A BioSignature Journey: The End
Well here I am, at the end of my BioSignature journey, end of my challenge to becoming a better, leaner, fitter and healthier me 🙂 going back to when I started, that was my goal. Did I reach it? Did I achieve what I wanted out of this journey? Well I had my doubts before, many doubts on the way but looking at my history of results and analyzing it now, I can confidently say YES, finally I did reach my goal!
Looking at the results I was thinking of the best way to display all these BioSignature numbers in an understandable manner and figured out the best way is to use line graphs, coming from a scientific background, to show the progression and improvement of results over a specified period of time of 12 weeks.
Results positive points:
- Chin/Cheek: Chin 7.4 to 5.6, giving me a more defined face structure for a leaner look. Not much on the Cheeks though but I didn’t have big cheeks to start with. 😀
- Pectoral (Testosterone): 5.2 to 3.8, great improvement correlated more with better options of protein intake than with training. Got a “Well done” from Douglas.
- Triceps: Your personal nightmare is a stubborn site but is starting to move down from 20.8 to 14.3, positive point from healthier choices in the long run, correlated with the balance in hormones.
- Carbs (S-Scap): Still not below 10, but it’s on the way now at 11.5 down from 15.3, better choices of carbohydrates will help. Nice result from priority 2 it became 4. On the way to being carb tolerant.
- Thyroid (Midax): Main Site of general health and metabolic system getting lower from down from 12 to 6, as Douglas always says, “the lower it goes the better you look”.
- Insulin (Supra) and Stress/Cortisol (Umbil): Mid-Section sites, my weakest most challenging points in my opinion, are lowering together, great sign of less inflammation in my system, insulin down from 14.3 to 8.4 from priority 5 down to 8. Stress went down as well from 13.6 down to 9.7 so end result is looking flatter.
Results negative points:
- Quadrip/Hamst (Estrogen): Both sites improved compared to the starting point but went up towards the end. The line graph dip in Quadrip to 10.8 was measured after the Estrogen detox then looks like levels went up again. This means ratios of toxicity still high, and probably exposition to toxic materials like fish high in mercury, water, and inflammatory products high in Omega 6.
- Knee/Calves (Growth Hormone): Slight improvement in Calves but still up there at priority 3. Knee stayed at priority 12 so anyway the lowest priority for me. Issue here is lack of a good quality sleep. Timing of bedtime is important and a relaxing night, free of spots of light and sounds is crucial. Douglas advises to be sure our electronics are off and away, nothing is better than a night free from radiation.
The last slide shows the total of the body sites measured. According to Douglas, the results showed a lot of improvement in my general health and that’s a sign and feedback of a successful program. Most of the body sites went down few of those were significant drops, as Carbs, Testosterone, Insulin and Thyroid.
Looking closely at the results for this journey, I decreased 2 Kg of Body weight, increased 1.2 Kg in Lean mass and dropped 4.2% of Body fat so around 86% of my weight is lean mass. The slight 100 g loss in lean mass towards the end was due to lack of strength training and can be easily solved by increasing it during the weekly workout. When you look at it not much body weight was lost this year, but to begin with that was not my main aim coming from a mostly healthy lifestyle and having done a taster BioSignature program before in 2012. I learned from my past experience that it’s not just about weight but it’s more about body fat, lean mass plus all the other body sites measured, it’s looking at the results from all perspectives. A common misconception in fitness is that people need to get healthy by losing weight. In reality, it is much better to lose weight by getting healthy.
The BioSignature program helped me improve my health while improving my body composition. Douglas, with this program, guided me on my fat loss journey, showed me how to do it in the healthiest way so my results will last. I learnt that when it comes to where you accumulate and store fat, you need to look at your hormones. Hormones basically tell the body what to do with its resources and energy and if you want to drastically improve the way you look and feel, it all starts with controlling your hormones. Really amazing !
Douglas evaluation was: “You look leaner and actually you look much stronger and solid especially on the lower body.” I also feel stronger and leaner, I fit better in clothes, dropped a dress size and feel more confident. I ended this journey with a 3 day juice cleanse to restore my body which made me feel lighter and cleaner. I felt it was a nice refreshing end to this long tough journey…phew!
