7 Day Experiment.

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Well per my last thread I've been slipping with monitoring things properly. So I need to do a 7 day experiment to kickstart me to the next level.

November 10th to November 16th:

1. Go to the gym 5 days in the week (I normally do this anyways...)
A. 45 Minutes Elliptical (5MPH on 14 resistance)
B. 4 Weight Lifting exercises
C. Log correct calories based on 500/HR for Elliptical. For 'eating back' purposes.

2. Eat only food I know the contents/calories of.
A. Weigh raw ingredients
B. Use UPC info

3. Food also needs to be no sugar and low sodium for health reasons.

4. Drink only water.

5. Stick to 1500 calories a day + 'eat back' calories.

After 7 days I want to see how things change, how I handle it, and how many times I need to repeat it to lose 50 pounds of fat while gaining some muscle.

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Replies

  • Sued0nim
    Sued0nim Posts: 17,456 Member
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    Lose fat first and work out to protect as much muscle as possible whilst in defecit

    But you ain't doing both fat loss and muscle gain at the same time cos it doesn't work like that
  • fivethreeone
    fivethreeone Posts: 8,196 Member
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    This sounds like a reasonable plan. As rabbitjb mentioned, you won't be gaining muscle and losing fat at the same time, but you WILL strengthen the muscle you already have so that as you lose the fat it will appear that your body is more firm than you might expect.

    Good luck!
  • Truittmark84
    Truittmark84 Posts: 25 Member
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    Im not sure but I think that strengthening muscle and gaining muscle is the same thing? Unless I am missing something. Not trying to be a smartbutt, just not understanding the statements.
  • fivethreeone
    fivethreeone Posts: 8,196 Member
    edited November 2014
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    Im not sure but I think that strengthening muscle and gaining muscle is the same thing? Unless I am missing something. Not trying to be a smartbutt, just not understanding the statements.

    Nope, very different.

    Gaining muscle means gaining actual muscle MASS, which requires actual size and weight gain, meaning your measurements go UP, which can only really happen in a caloric surplus.

    Strengthening muscle means training the muscle you already have. If this occurs in a caloric deficit, your measurements and weight go DOWN, but you can lift more weight, run further/faster, etc. You can get stronger while not actually getting bigger.
  • esjones12
    esjones12 Posts: 1,363 Member
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    Im not sure but I think that strengthening muscle and gaining muscle is the same thing? Unless I am missing something. Not trying to be a smartbutt, just not understanding the statements.

    Nope, very different.

    Gaining muscle means gaining actual muscle MASS, which requires actual size and weight gain, meaning your measurements go UP, which can only really happen in a caloric surplus.

    Strengthening muscle means training the muscle you already have. If this occurs in a caloric deficit, your measurements and weight go DOWN, but you can lift more weight, run further/faster, etc. You can get stronger while not actually getting bigger.

    I've been looking for that explanation for awhile! Any sources to back it up? I'm just curious to know more. What is happening when your weight stays the same but your measurements go down significantly? I've had that happen a lot....(I can't 100% say I was in deficit as I wasn't consistently tracking).

    Thanks!
  • fivethreeone
    fivethreeone Posts: 8,196 Member
    edited November 2014
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    esjones12 wrote: »
    Im not sure but I think that strengthening muscle and gaining muscle is the same thing? Unless I am missing something. Not trying to be a smartbutt, just not understanding the statements.

    Nope, very different.

    Gaining muscle means gaining actual muscle MASS, which requires actual size and weight gain, meaning your measurements go UP, which can only really happen in a caloric surplus.

    Strengthening muscle means training the muscle you already have. If this occurs in a caloric deficit, your measurements and weight go DOWN, but you can lift more weight, run further/faster, etc. You can get stronger while not actually getting bigger.

    I've been looking for that explanation for awhile! Any sources to back it up? I'm just curious to know more. What is happening when your weight stays the same but your measurements go down significantly? I've had that happen a lot....(I can't 100% say I was in deficit as I wasn't consistently tracking).

    Thanks!

    No problem.

    What you're referring to is called recomp (recomposition). It generally occurs when you are eating at maintenance and also generally takes a while to accomplish.

    Check out bodyrecomposition.com for some excellent studies and information on the topic

  • elphie754
    elphie754 Posts: 7,574 Member
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    No sugar at all? So you are not going to eat and fruits or veggies?
  • silverstringbp
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    elphie754 wrote: »
    No sugar at all? So you are not going to eat and fruits or veggies?

    I was thinking more of sweet foods. I have always ate just fruit before noon.

    That's for the first 7 days to clear out the food in my house ( no eating out either )..

