Need Advice Nutrition

I recently read some good articles online about losing fat and gaining muscle simultaneously. You might want to check out some info on all that first because from what I understand, it's very difficult to do that at the same time... especially if you are low on your daily calories. You might want to check out some of these links for some advice. Hope this helps

http://getfitguy.quickanddirtytips.com/how-to-lose-fat-and-gain-muscle-at-the-same-time.aspx
http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/kelly3.htm

Try tracking your sodium.
I'd up the calories if you don't have enough energy. Just try at a smaller deficit.

DEF not enough food, IMO. That wouldn't be enough to sustain me WITHOUT working out! I would suggest starting to track your strength training under cardio- search "strength training" and record the time to get a rough estimate of your calorie needs from doing those workouts, and then eat back at least half of your workout calories (including the strength training cals). You will see results in the gym, and your weight will come off predictably, and most of all- you will feel great. This low of calories for a man is not sustainable. The minimum recommendation for men (comparable to 1200 cals for women) is 1800 calories.

Question for ya: Why are you choosing to eat so much lower than what MFP is telling you should eat? Seems like you're leaving an awful lot of calories on the table (so to speak)...

Are your goals different from what you told MFP they are?

This post may help you!

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/654536-in-place-of-a-road-map-2-0-revised-7-2-12

Question for ya: Why are you choosing to eat so much lower than what MFP is telling you should eat? Seems like you're leaving an awful lot of calories on the table (so to speak)...

Are your goals different from what you told MFP they are?

Good question. I was a dummy and thought "I'll show MFP" and eat considerably less to "beat" the calories. However, I am not hungry between my small meals and am very comfortable (hunger wise) aside from energy. My competitiveness got the best of me I guess.

It sounds like it either is impossible or not wise to try to add muscle AND lose weight. I am more interested in dropping fat weight off my body then. Would 40 carbs 30 protein 30 fat be on the right track (generically speaking)?

Hunger isn't always a predictor of caloric needs- consider very obese individuals that eat well over their caloric needs- they still get hungry between meals. And you're an example of the other end- where you don't get hungry when you should. Generally, we get hungry on a schedule based on when we usually eat. For example, if you were to eat a big breakfast, often you'll still get hungry at your normal lunch time, even though based on calories you should be full until dinner- it's largely a trained response.

40/30/30 is a good place to start- and you can adjust as necessary to suit your needs and preferences. No one macro division works best for everyone. I did 40/30/30 for a while, and recently decided more fat is more satiating for me, so I've changed it to be about equal across the board. To each their own.

I agree with MoreBean. 40/30/30 is a great place to start.

However, since you're still new to this whole thing, I would recommend that you just work on eating your calories. You may find that your energy level goes way up with the simple increase in fuel. My guess is that you're tired because you're not feeding yourself enough.

Again, MoreBean is absolutely right - hunger is not the best indicator of a need to eat. But a lack of energy is a generally sound indicator of same.

I think you should just try to eat as much as MFP tells you to, and once you're there, and you see how that feels, then you can start to monkey around with the macros. You'll have a much better baseline to work from.

Good luck to you, and congratulations on taking the first steps toward a new lifestyle. That takes guts!!

Ok...I only looked at today...you could do with leaner proteins than ham and bacon. Bacon is a treat for me. I eat 2 whole eggs and egg whites with a slice of cheese for my breakfast protein. And I won't yell at you for the Coke, but if you want results you would def be better off replacing 240 empty cals with 240 cals of protein. I'm 5'7", 136lbs and eating more protein than you.

the reason why you have no energy is because you're not eating any carbs. What good is exercising and healthy eating if you have no energy. Throw some healthy, slow acting carbs in the mix rather than sugar from Coke (sorry..had to lol) I eat a banana almost every day and a Thomas' whole grain English muffin with my late breakfast so that I don't crash in the afternoon. And then there's some carbs in my Shakeology, too. Add me if you wanna lookk at my diary for ideas

If I were you I would eat more fruits & veggies and drink at least 8 glasses water each day. For me, the water really helps me to lose weight. HTH!

Hello from MN!

In my opinion, today's intake, while still perhaps a bit low, is certainly nothing that I'd call "ridiculous". Looks better to me.

Regarding coke: A philosophy that you mind find reasonable would be to allow yourself approximately 20% of your calories to fall under a "discretionary" intake. That is, if your calorie limit is 2000, you would allow 400 calories of that 2000 to come from whatever the F you want, while still hitting your calorie and macronutrient intake goals . If that means you have a small bag of chips and a coke, go for it. This is a rather simple method of ensuring that "most" of your food is nutrient dense and "some" of your food is allowed to be whatever you want, simply for adherence purposes.

Eventually, at some point down the road in your dieting, you may wish to switch to diet soda simply to free up those calories for other foods, but provided you're not ingesting buttloads of it, I wouldn't stress over it. Focus primarily on hitting your numbers and don't neglect to eat a lot of nutrient dense foods. Beyond that, no need to complicate things or start bucketing foods into "good" and "bad".


Now, regarding your quest to gain muscle and lose fat -- this has been hashed over repeatedly and unfortunately people don't go into enough detail and instead provide a blanket "yes or no" response.

A more detailed answer that I believe to be correct (and I'll reinforce with a great article) is as follows:

The conditions under which someone gains LBM in a hypocaloric diet are as follows:

a) Overweight/overfat beginners
b) People returning to training from a long layoff

And in a), the duration and amount of LBM gained is typically not all that much and it's relatively limited in duration.

Many people who are getting leaner while lifting will make the mistake (and often boast about it on the forums) that they have gained absurd amounts of muscle ("I lost 18lbs of fat and gained 17lbs of muscle in 5 months!") because their lifting and dieting has them both LOOKING more muscular, and getting much stronger but they don't understand that strength gains come largely (but not exclusively) from neurological adaptations (you can get much stronger without gaining muscle).

At any rate, Lyle McDonald is the man here:

http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/adding-muscle-while-losing-fat-qa.html

EDIT: However you DO still want to lift weights while dieting, at least most people probably should. There is still great benefit because it helps retain LBM as you diet down. Dieting down in the absence of resistance training will result in larger losses of muscle, and you probably don't want this.

I'm the type of person who gains weight just LOOKING at the pie that I am finishing...any advice?

Not criticizing the soda, just providing support!: I completely understand the soda craving. I cut out soda a year ago and it was hard. If you want to eventually get rid of the soda, try replacing it it with sparkling water. That really helped me when I got the craving for the bubbly. I will add flavored stevia to sweeten and give it flavor.

If you are looking to add a nice protein to your diet, research Jay Robb Whey protein powder. This is the only protein I have found that has no carbs, 23g of protein for 110 calories. It makes a good shake as well and blended with fruit is great. It also goes well mixed with the Chobani.

I agree that you should increase you overall caloric intake. Eating fresh fruits and veggies is vital.