Help me lose and get lean!
Replies
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Bump,advice? Carry on as I am or increase calories?0
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I am 5' 10" 150 down from 185 a year ago. I now have what most would consider a desirable physique with clear muscle definition, visible ab muscles, and little to no excess flab anywhere. I have been through what you are going through and there's no easy solution or formula. There is only one truth which no one seems to like to talk about here, and that is how much you bust your *kitten* in the gym. If you eat under your TDEE, it doesn't matter whether its 5,10, or 20%, and kick your own butt during your workouts, you WILL look the way you want to. Just working out isn't good enough. You need to lift to the point where you want to cry, and do cardio to the point where you want to puke. It's easy to get from 200 to 170, but going from where you are to where I am takes a level of work and discipline very few have. Forget about the 5x5 crap, lowering carbs, tweaking your percentages and macros, blah, blah, blah, blah, and start working out until you're whimpering and and every fiber if your mind and body are telling you to stop. Then and only then will you get the results you are looking for. And no, it won't happen over night, but one day in maybe 3 months, maybe 3 years, you will look in the mirror and say "I'm where I want to be physically"0
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Thanks for that, I probably needed to hear that....what calorie intake do you recommend then? Did you eat a calorie deficit to get how you are now along side the hard work in the gym? In your opinion am I under eating? There's so much contradiction on what to eat and what not to eat its all so confusing!0
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Thanks for the reply......in response.....
1. No you'll lose weight as long as you're in a deficit. If you have trouble regulating your appetite and find yourself going over your calorie intake do to processed foods then you may want to consider cutting back on them.
2. This is fine
3. Good
4.. Fat is good. You need about .35 grams of fat per pound of lean body mass. Fish, nuts, seeds, olive oile, steak, eggs, whole milk are all good sources.
5. Saturated fats are also good. It's trans fats you want to avoid.
6. Good. Enjoy yourself some.
7. Good sllep is important
8. Awesome! It's important to be accurate/
9.Log your cheat days as best as possible.
10.This is fine.0 -
I am 5' 10" 150 down from 185 a year ago. I now have what most would consider a desirable physique with clear muscle definition, visible ab muscles, and little to no excess flab anywhere. I have been through what you are going through and there's no easy solution or formula. There is only one truth which no one seems to like to talk about here, and that is how much you bust your *kitten* in the gym. If you eat under your TDEE, it doesn't matter whether its 5,10, or 20%, and kick your own butt during your workouts, you WILL look the way you want to. Just working out isn't good enough. You need to lift to the point where you want to cry, and do cardio to the point where you want to puke. It's easy to get from 200 to 170, but going from where you are to where I am takes a level of work and discipline very few have. Forget about the 5x5 crap, lowering carbs, tweaking your percentages and macros, blah, blah, blah, blah, and start working out until you're whimpering and and every fiber if your mind and body are telling you to stop. Then and only then will you get the results you are looking for. And no, it won't happen over night, but one day in maybe 3 months, maybe 3 years, you will look in the mirror and say "I'm where I want to be physically"
This sounds like a great speech for a Rocky movie however it's a one way ticket to over training and loss of lean body mass.
What you need is an intelligent and effective program. NOT this. This is what leads people to injury and then they can't work out anymore because they've spent 3 hours at the gym every day for the past 6 months.
Push yourself OP. But this is off the dial.0 -
I am 5' 10" 150 down from 185 a year ago. I now have what most would consider a desirable physique with clear muscle definition, visible ab muscles, and little to no excess flab anywhere. I have been through what you are going through and there's no easy solution or formula. There is only one truth which no one seems to like to talk about here, and that is how much you bust your *kitten* in the gym. If you eat under your TDEE, it doesn't matter whether its 5,10, or 20%, and kick your own butt during your workouts, you WILL look the way you want to. Just working out isn't good enough. You need to lift to the point where you want to cry, and do cardio to the point where you want to puke. It's easy to get from 200 to 170, but going from where you are to where I am takes a level of work and discipline very few have. Forget about the 5x5 crap, lowering carbs, tweaking your percentages and macros, blah, blah, blah, blah, and start working out until you're whimpering and and every fiber if your mind and body are telling you to stop. Then and only then will you get the results you are looking for. And no, it won't happen over night, but one day in maybe 3 months, maybe 3 years, you will look in the mirror and say "I'm where I want to be physically"
This sounds like a great speech for a Rocky movie however it's a one way ticket to over training and loss of lean body mass.
What you need is an intelligent and effective program. NOT this. This is what leads people to injury and then they can't work out anymore because they've spent 3 hours at the gym every day for the past 6 months.
Push yourself OP. But this is off the dial.
Not 3 hours a day. 1 1/2 hours a day 4 days a week. It's not about time, it's about intensity. I'm not even close to overtraining, I'm just don't undertrain like most of the lazy people who look for diet tricks to be their answer.
