Red Acid 30 Day Trip

[dominique]

Awesome... this grip on reality is so important.. just a awesome mindset right here... realizing that it's going to get harder and not easier.

Dig in !! We got your back girl !!

thank you. (digging like she means it)








Day 5 cont'd
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lifting: p.m. chest/back
strength was surprisingly good. had a PR on bench press, up 10#. it was crazy b/c i was so low key all day (dragging ass), even in the gym, but once i got into position for a set i blasted it. chest workout was awesome. back was a little more of a struggle mentally, really had to concentrate on staying focused. nonetheless, strength averaged on par for all exercises, up reps on a couple, slightly lower on a couple.

i was very pleasantly surprised by my strength during the workout. by the end, thinking was labored, ran out of steam...took a nap, had a couple meals & now i'm feeling fine.

mood: stable, good

app. sup.: good

[dominique]

dosing: back to standard (Day 1)

cardio: maybe tonight

lifting: a.m. legs
good workout. established baseline for strength on much neglected squats & hack squats. other than that, strength was good, on par or progressive for all exercises. (chest quite sore from yesterday...joy)

energy: felt fine for workout. feeling fine now.

mood: good

app. sup.: good. got in 2010 cals for yesterday easy.

weight: 155 (-3) this surprised me b/c it's up 1# from 2 days ago. i was disappointed...until a lightbulb went off in my head..... it's almost that wonderful time of the month. every month i fluctuate ~5 lbs during the week before/of IT, so although i will continue to weigh-in during this time, i'm not stressing the fluctuations. the reduced cals/carbs + cardio is doing it's work...& i will not hesitate to make adjustments as needed.

[asianbabe]

DOMINIQUE!!!!! Awesome back and arms!! hola! I can't wait to see you ripped!!!!!!! What is your lifting program like? I can only see your split. Damn you've got some serious guns and muscles!!


Ps.. do you play bass?! (in the background) I used to play violin but got lazy.. Those strings definitely strengthen your fingers though right!?

[dominique]

DOMINIQUE!!!!! Awesome back and arms!! hola! I can't wait to see you ripped!!!!!!! What is your lifting program like? I can only see your split. Damn you've got some serious guns and muscles!!


Ps.. do you play bass?! (in the background) I used to play violin but got lazy.. Those strings definitely strengthen your fingers though right!?

wow, thanks, asianbabe!!! i'm not sure how much you want to know about my lifting program so post here or PM me if you have any questions that aren't answered.....In general, I do 4-5 exercises for most bodyparts (6 or more for legs), 3-4 working sets aiming for positive failure at 8-12 reps for upper body, 10-20 reps for legs. When I have access to a spotter, I'll go for a few forced reps on most sets. On my heavier days, I'll pyramid up and sometimes do only 1 set at the heaviest weight. Compound mov't w/ free weights for majority of exercises.

Yeah, I play bass. and yeah, that thing will REALLY strengthen your fretting hand. I rarely play it though, it's more of a toy. I studied jazz bass in college and was allowed to use an electric, which is what I am accustomed to (I've played in bands off and on for about 10 years...bass, drums, guitar...but I quit when I quit drinking...don't like to be in bars/clubs anymore)

[dominique]

Day 6 cont'd
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cardio: p.m. 30 minutes mod. intensity. lightheaded afterward...i think b/c i was mildly dehydrated from afternoon fishing/sunburn.

energy: dropped mid-day through afternoon & then picked up again.

mood: b*tchy mid-day/afternoon....typical of this time o' month. other than than, mellow, positive

app. sup.: good. i woke up and had 1 ground turkey breast patty which got me to 2200 cals...so made target. protein very high, fat/carbs very low for the day. (i went fishing and got sunburned and a little dehydrated which had me irritable for the night...which is why i believe i ate the patty...it wasn't hunger...still not ideal, but within daily cals)


Day 7
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dosing: typical

lifting: abs/calves to be done after work

cardio: 30 minutes mod. intensity empty stomach

energy: smoothe, clear, adequate

mood: woke up pissy about the turkey patty. quick attitude adjustment and a good cardio session & all is well.

app. sup.: good

waist: 32" (-1.75")

I'm considering a carb up meal tonight since I've been low for 7 days & the next two days are my weakest bodyparts.

[pu12en12g]

thank you. (digging like she means it)








Day 5 cont'd
-------------
lifting: p.m. chest/back
strength was surprisingly good. had a PR on bench press, up 10#. it was crazy b/c i was so low key all day (dragging ass), even in the gym, but once i got into position for a set i blasted it. chest workout was awesome. back was a little more of a struggle mentally, really had to concentrate on staying focused. nonetheless, strength averaged on par for all exercises, up reps on a couple, slightly lower on a couple.

i was very pleasantly surprised by my strength during the workout. by the end, thinking was labored, ran out of steam...took a nap, had a couple meals & now i'm feeling fine.

mood: stable, good

app. sup.: good

Incredible !!

[joey joe joe]

Fellow bass player!! Great lookin pics there Dominique!! Wow!! I'm diggin those tats as well. What's the one on your lower back?

