#TheHighFatHighProteinLowCarb

#TheHighFatHighProteinLowCarbs

February 1-7th, the HighFatHighProteinLowCarbapproach officially starts. There will be a weekly release every Wednesday of the month.

In each and every weekly chapter, there will be snapshot of my week, my weight, my strength level, my mood and my general sensations will be checked, analyzed and assessed.

At the end of the February trial, some comparative numbers, pictures as well as my body fat percentage will be displayed and compared in order to assess the Pros and Cons of the #TheHighFatHighProteinLowCarbs.

My weight: I weigh myself each and every morning as I get up, on an empty stomach.

I started the week on Monday the 1st of February at 87.5kg, heavier than usual. The reason being is that from Friday 29th to Sunday 31st of January, I ate, binged what I wanted, which include a lot of peanut butter and Nutella sandwiches (my favorite) and dark chocolate.

As you see I am not immune to cravings. Nevertheless my body was kind to me for 2 days.

In fact on Friday I weighed at 86.6kg, 86.1kg on Saturday and 86.6kg on Sunday. Despite having a bad Friday my weight went down on Saturday but as soon as the bad eating turned into a BAD HABIT, 3 days in a row, my body said "BASTA" and I started to balloon, the end result being 87.5kg on Monday the 1st of February, an increase of 1.5kg in 3 days.

Let check my week weight curve:

Tuesday: 86.9kg, dropped 600g

Wednesday: 86.4kg, dropped 300g

Thursday: 85.3kg, dropped 900g

Friday: 84.9kg, dropped 400g (EXTRA REST DAY)

Saturday: 85.6kg increased 700g (REST DAY)

Sunday: 85.6kg, maintained weight. NEVERTHELESS I LOST 1kg in comparison to Sunday the previous week.

My strength levels:

The exercises I use to check on my strength are the Back Squat, Good Mornings, Thrusters, Deadlift, Jerk press and Front squat.

Back squat: I work it in 3 different modalities

4 sets 1-3 reps 95% of 1rep max, I managed 4 sets of 3 reps with 120kg, Set 1, 2, 3 and 4. I did 2 reps had a break then the last remaining rep.

4 sets 6-8 reps with 3" pause at bottom of squat, I now managed sets of 10 with 90kg.

4 sets 10 reps 85-90% of 1 rep max, I did 4 sets of 10 102.5kg  UNBROKEN. I CRIED IN 3rd set as it was challenging and I had to give my whole.

Good Mornings: I am now at 4 sets of 5 with 50kg and did 4 sets of 5 with 60kg on Sunday.

Thrusters: I was at 4 sets of 5 with 50kg on Thursday and did 2 sets of 3 60kg thrusters on Sunday.

Jerk press: I am now at 4 sets of 5 with 50kg.

Deadlift: I managed 4 sets of 10 with 80kg, so moved up to 3 5 95kg deadlift on Wednesday. Sunday I increased the wright and did 5 sets of 3 with 100kg deadlift.

Front squat is now 3 sets of 5 with 60kg.

My mood: has been great, I truly felt more positive about everything. I didn't have to worry about food. I did overeat because of a lack of planning and not because I was hungry or desperate to eat.

Feeling good helped to spend better quality time with my almost 4 and 2 yo boys Milo and Noah. I can enjoy better the time with I spend with my wife and I am more focused in my BJJ and my work in general.

My conclusion and general sensations:

Nutrition:

It has been a very positive week, with a better control of my food intake. The number one rule is plan, then divide your days in meals and allocate a calorie top for each meal.

In my case, a breakfast, a post workout meal, a lunch, 2 snacks and dinner, and  the calorie allowance for each meal is as follows.

1000 calories for my dinner, it is my most important meal, the one my wife cooks, so I want to enjoy.

Breakfast and lunch 700-800 calories each.

Post workout and snacks 250-400 calories.

My daily calorie intake oscillates between 3150-3550.

These number are slightly below my TDEE (total daily energy expenditure) so in the long run I will still be losing weight anyway.

The dairy:

I need to double check if the increase in my consumption of full fat milk and cottage cheese is upsetting my stomach. I have felt slightly different this week, more "GAZY"...

I will on Saturday cut my dairy intake and see if is the source of my discomfort

Energy levels, fitness and strength:

I was simply on fire, super motivated and felt really strong and "alive". All my training sessions were positive.

I lifted more weight, I was stronger and faster in the classes, winning almost all the possible workouts in the HIIT and Kettlebell class.

All that being sleep deprived, I slept less than usual as I had many posts to write for my blog, I filled all my personal training slots and I am spending more quality time with my sons and I swear they are demanding and noisy like their Dad and Mum.

In the end I decided to reward myself with an EXTRA REST DAY to make sure I start next week as well as I finished this one.

Mental health and sleep:

I am eager to learn, to be productive and the little sleep I have is quality. I sleep less than five minutes after I lay in bed.

Read more: www.trainforlifeuk.com

To come on the 15th of February:

Week 2 of #TheHighFatHighProteinLowFat trial, 8-14th February

Please guys feel free to comment and share your views.

Back in 2009, at that time I was just on cardio and bodyweight training. I also cut fir a shirt period onpeanut  butter and Nutella sandwich which made me Unhappy... 

#BJJEUROPEANCHAMPIONSHIP2016

The journey

In my last post, I spoke about the trip to Lisbon. Tonight I want to close this chapter sharing with you my physical and mental journey.

