I realize this may be a loaded question.

RHachicho · July 2014

i have tried several different forms of exercise. But I can't seem to settle on any routine hard and fast because i am relativeley new to the subject. So I wanted to ask those who regularly make a habit of targeting fat loss. What is THE best way to exercise if you want to melt large amounts of fat.

Until very recently I was on a 1500 calorie deficit. I was keeping track of lbm loss and until recently I had only lost .5 - .75 of a lb of lbm a month. An acceptable loss rate in my book seeing as I was also losing about 10 - 13lbs of fat a month. However last month I hit 25% body fat and lost 3lbs of lean mass. Which I took to mean that my obesity "grace period" for large deficits was officially over. I increased my diet by 500 calories. But only saw 1lb of weight loss last week. I am hoping that this is simply due to the shock because my body is now receiving a semi decent amount of calories. And will even out to the 2lb/week weight loss it should be at soon. However at a lb a week I am at least confident I am now longer losing silly amounts of lbm.

I don't really want to hear all this "You should exercise for fitness nonsense". I have every intention of never stopping exercise and changing my focus down the road. But for now I want my regime to give me my full quota of "noob gains" that can be gained at a deficit. And maintain them. As well as causing the maximum amount of fat to be burnt possible. Here is my current exercise Regime.

Monday : - 2hours brisk walk, 1 Hour High intensity training (Mixture of circuit training and super sets with a few sprints designed to really push my limits)

Tuesday :- 2hours brisk walk

Wednesday :- 2hours brisk walk, Full body lifting session. Usually 20 - 30 sets total 20 minutes of Hit Cardio

Thursday :- 2hours brisk walk

Friday :- 2hours brisk walk, Full body lifting session. Usually 20 - 30 sets total 20 minutes of Hit Cardio

Saturday :-2hours brisk walk

Sunday :-2hours brisk walk.

I think my activity level is good as it stands but I am at the point now where I feel I wish to expand it again. I would like to know what additions you can make that would be most effective at helping me to burn large amounts of fat. Preferably with little/no effect on my lbm.

shirleygirl1013 · July 2014

First, I want to congratulate you on all the great work that you are doing. My friend is a dietician and I asked her advice and she said to have a day that you eat foods that you normally don't eat not on a deficit to jump start your metabolism. That is a great way to break a plateau.

usmcmp · July 2014

First, I want to congratulate you on all the great work that you are doing. My friend is a dietician and I asked her advice and she said to have a day that you eat foods that you normally don't eat not on a deficit to jump start your metabolism. That is a great way to break a plateau.

It's called a refeed and it's to reset leptin and other hormone levels. There are a variety of ways to do it. The way I usually do it is to eat at my TDEE, lots of carbs (not from fruit) with 100g protein and almost no fat. Just increasing calories to TDEE or above works too.

stealthq · July 2014

If you want to burn lots of fat, low intensity steady state cardio is the way to go, since you already lift. You can do tons of it without over-training, and therefore burn lots of calories.

Pick something that has a high calorie burn per hour. I'd pick swimming - lots of calories burnt, no impact, new range of motion compared to walking and lifting.

BTW - careful with the HIIT. As often as you're doing it, plus the lifting (assuming it's heavy) can lead to over-training and you probably won't realize there's a problem until you injure yourself.

RHachicho · July 2014

is eating a lot of fruit a big no no for fat burning then?

I'm kinda a big fruit fan.

If it's not how much fruit per day would you say is a nice safe limit?

And yes the lifting is heavy. But don't worry too much about the HIT training. I did call it that. But it does seem that there is some difference between full on HIT training and simply doing some interval work. those 20mins are usually spent on the treadmill alternating 2minute hard running and 2 minutes of walking. But my heart rate usually stays in the 60% - 70% range.

Monday is probably more of a HIT workout as you probably mean it. That one usually has me gasping for air and holding on to the railings when im near done hehe.

meshashesha2012 · July 2014

i seem to be doing fairly well with a combo of eating at a deficit (some days less than others, because gummi bears and ice cream happens) and moderate - high intensity workouts of 60 minutes

i divide my exercise time as 25% lifting where i'm really close to my max, 50% circuit style workouts that combine weights and cardio (like cosgrove complex, tuminello complex, plate pushes, KB swings, turkish get ups etc) and 25% straight cardi involving swimming, running, or the versaclimber

ALKNica · July 2014

This is something I read and which I've been trying to do. I like that it's not a huge time commitment:

Lift heavy weights (6-12 reps) 4x per week no more than 45 minutes to an hour.

Steady state: Stair stepper, elliptical, treadmill or bike 10 to 20 minutes post-workout (4x per week).*

HIIT cardio: 15 to 20 minutes on two of the three off-days.