“Well your challenge is done, I do believe that now you are much more aware about health and fitness, but more important you are aware about yourself and your body, learned to listen to it and respect the limits and signs your body constantly gives you. Time to find inside you another challenge, another goal, something that will keep you going and help you to Stay Hungry.”- Douglas Leandro
Yes, I guess my challenge is done and I achieved my goal, I learnt to listen to my body more, make healthy choices, eat clean and most of all eat what’s right for me. My journey was full of ups and downs but this is the beauty of it and when you reach your destination you feel it was worth it, worth every sweat and I actually enjoyed the process, the journey and blogging about it even more than the destination. The bad news is that the journey is over but the good news is there is more to do and ‘I am Still Hungry’.
Thanks Douglas for this great experience, your ingenious, believing in me when I was doubtful, motivating me to complete this program successfully and most of all for making me ‘Stay hungry’!
The BioSignature Journey blogger,
Hana Feidi 🙂
A BioSignature Journey: Home stretch
What has been happening with us…well it’s only me now no partner. Circumstances prevented my partner from completing this journey. That brings to my mind the quote “Success is determined by how you handle setbacks”.
Is this a setback? No, it shouldn’t be like Douglas told me…it’s still my journey, competing against and challenging myself, relying on myself for motivation with the same persistence to finish it.
I reached a point where I was feeling no progress, going into a monotonous cycle. We can be frustrated with our lack of progress only to end up measuring and seeing the progress is substantial. On the other hand, we can feel awesome yet the results don’t appear to reflect the changes we feel. I think sometimes we’re terrible judges of our progress and we’re often overly critical of our own bodies.
Moreover, we can’t quantify everything. The common focus on the numbers can be an added source of perceived pressure – success vs failure. Quantifying everything dilutes and dissolves an individual’s qualitative experiences and differences. I think we can be happy in spite of no measurable change in our bodies when we are consistently executing the actions that we know are going to bring us closer to our goals.
We can be happy not because of the results, but because of the process.
At that point, it happened that Douglas introduced a switch in the program due to the fact that our bodies get adapted too easily. This is when the trainer genius steps up to save the day. The switch involved changing the supplements and training program making us have to train an extra day. This was challenging for me because I am not that type of person who trains alone but prefers training with a partner or group training…Just love the team spirit I guess. Not doing so well in that I must say and I have to admit my shortcomings in this journey.
Douglas rated my progress as very good, stronger leaner progressing towards my goal. I am lifting heavier beating my personal record of weighted squats lifting 60 kg. On another note, I need to manage my stress levels and improve my sleep patterns. I don’t really see the progress so much as I can feel it. Progress can be measured in many ways like how your clothes fit you, how you feel going up the stairs, in your daily functioning, more endurance, feeling healthier and in how others view you as well.
I would like to mention also that as you get leaner and leaner your ability to measure or quantify change will decrease. Progress will show up qualitatively, but not quantitatively. The process is not a straight line – as you get leaner it gets harder to get even leaner and progress is slower near the end than it was at the beginning; and not only that, you wind up having to work harder for less results in the home stretch.
Yes I am in the home stretch, at that part of the journey between the last curve and the winning post…Not more to go now for the journey to end.
Wish me luck 🙂
The BioSignature Journey: After 8 weeks
Well here we are again after 8 weeks so what’s happening with us?
According to Douglas we are passing through a very delicate period of our journey, that’s the time, that you find yourself asking “why the hell am I doing this?” It is such a challenging time, where you already passed hard times and you know that you still have more to go.
Douglas measured us as usual and the results we got it till now are very satisfactory, but…we are not looking to be satisfied but incredibly happy with the results. As we get leaner, it gets harder to drop more body fat%. But our real target isn’t only to drop it but balance a better lifestyle and must important sustainable one.
Based on Douglas’s analysis of the results, my partner lost weight and body fat, but unfortunately lost muscle mass as well, it was correlated with the time of travel with no training. Triceps went up and Quads as well but sometimes a little change of routine can change it. In another perspective, if you look at the priorities they are on progress, because actually 3 of them went down, plus going down in another 5 sites : Carbs, Thyroid , Insulin, Cortisol and Liver. Overall good results, but we still aiming for more.
