gem- your transformation

juanveron45

Hi Gem

I read about your transformation where you went from 23-13%bf in 8 weeks

First I want to say congragulations that was quite impressive

I have a few questions for you

1.Did you use the GSD(get shredded diet) by John Bernardi?
2.Did you cut all sugary and starchy carbs even during and postworkout?
3.Have you been able to maintain this or was this just for a peak?
4.Would you recommend a plan like this for anyone that wants to lose fat fast or would you recommend more carbs?
5.why did you do long duration cardio as oposed to HIIT?

thanks

juanveron45

also how did you manage to build muscle on such a restrictive diet?

crotalus667

Can we see the pic's g'em (the ones in the before and after thread arnt showing)

g'em

juanveron45 wrote: »

I read about your transformation where you went from 23-13%bf in 8 weeks

First I want to say congragulations that was quite impressive

I have a few questions for you

1.Did you use the GSD(get shredded diet) by John Bernardi?

Thank you and yes, I used the GSD. Even JB says himself though, it's not a 'diet' it's a way for those who already have low bf to get cut. As a 28% bf male it's not even something you should be considering right now. Even I was a little too high in bf to begin with, ideally I should have been <20%, and I didn't get 'shredded', I just got very lean.

juanveron45 wrote:

2.Did you cut all sugary and starchy carbs even during and postworkout?

No starch, no sugar, only two cups worth of veg a day. Everything else was fat (around two tablespoons of oil four times a day) and lean protein - whey, cottage cheese and chicken.

juanveron45 wrote:

3.Have you been able to maintain this or was this just for a peak?

It's a cutting diet, you do it to get extremely low bf for a short time (like a competition prep). My bf was so low my periods stopped, so for my own sake I had to put some fat back on. I was undereating (in as healthy a way possible) but it was only ever going to be for a finite amount of time. Since then I've been back up at around 22-24% and am now back down at around 18% but 30lb or so heavier. I'm about the same 'size' as the before photos, but with much less bodyfat.

juanveron45 wrote:

4.Would you recommend a plan like this for anyone that wants to lose fat fast or would you recommend more carbs?

if you're a male with <12-13% bodyfat or female with <20% bf and you have a decent amount of lean mass, sure. But it was the toughest 8 fugglin' weeks of my life - I was moody, I was miserable, I was short-tempered and I had no social life whatsoever. I still plan on doing it again in late 2008 though . Again, even JB recommends only doing this diet once every 24 months due to its extreme nature, but I'm under no illusion of what it entails. I know many people who tried it and didn't make it past the 1 week mark. I just had the support of TT behind me... and I'm a stubborn mare which doesn't hurt

For 'regular' fat loss, a low-moderate carb, moderate fat, high protein diet is fine. Then again for 'regular' fat loss 90% of the time cutting out processed foods/ sugar/ alcohol will achieve 90% of your results.

juanveron45 wrote:

5.why did you do long duration cardio as oposed to HIIT?

because your body quite simply can't handle HIIT. You're eating so little that you would begin to cannibalize muscle for energy.

juanveron45 wrote: »

also how did you manage to build muscle on such a restrictive diet?

BCAAs four times a day, fish oils, quality supplements (CEE and decent whey) and maximising my nutrient timing - the post-workout window was *the* most important time for me to eat.

crotalus667 wrote: »

Can we see the pic's g'em (the ones in the before and after thread arnt showing)

Before:

Taken the day before the GSD started.

After:

Reyman

Very impressive G'em to do this in such a short time! But for me you looked a lot better at your 'before' size !

Transform

Reyman wrote: »

Very impressive G'em to do this in such a short time! But for me you looked a lot better at your 'before' size !

you have to be ****ting me!

Gem looked fantastic at low body fat pics no contest.

thebiggestjim

First of all gem, congratulations on the results, you look great before and after

I am currently BF of about 24-26%, 6'4'' 106kg male. The main reason for the high BF is that I have been trying to build my strength and been eating a lot and not worrying too much about the fat consequences. Well after xmas its time to tackle the BF issue. I want to keep my hard earned strength but ditch the BF. I was impressed with your BF reduction and building some muscle.

Im looking to get my BF down to 14% and ill take any muscle increase I can get, Ill have 12 Weeks to do this.

Can you/ anyone offer any advice?

