Leangains Advice
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tcunbeliever
Posts: 8,219 Member
I'm 5 weeks into Leangains, and starting to have a lot of trouble adhering to this plan...I want to stay on it because it seems to be working, my arms look more defined, my ribs are starting to show so it does look like body fat is reducing (measurements are tomorrow, so hard data is forthcoming). However, I am so hungry all the time and having a difficult time sticking to the calorie limits. I do not have the willpower to just not eat when I'm hungry, the longer I go without eating the more terrible my food choices tend to be when I do finally eat. Plus, I'm not usually too keen on sweets, but the cravings have been terrible this last week.
Has anyone done this program? Any advice for staying on it and not having crazy cravings and incessant hunger?
Has anyone done this program? Any advice for staying on it and not having crazy cravings and incessant hunger?
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Replies
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Please don't think me harsh, but if it's not working for you, then stop and choose another option. Eating, losing weight, toning up, getting fitter, looking better, or whatever your rationale, should not be so hard that it leaves you craving.
It shouldn't be an ordeal. It shouldn't be leaving you imbalanced and "gastronomically" distressed and fretting about what you eat and worrying about falling off the wagon.
Other processes, lifestyles or WOE will also work, so don't hitch all your horses to this wagon, if it's not going your way.
If you're hungry all the time;
If you're having difficulty sticking to calories;
If you lack willpower;
If your food choices turn out to be terrible;
if you're craving sweet things -
Then this plan is not for you, and isn't working, even though you may perceive a physical change.
Because sure as eggs is 'Nature's protein packed multi-vitamin', the moment you reach a goal, you'll celebrate in a totally counter-productive way, and your relief will turn to dismay.
I'm sorry to sound such a downer, but getting to where you want to be should be a joyful process, not a stressful - and distressing - one.
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To provide a counter argument, if I didn't go hungry here and there, I would never have lost the weight nor kept it off.
I have a very rabid and forceful hunger sensation. Dealing with it is like trying to bust a cracked-out bronco. Still. After almost 3 years low-carb. My hunger went away for 3 days on keto. And returned and has been with me ever since.
@tcunbeliever
Feel you. I've been looking at Leangains myself. I just can't get this stress/Sjogren's/sleep deprivation/switch-from-keto-to-LC-extra-weight off without resorting to more extreme measures, but I don't want to lose my muscle either. There's a reason they call this crap "stubborn belly fat." Dayyyyum! And I have some thunderthighs still too. Go. The F. Away. Now. SERIOUSLY!
An probably unhelpful reply, but bumping.
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How much longer is the program?
What are the macros like?
Is it possible you've set the calories just a bit too low and could increase them just a touch?
If so, maybe increase protein since it's the most satiating.
Also, I tend to be most satisfied when I eat beef as opposed to other meats. Maybe just choosing a different protein source would make enough difference?
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I'm way too stubborn to quit just because it's hard. Not yet, not without trying to tweak it, not without giving it more time and effort. Life is pain, anyone who says differently is selling something.
I was planning it for 90 days, I think it's actually designed to be a forever program, but that was the time limit I put on trying it and seeing results. I still want to stick it out though the end of June.
Macros for me per the program calculators:
Training days (tu/th/su)
2008 cal, 123 protein, 45 fat, 222 carb
Rest days (m/w/f/sa)
1339 cal, 123 protein, 83 fat, 75 carb
I'm 5'9", 145-150lbs, approx 25% body fat, 40+ female - I don't expect trimming the belly will be an easy task no matter what program I use because I'm past the age where fat loss would be easy and already at a healthy weight. I have a small bone structure and long limbs, so building any kind of muscle has always been a challenge - I get stronger, I just don't usually get larger.
The weekly calorie total is a small deficit for me, so I'm not sure I want to mess with that, it would be easy to push them into maintenance or even gain territory.
Protein is such a challenge for me - I'm mostly vegetarian because so many meats give me migraines. Beef is not an option, I'm mostly living on tuna and eggs and sunwarrior at this point. However, I think upping the protein might actually be a good idea. I'm usually close to 100, but not actually hitting the 120+ goal mark, and maybe that last 20g would make a difference in appetite.
Plus, the carbs on this are much higher than I was eating before, so I think I may cut those down a bit. I should be able to keep the carb cycling concept without having to eat quite so many of them and I know that carbs have and probably always will trigger cravings, so maybe that would help.
If I can eat those calories in protein, not carbs, adherence may be improved. It's worth a try, at least for the next 7 weeks.0 -
I think swapping some carbs for protein could help a lot. Carbs are just not satisfying for very long. And it shouldn't really change anything metabolically. Except perhaps in your favor.1
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From a craving perspective, I think the source of the carbs is a bigger factor than what they are. The lower you can go on the glycemic index, the less cravings in my experience.
