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Harry's 2018 "Hit the Target" Fat Loss Plan

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Harry Westgate

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Certified Instructor
For anyone unfamiliar with this plan by @Fabio Zonin, here is a link:

The "Hit the Target" Fat Loss Plan | StrongFirst

Over the last year or so, I have been following the Warrior Diet by Ori Hofmekler, although admittedly not particularly strictly over the last couple of months. I have eaten primarily whole foods and massive quantities of vegetables, though have not kept indulgences in junk food in the moderation that I would have liked.

I have followed the HTT Fat Loss Plan in the past and found it tremendously effective, and given that I want to get a bit stricter around my food choices, I have decided that this would be a good template to use to reinforce some discipline.

Below are the numbers I will be working with (readers should refer to the article in order to understand these):

•Target weight: 148lbs
•ProS: 70 points
•FruS: 20 points
•FatS: 20 points
•TmS: 110 points
•TMS: 140 points
•HTT: 1.5lbs

My plan of action is to consume primarily:

•Lean beef (Scotch beef).
•Eggs (whole eggs and whites).
•Organic grass fed whey protein (my answer to the "very low carb protein powder" from the allowed list of foods).
•Apples.
•Almonds and walnuts.
•Massive quantities of vegetables.

I will also be following a Warrior Diet-esque eating schedule, since I am used to this and enjoy 'undereating' during the day and getting most of my food in at night.

I currently weigh approximately 165lbs, though I will confirm this when I start tomorrow morning.

I will try my best to log each weigh-in on the Forum every day, though I will also be keeping a paper journal. If anyone reading this would care to make a point of chasing me up on this plan should I go ghost from the Forum, then I would be very grateful.

Regarding training, I am coming up to the end of a strength training protocol provided by @Arryn Grogan, for which I will be testing my strength in the bent press, pistol squat and military press on Monday 1st October. After this, my plan is to alternate days of A+A snatches with days of easy aerobic running. I shall also sprinkle in some bodyweight training in a GTG manner.

I will be honest on the Forum, meaning that if I mess up, I will admit to doing so, and I also plan to try not to let my "Jolly Days" become crazy junk food binges. In any case, I will log as much of my food as possible on here. I intend to follow this plan for at least six weeks and for no more than eight weeks, or until I reach my target weight of 148lbs - whichever comes sooner.

Thanks,

Harry
 
26/09/2018: 166.6 (1st target is 165lbs - I'm rounding it down by 0.1lb to make things simpler moving forward)

Moving forward, I shall log my weight each day, with an overview of what I ate on the previous day.

*Editted to add a note to self so that I don't forget in several weeks' time - I have taken two "before photos," this morning. One relaxed and one with the abs flexed, both stood up straight with my shoulders back. These were taken just before 11am with my curtains drawn and the light on (now I can take my "after photos," under the same conditions).

These photos are more for my own reference. I may or may not upload them to the Forum.
 
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@Harry Westgate,

148 is going to leave you mighty lean....

I'm 5'10" and at 155 I felt like there wasn't much left to lose - the wife actually told me to start eating more.

Overall the diet plan looks like it should work pretty effectively.

That's the plan! I've used this plan in the past to get down to 152 when I was boxing in my final year of university. I'd add that a year before that I had been 141. I've never been a particularly big guy.

At 141 I was admittedly skinny ripped, having followed a strict Warrior Diet for several months. I don't want to get that skinny again though, and have definitely built some muscle over the last two years or so.

My aim with this plan is to get leaner, while cementing some strong nutritional discipline, after which I want to maintain the level of leanness that I achieve without meticulously monitoring my weight, but rather using the mirror as a guide. As such, a bit more muscle with minimal fat wouldn't hurt over the winter.

In a way I am following a bit of advice that Dan John outlines in Easy Strength - if one wants to build muscle, they tend to get better results if they get lean first.

First and foremost though I'd like to find my abs again - right now I have more like a four-pack under the right light...
 
