Ray's fat banishment

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Rayman79
Rayman79 Posts: 2,009 Member
OK, so I seem to have been in a deficit for most of the last 18 months so this whole cutting thing isn't exactly something different for me, but I'm going to have a bit of a push over the next 8-12 weeks after a couple of weeks of holiday... umm... maintenance :tongue: .

My food goal will be to hover around 1700 net cals per day, keeping protein at 2 x body weight (in kgs), and low/moderate carbs (100-150/day)

Exercise will be 3 x Full body workouts per week, 2-3 HIIT sessions and a couple of sessions really easy on the exercise bike in front of the TV just for the calorie buffer :wink: .

I don't have my pics handy to put up yet, but here are my starting measurements.

Starting weight: 82.9kgs (no doubt that includes some post-holiday bloat)
Height: 182cm (6')
BF: I'm gonna estimate around 20% edit. USMC calculator puts it at 19% - lets go with that as a baseline.
Waist @ navel: 87cm
Thigh: 57cm
Chest: 97cm
Bicep: 31cm (37 flexed)

I was a little late putting this up so I'll have my one week update verrry soon.
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  • Crankstr
    Crankstr Posts: 3,958 Member
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    WOOT!
  • Rayman79
    Rayman79 Posts: 2,009 Member
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    ok so a little over a week into this now, and noticed an immediate drop in weight (as I expected coming of my extended holiday refeed :laugh: .

    So I dropped from 82.9 down to 80.2 in the first couple of days, and dipped to 79.9 as of this morning. I have been a bit lower in the past but I'm also taking creatine at the moment so not sure how much extra that may be adding on the scale.

    As for my measurements, ot looks like I've lost about a centimeter on my stomach and thigh from initial measurements but as theres an element of error with measuring I'm not getting at all excited about that.

    I'll keep at the 1700 cals for aonther couple of weeks and see what progress happens, its easily managable for me - no real hunger most of the time. Need to up the cardio a bit too as I've been really slack with my HIIT sessions.
  • chrisdavey
    chrisdavey Posts: 9,834 Member
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    subbing :smile:
  • FoxyMcDeadlift
    FoxyMcDeadlift Posts: 771 Member
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    In.
  • chrisdavey
    chrisdavey Posts: 9,834 Member
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    Updates? :-)
  • love4fitnesslove4food_wechange
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    Hope your doing well--I'd imagine that on 1700 caloroes you're losing 2+ pounds per week!
  • Rayman79
    Rayman79 Posts: 2,009 Member
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    Ok so here's the update almost a month in. I've gone a little over 1700 cals on average, but not by much. I am starting to see a little progress after my measurements this morning,

    Weight as of this morning was 78.3. A loss of 1.5kgs is not brilliant, but its progress nonetheless. That's about a pound a week over the last three weeks so I reckon I'm right on track.

    Most of my measurements are the same (just as a suspected I have not grown any taller and my neck has not shrunk ;). I have lost about 3cm around my stomach though - that's the best bit by far! 1 cm off my chest too.

    So I'll keep going at this pace for a few weeks and hope I still keep up similar progress.
  • chrisdavey
    chrisdavey Posts: 9,834 Member
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    Good stuff Ray.

    Are you IFing these days?
  • Rayman79
    Rayman79 Posts: 2,009 Member
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    Another incremental update:

    Down to 77kg even on the scale this morning, and have hovered around this +/- .5kg for the last few days now.

    Most of my other measurements are about the same, except the stomach which has shrunk by another couple of centimetres (now down by 5cm in circumference in the last 2 months). This confirms my suspicion that I have lost most of the body fat from everywhere else, and eventually I'd have to start losing some from the life preserver that seems permanently attached to my mid section. Also dropped about a centimeter off my chest.

    Given the unfortunate work situation I'm in at the moment (forced cutback to two days a week for a while) I'll have no more excuses for skipping cardio sessions... hopefully being at home a little more I can tighten up my diet just a little more and push down to that 12-15% bf range soon.

    Chris, not IF'ing at the moment. I'll have days when I'll fast til the afternoon, but just to make sure I stick overall caloric intake. Just following a basic IIFYM approach, nothing too stressful :)
  • chrisdavey
    chrisdavey Posts: 9,834 Member
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    sounds like you are progressing well. Hope it's all good with the job mate.
  • love4fitnesslove4food_wechange
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    what's your goal weight/bf%?
  • Rayman79
    Rayman79 Posts: 2,009 Member
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    Job situation sucks. Just signed the contract to build a new house on the Friday, and was given the news the following Tuesday. Looks I'm back on the job market, I can't live on 2 days income per week. I'm sure it'll work out, these things have a habit of opening up new opportunities :)

    Love, not sure about either number to be honest. As I've lost all this weight I have sadly realised I'm just another skinny f[url]uck under all that blubber!:laugh: . I've tried to recomp for a while, alternating between slight deficit and surplus' for a few months, but had no progress. I've come to the conclusion that I should accept my skinnyarsedness, and get down to a reasonable level of bf before I embark on a long slow bulk.... ahh how I long for the day!

