Frosh Week Workouts and The Return To TDEE

OTW_banner_UCS1So it’s been 10 days since I stopped the cut, went to Cuba on vacation and ditched counting calories in favour of what I would consider a major refeed. I learned a couple of things during this week, first that my strength takes a major hit when I am cutting, something that I have missed. Second, my sense of what is enough (in other words portion sizes) has taken a major turn towards normality. Even though I was not going to restrict my calories on vacation I just didn’t feel like I needed to fill myself every time I ate. Even once we got back home and had unlimited access to everything I love I just didn’t feel the need to stuff myself. This means that since the end of the cut I have only gained 2 lbs and have actually lost almost 2% fat which I know is not realistic. The only thing I can think is that for some reason adding back some carbs has filled me out a bit and fooled the scale into reading a different composition. Whatever the reason I am now sitting right at 227 at 17%. But now it’s back to reality, or should I say my new reality. I am sticking with keto for the near future, or maybe some would call it paleo / primal but basically just protein and vegetables with very little purposeful carbs. I am thinking about having a small rice or  yam snack after my workouts. 100g of brown rice for example is 23g of carbs, which is about what I was eating per day through the cut. The question becomes what can I tolerate before my body starts to modify it’s energy expenditures and storages. I know that science doesn’t change and that the same thermodynamic laws still apply regardless of what I eat as long as the TDEE number is the same but we all know that your body is a very strange machine and to a large degree what you eat is important in determining your personal efficiencies. So the plan is simple. 5 days back on cut to clear the system and get keto back working again. 1 week of adding an additional meal but not carbs. Followed by 1 week of the carb meal after workouts. I am thinking that I used to eat a rice and tuna snack and that should work.

As for the workouts, it’s Frosh Week at Universities all over Canada and in honour of those who have left, some for the first time, some for a second or more I am publishing some of my favourite workouts that you can do at home, in your dorm room or the living room that will at the very least clean out the cobwebs from the night before and burn some of those beer calories away.

Today is Barbara, not much to remember and enough rounds to get a decent workout. If you can’t do pullups (find a way!) then you can substitute pushup burpees.

One thing I will say to those of you at school. There are some exercises that will keep you in shape no matter what but you need to find a way to do them ALL. Also, if you love Crossfit, here is a link to 20 CROSSFIT WORKOUTS FOR HOME

Pushups
Pullups
Squats / lunges
V snaps
Handstands
Burpees
Kettlebell swings (for cardio there is nothing better – Kill the treadmill before it kills you)

For now, here’s Barbara

5 Rounds, rest 3:00 between each round:

20 pull-ups
30 push-ups
40 sit-ups
50 squats

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