To answer your question OP, I ate 1700 for several months, upped it to 2100 when I got close to my goal weight, and now I eat around 2500 a day on average( more on workout days, less on off days). I work construction and have a 3 year old. I usually don't sit down from 7am til 8pm, so my TDEE is in the upper range as well. All I can say is trust me. I am probably the only person who has responded to your post that has lived your exact circumstances. I have suffered no injuries, no fatigue, and no plateaus or setbacks. One thing, hard work, period. Why do you think professional athletes are all ripped! Do you think their coaches and trainers are worried about "overtraining" as they're running wind sprints, pushing every set to failure, and crawling off the field or out of the gym. Fear of overtraining is an easy way out if pushing your body past what's comfortable.0 -
I am 5' 10" 150 down from 185 a year ago. I now have what most would consider a desirable physique with clear muscle definition, visible ab muscles, and little to no excess flab anywhere. I have been through what you are going through and there's no easy solution or formula. There is only one truth which no one seems to like to talk about here, and that is how much you bust your *kitten* in the gym. If you eat under your TDEE, it doesn't matter whether its 5,10, or 20%, and kick your own butt during your workouts, you WILL look the way you want to. Just working out isn't good enough. You need to lift to the point where you want to cry, and do cardio to the point where you want to puke. It's easy to get from 200 to 170, but going from where you are to where I am takes a level of work and discipline very few have. Forget about the 5x5 crap, lowering carbs, tweaking your percentages and macros, blah, blah, blah, blah, and start working out until you're whimpering and and every fiber if your mind and body are telling you to stop. Then and only then will you get the results you are looking for. And no, it won't happen over night, but one day in maybe 3 months, maybe 3 years, you will look in the mirror and say "I'm where I want to be physically"
This sounds like a great speech for a Rocky movie however it's a one way ticket to over training and loss of lean body mass.
What you need is an intelligent and effective program. NOT this. This is what leads people to injury and then they can't work out anymore because they've spent 3 hours at the gym every day for the past 6 months.
Push yourself OP. But this is off the dial.
Not 3 hours a day. 1 1/2 hours a day 4 days a week. It's not about time, it's about intensity. I'm not even close to overtraining, I'm just don't undertrain like most of the lazy people who look for diet tricks to be their answer.
To answer your question OP, I ate 1700 for several months, upped it to 2100 when I got close to my goal weight, and now I eat around 2500 a day on average( more on workout days, less on off days). I work construction and have a 3 year old. I usually don't sit down from 7am til 8pm, so my TDEE is in the upper range as well. All I can say is trust me. I am probably the only person who has responded to your post that has lived your exact circumstances. I have suffered no injuries, no fatigue, and no plateaus or setbacks. One thing, hard work, period. Why do you think professional athletes are all ripped! Do you think their coaches and trainers are worried about "overtraining" as they're running wind sprints, pushing every set to failure, and crawling off the field or out of the gym. Fear of overtraining is an easy way out if pushing your body past what's comfortable.
I can assure you athletes and coaches are both worried about overtraining.
This is why they follow specific training schedules to prevent this sort of thing. They don't go all out everyday and certainly not every training session. This is why things like deload weeks exist. Exercise puts stress on the body and when you recover and your body repairs itself from that stress that is when you're body gets stronger. This is why programs are designed around periodisation so athletes bodies have the proper amount of rest to actually adapt to the stress that they're putting on their bodies.
I have no doubt that you're doing the amount of exercise and rigorous daily activity that you say you're doing as I've seen way too many people (myself included) make the same mistake. And I'll tell you this, you will eventually hit a wall.
Working construction, excessive exercise, and only 2500 calories a day is a recipe for disaster.
Whether or not you choose to listen to me is irrelevant. But if you don't understand something as basic as periodisation it might be wise to do a bit of research before giving advice in a fitness forum.0 -
Well thanks for all the info I can take a lot from it, I work hard all day and simply wouldn't have the energy to hit the gym that hard in the evenings as well on the cals I'm eating.
My TDEE is around 3100 so I'm going to up my cals to 2700 and start this week for a few weeks with the same lifting/cardio program I follow now and see what happens!
Cheers
Kev0 -
Leave the calories where you have them set and give it 4 weeks. You were undereating at 1400 for sure.
^^this0 -
Thanks for the reply......in response.....
1. No you'll lose weight as long as you're in a deficit. If you have trouble regulating your appetite and find yourself going over your calorie intake do to processed foods then you may want to consider cutting back on them.
2. This is fine
3. Good
4.. Fat is good. You need about .35 grams of fat per pound of lean body mass. Fish, nuts, seeds, olive oile, steak, eggs, whole milk are all good sources.
