Down another 5 pounds this week. This, coupled with last week's drop of 5 pounds is pushing the max and I am getting concerned with these big drops. At 205, I am a bit too low but I don't feel that I am eating up muscle tissue, either. I just know this can't continue.
I am still on only single cardio sessions and will not bump next week to double sessions, yet, either. I feel if I have progressed at 5 pounds down last week and 5 pounds down this week, I should be good for another 2-3 next week with no changes.
You might think I am overdieting but I still don't feel like I am dieting, at all, really. I am not hungry and I am not run down until it gets closer to my Skipload day and that only because I a running such high volume for training and higher frequency than I am accustomed to. I get incredible workouts for my first 4-day rotation with my strength being ridiculously high (as high or higher than off season at this point) and then it starts to fall off into the second 4-day rotation but pumps are still good and strength is down a bit from the first rotation but still nothing alarming for running such low carbs.
I have wanted to stretch out my Skipload days longer than 8-9 days apart but it seems illogical as I am progressing so well right now. I contemplated pushing a third 4-day rotation before loading but didn't want to jeopardize workouts for what? Losing another 2-3 pounds that I will lose in 5 days post Skipload day, anyway? If I need to load I simply need to load and beating myself up by not loading doesn't make sense.
It is 2:15am and I am off to train legs for the last day of my rotation and I will come home and start my Skipload, going for about 18 hours. I plan to get about 5 meals in, as usual, and I will list the meals in detail as I typically do after Skipload days.
Condition is improved quite a bit as I am getting more detail through my quads now and skin on the side of my chest is now considerably thinner. Of course, I am watching my back/glutes/hips closely as these areas come in last because I hold more fat there as I have aged than I used to. Looking at myself from the front gives the false impression that I am leaner than I am so I focus more on what I look like from the back. I am noticing the fat on my hips and glutes getting thinner and that is a great sign.
I think my days of trying to push the load days past 8-9 days is over for this prep. In reviewing my progress with scale weight, condition, strength, etc., it makes no sense to push further out. So, for now, I am going to start planning on Skiploads after 2 of my 4-day rotations for training and that will keep me at the 9 day spread between load days (instead of 6 like I have always done for years of competing).
Here is what my Skipload looked like this week:
After legs at 7am:
4 frozen belgium waffles with butter, bananas, candied pecans and syrup
3 eggs over-medium with ham and cheese
2 banana bread english muffins (these are freakin awesome) with butter and apple jelly
8 cinnamon bun oreo cookies (these are the best oreos ever no matter what Phil Viz says)
SLEEP
1pm
1 de luche crepe with bananas and walnuts
1 crepe with gorgonzola, granny smith apples and walnuts
vanilla brioche french toast with custard, syrup and berries
6pm
steak and cheddar half-sandwich with french onion soup at Panera with 2 scones, 1 cookie and milk
I got stuck at the DMV having to get new plates for the car so this wasn't an ideal load meal but I had to load, none-the-less
10pm
Ruths Chris with my wife for a nice dinner. I will admit that I took one for the team tonight and this meal was not optimal. It was much higher in fat and lower in carbs than I would otherwise have liked but I have a great marriage and we haven't been out in a while so I split protocol and took the hit. I am lamb chop guy and never order steak at Ruths Chris. We also had sweet potato casserole, au gratin potatoes and lobster mac and cheese. I couldn't finish it all because I was stuffed and didn't want to be miserable.
This was an oddity as I don't usually make accommodations for my load meals.
2am
Cheese pizza (1/2 of an 18 inch) at Primarti's on the beach in Fort Lauderdale where my daughter works. This is that same floury dough that I have every week that is relatively low in fat and high in carbs
Only gained about 6 pounds and didn't fill out anywhere near as much as I have the past 2 Skiploads which was disappointing. I took an extra day off from the gym as I felt beat down and haven't taken an unscheduled day off since starting the prep. I just felt it was needed and took it.
Back to the grind on Saturday and looking to get closer to that 200 pound mark by the next Skipload in about 9 days. I doubt I will be at 200 as I don't want to drop another 5 pounds but I do anticipate being 202-203, for sure.