2016 Contest Prep Week 2

2016 Contest Prep Week 2

Here I am after almost two weeks of contest prep. I started at 206lbs and a 33.7" waist. Yesterday morning I weighed in at 201.4lbs with a 33.5" waist. So, things are definitely moving in the right direction. But with almost 24-weeks left, I still have a long way to go.  Read on to see what happened this week.

Since my progress so far is above my target weight loss, I'm not changing anything. However, I have a feeling that my weight drop 4.6lbs over the past week were partially due to a weight fluctuation. If I had to guess, I'd put my actual weight/fat loss at more like 3lbs over the past week and a half, which is still over my target of 1.15lbs/week. But in order to make sure I still moving in the right direction, I will take another checkpoint mid-week and make adjustments if necessary.

Positive Signs

Looking at my pictures, I can definitely see improvement in the legs, arms and chest. It's subtle, but it's there. And given that I can see the differences even though I didn't shave this week, that's a pretty good sign.

My strength is holding steady. Last week my reduced calories hit me like a freight train and it hurt my lifts a bit. But this week, I am getting used to the struggle a bit and I am hitting the same numbers I hit prior to dropping calories (yay!). Typically, a little loss of strength is to be expected with prolonged weight loss. But if I do it right (nice and slow) then strength losses should be minimal.

Some Notes on Diet

Those of you who follow me know that I practice flexible dieting. I'm not the guy who spends half of his weekend prepping food for the week. I track as I go and I hit my numbers. I know other people who swear by prepping their food ahead of time. I find that, well, boring. And truthfully, it doesn't really matter which way you go as long as you hit your numbers and balance your diet appropriately.

In contest prep, estimating my consumption largely goes out the window. I track to the gram. I eat out less. And if I do estimate, it's on a refeed day and it's only once a week (as in one meal/week) and only on weeks where I am hitting or surpassing my targets. 

That's pretty much it for this week. Things are moving along slowly. But I wouldn't have it any other way.

Posted by Clayton Long