*Can sub HIIT cardio for 10 minutes. Can also go up to 30 minutes steady state depending on weight loss needed, progress and time.

lizarddev · July 2014

First, I want to congratulate you on all the great work that you are doing. My friend is a dietician and I asked her advice and she said to have a day that you eat foods that you normally don't eat not on a deficit to jump start your metabolism. That is a great way to break a plateau.

It's called a refeed and it's to reset leptin and other hormone levels. There are a variety of ways to do it. The way I usually do it is to eat at my TDEE, lots of carbs (not from fruit) with 100g protein and almost no fat. Just increasing calories to TDEE or above works too.

I will agree with both of these statements. I eat every 2 hours which keeps my metabolism going and on track for afternoon workouts and fat burning.

usmcmp · July 2014

is eating a lot of fruit a big no no for fat burning then?

I'm kinda a big fruit fan.

If it's not how much fruit per day would you say is a nice safe limit?

That's only for a refeed.

itsbasschick · July 2014

i eat every 2.5 hours, and that works great for me. i don't eat much fruit, because i prefer complex carbs to fruit sugars to fuel my workouts.

btw, you lost a pound last week. that's a normal, healthy amount to lose if you're trying to preserve muscle. just a thought...

usmcmp · July 2014

First, I want to congratulate you on all the great work that you are doing. My friend is a dietician and I asked her advice and she said to have a day that you eat foods that you normally don't eat not on a deficit to jump start your metabolism. That is a great way to break a plateau.

It's called a refeed and it's to reset leptin and other hormone levels. There are a variety of ways to do it. The way I usually do it is to eat at my TDEE, lots of carbs (not from fruit) with 100g protein and almost no fat. Just increasing calories to TDEE or above works too.

I will agree with both of these statements. I eat every 2 hours which keeps my metabolism going and on track for afternoon workouts and fat burning.

Your metabolism doesn't slow until you have been in the fasted state for 72 hours. The reason that most people say eating frequently increases your metabolism is the Thermic Effect of Food (TEF), which is directly proportionate to the amount of calories (and the macros) you eat. Doesn't matter if you ate in one meal or 6, the TEF would be the same either way. Many people do better eating frequently because they aren't extra hungry at the next meal. Also, people who need to have regulated blood sugar levels often do better with multiple meals a day.

dbmata · July 2014

I eat every 2 hours which keeps my metabolism going...

It stops?

sloopem112 · July 2014

I'm sure others have more experience and knowledge to offer, but I wanted to share my personal experience. Fat melted off my body when I was eating around 2000-2200 cal a day (I say that as a 5'9 155 ish female) and doing HIIT workouts. I didn't lose much weight, but my body shape really changed.

I think a combination of lifting and eating at least your TDEE will get you results you want, but I'm no scientist :P.

usmcmp · July 2014

We talk about this a lot. Almost weekly you have questions on your eating and exercise.

RHachicho · July 2014

i eat every 2.5 hours, and that works great for me. i don't eat much fruit, because i prefer complex carbs to fruit sugars to fuel my workouts.

btw, you lost a pound last week. that's a normal, healthy amount to lose if you're trying to preserve muscle. just a thought...

Aye it's not as if I desperately want to lose weight fast. I certainly don't want to do so if it involves losing unreasonable results of muscle. Nor have I ever been eating like a starving man. I am pretty active and a 6 foot 4 man with a genuinely very large frame. i was at a 1500 deficit eating 2000 - 2200 calories a day. I monitored my lbm and it seems that the fact that I was very obese coupled with the fact that I was creating much of my deficit through activity coupled with a genuinely healthy and nutritious diet and a good large protein intake meant that until now I did not lose much LBM.

I am not so desperate to see results tomorrow that i am going to sacrifice my health to do it. Nor am I obsessed with the number on the scale as far as I am concerned if I don't lose a lb but my measurements and body-fat go down that is still a giant win. In a way I am being a bit impatient because I have 3 weeks until my next measure in date. And if that shows consistent progress despite the slowed weight loss I will be a very happy bunny. In the end I'm a bloke. Being big is good. Being fat is not XD.

It sounds to me at the moment that I need to introduce some more high intensity stuff to my off days Could start my 2hour brisk walks with a few sprints. And perhaps have a refeed day every what .. couple of weeks? Sounds like an excellent time to indulge in my love of baked potatoes. Amirite?

And don't worry usmcmp I haven't forgotten about the hypertrophy regime you showed me out. But I've got it on the back burner for now. I have strong legs but at 250lbs's with rather weedy arms I find some of the exercises in that regime very difficult. And would like to either toughen up my upper body or drop a decent amount of weight before I take on something like that. The pull up machine has become a big part of my lifting sessions for that reason and I am following a progressive overload program on it.

And yeah I DO trust the process. I just would like to refine it if possible XD. If what I am doing is just dandy that's all I really need to hear. Sorry if I'm bothering anyone

I realize this may be a loaded question.

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