Diet: Day 1

This is my scale this morning post "library time", and for the record, I love being big. I love that if a famine hit I would be a finalist for survival. I love that I could take a bullet, move a piano, use my stomach for a tray while sitting on the couch, and put that same power belly into a heavy deadlift. I love that XXL T-shirts are now tight (both in the shoulders and in the gut), and the buttons on jeans that I used to wear comfortably are now screaming for their life, and could become dangerous projectiles at any moment. I love that I can bear hug just about anybody, and provide adequate protection for them in dark alleys. And I LOVE being a big hairy dad (everybody needs one)

I (in agreement with the guys over at 70's Big) think that you are not an adult male until you are > 200lbs. I will make exceptions for weight class athletes (Mr. Roberts, with your fancy Olympic lifts). Also, I would like to point out that the strongest men in history, were rarely "ripped" or "cut" or "shredded" or had rippling abdominal muscles that the drove the women, and a few of the men wild. It would have given the airbrush artist carpal tunnel if they had tried to put Paul Anderson's picture on the cover of Men's Health without his shirt on in today's cosmetic climate. The classic strongmen had large bellies and man-boobs, and had all the physical attractiveness of the fry cook at Waffle House. You know, real men.

Legendary Russian Weightlifter Vasily Alexeev

this, ladies, is a real man

I the past few months I have, somewhat intentionally, been packing on the pounds and trying to make some gains with my strongman training. I've added a proud layer of winter fat around my mid-section, and when standing upright have two well endowed back rolls at the base of each lat muscle that will grab and eat a shirt like a sock puppet. I've made some good progress and the additional mass has definitely aided me in the gym. But, with a right shoulder in need of rest and therapy, and a host of other ills associated with being big I've decided to pull it back and notch, drop a few pounds, and put strongman on hold for a few weeks.

With literally hundreds of different diet plans to choose from, my weapon of choice is the oh so 2003 and outdated Atkins style diet which has actually been around for decades. (John McCallum even outlined it from a Strength and Health article in the 1960's as seen in the book The Complete Keys to Progress). It's straightforward, it works well for me, and it is what I know.

So, let's get on with the list of things I can eat.

• Meat (delicious, yummy, bone candy - as much as I want)


• Eggs


• Cheese (blagh!, I hate most cheese, but we'll see)


• Fat (omega 3's, and butter especially - butter is good for you, not sure if you knew that)


• Whey protein (the kind I use is very low in carbs, so mixed with water this could be a lifesaver)


• Veggies (yellow/orange veggies in moderation)


• Sugar Free snacks (in moderation, this likely will be an afternoon Diet Coke)

Things that are NOT on the list

• Magic Pills


• Magic Elixirs


• Anything from GNC

• Anything sold on an infomercial

• Magic Pills that really do WORK! We Promise! Or your Money Back!


• Sugar


• Things containing sugar


• Things that are white in color or look like a french fry


• Things that are handed to you through your car window


• Magic pills that you got from your co-worker's husband's boss' best friend that contain ground up tomato root and a chinese man's toenails and made his cousin's sister lose 90lbs. in 3 weeks, but then when you see her she looks exactly the same and is eating birthday cake.

So there is the plan. It is simple, but not easy. I'm about 12hrs. in right now and the hallucinations have stopped, my sugar craving migraines are subsiding and my body is beginning to accept that I am in control. It is a good feeling. This eating plan combined with about 6-8 hrs. of vigorous training a week and my beautiful belly will begin to shrink and I'll likely not get out of breath tying my shoes, or getting in and out of the car, all things I will miss. At least until it's time to eat my way to the top. More to come....