It has been less than a week but it feels like a month - maybe two.  Last week I was dragging ass, hating life and going hypo and this week my strength is through the roof (relative to the last few weeks), pumps are awesome, I feel full and tight all the time and hunger and energy are great.

The funny thing is that the changes have been quite subtle and minor.  Most people that have been asking about what I changed from last week to this week are surprised when I tell them that I have only really made one change:  I added roughly 50g to 65g of carbs per day.  That may not sound like a lot - and it isn't - but it is a relatively big change because the only carbs I have been taking in for MONTHS on end were postworkout.  Add to that the fact that I only train 3 days a week and you can see that the total carbs for the week last week (and for months prior) are now several times over what they were weeks prior.  

I am quite hungry and those that know me and follow me know that I am rarely hungry.  I anticipate that the carbs are kicking my metabolism and that is a great sign considering I was concerned that after dieting so long and doing so much cardio that I might need a few weeks to really respond favorably to the diet changes.

My weight is up and I am fine with it.  I anticipated that it would be and yet my body fat levels are the same - though it has been less than a week so it will take some time to accurately assess whether body fat is staying the same or not.  The incremental increases in calories per week or every couple of weeks is going to be very subtle so that the chances of adding body fat are unlikely or at least minimal.  I am roughly up 8 pounds though I could still drop some into the weekend before I Skipload.

I have finally figured out what I am going to do about cardio, too.  I have been unsure because I have done so much for so long that I really am not terribly hip to doing much so I was contemplating doing a couple sessions a week but have decided instead to go to 4 training days instead of 3 and not do any cardio right now.  If I start to see my condition slide or feel that metabolically I need to add it in, I will.  

Going to the 4 day split I am going to drop volume slightly so that I can add another chest and back day so that it looks like this:

M - chest/back/rear delts

T - legs/abs

Th - chest/back/rear delts

F - side delts/arms  (I don't train front delts directly, when I am training chest twice a week)

However, I am not going to start this 4 day a week schedule for about 3 weeks simply because I have too much going on with traveling to judge a show in a week, my son's baseball and my daughter's softball schedules are brutal the next 2 weeks (my son alone will play 12 games in 7 days) and my parents will be in town for a week for my daughter's graduation in 2 weeks.  In 3 weeks things slow down and that will allow me to make that transition at that time.

Next week's diet does not look to be changing simply because strength is showing signs of improving even after less than one week with the current diet change and I feel that next week will show progression with this same diet.

I am going to be sure to consistently use the SCGS compound for Skiploading, though, as I move forward.  I feel it will be integral part of my plan over the next few months and I am excited to see how much I can benefit from this.  Yes, I will still be using the carnitine, as well.  The load time will likely remain all day on Sunday, only, as I feel I can benefit from this length of Skipload without it being too much at this point.  Obviously, I will adjust based on how I feel my condition is progressing.

I am also excited about digging into the training footage for the TRTbodybuilding/Longevity2 DVD probably early June.  I feel that from a condition standpoint I should be fuller and still tight and that should be a good look for the training footage.  I will be filming the training footage not at Armbrust Pro Gym this time but at an excellent gym in Fort Collins, Colorado that a buddy of mine owns called Iron Prodigy Gym.  It is incredibly well equipped with some very unique pieces that are hard to find these days.  If his gym wasn't so far away I would train there more frequently.