Chaper 1:Insulin Management + Efficient Macro timings

What is this about?

This is about harnessing and controlling one of, if not THE most anabolic hormones present within the human body. Control of insulin is paramount if the leanest gains possible are to be made. I will also touch upon a little macronutrient timing.

What is insulin?

As mentioned above insulin is one of the most potent anabolic hormones in the human body. Released in quantities from the pancreas upon consuming food, it’s primary function is to take Glucose, amino acids and fats broken down from food and deliver/push them into various cells of the body. These cells could be desirable like muscle cells or less desirable ones like fat cells. Yes you read correctly, insulin is a double edged sword! One side of the blade will help you grow more muscular but the other will help make you fatter.

What is insulin sensitivity?

As the title suggests, it’s nothing more than how sensitive your body’s cells are to the effects of insulin. The more sensitive muscle cells are to insulin the better as less is needed to promote a positive anabolic response. As such fat storage will also be minimised due to less amounts of the hormone being released.

The opposite of insulin sensitivity is insulin resistance. Resistance is indeed the opposite of sensitivity. Cells become a lot less responsive to insulin’s anabolic effects and become less efficient at storing nutrients. To combat this situation the body will release even more insulin to sledgehammer home the nutrients as best it can into the resistant cells. Prolonged elevation of insulin levels can contribute to large gains in fat mass as well as the development of Type 2 Diabetes.

How does one raise sensitivity levels?

Repeated viewing of Bambi is known to do the trick! Well perhaps on an emotional but not on a cellular level. The first call is to include cardio alongside your weight training if you’re not doing so already.

Cardio should ideally be done on a non-weight training day. Although insulin is released at every meal we can control the amount released by choosing our macronutrient breakdown of a meal with care. An example of this is the heavily acclaimed Pro+Carb and Pro+Fat meal combos. Pro and Carb meals are selected to give an anabolic boost at critical times when needed like breakfast, PWO and PPWO. Such meals will also undoubtedly turn off the fat burning ability. Therefore these meals should be limited. On the other side of the coin are pro and fat meals, making up the times when Pro and carb is not employed. These are utilised to help promote insulin sensitivity by keeping insulin low whilst also supplying another helping of protein and energy for growth and repair. The ingestion of this type of meal has been show to also aid the body in being more efficient with fat as a fuel source.

It’s probably becoming clear to the reader right now that when you eat (Micronutrient timing) is just as important as what you eat. The combination of the two is paramount in creating an improved body composition. Let’s consider the Glycaemic index...

A little on the Glycaemic Index(GI)

The Glycaemic Index is no more than a fancy title applied to list of foods and how fast these foods are boken down into blood glucose. The scale is from 0-100 with 0 being the lowest GI and 100 being the highest. Its useless talking about the scale without how it affects us, the aspiring Charles Atlas.

We are all told the glycaemic index is a way of classifying if a meal.Usually a carb based meal is conducive to a diet where improved body composition is the number 1 goal. Whilst I will subscribe to this statement in a general sense that it can help the masses choose a “better” source. I will however say that it’s generally the insulin release from these foods which is important.

Typically it is shown that the GI index is a fair indicator of a foods effect on insulin (i.e High GI = High Insulin release). This is the reason for me why the GI Index is useful! Foodstuff such as milk has a low GI rating, check the label for yourself next time you’re raiding the fridge. However due to the protein content of milk it ends up releasing a lot of insulin. GI is a suitable method for rating carbs but we rarely eat a carb only meal (shudder). Both protein and fat will lower the GI rating of a food but various proteins are known to work with carbs to promote a synergistic release and thus raise insulin a little higher! This should be taken into consideration when selecting suitable sources for consumption as it’s clear that although the GI index is fairly accurate in classifying a food, anomalies exist and will lurk on the shelves of your local supermarket.

Diet of the day

Another log for the day. A little short, no excuse except lack of cals during the first half of the day! im sure I won't shrivel up anytime soon.

The Breakfast shake

Ill have to take a picture of this monstrosity. My new breakfast shake for days when im to lazy to get up (sometimes cardio days too :( ). Revolves around the following:

• 2 Scoops Whey Protein
• 50g Hi-Fibre Bran
• 50g Porridge Oats
• 1 Medium banana
• 400ml Semi skimmed milk

I have yet to workout the ammount of firepower in that beast but Im to understand it will be fairly high in carbs. Precisely something I wanted to address. The ingredients are blitzed in the blender and followed up by a pint of water for digestion reasons. Some fish oil caps will be added as fat content is to be kept low but not omitted.

