My Bodyopus Experiments/Variations

Basically what I am going to try to do is document just about everything I encounter on this Bodyopus experiment just as Mr. Lyle McDonald did with his Bodyopus diaries. I am doing this not to copy or “be like Lyle,” but only because I feel it will help me keep strict records of what will be going on. That way I can tell if any of my little “bright ideas” I have are going to do any good.

I have been trying to incorporate a variety of things along with the Bodyopus diet, but I haven’t kept track of what was doing what, so I really don’t know if any of those things worked. I am going to enter my first Bodybuilding show on March 20th, so I have about 6 months or so to try some things out and see what works and what doesn’t.

I have followed Bodyopus to a T and have had some awesome results. I was already a pretty big and lean guy, but was using Bodyopus to enhance my look to a physical zenith without the use of any steroids. What I am going to try to do is combine some principles I have either learned or come across with the ones already discussed in Bodyopus and see if I can’t get a synergistic effect from them. Here are some things I will try out:

1.) I plan to use glucose polymers to create an insulin spike before the Monday and Tuesday workout days so that I can enjoy a much better workout than I do while on no carbohydrates. I’m also hoping this will also result in an insulin crash at the end of the workout to drive me right back into ketosis for the “fat- burning” mode. This will take some finesse, and I’m sure it will be different for everyone. I plan to start small, track the progress with ketosis (it’s the best I have and apparently I will have to drink water like mad so I can piss often enough to check.), and get the timing and the amount right so that I can have the insulin spike just long enough to finish the workout.

2.) I have followed principles from Mr. Tudor Bompa on periodization training for a long time now. I’m an avid believer in this methodology of training as well as many others. I plan to see how periodization training might have an effect on building more muscle while on this diet.

3.) And lastly, I plan to see how I can incorporate either German Volume Training or German Composition Training or both into a ketogenic mass phase. Information on both of these types of training can be found via the internet or through Mr. Charles Poliquin.

So that’s my plan. Now I will also go into how I will supplement during these different experiments along with calories, and try to come up with ways on how to maximize the gains I will be getting. But first, some numbers…here are my composition numbers:

Height: 5’11”
Weight: 210 lbs.
Body Fat%: 7.5% (using a caliper)

Sporto

Bodyopus Experiment #1 - Insulin Spiking

Okay, here goes nothing. I guess if I’m lucky I won’t screw myself up too bad to where I look like crap, and if I do…well, looks like the Atkins diet for 6 weeks! Just kidding. Not a big fan. Anyway, the objective here is to see if I can still get some fat loss while insulin spiking on the workouts. Here’s what I mean.

I have been doing Bodyopus for 1 week now just so all of this isn’t a shock to my body (and so I can burn a little fat in case this doesn’t go well!). After I finish my carb-up on Sunday around 6pm, I will be back to 0 carbohydrates for the remainder of the day ( I might even just not eat at all, but we’ll see.). As we know from the book, our last 4 meals of carbohydrate loading are back to simple glucose polymers so that we can have that insulin spike which leads to an insulin crash to begin driving us back into ketosis with the help of glucose disposal agents (vanadyl, chromium, magnesium, etc…).

Now, what I plan to do is to create that same insulin spike and crash to accompany the workouts on Monday and Tuesday in such a way that I will be back into ketosis after the workout, so that’s almost as if I didn’t even miss a beat. I am doing this for the simple fact of how much better of a workout I have when I have carbohydrates. Think about it. For those of you who have done Bodyopus before, how good did that last workout feel on Tuesday right before you were in ketosis (or you might have already been in ketosis)? I always felt like crap, and that’s the point I started craving carbohydrates too. Not only that, but instead of looking forward to the weekend for carbohydrates, no I can look forward to tiny bit before a workout. Will I have the willpower to control it? I bet I do. After doing this diet several times, that’s something I have grown accustomed to.

Some concerns I have with this:

1.) I do NOT want to turn this into a TKD or Targeted Ketogenic Diet. I want to keep this a Cyclical Ketogenic Diet. As far as I know, this method if insulin spiking is used in TKDs, but not CKDs. I’m not exactly sure why, but I think it might have to do with the extra carbohydrates keeping me out of ketosis too long to not optimally burn fat.