I was promoted brown belt in October, and had my first competition in November, I lost in the first fight...A blessing in disguise. On that day I knew I had to work hard and harder to be ready to compete in the European Championship 2016. 

My plan was the following: Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday 5-6.30am BJJ DRILLS and Techniques with my Friend and Purple Belt training partner Luke. Monday 7-8pm and Saturday 12-1.30pm BJJ Sparring at Icon BJJ Norwich under the supervision of my coach black belt two stripes Steve Cowan. 

Conditioning with the Train For Life Crew on Monday, Wednesday and Thursday 6.45-7.30am. Spinning on Tuesday 6-6.45pm, Friday 6.45-7.30am and one hour either Saturday or Sunday.

Heavy lifting wednesday 6-6.45am and Saturday or Sunday 6-6.30am.

On top the training, I had to do something I do not recommend to anybody. I had to lose 5kg in 25 days. I had to lose the little fat I had accumulated over Xmas. I am quite a lean person so I don't have a lot to lose anyway, so it was really hard to be on a diet, to put up with the training, my job, be a good father and a good husband.

I failed as a father and a husband, I was a shadow at home...I am a driven and focused person, so in order to achieve my goals I had to prioritise. It is hard to say but it is the truth, you cannot achieve your goals without being obssessed. 

The obssession, the drive the focus lead to the pressure, the responsibilities.

My trip to PRESSURE LAND:

When you train so much, you seem to only think about your competition. You feel external and internal pressure.

External pressure comes from You guys, the people who care for me, see me training on a daily or read my tale on Facebook or Instagram. Your support is priceless or actually does have a price... I felt OBLIGED TO REPAY YOU BY ACHIEVING SOMETHING BIG.

That payback leads to the Internal pressure.

THE INTERNAL PRESSURE: 

I competed in over 20 BJJ tournaments and won beyond 80% of my over 50 fights including 2 Gold, 1 silver at  European Championship, 1 Gold and 1 Bronze at the British Open, 3 Gold at the English Open....

A long story short, the PRESSURE I felt during the preparation of this tournament was hardly sustainable. 

I wanted to win so badly that I was doubting of myself, I was scared, nervous. I was like a novice, like someone who was competing for the first time. But it wasn't MY FIRST TIME, I WAS BORN A COMPETITOR, I COMPETED MY WHOLE LIFE. I COMPETED SO FIERCELY THAT I BECAME A CHAMPION, WITH HIS PRIVILEGES AND HIS DUTIES. 

What I have been suffering during the last week is the weight of my duties.

I have to be a role model, a source of inspiration a True Leader and A WINNER. 

What competing taught me over the years is that the pressure disappears as soon as the competition starts. Guess what...I felt good as soon as I get in the venue. I felt free and ready to fight as soon as I was facing my opponent. Once in front of him I was ready to die to make things happen. 

Once I reached the semi-final, I was at peace with myself as I completed my part of the deal which was to bring a medal home.

In all fairness the guys who did Silver and Gold were better than me today. I will be back to train on Tuesday as I plan to beat them the next we meet. 

That Bronze feels like Gold, my hardest battle so far... 

#BJJEUROPEANCHAMPIONSHIP2016

The journey

Rise and shine, Friday 22nd of January 4am. I kissed my wife and said bye.

I went downstairs to the kitchen and weighed myself with the Gi, 88.3kg. The good news is that I am on weight, the bad is that I will eat a lot of salad today.

I have a coffee, check everything and leave Susannah, Milo and Noah my family for the first time in mylife.

4.50 on my way to the bus statio, at 5.25am the coach hit the road.

5.25-8.05am reading nutrition books, we arrive at stansted and I eat my 3 boiled eggs, king prawns salad with cucumber, cherry tomatoes and olives. 

At 10am, I am on the plane and it is a rocky journey, like in the bad movies. We are asked to stay with the seat belt fasten the whole trip... Scary

12.50pm we land in Lisbon and I am in my room texting my wife around 2pm. The hotel is closed to the airport and 45 minutes away from the venue. 

Around 3.30pm I moved to the venue, and it is the best I have ever experienced. I know why the European is the biggest BJJ TOURNAMENT IN THE WORLD. 

I thought That the change of venue was due to economical reasons, to charge at the door.

No there are simply more fighters and the audience is made of fighters, awesome VIBES. 

I am back at hotel, tired and starved, I eat more salad and get myself ready to bed. 

Tomorrow is the DAY. 

As I step on the mat, fears, doubts anything which is not killing instinct will be gone... 

#cuttingweight Day 25 or D Day -1

Rise and shine 4.am Thursday 21st of January. On the scale and was 85.5kg, a kilo difference between yesterday and this morning. In other words the carbs loading experiment teaches me that you need to reach your weight goal and give yourself a margin of 500g-1kg to avoid surprises.

5.-6.30 BJJ: drills and more techniques

Today we focused on my favorite techniques, the ones I used when I fight and we add some simple combinations. 

We reinforce my game plan, which is based on control and pressure.  

Nutrition: 

Breakfast: cottage cheese, almonds and white coffee.

Post workout: IBCAA, and a bowl of porridge a white coffee.

Lunch: Yesterday left over, very little rice, red beans and turkey mince with a red pepper, tomato and onion sauce.