As for me, the results were a bit more complex. First of all there was weight gain and its more than enough to make a female to freak out. But if you look closely at the results we can see an increase in Lean mass, a decrease in body fat % and a tremendous improvement in lifestyle, specially in the Thyroid. Looking at the negative points, probably because of the New Year’s Eve, increased sugar intake automatically raised Insulin levels, and Carbs Intolerance which could easily be fixed by balancing the food intake again. On the other hand, the positive points: 2 out of the 3 priorities decreased considerably like Quads dropped 21 and calf dropped 5 points thus changing the order of my priorities.
These measurements were taken after the new years festive season where there were, dinners, celebrations, vacations, travels etc. where temptations were countless and any slips all showed in the negative side of numbers (the time I wrote the Cheating post). But the positive side of numbers we have currently also show that both of us have never been leaner as we are today, we are on target with our priorities with a slight shuffle, but it’s not enough.
Accordingly, Douglas put us on a 3 day vegetable detox and we started the next phase of our journey which is the Estrogen detox and Fiber cycle with related vitamins and supplements like EstroClear, EstroDefense and also the Primal Fiber series of 3 (not so delicious but so good for you). The start of the detox was tough really being only on vegetables trying to get creative with your options and asking Douglas countless questions as usual. We started primal fiber 2 which tasted a bit better than the first one or maybe just got used to it, our tasted buds adjusted 😀 I just can’t imagine the amount of supplements we need to take, it’s more than the food we can eat!
We are committed to our nutrition and training plan, cheating meal of once a week, training as hard as we can, taking our supplements and all we need is continued determination, motivation and will power to complete this journey.
Now we are looking for the results after the detox!
A BioSignature Journey: Cheating
Cheating…It is the act of deceiving others or being dishonest like cheating in exams, not positive but does the same apply to cheating on a diet? Can “cheating” on one’s diet be beneficial or is it just setting the stage for losing control?
Did we cheat? Yes, we did and it would only be abnormal if we didn’t, in fact we were allowed to cheat or “plan” to cheat. We are only human susceptible to temptations that show up on the way like when invited to dinner or even cooking for the family. It is our eyes that eat before us and seeing food that you can’t eat makes you crave it more and become more likely to cheat, sometimes unplanned!
During this journey, I found out the importance of planning your cheats as if you are giving yourself the “license to cheat” for a meal, not over indulging in your cheat meals and choosing wisely what is worth cheating.
So YES a cheat meal serves specific purposes. It is an opportunity to refuel your body with healthy complex carbs, and some things that you may not normally eat. Cheating does help to speed up the fat loss process cause it helps to stimulate Leptin, a fat loss hormone that becomes depressed with chronic dieting.
According to Poliquin, we will lose fat faster if allowed a cheat meal once every four to six days because the cheat meal increases the metabolism. Also the cheat meal acts as a welcome reprieve from a diet that can get monotonous after a while. Here are Poliquin’s 7 Steps for Losing Body fat With Cheat Meals, summarized:
Step 1. Figure out how often you can cheat.
Step 2. Decide how you will cheat before hand.
Step 3. Determine your carb allotment.
Step 4. Make better cheat choices.
Step 5. Eat your protein first.
Step 6. When your butt leaves the chair, no more eating.
Step 7. Once you’re lean you can eat more carbs!
So, we can have a cheat meal once a week, if we pre-plan it, and exercise it off, and only eat it if we need to. According to Douglas every cheat meal needs to be followed by at least 3 consecutive days of being clean! Note it’s only a cheat MEAL and not a cheat DAY!
Ok, I believe you only learn from your mistakes. So we are back on track not a major setback, but no more cheats, planned or unplanned until we go clean first only for a short while then proceed to the next stage of our journey making sure to follow the guidelines for cheating!
Wish us good luck to stay strong! Keeping you posted.
Below is some useful information on cheat meals, on the people who can cheat and some helpful guidelines on cheat meals worth reading.