[dominique]

Fellow bass player!! Great lookin pics there Dominique!! Wow!! I'm diggin those tats as well. What's the one on your lower back?

thanks, joey!
neptune(poseidon) is on my lower back. he's waist deep in turbulent water, holding a trident and flaming conch shell. muhahahahahaha

i thought it'd help me catch more fish, or at least not perish in a horrible boating accident.

[dominique]

Day 7 cont'd
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lifting: abs/obliques, calves

cardio: post workout 20 minutes

energy: adequate

mood: fine

app. sup.: was a little hungrier, but no major cravings
Had my carb up meal.


Day 8
------
dosing: will have the extra 12.5mg e...need it today, oy

lifting: a.m. shoulders/traps
despite feeling tired/dull, the workout went very well. strength was on par or progressive for all. endurance & focus fine as well. it was interesting to be able to perform so well feeling the way I did.

cardio: later

energy: feeling sluggish, very slow/dull mentally until 9:30am. feel like i'm coasting, mellow. energy improved nicely after whole food meal.

mood: fine. attitude in check. cruisin'

app. sup.: good

weight: 157.5 (-.5) morning after carb up

[dominique]

Day 8 cont'd
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cardio: p.m. 35 minutes moderate intensity

energy: was good from late morning onward, cardio was a breeze

mood: good

app. sup.: after cardio I was really hungry and that stuck with me mentally for the remainder of the night ("I WANT FOOD!!!") I had about 10oz of lean steak for my pre-bed meal, and had a whey/casein/water shake in the night. I should have been more disciplined with portion control on the steak.....b/c I ended up with 2300 cals (+100 over target). Looking back, chugging water would have cut the appetite...which was due in part to being under hydrated after cardio...I soaked through my shirt.

weight: before evening cardio 156.5 (-1.5)

Day 9
------
dosing: may go with the 12.5mg e w/ 2nd red acid dose(??)

lifting: a.m. tri's, back
this was a surprisingly awesome workout. felt good, was strong, endurance good, focus good, great pumps. maybe the extra steak was for the best...just won't be making that a habit. to me, looking leaner & muscle full.

cardio: later today

energy: feeling fine. woke up before my alarm. much better than yesterday.

mood: good. did some mental work to be prepared for increasing hunger......my metabolism is starting to kick pretty good with the daily cardio. don't need to be freaking over a little hunger here and there...it is to be my friend in this.

weight: 157.5 (-.5)

[dominique]

Day 9 cont'd
------------
cardio: p.m. 35 min. low-mod. intensity

energy: fine

mood: fine

app. sup.: my friend visited throughout the night letting me know that my metabolism was kicking nicely, and we had peace. no cravings, just a little hunger. ended day at 2080 cals, all well.


Day 10
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dosing: will have 12.5mg e w/ 2nd red acid. and today begins my 2nd cycle of Xfactor. this time i'll be dosing 1.5g per day. the only side i had at 1g per day was a few headaches in the first couple weeks. this dosage is not recommended, and i am doing so at my own risk. i have gotten feedback from a reliable source that has tried this, as well as has used longer than 50 days, and has had no problems with it. i hope to be done with the loading phase by the end of this cut (day 20 XF), and will be primed to increase clean cals and grow like a mofo for the following month or so.

lifting: off

cardio: a.m. 40 minutes mod. intensity empty stomach, will do p.m. session

energy: good, steady, smoothe

mood: good. it's friday!!

app. sup.: was little hungry before/during cardio. no problemo. stomach may have shrunk a bit b/c had trouble finishing my breakfast - oh what a joyous situation that was!!! no cravings. hunger w/o cravings is very doable.

weight: 155 (-3) I would REALLY like to see 149 before this is over. Let's just say it's been a few years since I've been in the 140's & I didn't have this much muscle & I was fcking w/ eating disorders at the time. It'll be close, and if I have to, I'll just add on a week or two to get there.

[haiz69]

Wow, you are looking great - so soon too!

[asianbabe]

things are looking in check!!!

[dominique]

Day 10 cont'd
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didn't do p.m. cardio. knees begged me not to, and since by 6pm i was way too low on my cals for the day, i didn't want to push it. i had spent the previous 4 hours working on a posing routine which was a little exercise anyway.

energy: fine until evening/night....i crashed hard

mood: good

app. sup.: good. had to play catch up at night to get my 2000 cals


Day 11
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dosing: threw in 100mg caffeine w/ 1st red acid dose, dragging butt bad.
may do same for 2nd dose also.

lifting: a.m. chest/bi's
despite how tired i was, i had a great, progressive workout. i was able to unleash during each set, much to my surprise. in general feeling out of it & low energy, but from 1st to last rep within each set, i was all there.

cardio: post workout 20 minutes moderate intensity

energy: i'm dragging today. brain slow. but it's enough to do what i need to do. just cruising with it, not fighting it.

mood: fine. doing what i got to do. chilled.

app. sup.: good

weight: 155 (-3)

Planning either a carb up or just higher cals in general for tonight...legs tomorrow, with a partner.


thanks, haiz! working to keep that progress rolling.