Here is how i intend doing it

Reduce my meals from 6 to 5 per day
Change meal content
35% protein 50% Carbs 15% Fat ( should I reduce the carbs further?)

Training
day 1 (30 mins cardio 80% heart rate, 1 hour weights heavy compound movements)
day 2 running 45 mins
day 3 Rugby training
day 4 (30 mins cardio 80% heart rate, 1 hour weights heavy compound movements)

Ill post before and after pics in the before and after thread and my diet,training regime. It might be of benefit (warning) to others.

Thanks

crotalus667

Excellent results G’em you look fantastic in the pic’s well done

thebiggestjim wrote: »

Reduce my meals from 6 to 5 per dayt

Change meal content
35% protein 50% Carbs 15% Fat ( should I reduce the carbs further?)

Im’ no G’em so she can correct me if im wrong but Id keep to 6 a day , and drastically drop the carbs and up the protein the protein should be the majority of what you eat 50% carbs is way too high

justsomebloke

ah start a new thread and let g'em have her moment of glory (again;))

Also g;em can you let me know when you are going to be doing the GSD again in 2008 so I can get out of the country:D

juanveron45

Thanks for answering my questions gem.

I have precision nutrition and gourmet nutrition by john berardi I also have burn the fat by Tom Venuto,bodyforlife by Bill Phillips,absolution by shawn phillips,afterburn by alywn cosgrove. the list goes on. I think im suffereing from too much info I mean while all thos authors might have different opinions about certain things at their core they preach the same thing

Intense exercise+quality nutrition=RESULTS

From reading burn the fat I have learned that I have been undereating with 2000 cals a day and using the forumlas in that ebook I should be eating 2800-3000 cals.

What I dont like about Precision nutrition is the 10% cheat meals thing I mean how do you gauge how far you can go with your 4 meals out of 42.I like the keeping the cheating to one day because if you limit it to one day it breaks the cycle of eating crap but with PN you can have a cheat meal every second day.

I wanted to ask you whats a realsitic target for me and what possible in 6 months?

g'em

Thank you for the lovely comments folks

Reyman wrote: »

But for me you looked a lot better at your 'before' size !

Transform wrote: »

you have to be ****ting me!

Gem looked fantastic at low body fat pics no contest.

Funnily enough, this was pretty much a common reaction between training vs non-training guys. Those that didn't train much/ infrequently/ "worked out" in the gym or didn't know what the inside of a gym looked like generally preferred me pre-GSD (I'm not making a comment on your training by that btw Reyman!!). Anyone who had the same aesthetic ideals as me or were, for want of a better word, gym-bunnies preferred me leaner.

thebiggestjim wrote: »

I am currently BF of about 24-26%, 6'4'' 106kg male. The main reason for the high BF is that I have been trying to build my strength and been eating a lot and not worrying too much about the fat consequences.

Coincidentally enough Mike Roussell has just written an excellent article on t-nation about clean bulking. This whole idea of eating everything in sight just to put on a bit of weight and to hell with the bf consequences is complete BS. It just means you eat more good stuff. A high protein, moderate fat, moderate carb diet that contains a small excess of calories combined with hard work in the gym is enough for the majority of people to gain quality lean mass.

thebiggestjim wrote:

Well after xmas its time to tackle the BF issue. I want to keep my hard earned strength but ditch the BF. I was impressed with your BF reduction and building some muscle.

Im looking to get my BF down to 14% and ill take any muscle increase I can get, Ill have 12 Weeks to do this.

Keep your protein and fat high - these are the two key things for muscle maintenance. Reduce the carbs right down and time them around your workout. During the rest of the day you don't need them.

Everyone thinks there's some 'magic formula' involved in losing fat - there isn't. It comes down to...

juanveron45 wrote:

Intense exercise+quality nutrition=RESULTS

I can absolutely, hand-on-heart guarantee you that if you can structure your diet so that you answer all these questions correctly, you WILL have a great physique. Combine that dietary plan with hard work in the gym and the results will be phenomenal!!

crotalus667 wrote: »

Im’ no G’em so she can correct me if im wrong but Id keep to 6 a day , and drastically drop the carbs and up the protein the protein should be the majority of what you eat 50% carbs is way too high

5-6 meals is fine, some people just don't like eating more often, otherwise bang on target.