References:
7 Steps for Losing Body fat With Cheat Meals http://www.poliquingroup.com/ArticlesMultimedia/Articles/Article/1076/7_Steps_for_Losing_Bodyfat_With_Cheat_Meals_.aspx
Cheat Meal Rules to Live By http://www.bodysolutionskc.com/personal-training-information/articles/cheat-meal-rules-to-live-by/
Should you use Cheat Meals http://www.bodysolutionskc.com/personal-training-information/articles/should-you-use-cheat-meals/
A BioSignature Journey: After 4 weeks
Well going through the first two weeks of foundation was the toughest it’s when your body is shocked into being deprived from having carbs, sugars and all the food you were used to eating. The goal is to get your body clean, according to Douglas, like an untouched lake and then we start to introduce things back gradually into the system as we progress with the program.
The biggest challenge was to know exactly what you should eat, sticking to it and committing no matter what temptations you have around you. Mainly we ate good quality fresh protein (meat, chicken, turkey, fish), salad, vegetables, some nuts and lots of water and of course committed to taking the supplements.
We would help each other on what to eat, suggest meal options and ask Douglas what is allowed and not allowed. It is so important to have support during this time to talk and communicate with each other. Here are some of the food items we discussed:
- Red Kidney beans were a hit since it did keep us full and was a comfort option since we had no carbs. We experimented with different recipes like chilli con carne.
- Carrots were surprisingly not allowed although it’s a vegetable. Really missed them.
- Almonds were the wildcard really since you can have a handful as your snack protein and also to beat those sugar cravings.
- Eggs were a main breakfast option but according to Douglas, too many might lead to egg intolerance.
- Olives were allowed but not too much, we were happy with that so my training partner indulged in buying five kinds of olives 😉
The rule is: “Anything that flies swims or runs in a field and is green!”
Training was tough especially our Personal Training sessions and getting through our first Grit class! It’s always a good idea to shock your body and challenge it by doing different workouts every once in a while. I noticed with the first week I sweat more but have more energy to exercise especially in the morning which goes down towards the afternoon and night where proper rest and sleep is needed for the GH hormone.
We were allowed to introduce one carb after 2 weeks so I choose berries and my partner choose oatmeal which Douglas recommended to eat at night so it can be digested during the night.
Douglas measured us again after 4 weeks using the same 12 major body fat sites with the skin calipers. Results were motivating and showed good progress with a drop in body weight, % fat and increase in lean mass. I dropped 3 kilos weight, 2.6 % fat reaching 15.8 % body fat. Dropped more that 7 points in Quads priority area, around 5 points in my Tricpes, Midax and Supra areas related to Insulin and Thyroid showing improvements there with a good drop in the Umbilical. On the other hand, my partner lost 2.7 kilos weight, 3.8 % fat reaching 18.9% body fat. Showed great results in the priority areas dropped around 10 points in Hamstrings, Quads, Calves, also for the Triceps and more than 5 points in the Umbilical area related to Cortisol.
We both followed the same program and got somehow similar and different, contrasting results each of us performing better or worse in an area. It comes to show that results depend on a lot of factors like your measurements when you started, your fitness level, lifestyle, body, genes and your response to program, training and supplements. Douglas would probably comment here with his opinion on the results. 🙂
We both feel lighter fitter have more energy and our bodies are adapting to the program. We do slip or cheat with a small taste here and there but with some veggies and green tea we would get back on track straight away and that is what counts! It’s tough but worth it when you keep your eye on the ball!
And the journey continues…Like Douglas says “it’s a way not a destination”.
Useful self-explanatory charts that helped:
A BioSignature Journey
Hey, I am one of the lucky clients who trains with Douglas and was given the privilege to share with you my experience and journey with the BioSignature Modulation program.
I did it once before, exactly a year ago, I am happy to say it was considered a success story being one of the few people who did it in my circle. I can say I benefited from the experience during the past year it was worth it and I came out of it leaner, stronger, healthier and best of all with more knowledge about my body.
Now needing to refresh, follow-up on my experience, doing it the second time around seems to be more interesting, motivating and exciting especially with a training partner. Now, I know more about my body, have the experience, I can avoid all the pitfalls I did, make use of lessons learned and commit to it as a way of life! Once you learn your BioSignature strengths and weaknesses and the techniques to achieve your fat loss, you are able to maintain a healthy, lean and strong body for life.
