Start -- End
1/16/2011 -- 2/25/2011
200 pounds -- 179 pounds (-21 pounds)
24% BF -- 16% BF (these are rough estimates)
36" Waist -- 32" Waist
Strength Markers (10 RM)
* I wanted to see if I would lose strength during this process, since I was following what others would call a "fasting" program. I know it's pretentious as hell, but I no longer think of it as "fasting"- it's just how I eat, these days!
Bench Press 150 pds -- 185 pds
Squat 180 pds -- 205 pds
Deadlift 115 pds -- 155 pds
Pullups 3 reps -- 10 reps
Programs Used:
Resistance Evil
Meatheads V
Now that the "data" is out of the way, the important lesson of this transformation (for me) is that Craig had it right from the beginning: you just have to experiment and see what works. Personally, I need the hardcore programs that offer plenty of heavy lifting because those kinds of workouts keep me wanting more. Personally, I need to monitor my caloric intake by simply not eating before 2 PM most days, and by offsetting overeating with 24-hour fasts.
Personally, I need to continue to be willing to try new things. Maybe that means trying a program that's focused less on heavy weights. Maybe that means taking a 6-week break from daily fasting, or shortening the fasting window, or experimenting with alternate-day fasting. Whatever it means, I am in control of myself again and I can experiment on a weekly basis. I know how to analyze results. I know what to expect from myself. My body is truly a playground, again.
I could say "for the first time" as likely as "again". It's true that I was
a 3-hour per day, 6-day per week gym rat in college. It's true that I took
in more calories via protein shakes then than I do now in total calories.
It's true that my life revolved around chicken breasts, tuna in water, and
protein shakes. But is any of that control? Isn't that really slavery? When
I think back to those days, and then consider what happened from age 23-29,
I realize it was more slavery than control. I wasn't the master. If I had
been, would I have gone so stark raving mad toward food- eating out whenever
I wanted, gorging myself whenever I wanted, thinking I would get in shape
again "another day- when I got out of college"
It took the 24-hour fasting to show me how to control my eating. However, I
would be a skinny 30-year old teacher/father of twins if it was not for
Turbulence Training. Or I would have gotten myself injured, then tumbled
back down the staircase of failure while I recovered. Best case scenario: I
would have worked out the "old" way, lost time with my family and friends,
and eventually joined the chorus singing "It can't be done when you're a
family man and a full-time worker." But Turbulence Training saved me from
that fate (and it's just as well... I can't sing for crap). The workouts go
by so quickly and, as a former meathead, I appreciate the little nuances
Craig adds to the program, e.g. Workout C of Meatheads V includes a
Stability Ball JackKnife and a Spiderman Push-up, both of which provide a
little work for the arms on what is otherwise a "legs/pain" day.
I figured out how to use the workouts most effectively for me: Week 1 was
the time to play with weights and times, decide how much I wanted to lift
each session, and to set goals for the following three weeks. Week 2 was
about seeing if my goals were on target- had I been too optimistic or too
conservative, or could I *really* finish the workout in less than 30 minutes
while not dropping weight. Week 3 was when I turned up the intensity- I knew
what to do, how much to do, and how quickly it could be done. Week 4 was
about outdoing Week 3, reminding myself that I didn't know my limits.
Six weeks into my transformation, the data above don't do justice to how I
have changed. Taking control of my eating, taking control of my exercising,
has given me the ability to take control of other areas of my life. People
treat me differently because I committed to and have followed through with a
plan that seemed to them to be relegated to people they would never know,
people who use supplements and go on television to show how much weight they
lost. I've inspired my cousin and another friend to take on this challenge,
to believe that transformation is an interior journey as much as a physical
change- to answer the question: Can you change who you are?
For me, the answer is "Yes". I have become the master of both worlds, to
borrow a phrase from the imminent comparative mythologist Joseph Campbell.
On the one hand, I control what goes into my body- whether it is healthy or
unhealthy, it goes in because I chose to enjoy the company and the food
around me, rather than to simply satiate my tongue (which is never full)!
On the other hand, I want to be in the gym, I want to get up at 4:30 in the
morning- as I did this morning- to make certain I complete the fourth
workout of the week. I didn't get up and get down to the empty fieldhouse at
the high school because I was afraid of what would happen if I missed a day;
rather, I showed up because it's just who I am. Now I control both worlds:
that of fitness lover/health freak and that of father/teacher.
I look at that before picture, SIX SHORT WEEKS AGO, and I know what Whitman
meant about a resounding "yawp". I cannot fathom who I was any longer. I am
a stranger unto myself, but I'm learning a lot about me. And I like this
guy. I can't wait to see who he becomes next.
