Day 230: Mission 3 Goals & Accountability
So, what can be achieved in a 136 day period?
As you can see from the header graphic Mission 3 is a 136 day period from June 26, 2006 to November 8, 2007. The question that may come to your mind is "what exactly can be achieved in 136 day period"?
The best way for me to answer that question is to show you what I acheived over Mission 1 & 2 which was also a 136 day period.
Just for clarity sake this transformation took place between November 8, 2006 and March 24, 2007. You can read about these two missions by clicking on the links in the right-hand navigation bar.
I started Mission 1 at 20.8% bodyfat, weighing 84.5 kg's and finished Mission 2 at 6.5% bodyfat and 74 kg's bodyweight.
Important: I also must point out (for those that don't know) that both missions were completely natural. I used absolutely no "chemicals" and no "physique enhancing" supplements (except for protein powder). Of course, Mission 3 will be the same, completely natural.
With this first 136 day period in mind let's take a closer look at my goals for Mission 3, and perhaps what you could achieve in the same time period (if you are interested).
M3 Phase 1: Six-Pack In 60 days
I'll cut right to the chase, Phase 1 of Mission 3 is lose 5.5 kg's of fat in the next 60 days (while maintaining lean body mass). To be exact here are the goals of this mission:
60 Day Shred
Bodyweight: 74.5 kg's
Bodyfat %: 6.0%
Fat Weight: 4.5 kg's
Lean Body Mass: 70.0 kg's
My "Unfinished Business"
As you may know Mission 2 was all about getting that elusive six-pack and holding a public vote on whether my mid-section qualified as a six-pack. I put my $1,500 pre-paid trip to Phuket on the line as an added incentive to follow through.
Here is a 3 minute video below that documents this journey if you missed it.
Six-Pack 2.0
Even though I was proud of my acheivement in getting "shredded" and winning the public vote deep down I knew that I hadn't quite nailed an absolutely defined six-pack. I probably still needed to lose an additional 1 kg of bodyfat at the time in order to reveal the complete six-pack.
Here is the M2 final front picture to illustrate what I'm talking about.
In light of this, I am gunning for a "completely shredded" six-pack in this 60 day shred mission. This is something I want to achieve before I start the "muscle building" Phase 2 part of Mission 3 as I believe I have "unfinished business" to attend to.
Below is my M3 Phase 1 graphic.
M3 Phase 2: Muscle Gain
Put simply, Phase 2 of Mission 3 is a 70 day period of gaining muscle. The process of gaining lean body mass is a totally "different animal" compared to fat loss as it requires a different weight training system, reduced cardio (to preserve muscle) and a caloric surplus.
It may look like my approach is a little backwards as most people would advocate "building mass" first and then "cutting". However, in my first 2 missions I have been successful at both at the same time, that is building muscle AND losing fat. My before & after pictures clearly show this.
Capitalizing On My M1 & M2 Experience
The reasons why I am able to do this I believe is due to the high volume, high intensity, short rest period weight training system I have followed for both missions: Metabolic Surge (Click for my experience)
This is also coupled with the principles I applied from the "fat loss for bodybuilder's" bible, Burn The Fat, Feed The Muscle (Click for more info).
With this in mind I will be following both Surge and BFFM again for the first phase of Mission 3 as I "get shredded" before my final assault on phase 2.
The Psychology Behind My Approach
There is another reason why I am going on a "shred mission" first, it is psychological. As you can see from my earlier pictures I spent 6 years overweight, bordering on obese before I started my current journey.
Now that my bodyfat has crept back up to 13% I don't want it to blowout to 15%-20% on a full-blown "mass phase" which is what would happen due to the caloric surplus required. I know from personal experience that it is extremely difficult to bring my bodyfat down from those ranges. This may be a flaw in my make-up BUT I have to go with my gut-instinct on this!
Therefore, my thinking goes like this. Get shredded during M3 Phase 1 and bring my bodyfat right down to 6%. Once I reach this level of bodyfat and muscularity I will then have the energy, confidence and "psychological wiggle room" to embark on a full-blown muscle gain phase.
