Combining Focus T25 with Low Carb - Interesting Results

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adityars
adityars Posts: 3
in Fitness and Exercise
Firstly, I am a 6'1, 200 pound male, starting Week 5 of T25 Alpha.

The first three weeks of T25, I pretty much counted calories using the app and tried to do the workouts to the best of my ability. My HRM confirmed my heart rate was hitting 160-165, and on days when I did Total Body, a large part of the challenge was not slipping in a puddle of my own sweat :) ...

The results while not earth shattering, were pretty decent. I have been losing roughly around 2 pounds a week on an average. I am close to 200 starting from 209.

I realized that for my 1600 calorie diet, I was eating close to 150-180 gm of carbs, (muesli, fruit, protein bars ...), and have been reading a lot of research about cutting carbs, and increasing fat/protein to make up for it.

Over the last few days, I have been cutting down on carbs and shifting more to fats/protein... from 150 to 120 to now 70gm/day on a 1600 cal diet, and making up for it by eating stuff like nuts, cottage cheese etc. What is interesting is I seem to have lost almost 1.5 pounds just over the weekend. (weighing myself first thing in the morning, controlled conditions :)

I realize this is too short a period to make any claims about low carb-high fat diets, however I would really like to safely explore this diet for the remaining portion of T25 (Beta & Gamma still to come).

Can anyone who has actual experience with T25 style workouts and low carb - high fat/protein diets share their wisdom and experience? Anything to watch out for, any specific %ages/levels that worked for you?

I am looking at fat loss as a goal and dropping around 8% body fat over the course of this program if possible. So far, the results have been very encouraging, even without manipulating the %ages too much.

Would appreciate advice :)

Cheers

Replies

  • WhiteRabbit1313
    WhiteRabbit1313 Posts: 1,091 Member
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    You can lose 5-7 lbs. in a week on HFLC diets, BUT it's mainly just water weight. It will come back, when you add carbs back. I know. I did Atkins Induction, several times, before I realized that it didn't work, and it wasn't going to work for me. Do yourself a favor and just eat less of what you like within a normal plan.
  • psuLemon
    psuLemon Posts: 38,411 MFP Moderator
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    It really doesn't matter which macro you use, fat loss is driven by a 3500 calorie deficit. Now if we are talking muscle retention, then we are talking g's of protein and resistance training, which T25 is not. As mentioned, lowering carbs will cause your body to store less glycogen/water. So while you may experience a 5-7 lbs lose quickly, it's all water weight. Once you add carbs back, you will gain weight as fast as you lost it.
  • adityars
    adityars Posts: 3
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    Thanks guys....
    I guess it must have been the water weight.

    I'll just keep the macros sane and continue my 1600 calorie diet and T25 workout for now....

    Like I said, the results so far weren't bad, I just wanted to see if I could do anything to improve them .... :)
  • psuLemon
    psuLemon Posts: 38,411 MFP Moderator
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    Thanks guys....
    I guess it must have been the water weight.

    I'll just keep the macros sane and continue my 1600 calorie diet and T25 workout for now....

    Like I said, the results so far weren't bad, I just wanted to see if I could do anything to improve them .... :)

    Actually if anything, you should slow down your progress. You are not obese by any means and 2 lbs a week is aggressive which can lead to more muscle loss. Ideally, 1 lb per week is good.
  • tdewell2
    tdewell2 Posts: 1
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    I eat low-carb and do T25 and have had great results. However, eating low-carb is not a "diet" for me, it's a way of life. My gut doesn't handle carbs well, so I only eat around 50 grams per day, which all come from fruits, veggies, and nuts.

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