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I went on holiday for a little more than a week: NO exercise and NO tracking my intake. I didn’t eat nearly enough food during this time and was way under all 3 macronutrients. I didn’t feel hungry and ate like 2 meals a day with a snack or 2 in between. After this holiday, I ended up losing 3.3 kg’s and could feel a difference on my body. I’ll slowly start tracking my food loosely for the remainder of December and will start tracking more strictly in January. During my time away, I enjoyed treats daily, whether it was ice cream, frozen yoghurt or chocolates. I also didn’t miss the gym at all; I enjoyed my time being completely off and just relaxing!  I did not follow any set macros and did not even track!
This will be the last entry for my reverse diet / bulking. I will no longer be posting updates on this section of the blog. A "cutting" section might be added to my website sometime. For now, I will continue to maintain my weight and no longer increase my numbers.
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So, I've been saying I'm going to stop my reverse diet and maintain at my current macro-nutrient intake for weeks. I finally decided that I'm no longer going to increase my calories or macro breakdowns. I've been at the same calories and macros for 3 weeks, including this coming week, with no increase, so technically my reverse diet ended 3 weeks ago- 29 November. As my header states "the end of my reverse diet... for now" I'll be ending my reverse diet on the caloric intake mentioned below foe now. "For now" could be a month, 6 months or permanently depending on how often I can hit my targets, if I start to lose weight on my current numbers, if I feel I can handle more fat (and scale weight) gain or if I feel hungry (DEFINITELY NOT lol). This past week (or actually weekend) I hit my targets 100% and my weight didn't go up, it stayed 72.3 kg or 72.4 kg so I'm not gaining weight on these numbers! Training wise, I did hit a new PR on deadlifts @ 127.5 kg for 3 repetitions and also increased my weight on barbell military press @ 29.5 kg for 10 repetitions.  My intake for the past three weeks: (progress photo taken at the start of week 3)
Calories- 3955
I haven't posted a reverse diet picture or blog in a few weeks due to being lazy, taking time off from studies, watching endless amounts of series and actually forgetting to take pictures on weekends. I'm having a HARD time hitting my macros since I'm in lazy vacation mode, AKA: sleeping in, watching series, watching movies, not making food or meals to eat, updating my website with recipes and free fitness documents and training later the day. I probably hit my targets two or three times this past 2 weeks. Me and my boyfriends are going to the beach in 1 week and my body-fat gain have not yet affected me negatively, we'll see about that when I browse for bikinis in my underwear bin later next week lol. Usually before holidays, I'd exercise more, eat less and be beach body ready, not this time though, actually that has not happened once since 2013. Since 2014, I go with the flow... flow AKA weight gain.  My intake for the past two weeks:
Calories- 3955
Still hitting the 70's and I could not care less. I no longer gasp at the number staring back at me when I jump on the scale (okay, maybe not jump, cause at this weight I'll split it in two lol). I no longer care what I weigh, what size pants I wear, the size of my dress or the cellulite I get in exchange for MENTAL HEALTH, PHYSICAL HEALTH, STRENGTH, MUSCLES, HAPPINESS and SANITY. I came into this reverse diet with an open mind, optimism and knew what the consequences and rewards were. I probably could have stopped my reverse diet as soon as I hit my maintenance calories (after 3-4 years of being in a caloric deficit, AKA starvation) but I chose to get my macros to infinity and do a "bulk" because my goals have always been to build muscle and I've never given myself that opportunity before since I've always starved my body of fuel to build some. I'm still very happy at the moment with my progress at the gym and with how I look. A size 12 fits me more comfortably right now (thanks big legs and booty) and I choose to no longer buy size 10's (the size I normally wear) just because it's tight AF around my legs. This does not bother me one bit though. I think I may continue to up my calories every 2 weeks for the next 4 weeks before I call it quits.  My intake for the past 3 weeks:
Calories- 3850
So, I decided that this month will be the end of my reverse diet. I am going to stay at the same macro nutrient intake from the past week to this coming week. Then I will increase my numbers slightly again, and stay at those numbers for two more weeks until the end of my reverse diet. I hit my numbers 3-4 times this week, so I'm getting better at stuffing my face haha. Thanks to soda, I'm hitting +500 grams of carbs easily! This means that I will have been reverse dieting for exactly 1 year and 6 months (June 2014-November 2015). I started counting my macros in January 2014 but didn't actually reverse diet the period between January 2014-May 2014 because I only increased my numbers 2-4 times during that period. Nothing too exciting happened this week. No awesome PR's on the big three lifts, but I did hit some PR's on accessory work. I am still feeling good, although most of my clothes are getting smaller (actually, they are already smaller lol) but I'm happy. I still don't consider myself fat even though I have more body fat than usual, but still not as much as before I started my journey. I could not care less about the number on the scale or the sizes of my clothes. Happiness, strength and health is my #1 priority!  My intake this week and the week coming
