Dieting issues

FalvoPS

Hi all,

Thanks in advance for any advice you provide. I'm having serious issues dropping body fat, but I'll be the first to admit I've never understood dieting. I'm currently 30 years old, 5'10 and 242 lbs. I have a larger frame that looks more muscular than fat, but I think I'm incredibly fat. I work out 4x per week in the morning. I lift heavy; I'm definitely not a cardio fan, which is probably part of the problem.

I eat roughly 1800 calories including around 200g of protein, 175g of carbs and 50g of fat per day. I do not eat fast food, fried foods, or processed foods. My protein comes from whey powder, chicken and fish (tuna or talapia and some salmon). I eat red meat 1x per week. My carbs are all unprocessed whole grains including oats, qunioa, and farro. I do eat whole wheat bread a few times per week with my lunch. Am I not eating enough? I look like I've gained a significant amount of belly fat over since starting this diet, but the scale has not moved. Please help.

Thanks!

2triscuit

Cardio is your friend... and there are lots of ways to get it. Walking the dog, bicycling, swimming, hiking, jogging, etc. Without the cardio, I wonder if your calorie intake is a bit high. I'm 5'8", 248, and am losing weight steadily at 1300 calories with daily cardio exercise.

I'm no expert, but 1800 doesn't sound like much of a diet unless you are on your feet all day working.

JayBeeGo

I'm no expert either but for your age, height and weight I would have thought your BMR, the minimum many would argue you should eat assuming no exercise at all ie in a coma, is in the region of 2250. Somewhat higher than the 1800 cals you seem to consume every day.

With your exercise regime I suspect you should be eating more, even if you're trying to lose weight.

Others more knowledgeable will hopefully advise.

CakeFit21

Bumping for help!

ladyraven68

Hi all,

Thanks in advance for any advice you provide. I'm having serious issues dropping body fat, but I'll be the first to admit I've never understood dieting. I'm currently 30 years old, 5'10 and 242 lbs. I have a larger frame that looks more muscular than fat, but I think I'm incredibly fat. I work out 4x per week in the morning. I lift heavy; I'm definitely not a cardio fan, which is probably part of the problem.

I eat roughly 1800 calories including around 200g of protein, 175g of carbs and 50g of fat per day. I do not eat fast food, fried foods, or processed foods. My protein comes from whey powder, chicken and fish (tuna or talapia and some salmon). I eat red meat 1x per week. My carbs are all unprocessed whole grains including oats, qunioa, and farro. I do eat whole wheat bread a few times per week with my lunch. Am I not eating enough? I look like I've gained a significant amount of belly fat over since starting this diet, but the scale has not moved. Please help.

Thanks!

Try this - http://www.fat2fitradio.com/tools/bmr/

Put your current weight as your goal weight to work out your current estimated TDEE, then deduct 20%

Your BMR is probably over 2k so you may need more fuel.

AlsDonkBoxSquat

Hi all,

Thanks in advance for any advice you provide. I'm having serious issues dropping body fat, but I'll be the first to admit I've never understood dieting. I'm currently 30 years old, 5'10 and 242 lbs. I have a larger frame that looks more muscular than fat, but I think I'm incredibly fat. I work out 4x per week in the morning. I lift heavy; I'm definitely not a cardio fan, which is probably part of the problem.

I eat roughly 1800 calories including around 200g of protein, 175g of carbs and 50g of fat per day. I do not eat fast food, fried foods, or processed foods. My protein comes from whey powder, chicken and fish (tuna or talapia and some salmon). I eat red meat 1x per week. My carbs are all unprocessed whole grains including oats, qunioa, and farro. I do eat whole wheat bread a few times per week with my lunch. Am I not eating enough? I look like I've gained a significant amount of belly fat over since starting this diet, but the scale has not moved. Please help.

Thanks!

Are you netting or grossing 1800 cal? You don't necessarily have to do cardio, but you may want to incorporate some H IIT.

Drastiic

If you don't take any of my advice, at least read this article. It will give you a good foundation of knowledge:
http://body-improvements.com/resources/eat/

Here's a simple calculation.

Estimated TDEE = Multiply your weight in lbs x 15.
To lose weight = Subtract 20-35%
Follow plan for 3 weeks.
Adjust accordingly.

Example:
Assuming you're 242 lbs.
Estimated TDEE = 242 x 15 = 3630
20% of 3630 = 726 --> 2400-726=2904 (1.45 lbs per week)
35% of 3630 = 1271 --> 2400-1271=2360 (2.54 lbs per week)
In this example to lose weight, eat between 2350-2900 calories. Follow plan for 3 weeks. Adjust accordingly.

Then, go here:
http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/adjusting-the-diet.html

dvisser1

I'm 6'2" and have a large frame, currently weighing 255 (profile pic is from weighing 260). I'm in much the same situation. First thing, I do think you're probably not eating enough if you total out at 1800 calories. A net calorie target of 1800-2000 would be good. My target with no exercise is 1940, and I eat most of my exercise calories back.

Cardio will help. Doesn't have to be long, grueling runs. I do something close to a high intensity interval training workout on the elliptical at the gym and burn 550-ish calories in 30 minutes.

As for your diet, I do wonder if you're getting enough iron in your diet (lean red meat, dark greens like spinach and kale or broccoli). Otherwise it looks pretty good.

FalvoPS

Hi all,

Thanks in advance for any advice you provide. I'm having serious issues dropping body fat, but I'll be the first to admit I've never understood dieting. I'm currently 30 years old, 5'10 and 242 lbs. I have a larger frame that looks more muscular than fat, but I think I'm incredibly fat. I work out 4x per week in the morning. I lift heavy; I'm definitely not a cardio fan, which is probably part of the problem.

I eat roughly 1800 calories including around 200g of protein, 175g of carbs and 50g of fat per day. I do not eat fast food, fried foods, or processed foods. My protein comes from whey powder, chicken and fish (tuna or talapia and some salmon). I eat red meat 1x per week. My carbs are all unprocessed whole grains including oats, qunioa, and farro. I do eat whole wheat bread a few times per week with my lunch. Am I not eating enough? I look like I've gained a significant amount of belly fat over since starting this diet, but the scale has not moved. Please help.

Thanks!

Are you netting or grossing 1800 cal? You don't necessarily have to do cardio, but you may want to incorporate some H IIT.

That is gross. I use a different program to track my workouts, Fitocracy, because some of the exercises I do are not in the library here.

FalvoPS

My BMR is 2246. If I eat less than 1800 calories I don't have enough energy to complete my workouts. My works outs are very intense and involve very heavy weights.

lizard053

If you've gained belly fat, or more girth in your belly, (appears the same) it could be due to a food allergy. Something you are eating could be disagreeing with your digestive track, causing you to bloat, hence the appearance of belly fat. At 1800 calories, you really should be losing weight, fairly rapidly given your stats. There may also be some other underlying health issue that is causing you to resist the weight loss as well. You may want to have a conversation with your doctor!

FalvoPS

Thank you for the link. Per the BMR calculator, I should eat 3221 calories to drop down to my goal weight.