2.) I do NOT want fat spillover on the weekend carb-up. I want to keep this a fat-burning diet for optimal fat loss. All I am trying to do is see if I can’t get just a little more muscle built within this very awesome fat loss diet instead of just preservation of muscle or a tiny increase.

Now I will outline my strategy day by day along with body composition numbers to see what kind of effect this will have on strength gains, fat loss, and just overall look. Again, the point here is to maximize as much muscle gain as possible while still keeping the diet as an “optimal fat-loss diet.” I’m excited to see how this will turn out. I will keep a log of everything just as Mr. Lyle McDonald did in the past and we’ll see what happens. Cross your fingers!

My next post on this log will be on Sunday since that is when the Bodyopus diet officially starts. Until then...

Sporto

I did GVT while on low carbs, and it was not at all fun.

That's just my experience though. GVT is pretty damn demanding, and I used carbs pre and post workout to get through it.

I used a product called Glutacene, which is glutamine and BCAA's plus carbs. 20g before my workout and 20g after my workout. 30 minutes later I did my Isopure.

It helped me recover better and I got nice gains from it.

I look forward to reading your journal as you go on ...]

Thanks Trainerdan for the insight. I am mentally prepared for GVT (I know it's going to be hell), but I thought maybe with a 20% or so increase to my maintenance caloric intake, as well as the insulin spikes (assuming I can get it to work nicely and get the right amount figured out and the timing of it all), that I would be able to pull it off. What I am trying to figure out and will be contemplating on between now and then is how I can control the cortisol levels and the muscle catabolism that will more than likely take place from such a workout. I would assume that that insulin spikes would help with that, and the workout itself would really help drive back down. The other thing too is that I'm not sure if ketosis is all that necessary. I mean, a little fat gain is expected when mass training, but what I am curious to see is if the workout does drive be back to ketosis (with the help of the insulin crash), then how minimal can I keep the fat gain while I put on mass? Or can I keep it to zero? That's what interests me about trying it. I don't mind going through hell just to see if it works. If not, then by all means....everyone please learn from me

Taking in carbs during the workout (sports drink) has been shown in clinical studies to blunt cortisol response, but that won't work for your program. LOL.

I'll do a little research for you ...

I figured that would be the case considering all of the circumstances. The hard part is figuring out how much dextrose I need to eat, how long it will take to absorb and kick me out of ketosis, and how long that will last. Then figure out whether or not, if i need more dextrose, to take more at the beginning OR to take another small dose half way through the workout...again I was leaning more towards half way through to see if it would help with cortisol levels, but I see now how my logic is off. Any information you happen to come across on dextrose absorption would also be greatly appreciated...I'll be looking myself as well. At least I have my Skittles and Smarties ready. LOL.

Sunday ~ 10/26/03

Ok, here is how this is going to work. I just finished my last meal around 2 pm (had an early depletion workout on Friday) and took my last doses of vanadyl and chromium. I have some debate about what to do on Sunday evening. Here’s my thinking on this. Since I have just ended my carb-up, my muscles now have been fully restored and are ready to go. Now because of that, my muscles are probably going to feel the best and have the best pump since they are “full.” I have decided to do one of the workouts tonight. Here was my original split of the Bodyopus workouts trying to get the whole body in two days:

Monday morning: Chest & Back
Monday Evening: Shoulders, Traps, & Forearms
Tuesday Morning: Legs, Abs, & Calves
Tuesday Evening: Biceps & Triceps

As you can see, I love lifting antagonist groups together (push/pull) on the same day. All I am going to do is work chest and back this evening and bump everything up a notch. I normally lift twice a day for about 45 minutes to 1 hour or so. I think this will help speed up the descent into ketosis by depleting the glycogen storage faster. Which means more time in ketosis and more fat burned. As far as the insulin spiking goes, I will have to wait and see how long it takes me to get into ketosis. I am hoping I can do it by Tuesday’s workouts. I’m wondering that even if I’m not in ketosis, will a small insulin spike result in a bigger insulin crash? Will the crash help get into ketosis faster? I will see what happens this week as far as how long it takes me to achieve ketosis and possibly try spiking next week for the Monday workouts. We just have to keep in mind that our bodies adapt to the ketogenic state, thus making it easier and easier to get into ketosis. So if next week the results are such that I am in ketosis faster, then it could be because my body is adapting. For this week, I will wait until ketones are present before spiking.

