Lover of trading, tacos, 3D/AR/VR, cryptos, and most things Japanese

The gym is my battlefield and I enter it with swords drawn.

Focused intensity.

Singularity of purpose.

To go as hard as I can, every time.

What’s your vision?

It’s been just over a month since I started training hard again and the results are pretty impressive. I’ve added 20 pounds of lean body mass (LBM) and, while I haven’t leaned out any, I haven’t added any fat either, so my body fat % is dropping. I’m doing a clean bulk – eating 250-300g of protein a day, keeping the carbs around 200g/day, and fat about 100g/day. In order to hit these macros, I’ve had to up my caloric intake from my typical 1800 or so to about 2700 a day. Five weeks in, I’m really starting to feel the difference.

Back in the days of living in L.A. and working out with Rich five days a week, I had put on some serious muscle. We didn’t keep a scale in the loft, so I really don’t know what I weighed in at, but given this morning’s weigh-in and that I’m not as big or strong as I was back then, I’m figuring I had to weigh at least 250. I was 247 this morning. That means that I dropped about 65 pounds of muscle in nine days when I had my accident. Uff. I’ve never been able to get back to the size and strength I had back then, but I’m off to a good start so far now.

I’ve added at least an inch of muscle to my chest, thighs, calves, neck, and upper arms. I’ve added just under an inch to my forearms. My waist circumference has dropped an inch and, curiously, my hips have gained half an inch – may be the glute tie ins?

This is why I track my measurements. I only feel bigger in my arms and sometimes my chest, depending on what shirt I’m wearing, and I don’t notice any difference really in the mirror. But the stats don’t lie – I’ve made some great gains in the last 35 days. Getting bigger in the right places, and smaller in the waist.

The plan is to finish out the remaining seven weeks of Jim Stoppani’s Shortcut to Size workout program from bodybuilding.com and then switch focus from gaining muscle to losing fat. I have been lifting four days a week and doing some low-intensity cardio the other two or three days. If I keep gaining muscle at this rate, I’ll be 260 by the end of the year. As long as that body fat percentage doesn’t start creeping up, I’m perfectly happy with that. Then, with the start of the new year, I’ll start focusing on the shred, with the goal of getting down into single digit body fat percentages. I’ve always wanted to have that shredded look, and have dropped almost 20 pounds of fat in six weeks once before – going from 20% at 220 to 13% at 195. I know what I need to do to get it done again, and am looking forward to getting the jump on a new bod for the new year.

I’ve made similar gains in the first month back to regular training before, so these results are not unexpected. I think the fact that I had trained hard in my youth makes it easier to get a chunk back right away. My TRT doesn’t seem to be having that much of an effect yet, other than perhaps the muscle weight gain. I’m not crazy bigger or crazy stronger, all seems to be in line. I’m inclined to believe my gainz are more from a return to regular training than the therapy. I haven’t noticed any significant differences in mood. My energy levels seem to be a bit higher come late afternoon, and I’m falling asleep naturally around 10:30 or 11pm. But again, these may be more attributable to eating clean and regular training. I’m due for a blood draw Monday to see where my levels are, and expect that we’ll be upping the dose again at that point.

All in all, a very productive month. I’m happy with the progress I’ve made so far, and am eager to see what the next month brings. 🙂

“At the core of every true talent there is an awareness of the difficulties inherent in any achievement, and the confidence that by persistence and patience, something worthwhile will be realized.”

— Eric Hoffer
(from the book, “Influencer”)