jsb wrote: »

ah start a new thread and let g'em have her moment of glory (again;))

I'll milk those 8 weeks of hell as often as I can - especially at this time of year when mincepies, egg-nog, and hot chocolate is tempting me at every corner... I must stay strong!!!

jsb wrote:

Also g;em can you let me know when you are going to be doing the GSD again in 2008 so I can get out of the country:D

Late summer - I have a plan in store.

juanveron45 wrote: »

I have precision nutrition and gourmet nutrition by john berardi I also have burn the fat by Tom Venuto,bodyforlife by Bill Phillips,absolution by shawn phillips,afterburn by alywn cosgrove. the list goes on. I think im suffereing from too much info I mean while all thos authors might have different opinions about certain things at their core they preach the same thing

You've just said it yourself - forget about the tweaks and the gimmicks, at the end of the day we all fall under 98% of the same rules of nutrition. Keep it simple, keep it effective, keep it smart.

juanveron45 wrote:

What I dont like about Precision nutrition is the 10% cheat meals thing I mean how do you gauge how far you can go with your 4 meals out of 42.

Common sense. A couple of slices of pizza is a cheat meal. A serving of apple pie is a cheat meal. If I'm super-low carbing a bowl of no-sugar muesli or fruit is a cheat meal. Once you cut out the junk you'll train your body to enjoy proper food again, and even your 'cheat' meals can be healthy ones. Just because it's a cheat it doesn't HAVE to be junk. Good tasting food can also be healthy.

juanveron45 wrote:

I like the keeping the cheating to one day because if you limit it to one day it breaks the cycle of eating crap but with PN you can have a cheat meal every second day.

pure bolloxology. You'll overeat and overindulge and undo the rest of your hard work. The only reason whole cheat days worked for the GSD was because a) they were once every two weeks and b) I was undereating so much for the other 13 days. After eating pure sh!te the first feed-up day my subsequent ones were spent eating porridge, yoghurt and fruit. And the occasional Eddie Rocket's burger

juanveron45 wrote:

I wanted to ask you whats a realsitic target for me and what possible in 6 months?

How long is a piece of string? I'm not being facetious saying that, but only you know your situation. You're ~28% bf now and you want to get <10% right? Could it happen in 6 months? Sure. Will it happen for you in six months? I doubt it. I know you can do it, but as you've said yourself you're overthinking things. You're doing too much too soon, you're burning out and losing motivation.

Stick to PM - it's the best all-round, healthy-eating aid going. Sign up to the website and use the resources it offers. If you can stick properly to the PN rules for six months without a break, I *promise* you, you won't recognise yourself at the end of it.

No gimmicks, no fad diets, no cutting, shredding, just plain, old-fashioned good eating.

rubadub

g'em wrote: »

You're ~28% bf now and you want to get <10% right? Could it happen in 6 months? Sure. Will it happen for you in six months? I doubt it. I know you can do it, but as you've said yourself you're overthinking things. You're doing too much too soon, you're burning out and losing motivation.

Yes, difference between could & should. I think I was losing max 0.5lb per week. Slow is best IMO. I have kept it off with no problems. I am not a superfit guy but am now thinner & fitter than 90-95% of my mates, and used to be at the other end before. Now they are all in their early 30's and given up any sports they used to do and getting guts. I still eat some junk and drink like a fish 2-3times a week, yet am still relatively fit. I eat nothing I do not like, I think that is important, find foods you like.

I had no clean jeans this morning and had to put on an old pair I havent worn in a year, it was like one of those before & after ads you see, with a lad holding them out to one side showing how big they used to be! Very gradual weight loss can creep up on you and you may not realise how much you have lost till something like that happens.

Dragan

G'em is teh sexay 24/7.

Fact.

Jimmy Bottlehead

rubadub wrote: »

I had no clean jeans this morning and had to put on an old pair I havent worn in a year, it was like one of those before & after ads you see, with a lad holding them out to one side showing how big they used to be! Very gradual weight loss can creep up on you and you may not realise how much you have lost till something like that happens.

Tut tut, leaving the laundry like that!

But you're right, gradual gains or losses seem to actually stay eassier.

thebiggestjim

Thanks for advice gem, as promised ill have a before photo up early in the new year and we will see some results (hopefully) in a few months after.

Jim

walt0r

hahahaha