· weightlifting · 9 min read

The Ruminations Of An Aussie Trying To Get Shredded

By February I had figured out that Red Rooster did delivery, and I began ordering absolutely chaotic amounts of food, several times a week, sometimes twice a day. I’m talking 5000+ calorie days multiple times a week without the muscle mass or training regimen to even remotely justify it.

By February I had figured out that Red Rooster did delivery, and I began ordering absolutely chaotic amounts of food, several times a week, sometimes twice a day. I’m talking 5000+ calorie days multiple times a week without the muscle mass or training regimen to even remotely justify it.

My Story Starts In December of 2016

I had just finished high school in December of 2016. With no plans to go to university, I applied for any and all jobs that had entry level openings. One of which was an apprenticeship at the local Bakers Delight.

After smoking everyone else in the group interview by doing what I thought was the bare minimum, I started my trial period and was signed up as an apprentice shortly after.

Something worth mentioning is that I didn’t have a job at any point throughout high school, and I lived at home, so my parents paid for everything. Food, utilities, you name it.

This apprenticeship was the first time I had my own money coming in, so I hadn’t developed any financial discipline at this point.

Where The Problem Begins…

If you’re not built for shift work, you quickly find out that it’s a rough way of life. The hours are abhorrent, your sleep schedule is cooked, and you spend a lot of time outside of work alone because you’re at home while your family are working.

So quite often I found myself alone, bored, and with a lot of disposable income for an 18 year old with no bills or responsibilities.

By February I had figured out that Red Rooster did delivery, and I began ordering absolutely chaotic amounts of food, several times a week, sometimes twice a day. I’m talking 5000+ calorie days multiple times a week without the muscle mass or training regimen to even remotely justify it.

In plain English, I developed a binge eating disorder out of sheer boredom.

To me it was normal to eat that amount of food in one sitting, as I wasn’t eating with friends or family (eating at the dinner table never was a thing unless my grandparents came over) so I had nobody to check me.

Despite eating all of these calories, I managed to remain fairly lean as I was walking for 9~ hours a day at the bakery, likely clocking in 30k steps minimum 6 days a week.

Not long after I discovered Red Rooster did delivery, I also started getting Dominos delivered.

Finally, Uber Eats went live in Perth around this time, giving me access to every fast food chain in my area.

This habit of eating a lot of fast food continued all the way through from 2017 to the start of 2020.

New Year, New Me

I qualified as a baker in November of 2019, and quit in January 2020. I figured I’d grinded for 3 years to complete a qualification for a safety net trade, and I’d reward myself by beginning a diploma of music.

By the end of February, several countries were in lockdown and rumours about Australia going into lockdown were becoming more feasible by the day. Our lecturers assured us that it was unlikely that we would go into lockdown as we had very few cases at the time.

So Anyways We Went Into Lockdown

Yep, an 8-week lockdown. Other countries still laugh at us for this, and rightly so. But that’s a story for another time.

New Environments, Old Habits

Despite being stuck at home for 8 weeks straight, I was still eating mostly the same way as I was when I was working at the bakery, now with maybe 5% of the daily step count.

In July 2020, I started a new job where I still work to this day. I was already fairly chunky by this point, but I was getting more steps in as I was walking to work from Tafe, averaging maybe 10k steps a day, maybe 15k.

I was making even more money at this job, and being in the city, I had burger shops, cafes and more within walking distance, so I continued eating like a child.

Moving Out Of Home

In October 2021, me and some friends moved out of home and rented a place together which was 15 minutes from the city. Living out of home for the first time felt similar to having my first job and making my own money; it gave me even more of a sense of freedom.

Surprise, surprise; we ate like shit.

Maccas, Dominoes, KFC, entire pints of Ben and Jerry’s in a single sitting, most days of the week. It was truly a case of us being too lazy to cook, and Uber Eats being convenient enough to justify the marked up prices, delivery, and service fees.

It was appalling, but to us it was normal.

Hitting Rock Bottom

At the end of 2022, our company had a photoshoot. We’d had a bunch of new staff join, and a few people leave, so we needed to update the photos on our website.

When I saw how round my face was, I was disgusted.

“How am I the fat cunt in that photo?” I thought to myself.

I had a major ear operation in December of 2022, and once I was fully recovered by February 2023 I got myself a smart scale to assess the damage.

Height: 5’7” Weight: 84kg Body Fat %: 30%

What. the. Fuck.

This was enough to inspire me to start meal prepping and tracking calories, but I wasn’t going hard enough because I didn’t know how hard to push myself.

The Transformation Process

At the end of June I found an online coaching company based in Australia, and I hopped on board their program.

Between July and December, I dropped from 30% body fat to 13% body fat. It was a process of training to failure 4 days a week (5 days in the later training blocks), eating progressively lower and lower calories, and doing several cardio sessions a week.

