My apologies ahead of time for how long this wound up being. You can skip to about the middle paragraph starting with the **'s to reach the meat of my question to save some time.
I’ve been reading back through several of the MAG-10 Pulse threads, and had a many of my questions and concerns addressed, but a few more are still lingering. If they were covered in a thread that I missed, I apologize in advance for not catching them and rehashing here.
I’ve been seriously training again since May of 2010. After taking off about six years for what I lovingly am calling “the super bulk” phase of my 20’s, I decided to really try and get my weight down and start building some strength. From May to late September I dropped about 35 lbs (I was 340), but only lost about 4% bf (I was at 34.5, so says the average of the 3 bio-impedance things at the gym). In October, I stumbled upon Intermittent Fasting. The week before Halloween I began a strict regimented cycle of eating one day, and not eating the next (for example: Monday wake up and eat all day, don’t eat again until Wed morning). I didn’t consume a single calorie, even staggering my fish oil to early mornings and just before bed on eat days to make sure I consumed no calories during my Fasting days.
I continued to work out on my same routine: (Mon, Tues, Thurs, Fri MORNINGS Cardio, Mon, Wed, Fri afternoons Lifting). I never felt weak, or tired, or noticed any negative side-effects from fasting. I still had strength gains, although not great, and I never felt like I had a “bad day” in the gym. During this time frame, I lost another 17 lbs, but also another 4% bf (I’m currently at about 26.5%, which is still retardedly high, I know).
Recently (over the last 2 weeks), I’ve altered my plan to only fast on Sunday, Tues, and Thurs, and only work out in the mornings and evenings of Mon, Wed, and Fri so that I can make sure I’m getting plenty of protein and nutrients on those days.
Okay, sorry for that brief - albeit boring - history lesson of my past few months.
I’ve been doing an insane (for me, at least) amount of research on supplementation, reading forums, talking to so-called experts at the gym, getting down with the bro-science of it all, and I feel most comfortable with what I’ve learned from you guys here at T-Nation (been digging this site for several months now).
I’m thinking of incorporating the MAG-10 Pulse cycle into my routine a couple of times a week, but I’m not sure which days I should really be doing it on. My fast days are currently only on rest days, but I noticed that in the MAG-10 Pulse instructions and suggestions it lists when to take it before/during/after your workouts. Would it be worthwhile to invest the money in this product at this point in my training (I have the money, so it’s not going to hurt my pocket), or just stick with what’s “working” for now, and keep at it till I’m a bit further toward my goals?
I would really like to keep peeling off the fat and not just maintain my current strength, but continue to build on it. I’ve hit this wall recently, though, where I feel like I’m starting to stagnate, and the weight and bf% aren’t really moving one way or another. I’m hoping it’s just the holidays, and that I’ve been a bit too lazy with my eating and training habits, though.
My apologies again for how long-winded this all was. Thanks ahead of time for any suggestions, answers, and/or pointers anyone has on the subject.