Randomness...

Ahhh a well earned rest - As of yesterday im on an official 5 days off from weight training.. Before the armchair athletes start tearing chunks out of my hide, I must point out that this is a scheduled part of the 30day program I have yet to inform the reader completely about... The notion behind it is that you have 2 cycles per month, each cycle consisting of 10 days on - working each bodypart frequently. When the 10 days are complete a 5 day rest is emplyed to allow for growth and recouperation. Diet MUST remain hot during the 5 day rest to ensure growth isn't impared.

Would you look at that weight tracker to your right. The maintainence phase is still apparently in operation despite me clawing back a measly pound. As a result in true hardcore Science Link fashion I will be upping the ante! Im still dubious that I will gain on 3800cals as opposed to 3500. Though an extra couple on hundred each day will have to go somewhere right!

Being as this is my blog and I can and will change direction in subject at any moment I would like to waffle about grocery shopping. You know when your taking your training seriously when you look forward/enjoy perusing the isles of your local Tesco at 10:30 at night.. Most blokes are out getting "wrecked" on Friday nights. Unconsciously applying themselves to every stereotype in the book in search for a good time. Whilst our little party goers are starting to get merry, I can be found with my nosed pressed to the cold refrigerated door of the ice cream section, oogling at the colourful flavours of Ben and Jerrys ice cream.. After an uphill struggle with my sweet toothed conscious I manage to walk away with a box of Skinny Cow lollies. These are the bees knees my friends! Tasty to boot and just 17g of hip busting carbs per lolly.. I would recommend the Berry Bust and Mint Chocolate for a tasty treat. I will hold up my hand and admit that besides buying sugar laden treats I tend to play top trumps with potential buys. It's sad I know but I bet i'm not the only guy with a fleeting interest in nutrition and diet who does this. A quick scan of the back of the box dictates wether or not it goes in the trolley! Im always amazed that despite the heavy cost of chicken breast etc, at just exactly how cheap it is to run a healthy diet! People always ask about the bill which accompanies my sometimes hulking intake.. Let me tell you that although I eat 6-7 meals ed, The price of a bag of oats, apples, veggies, posts of naural yoghurts, cottage cheeses etc are nothing compared to loading your trolley with "Weight Watchers" ready meals and goodfellas pizza's (Though the later is lovely). A 30 pack of eggs is £2... Thats a boat load of protein for your cash! Save your money and eat healthy.

"Vir dit dit whoop"

The youth of today

Have you tried running after some of the kids these days?? They are like whippets on elasticated rope! Either they are fast little tykes OR,.... my worn out freshly exercised legs can't take the beating.. Yea that's the one, blame it on the exercise.

I was about to spectate my usual Thursday night TV highlight of "embarrassing illnesses". Whilst realising how anorak the whole TV highlight thing sounds I must point out that it is a surprisingly entertaining piece. Much better than ITV's offerings of Emotionally shallow attempts to get the viewer to spend thier hard earnerd money voting for Mr and Mrs X in some random competition.

Lets cut to the chase. I didn't get to see the show! I was to busy chasing down some teenage ratbags in attempt to bring some justice to thier attempt to crack/break my living room window!! 2 of 3 escaped into somebodys house but one poor unfortunate guy was found in a front garden. Queue alot of swearing and stir crazy acts on my behalf and before you know it the poor lad has ran for refuge into his "mates" house.

A call from the C.H.I.P.S team later and the lad whom was caught was cautioned.. I must admit I felt sorry for the lad. He is new to the area and has already fell in with a bad bunch. He has also had the pleasure of being chased by a slightly hungry 6'3 nutritional robot. He is lucky he didn't throw the stones or whatever missile it was, though he had the poor fortune of being the slowest of the bunch!

A stern lecture from Robocop and a spartan handshake from yours truly, and the lad is off to do what young lads do, (franky vaughn? Xbox 360?) Im not bitter, I wish him luck for the future and hopes he grow out of this nonsense!

Insert random funnies here.

P.s: I had my photo taken by the angry mob from a house window! If I turn up garroted somewhere in the norton countryside. Please inform the police of this 'o' so vital evidence. Hopefully they will acquire the picture and put it on the news as a complimentary "Thumbs up" and a smile is not to be wasted!