It pushed me to my absolute limits, but it was an enjoyable ride overall.

I left the program in February as finances got tight with the prospect of another potential corrective operation on that ear I mentioned previously.

Post-Diet Rebound

Again I found myself with a binge eating disorder, but this time it was a much darker type. My hunger signalling was completely fried after dieting down for so long. My appetite at this point could only be described as animalistic, feral even.

I told myself that I was going to reverse diet back up to maintenance calories, but I ended up having several cheat days where I ate 5000-6000 calories.

In an attempt to figure out what the fuck was going on, I started watching a ton of videos from fitness influencers and professional bodybuilders alike all saying they experienced a similar post-diet/post-show rebound.

So I knew I wasn’t alone in this, which was a relief.

By the end of February I found myself at 19% body fat.

Where We’re At Now And My Current Routine

At the time of writing, I’ve come back down to 18% body fat, and my hunger signalling is healed, and my relationship with food is at a level I would consider healthy.

My current routine isn’t all that different to my previous diet routine. It looks like:

  • Running another mini cut to get back down to 15% body fat
  • Training 4 days a week, PPLA split (4th day for shoulders and arms)
  • Eating 5 times per day

Typical Week of Eating

Pre-Workout Snack: Cereal, or 2 LCMs bars (Rice Krispy bars in the US)

Breakfast: Eggs, or Greek Yoghurt with blueberries and a scoop of whey protein

Lunch: Beef mince, white rice, and black beans

Dinner: Chicken breast, white rice, and black beans

Dessert: Greek yoghurt, blueberries, and macadamia nuts (unless I had eggs for breakfast).

The core of my diet revolves around fruit, white rice, eggs, greek yoghurt, chicken, beef, and beans. A good blend of high–protein foods, healthy fats, and fibre.

Typical Week of Training

Monday: Push Tuesday: Pull Thursday: Legs Friday: Shoulders and Arms

All training is tracked with none other than MyLiftLog of course!

Future Plans

Once I’m back down to 15% body fat I’ll assess where I’m at mentally and figure out if my diet fatigue is low enough that I can try to push for 10% body fat.

I’d like to see how I respond to eating at maintenance at 10% body fat and seeing how my sleep, hormones, mood, etc., are.

By the time I was at 13% body fat during the diet, I was a miserable sleepless zombie. I rebounded too quickly away from 13% post-diet, so I don’t have a reference for maintenance at that body fat.

What Keeps Me Motivated Going Forward

Part of my decision to go through the initial physique transformation was to become a better dating prospect. It didn’t seem fair to me that I would reject overweight women whilst being extremely overweight myself. Pretty standard stuff for a guy in his mid-20’s.

Nowadays I have a few reasons for continuing to train and be mindful of what I eat:

The Fear Of Becoming What I Used To Be

I do not want to become a fat fuck again. People treat me better, I’m more confident than ever, and I have more energy not carrying around an extra 20kg.

Becoming A Jacked Dad On X

I love the message that guys like The Dad Aesthetic and BowTiedDad put out: Be a jacked Dad to be a good role model for your kids, be desirable for your wife, and mog other dads at your kids sporting events.

The mogging other dads part is a bit of banter, but is a lot of truth to it. The overall idea of being a fit role model for your family and community aligns with my personal philosophy on how men should develop themselves for the betterment of society, and I want to make sure I do my part.

It’s Routine Now, And I Enjoy It

Simple as that. I’ve trained 4-5 days a week for almost a year now and it’s become part of my routine and identity. I don’t wake up thinking “am I going to the gym today?”.

I wake up and check the scheduled workout for the day in MyLiftLog to remind myself of what weight/reps I need to do that morning to beat last week’s logbook entries.

Some weeks I may add an extra rest day if I’ve tweaked something, but over a 7-day period I’ll always hit 4 workouts per week.

That’s All For Now!

I’d like to thank Isaac for the opportunity to write this article.

Relative to a lot of the guys in the Wi-Fi Money/Bodybuilding intersection of X, I’m super fresh. I’ve been lifting seriously for just under a year now, so my physique still has a long way to go.

For those of you reading this who have been lifting for years and are peeled: I hope this was an entertaining read, and thank you for being an inspiration to me.

For those of you reading this who are new to lifting ( with as little ego as possible to make a statement like this): I hope this inspires you to stick to your programs and learn to love the process of training and nutrition.

For everyone: WAGMI

Yours Truly,

Jakeb Munn

X: @thejakebmunn

Pricing

No credit card required to sign-up. Start your 10 free workouts now.

monthly

$ 5
/ Month
17% OFF

yearly

$ 50
/ Year

Continue reading...

Explore our collection of articles, tutorials, and reviews on weightlifting, bodybuilding, diet, supplements, all things health, and everything in between!