Calories- 3850
I’m continuing to increase but it’s such a mission to hit my numbers!! I’m deciding whether I should stop increasing and just keep constant at my next increase numbers. So far, I am still very happy with my current physique so deep into mu “bulk” because I don’t feel like I look ‘fat’ in any way, yet I am eating +3800 calories a day. I have put on muscle as well as fat and could not be less bothered. My strength has increased a lot as well. New PR’s this past week include 50kg bench press, 47.5kg front squat and 85kg back squat. I will be deciding this week whether or not to stop my reverse diet and keep my intake as is.  Macro nutrient intake this week:
Calories- 3850
I haven't made an update in a while because my phone was in for repairs for nearly 2 weeks and my old phone's front camera is shitty. Nothing interesting has happened this past few weeks except a few of PR's at the gym! Hitting my macros was such a struggle because 1- I was too lazy to cook and 2- I wasn't in the mood for anything from the cupboard or fridge. I decided to keep my macros the same this last 2 weeks since I only hit it like once or twice the previous week. Some PR's during my time "away" include- 120 kg conventional deadlift for 3 reps, 82.5 kg back squats for 4 reps and 10 reps on diamond pushups. Hopefully I'll hit my numbers more often the coming week so that I can increase my numbers again!  Intake this past 2 weeks:
Calories - 3808 Protein- 135 g Carbs- 530 g Fats - 127 g I didn't have a progress update last week since I didn't feel like taking a photo and besides, I went away for the weekend! I didn't track my macros that weekend, I didn't exercise, didn't eat "clean", didn't bring any pre prepared food with and ate take-aways daily. I had frozen yoghurt, sodas, breakfast buffets and store bought meals and DID NOT GAIN WEIGHT, I actually lost 400 grams! Because a specific kind of food does not make you gain weight, total calories do. I was clearly under my usual intake at home, hence the weight loss on junk food and "unclean" foods. This week went good, I surprisingly hit my macros 3 times this week. I was quite under targets on Wednesday but came closer Thursday. I also enjoyed Saturday with a friend, eating pizza as well as a 'braai' (BBQ) with my boyfriends' parents and their friends. I also spend Sunday with them and enjoyed a home cooked meal. No significant PR's were hit in the last 2 weeks but I did curl the 16's (each hand) for dumbbell curls on arm day! Training is going well, I am just finishing with my new lifting programme, it's a bummer cause I enjoy the one I'm currently doing but I have to increase frequency on the big 3 lifts if I want to compete in powerlifting soooomeday!  Intake this week:
Calories= 3716
I'm putting all the food to good use! I'm hitting PR's on the daily at the gym. PR's for this week included a PR on bench press, deadlifts, pullups, squats, chin ups, parallel dips and diamond push ups! I may be gaining weight slowly but surely on the scale each week but luckily it is in grams and not kilos! I could care less about the number on the scale. I feel that I still look good and I am happy. That's all that matters! To my surprise, I hit my numbers quite often this week. Except on Wednesday. I was either very close to my intakes or spot on. I will continue to reverse diet until I no longer feel comfortable!  My intake this week:
Calories - 3658 Protein - 130 g Carbs - 510 g Fats - 122 g Over the 500 gram carbs mark.. still going strong! I probably could've stopped a long time ago with my calorie increases, but despite the gradual weight and body fat gain, I'm still pursuing my reverse diet. As long as I don't jump up 2 jean sizes it's all good! I actually did hit my numbers spot on 3 times this week, and 1 time pretty close. I can honestly say I wasn't hungry at all during the day haha! I'm eating sooo much and so frequent, I don't even give my hunger signals time to alarm me.. But I'm pretty sure my hunger signals are non existent ATM I only weighed myself 3 times this week so the average is calculated by those 3 days. I hit the 68's most of the time this week.  My intake this week:
Calories- 3649
Whoo-hoo!!! 500 carbs! I remember the times I waited so eagerly to hit 300... now I'm at 500! I have more than tripled my fat intake and more than quadrupled my carb intake since the start of my reverse diet in January 2014 (or actually June 2014 when I started to make frequent increases). I've never liked protein so I'm not even gonna math that lol!! I was surprisingly super close to my targets and actually hit them 2 times practically on the dot. I even went slightly over them on Wednesday and there was only 1 day I was under, but still very close. It's SOOO much food but I'm SOOO happy to be eating this much as opposed to 700-1000 calories a day as I did back in 2011-2013! No extreme PR's were hit this week except a 2.5 kg increase on my overhead squats so I'm happy about that, even though it felt like 40 kg's but was only 27.5 lol! I did 10 reps though!  Targets this week:
