Apex Predator Shenanigans

[reecealbright]

Basically a thread for people who have used the Apex Predator diet with the various tweaks they did or didn't use to become a little more awesome.

I myself literally did everything recommended on the actual blog from using matrix 5.0 protein and eating nothing but ribs/wings for 4 months. I was pretty damn lean at 6 foot 210 and everything was going up including weight bit by bit. That was until a friend of mine recommended back loading. I began slamming doughnuts etc with him at night and promptly ballooned up, had heartburn all the time, and didn't get much ****ing stronger if at all. So I'm back on the quest to lean out

I know Andrea already made a thread but was curious how women have used the apex predator diet and any tweaks they recommended.

Was also curious if people felt fine literally eating nothing but meat and shakes for the week(I did before), or did you try to add in butter/cream/olive oil to add in more fat calories than the meat itself.
I guess it would be nice to know if some people felt better going gluten free on rampage days as well as I've been considering/trying it for a few weeks now.

 

[andreaelmeyer]

I have found that since I have been on my own "journey" if you will on the Apex predator diet that I have been much less moody and had less cravings. I am at a steady 20 percent bodyfat now. I was around 25-26 percent when I started it. I have found that I don't crave carbs as much as I thought I would now that I have adapted. I HAVE noticed that cheese slows the progress down a bit, not sure why, maybe I have heard it spikes the insulin or something. So for the most part 5 days a week I now just do straight ketogenic, only rather than varying the carbs as much I have do a cheese day and than a non cheese day and that seems to do well, and then have a high carb cheat day on the weekend (Saturday) followed by a protein sparing fast day, with one big meal for dinner (this is on Sunday). I have also found that having a couple shots in the evening of hard liquor seems to speed it up a bit? Strange, but after Jamie's recent blogging about alcohol I gave it a try and it appears that I lean out a bit when I do it. Recently I have been experimenting with introducing a bit of carbs around my workouts, just to see what happens, since it occurred to me that after two days of ketogenic, my workouts feel a bit sluggish. Still experimenting, but this is by far the best diet I have ever done and the easiest to follow, I am just trying to screw around with a bit as of late to see if I can speed up the process a bit, as my goal is to get down to 18 percent bodyfat. Overall though, the diet combined with the supps, I am WAY less "moodswing-ey" than I was which is great and I am sure my male roomates appreciate that haha

 

[andreaelmeyer]

it isn't so much that I think the cheese stops it, I just somehow feel it slows it a bit, not sure why.

 

[reecealbright]

goddamn if I haven't been doing the same thing with Jameson on the rocks. I doubt I could like cheese enough to do a whole day of it, what the hell kind do you eat?

Could ask what kind of blends people are using for protein, I have been using a custom blend from True nutrition because I hate my wallet. Basically trying varying mixtures of whey, beef, and egg protein. I may just go back to Matrix 5.0 as it seems to be one of (only?) the last blended proteins with low carbs. Could possibly just find a whey protein, an egg protein, and let their powers combine.

 

[Rhett67]

goddamn if I haven't been doing the same thing with Jameson on the rocks. I doubt I could like cheese enough to do a whole day of it, what the hell kind do you eat?

Could ask what kind of blends people are using for protein, I have been using a custom blend from True nutrition because I hate my wallet. Basically trying varying mixtures of whey, beef, and egg protein. I may just go back to Matrix 5.0 as it seems to be one of (only?) the last blended proteins with low carbs. Could possibly just find a whey protein, an egg protein, and let their powers combine.

I've been using Muscle Pharm combat in peanut butter chocolate flavor. 4 grams of carbs and has whey, casein and egg protein.

 

[andreaelmeyer]

goddamn if I haven't been doing the same thing with Jameson on the rocks. I doubt I could like cheese enough to do a whole day of it, what the hell kind do you eat?

Could ask what kind of blends people are using for protein, I have been using a custom blend from True nutrition because I hate my wallet. Basically trying varying mixtures of whey, beef, and egg protein. I may just go back to Matrix 5.0 as it seems to be one of (only?) the last blended proteins with low carbs. Could possibly just find a whey protein, an egg protein, and let their powers combine.