Does vaping help you lose weight?

Does vaping help you lose weight?

In the world of weight loss, countless fads and trends have come and gone, promising quick and easy results. One of the more recent claims to emerge is that vaping

DMHA vs DMAA: The Ultimate Showdown of Stimulants

DMHA vs DMAA: The Ultimate Showdown of Stimulants

Among the myriad of options available, two stimulants have caught my attention: DMHA and DMAA. Both have garnered a significant following in the bodybuilding and weight loss communities, but which one reigns supreme?

The ECA Stack: A Potent Fat Burner for Bodybuilders

The ECA Stack: A Potent Fat Burner for Bodybuilders

As a dedicated bodybuilder, I'm always on the lookout for safe and effective ways to shed excess body fat and get ripped. One supplement stack that has gained widespread popularity in the bodybuilding community is the ECA stack

The Ruminations Of An Aussie Trying To Get Shredded

The Ruminations Of An Aussie Trying To Get Shredded

By February I had figured out that Red Rooster did delivery, and I began ordering absolutely chaotic amounts of food, several times a week, sometimes twice a day. I’m talking 5000+ calorie days multiple times a week without the muscle mass or training regimen to even remotely justify it.

How to Get a Quick Pump Before Going Out

How to Get a Quick Pump Before Going Out

Whether you're hitting the gym or heading out for a night on the town, having that pumped look can boost your confidence and make all your hard work really show.

Bulking: Strategies for Adding Calories

Bulking: Strategies for Adding Calories

Should athletes bulk up, the importance of weight gain for athletic performance, and how exactly you should go about your bulking phase if it is right for you.

Pump VS Pre Workout: Everything You Need To Know

Pump VS Pre Workout: Everything You Need To Know

If you're a fitness enthusiast looking to take your workouts to the next level, you may have come across the terms "pre-workouts" and "pumps." But what exactly are these supplements, and how do they differ?

How To Get Jacked: The Ultimate 2024 Guide

How To Get Jacked: The Ultimate 2024 Guide

Are you ready to take your fitness journey to the next level in 2024? Getting 'jacked' has become a popular goal for many individuals looking to build a strong, lean, and muscular physique.

Split Squat V.S. Bulgarian Split Squat: Which Is Better?

Split Squat V.S. Bulgarian Split Squat: Which Is Better?

When it comes to lower body workouts, split squats and Bulgarian split squats are two popular exercises ... understanding the differences and benefits of each exercise can help you make an informed decision about which is best for you.

The Best Way To Lose Chest Fat In 2024

The Best Way To Lose Chest Fat In 2024

Are you struggling with excess chest fat and looking for effective ways to address it? In this comprehensive guide, we will delve into the causes of chest fat, the associated risks, and the best strategies to lose it.

Pre Workout For Beginners: The Ultimate 2024 Guide

Pre Workout For Beginners: The Ultimate 2024 Guide

Are you new to the world of pre-workout supplements and looking to gain a deeper understanding of their benefits, ingredients, and safe usage? In this article, we will look into everything about Pre Workout for Beginners.

Are BCAAs Worth It? The Shocking Truth Revealed

Are BCAAs Worth It? The Shocking Truth Revealed

BCAAs, also known as branched-chain amino acids, are essential nutrients that include leucine, isoleucine, and valine. These nutrients are crucial for muscle growth, energy production, and protein synthesis.

Can I Take Pre Workout Twice A Day? WARNING

Can I Take Pre Workout Twice A Day? WARNING

Are you pushing your body to its limits in the gym? Are you looking to maximize your workouts and achieve your fitness goals faster? Then you might be wondering, "Can I take pre-workout twice a day?"

Conditioning For Strongman: The Ultimate Guide

Conditioning For Strongman: The Ultimate Guide

Welcome to the world of strongman training, where power, strength, and athleticism collide in the most awe-inspiring way. If you've ever felt limited by traditional gym routines, this article is for you.

Does Fasting Help Muscle Injuries?

Does Fasting Help Muscle Injuries?

You're a warrior on the fitness battlefield, pushing your limits, conquering workouts, and then bam – an unexpected setback in the form of a muscle injury.

Pump vs Pre Workout: The Ultimate 2023 Showdown

Pump vs Pre Workout: The Ultimate 2023 Showdown

Let's get one thing straight right off the bat: pump vs pre-workout are not the same thing. I see too many guys at the gym, mixing up their supplements, thinking they're going to get the same kick from both. Nope, not happening.

Mass Gainer Meal Replacement: Guidelines You NEED To Know

Mass Gainer Meal Replacement: Guidelines You NEED To Know

When you're living the life of a bodybuilder, athlete, or weightlifter, every calorie counts, every meal is a mission. But let's face it, we ain't living in a perfect world where we can whip up a gourmet protein feast every time our stomach growls.

Back to Blog