The weight cut should be done over time. Starving a dog to a weight will give a false measurement of strength and conditioning. A cut in feed will do it but the work will do it as well.

The hour is not a hard number. As the dog is worked and fed he will get stronger and better conditioned. He will be able to do more as the work continues so the idea is to dial him in with work and food rather than crash him down and call him out.

Lots of time and effort involved. The first one will be really hard and one will really second guess himself all the way through. The next one will get a little easier as one will correct his mistakes and make adjustments. The more and more times it is completed a person will start to get desired effects and notice them along the way. In time your mind will process he is here, after we do this and that he will be there, so I can call him at XXX. At that point, that is the "EYE" mentioned in the first post. EWO