Diet of the day

Heeeeeeres the pitch!

I'm quite impressed with the variety today. All the staples in as usual, the things I can;t live without like Chicken, fish oils, eggs etc.. I'm digging the pineapple! hows that for different? well its nothing 80p from down Tesco can't get you. Natures table ladies and gents! Stick to it and your onto a winner.

I'm looking forward to see what the scales say this weekend. I can either be pleased or disappointed.

I've been suffering from bloating in and around the midsection lately. After a chat with a few guru guys I know it has been concluded that I simply hold alot of water around the midsection when on 350+g of Carbs ed. I will be the first to put up my hand and say it messes with my mindset. I look in the mirror and feel I need to cut the extra weight off although I'm still not fully satisfied with my muscular size. Contrary to popular belief you cannot cut up and bulk up simultaneously all circumstances being natural.

A new camera

An exitable 3-style now has a digital camera to call his own. A Fuji Finepix S5700. Don't laugh! I have always got away with borrowing somebody elses or using my Dog and bone (phone).

Ok its not Paparazzi grade and I won't be putting David Blane (private joke, sorry Bailey) to shame anytime soon, but now I can slap on a photo or two of my physique in its current underflated non tuned glory! OOORR I could use the old golden internet adage "My camera is broken" Seriously..... Iv'e heard this more times than the crazy frog, well before he was fortunately axed from late night TV.

And for all the girly girls:

A flower for all the haterz :)

Diet of the day + Suggestions welcome

What are you doing here maaaaan? Serious question. I'm asking you the reader to have your say! Let me know in person or VIA the comments feature.

Breakfast was screwed up today. Tomorrow it will be NAILED! It's no easy task to put a diet back on track after such an important meal as breakfast is not capitalized upon. My personal opinion is that breakfast is one of the few preferred and idealistic times to be ingesting large amounts of carbohydrate and protein. Miss out and I will have to add in the missed macros into another section of the day where they may not be used as efficiently.

Diet of the day + Where im going from here

All mighty majesty, We have prepared you a banquet! Feast your eyes upon this days proceedings.. I shall mostly be sticking @ 3500kcals Ed for the next week (baring my Saturday night feast of chinese proportions). As usualy my weight/visual will be monitored and diet adjusted according to outcome.

I will be using the science link system for the forseable future. This approach is very simple in nature but also incredibly effective. It is something I highly recommend to the dedicated individual who has a grasp on thier everyday diet. Below is a model of the system:

Right now the casual reader is looking at me with disgust as they scoff at how incredibly simple the system is. Thats the beauty of it! With a constant feedback loop and adjustments to diet/plan it's alot harder to go wrong and achieve un-expected results. My personal use of this system is now quite simple - Each week (as you know) I will assess my body using scales, mirror, Calipers and perhaps photographic aid. If I fail to increase LBM I will increase my daily intake by 250kcal for the following week. I will keep using this system until I hit my goal, be struck by lightning or kidnapped by ET or that rubber dog sh*t looking alien from "Mac n me".

Perhaps when the end is nigh I can look back to this post and show that although some of us guys are fighting a huge uphill struggle.. Dedication is what gets us through!

Back on the hoss

Another Monday beckons. I’m not going to hit home the emotional weight Monday brings to the employed individual, but rather the emotional and physical weight from the forthcoming training week.

It has been said that 2 weeks is all it takes for a repeated procedure to become routine. I will agree with this statement to the degree that the procedure becomes somewhat of a habit and less of a chore but Dedication is still needed if the procedure is to be followed and executed correctly.

I would consider my blog somewhere between the above at the moment. It is quite apparent that since my trip I have fallen a little from the horse with regards to keeping you the reader informed on my daily training related exploits. As such Im going to have to chew on the inevitable and post up as recap of the last 5 days or so, just so I can clear the air and get back to what I do best. Writing blathering snippets of cerebral showering.

Training has been going well I must admit. The new 30day cycle is incredibly tough, though I would have it no other way as the rewards of a lesser challenging routine would probably yield less fruit.

I have at least 5 days of completed 30 day cycle to post for your viewing pleasure. I have jobbed the job of turning the routine into a digital form and now it remains to fill in the numbers from my print and post.

My Magic potions: BCAA

Peoples eyes tend to widen like that of a deer's caught in the headlights when supplementation is mentioned. Spangly pills and potions in fancy looking tubs line the shelves of gyms, health food shops and countless internet merchants. Its hard not to be drawn into the marketing and lofty promises laid out on the table.