For those people who went through the BioSignature will understand what I’m talking about and have a chance to look at a different experience. For those people who never did it, will get to know about it and it’s benefits and rewards. Everybody will get to learn something from our experience through this challenging journey!
So what is Biosignature Modulation?
Check out what Douglas says about BioSignature.
It is a scientific approach to fat spot reduction and fat loss with long-term
health benefits of having a balanced hormonal system. A qualified personal trainer like Douglas has the knowledge and tools to combat site specific fat storage which is apparently due to imbalances in our body biochemistry, especially our hormones, if unbalanced, cause the extra body fat %.Using a simple 12-point skin-fold test, dietary changes, supplementation and exercise based on our individual biochemistry by following our personal plan, we will emerge leaner, stronger, healthier, and more energetic!
According to Douglas, what’s nice about this program is that it changes as our body changes so as we become healthier, stronger and leaner our body needs to be challenged in different ways. Douglas will assess our progress every week to ensure we have consistent progress and to motivate us to stay on track with our goals!
How did the Journey start?
1. Measurements
The first step is taking measurements: There are 12 major body fat sites that were quickly and accurately tested by a pair of skin calipers. These sites include the cheek, chin, pectoral region, triceps, umbilical, supra iliac, subscapular, mid axillary, quadriceps, hamstrings, knee and calf.
Apparently each hormone is related to a skin-fold as follows:
- Cortisol: Umbilical; Excessive fat gain in belly region, excess carbs and stress levels
- Insulin: Suprailliac, Subscrapular; Excessive fat gain in love handles and on the upper back
- Estrogen: Quadriceps, Hamstrings; Excessive fat gain in hips and legs
- Testosterone: Pectoral, Tricep; Androgen imbalance, accumulated fat in chest area for men
- Growth Hormone: Knee, Calf; Reflects sleep patterns and overall fat loss
- Thyroid: Mid-auxillary; Function of thyroid, accumulated fat 8 inches below armpit
2. Analysis
The next step the biosignature sites were analyzed. Interestingly enough, my training partner and I had similar problem areas but with differences in priorities. Generally, it was discovered that there is an excess amount of fat in the following priority areas, besides decreasing body fat % and increasing lean body mass:
- Hamstrings: the issue is with estrogen levels. Need to detoxify estrogen levels.
- Quadriceps: the issue is with estrogen levels. Need to detoxify estrogen levels.
- Calves: the issue is with growth hormone. Need to improve sleep patterns.
Looking at the analysis and comparing myself to last year, my priorities remained the same but the order changed. In others areas some improved, some stayed the same and some got worse! I would have imagined different priorities so you never know for sure until you get tested and analyzed. So prepare to be surprised!
3. Protocol (Personal plan)
After determining the cause of the fat, the next step was to make appropriate modifications in our diet and exercise prescription which consists of a customized personal plan for:
- Nutrition
- Supplementation
- Training and exercise regimen
The following initial plan was devised for both of us to be updated as we go based on our progress and how we feel and respond to the program:
| General Plan: The program plan is for 12 weeks to see results. There will be 2 weeks (14 days) foundation where we clean our system from toxins by following strict detox rules and supplementation. Then introduce sugars, carbs and dairy back into the system slowly one variety at a time and see how we feel. Also introduce other supplements for estrogen detox and fiber cycle. | |
Nutrition:1. Foundation (Week 1 and 2):
2. Week 3: Introduce Sugar
3. Week 4: Introduce good Carbs
4. Week 5: Introduce Dairy |
Supplementation:Foundation:
For Estrogen detox:
For Estrogen Fiber Cycle:
|
Training: (Foundation 2 weeks)
|
For Growth Hormone:
|
Well after taking measurements, doing analysis and formulating an initial plan, we started the foundation stage. I will post our progress, reveal more information and our personal experience to take you through our journey with Douglas with the BioSignature Modulation.
Please feel free to comment and ask questions. That’s what it’s all about…sharing the experience!
See you soon!
Douglas Leandro 