Also, if you are not quite getting to the protein goal, where are you getting those calories, assuming you are hitting those? If those are additional carbs, then that may be a source of the cravings as well, especially on the non training days. The difference between 75 and 100 is huge.1 -
What is your feeding window, and when are your workouts?1
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I usually eat lunch between 12:30 and 1...a snack around 4...dinner around 7...light snack around 10pm
Workouts are usually 5am (15-30 min abs or cardio), 9am (10 min light weights + 15 min walk), noon (45 min walk), 2pm (10 min stretch + 15 min walk) and 9pm P90X3 (classic schedule)
If I miss any workouts it's usually the morning one because sometimes I oversleep. P90X3 is what I consider my primary workout, the rest of them just help work out some of the stiff/sore feeling throughout the day. I have a desk job, so not much activity beyond what is listed.0 -
P90x is pretty intensive cardio, leangains isn't designed for that.
http://www.leangains.com/search/label/Training
Follow his actual protocols to get the most out of his system.
Basically it looks like you're on a pretty heavy deficit (considering P90x is like 700kcal/hr or something isn't it?).
From what you've described it looks like you're eating at a deficit on non lift days, and still eating at a deficit due to extreme workout calories, on workout days.
If you're following P90x, you should probably ALSO follow the accompanying nutrition guide that comes with it.
No wonder you're ravenously hungry =D.0 -
P90X3 is a 30 min/day workout, not a full hour like P90X, and not lifting weights almost every day like P90X. It's basically 3 days of strength training, 2 days of cardio, and 1 day of flexibility work per week, plus a rest day. I thought it would be a good fit with Leangains since it's 3 days of strength training/week. Or maybe I'm just not understanding the plan very well.
Since I don't eat much in the way of meat and am gluten free the P90X3 recommended nutrition plan doesn't fit me well at all. I'm totally not into the Shakeology thing either.0 -
Oh ok, TBH I don't really know much about p90x3. P90x was actually what got me more into nutrition!
So here's a leangains calculator:
http://sareyko.net/leancalc/#/g=male/a=NaN/w=NaN/h=NaN/b=NaN/m=1.2/r=-20/t=20/p=2.5/e=NaN
Just from what you posted, and plugging your numbers in...your macros look to be about good.
Since really your main issue is hunger, what types of foods are you eating?
So from the times you posted, you might need to tighten up your eating schedule (too many hours between meals for the IF part).
Basically you can swap out whatever foods you want/need to, in order to create satiety. Like trying legumes instead of rice and the like. Berkhan talked about eating an entire box of cereal on his workout days, so it's basically IIFYM type eating.1 -
Konjac Noodles or capsules with Glucomannan might help1
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Your 3 workout days include both the cardio and the weights? Martin would say you're better off skipping the cardio and sleeping in instead.1
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Lots of others have commented, and they know a lot more about this than me. But I agree with Sunny Bunny about swapping some of the carbs for protein or even fats. If I increase my carbs, I get hungrier. At your levels, I'd be hungry all the time.1
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Thank you all so much for your input - you have given me a ton of information to process and that's awesome!
I'm going to tweak this program in several ways and see if that makes it easier for me without losing the benefits.
1 - I'm going to cut down the carbs to 50 and 126, I think this will be enough of a difference to get the benefits of carb cycling but maybe reduce some of the cravings. On my training days I will allow myself to go over on carbs, but only if I have met 100% of my protein goal.
2 - Meet 100% of my protein goal, I've been kind of happy to get within 20g, but I think some of the cravings would also be diminished by getting that extra boost of protein, and it's supposed to be a minimum goal, right, so if I go over, no worries.
3 - Focus less on calories, if I need to go over calories to get my protein in then so be it, maybe I am running a steeper deficit than I realize, but I don't want to alter my goal because then I might be tempted to fill in the gap with junk food, however, if I need to go over to get in protein and quality food, then I will, no worries.
4 - move abs to strength days - maybe the cardio on the strength training days is too much, but I like having a morning workout as it makes me feel more peppy and awake for the whole day, so I'll shift my ab routine, which is my easiest morning workout, over to the strength training days and move the more intense cardio to the cardio/flex days of P90X3. The morning cardio immediately following evening weights may actually reduce DOMS, and if I'm really sore I can always just do the cardio at a lower intensity level.
I did measurements this morning! 5 weeks in:
weight +0.4 lb
chest +2.25 in
R/L arm +0.25 in each
waist +0.25 in
belly -0.25 in
low belly -1 in
R/L thigh -1 in each
Overall I'm very happy - my arms like never get bigger, and I know it's not a huge increase, but any increase is huge to me. The chubby place in my legs are getting slimmer. And my belly is actually shrinking, the one place where I have never been able to get rid of the fluff is actually the place most impacted by this plan...it's kind of amazing to me which is part of the reason I don't want to quit. Oh, and the chest being huge just probably means shark week is coming, that's not ever a consistent measurement for me since I fluctuate a cup size or more depending on what time of month it is. However, I did go from a 30F bra to a 28F bra in the last 5 weeks, so ribcage is shrinking. My weight is also not a consistent measurement and can easily swing 4-5 lbs overnight, so I mostly ignore that one too.
Again, thank you everyone for you input, I think some of these changes you suggested will enable me to adhere to this program for at least the next 7 weeks and I can't wait to see what the measurements look like at the end!4