Do you want my take on supplements? Yes no, well considering im writing this now and the reader doesn't have a choice then im going to proceed. :)

My opinion is that supplements should be just that, a supplement to stong finely tuned diet! To me consuming fine and fancy supplements with a terrible diet is like putting a nitrous kit on a ford fiesta. Its expensive, its not going to work as well as it could and its a little unecessary. Learn how to harness your diet, put yourself in a positive muscle building enviroment with this and then add in the supps to give you the extra edge! Add up all the small parts to make the larger picture.

Im going to talk a little on a plan thats going to be put in place on what supps I will be using for the forseeable month.

Branched Chain Amino Acids:
I have 500g odd of these I would like to use up. The voices of umpteen muscle heads dictates thier usage usually for pre cardio to help maintain muscle mass and stave off catabolism, to which I will be running 5g before my morning cardio for this very same purpose. The BCAA will be absorbed more rapid than a typical whey protein concetrate as they do not need to be stripped down to Aminos as protein would before absorption would occur. I would deem them ideal for fasted cardio due to a quick and painless uptake aswell as not providing a great deal of energy that could possibly detract from the reasoning of our fasted cardio session.

10g will also be sipped on during my weight training although it has been argued that 10g of Whey protein before training would be a cheaper way to skin the same cat as Whey contains a high ammount of BCAA's once broken down. As much as I value whey and use it regularly im trying to minimize it's usage as I prefer a solid source of protein for both taste and satiety reasons.

Getting Comfy back in the saddle: Diet of the day

Did you notice the weight chart? It has evened out.. Im calling this week a possible fluke and will wait until this time next week to take another reading. Once im 100% solid I have reached my levels of maintainence, things will be getting heated up and slowly the lean mass should start creeping up.

This has got to be one of the hardest days yet! it really is a difficult task to pickup where you left off i tell you. Im no longer suprised that people fall off the bandwagon when they start taking little days off from training here and there. Tomorrow will yield a bigger breakfast along with a larger ammount of carbs post workout.

I know I know i promised you peeps my workout from lastnight AND NOW TONIGHT!! please be patient as im working on getting the postable version finalised. Stay in school and eat all your greens! until next time you crazy kids.

Return of the Mack

Woooaaa im hooommee, uhh yea.

Evening all,

The blog has been resumed after my stint in The emerald isle. And exactly how are things in Dublin fair city you ask? superb I must say. The old weather could have been a little kinder but hey. Food is good if you know where to go, so are the sights.

Upon returning to work and speaking to a fellow few readers I was promptly asked about my training. Lets get real! Despite my obvious spartan like resolve to my training, I must say I didn't do anything conducive to my goals whilst away on my break.. No gym, No whey shakes, boiled chicken breast, flaxseed oils or even multi vits! I even dropped my no drinking rule to slurp on a few pints of fine Bulmers cider. I gorged on Buffet breakfasts consisting of multiple helpings of cereals, typical breakfast wares, fruit juices, breads etc. Feasted on pizzas and takeaways and fine cuisine from restaurants. Did I feel guilty?? Hell no! I loved it. A Holiday break should be just that. Getting away from the normal mundane events of everyday life and experiencing life with a different hue.

Right - The rebellion is over! I promised bells, whistles and fireworks upon return and so it begins. Despite the voice in my head telling me jumping from routine to routine without at least a 2 month stint is a recipe for disaster, I can't help but be excited at the new routine Ive just recently put into motion. Its like absolutely nothing I have ever done before! training will be CAREFULLY conducted everyday from now on in a 10 day on 5 days off fashion. Heavy, Medium and light days will be strategically employed. Tonight was my first night and if I was given an opportunity to sum it up with a plethora of words I would choose the following:

• Deceiving
• Jelly
• Perspiration

Such words were chose as the workout is tougher than a coffin nail. Legs were rubbery towards the end to say the least. The gym was no hotter than normal but I was sweating like a pig on a roasting spit!

I'm going to make up some words and say I will "excelisise" the workout and post today's offering tomorrow for all the interested partys. Please be aware that carbon copy's of the routine should not be attempted unless you know the theories behind the routine. Unlike other routines this is not a "collection" of exercises slapped together and done day in and day out. To coin a phrase of a great man I hold in high regards:

"You can slap a monkeys ass bright red but it sure don't make it a baboon"

A magnifying glass will also be getting passed over my diet as mentioned before my trip. Things are going to get tough.