27/09/2018: 166.8lbs

A genuine what the Hell moment to have gained 0.2lbs. No matter, I enjoyed yesterday and it might even be a case of my body not being entirely used to eating meat again (I've been predominantly pescetarian over the last few months with meat only on occasion).

Yesterday I consumed:

-1 scoop whey protein and a pink lady apple post-training (20 points).
-A pink lady apple as an afternoon snack (10 points).
-At dinner, 4 whole eggs, with 18 pourable egg whites, and 200g of lean Scotch beef, as well as lots of vegetables (90 points).
-After dinner, 45g mixed almonds and walnuts - about half and half of each (20 points).

Total score: 140 points.
 
@ Harry Westgate,
personally I wouldn't weigh in more than 2x a week. Anything more is liable to just muddy the waters. You'll feel it when you've reached a comfortable deficit and the weight will begin to come off like clockwork.

I like the concept of the point system and the food choices on the plan, but am wondering if you've crossed it with a rough calorie count and compared it to rough calorie count from your last normal meal plan?

I don't do a lot of counting myself unless I am determined to make a notable change. Usually a shift of portion sizes is all that is needed if one's diet is already fairly balanced.

Kenny Croxdale contributed to a thread where he advocated (IIRC) a 20% shift in calories up or down to get a sustainable change in weight without going overboard. To me that might still be a bit much, 10% one way or the other is easier to swing, but still a good baseline. I guess from my POV it is easier to manipulate a diet you are already familiar with than to adopt a new one, unless the old one was nutritionally deficient or causing digestive issues.
 
28/09/2018: 164.6lbs (Hit the Target - Jolly Day tomorrow)

Yesterday I consumed much the same as the day before. I'll note significant food changes (e.g. turkey instead of beef) if and when I make them, as it will be a bit tedious to keep listing the same stuff!

@North Coast Miller thank you for your thoughts! Regarding weighing myself, my thoughts have always been to either do it on rare occasion to have a ball park figure of where I'm at, or to weigh myself daily and take a weekly average, and observe increases or decreases in said weekly average if I am really trying to manipulate my weight.

I'm not a fan of counting calories at all, and have done well in the past without doing so - when I got down to 141 at my leanest condition ever, I did not count calories at all, and honestly couldn't tell you how much I was eating. It was probably anywhere from 2,500-3,000 calories daily (I was training a lot - S&S every morning and boxing every afternoon/evening).

In all honesty, I'm doing Fabio's Hit the Target Fat Loss Plan not only for the short/medium-term body composition benefits, but because when I have used it before, it really helped me with my sweet/junk food cravings. By the end sugary junk just didn't have much appeal to me. I often found that the first few Jolly Days involved a lot of sweets, but that by the end, my carb cravings were mainly for lower glycemic, slower releasing carbs like grains, with only small amounts of sweeter food.

The strict nature of this plan as opposed to a simple calorie count means that I can't be tempted to fit in junk food because "it fits my macros".

I guess from my POV it is easier to manipulate a diet you are already familiar with than to adopt a new one, unless the old one was nutritionally deficient or causing digestive issues.

To this, I'd add that I'm already somewhat familiar with this way of eating, as I normally base my meals around veggies and protein, eating lots of eggs, fish and nuts. The only significant addition is meat, and I must be honest, I forgot how great beef is!
 
29/09/2018: 163.4lbs (Jolly Day today)

I promise not to eat myself into a coma today (I also can't afford to as I'm working at 4pm until late...).

This morning I've had a protein shake (whey) after an A+A snatch session, followed by a tub of low fat Greek yogurt with berries. That should probably see me through to tonight after work. I'll probably have a few extra nibbles here and there if the mood takes me.
 
A tub of low fat yogurt and some berries doesn't seem too jolly to me...
Just sayin...:)

I also had honey on it! Haha, but yes, I agree with you. However, I'm saving the real jolly-ness for later on after work so that I'm not all lethargic and bloated on shift! :) I'm planning on treating myself to pizza and maybe some wine tonight!

Oh, although I did just have a pretty big bar of milk chocolate as well!
 