Snack: 2 boiled eggs, pink salmon salad with cherry tomato, cucumber, olives white coffee

Dinner: salad with pilchard, tomatoes, olives and cucumber, olive oil and half a piece of chocolate.

Conclusions:

Today was good, I received a lot of positive vibes.

A massive thanks to Luke Platten, my humble training partner. He is purple belt t Icon BJJ Norwich and he helped and taught me some BJJ techniques and helped improve my own game you challenging me while sparring and looking answers in order to make my life HARDER, in order to make US BOTH BETTER.

Thanks to Josh my swimming instructor, the fact that you talked about me to your son made me feel stronger.

My mission is to inspire, to demonstrate that "impossible is NOTHING" , if you are ready to put the effort, I you are passionate about what you do and if you are surrounded by the right people.

I feel, I have all the winning ingredients. I have been there before, after I got a massive challenge and most of the time it went my way, so I am there again and I love it as you guys make feel loved.

Thanks to Rachel, Andy, Chloe, Carly, Sue, Daniel, Emma, Aaron, Johnny, Josh K and Milo , Noah and Susanna. In fact my boys and my wife are those who deal with the pressure of having a stressed father and husband at home. Nevertheless, they are supportive, motivating and inspiring.

I feel good and blessed, I feel the love and the appreciation.

Peace and Love.. 

#cuttingweight day 24 or D DAY-2

Rise and shine 4.am Wednesday 20th of January. I jumped on the scale and was 84.9kg, I now check the weight as a habit, but I am not really bothered now, as I know that Friday and Saturday I will control my food to the extreme before I go to war.

5.-6.30 BJJ: drills and more techniques

6.45-7.30am HIIT session

3 10' workouts,

Wk1: 10 push ups, Burpees and jump squat, remove 1each round, completed in 5'33" then restarted up to round 7.

Wk2: 10 squat , 6 lunges, 5 rows, 250m row

Wk3: 7  squat, 10 deadlifts, 10 Burpees, 250m row

Nutrition: 

Breakfast: lentils and couscous, almonds with a black coffee.

Post workout: IBCAA, and a bowl of porridge a white coffee.

Lunch: Beans and couscous

Snack:  white coffee

Dinner: rice, red beans and turkey mince with a red pepper, tomato and onion sauce and some cottage cheese and half a piece of chocolate.

Comments:

Feeling better, the BJJ was good and harder. Luke knows me upside down, so finds counter to all my favorites moves. It really makes me improve the moves in order to get to the position.

Thanks to him I added a new half guard pass to my arsenal and manage to include the Leg weave without releasing pressure when I set it up.

In the HIIT session, I saw that my cardio and coordination are good, I am tired though.  

A positive morning.

The food was awesome today, I really enjoy having so many carbs! 

Conclusions:

I feel at peace, really relaxed... 

This is it, tomorrow will be my last BJJ session, the focus will be on working my main take down, controls and submissions.  

No more conditioning, instead I will see Josh, my swimming instructor for a sport massage.  

A quick check on the scale and I go to bed...I don't like what I see...my weight went up over a kilo...  

Basicaly I made a gamble, I wanted to do some carbs loading to replenish my glycogen stores, so I ate a lot of starchy carbs and it backfired.

A bit pissed off, but I learnt something more, so tomorrow I will restrict to suppress all starchy and may do the same Friday and Saturday. I will check the weight tomorrow and assess the extent of the damage. 

My state of mind...Peace and Love...Saturday we take no prisoners  

#cuttingweight day 23 or D DAY-3

Rise and shine 4am Tuesday  19th of January. I jumped on the scale and was 84.5kg. I feel more relaxed as it has been 2-3 days at the same weight, despite the fact that I slightly over ate yesterday.

Single workout:

5.-6.30 BJJ: drills and takedowns

Nutrition: 

Breakfast: yesterday left over, chilli con carne with rice  and a white coffee. 

Lunch: yesterday left over, chilli con carne with rice  and broccoli and cauliflower and green tea.

Snack: Salad with pilchard, cherry tomatoes, cucumber and olives, white coffee.

Dinner: tortillas with cod filets, onions and cabbage and mayonnaise sauce, a banana and dark chocolate.

Comments:

A good day, as I spoke to Luke my training partner to explain the bad training I had the evening before and we worked on the things I did wrong. I also had an acupuncture session to fight niggles. I felt quite relaxed the whole day. In regard to food, I am still tempted but don't feel that hungry during the day. Nevertheless, if I leave more than 4 hours between meals then I am starving.

Conclusions:

A relaxing day in general, to know that the competition is so close helps. With today behind, I just have a double session on Wednesday and my last BJJ session on Thursday morning.

Nervous? not as much as I was, I know it is part of the game as I have been there before. The nerves are not bad as long as I remember that in the end it is me versus another guy. I am better really, just want to get starting...

View from our bungalow in Mallorca for our first family holiday, it was a wonderful and stressing time...just the way I feel now, GOOD VS NERVES  

#cuttingweight day 22

Rise and shine 4.15 Monday  18th of January. I jumped on the scale and was 84.6kg, it seems I am settling on that weight. That will do just fine, just have to control my weight 4 more days and this will be it.

5.-6.30 BJJ: drills and more techniques

6.45-7.30am Tabata session

7-8pm BJJ Sparring

Wk1: 4 times 1' 5 open close squat, shuttle run 5 open close. Add 1 OCS each round

Wk2: 4 times 15"jerk press/15" push ups

Wk3: 10 20"/10" row sprint/recovery

Wk4 3 times 1 Burpees, shuttle run 1 burpee. Add 1Bu each round

Wk5: wk1+wk3 repeated twice.