    The NEXT 7 days I'll be eating only freshly cooked things. So my rules for then are:

    Eat only fruit, fruit juice for a smoothie, vegetables, chicken thighs, fish.

    No grains, no cheese, no dairy, no beef. Most of which I never eat anyways.

    PS: I bought a scale today to get REAL here..
  • Sued0nim
    Sued0nim Posts: 17,456 Member
    edited November 2014
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    elphie754 wrote: »
    No sugar at all? So you are not going to eat and fruits or veggies?

    I was thinking more of sweet foods. I have always ate just fruit before noon.

    That's for the first 7 days to clear out the food in my house ( no eating out either )..

    The NEXT 7 days I'll be eating only freshly cooked things. So my rules for then are:

    Eat only fruit, fruit juice for a smoothie, vegetables, chicken thighs, fish.

    No grains, no cheese, no dairy, no beef. Most of which I never eat anyways.

    PS: I bought a scale today to get REAL here..

    Why all the exclusions and complicated rules?

    Eat at a calorie defecit

    That's it
  • galprincess
    galprincess Posts: 682 Member
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    keep it simple eat foods you enjoy and are healthy if you wish but your body needs all food groups to function properly I find by saying no I get bad cravings so I say yes but only 20grams or whatever fits.
  • cw106
    cw106 Posts: 952 Member
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    Well per my last thread I've been slipping with monitoring things properly. So I need to do a 7 day experiment to kickstart me to the next level.

    November 10th to November 16th:

    1. Go to the gym 5 days in the week (I normally do this anyways...)
    A. 45 Minutes Elliptical (5MPH on 14 resistance)
    B. 4 Weight Lifting exercises
    C. Log correct calories based on 500/HR for Elliptical. For 'eating back' purposes.

    2. Eat only food I know the contents/calories of.
    A. Weigh raw ingredients
    B. Use UPC info

    3. Food also needs to be no sugar and low sodium for health reasons.

    4. Drink only water.

    5. Stick to 1500 calories a day + 'eat back' calories.

    After 7 days I want to see how things change, how I handle it, and how many times I need to repeat it to lose 50 pounds of fat while gaining some muscle.

    did similar to lose first 40lbs.
    only downside was i didnt do weights initially and deffo lost muscle mass as i was full on cardio only.
    very important as already stated to protect muscle with ongoing strength/ weight training.
    some of us need to be strict on ourselves,so good luck with your experiment and let us know outcome.

  • malibu927
    malibu927 Posts: 17,565 Member
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    You don't need to cut anything out, just eat in a calorie deficit and enjoy what you want in moderation.
  • silverstringbp
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    Well it's almost the end of Sunday and tomorrow I'll start this 7 day experiment. I'm ready to go! The only REAL difference in these 7 days is more strictly counting calories, and completely avoiding some foods I am not supposed to eat per health reasons like cheese and salt. Otherwise it's just a new combination of what I've done for many months.

    Here we go! Weighing in every morning.

  • silverstringbp
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    OK well I finished my first day. I was 219.4 this morning. I'm not gonna weigh myself until the end probably since daily weight change isn't much.

    Went well - luckily I love bowls of steamed veggies and cooked chicken thighs.

    Should lose 13 pounds in 5 weeks at this rate.
  • silverstringbp
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    Day two is over. I did fine, went a little over calories due to going out for sushi. But between the last two days they even out. Don't normally go out so that's fine.
  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member
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    Day two is over. I did fine, went a little over calories due to going out for sushi. But between the last two days they even out. Don't normally go out so that's fine.

    I thought one of the rules was no eating out? That didn't last long!!
  • Sued0nim
    Sued0nim Posts: 17,456 Member
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    Day two is over. I did fine, went a little over calories due to going out for sushi. But between the last two days they even out. Don't normally go out so that's fine.

    I thought one of the rules was no eating out? That didn't last long!!

    yup - failed 2 and 3 already

    2. Eat only food I know the contents/calories of.
    A. Weigh raw ingredients
    B. Use UPC info

    3. Food also needs to be no sugar and low sodium for health reasons.


    that's what happens when you set yourself such stringent goals and why, IMO, it's best to just calorie count and eat a balanced diet including what you fancy
  • silverstringbp
    silverstringbp Posts: 19
    edited November 2014
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    I didn't fail at any of my rules.

    Nowhere does it say I can't eat out. Nowhere did I eat unprocessed sugar OR high sodium food.

    I appreciate the feedback but come on now!

    I should add that these rules are not "stringent" for me at all; I follow them nearly every day. The main difference is better counting and less exercise.

    So far I've lost 7 pounds in just 6 days, and I'm only on day two of this 7 day experiment.
  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member
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    That's for the first 7 days to clear out the food in my house ( no eating out either )..

    Yeah OP you did...