5. Saturated fats are also good. It's trans fats you want to avoid.
6. Good. Enjoy yourself some.
7. Good sllep is important
8. Awesome! It's important to be accurate/
9.Log your cheat days as best as possible.
10.This is fine.
[/quote
^^good responses0 -
Well thanks for all the info I can take a lot from it, I work hard all day and simply wouldn't have the energy to hit the gym that hard in the evenings as well on the cals I'm eating.
My TDEE is around 3100 so I'm going to up my cals to 2700 and start this week for a few weeks with the same lifting/cardio program I follow now and see what happens!
Cheers
Kev
Where are you getting your TDEE from? That seems a bit high. How much do you weigh?
Edit: sorry, just saw your response. The c3k seems more reasonable tbh.
The main thing is...pick a reasonable calorie level, stick with it for 4 weeks and reassess - tweak up or down as needed. I would also advise to log your cheat days.0 -
Got my TDEE from here also
http://calorieline.com/tools/tdee
A 16hr day for me consists of...
8 hours a day constantly on the move decorating,climbing ladders/scaffold,rolling ceilings/walls etc
2 hrs playing with kids/doing chores
1hr stretching or exercising weights/cardio
1hr doing things around the house
0.5-1hr driving
2 -2.5hrs watching tv then bed
Also 3 hours fishing one night a week
And 90 mins of competitive football on Saturdays
I'd class that as very active? Or am I wrong?0 -
Got my TDEE from here also
http://calorieline.com/tools/tdee
A 16hr day for me consists of...
8 hours a day constantly on the move decorating,climbing ladders/scaffold,rolling ceilings/walls etc
2 hrs playing with kids/doing chores
1hr stretching or exercising weights/cardio
1hr doing things around the house
0.5-1hr driving
2 -2.5hrs watching tv then bed
Also 3 hours fishing one night a week
And 90 mins of competitive football on Saturdays
I'd class that as very active? Or am I wrong?
Which TDEE does that equate to? Sorry, there were a few so I am just trying to clarify.0 -
On that particular site it's
Work: Moderate manual labor (sweeping, mopping) 4 hours each day, and on feet for another 4 hrs each day, 5 days weekly.
Exercise: none. 1486 3144
That's as close as I can get to what I do at work0 -
I would pick a number to eat to between 2,300 and 2,600 (they are all just estimates) - log as accurately as possible, stick to it for about 4 weeks and see how you do - tweak up or down depending on results.
Any number in that range *should* mean you are below your TDEE but are not at too large of a deficit.
Make sure to include a good strength training routine.0 -
I would pick a number to eat to between 2,300 and 2,600 (they are all just estimates) - log as accurately as possible, stick to it for about 4 weeks and see how you do - tweak up or down depending on results.
Any number in that range *should* mean you are below your TDEE but are not at too large of a deficit.
Make sure to include a good strength training routine.
Thanks for your help, I've set my goals to 2560 for now with 3 days strength and 2 cardio plus sat football maintaining 160g protein. Will give that a go for a few weeks and see!0 -
Still no budge up or down on the scales as of yet!0
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Still no budge up or down on the scales as of yet!
I would cut calories by a couple of hundred and see how you do over the next couple of weeks.0 -
What, drop to say 2200 and try or give it another week? Could it be my cheat day undoing my good work?0
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What, drop to say 2200 and try or give it another week? Could it be my cheat day undoing my good work?
Could well be. Looks like your maintenance is your current intake level, so dropping it to the 2,200 should be good. Also, keep an eye on the cheat day so it does not get to 'cheaty'.0 -
Hey there! I haven't actually blogged my journey on here but I've lost 30 since February of last year. Lifting weights and adding lots of lean protein definitely is key, but I did notice you said you do cycling for your cardio. As cycling is great and all, your target is your tummy fat so honestly the best thing for you is HIIT runs. They vary but short and sweet anywhere from 16-40 mins depending on the one you choose. It is one of the best cardio routines that you can do to burn out fat and very proven everywhere you read and I am living proof. That with your proper nutrition and weight lifting is sure to get you past that plateau! Good luck! Also side note dairy and wheat can add a lot of bloating and/or fat build up in that area so watch your intake in those foods if you tend to eat them!
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Thanks guys, diary wise I eat, yoghurt (Greek) skimmed milk, occasional cheese, cottage cheese,eggs and butter! And do bloat very easy! But I eat these for the protein!
Ill try another week or 2 and see how I get on!0 -
Dropping my calories down to 2250 for a few weeks and see if any change comes as I'm still at 164.4lbs!0
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Ok, before I dropped my cals I decided to carry on with it around 2560 for another week, I have now started to see the scale move, but in the wrong direction? I've put on 2lbs over this week! Where do I go from here? Have I reset my metabolism and need to drop down to 2200 or am I gaining muscle?0
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