I hope everyone is having a great weekend.

[pu12en12g]

How was cardio... was 20 minutes what you had planned ?

When are you experiencing the lack or energy or is it muscle soreness / lethargy ?

Great updates !!

[dominique]

How was cardio... was 20 minutes what you had planned ?

When are you experiencing the lack or energy or is it muscle soreness / lethargy ?

yes, 20 minutes was planned for post workout...didn't want to delay my post workout shake too long. um, cardio was tolerable for that session...once I get going on cardio, I typically have to tell myself when it's time to quit, b/c I could extend it usually w/o any trouble...tired or not.

From the moment I woke up I was experiencing overall lack of energy & slowness in my head...like thinking didn't want to happen. it felt like a typical low carb blah-ness...which is understandable b/c the previous day I only had 30g carbs. party!! But like I said, I was strong during all my sets for the workout which really surprised me. I will take being tired if I can maintain/progress strength-wise. This is temporary.

[dominique]

Day 11 cont'd
--------------
dosing: didn't have any extra stims w/ 2nd red acid dose

cardio: p.m. 30 min. low-moderate intensity

energy: interestingly within 2 minutes of evening cardio, my brain cleared, energy lifted and I felt great until late at night. most energy I felt all day.

mood: kept myself laid back mentally while tired, and once energy lifted mood was great.

app. sup.: good.

I did a little experiement for my high cal/carb day...... I had 8oz. steak for meal 5 (which resulted in an awesome workout the following morning after the last time I ate that), and meal 6 was my fat/carb meal - the catch is that I allowed myself simple carbs which is very foreign to my body these days. (ate nuts, nutbutter, couple types of crackers, NO water before/during/after meal). I want to compare weight fluctuation, strength & fullness for the following 2 days as compared to complex carb refeed, as well as how it may affect my metabolism (continued weightloss) & mood.

So far, so good. See Day 12


Day 12
-------
dosing: same as day 1, plus of course Xfactor 1.5g

lifting: a.m. legs
Whoa mama! This was an incredible workout. A couple of PR's and progressive reps. Felt very strong, focused, great endurance. (If this is a result of my "experiment" I'll be sure to use that trick again.)

cardio: 20 minutes post workout moderate intensity
will do p.m. session

energy: felt great today! steak & carbs????

mood: great

app. sup.: fine. back to very low carbs and restricted cals without a hitch.

weight: a.m. 155.5 (-2.5) [note: up .5 lbs. after high cal/carb, better than after complex carb up which brought it up 2 lbs.....very interesting]
(weigh-in late afternoon 154.5 lbs. Will see what tomorrow brings, but so far, experiment has been successful.)

[dominique]

Day 12 cont'd
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cardio: ended up just going for a walk at night...cals were too low & knees made walking difficult.

energy: great

mood: great

app. sup.: great. ended the day at ~1770 cals. lower than i'd have liked, but better than too high. impressive to me that i could so easily go back to low cals/carbs after the carb up...no cravings


Day 13
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dosing: may throw in extra 12.5mg e w/ 2nd red acid dose

lifting: off (p.m. will do abs, calves)

cardio: 40 minutes moderate intenisty empty stomach (will do p.m. session)

energy: fine, cruising

mood: feeling good, smoothe sailing

app. sup.: good

weight: 153 (-5) that's cool. well, so far, looks like the simple carbs in the carb up may have been what the doctor ordered. guess i'll have to try it again toward the end of the week to collect more data.

[dominique]

Day 13 cont'd
---------------
lifting: p.m. calves, abs, obliques

cardio: 20 minutes low-moderate intensity

energy: low but enough to get it done.

mood: great all day, then dropped alot evening/night. personal stuff, don't attribute to cut.

app. sup.: my mood/focus was off p.m. & I ended up at 150 cals over target.
i didn't have any physical cravings or hunger for the extra food -- just wanted the temporary escape.


Day 14
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dosing: typical

lifting: a.m. shoulders
this was a great workout. got PR on military press, and extra reps on most other exercises. thank you anagen! energy not high for workout, but focus and strength during sets was great.

cardio: a.m. 30 minutes moderate intensity post workout

energy: fine, mellow, and enough there when i need it.

mood: neutral. giving due attention to getting right mentally again.

app. sup.: good

weight: 155.5 (-2.5) Boooooo! Pissed me off so bumped up cardio a bit.
Since I'm approaching the halfway mark, will likely increase cardio sessions by 5-10 minutes. (Hmm, backlash of experiment? psychic connection? you make the call. j/k. need more data.)

I'm definitely leaner, and getting stronger each workout. I'm working on my patience. I want six pack NOW! If it were easy, everybody'd have one.
Since my strength is increasing so nicely with the assistance of anagen (and soon to have more help when the XF kicks in - which will likely accelerate fat loss), I may extend this another month just to see what I can do. Heh heh, but that'll be after some sushi and hummus.

[pu12en12g]

D, do you think your muscle were just more pumped or something on Day 14.. that's weird !!

Overall, sounding great though !!