We've been using calipers for 2 years. I don't worry so much with the number as the trend. It's been my trainer doing it each time so the trend down should be accurate. Any one can measure w calipers but skill comes into play. I'd love to get a bod pod but there's none near me I guess.

Notes: it's been one week. I started a bit up from holidays 178 ( normal is 172-175). I thought it was just an upswing that wold fall off but I guess it was a hard gain since a week after Christmas it was still there. Anyways, I lost 3 lbs this week. 175lbs. My deficit was 3250 calories. So I concluded that I lost a couple of pounds of glucose/ water weight and maybe a pound of "loss". Next week should be telling. Keeping at it.

Got my call from my macro coach yesterday. We are going more aggressive but just for 8 weeks. My numbers for now are 1900 on training days 150 protein, 50 fat, 213 carbs. Then on rest days 1650 150/50/150. They also asked me to cut my training down to 3 days. So I can have more days in a deficit. Not sure I can do that so I'm doing 4 w 3 rest days. Rest days include: rest, yoga, or walking. No higher level cardio or weights. I'll check in soon!!

So here I am 1 month into my cut. I started at 178 and weighed in yesterday at 172.4. Which sounds AWESOME but I was 174.5 on Christmas Eve and 172.x during my entire bulk until Christmas to New Year’s. I need to let that go but how the hell I went from 174-178 in one week and it stuck to me is beyond me. OK So that is the LAST time I'm going to complain about that. This is where the hard part is. When you bulk and cut there might not be so much of a scale change but a larger lean tissue change. That's ultimately what I want but much harder to measure yourself so it's easy to get discouraged. I'm waiting to hear back from my macro coach on her take on this but here is my progress so far... I'm eating at a deficit on workout days from my previous TDEE of 500 calories and on my 3 rest days 800 calories. Mathematically that is about 1.25 lb. a week. (But honestly I'm more at a 3500 calorie when I go over a bit here and there) So that's been about 5 weeks and I lost about 5 lbs. On track. The weird thing is I was at the same weight from 1/14 until 2/1 with NO CHANGE AT ALL. I took a high calorie day Friday and had great dinner and yummy chocolate cake and presto!! Monday I was down 2 lbs. So, I'm back to the plan. I've been very sedentary on my 3 rest days. I'm going to try to do a bit better a get more steps in but no high cardio and see where this takes me. I've got about 5 more weeks to go. I'd be thrilled if I lost 5 more pounds. I'll probably wait until the end to do the pinch test. I sure wish I had access to something more accurate but in the end its how your clothes fit anyway and I can tell a difference there already.

Got a message from my macro coach this week it's time to go to the next step. I'll be decreasing calories to the next level. 1650 for training days and 1450 for rest days. Keeping at 150 protein and 50 fat, adjusting all off carbs. Not looking forward to doing it but hopeful for results. It's just a few weeks then I'll reverse out. I'm at 172 today.

Hi guys- it's been a month since I checked in, work is so busy. I was supposed to cut just 8-10 weeks. I decided to do the maximum since summer is around the corner and I need to have a few spare pounds lost to allow for bounce back upon reverse. So I'm happy and I'm not... I'm at 169.5 today so I lost 2.5 this month. 8.5 total. You can plainly see my metabolism has down regulated to nearly match my food input. So far I've kept my 4 days lifting and typically get in one day 1 hour moderate walk. For the next 2 weeks I'm slightly increasing cardio. A Hitt for 20 mins twice a week after training is my goal. I had hoped to be in the lower 160's at the end of 3 months but life is not textbook and I wasn't 100% compliant to the plan. I have to reverse and eat full tdee for 3 months before another cut so 4-5 months of reverse??? I wish I had not taken so long to get to tdee, wish I had been more compliant.. Lessons to learn. The diet cycle is short so I should have meal prepped and carried a cooler to be successful. I wish I would have embraced the reset and not been timid so I was at very high maintenance calories. When you don't, then once you cut there's no where to go on the deficit so you are forced to end the cut and start over w a reset.

I tracked but still ate out some which makes tracking difficult. But overall I'm happy. I mean it's not like I'm in a competition, I just want to be leaner. Cycle diets are new to me. I think it's easier to by compliant for short bursts like that and then reverse to normal life rather than live on a "diet" where I fail a lot and never lose. So, I see this way works. You do need to rev up your metabolism ( by eating) so that you can eat at a deficit to lose. Keeping my protein to 150grams 50gr fat and restricted carbs was hard for me. Lots of shakes and protein snacks. If I had planned my days in advance I could have done it rather than wing it. This weekend I'll get body fat tested and that will really tell me where I stand. My body fat ratio should be down. Since I ate lots of protein, kept cardio to a minimum, and lifted heavy still my lean mass should not decrease by much. This is where I wish I had access to the nice expensive body fat testing machines instead of just the calipers and In body but it should show a trend even if it's not 100% accurate. I'll share results when I get them. I see the results. Jeans are comfortable, I see muscles in my back, my arms, shoulders, and chest are leaner. I see some more definition in my legs. That part is hard. I had this idea I was going to cut and look like a competitor but that didn't really happen . Guess those girls must starve themselves. That's ok, I'm not willing to do that. I feel pretty good but I felt much better ( awake, no headaches, recover faster, ) on higher calories and do look forward to the reverse. Has anyone else complete a spring cut after reverse/ bulk? I'd love to hear your results.