You are probably already doing what 50% of the subjects in this (sponsored) study have been randomly assigned to, i.e. consuming an extra 2.25g of leucine and 30mg of vitamin B6 (this is ~3800% of the RDA) per day if you consume either a "sports multi", a "high potency B-vitamin" or simply the next best BCAA or other amino acid / protein product with added B6. So, let me ask you a question, then. Did you get ripped to the shreds from this practice? No? Well, in that case you will probably share my doubts about the relevance of the data and the usefulness of the said supplement.

References:

• Zemel MB, Bruckbauer A. Effects of a leucine and pyridoxine- containing nutraceutical on fat oxidation, and oxidative and inflammatory stress in overweight and obese subjects. Nutrients. 2012;4:529–541
• Zemel MB, Bruckbauer A. Effects of a leucine and pyridoxine-containing nutraceutical on body weight and composition in obese subjects. Diabetes, Metabolic Syndrome and Obesity: Targets and Therapy. 22 August 2013.

Bodybuilding for Pekin Ducks: L-Arginine Supplementation Gets Poultry Stage Ready. More Muscle, Less Fat.

Image 1: Not your usual exercise and
nutrition science magazine:
The Journal of British Poultry Science
(Taylor Francis Group. 2011)

Those of you who have followed the Amino Acids for Super Human Series on Carl Lenore's Super Human Radio will be familiar with the manifold benefits supplementation with the conditionally essential amino acid l-arginine has on blood pressure, glucose metabolism, endothelial health, etc. If you also listened to the last installment of the series (Amino Acids for Super Humans III: The Sulfur Amino Acids), you will know about my special affiliation with chicken, with chicken. Taken together, this may in parts explain, why today's SuppVersity newsitem is about a study from the Chinese Hubei Key Laboratory of Animal Nutrition and Feed Science in Wuhan (Wu. 2011).

In their study that has been published in the latest issue of the "famous" Journal of British Poultry Science (52;2) Wu et al. report the effects of the addition of 10g/kg l-arginine to the standard-feed of 80 twenty-one-day-old male and female White Pekin ducks over a feeding period of 3 weeks:

[...] the addition of L-Arg had no significant effect on feed intake, but significantly increased body weight gain by 5·2 %, breast muscle weight relative to live body weight by 9·9%, carcase crude protein content by 9·2%, ether extract content in breast muscle by 11·9%. Arg supplementation significantly decreased skin with fat and abdominal fat pad contents by 7·6% and 4·9% respectively and the ether extract content of carcase by 7·2%.

For the poultry farmer, this statistically significant increase in lean mass and a decrease in fat mass compared to the 80 ducks on standard feed means more bang for just a little more bucks. For the average gymrat it would mean building muscle without getting fat via supplemtal l-arginine, if the results from adolescent poultry would translate 1:1 to adult human beings. That this may not be as far fetched, as the biological differences between ducks and men may suggest, is highlighted by a 2009 study of Tan et al. (Tan. 2009) who observerd similar effects in swine, i.e. omnivores, which - believe it or not - are a very good model of human metabolism.

Figure 1: Weight of breast muscle, leg muscle, skin and abdominal fat relative to total body weight
(data adapted from Wu. 2011).

In 2006, already Jobgen et al. had suspected that the underlying mechanism of the repartitioning effect of l-arginine may be related to its modulation of the metabolism of energy substrates (fat, carbs, protein). The decreased adipocyte sizes observed in both studies, suggest an overall decrease in triglyceride deposition (not a reduction in adipocyte differentiation, which would result in a lower number of adipocytes) to be the "mechanistic" reason for the "anti-obesity effects" of l-arginine. Wu et al. speculate that this may be related to a decrease in NADPH activity and, consequently, reduced fatty acid synthase (FAS) in the liver of the ducks. With the latter being the major site of for lipogenesis in avian species, specifically, this still leaves the previously raised question, whether, or not, these results may be transfered to human beings, open. This is especially true in view of the fact that, for most of you, supplementation would be initiated years after adolescence (remember the Pekin ducks and the pigs in the Tan study were still growing). 