Calories- 3620 Protein- 135 g Carbs- 500 g Fat- 120 g I'm so close to hitting that 500 gram mark I can taste it! Although, I could barely hit 495 grams this week lol.. I only hit my targets once this week and was under my intake for the rest of the week. Although my weight is creeping up on the scale, I'm still managing to hit rep PR's on body weight exercises like pull-ups and parallel dips... not really on push-ups though! My training is going well and I have enough energy for every workout. With all the food I'm eating I can easily train 3x daily lol. Some good news: a guy at the gym commented and said that I'm getting buffer and that my V-taper is looking good, as are my arms and shoulders! Not that I thrive on positive feedback, it's just nice to hear =) My weight fluctuated during the week but I have only gained 2 g.  Intake this week:
Calories- 3571
I almost hit my targets every day! Shocking!!! Even more food than the past few weeks and I came closer to the numbers than usual. I didn't post a progress update last week since I didn't feel like taking a progress pic. But me and my boyfriend celebrated our 5 year anniversary and it was a blast. I didn't track anything, was probably way under my targets but enjoyed it. I even came back losing weight My gym sessions also went well this week. All this food is leading to PR's on the weekly. I was super proud of my 75 kg squats (below parallel) and also 88 kg's barbell hip thrusts. I'm getting closer to 500 grams carbs....  My intake this week:
Calories- 3582 Protein- 140 g Carbs- 490 g Fats- 118 g *sigh* Still a struggle to hit my numbers. At least I hit them on the dot or pretty closely 3-4 days this week! My weight fluctuated all week on the daily. Anything from 64 - 66. An average week, not much to log. I did however hit a few new PR's this week on my deadlifts (both sumo and conventional) as well as push presses again.  This week's intake:
Calories- 3543
Another week of struggling to hit my numbers! It's such a struggle to take in all this food lol, but I enjoy it! I'm slacking on taking progress pictures and updating my Reverse Dieting section but I'll keep posting. I've had some good & bad this week at the gym. I got into the habit of using a small step to get unto the pullup bar to do pullups, I never kicked away the step which meant I never did full dead hang pullups. I kicked away the step for the first time in years today and the pullups were soooo much harder! It was super frustrating since I worked my way up over the years just to get in 2 or 3 extra reps, then I started doing weighted pullups. I'll have to start all over again with only body weight dead hang pullups. The good: I hit a few new PR's on bench, hip thrusts and push presses. All in all, I'm loving my training.  My intake this week:
Calories- 3495
The number in the scale might be creeping up, my lower tummy might be getting back to its original pouchy-ness, my love handles may be getting a tad bigger and my core definition might be diminishing BUT my physical appearance still doesn’t define me. I’ve hit a few PR’s this week, putting all those carbs to good use! I haven’t really made decent meals this week (as the case last week lol) and should definitely start preparing some delicious, micronutrient filled foods to eat during the day. I resort to quick eats like package pastas, microwave meals and food that involves no prepping. This laziness stops today! My little break (of 1 week) is over; I start work again on Monday and will be back to the books to study for upcoming exams. I’m definitely doing my best from now on to keep my site updated!  My macro intake for the past week:
Calories = 3437
Two days I hit my targets closely, 3 days I struggled to get in my carbs! I really have to start consciously planning my meals (and actually start making food instead of relying on easy options) to hit those numbers. My weight stayed around 64 kg’s this week, between 64.0 kg and 65.8 kg at the highest. It was in the lower end most of the time; I only hit the 65’s twice. My workouts were average, no awesome PR’s. I do need to start lowering my weights for deadlifts (107.5 x 3 is my current max) because my form is horrific! Other than that, Nothing new!  My macro intake for the past week:
Calories = 3408
So, another two weeks passed and I haven’t taken any progress pics -_- BUT I’ll definitely be taking those more regularly from now on. In other news, I’m working at the local gym for two weeks to get in my compulsory hours (since I’m studying Exercise Science and need 40 hours to complete my qualification). I’ve had quite a bit of take aways this week- from pies to hot dogs. There wasn’t plenty of options since I’m full of crap and can’t eat cold food (and the gym doesn’t have a microwave) so I turned to the easy solution =) My weight has been in the 63 kg to 64 kg range this week and I haven’t notices any obvious fat gains. I am getting a lot of comments at the gym that I’ve put on size in a good way, asking if I’m training for competitions and complimenting me on my shoulder & leg gains. So all is good lol.  My macro intake for the past week:
Calories = 3379
I have been super lazy and not in the mood to take progress photos the past few weeks. But here’s on from 8 June – 14 June. It was a struggle to hit my macro intake this week, I’ve been struggling for a while recently, especially when I’m too lazy to cook or don’t plan ahead. I haven’t had much of a weight increase and my weight was between 63 kg and 64 kg throughout the week. Hopefully I’ll stop being lazy, start taking weekly progress pictures and updating my site regularly. PS: I got a new phone, obviously, since the quality is 20 times better! My old phone fell a lot so the camera went all fuzzy.  My macro intake was still the same from last week as I couldn’t hit it.
