My body is finally adapting to a 500 calorie deficit, everyday I feel a tad better and bit more functional. Still, it’s going to be a grind for the next few weeks, after all I’m 59 now! Weighed in at 158.7 pounds this morning which is my lowest weight since around 1982. Today was a squat dominant workout, lighter weight but lots of reps, felt great!

“The catastrophe that awaits everyone from a single false move, wrong turn, fatal encounter – every life has such a moment. What distinguishes us is whether and how we ever come back.”

~ Charles Krauthammer

Fat Set Point:

We all have a current “fat set point”, the amount of fat that our bodies want to stay at. When you try and lose weight your body fights back because it wants to maintain it’s fat set point. That’s why over time that most diets fail and people who cycle through diets usually actually increase their body fat levels.

One of the keys to a body transformation is to lose weight in stages and slower is always better. My suggestion would be to lose 5 to 10 pounds at a time. For example, drop 10 pounds and then hang out there for a month or two to establish this new weight as your body’s new fat set point. This allows your hormonal levels to normalize and your energy and hunger levels to stabilize. Then it’s time to drop another 10!

Not many people care to track their macronutrients or calories but at the end of the day it’s calories in vs calories out and if you are serious about making a change you have to realize that it’s a numbers game.

To estimate your maintenance calories (this is the amount of calories that you need to maintain your current weight) then multiple your current weight by 15 and by 13. Depending on your activity level, your maintenance calories will be somewhere between the top and low range. Eat more than maintenance and you will gain weight, eat less and you will lose weight.

“But those who trust in the Lord will find new strength. They will soar high on wings like eagles. They will run and not grow weary. They will walk and not faint” ~ Isaiah 40:31

Sacrifice to compete, sacrifice to win!

1,600 calories a day is tough and because I have a day job I need to feed in the A.M. to be functional for work and to be able to train. After that I am WASTED! Plus I’m on-call this week and that’s an added stressor that I don’t need. At this point I’m going to lesson my cardio and increase my walking, I’m well adapted to walking, been doing it for close to 59 years, lol. My Classic Physique Trunks arrived and I think I wear them well, close to being ready for some shirtless pics!

“It’s simple, if it jiggles, it’s fat.”

~ Arnold Schwarzenegger

I have not been sick in the last three years and I’m wondering why? Historically I’ve been prone to colds and sinus infections, having one or the other and sometimes both at least once a year. What’s changed? I lost 60 pounds, gained lean muscle mass. I stopped eating fast food and increased my protein intake.

Could a few small lifestyle changes increase health and longevity?

It’s difficult for someone who has never gone through a contest prep to fully understand the physical and mental challenges that physique athletes in a contest prep face. At this point, on less than 1,600 calories a day, doing daily cardio and intense weight training as well as working a full time job, life can suck! It’s getting harder to focus, harder to hold conversations and even hard to play Words with Friends, lol. When your fat intake is around 30 grams a day, you’re subject to strange aches in your wrists, elbows, knees and ankles because you’ve lost fat cushioning. As this three year journey comes to an end, regardless of whether I place or not, I’ve gained the body and fitness level that I need for Life Part II. I’ve gained evidence based knowledge on nutrition and fitness and I’ve gained confidence in what I am capable of!

Down to 161.29 lb, losing about one pound a week. My focus now is on posing, sleep and not getting hurt. Do I think about quitting? Yes, I want to quit everyday but I have never been a quitter so I press on! When I ordered my spray tan, I also ordered socks, flip flops and a robe. She emailed be back and to let me know that I would only need a single sock unless I have two penises, lol. The sock is to cover my “stuff” during the spay tan, now that cracked me up😂😂! I am finding that functioning on less than 1,800 calories, lifting intensely and doing daily cardio is very hard, both mentally and physically, so it’s one day at a time.

“Sometimes you don’t want to look forward or look back, you just want to be.” ~ Al

My spray tan and polygraph are scheduled! Weighed in this morning at 161.6 pounds, lowest ever or at least since around 1982. I’ve gotten some comments at the gym about looking very defined and that’s a motivator! So glad I’m only competing against 40+, I think that’s manageable.

Question: Do you believe that the raw determination to overcome physical and mental challenges is a skill that one is born with or do you think it’s a learned behavior?

It’s getting harder to blog, between the intense training and caloric deficit I am wiped out and not my creative self. I am also sore all of the time now. At 10% body fat, I’ve lost a lot of intramuscular fat, that’s fat that actually supports muscle, adds to your strength and gives you the leverages you need to lift heavy. In light of that, for the final 6 weeks I won’t be using a barbell except for deadlifts and squats. Upper body work will be mostly dumbbells, cables and bands.

Finally under 162 but still have no idea what my stage weight should be since this is my first prep and first contest. I had no idea that this would be possible at 59!

“Wishing to be friends is quick work, but friendship is a slow ripening fruit.”

~ Aristotle

My weight is plummeting, my clothes are baggy and sagging, my big fat cheeks are gone. I am in uncharted territory, never been this lean before.

Looking forward to hitting a couple of my favorite restaurants when I’m in the Bay Area in August for a wedding. Should definitely help with my recovery!

“Change that lasts, takes time.”

Reflecting on another lifetime and remembering that strength is never a weakness and weakness is never a strength.