Image 2: Reduced skin fat is something,
the arginine fed ducks and IFBB Pro
Dexter Jackson certainly have in common ;-)
(photo by: LocalFitness.com.au)

With appropriate training, one may however argue that you are in a "state of growth", as well... so, after all this could turn out to be another good reason to give the purported nitric oxide booster a(-nother?) try. But how much would you have to take? Well, it would be wise to take the swine from the Tan study (Tan. 2009) as a reference, because pigs are certainly more "human", i.e. a better model of human metabolism, than Pekin ducks. Tan et al. fed their pigs an additional 1% of arginine to their basal diet, which - considering body weight, food intake and nutrient composition of the diet - would translate to roughly 0.6g/kg body weight in swine. Taking into account the respective conversion factor of K_m = 10.31 (data adopted from calculations in Wollison. 1999), this would translate into a human equivalent dose of roughly 0.17g/kg or 13.4g for an 80kg human being [notice: there will be a short article on how to calculate this dosages available in the course of the weekend, so stay tuned]. This is not only way more than what was used in many of the studies that report no effects of arginine supplementation in athletic populations (e.g. Greer. 2011), it is also an issue of permanent vs. singular supplementation, with the latter being the (cost-efficient) method of choice in most published studies. So if you did not notice your small dose of arginine taken on workout days, only, it could be worth trying to take larger amounts on a daily basis.

Optimal Fat Loss - Best Time, Intensity and Equipment: Medium Intensity Aerobic Exercise in the PM at 60% For Obese and >60% For Lean To get Shredded. Vibration Training Won't Help, Though.

Although I suppose that what I am about to tell you won't settle the everlasting debate on the effectiveness of early morning cardio training on an empty stomach (or even cardio training in general) for fat loss, you may nevertheless be interested to hear the results of a a study which has recently been published in the Journal of Human Sports & Exercise (Mohebbi. 2011).

Figure 1: Percentage of VO2Max for maximal (red) and minimal (green) fatty oxidation (main axis) and maximal fatty oxidation (secondary / right axis) absolute values in mg/min/fat free mass (data adapted from Mohebbi. 2011)

Mohebbi & Aziz recruited 12 normal-weight and 10 obese men for their study and measured maximal fat oxidation (MFO) in the course of a standardized treadmill incremental running exercise, where speed and increment were increased at 3 minute intervals. MFO was determined by VO2 / VCO2 measurements during the last 2 minutes of each exercise stage. With the participants performing the same exercise protocol twice, once in the AM (8-12h fasting) and once in the PM (5-6h fasting) the study design allowed to assess both, the effects of exercise time, as well as those of the exercise intensity on fatty acid oxidation in lean, as well as obese individuals. The main results were as follows:

fat oxidation rates and energy expenditure in both groups in the evening were higher than morning; there were no significant differences in MFO between obese and normal groups. Furthermore, the fat oxidation rate in low intensity exercise (<60% VO2max) was similar in obese and normal weight groups, but in high exercise intensities, in normal weight men were significantly higher than obese men.

Obviously, these results have practical implications in terms of exercise time and intensity which also depend on the training status / body composition of the individual. For "optimal" fat loss while training in a "fasted" (or at least not a postprandial state)...

• normal weight men optimally train in the PM at an exercise intensity >60% VO2max

• obese men optimally train in the PM at an exercise intensity of approximately 60% of their VO2Max 

The substitution of the good old treadmill for one of those fancy XXL-vibrators, which are used by more and more gym owners to rip off lazy... ah, I mean attract new clients, would turn out to be pretty useless, however. Published in the same journal is a paper by Cochrane (Cochrane. 2011) in which the author warns that in contrast to claims from the popular press, which say that "10 minutes of VbX [vibration exercise] is equivalent to one hour of traditional exercise", just hopping onto a giant vibrator although it may "increase whole and local oxygen uptake", even when executed ...