Honestly I don't use a crap ton of cheese. Just enough to put in a low carb tortilla on top of some sort of chopped meat and/or eggs. Usually just some sort of mild cheddar crap from the store (I am reserve military with a blue collar civilian job so I am not rich). I tried Matrix 5.0 after seeing it on Jamie's site and I think it is pretty good. I like Casein proteins because they keep me full longer. If I chug whey it is only during and after workouts.

 

[ironpsych]

Subbing to follow. I'm running APD during prep for UPA nats. Food intake is mostly chicken wings, rotisserie chicken, bone in pork chops or ribs, and stew (mostly low carb chili and chicken stew). If I need some variety I throw in boiled eggs, tuna, salmon, and if i gotta snack its peanut butter or beef jerky. Supplements are 360cut sleep and thermo, ferox, aspirin, primatene, and animal pak (also flexiril and vistaril for sleep) and muscle infusion for protein. I ran a modified APD for a few months a while back during my strongman season and it helped me get from 19ish% @230 lbs to 15ish% @ 242. Aiming to walk on the platform at around 12% @ 242 in february.

 

[AlexPowell]

Yeah I follow the apex predator diet and it's pretty awesome
I don't always eat meat off the bone though, I stew most of my food
Good for gaining weight or losing weight. As you can see, I'm not lean as **** but currently trimming down. I was confused at first and seemed to believe that I could eat unlimited amounts of calories and lose fat lol. I didn't really get any fatter eating 4000-5000kcal a day though, just really strong

For some reason though, 2000-3500 seems to be my range of maintenance calories. If I eat between these calories there is almost no change in my physique, only my strength levels. So I am currently cutting on 1000-1500kcal a day, low fat, zero carb high protein and somehow manage to drag my ass into the gym with extreme lethargy on near starvation calories and set PBs. The key is to do fun, odd lifts you've not done in a while I think. So I am doing mostly overhead ****, front squats, sumo and deficit pulls, crazy bells etc

 

[ThaGerGuy3000]

Dude you don't get fat at 5k kcal so you only eat 1.5k? I think you lack patience young padawan. I am defenitely not tall (1, 72m which is like 3gallons or something in your crazy ass system of nonsense) and whenever I eat less than 2000kcal I feel terrible.

 

[AlexPowell]

I'm setting personal bests and getting daily changes in physique what's the problem?
If I'm going to feel like ****, I'd rather get it done as fast as possible. I had been dieting hard since early October and hit a stall that lasted 6 weeks leading up to a meet. 6 weeks is a long time for literally nothing to happen while slowly reducing calories and feeling ****ter and ****ter

Just get the job done, by end of year I'll be lean. Maybe it is impatience but if it gets results is it really a problem?

 

[FL3X MAGNUM]

Oh hai guys!
I'm watching you...

 

[reecealbright]

Alex,
I'm curious what you were eating to hit 5000 calories a day. If you weren't slamming down cream or other fats it would be something like 4+ lbs of meat a day. With five shakes I sit around 1500 calories from them but the remainder is from meat and I never felt like I ate enough. Not saying what your doing isn't working you certainly look lean in avatar, but 5000 calories in meat and shakes is more than people (myself included) think.

On another note I am getting leaner and stronger just going to the bar and having Jameson on ice. Perhaps having more sex and being more sociable? haha

 

[AlexPowell]

Alex,
I'm curious what you were eating to hit 5000 calories a day. If you weren't slamming down cream or other fats it would be something like 4+ lbs of meat a day. With five shakes I sit around 1500 calories from them but the remainder is from meat and I never felt like I ate enough. Not saying what your doing isn't working you certainly look lean in avatar, but 5000 calories in meat and shakes is more than people (myself included) think.

On another note I am getting leaner and stronger just going to the bar and having Jameson on ice. Perhaps having more sex and being more sociable? haha

chicken wings make it very easy. stewing them and drinking the broth makes it even easier
I eat the whole things, all the tips, gristle, some of the smaller bones etc

This was a wing rogan josh make with 2kg of wings, ended up around 5,000kcal and ate it in a sitting, 360g protein

Frittata, made with 1kg of ground beef and 20 eggs, 3500kcal and 310g protein, eaten for lunch and dinner followed. If I am ever low then cheese makes it pretty easy to make up the difference. I rarely have shakes as my protein intake from food is nearly always in excess of 2g/lb