Cockles and muscles! Alive, Alive-o!

Leaving on a jet plane.

Good afternoon blogsters,

As of the end of the day i will be away from the blog until Tuesday 5th of June. No no im not fedup already, the meat and veg of the blog has even yet to start! Im off to Dublin Ireland for 4 days with the missus.

On a nutrition related note. The ends of the earth are being scowered for nutritional optimizations for when I return from the emerald isle.

Diet of the day

As usual there is no escape from my daily eating. I don't have a great deal to say on todays eats. You may notice by now I'm pretty stuck in my ways with regards to food choice. Not by option I may add. I would love to enjoy eating things like red meats, fish etc but I don't like the stuff! Hence all the white meat based produce and fish oil supplementation. I used to be fussier than this let me tell you. It is only in the last half year I have even began fibrous veggies like broccoli/cauliflower etc. A half a year before that I would'nt entertain eggs and now I rely upon then heavily as a staple in my dietary fabric.

Im still not happy with it my diet 100%! Although acceptable. Im going to give it a spring clean when i return from Dublin as of next week. Everything must be tightened, greased and in order if im to start breaking into surplus calories and expect to come out in December a happy bunny.

• Carboydrate choice and timing will be up for review
• Fat balance with regards to Omegas, PUFAs, MUFAs etc will be up for review
  
• Breakfast will be up for review
• Post workout (PWO) protocal will be up for review

I will detail as best i can the hows and the whys of my revised plan when it has been created.

Nothing to it but to do it!

I could be on the internet browsing bodybuilding forums, In the gym listening to the rants of a fellow gym rat or I could even be talking to family or friends. One thing is apparent to me when it comes to getting into a fair physical shape. People get lost! Now don't get me wrong and assume that i believe I hold the asnwers to thier physical prayers, regular readers will know i suffer from the same ups and downs as every other schmoe trying to reach thier physical goals. I have also suffered from lack of application and patience.

9 times out of 10 people are their own worst enemies when it comes to this stuff. I could list a boat load of reasons why but I will select a few which I feel contribute to more trainers wasting thier time.

Number one is effort - If some dude told you that buried under 20m of sand and cement somewhere in your back garden lay £100,000. You would be busting your hump day and night with any powertool at your disposal to get your mitts on it. Lets jump now to the gym. Gym rat A spends roughly 10 mins each night flexing in the mirror, thinking in his mind about how crap he looks compared to the big kids and how he wishes to be one.. Now skip ahead to Gym rat A's workout.. Pitiful. He spends more time gas bagging on the phone and talking to his mates than he does serious training. If this guy Put his muscles under more exercise than his jaw he would be Mr Olympia in no time. If your going to do it then do it right, not the bare minimum. You reap what you sow.

Probably the biggest Killer of gym clientele memberships , reason for drop outs and general lack of results boils down to lack of patience. Only today was I speaking to a guy who is working hard at his training. This guys diet is ok, his workouts are structured correctly and things are generally moving in a favourable direction. Problem is impatient with his results and as such is looking to switch up a working plan in favour for something else! Hold your horses man, the guy is onto a winner and just because his arms are not measuring Arnie sized proportions after 3 weeks of solid application he is getting antsy and messing with a winning formula. More focus needs to be on the big picture! I go stir crazy when I hear about people with weight issues saying "EE I tried that new diet and it didn't work" or "Diets dont work on me".... I mean WTF?? 3-6 weeks, although enough time to grow,build and do many things is not enough time in the training world to turn a subpar physique into perfection. Hell not even 6 months is that long...

Something im learning with myself is that simplicity rules all in this world. Its a question of where you want to be and how is it achievable! Stick to the plan. Give it all you have got and give it time! Hard work pays. Ask yourself can you be working harder. Discard what is useless and keep what is useful.

Diet of the Day

A little unbalanced today. A little less carbs and more protein than I would have liked! Granted I could have adjusted (and should have) earlier. Distinctly lacking in veggies/fruits today. Not that I'm big on lots of fruit! Hell I'm may write my thoughts on fruit intake when I'm finished kicking myself in the teeth over todays diet.