30/09/2018: 167.2lbs (next target is 163.5lbs)
01/10/2018: 165.2lbs
02/10/2018: 163.0lbs (Hit the Target - Jolly Day tomorrow)

Still going strong. The remainder of my first Jolly Day ended pretty much how I expected - pizza, wine, and a bit of cake. Not too crazy to be honest. I'm trying to be mindful of Fabio's advice that turning the Jolly Days into 24hr binges will slow progress and make the whole process harder. I still had a pretty big rebound in weight though, no doubt due to glycogen replenishment and water retention.

That said, I hit the next target again today, and so am due another Jolly Day tomorrow. I don't feel that I need it too much, but as Fabio says in the article, "don't skip it and try to be a hero!"

I'd also like to give a shout out on here again to @Arryn Grogan, as I had my test day yesterday following the four weeks of programming that Arryn kindly provided for me. I hit the following numbers:

-Bent press: 1RM went from 40kg to 45kg (40kg bell with two 2.5kg plates strapped to it).

-Pistol squat: went from 1 rep with 24kg, to 4 reps with 24kg.

-Military press: this was the big one for me. I haven't trained the strict press seriously in about three years, and just over a month ago, I could perform one rep per side with 32kg, but only if I psyched up and felt exceptionally strong. Yesterday, I tested again with the 32kg, and performed 3 reps on the left, and 2 on the right. I might have done 3 on the right as well (I am right-handed) had I not got over excited and rested less than a minute after testing my left side! In any case, the 32kg bell feels a Hell of a lot lighter than it did a month ago and I am so happy about this.

Feel free to check out the footage of these lifts on my Instagram page @harry_281. :)

Thanks to Arryn for the clearly very efficient and well thought out programming, as well as always getting back to me quickly whenever I had questions along the way. You're a true credit to StrongFirst. Everyone should also check out Arryn's Instagram pages, there's some really impressive (and entertaining) stuff on there.

@liftwithhollyandarryn
@coachgiggles - Arryn's solo account.
@hollybeingjolly - this one is Holly Myers' solo account (not sure if the same Holly Myers is on the Forum), the other half of @liftwithhollyandarryn. Also a cool account and a very strong lady! Seeing some of what she can do makes me feel very weak!
 
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Thanks for posting.
Question--you had a JD @ 163.4 on 9-29.
In your last post above-for the 9/30 entry you said next JD is at163.5---didn't you already hit this mark earlier?Wouldnt the next JD be @ 162?
This is the part about the diet that I question.
Thanks for reading and good luck on your quest.
 
Thanks for posting.
Question--you had a JD @ 163.4 on 9-29.
In your last post above-for the 9/30 entry you said next JD is at163.5---didn't you already hit this mark earlier?Wouldnt the next JD be @ 162?
This is the part about the diet that I question.
Thanks for reading and good luck on your quest.

My understanding is that this is how the plan was meant to be implemented:

My first target was 165 or lower. At 163.4, I achieved this.

165 - 1.5 = 163.5, therefore the second target is 163.5, regardless of my weight a day or two earlier.

Similarly, regardless of how much I weigh tomorrow, on the morning of my Jolly Day, the third target is 162.

Keep following this log and you'll see how it can't fail. If you're thinking of following the HTT plan yourself, just set your targets and have Jolly Days when you hit those targets. Don't over think it.
 
03/10/2018: 162.8lbs (Jolly Day today)

So far, this Jolly Day has been a bit crazier than the first, at least in terms of quantity of food. Quality hasn't been the worst.

This morning I had lots of whole fat yogurt, as well as a big bowl of muesli with whole milk. At lunch I had a cheeseburger with fries, as well as some milk chocolate. At dinner I'll try to get some veggies in, and then something else in the way of starchy carbs.

I'm making more of an effort to enjoy this Jolly Day because I estimate that I may not have another one until next Friday (12th October) - let me explain...

Fabio advises that if you hit a target, but know that later in the week you will have a social event where it will be tough to stay on protocol, that you should postpone the Jolly Day until the day of said social event (this is an exception, not the rule!). Well, on Friday 12th October, I am attending the wedding of a good friend of mine, and know that there will be drinks and much jolliness (I think that's a word?) in the evening.

