Summer six pack plan phase 3
You made it to Phase 3. This means you are 8 weeks in. The hardest was certainly the first 3 weeks where your body is constantly trying to pull you back into laziness and forced deconditioning by listening to the most common excuses and the ones you seem to create for yourself.
The last three weeks are like the last mile. Temptations are getting stronger but you can see results so it keeps you on track.
The biggest issue now is probably troubleshooting and fine-tuning.
For some cutting, more carbs are what needs to be done to keep results coming and for others, it’s the exact opposite. Sometimes increasing carbs can get you better results. After 8 weeks of serious training and great nutritional choices, you become more insulin sensitive, which means that carbs are slowly becoming friends again. A person who is insulin-sensitive needs only a relatively small amount of insulin to keep blood glucose levels in the normal range and keep the body cells supplied with the glucose they need.
Under normal conditions of insulin reactivity, this insulin response triggers glucose being taken into body cells, to be used as energy. Therefore, it shuts down the body’s ability to use fat as energy causing the concentration of glucose in the blood to decrease and stay within the normal range even when a large amount of carbohydrates is consumed.
Prior to the 12 weeks of summer six pack challenge, your poor habits led you to insulin resistance. It happens when excess glucose is not sufficiently absorbed by cells even in the presence of insulin, thereby causing an increase of blood sugar level. The longer you waited before making the step towards better nutritional habits, the harder those 12 weeks would be.
In reality, the higher your body fat percentage was before you started the “six pack plan”, the longer you should stay off carbs. If you have been under 15% bodyfat, and losing about 0.5 to 1% fat per week, carbs could usually be a part of your diet. As specified in phase 2, carbs were taken mostly around the workouts and only on training days.
For the last 4 weeks, maintain carbohydrate intake to 100-150gr per day. Yes, even on the non-training days for better recovery.
If sleep is an issue, I would increase calories for the last phase. Yes, this seems little counter-intuitive but lowering calories is not always the answer. On training days, add a pre-bed snack, such as Greek yogurt and a fruit, or dried fruits and nuts. This will help lower cortisol levels pre-bed and improve sleep quality.
Supplements such as Synermag taken at lunch and with your evening snack is the best to improve insulin sensitivity and again, lower cortisol. You can also add 2-3 Optisom to your pre-bed snack and you’ll have a very restful sleep.
Workout time
The last phase is going back to the basics: Simple and effective. We look for big core exercises that work on the body as a whole. The most important notion for this phase is that you have to use your “true” 12 RM. It means that you fail at repetition 13 or that you shit in your pants trying! Got it?
The first week will probably leave you crippled. Don’t worry if you can’t do all 4 sets at your true 12 RM. Do as many reps as possible, once you can’t do more than 8 reps, lower the weight by 10-15% and finish your remaining sets.
Week 1
Day1 A1 Barbell back squats 12 reps tempo 3020 60 sec rest A2 Chin ups (supinated grip) 12 reps (or max) tempo 3020 60 sec rest A3 Barbell deadlifts 12 reps tempo 3020 60 sec rest A4 Standing barbell shoulder press tempo 3020 60 sec rest Go back to A1 and repeat the circuit for 4 sets
B1 leg press 2 minutes (yes, you read that right) Rest 45 sec. B2 Toes to bar as many as possible 4010 (lower your legs in 4 seconds) Rest 45 sec. 4 sets
Day2 A1 DB split squats 12 reps tempo 3020 60 sec rest A2 Bent-over barbell row supinated grip 12 reps tempo 3020 60 sec rest A3 Lying leg curl 12 reps tempo 3020 60 sec rest A4 Barbell benchpress flat tempo 3020 60 sec rest Go back to A1 and repeat the circuit for 4 sets
B1 DB step up x 20 reps (yes, you read that right) Rest 45 sec. B2 Dips x 10 reps tempo 3020 Rest 45 sec. B3 Standing barbell curl supinated grip x10 tempo 3020 Rest 45 sec. 4 sets
Repeat this workout as suggested below
Monday day 1 Tuesday day 2 Wednesday off Thursday day 1 Friday day 2 Saturday and Sunday off
Week 2
Cut the rest period to 45 seconds on A1 to A4 and to 30 seconds for B1 and B2.
Week 3
Do only 3 sets for A’s and B’s, and keep the same rest periods as week 2.
Week 4
Hell week, you earned it!
For A1 to A4, take your 12 RM weight and do 8 reps only but instead of counting the sets, keep the rest period to 45 seconds between each and go at it for 45 minutes. If you are still standing, you can finish off with the B series.
