Another awesome testimonial......

AWESOME transformation and testimonial from Jack Davey.  This is how you are a smart lifter and massage things to make them work.  Rather than asking for permission, he just went to work.  In the end, no forgiveness was required because he made shit work.  Great f'n job!

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Earlier this year I had that moment where I looked in the mirror and realized I had let myself get to a place I didn’t want to be. I had been reading Lift run Bang and Chaos and Pain for a while and realized I had no excuse to be out of shape and look like shit. Sure my lifts where going up but man it doesn’t feel that good when your waist size goes up with your squat.

First Photo 15/1/2012 at 102-104kg (224-229 pounds)
Second Photo 1/8/2012 at 86-88kg (189-194 pounds)  

I decided to change things up and here’s what I did with my diet
I followed the basic outline of the apex predator diet and each day would look something like this:

530-600am Wake up, Low carb shake chug as walking out the door to work

900-1000 After work, Train.
Followed by another shake

Lunch
Usually about 400-500 grams of low fat meat, loved kangaroo as its cheap as chips here in Australia and tastes damn good.


300pm
Another shake

800pm
400grams to 1kg of Fattier red meat depending on if it was a big or small workout day and energy levels etc. Sometimes the whole day was low fat meat if energy levels were high.

I had one day per week that I ate every carbohydrate I could get my hands on and as I got leaner I tended to play it by ear and have 1-2 refeeds a week if I felt like shit. The leaner I got the more I needed carbs.


For Training I didn’t really change anything. What I was doing was:

3-4 Big workouts a week.
4 on an energetic week 3 when feeling a bit run down or on light weeks.
3 small workouts consisting of a lot of bodyweight exercises on gymnastic rings.

I also did about 30-45minutes steady state a day taking the dogs for a walk.

I made a bunch of lifting personal records while leaning out. I improved on EVERY LIFT while going from at 104kg to 86kg. Who says you can’t lean out and be strong!

Deadlift- I used to be a part of the don’t Deadlift to be good at the Deadlift crowd. Damn It did not work!!

Previous best:
210kg/ 462 pounds at 104kg bw.
Current best:
212.5kg/467.5 pounds for 3 reps from a 2.5 inch deficit at a new bodyweight of 86kg.

Previous best:
Squat 200kg/440 pounds at 104kg bodyweight only just made depth.
New PR
200kg/ 440 pounds at 86kg to Below Parallel, didn’t try to max out but 200kg felt significantly easier.

Pull-ups
Previous PR of only 12 reps!
New PR of 18 reps!

Overhead press (one of my worst lifts)
70kg (155 pounds)
to
80kg (176 pounds)

Mainly I would like to thank Paul and Jamie for their awesome blogs, they have completely changed the way I approach my training, I was stuck in a rut until I started approaching things with less ego. I stopped being afraid to start my programming a little lighter rather than go heavy and start missing lifts all over the place, It really has been the key to my increasing strength. At the same time reading Chaos and Pain made me realize the Mark Rippittoe program I had been doing was no where near stretching the limits of my training volume, I started lifting 6x per week and paving my own path rather than a 3 day a week cookie cutter approach and go figure I didn’t get attacked by the overtraining boogeyman! I know my lifts are not earth shattering but you know what? I don’t give a shit! You lift more than me? Good for you! It doesn’t have any bearing on me at all. It isn’t about the numbers its about the process. I know I for one am not heading toward the big empty. I cant thank you guys enough for helping me realize this.