Day 18:
I'm a bit confused by my results so far but not disappointed. I got sick the other night and had a fever, upset stomach, etc. I haven't lost any weight despite my calorie deficit being even more severe while feeling bad.
Going into this cutting cycle, I was planning on operating the same as I would without the var. I expected the var to just give me a boost in gym energy, maintain my muscle, and accelerate my fat loss a bit. Honestly, I haven't been counting calories, because I've never had to count calories until I drop below 10%. Until then, my fat has always fallen off steadily. Since starting my cycle I have upped my cardio from none to full court basketball once or twice a week and HIT 2-3x per week. I estimate my calorie count to be at about 2500/day with my carbs high with breakfast, moderate with lunch, and slim to none with dinner. My protein is high, lots of veggies, fish oil, flax oil, lots of water, creatine, casein before bead, complex+whey before and after lifting. My scale weight has been dropping slower than I expected, considering that six months ago I was 30 lbs. lighter. I use a hand-held body fat monitor and it hasn't been dropping, still above 14% every morning. However, my muscles are more cut and my torso looks leaner than it did a week ago. My strength is up in several lifts.
My conclusion is that my bf monitor is whack, and I'm gaining muscle and losing fat, both at a slow rate, despite my low calorie diet. If that's the case, I'm pleased, but I need to boost the fat loss to hit my goal on time. I'm affraid to drop my calories lower than 2500 though, considering that I weigh 200lbs.