[...] with additional load, high vibration frequency and/or amplitude [...] cannot match the demands of conventional aerobic exercise. Therefore, caution is required when VbX programmes are solely used for the purpose of reducing body fat without considering dietary and aerobic conditioning guidelines.

Image 1: Not so innovative as you may have though:
"Vibration is life", advertisement dating back to 1910!
(Der Spiegel, 1/1999, p.145).

Fat or lean, lazy or not, you better get your asses off your vibrating couch and out into the park, because - guess what - you do not even need a treadmill to get in shape. Apart from some running shoes (some may argue running barefoot would be even better), nature already provided you with all the tools it takes to strip off the unaesthetic and oftentimes unhealthy fat-pads and get your six-packs summer-ready. You're still reading? What are you waiting for? Go for it!

On a side note: Isn't it interesting that the results of this study suggest that higher intensities become more and more effective, the leaner / fitter you get? Well, guess why most studies on obese people showed benefits of light intensity steady state cardio, while more recent studies on fit people or even athletes suggest that high intensity interval training (HIIT) is far superior to "recompose" your body.

Alternate Day Fasting: Well-Researched, Proven to Be Effective. So Why Don't You Use It? Plus: Simple Alternate Day Fasting Blueprints to Get You Beach Ready in 2014

Alternate, better than intermittent fasting?

I know the hardcore "Martin Berkhan Intermittent Fasters" are laughin', whenever they hear about alternate day fasting. What I don't know though, if whether they will still be laughing, after they read this article, which is a brief summary of the latest research on a way of "dieting" with immediate beneficial effects on body weight, body composition, glucose and fatty acid metabolism that is.

For 99% of the population it is also  much more feasible than the classic "everyday intermittent fast" that was popularized by Markin Berkhan's Lean Gains protocol, which has - probably due to lifestyle-incompatibilities and the overall inconvenience - already been abandoned by a lot of its initial fans.

So, is alternate day fasting (ADF) the "better" intermittent fasting?

Although I guess, I don't have to repeat the basics, it may be useful to initially get this straight: When I am talking about "intermittent fasting" as in "alternate day fasting", this implies that you eat absolutely normal (to your usual satiety level) on day 1, and consume max. 800kcal (the fast) on day 2.

To emake the most of your ADF regimen, you better have your meal for dinner - not for lunch (Hoddy. 2014)

Why does alternative day fasting work? The reason you are losing weight is that you will automatically cut calories. Previous research shows that your are not going to compensate for the 60% reduction in energy intake during the fast (I am using a baseline of 2,400kcal per day, here) - not at all after one day (Levitsky. 2010) and only to a very limited extend on longer alternate day fasting regimen. If we assume that for most individuals the "rebound" is <20%, this would imply that you'll be consuming 40% less energy than usual on a regular "every-other-day fast" against background it's no wonder that this way of dieting this will shed ~1kg per week.

You got to be cautious, though, fasting every other day for more than four weeks, appears to be a stupid strategy, but you will learn more about better alternatives later in this article.

Unfortunately, the number of currently available human trials is still limited - not with respect to the presence of significant health improvements and weight loss, don't worry. Rather with respect to the underlying mechanisms and more intricate effects such as those K.A. Varaday et al. observed in their 2007 rodent study (Varady. 2007).

Figure 1: Fat cell size in inguinal and epididymal fat (visceral fat) after 4 weeks of alternate-day fasting (Varady. 2007)

I mean, we are lucky to have data on the overall beneficial effects and the equivalence to isocaloric calorie reductions (in terms of weight loss and health benefits, cf. Harvie. 2011), a metabolic ward study that compares the effects of three different alternate day fasting regimen over a time period of several months (which is the human equivalent of 4 mice-weeks), on the other hand, is something you are probably going to see only in your wildest dreams.

In my humble opinion, it's yet very unlikely that "not eating" will be more effective than cutting back by 50% in humans, when it does not provide additional benefits in mice. Moreover, cutting back by 50-60% leaves more than enough room to turn the whole spiel into something like an alternate day protein modified fast. Practically speaking this could look like this:

Figure 2: You can turn your alternate day fasting regimen into a "alternate day protein fast".