Nutrition: 

Breakfast: 3 scrambled eggs, a peanut butter toast and White coffee.

Post workout: IBCAA, 2 bananas and a bowl of porridge 

Lunch: last night left over of roasted vegetables, chickpeas and roasted chicken, broccoli and cauliflower a green tea.

Snack:  toast on cheese (boys left over) and white coffee.

Dinner: chilli con carne sauce, mackerel salad with olive, cherry tomatoes, cucumber, flaxseeds and olive oil.

Comments:

A day of contrasts, as I felt good in regard to fitness in general and nutrition but still eat by impulse. The new nutrition habits are fought by my brain making me crave foods that I don't need as I am not hungry.

Conclusions:

The BJJ  was relaxed as Luke had a sore neck, we drilled more and more, so it was really productive.

The conditioning was really good, as there were a good mix of speed, explosive and endurance. I felt sharp. 

The evening BJJ was the WORST possible ever, so a BLESSING IN DISGUISE. I felt nowhere, trying to blend my game, "pressure game" with the new techniques that I learnt. The result was desastrous, as I was too loose, out of rythm, clumsy.

Physically and at a cardio level, I was holding my ground.

My coach and training partners noticed and tried to reassure me, which was nice but pissed me off. 

I went to bed full of doubts, but deep inside I feel blessed and lucky. I want that Euro so bad that I am putting a lot of pressure on myself. The truth is that it comes down to a 6 minutes one on one showdown, so when the time comes, I will set my body free Enjoy and do what I do best.

I was down, really low, but will pick myself up AGAIN AND AGAIN... 

#cuttingweight day 21

Rise and shine 5.50 Sunday 17th of January. I jumped on the scale and was 85.3kg, which upset me a bit as I was quite good yesterday on my resting day. Very close to calorie allowance, so I believe that there must be liquid retention. I will know Monday morning for sure.

4 sets 5 110kg squat, set 1 4-2,  unbroken,  

3 10 70kg deadlift

4 10 60kg good morning

1 hour spin, taking the class as a member, Paul instructed it for me. It is way harder. 

Nutrition:  

Breakfast: mash and mince beef and gravy left overh and White coffee. 

Post workout: IBCAA, 2 bananas and a handful of almonds. 

Lunch: 3 scrambled eggs, a piece of toast with peanut butter and a white coffee. 

Snack:  An apple, a white coffee and toast with peanut butter.

Dinner: pasta, roasted vegetables, chickpeas and roasted chicken, a piece of dark chocolate. 

Comments: 

My last leg day felt good with sets at 110kg, now I wil focus from Monday-Thursday on light and explosive workouts, mostly bodyweight and upper body.

It was also my last spin class, in regard to cardio I feel strong. I just have to focus when I spar Monday evening to maintain a high tempo.

Conclusions: 

Almost there, Monday then 3 more days and I will be in Lisbon. My first fight is on Saturday 3.43pm and I can't wait. It has been a long journey and I still have couple of steps to wrap it up and then I will do what we all love, ROLL... 

Estadio da Luz, Benfica Stadium in Lisbon 5 years ago... When I got my first BJJ European Championship Gold Medal as a white belt... 

#cuttingweight day 20

Rise and Shine 5.50 Saturday 16th of January 2016

I got up and jump on the scale and weighed myself at 84.6g, 100g heavier than yesterday. I am not surprised thinking of the duck I ate yesterday. I am happy as I am below 85kg which is where I want to be.

REST DAY

Nutrition:

Breakfast: A white coffee, 3 scrambled eggs, peanut butter on toast.

snack: whey protein and a banana. 

Lunch:  

Drinks: 1 black, 3 white coffees, 1 milk tea and 2-2.5 liters of water.

Comments:

Just feel good not to worry about exercising and chilling out.

I am exhausted, I need a break and will rest tomorrow.

Day 20 conclusions:

At a nutritional level, I start to find the formula, a breakfast, a snack or lunch and another snack. I try to keep it around 1500cal to be able to enjoy a heavy 1000 cal dinner or at least being able to eat without counting.

At a physical and mental level, I am reaching the limits. I cannot train more as I will burnout and mentally I am ready to fight.

Tomorrow is my last day off and Sunday my last strength session and spin class, from then on I will go easier and drop the intensity.

I learnt long ago how important it is to be surrounded by like minded and supportive people., When you are, " You never walk alone" 

#cuttingweight day 19

Rise and Shine 4.05am Friday 15th of January 2016

I got up and jump on the scale and weighed myself at 84.5kg. I am delighted, so, so happy. I am where I wanted to be, all the sacrifices and feeling hungry and miserable have paid off.

2 Daily workouts: BJJ and Spinning.

5-6.30am BJJ, drills and sparring: The sparring was starting from closed guard, we alternated, I am TIRED.

Spin 6.45-7.30am: heavy legs, REST IS NEEDED

Nutrition:

Breakfast: A black coffee and some almonds.

Post workout: around 9.15am, 3 scrambled eggs, peanut butter on toast a banana and a white coffee at home with my boys.

Lunch: chickpeas and a white coffee.

Snack: cottage cheese with a spoon of honey and some flaxseeds and a white coffee.

