Experience w/ Leangains ?

No Leangains folks ?

Thanks for your feedback I'm almost definitely sure I'm going to give it a shot next week, starting Monday (tomorrow)

My plan thus far has been to break into it slowly, so this last week has been spent confining my first meals of the day until after midday, as that was the hardest part of adhering to such an approach for me. I've done that, and shall kick on with incorporating the fasted training next, although I want to get in some BCAA's fairly quickly, as I'd like to try the approach as Martin outlines, before I try to tailor any of it too much.

I'm not sure what calorie levels I shall start at, but am just coming off a short (10 day) dietary break, where I've been eating at maintenance, and think I shall just focus on eating at maintenance or less on training days, and keeping to some form of deficit on non-training days. As such, I think I shall see where my intake levels settle over the first week or two, and go from there if I feel they need to be changed/ amended slightly.

I also want to incorporate the carb cycling on training days, and low-carb on non-training days, although not too worried about that element, as I spent 3 of the last 5 months eating low carb. In fact I think it shall be more difficult to keep the fat intake down on training days, lol.

Anyway, just some thoughts, and looking forward to giving the LG method a shot. I figure its a good 4 weeks to go before Christmas is on top of me, so looking forward to seeing how this little experiment goes

Any other LG'ers, would be delighted to hear from you. Maybe you're a scarce bunch here on MFP ? I thought not, giving the religious-like edict of weight training here on MFP

Been a while since I updated this thread, but now I'm back on an even keel, it seems a good time to do so

In any event, I've been observing a 16:8 fast for the last 10 days or so (w/ the exception of yesterday dues to circumstances). In that short space of time, I've found I really enjoy IF an awful lot, but perhaps that may be a lot to do with my chosen flavour of IF which aside from the 16:8 fast, involves eating my daily calories split between two wonderfully large meals

In any event, for the first time I feel in control of my intake, and also for the first time in 2 months I'm able to maintain a persistent deficit to help see out the remainder of my fat loss phase.

Before talking of Leangains though, I will also add that in addition to the 16:8 each day, I also plan to do a 24 hour fast once a week, much like Feisty above.

Anyway, to Leangains It's only been a short period in, but a few days after trying and feeling on top of the IF component, I began to add further Leangains components. Namely morning training, more carbs on workout days, less on non-workout days, and also a brief flirtation with fasted training.

It's only fair to say I haven't been following Martin's system like a gospel, but rather a source of inspiration. Thus my protein is lower (more in the 1g per lb of lbm range), I eat more fat on workout days (although still up the carbs over what I eat normally), and on lower carb days my tendency is to eat very low carb for meal 1, and then eat 'normally' for meal 2 (ie moderate fat, moderate carbs, moderate protein).

I will also say I'm not calorie cycling, and my intake most days whether a workout day or not tends to be the same. I will wait to calorie cycle when I move into a bulk or recomp phase though. Right now, I'm happy to stabilise my intake, and don't want to risk adherence to things by cutting my calories more on non-workout days yet.

Anyway, what I have tried I like a lot. Much is down to the IF component right now, but the other components I like also, in the limited way I have incorporated them thus far.

It's too early to talk results, but this is a path I am likely to keep to, and shall see how things go over time, especially when/if I get to a level of body fat that is neither lean nor overweight, so I can see properly how things are working out.

I agree with the comment that Leangains is probably a lean mans protocol, but that is no slight, rather that there is some complication in there that only those leaner folks may need. For the rest of us using it for fat loss, I think there's a lot in there that's perfectly good and useable, particularly the IF component, and that of less carbs on non-workout days and more carbs on days that you do workout. Also, the potential boost in growth hormone levels from the IF and fasted training may be very welcome to those of us seeking to drop the lbs but that also wish to minimise any skin issues. Equally adherence-wise, the smaller eating window/ potentially larger meals should help, as well as the carb loading element where you can fit in carbs on workout days that you may have otherwise avoided/ limited and thus limit the potential for some cravings.

So, the above is just my experience so far, and look forward to continuing with this experiment and see how it goes. Also, it goes without saying, the more experienced I get in the above, and also the closer I get to my fat loss goal, the more adherent/ stricter to some of the elements of Martins protocols I may become.

Thanks for your experience Tephanies - can I ask what was your daily intake like, did you eat at maintenance/ cycle calories ?

Yes, definitely agree about the importance of keeping busy, and think fasting and simply getting things done seem to work very well hand in hand together

I'd heard 14:10 might be more suitable for some women alright, and think it's best to find what rhythm works best for each of us. I was doing 14:10 most of the time up to recently mostly as a way to make sure I could stretch out the calories a little better over the course of the day, and also ensure I kept any late night eating in check by imposing an 8pm cutoff, lol.

Aside from IF, I found eating 3 or more times a day seemed to keep the focus never too far from food over the course of the day. Right now, I'm eating 2 large meals a day with no snacking, and finding it's been offering me a tremendous freedom from food, and all the thoughts and focus that can go along with it. Also it's a lot easier to stave off any glancing thoughts of food when you still have quite a full belly from the last large meal, or knowing that in just a short space of time a large meal awaits, lol. I'm sure the 2 meal approach is not for everyone, but I'm finding for me it has been working quite well so far.

I must say I like the simplicity of the whole system for me currently, and if it keeps going this well I may decide in the future to stop logging food, and simply let things fall where they may, knowing that if I keep to the blueprint that whether I'm eating enough to lose fat, maintain, or add some weight, that my body composition will improve regardless of what's reflected on the scales. To calorie cycle ala LG though, I think I would have to treat the non-workout days as low carb days to be able to keep my calorie level lower on those days.

Lots of food for thought, and looking forward to the experiment continuing as well as it has started