I’ve already blown it. I started out strong on Monday, keeping to the protocol perfectly . . . until Friday reared its ugly head. I saw it coming too.
As a reward for meeting our monthly margin dollar goal at work, we were treated to an excellent free lunch from Panera Bread. Giant crusty sandwiches with chips, baguette, salad, and a cookie. A goddamn cookie.
I couldn’t say no.
Not just because it looked so good, but also because I wanted to share in the reward for my own small role in our company’s success.
And I can’t resist a cookie. I just can’t.
So I caved and ate up. Everything. And in typical Trevor fashion, I didn’t stop there. I had some candy stashed in my drawer at work (from a coworker who likes to share with us. Or tempt us. However you choose to look at it) so I said “Fuck it,” and hit that up as well. Rolos and Hershey’s Kisses. Mmmm . . .
I’ll confess, I felt pretty damn content after that.
And not an ounce of guilt or regret to be had. That’s just how I roll.
But I’m making up for it today. Yesterday I continued my binge – which is allowed on one weekend day – and today I’m just treating it like a regular weekday (except I’ll have a bit more wine. Because I wanna).
I’m not too concerned about lapsing in my first week. This is actually pretty typical of how I operate. I usually begin a diet or workout routine in fits and starts before I get into my rhythm. Once I’m in the groove though, it can be damn near impossible to get me out of it.
Still, it’s not all bad news. I started my workouts again and stuck to them as planned (I now get up at 4am so I can squeeze ‘em in). Though I’m (relatively) weak and pathetic, I can already feel the strength coming back quickly. It feels good. I love muscle memory.
But enough of all that shit. What about my results so far?
Well . . . not too shabby, I gotta say. As expected, I was pissin’ up a storm the first few days on the diet. Judging from the strong smell of my urine, I don’t think it took me too long before I entered ketosis.
TMI? Well too bad.
Like I noted before, I don’t have a scale to judge weight loss, though I’m guessing I probably dropped at least a few pounds from water weight alone. I definitely feel less bloated.
My love handles have a nice and squishy feel to them, a result of the pending “whoosh” effect, which means that they are about ready to drop water and tighten up a bit. That usually takes a week or two, going by past experience.
Still, I think I’m already looking a little less soft, though you can judge for yourself when you see the pics.
But what I’m sure everyone really wants to know is . . . what does the tape measure read?
Roughly 34 inches.
Not bad, eh?
That’s about a 1 inch waist reduction in just 6 days. Mostly from bloat, but it feels good anyway. Abs usually start to hint on me around the 32 inch mark. If I stick to the plan solid this week, I might shed another inch or so. After that, most of the water weight will be gone and progress will slow down. But everything lost from that point on will be fat.
So check out the pictures below and let me know what you think. Does it look like I’ve “tightened up” a bit? Or do I look the same? If I left anything out, or if you have any questions, feel free to ask. I could go into much more detail, but I didn’t want this simple update post to become some long-ass self-indulgent story (any more than it already has, anyway). But I’m happy to elaborate if asked.
Cheers!
(Note: read this post to find out why I’m on the Steak and Eggs diet and to see pictures of where I started from, as well as progress pics from last time I used this diet.)
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Nice results, even with the cheating. I’m curious if some non-starchy carbs like Kale or Broccoli would be okay to introduce to this type of diet? I suppose any carbs would work against you, just thinking about variety.
Nice work.
For more typical low carb dieting, the answer is “yes,” kale and broccoli and other non-starchy carbs are just fine to add — even beneficial. But the point of this diet is extreme weight loss extremely fast. With each exception you make you reduce the effectiveness a little bit. Each little carb here and there begin to add up.
This is not meant to be a healthy way of eating for the long term. This is a crash diet in the fullest sense of the term. I want quick amazing results and then I want it over with ASAP. 4-6 weeks tops. Then I revert to more varied eating and maintain or let fat loss continue at a slower rate.
Thanks for the comment Aaron. I am pretty pleased so far. When you consider that those results came from just 4 days of actual dieting, and that I took my measurements after 2 days of binging, I think it’s pretty impressive indeed. Hopefully this next week will prove just as effective.
Cheers!
“With each exception you make you reduce the effectiveness a little bit” – that’s a great quote for life in general!
Ha! I never even noticed that little tidbit of wisdom. You have a good eye. Thanks for making me sound wiser than I actually am!
Cheers!
‘A goddamn cookie’ – This made me crumble, ahaha, very nicely put. Like you said, can’t be too down on yourself, a slip at the start is nothing to be ashamed of, you seem like a disciplined guy, so I’m sure it won’t be much trouble when you get into your ‘groove’!
I’ll be interested to see how it goes from here on, although I’m not a fan of crash diets, this looks pretty decent, but I’m not sure I’d go to the same extremity as you, we’ll see!
Hey Nick, you’re right about crash diets –they’re not typically the healthiest of things. That’s why we keep them short and sweet. And as far as crash diets go, a high fat high protein diet is about the least unhealthy as they come. You’re getting most of the nutrients you need, and what you do miss out on is only temporary. Low fat crash dieting? Bad idea. But crash diets are only “proper” for certain individuals anyway. 9 times out of 10 I would just suggest sticking to real food. I just happen to be an impatient bastard. At least when it comes to shedding fat.
As for my spotty start . . . yeah, I screwed up, but that’s how it goes sometimes. This week will be better. I’ll make sure of that.
Cheers!
I’m currently on a keto diet and I eat 3 fried eggs, tin of tuna, 5 slices of ham and a huge dollop of full fat mayo. I do this twice a day and also have a snack of chicken/cheese/peanuts whatever I fancy really also.
It’s hard work for a carb fiend like myself but the trick is to allow 1 carb up day per week and to just do it one day at a time. Those days will soon add up and the midsection will soon decrease.
Keep up the good work.
So true about that carb up! I don’t think I could do it without that one day to just gorge on whatever the hell I wanted. But you’re right — all those days in ketosis quickly add up to many pounds shed. Nothing does it quicker.
Good luck with your diet Jamie. I hope you have some kick ass results to show for it. I’m curious to hear how it goes.
Cheers!