As for my target bodystats for Phase 2 I will have to wait to see how Phase 1 pans out before I can make an accurate assessemnt of what I can achieve in a 70 day muscle gain period.
Below is my M3 Phase 2 graphic.
M3 Visualization Goal: My Dream Body
As you may have noticed I have my "dream body" visualization picture to drive me throughout Mission 3. Here it is below.
As you can see below, I have plastered these visualiztion pictures all over my apartment. There is a science to this method, that being to constantly reinforce and burn this image into my subconscious mind. When the mind has an image to work with (rather than just goal stats) you can create your own self-fulfilling prophecy of success.
To tell you the truth, numbers and statistics don't really motivate me that much. I am a person who prefers to use the "right-brain" approach of using visuals to drive me...as you can probably tell by now!
The physique I have used has been my "dream body" for a long time. Starting at 13% bodyfat with 69.4 kg's of lean body mass as I am now with a full 135 days in front of me I feel that this is best shot to achieve this body in one single mission.
What would make it all the more sweeter is the fact the date of November 8, 2007 will be exactly one year to the day that I started my current journey. This is a very special date for me as it represents the exact day that I turned my life around. Trust me, this date means more to me than even my own birthday!
M3 Real-Time Accountability Strategy
As I discussed in my Day 228 post I will now undertake a real-time accountability strategy every single day. This will benefit not only me by holding me accountable every hour of every day, but also the people who visit this blog and want to know the specifics of what it really takes to "get shredded".
The reason I know a lot of people are interested in this is due to the the volume of email I get regarding absolute specifics of what I do on a daily basis. So, this is the perfect opportunity to help those people with a complete breakdown of my daily routine of nutrition, training and mental strategies.
*Excerpt from my Day 228 post regarding real-time accountability.
What "Amazing Before & Afters" All Have In Common
Here's the truth, every "amazing" before and after 12 week transformation had this in common. While the 3-month before and after pictures are a spectacular way of displaying your progress the reality is that a transformation was made every single day.
Change The Way You Mark Time
So, why do I count in hours not days? Well this is real-time baby! I am not kidding around, if you want to transform your body you need to change the way you mark time.
I have documented every single day of my 2 fat loss missions. I took daily pictures and updated my blog every day throughout these two missions.
My success has been due to the way I mark time.
Instead of thinking in months or years I now think in seconds, minutes, hours and days. This is because a successful physique transformation takes place on a second by second, minute by minute, hour by hour, day by day basis.
24/7 Committment
As I have said before, transforming your body is a 24 hour a day comittment. You must schedule your 8 hours sleep, you 16 hours of nutrition, your 1 hour of mind power and your 1 hour of exercise. Then you must put it all together with absolute precision on a daily basis. Because if you don't make gains every single day when are ever going to?
A lot of people like to make 1 year, 5 year and 10 year plans. This approach is destined to lead most people to failure because of the human condition known as procrastination. The only time you have is the present, RIGHT HERE, RIGHT NOW.
Remember this, once you have mapped out your success plan the steps you have to take to acheive your goals are the same whether it takes you 12 weeks, 12 months or 12 years.
Putting It All Together
Now all of this theory is great but how do we implement this concept in the real-world on a daily basis? Well, the answer is quite simple. We keep ourselves accountable by making sure we follow through on the daily actions that are necessary to make a physique transformation.
On the physical realm there are 4 major components that must be executed with absolute precision at specific times throughout each day: nutrition, training, cardio and the mental game.
Real-Time Accountability With The Clock!
So, what is the best way to ensure that you follow through on your daily action plan that incorporates the 4 major components discussed above? Simple...use a clock as a real-time accountability device!
That's right! What better way is there to track your daily action plan in real-time than through a clock? None!
I will use this clock to hold myself accountable in real-time throughout every single day of my next mission (and subsequent missions) by uploading my daily action plan at the beginning of each day then place a check mark next to each component once I have completed it.
Ok, well there you have it, M3 explained.
All that's left now is for me to actually implement the next 136 days with absolute precision!
Peace,
AJ
Eat Clean,
Shred Hard,
Think BIG!