Breakfast was chugged down in a shake form! Tasted rather good too. Look out for an adaptation of this recipe when and if my bulking requires the extra calorific clout! This shake could turn Gandy into freakin Godzilla in no time. Though I must stress that any fellow readers don't go drinking this stuff like its going out of fashion unless the extra intake is fully justified within your existing diet! We wouldn't want anyone to end up lard ass would we.

The spreads I use will be getting posted on here soon. I must have used approx 10g of the stuff on my toasted granary tonight. This works out at roughly 50-60kcals... not a great deal, but for a nitpicking bar steward like me it needs to be accounted for! It shall be done from now on!

Cloud 9

What an evening at the gym.. What an evening! no fewer than 2 compliments were thrown my way tonight. I must admit this is largely due to the fact that I usually wear some kind of baggy training top and when it comes off for a dri fit vest people tend to ask a few questions. Hell im not even 200lbs right now and people are saying ive gotten bigger. Its quite amazing how bodybuilding is about pure illusion. Hell I'm not a big guy ( not yet :)), my gym has no shortage of those, It's just nice to be patted on the back once in a while to reassure you that your not wasting your time or spinning your wheels in the sand. If anything besides a slightly inflated head, it is strong motivation for me to stay focused, follow the plan even more ridgedly and see where I can really take things.

Onwards and upwards!

Diet and Workout of the day

The very words stuck on the entrance door of the gym today! How inconsiderate :) Don't the hardcore crowd who own these establishments realise that us die hard trainers are freeking cyborgs. Messing with the system like this is enough to make my ass go T1000! before you know it ill be throwing pigs from choppers and chasing 80's punk kids with comedy mullets. OK OK so i went over the top.

With the gym closed I had to seek alternate means. Luckily for me Im somewhat prepared. It just so happens a £300 Body solid Olympic bench, selection of bars and roughly 160KG of free weights are hanging around at my disposal for such occasions.

The workout went Ok considering I had to drop the Deads. Why the deads? the meat and veg of the workout? Well I could have done them but I would have been running the gauntlet with crashing through the downstairs ceiling. Reverse barbell rows and curls were not hindered in the slightest, as such I choose to add a little weight over last weeks offering. Chins were limited to the width of my loft hatch (not wide enough). I managed 4 sets as opposed to 3 as weighted was not an option. Overall I would give the workout 3.5 curly dog poos out of 5.

I have also posted my daily eats as per usual. Im happy that im now on the right side of 3000 calories ed. I will be climbing again as the week progresses.(Who has this stuff lying around! A freeking cyborg thats who)

See below for the workout and Diet details..

From Friday to Sunday night

Seeing as though I have been enjoying a relaxing weekend, posting to my blog has been a little lax. Don't worry my incredibly minute following, I've got a job to do remember! Speaking of chores. How about Friday nights leg session. I didn't think I was going to get out of the hole on a few of those Rock bottomed reps!

(The Hole: The bottom of the rep. Commonly used in squat terminology)

No doubt every Internet hard man trainer is sticking out his chest right about now whilst guffawing at the weights used on the squats, especially in a smith machine! Let me say this, Not only do I see a distinct lack of squatting in the gym, I also see 70% of those who do squat do no more than a glorified knee bend at best! talk about Ego building. I have been guilty of this in the past but not anymore. Now my ass in well and truly to the grass, about 1 foot or so away to be precise!

Somewhere around 11 on Friday night my legs started to seize up a little. Laying straight out on the sofa was no sweat. In fact it was relief. I couldn't say the seem for bending at the knee. I felt somewhat like one of those Aliens from the films of the same name, like the blood in my legs had been replaced with some form of acidic solution. Despite the lack of mobility in my legs I couldn't help but feel my Friday night battle had been a successfull one!

Queue the rest of the weekend - No diets posted huh?? well I would have posted something up if I could find the nutritional values of an XL Chinese meal consisting of lots and lots of chicken, curry, chips and noodles! Man i enjoyed it SO much that no words and only a Homer Simpson Esq facial expression can sum it up! It's not big or clever or conducive to my goals to certain degree. However a diet must be maintainable, too many people fail because their diets are bloody horrendous to eat! Looking forward to a cheat meal on the weekend keeps my sanity in check.

What did I say about the weight drop! Talk about call it out. 2lbs lost. This coming week should straighten things out.

The dietary bolts are being tightened in preparation for tomorrow. Diet will be in check as usual. The gym however maybe closed due to Bank holiday Monday. I will manage im sure.