What I am going to do first with my workouts is implement a 12 week periodization training while on Bodyopus. Basically, I will vary the type of training every few weeks for a period of 12 weeks. For the first few weeks I will do more high intensity, high weight, lower reps. Then I will move more towards hypertrophy work. I won't go into all the details here, but I just wanted everyone to be aware of the format.

For those of you who are curious, here is my workout schedule for chest/back tonight:

Bench Press 3 Sets 3-5 Reps
Weighted Pull-Ups 3 Sets 3-5 Reps
Incline DB Press 3 Sets 3-5 Reps
Seated Wide Grip Rows 3 Sets 3-5 Reps
Cable Crossovers 2 Sets 6-8 Reps
Incline DB Rows 2 Sets 6-8 Reps

If anyone wants to know what a particular exercise is, I will describe it. I just call them by what I know them by. LOL. After all sets are done, I perform 1 set of each exercise for about 20 reps with light weight (~50% of 6-8 rep weight). By doing this, I have found it much easier to get into ketosis by really depleting the muscles of what’s left. After the workout I will take 1 scoop of Isopure + Flaxseed Oil & CLA, along with 1 serving of HMB (just to help with protein breakdown this week while in ketosis).

I just finished my workout and I have to say it was simply awesome. I had an extraordinary pump, all lifts went up, my energy level was up, and I even look “fuller.” This doesn’t necessarily mean it was because I lifted tonight, but I did notice a difference in just about everything between this workout and the Monday morning workout from previous weeks. I will start the composition numbers tomorrow as well. Now it looks like I am back to fat and grease. Yum. See ya tomorrow.

Sporto

Monday ~ 10/27/03

It’s about 6 am right now and I am heading towards the gym. I took a serving of Thermogen II about 30 minutes ago and feel great. That stuff is magic. This morning I am going to lift shoulders, traps, & forearms. I always listen to what my body is telling me, especially on shoulder day. Since my split has shoulders/traps right after chest and back, I have to be really careful not to over-train the front deltoid. I can always tell which exercises I will perform by how it feels, where it is sore (if it all), etc. Also, it depends on how tired my forearms are on whether or not I do any exercises for them at all. One thing that I am glad I did a long time ago was that I stopped using straps period. If I couldn’t hang onto the weight long enough, then it was too heavy. That way, for the last 6 years I have been building my grip and forearm strength along with everything else so they aren’t lopsided. It amazes me how many people have to use straps for even the lightest weights because their grip fails before the other muscles. If they would simply work those muscles too, they wouldn’t have to use straps! For instance, I am now able to shrug 405 lbs. without needing straps ONLY BECAUSE I trained a long time with 225 lbs. without straps. Make sense? I used this same concept with squats and lower back and have not used a belt (even while maxing out) for over 4 years simply because my lower back is strong enough to stabilize the weight. For those of you who are curious, here is my shoulder/trap split for this morning’s workout:

Military Press 3 sets 3-5 reps
Shrugs 3 sets 3-5 reps
Single Arm DB Lateral Raises 3 sets 3-5 reps
Mid-Trap Pulls 3 sets 3-5 reps
Seated Cable Twisting Pulls 3 sets 3-5 reps
Lower-Trap Pulls 3 sets 3-5 reps

Again, after the initial sets, I perform 1 set of about 20 reps using light weight to help deplete the muscles faster and speed up the descent into ketosis. Following the workout, I take in 1 scoop of Isopure + Flaxseed Oil & CLA with a serving of HMB.