As exemplified in Figure 2, you could just follow your regular square 3 meals (30g+ high quality protein per meal) plan on DAY 1, skip breakfast and launch on DAY 2 and have a huge bowl of veggies, two slices of salmon and two to three spoons of olive oil for dinner and an optional protein shake as a dessert or in place of "bedtime candy".

The athlete's approach to every other day fasting would obviously differ from the one above. For someone with a high to very high activity level and an already presentable physique, two "fasting days" per week would be more than enough. In view of the fact that fasting on Monday and Friday, for example is hardly going to induce any significant muscle catabolic effect, the "two-days-a-week alternate day protein-modified fast" could even be used to limit fat gains and, more importantly, ill health effects on a bulk.

Especially for those of you who are still a few kilograms away from their bikini or speedo beach physique, alternate fasting has a whole host of advantages over "classic" friss die Hälfte (german, "eat only half of it") diets and the previously mentioned intermittent fasting:

Figures 3 & 4: Reductions in blood lipids in obese subjects on a 4 week controlled + 4 week free-living alternate day fast (Varady. 2009b); Changes in adipose tissue visceral-to-subcutaneous fat ratio (bottom, Varady. 2009b)

• easy to do + very high adherence rates compared to classic and - in the long run - intermediate fasting
• significant improvements of markers of cardiovascular health (Bhutani. 2010; Varady. 2009a & 2001)
• minimizes the ratio of visceral to subcutaneous fat (i.e. bad vs. good body fat; cf. Varady. 2009b)
• almost identical effects w/ high or low carbohydrate content (Klempel. 2013: -7% waist circumference, -5% body fat)

On the not obesity / metabolic syndrome related side of things, we can register

• beneficial effects on the clinical markers and general inflammation in asthma patients (Johnson. 2007)
• remaining 100% socially compatible on the non-fasting days (no "I am sorry, but my feeding window isn't open, yet)

And, as I've hinted at in the 2nd blue box, even the athletic almost, or already ripped SuppVersity reader could benefit - with only two fasting days and a consistently high protein intake probably even on a bulk.

You are scared that skipping breakfast would be bad for you? Well, in that case you should read my previous article on the myths surrounding the "most important meal of the day".

So should be all be alternate day fasting? I would not go so far as to say that you have to "fast alternately" for the rest of your lives. What I do suggest, though, is that you remember that ADF is a practical and effective strategy in your toolbox.

Based on my personal experience, it is significantly more convenient and a lot easier to adhere to than classic "intemittent fasting". Its efficacy is beyond doubt - even from a scientific perspective. And as long as you modify / adapt the number of fasting days, it can (probably) be done infinitely - as long as you don't end up at a weekly caloric deficit of >40%, probably indefinitely and could eventually even prolong your life (Johnson. 2006)

References:

• Bhutani, Surabhi, et al. "Improvements in Coronary Heart Disease Risk Indicators by Alternate‐Day Fasting Involve Adipose Tissue Modulations." Obesity 18.11 (2010): 2152-2159.
• Harvie, Michelle N., et al. "The effects of intermittent or continuous energy restriction on weight loss and metabolic disease risk markers: a randomized trial in young overweight women." International journal of obesity 35.5 (2011): 714-727. 
• Hoddy, Kristin, et al. "Meal timing during alternate day fasting: effects on body weight and coronary heart disease risk in obese adults (47.5)." The FASEB Journal 28.1 Supplement (2014): 47-5.
• Johnson, James B., Donald R. Laub, and Sujit John. "The effect on health of alternate day calorie restriction: eating less and more than needed on alternate days prolongs life." Medical hypotheses 67.2 (2006): 209-211.
• Johnson, James B., et al. "Alternate day calorie restriction improves clinical findings and reduces markers of oxidative stress and inflammation in overweight adults with moderate asthma." Free Radical Biology and Medicine 42.5 (2007): 665-674. 
• Klempel, Monica C., Cynthia M. Kroeger, and Krista A. Varady. "Alternate day fasting (ADF) with a high-fat diet produces similar weight loss and cardio-protection as ADF with a low-fat diet." Metabolism 62.1 (2013): 137-143.
• Levitsky, David A., and Lisa DeRosimo. "One day of food restriction does not result in an increase in subsequent daily food intake in humans." Physiology & behavior 99.4 (2010): 495-499.
• Varady, K. A., et al. "Effects of modified alternate-day fasting regimens on adipocyte size, triglyceride metabolism, and plasma adiponectin levels in mice." Journal of lipid research 48.10 (2007): 2212-2219.
• Varady, Krista A., et al. "Short-term modified alternate-day fasting: a novel dietary strategy for weight loss and cardioprotection in obese adults." The American journal of clinical nutrition 90.5 (2009a): 1138-1143. 
• Varady, Krista A., Carolyn S. Hudak, and Marc K. Hellerstein. "Modified alternate-day fasting and cardioprotection: relation to adipose tissue dynamics and dietary fat intake." Metabolism 58.6 (2009b): 803-811.
• Varady, Krista A., et al. "Improvements in LDL particle size and distribution by short-term alternate day modified fasting in obese adults." British journal of nutrition 105.04 (2011): 580-583.

Adelfo Cerame: Intermittent Carbohydrate Modulation as a Stepping Stone Towards an Anatomy Chart Physique

Adelfo's goal is to look like an anatomy chart. Now, I don't know about you, but I have seen dozens of anatomy charts that reveal less details of the human physiology than this side-shot which was taken only three days ago.

If you read the headline of today's SuppVersity article, first, you will already know that this is not day 4 of the SuppVersity Exercise Science Week, but (finally) another of Adelfo Cerame's guestposts, here at the SuppVersity. You don't have to worry, there's going to be at least some exercise science in the SuppVersity Science Round-Up, which does (business as usual) air on 1PM (EST) live! on the Super Human Radio Network. So, if you want to be among the first to hear the latest about

• the ameliorative effect of no more than 3g of glutamine on skeletal muscle damage and reductions in immune functions, when you're training like a maniac (learn more about glutamine)
• the superiority of protein blends with respect to net protein retention and why the way most protein supplementation studies are designed has brought about an overreliance on whey protein and a questionable "post-workout window of opportunity" (suggested read: "Opening the Anabolic Barndoor With the Key of Science")
• what percentage of track and field athletes would consider using performance enhancing drugs, if they had the chance and how side effects and the possibility of being busted would influence their decisions (suggested read: "The Brocebo Effect")
• gluten degrading bacteria most of us already have in heir guts and/or mouths and how they could help fight celiac and co. (learn more about gluten & co)
• the importance of doing both, cardio and weight lifting for anyone who's interested in optimal heart health (suggested read(s): "Weights or Cardio, What Comes First?")
• the fat burning effects of sildenafil and how it's combination with EGCG from green tea may turn viagra into an anti-cancer drug (read more about viagra & natural alternatives)

... the podcast, which will be part of tomorrow's Seconds is not really an option ;-) That being said, I have already taken up way too much room in Adelfo Cerame's SuppVersity guestpost - it's high time to make room at the SuppVersity's "writer's desk" ;-)

Adelfo Cerame is back in the house

Well, after a short hiatus from SuppVersity (a well excused one by the way), I’m back to continue my responsibilities of making my guest blogs every other Thursday anin order to share my experiences with the SuppVersity readers as I continue my journey through the world of fitness, nutrition and physical culture ;-)

For those of you who have not been following Adelfo's blogposts right from the beginning: You can read up on his amazing and truly inspiring story how, he got injured and turned it life around in his very first SuppVersity post.