    I'll judge more by the image in the mirror than anything else, I need to get rid of the (majority of the) fat around my midsection, which I think should be somewhere about 12%, I'd say I'm somewhere in the ballpark of 17-18% now... might have to post some pics for an objective assessment though.[/url]
  • love4fitnesslove4food_wechange
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    pics are a great way to get an objective assessment if you can't do a dexa, body pod, or hydrostatic weighing! Depending on your height though, I'm not sure that cutting too much would be in your best interest. You're already pretty light as it is. Maybe maintenance eating, heavy lifting and patience would work wonders for you!
  • chrisdavey
    chrisdavey Posts: 9,834 Member
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    That's pretty much what he's been doing before Love.

    I think a slow cut is the best way forward. Once you are lean, it's more likely to have a better partitioning of cals to LBM compared to fat when you do want to gain. If you are still relatively high BF then that is a lot less likely.

    Oh I know you are in IIFYM guy Ray, but I think a possible option would be to get a fasting blood glucose test (it's free and may as well get the whole lot done at the same time). This way you could be more specific with the macros you choose ie. insulin resistant = lower carb, insulin sensitive = higher carb.
  • Rayman79
    Rayman79 Posts: 2,009 Member
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    Thanks guys, I have been thinking about getting a dexa done, but they're not cheap here and that is suddenly a real concern for me :grumble: .

    I am planning to book into see my GP for a routing checkup though, just to get my bloodwork done, blood pressure etc. I'll ask for a glucose test as a part of that.

    I'll take some updated pics and post them - as much as I still really don't want them in public...
  • chrisdavey
    chrisdavey Posts: 9,834 Member
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    I don't think anyone is judgemental on this site Ray :smile: Well not in this group anyway.

    No need for dexa. Tape measure and mirror will do the job.
  • love4fitnesslove4food_wechange
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    That's pretty much what he's been doing before Love.

    I think a slow cut is the best way forward. Once you are lean, it's more likely to have a better partitioning of cals to LBM compared to fat when you do want to gain. If you are still relatively high BF then that is a lot less likely.

    Oh I know you are in IIFYM guy Ray, but I think a possible option would be to get a fasting blood glucose test (it's free and may as well get the whole lot done at the same time). This way you could be more specific with the macros you choose ie. insulin resistant = lower carb, insulin sensitive = higher carb.

    Well, there you have it! ;) listen to Chris..he's awesome!
  • chrisdavey
    chrisdavey Posts: 9,834 Member
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    Well, there you have it! ;) listen to Chris..he's awesome!

    :blushing:

    I just realised my head looks just as red in my profile pic as that smilie haha
  • love4fitnesslove4food_wechange
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    Well, there you have it! ;) listen to Chris..he's awesome!

    :blushing:

    I just realised my head looks just as red in my profile pic as that smilie haha

    lol. :)
  • Rayman79
    Rayman79 Posts: 2,009 Member
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    OK I'm checking back in here.

    Not technically part of a cutting 'challenge' but I've re-jigged my eating and training a little and want to track my progress here unless anyone has any objections.

    I want to be a little more strict with myself on tracking my intake so I'm hoping keeping regular logs here will help. I record everything but what I haven't been great at is analysing my progress against my actions (and making the appropriate corrections).

    Major changes:

    Training - switched to 5/3/1 (4 days per week) training at midday on most days (fasted).

    Cal intake - sitting at a 700-800 cal deficit each day, with 1-2 re-feed days per week. This allows me to lower my intake on weekdays when my day is more structured, and refeed on the weekends (or other social occasions etc). I know it's not optimal to have refeeds on non-training days, but this is assisting with adherence and so far I'm still coming out with around 1900 net cals per day on average which seems about right.

    I'm also back on IF which is helping me manage my intake on lower cal days and also helps with keeping a better split of macros.

    Cardio - bugger all. I'm making an effort to increase my NEAT activity, and I'll chuck in a tabata workout or something quick when I have time, but life is stupid crazy busy right now so I'll focus on time efficient activities for now.

    So...

    Week of 29/4/13
    Starting weight: 77.5kg
    End weight: 77.1kg
    Cal intake: 13,278 (ave 1896 per day)
    Macro split (%): 37C: 30P: 33F