Writing a post about the diet I’m going on and then NEVER WRITING AGAIN might seem suspicious. But it all worked out very well! I lost about 20 pounds overall and was very happy with the experience. I even started using RP training templates. I am finding this dieting + training combo to be satisfying and, in a way, creative–like I’m crafting this body. I’m not sure I have the drive to do “real” physique stuff, but I do find myself more interested in it…

Pro(?) Tips

• Life is easier if you just eat the same thing. But, you can do variations on a theme. I’m a big weirdo who can eat plain chicken and rice every day, but Bren, who likes this thing called “flavor” ??? started making his chicken into kebabs and varying the marinades. The process is always the same but the spices change. It is a simple/easy way to get some variety in.
• We stopped portioning out our meals in advance and kept our food in big containers in the fridge. Then we would portion out for the day in the morning or the night before. I prefer this because I can be certain my macros for the day are correct–no need to worry if an unexpected event that impacts my workout schedule, and I can’t accidentally grab the wrong meal (which, let’s be real, is my real problem). The amount of time it takes to portion out one or two meals at a time is negligible–doing it all in advance does make your fridge look great on Instagram because it’s filled with all those identical containers but it’s not THAT much of a time-saver.
• However much rice you think you need to make, you’re wrong. Double it.
• Fat-free Greek yogurt. That’s it. That’s the pro tip. You need it.

Life with Templates

The templates are intimidating at first but, since each meal basically has the same macros, you memorize your numbers after a while and it becomes easier.

Fat Loss 1 isn’t so bad–the template mostly cuts your fats out, which doesn’t bother me much. Fat Loss 2 is a little more difficult because it cuts your carbs. Fat Loss 3 is the frickin’ worst because it cuts both your fats and carbs to almost nothing–you are basically eating protein and vegetables and nothing else.

I originally intended to do the full 12 weeks but called it quits as 10 weeks. Fat Loss 3 really impacted my energy levels, to the point where I couldn’t complete my workouts. It wasn’t worth it to me to suffer for another two weeks just to lose a couple more pounds. I ended at 201.4, which was “close enough” to 200 for my purposes. 😉

Maintenance & the App

When I went on maintenance, I decided to switch to the RP app. I was worried that I would re-gain all the weight I lost; the app appealed to me because it would adjust my macros if I gained back too much.

I actually lost a few more pounds on maintenance, stabilizing at ~198. So I did break 200 after all!

The app is much easier than the templates because it just tells you what to eat. It is NOT a food tracker and does not include a huge food database like MyFitnessPal. I suppose it’s a bit similar to the templates in that regard; the templates had approved food lists.

That said, the app does tell you the macros for each meal so if you want to eat “If It Fits Your Macros” (IIFYM) style, you can.

For maintenance, I just tried to stay above 80% adherence. This was really easy to do, especially because Bren went on a cut at the same time I went on maintenance so we basically just stopped eating out. My non-adherence to my plan was usually a glass of wine or an extra pancake. Gimme dem pancakes!!!

A Slow Cut

I liked that I had lost a few pounds on maintenance without really trying and decided to do that “on purpose” with an easy cut: 5 pounds over 7 weeks. I am down to ~194, just a couple pounds to go. I’m not sure if I would do a “hardcore” cut again…I think I might just cycle between maintenance and “aggressive” maintenance.

This past week the app cut my nutrients for the first time (my loss has stalled out) and, unlike the templates, it seems to have cut the carbs first. I don’t think I’m in the app equivalent of FL3 yet and I hope I never have to go there. 😛

Female Physique Template

I enjoyed my RP diet experience so much I decided to try out the RP programming experience as well. I got the Female Physique Template (FPT), which is more of a physique/hypertrophy-style training than the powerlifting I had been doing. It is 23 weeks of training, 4 mesocycles. I have completed meso 1.

You can pick your exercises so I made sure to include squat/bench/dead, but technically you don’t have to do any of that. I actually ended up removing the back squats later because I am having issues with my shoulder and both high and low bar position are too painful. So now I do 3942094023 dumbbell lunges instead.

The template is a dynamic Excel sheet (as an Excel nerd, I am impressed by its construction) that reacts to how you rate your workouts–i.e., if it’s too easy, it’ll add sets. And that’s how you end up with SEVEN. GOD DAMN. SETS. of deadlifts in week six. I wanted hypertrophy and I got it!!!

People say the big changes happen in meso 3, so I’m looking forward to that. 😉 So far I have noticed small changes, but nothing dramatic. Luckily I enjoy the style of training itself, although I’d be lying if I said I didn’t want to cry a little when looking at some of the programming. Just……. so many reps.