Realistically though, if I am having a Jolly Day now, given my current rate of progress, I suspect that I will hit my next target (162) at some point over the weekend - maybe Monday (8th October). If that happens, I think it's highly unlikely that I could have another Jolly Day, then get down to 160.5 (the fourth target), all before the Friday.

As such, I figured I'd enjoy today, and then have just over a week of eating as the plan instructs, before really enjoying the wedding reception. :)
 
04/10/2018: 165.8lbs (next target is 162lbs)

Not as much of a rebound in weight as I would have expected. I ate predominantly starches yesterday and not too much in the way of sweet foods - I basically ate a lot of cereal with whole milk, bread, and a burger and fries. The lack of cravings for lots of sweet foods, cookies, etc. is encouraging.

Having said that, I did find myself in a bit of a carb coma in the evening, though knowledge that I more than likely have over a week of clean, low carb eating ahead of me makes me feel it doesn't matter too much!
 
05/10/2018: 166.4lbs
06/10/2018: 164.0lbs
07/10/2018: 161.4lbs (Hit the Target)
08/10/2018: 163.4lbs (Jolly Day postponed to 12/10)

Weighed in today heavier than expected. Though I know this was due to poor sleep/shift work-induced jetlag resulting in me waking up earlier than I'd have liked, and I couldn't get back to sleep. As such (too much information alert)... I weighed in prior to needing any significant physiological function that would affect my weight.

No matter, I hit the target already, and I'm definitely not having a Jolly Day until Friday 12/10 anyway, as there's no chance I could hit another target by then.

All in all, I feel good. I certainly feel I look leaner, and I've gone down a belt notch, which I discovered at work last night when I kept having to pull my trousers up...

I am most days eating two meals. A late lunch consists of a salad of lettuce, tomatoes, cucumber, maybe peppers, plus 4 or 5 boiled eggs with salt. Dinner is 500g of lean - less than 5% fat - beef mince (or ground beef as I understand you Americans more commonly call it) served with lots of cruciferous vegetables and leafy greens. I season the beef with salt and pepper, then add anything from turmeric, paprika, parsley, rosemary, cumin, or any combination of these. I then drizzle the beef and veggies with 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil. Delicious.

I'll finish most days with a 'dessert,' of 2 pink lady apples, chopped into segments and sprinkled with cinnamon. This is really tasty and can't believe I hadn't thought to add cinnamon to apples years ago.

I have been training daily, alternating days of A+A snatches with days of easy aerobic running. On snatch days, I am greasing the groove with one arm pushups, and on running days, I am greasing the groove pull-ups.

I should add that my GTG work is pretty low volume, typically no more than 5 sets per day, as I want to maximise recovery, given that I am performing high volumes of snatches, and of course I am in a rather aggressive caloric deficit. I am also quite active at work, always moving on my feet (I am a part-time waiter at a high end steakhouse, and part-time self-employed online coach/personal trainer).

As a result of my active waiting job (constantly walking briskly for 6-8 hours at a time) and the late working nights, I need to be mindful of proper rest and recovery. As I type this I have accepted that I need a proper full day today to relax and not do too much, since I have the day off work, as I feel a bit drained and in need of a rest. I may do some snatches a bit later, or I may not. We shall see.
 
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09/10/2018: 161.0lbs

I actually ended up doing 30 repeats of 5 snatches yesterday (150 reps in total). Otherwise though I didn't do anything particularly physical, and I feel much better today.
 
10/10/2018: 160.6lbs

Another 150 snatches done this morning in 30 repeats of 5 reps (I'm currently using 24kg by the way).

Feeling good, and I'm noticing more definition today around my midsection and back. However, I really wouldn't say no to some carbs right now... I think the fact that I am overdue a Jolly Day is having a bit of a psychological niggle.

I only need to hold out two more days though, and I'm far from ravenous. Rather, I'm just getting the occasional craving!
 
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