I wanted to discuss the trap pulls in my workout for a minute simply because of how many times I either get weird looks (which quite frankly I love), or I see people in the gym trying to hit different areas of the trap and doing it all wrong. I just want to share some insight and anyone who reads this can take it for what it is worth. Think for a moment on how you do the normal trap pull with the barbell. The trap is responsible for shoulder flexion. You use the trap to flex the shoulders up, against gravity by the way, and relax the trap to let them back down. Now, how can rolling the shoulders in any way work the trap? Rotation is controlled by the rotator cuff, hence the name! So first of all, rolling the shoulders in no way has any resistance against gravity, which means no work being done by the muscle. Second, if your rotator cuff tries to handle that kind of weight, it will tear. The rotator can only bear about 5 lbs (give or take a few for some individuals) of weight before the delts will fire to protect it. Please take my word for it, I played professional baseball for 2 years. Trust me, I know this stuff. Now, since we know how to hit the high part of the trap, what about the mid and lower part? Well, all you have to do is change the angle at which your arms are in relation to your body and flex your shoulders! It’s that simple. So, for mid trap pulls, use either a T-bar or some row machine. Then, keep your arms straight while holding the weight and flex your shoulders back. It is a small movement. Be sure not to bend the elbows and take resistance off the trap. And for low traps, hang off of a pull up bar and flex the shoulders down. These exercises will feel awkward at first and take some getting used to, but trust me it is worth it. I have been doing these for a couple of years and I get really nice compliments on the “Christmas tree” trap I now have in my back. It is only because I have hit every area of the trap and not just the higher part.

It’s now 7pm and I am beginning to wind down for the evening. I hit shoulders and traps this morning at 6am as mentioned earlier, followed by about 20 minutes of low intensity cardio at 9am. At about 4pm, I hit legs. For those that are curious, here is my leg workout:

Squats 3 sets 3-5 reps
Stiff-Leg Dead-lift 3 sets 3-5 reps
Hack Squat 3 sets 3-5 reps
Leg Curl 2 sets 6-8 reps
Leg Extension 2 sets 6-8 reps
Standing Calves 2 sets 6-8 reps
Seated Calves 2 sets 6-8 reps

Like before, after the initial sets, I perform 1 set of about 20 reps using light weight to help deplete the muscles faster and speed up the descent into ketosis. Following the workout, I take in 1 scoop of Isopure + Flaxseed Oil & CLA with a serving of HMB.

I must say, these last two workouts were pretty interesting. I didn’t really have a whole lot of energy. I could (and still can) feel my blood glucose levels really starting to get low. The strange thing was that I still went up in all my lifts today. They are all up from the last few weeks. I thought that with all the cardio I did last week, my legs would be toast and I would have struggled with the weight. But sure enough, I was able to pound out 455 lbs. on my parallel squat today. I was really surprised. I have always had a good squat, mostly because I was a catcher for 19 years and I have really good technique, but this leg day really amazed me. What can I say…I love these diets. LOL. I just wanted to mention that have still been supplementing with my glucose disposal agents even though I haven’t brought it up. I take 800mcg of chromium picolinate spread throughout the day in 4 different 200mcg doses. I also take 4 different doses of vanadyl sulfate in 30mg doses to achieve 120mg a day. So far, these are the only two I use and I am having good results achieving ketosis fast. I came in at 207 lbs. today and the skin fold sum is down 1. Things are looking good so far. I just checked for ketones and I have some present. I figured that would happen because of all the cardio I have done all day. I mentioned 20 minutes of low intensity at 9 am, but I do a lot more throughout the day. I have a few gym classes this semester, which include swimming, basketball, and self-defense. So I am pretty active all day long. Which is why I am surprised at the strength gain. Oh well, looks like I won’t have to wait another week to carb spike. I will do it tomorrow morning first thing before the final weight workout. I will discuss more about it tomorrow. See ya then.

Sporto

Tuesday ~ 10/28/03

Well, here goes nothing. I woke up this morning at 5am to take in about 40g of carbohydrates through Skittles. I also checked to make sure I was still in ketosis (hoping last night was real and it really only took me one day to get into ketosis), and sure enough I was. I didn’t notice any difference as far as alertness or energy goes, but that’s probably because I use a Thermogen stack to help with that. What I did notice was that my muscles didn’t fatigue near as fast. Usually I can feel the burn a lot quicker in my sets, but this morning did resemble a workout on a modern diet. Right at about the end of the workout, about 45-55 minutes or so, I could feel the crash starting. It felt like everything just kind of left me. When I finished I took in the usual post-workout drink with the usual post-workout supplements. For those of you who are curious on what my routine is for biceps/triceps:

Standing BB Curl 3 sets 4-6 reps
Standing Tricep Extensions 3 sets 4-6 reps
Preacher Curls 3 sets 4-6 reps
Skull Crushers 3 sets 4-6 reps
Concentration Curls 2 sets 6-8 reps
1 Arm Cable Extensions 2 sets 6-8 reps

Mental note: I wonder if taking in a small amount (~20g) of carbohydrates with the protein shake would be a good idea to help with recovery? I do notice longer recovery time (obviously!), and just wonder if this may help the legs since I don’t want to over-train them. I am getting awful close to a TKD I know. LOL.

Anyway, that was the last of my weighted workouts. I have been checking every time I have to piss for ketones, and sure enough, every time it showed moderate ketones. I wanted to make sure I was in ketosis, and that my liver wasn’t just dumping them and making the switch back to glycogen. I added in about 20 minutes of low intensity cardio to help burn some fat. I might be pushing it a little, but if my strength is still going up, why not? I continue the same dosing schedule of all the supplements outlined in yesterday’s log. Oh, one more thing. I did take a 20mg dose of vanadyl and a 100 mcg dose of chromium with the protein shake. They are about half servings and I just wanted to make sure I wasn’t out of ketosis longer than I had to be. I don’t really have much else to report. Everything is going smoothly. My skin folds stayed the same and weight dropped 1 lb. I don’t think it is muscle, not if strength is going up. We’ll see how I feel tomorrow. Until then...

Sporto

I know I am a day behind here, but that's because there really isn't anything new to report. Both Wednesday and Thursday's diet is exactly the same as before (without glucose disposal agents), and the workouts are strictly cardio. The thermogenics are blunting my hunger, so I haven't been eating as much. I will probably lose some nice fat, but I'm not sure how my muscles will hold. I have been really active too because of some gym classes I'm taking, which is in addition to the 30 minutes of cardio I do at 6am. Other than that, nothing new to report other than how exciting the carb up is looking. Especially, since I had a dream about eating pizza last night!

Oh, almost forgot. I bought Lyle's books on "The Ketogenic Diet" and "The Ultimate Diet 2.0." It seems UD2 takes into consideration the type of training at different phases of the diet in more detail...which I like. I also am wondering if ketosis is really necessary. A lot of his research is really interesting. After Sunday's workout, I am thinking about taking a week or two off from dieting so i can give the UD2 a try. I really want to know if for me personally that ketosis is really necessary. That's what I think I might do. If it turns out that it's not for me...I will be back on Bodyopus for a mass gaining cycle. When I do the UD2, I will also use the mass gaining cycle, and depending on the fat gain will be whether or not I continue. I have access to both calipers and hydrostatic weighing for BF% on a regular basis, so I will keep strict watch.

Anyway, see ya tomorrow after the carb-up!

Sporto

Here is an update on what I am doing:

The carb-up of my last week on Bodyopus went great. I finished Sunday evening and looked really lean as well as my muscles feeling really full. I took Monday off from everything and just had a normal day of eating and no exercise. Today I started Lyle McDonald's "Ultimate Diet 2.0." If you are curious about where I get my numbers, training regimen, etc..just ask me. It's all explained in the book, but I will try to help explain the best I can. Anyway, today was the start of the diet. Here is what I have so far:

11/04/03 – Tuesday

I woke up at around 5:15am to take in 40g of carbs, 15g whey, and my thermogenic stack (I use Thermogen II). I headed for the gym and started my workout around 6am. Today I worked chest, back, shoulders, and traps. I like working the muscle groups that involve the shoulder girdle all in one day. This morning’s workout was awesome. I finished in about 1 hour and 20 minutes using a “superset” type method with the antagonist muscle groups. Here is my workout that I used for depletion:

DB Bench Press 3 sets 12-15 reps
Wide Grip Pull-Downs 3 sets 12-15 reps

DB Incline Press 3 sets 12-15 reps
Wide Grip T-Bar 3 sets 12-15 reps

Cable Crossovers 3 sets 12-15 reps
DB Reverse Incline Rows 3 sets 12-15 reps

DB Military Press 3 sets 12-15 reps
DB Shrugs 3 sets 12-15 reps

DB Lateral Raises 3 sets 12-15 reps
Mid-Trap Pulls 3 sets 12-15 reps

DB Rear Delt Raises 3 sets 12-15 reps
Low-Trap Pulls 3 sets 12-15 reps

Today felt great. Most of the exercises went to 20 reps because my strength has gone up since my last depletion workout. I had an awesome pump and felt like I was really getting depleted as well. I’m using the mass gaining variation to this diet for the next 6-8 weeks. Since my weight is about 205 lbs. and my maintenance caloric intake is around 3000 calories, today’s diet will look like this:

Total calories: 2000 calories
Carbs: 100g = 400 calories
Protein: 205g = 820 calories
Fat: 87g = 783 calories
Ratio: 20% Carbs/41% Protein/39% Fat

I’m going to use the majority of my carb intake for pre-workout and post-workout. The rest of the day will look pretty much like my “keto” diet except for possibly a salad in the evening. I plan on doing about 20 minutes of low intensity cardio today as well. Other than that, I’m just going to make sure I stay around my ratios for the rest of the day.

Sporto

11/05/03 – Wednesday

Again, I woke up at around 5:15am to take in 40g of carbs, 15g whey, and my thermogenic stack. I headed for the gym and started my workout around 6am. Today I worked legs, calves, abs, biceps, and triceps. I had another great workout. I finished in about 1 hour and 20 minutes again using the “superset” method. Here is my workout that I used for depletion:

Squats 3 sets 12-15 reps
Standing Calves 2 sets 12-15 reps
Seated Calves 2 sets 12-15 reps

DB Unilateral Stiff-Leg Deadlift 3 sets 12-15 reps
Hack Squat 3 sets 12-15 reps

Seated Hamstring Curls 1 set 12-15 reps
Quad Extensions 1 set 12-15 reps
Lying Hamstring Curls 1 set 12-15 reps
Quad Extensions 1 set 12-15 reps

Weighted Ab Routine 3 sets 12-15 reps

DB Seated Curls 1 set 12-15 reps
Tricep Rope Extensions 1 set 12-15 reps

DB Preacher Curls 1 set 12-15 reps
DB Rolling Tricep Extensions 1 set 12-15 reps

DB Concentration Curls 1 set 12-15 reps
DB Kickbacks 1 set 12-15 reps

Again, I'm using the same scheme as yesterday as far as diet and training type (depletion) goes. My diet will look the same also:

Total calories: 2000 calories
Carbs: 100g = 400 calories
Protein: 205g = 820 calories
Fat: 87g = 783 calories
Ratio: 20% Carbs/41% Protein/39% Fat

I'm not going to do cardio today. I'm just going to rest and do some tomorrow since I won't have anything else to do. My weight has gone up to 210 lbs. I'm not sure why this happened, unless I took in maintenance calories or higher. I kept carbs to 100g with 80g being used for pre and post workout. I don't look fat, bloated, or smoothed out at all. In fact, I look even better, and I really don't care how! Well, tomorrow is a boring day, all I will do is use the following diet:

Thursday - 3000 calories
Carbs - 100g = 400 calories
Protein - 205g = 820 calories
Fat - 198g = 1780 calories
Ratio - 13% Carbs/27% Protein/60% Fat

Along with that, I will do about 20-30 minutes of low intensity cardio. All I have to do is make sure I am eating; the Thermogen stack blunts my hunger. So until Friday...

Sporto

11/06/03 - Thursday

Just a boring day. I did 20 minutes of low intensity cardio and barely broke a sweat. Here is my diet plan for the day:

Thursday - 3000 calories
Carbs - 100g = 400 calories
Protein - 205g = 820 calories
Fat - 198g = 1780 calories
Ratio - 13% Carbs/27% Protein/60% Fat

I get my body fat tested today using both the caliper method and hydrostatic weighing. This will be interesting to see because my weight has gone up to 210 lbs. I wonder where the BF is at??? We shall soon find out. I will post here in a few hours after I have it done.

Sporto

Today's BF results:

calipers - 6%
hydrostatic weighing - 9%

I'm guessing I'm somewhere in the middle. Probably holding at about ~8%.