Calories = 3321
But first, lemme brag about all my PR’s… Monday, I hit 100kg for 3 reps on conventional deadlifts, Tuesday, I hit 95kg for 3 reps on sumo deadlifts, Wednesday I hit 155kg on the 45 degree calf swing & 62.5kg seated calf raises, Thursday, I hit 24kg on military press for 10 reps & Friday, I leg pressed 135kg for 10 reps. I was pretty close to all of my numbers daily. I didn’t hit them all 100% but I was close. Despite my period beginning this week, my weight slowly dropped by the end of the week. I did feel a little bloated due to my period but other than that, I don’t feel any difference. I’m still surprised at how my body is keeping up with all the food. My combined weight for the week was 64.1 kg  Macros for the week:
Calories = 3263
Monday, 2 PR’s, Tuesday, 2 PR’s, Wednesday-Friday, 1 PR! I did conventional deadlifts for 95kg for 4 reps, barbell push press for 35kg for 5 reps, sum deadlifts of 92.5kg for 3 reps, leg press of 160kg for 5 reps, 45 degree calf raises of 155kg for 9 reps, military press of 23 kg for 8 reps, front squats of 38kg for 8 reps. I was pretty much under my daily goals on some days, but most days I got close to my goals. My weight was in the 64’s beginning of the week and tapered down to the 63’s. My combined weight for the week was 63.85 kg  Macros for the week:
Calories = 3234
I hit my macros most days; I was pretty under my targets on Thursday though. Nothing special happened this week. I had good workouts but no record breaking PR’s. My legs, however, did take longer to recover than usual. I’m never sore after training but my legs were a bit sensitive for some time. My combined weight for the week was 63.7 kg  Macros for the week:
Calories = 3176
After taking the entire long weekend of tracking macros and training, this is where I'm currently at. I don't feel any different to before my trip and I even weighed less when I came back. I enjoyed pastas on 2 occasions, ice cream on the daily, meals out daily, drinks with my meals (non-alcoholic since I'm not a drinker) and just enjoyed the time spent with my boyfriends' family and relatives. I didn't turn down meals or outings and just behaved normally- no binging and no overeating, also, no starving. I planned on using the macros before I left but ended up upping them anyways. My training went super well, I got increases on most of my lifts and my form on deadlifts and squats were much better. I hit 90 kg conventional deadlifts again for 4 much smoother reps, 70 kg squats for 4 reps (67.5 kg was my previous record for 3 hard reps) and 85 kg sumo deadlifts for 3 reps. I also curled 15 kg's for 3 reps when I did biceps. My chin-ups were also smoother and easier than always- I got 10 reps and I usually get 8 with a damn struggle and also on good days. Seems like I need to take more breaks to achieve results in my training lol.  My macros for the week after my weekend off:
Calories = 3139 P- 138 g C- 415 g F- 103 g I'm leaving tomorrow morning at 03:30 AM to enjoy some time off in Pietermaritzburg / Durban / Umhlanga. So this is a short weeks' progress. I was quite below my intake requirements this week since I wasn't too much bothered about sticking to the set of macros as I will go back on them next week after my long weekend relaxation. Nothing interesting happened this week, same old same old.. struggling to get in all the food, no binging, enjoying treats almost daily etc. I did hit some amazing new PR's though, 90 kg's deadlifts for 4 reps and the most exciting part of my week--- 70 kg's back squats!! Other than that, nothing interesting.  My intake for the week prior to my depart:
Calories = 3110
I was informed this week that my numbers for the powerlifting movements are enough to send me to nationals if I should decide to compete. Which I want to, but not in front of a major crowd lol! We'll see what happens. Maybe it will be like my "fitness competition preps" in which I look awesome and could possibly place 1st in my line up, but then I decide I'm not going through with it. Can I just be more courageous lol!!! I was much closer to my target goals this week! I was not 100% but I wasn't in the mood to force-feed myself any more lol! With regards to PR's, this was a great week! I hit a new conventional deadlift, sumo deadlift and bench PR. 85.35 kg conventionals, 80 kg sumo's & 40.9 bench. Something I did notice, however, is that my pull ups and chin ups aren't as smooth and easy as always and that I'm not progressing with reps, but rather regressing! I'll have to increase my frequency and volume when I strategically plan my new program sometime. Funny thing,eating more and actually coming close to my target goals, I lost a few grams this week. I seem to have this 'blessing' where I lose weight once I up my macros lol.  Macros this week:
Calories= 3081
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