The reason I have been a bit inconsistent with my guest blogs the past few weeks was - as some of you may rememeber - the final weeks of school before the graduation, when I had to learn, juggle two part time jobs and prepare for my upcoming bodybuilding competition in March '13. Not that I’m complaining, I love what has been put on my plate as of late and I’m definitely not going to take it for granted. Still, I am honestly happy that the storm is over now, that I'm finally done with school and have accomplished a goal that I set for myself 4 years ago, when I realized what my calling was and made the decision to go back to school and finish my degree in nutrition science. So now that school is done I can really focus on personal endeavors and other goals I have in mind. - with the first and most obvious one being the dang overall at the show in Florida, so I can finally earn my pro card to become an IFBB wheelchair pro.

I’ve been chasing this piece of paper for a while now and fell short twice last year to two worthy competitors. And as bad as I want that title, I know it’s not priority and never have and never will hold that title on a pedestal to where it becomes my main focus in life. It's my passion, yeah, but in the end it’s just bodybuilding, and not that important when I compare it to other aspects or priorities in my life…

Don't get it twisted, though! I am a competitor ...

.. and I will bring my “A+” game this March, and feel that I’ve made all the necessary adjustments and right moves to put myself in that position. This year I’ve surrounded myself with a great support system of friends, family, mentors, coaches and teammates that have motivated and pushed me physically and mentally to better myself from last year and to put me in a great position to have a shot at that thing again.

Figure 1: Comparison shot this vs. last contest prep back double biceps(img. Adelfo Cerame. 2012-13)

I’ve noticed some significant changes in my physique this year… I’ve been able to put on a tad bit more size especially in my lower back, I’ve been able to add some thickness to it and just might be able to bring out that Christmas tree that I’ve always been looking for on previous preps.

Full, pumped and yet still more defined - what more can you ask for?

In case you don't remember the full story, here is how Adelfo Cerame finally turned his 3-year love and hate relationship with carbs into a highly appreciated ergogenic & delicious friendship (read more)

The biggest difference that I notice is yet that I’m a lot fuller and that despite the fact that my conditioning is a tad better than at the same timepoint during my last prep. And If you’re wondering what adjustments I’ve made this year to make that difference? I’m guessing it’s the higher amounts of carbohydrates I’m consuming this year. That, and the higher training volume I am thus able to sustain. Combined with an increased frquency in body part specific training and the minimal amount of cardio, I've been doing throughout my prep, I was able to keep my overall carbohydrate intake at 150-200g per day, which is - according to my own previous standards, almost hillariously high. I have to thank my coach Alberto Nunez for convincing me to give this high carb moderate-to-low fat approach a try. It has worked out perfectly and according to Alberto, it's also going to help me finally bring in the conditioning and fullness, I may haave been lacking on my previous shows.

I feel that I’m way ahead of schedule from where I was at last year. And from the conversations that coach Alberto and I had; he told me that we haven’t even begun to get serious yet. Lol. So if that’s the case, then from this point on, I’m pretty curious and excited to see for myself how much further I can push my body so I can really achieve that disgusting anatomy chart look ;-)

"Bring on those homemade cheeseburgers, slow churned ice, and poptart pastries!"

Learn more about the RPE routine Adelfo used earlier in his prep

The picture Adel edited in right on top of the article was taken on Monday, when I was exactly 7 weeks out and on the last couple of days of an intermittent 3-week intensive dig at only 100g of carbs/day coach Alberto put me on. As of Wednesday (yesterday), we have started to slowly bring the carbs back  up on regular days and refeed days (WOOOO!!! Right in time for Superbowl on Sunday). Based on what I gather from the weekly evaluations that I get from Alberto, he feels that my body is lean enough to really benefit from an increase in carbohydrates, which will now after this intermittent low carb period be directed right where they belong - into the muscle! So bring on those homemade cheeseburgers, slow churned ice, and poptart pastries! It’s time to get serious!  Oh… Also bring on the fruits and vegetables! Can’t forget about those!

Well that’s all for this week folks! I’m glad to be back on a more consistent level from now on. And please feel free to leave comments below, positive or negative I will try to respond to all of them! Thanks for your on-going support :-)