Dinner:  Quinoa, broccoli and grilled (fatty) duck, an apple, a tea and half a square of dark chocolate.

Drinks: 1 black, 3 white coffees, 1 milk tea and 2-2.5 liters of water.

Comments:

I am exhausted, I need a break and will rest tomorrow. 

Day 19 conclusions:

At a nutritional level, I start to find the formula, a breakfast, a snack or lunch and another snack. I try to keep it around 1500cal to be able to enjoy a heavy 1000 cal dinner or at least being able to eat without counting.

At a physical and mental level, I am reaching the limits. I cannot train more as I will burnout and mentally I am ready to fight.

Tomorrow is my last day off and Sunday my last strength session and spin class, from then on I will go easier and drop the intensity. 

They mean the world to me...all I want to achieve is for them to know that impossible is NOTHING

#cuttingweight day 18

Rise and Shine 4.15am Thursday  14th of January 2016

I got up and jump on the scale and weighed myself at 85.6kg again. I am definitely at my limits in terms of what my body aloud me to lose. I kind of reach a plateau, my food intake has to be spot on or I get slightly over. I need to be cautious, as I am happy with strength and everything, so I will not limit my calories a lot more, I will just make sure to stick to 2500.

3 Daily workouts: BJJ, Kettlebell and swimming.

5-6.30am BJJ, drills and sparring: The sparring was starting from closed guard, we alternated. 

Kettlebell 6.45-7.30am with 24kg Kettlebell 

Wk1: 5 single arm swing, 3 snatches, 5 jump lunges, 5 push ups, 3 shuttle run

Wk2: 5 double arm swing, 5 open close, 250m/run add 5 reps in each round

Wk3: wk1+wk2

Comments:

It felt good as i am not a guard player, I nevertheless, managed a couple of sweeps or went into open guard with good grips. This aloud me to be on the front foot and get back on top. Generally my game is tighter, so I see the dangers and feel stronger defending leg locks attempts.

Nutrition:

Breakfast: A black coffee

Post workout: around 8.15am 3 scrambled eggs, peanut butter on toast a banana and a white coffee.

Lunch: Pink salmon, salad, cherry tomatoes, cucumber, flaxseed and pumpkin seeds, olive oil.

Snack: chickpeas and left over of salad

Snack: almonds

Dinner: Pasta and beef with a mushroom half a square of dark chocolate

Drinks: 1 black, 1 white coffees, 1 green tea and 2-2.5 liters of water.

Comments:

Morning Training went really well.

We sparred a lot and the technique and the physical condition have improved a lot, I am almost ready. I plan to spar Friday, Monday and Wednesday for the last time, then drills and on the plane. 

The Kettlebell conditioning class was awesome, I now feel fit and strong, during and after the class.

Evening swim class, I didn't want to go as I was starving. I just wanted to stay home and eat. Then I said to myself burn more calories and maybe you eat a bit more. So I went to swim and hated each and every minute of it.

Day 18 conclusions:

I had my dinner and manage to stay within my calorie allowance, to eat pasta made me happy made me happy. After my dinner, I went on the scale out of curiosity and it marked 85kg. What a surprise and joy. I knew that the following day I would be below 85kg for the first time in 4 years.

Bjj and conditioning are both going well, my BJJ knowledge and accuracy is rising. At a fitness level, I am close to my peak in this moment in time. I cannot push a lot more and I will soon decrease the workload, so I am happy with the gains.

tomorrow I will be a week away from Lisbon... 

The journey is hard but if I wasn't it would not worth doing... 

#cuttingweight day 17

Rise and Shine 5.15am Wednesday 13th of January 2016

Planned workouts:

6-6.30am conditioning

6.45-7.30am HIIT session

Effective workouts:

Conditioning:  sets of 10 squats with 100kg first 2 sets unbroken but rested over 1'30", the 3rd and 4th I did 6-4 for reps with 1' rest between set.

4 sets of 10 40kg gluteus raises. 

HIIT:

HIIT6.45-7.30am

Wk1: 5 lunges, 5 push ups, 5 open close squat, 10 moonwalker,  SR.

WK2: 1 clean, 5 thruster, 5 Burpees over the bar and 250m row resistance 10

Wk3: 1 clean, 3 jerk press, 6 lunges, 5 arm rows and 250m row resistance 10

Nutrition:

Pre workout snack:

A cup of coffee and almonds

Breakfast: 3 scrambled eggs, a piece of toast with peanut butter and a white coffee and 10g of IBCAA

2nd Breakfast: a cup of cottage cheese, 1 handful of almonds 

Lunch:  , some broccoli and cauliflower and some mustard

Snack: 

Dinner: 

Drinks: 1 black, 1 white coffee and 2-2.5 liters of water

Comments:

My body reaction to the massage is good, I digested the effects of it. Yesterday I felt like a broken man and today after the 2 conditioning sessions, I feel relaxed and energized.

Day 17 conclusions:

I really start to enjoy everything about the preparation apart from the nutrition. The BJJ and the conditioning are going really well and my improvement in fitness help me being more alert when I spar, avoiding putting myself in dodgy positions or I feel stronger standing when my opponent pulls me down. On the other hand the BJJ is more structured, less changes of grip, one grip gives now 3-5 options, so it is easier to be a step ahead of my opponent. Now I see the leg drag everywhere, as before I had to force them. 

The nutrition is hard, it is mentally hard to restrict yourself, I do almost OK with the calorie count, I am always at the limit. The hard thing is mental, I think about FOOD all the time. 

