Phase II went by quickly. It was intense, short, and cardio/endurance based, something I am used to. I noticed fat loss in the important areas, which was enjoyable, and the routines were diverse and challenging. In short, it was fun.

Phase III, on the other hand, sucked. Anyone that looks at a bodybuilder and thinks “That must be easy for them” couldn’t be more wrong. The workouts are insanely tough, but for me the biggest obstacle was the eating. On workout days I was consuming over 3100 calories across six meals. I know, it doesn’t sound like a lot, just over 500 calories per meal which isn’t bad, but it’s just so much food. I got to the point where I would literally be standing over the kitchen sink, willing myself not to puke up the food I had just swallowed, because then I would have to eat all over again to get my calories.

The other hard part was that sixth meal. It was at 9:30 PM. I’m an early bird, up between 5 AM – 5:30 AM. I’ve trained my body to be in bed and asleep by 9 PM. So eating that late, then staying up to let it digest, and then still getting up at my regular time was incredibly taxing on my body. I was irritable, exhausted all the time, mentally inept, and an emotional wreck. At one point I even started to feel flu like symptoms and knew I was pushing myself to my limits.

Thankfully I did get one weekend where I had nothing planned and slept for 22 hours. I felt right as rain after that. So no, definitely not an easy phase.

My current stats

Weight: 192 lbs

Body Fat Percentage: 19% ( a new record)

Muscle Percentage: 39% (down a bit)

Also, as I prepared today’s photos, I’ve come to realize that despite all my ego and perceived vanities, I cannot for the life of me pose properly unless in front of a mirror, which I don’t have the luxury of at the photo studio. I look asymmetrical even though I am not. I was also amazed at what a difference lighting makes. For the phase II photos, the lighting was dramatic and really showed the cuts I had worked hard for. Phase III photos don’t get across the fact that I’m actually bigger and more defined.

Anyway, pics or STFU.

For the previous commenter that said I had no trapezius muscles …

Finally, a photo to show thickness, not just width.

So, “officially” one more phase to go. There is an end in sight to the program. I am encouraged. Of course, I’ve added an additional TRX phase to the end of the program, and after that it’s mix and match based on what I want my long term maintenance goals to be. I haven’t decided yet. Do I want slim and cut? Do I want mass? Do I want strength and power? I really want them all but at the current point in my life don’t know if I can honestly put in the effort to maintain. We’ll see. I probably just need to get my mind in order.

What do you think?