Now that you have finished the summer six-pack plan with flying colors, enjoy the summer and make it a memorable one.
Coach Eric!
The last three weeks are like the last mile. Temptations are getting stronger but you can see results so it keeps you on track.
The biggest issue now is probably troubleshooting and fine-tuning.
For some cutting, more carbs are what needs to be done to keep results coming and for others, it’s the exact opposite. Sometimes increasing carbs can get you better results. After 8 weeks of serious training and great nutritional choices, you become more insulin sensitive, which means that carbs are slowly becoming friends again. A person who is insulin-sensitive needs only a relatively small amount of insulin to keep blood glucose levels in the normal range and keep the body cells supplied with the glucose they need.
Under normal conditions of insulin reactivity, this insulin response triggers glucose being taken into body cells, to be used as energy. Therefore, it shuts down the body’s ability to use fat as energy causing the concentration of glucose in the blood to decrease and stay within the normal range even when a large amount of carbohydrates is consumed.
Prior to the 12 weeks of summer six pack challenge, your poor habits led you to insulin resistance. It happens when excess glucose is not sufficiently absorbed by cells even in the presence of insulin, thereby causing an increase of blood sugar level. The longer you waited before making the step towards better nutritional habits, the harder those 12 weeks would be.
In reality, the higher your body fat percentage was before you started the “six pack plan”, the longer you should stay off carbs. If you have been under 15% bodyfat, and losing about 0.5 to 1% fat per week, carbs could usually be a part of your diet. As specified in phase 2, carbs were taken mostly around the workouts and only on training days.
For the last 4 weeks, maintain carbohydrate intake to 100-150gr per day. Yes, even on the non-training days for better recovery.
If sleep is an issue, I would increase calories for the last phase. Yes, this seems little counter-intuitive but lowering calories is not always the answer. On training days, add a pre-bed snack, such as Greek yogurt and a fruit, or dried fruits and nuts. This will help lower cortisol levels pre-bed and improve sleep quality.
Supplements such as Synermag taken at lunch and with your evening snack is the best to improve insulin sensitivity and again, lower cortisol. You can also add 2-3 Optisom to your pre-bed snack and you’ll have a very restful sleep.
Workout time
The last phase is going back to the basics: Simple and effective. We look for big core exercises that work on the body as a whole. The most important notion for this phase is that you have to use your “true” 12 RM. It means that you fail at repetition 13 or that you shit in your pants trying! Got it?
The first week will probably leave you crippled. Don’t worry if you can’t do all 4 sets at your true 12 RM. Do as many reps as possible, once you can’t do more than 8 reps, lower the weight by 10-15% and finish your remaining sets.
Week 1
Day1 A1 Barbell back squats 12 reps tempo 3020 60 sec rest A2 Chin ups (supinated grip) 12 reps (or max) tempo 3020 60 sec rest A3 Barbell deadlifts 12 reps tempo 3020 60 sec rest A4 Standing barbell shoulder press tempo 3020 60 sec rest Go back to A1 and repeat the circuit for 4 sets
B1 leg press 2 minutes (yes, you read that right) Rest 45 sec. B2 Toes to bar as many as possible 4010 (lower your legs in 4 seconds) Rest 45 sec. 4 sets
Day2 A1 DB split squats 12 reps tempo 3020 60 sec rest A2 Bent-over barbell row supinated grip 12 reps tempo 3020 60 sec rest A3 Lying leg curl 12 reps tempo 3020 60 sec rest A4 Barbell benchpress flat tempo 3020 60 sec rest Go back to A1 and repeat the circuit for 4 sets
B1 DB step up x 20 reps (yes, you read that right) Rest 45 sec. B2 Dips x 10 reps tempo 3020 Rest 45 sec. B3 Standing barbell curl supinated grip x10 tempo 3020 Rest 45 sec. 4 sets
Repeat this workout as suggested below
Monday day 1 Tuesday day 2 Wednesday off Thursday day 1 Friday day 2 Saturday and Sunday off
Week 2
Cut the rest period to 45 seconds on A1 to A4 and to 30 seconds for B1 and B2.
Week 3
Do only 3 sets for A’s and B’s, and keep the same rest periods as week 2.
Week 4
Hell week, you earned it!
For A1 to A4, take your 12 RM weight and do 8 reps only but instead of counting the sets, keep the rest period to 45 seconds between each and go at it for 45 minutes. If you are still standing, you can finish off with the B series.
Now that you have finished the summer six-pack plan with flying colors, enjoy the summer and make it a memorable one.
Coach Eric!