I have a week to go and I will be on the plane, I desperately need to be 84-84.5kg for my peace of mind, so I suppose I have to suffer a bit more... 

Back in October, ICON BJJ grading...on that day my journey to the Euro as a Brown Belttarted started 

#cuttingweight day 16

Rise and Shine 4.15am Tuesday  12th of January 2016

I got up and jump on the scale and weighed myself at 85kg, a breakthrough. I am really happy. The efforts are paying off.

3 Daily workouts: BJJ, Kettlebell and spinning 

5-6.30am BJJ, drills, no sparring: we were both tired of yesterday hard 3 sessions, so we drilled for a hour.

8.30-9am: I had a sport massage on my leg and was told that it can affect or not my performances for 1-2 days after the massage took place. 

6-6.45pm: spin class, I skipped the Kettlebell session as I felt stiff but decide to spin. 

Nutrition:

Breakfast: A black coffee and few almonds

Post workout: around 8.15am yesterday left over, beans, halloumi cheese, 

Lunch: lentils,Broccoli and cauliflower, sardines, scrambled eggs, a slice of bread

Snack: a tin of chickpeas, half banana muffin (boys left over), milk coffee

Dinner: pasta with sardines, and stir fried vegetables, an apple, a piece of toast with peanut butter, half a square of dark chocolate And a tea.

Drinks: 1 black, 1 white coffees, 1 green tea, 2 teas and 2-2.5 liters of water.

Comments:

Oh my!! spinning after having received a sport massage is one of the most painful experience ever. My legs felt "empty", I could hardly move. I need to know when I am fully recovered, in order to schedule my next massage before the competition. Nutrition is definitely better, more controlled but it is not easy to be day in day out below 2500, almost 1000-1500 below my maintenance calorie intake.

Day 16 conclusions:

From a physique perspective, my body keeps under tension, I see the weight goes down ONLY when I am below Or at 2500 Cal. Today I was slightly over and it showed on the scale.

From a conditioning point of you, the sports massage just "killed" me, I had it in the morning, felt relaxed the afternoon and went to spin in the evening and felt that I had done two legs session before jumping on the bike. At the end of the session I started to feel better. Tomorrow will be interesting as I have a lot of leg work coming my way.

Regarding BJJ, I checked the bracket for the European Championship and we are 14 fighters so far.. The medals cost 3-4 fights!

Flashback, Lisbon BJJ European Championship 2012... 

#cuttingweight day 15

Rise and Shine 3.30am Monday  11th of January 2016

I got up and jump on the scale and weighed myself at 85.6kg again. I am definitely back on track, as I weigh the same for two consecutive days and yesterday was my day off, so I didn't even train, but just stick to my calorie allowance.

3 Daily workouts: BJJ, Tabata and BJJ sparring

5-6.30am BJJ, drills and sparring: the sparring was from compromised positions. From my opponent closed guard (he has long legs and I hate being in people guard) and from a single leg take down. I am taken down and I have to sweep and get on top.

6.45-7.30am Tabata class:

Wk1: 3 1' 5 5 jump lunges 3 SR, 5 push-ups

Wk2: 4 55" 10 4010 40kg back lunges

Wk3: 3 1' 5 jump lunges, 3 running back, 3 Burpees

Wk4: 4 4 30"  good mornings/30" stiff leg deadlift

Wk5: 30" of each workout with 7" transition between workouts.

8-9pm: BJJ sparring

Comments: 

The neck injury I was suffered of, didn't bother me at all. The two sessions felt awesome as afterwards I don't feel stiff but ALIVE. 

Nutrition:

Breakfast: A black coffee, IBCAA to sip during BJJ and Tabata

Post workout: around 8.15am yesterday left over, rice, cauliflower, chickpeas, roasted almonds in coconut oil and some cottage cheese, a white coffee.

Lunch: lentils,Broccoli and cauliflower, sardines, scrambled eggs, a slice of bread

Snack: a tin of chickpeas, half banana muffin (boys left over), milk coffee

Dinner: salad with prawns, tomatoes, 2 boiled eggs, a banana, half a square of dark chocolate

Drinks: 1 black, 1 white coffees, 1 green tea and 2-2.5 liters of water.

Comments:

When the nutrition is well planned and prepared, it is actually easy. The winning formula is, plan, prep eat.

neverheless, I went off road with the food, so in order to make it right, I changed the meal and bought some prawn salad and had light dinner.

Training went really well.

In the morning with Luke my purple training partner, I start to get into compdition mode. I am a top player, my game is based on take down-half guard pass and side control. We focused for 2 weeks on getting better at containing an opponent in half guard in case I lose the take down. Now, the drills start to sink in as my halt guard is becoming more and more aggressive as go for sweeps and get on top straight away.

The Tabata conditioning class was awesome, I now feel fit and strong, during and after the class. 

Evening BBJ spar witht all sizes, Super heavy to middle weight, 6 minutes rounds against 2 black belts, 1 brown, 3 purple, 1 blue and 1 white. 

I wasn't tired at all, I was applying the techniques learnt and turns out that it is easier against them, as they see me once a week that against Luke that I see 4 times week.

Ialso learnt a sweep and got caught in an armbar. It was very positive. 

Day 15 conclusions:

From a physique perspective, I am curious to know how much I weigh. I now have control over my food intake and I feel my body shrinking, I am lighter, faster and strengthwise I feel good.

Bjj and conditioning are both going well, my confidence is rising. I will be at my best ever shape when I fight.

This is why I succeed... 

#cuttingweight day 14

Rise and Shine 5.30am Sunday 10th of January 2016

I got up and jump on the scale and weighed myself at 85.6kg again. I am happy again

Planned workouts: NONE, RESTING DAY

Nutrition:

Breakfast: 7am, yesterday left over of red beans and chicory in Greek yoghurt, garlic and lime juice dressing, 2 boiled eggs and a black coffee.

Lunch: 11.30am,  red beans, lettuce, cherry tomatoes, cucumber, olives, flaxseeds, and mackerel, 1 green tea.

Snack: 1.30pm a toast left over and beans from my children.

Snack: chickpeas and white coffee 

Dinner: roasted chicken breast, rice, cauliflower and roasted almonds in a coconut oil and a square of dark chocolate

Drinks: 1 black, 1 white coffee, 1 green tea and 2-2.5 liters of water.

Comments:

The food part has been easier as it was well planned, I did not feel too hungry during the day. 

Day 14 conclusions:

I didn't mange to lower my calorie intake so I hate my calorie allowance. I had in general term a good day, I could rest and prepare myself for the last 10 days. The weight should be hit by Wednesday and from then on, it will be maintenance. I had a quick glance at scale befor going to bed and I was at 86.2kg. I am on track.

Tomorrow will be intense with 3 sessions programmed and hopefully my neck issue is sorted out for good.

Back in 2007 with the guys... 

#cuttingweight day 13

Rise and Shine 5.15am Saturday 9th of January 2016

I got up and jump on the scale and weighed myself at 86.6kg again. I definitely, hit a plateau that I have to overcome, I need to loses 1-1.5kg in 12 days.

Planned workouts: 6.15-7am conditioning 

9-10am spinning class

12-1pm: BJJ sparring

Effective workouts: 

9-10am spinning class

The neck injury I got yesterday has kept me away from BJJ and conditioning. 

The spin class was more intense, I am getting close to my standards.

Nutrition:

Breakfast: porridge with whole milk, a black coffee, IBCAA to sip during spin class

Post workout: around 10am whey protein, almonds, and a banana.

Lunch: yesterday left over, lambs meat balls, Goat cheese, salad, olives, tomatoes and cucumber

Snack: whey protein shake

Dinner: grilled chicken breast, roasted butternut squash, red beans and chicory in Greek yoghurt, garlic and lime juice dressing, broccoli and cauliflower and square of dark chocolate

Drinks: 1 black, 1 white coffees, 1 green tea and 2-2.5 liters of water.

Comments:

To be injured was a blessing in disguise, as it kept me on track. I am doing what I need and I don't overdo it. The same apply for the weight loss setback. Now I am really on top of everything I eat and drink and I am confident that I will soon bounce back.

Day 13 conclusions:

From a physique perspective, I am really focus on my food and drink intake and I have a positive feeling regarding the outcome. The nutrition part is really important and I realised that I have to give it the same attention as the one I put in training.

I planned all my meals and snacks for a total of 2500 cal, I ate 1500 cal in 4 meals during the day and kept a the last 1000 for the dinner. I managed to be on target today.

Tomorrow is when I get on the scale and see if the refocus is getting me back on track.

Grading day, with ZeMarcello former world champion and Icon BJJ FOUNDER and Steve C my coach. These guys taught me during years and showed me love and respect for BJJ. Osss

#cuttingweight day 12

Rise and Shine 4.15am Friday 8th of January 2016

i got up and jump on the scale and weighed myself at 86.6kg, which is 900g more than the day before. Not happy. This got me thinking, I have to be consistent till the last day of preparation with the nutrition. 

Planned workouts: 5-6.30am BJJ drills  

6.45-7.30am spinning class

Effective workouts: BJJ drills, mainly technical, working on systems and linking techniques together.

The spin class was more intense, I am getting close to my standards.

Nutrition:

Breakfast: a black coffee, IBCAA to sip during spin class

Post workout: around 8am cottage cheese, berries, flax and pumpkin seeds, and a banana.

Lunch: yesterday left over, beef sausage and mash

Snack: omelette and cherry tomato salad with Oliver, flax seeds and olive oil.

Dinner: lamb meat balls, roasted parsnip, carrots, chickpeas and goat cheese and pitta bread, square of dark chocolate

Drinks: 1 black, 1 white coffees, 1 green tea and 2-2.5 liters of water.

Comments:

The BJJ session was good as we start to fill all the gaps in our game. We can now visualise the take down, the half guard pass or inverted Delariva pass to side control or North South submission.

The spin felt good. Heavy legs at the beginning then I started to see myself going for it.

Day 12 conclusions:

From a physique perspective, I received a wake up call, my weight loss has slowed down. Why? simply because I am too relax and think it is done. Now I know it isn't, so I am going to get back at it seriously.

As a first step, I divided my meals as follows 3-4 400 calories meals and snacks during the day and 900 calories for the dinner at night. I already designed the meals, so I am good to go. 

Nevertheless, I will monitor the impact on swimming, as when I weighed myself after lunch I was dead at 86kg, 300g over yesterday first thing in the morning. 

The recovery has improved but I have to admit that I was slow and sluggish during the BJJ session.

I hurt my neck so I will not train BJJ tomorrow, I will do some conditioning instead.

Tomorrow is when I restart the nutrition again, I now need to Lose 1kg and sit there for two weeks...

My best friend Aziz, 2015 BJJ European champion at purple belt level...Oss

#TrainForLifeClasses

Kettlebell 6.45-7.30am on Thursday 7th January 2016

3 10' workouts

Wk1: 5 double arm swing walking forward, 5 open close squat, 5 push ups. Repeat the same walking backward. Forward + backward = 1 round. add 5 swings in each round after moving forward and backward.

Wk2: 5 snatches with left/right arm, 3 shuttle run, 5 Burpees, 3 shuttle run back to Kettlebell, 5 Burpees and start again.

Wk3: wk1+ wk2

It it was fun and DEMANDING

They overdid it... 

#cuttingweight day 11

Rise and Shine 4.15am Thursday 7th of January 2016

Planned workouts: 5-6.30am BJJ drills and sparring 

6.45-7.30am Kettlebell class:

6.30-7.30pm: swimming class

Effective workouts: conditioning and Kettlebell class.

my teammate overslept...so I went to lift weight

I managed 4 8 of 100kg back squat unbroken, 1 rep more than yesterday. I am enjoying to lift more and more.

4 sets of 5 60kg FATZ grip stiff legs deadlift superset with 10 15kg lift the plate.

4 sets of 10 4010 20kg  gluteus bridges.

4 sets of 10 25kg high pull/10 15kg cable single arm row.

Kettlebell class consisted of 3 10 minutes workout (24kg)

Wk1: 5 walking forward/backward double arm swing, 5 open close squat, 5 push ups add 5 swings each round.

Wk2: 5 snatches with left/right 3 shuttle run, 5 Burpees, 3 shuttle run back to Kettlebell, 5 Burpees and start again.

Wk3: wk1+ wk2

Nutrition:

Breakfast: a black coffee

Post workout: around 8am cottage cheese, berries, flax and pumpkin seeds, 

Lunch: salad with pink salmon, feta cheese, flax and pumpkin seeds, cherry tomatoes

Snack: Chicken breast, broccoli and cauliflower, left over of yesterday beans and mustard

post workout: whey protein and a banana

Dinner: Beef sausages with onion and tomato sauces and mash potatoes, square of dark chocolate 

Drinks: 1 black, 1 white coffees, 1 green tea and 2-2.5 liters of water.

Comments:

Both conditioning and Kettlebell felt awesome, last year at the same period I used to squat 120-140kg 5 times a week and keep on with 45' HIIT. I felt a bit like last year, I feel that I can, I am moving forward again.

This is the first time I feel fit again in months so I am really happy.

Day 10 conclusions:

From a physique perspective, I weighed myself first thing in the morning and was 85.7kg so I am satisfied. To my surprise, I weighed 86.6kg at night After dinner before going to bed. I am intrigued as I   Had 3 training sessions today including an hour swim.

Swimming is the only thing that I haven't done so far, does it have any kind of influence (the water I swallow, not sweating and feeling thirsty afterward??) 

The massive difference today is at a recovery level, I double up training sessions and I am fine. Today was my third triple session day of the week and I feel as I trained only once today. I recover faster and better.

Tomorrow will be a test of recovery,  let see how my body reacts to today sessions. On the other hand let see if the weight gain is confirmed...

Back into proper lifts... 

#cuttingweight day 10

 Rise and Shine 4.15am Wednesday 6th of January 2016

Planned workouts: 6.15am conditioning

6.45-7.30am HIIT class:

Effective workouts: conditioning and HIIT class spin class.

I managed 4 7 of 100kg back squat unbroken, felt strong... A feeling  I lost over the last months due to injuries.

HIIT class consisted of 3 10 minutes workout (weight 50kg)

Wk1: 10' 5 open close squat , 4 X back squat, 5 Jump Squat, 3 Shuttle Run (really hard on the legs)

Wk2: 5 Front Squat , 5 Burpees over bar, 250m row

Wk3: 5 arm row, 5 stiff leg deadlift, 5 push ups.

I Completed 4 rounds of workout 2, I was about to start 5th with 50kg bar.

I Completed 9 rounds and 3 arm  rows of workout 3, with 50kg bar and 34kg dumbbell.

 Nutrition:

Breakfast: cottage cheese, berries, flaxseeds and pumpkin seeds, a black coffee

Post workout: around 8am Yesterday leftover, quinoa, chickpeas, carrot, cod fish

2nd Breakfast: a white coffee.

Lunch: porridge and whole milk

Snack: Quinoa, chickpeas, carrot, cod fish, a toast With peanut butter, 2 boiled eggs 

Dinner: turkey mince, broad beans and onions in a tomato sauce, basmati rice, and a piece of dark chocolate.

Drinks: 1 black, 1 white coffees, 1 green tea and 2-2.5 liters of water.

Comments:

The training feels good and in terms of food my body asks for more food in order to go through the workouts, which are starting to be grueling. Overall, I feel strong and fitter. 

Day 10 conclusions:

From a physique perspective, I weighed myself first thing in the morning and was 85.6kg so I am satisfied.

At a conditioning level, I am now lifting decent weights, at my best I could do set of 10 120kg squats, not there yet but mangled sets of 7 with 100kg, so I am satisfied.

Tomorrow will be a test of recovery, let see how my body reacts to today sessions.

Heavy squats are back in the game...