Lisa1971 wrote: »

Ok, stupid question here.....I lost 70lbs in 2011 while doing medifast. Once I went off that crazy diet I of course, gained it all back. Now I want to lose it again but I want to do it healthy. Why is it SO hard this time around? The weight is barely coming off if at all and some weeks I gain when I've been under my calorie goal! I'm frustrated! Any advice for me? I'm NOT going back to medifast because I believe that screwed up my metabolism. Is it really harder losing weight the 2nd time around? Thanks so much!

It's very likely that the difference is that your energy intake was much lower while on Medifast, and now that you're eating food and tracking your deficit isn't as large.

If you don't mind tracking I think the best thing you could do for now would be track accurately and focus on eating mostly whole and nutrient dense foods.

rabbitjb wrote: »

Boring Protein macro question .. sorry

But I go from pillar to post with this one ..

rabbitjb wrote: »

I read a month or so back that protein macros should be set at 0.64 - 0.82 g P per lb of bodyweight based on studies on a range of different athletes .. there would be no harm in exceeding but there was no further benefit .. I believe the 0.82 per lb bodyweight was for serious bodybuilder types

Link from heybales http://bayesianbodybuilding.com/the-myth-of-1glb-optimal-protein-intake-for-bodybuilders/

DeguelloTex wrote: »

Lyle McDonald, and his book based on over 500 references, recommends 1.1 - 1.4g per pound for men. Alan Aragon is in the same ballpark, depending on the size of the person involved and whether the goal is gaining or losing (1g per pound of target bodyweight).

I guess, like most questions like this, opinion is divided.

Your opinion would be appreciated

We're talking about normal (wo)man in the street, not pro bodybuilders,

I'm 158lb and try to hit around 100g protein as a minimum and lift 3 x a week which fits with the first recommendation but not the second (possibly on recomp at maintenance but not overly concerned as I'm happy just keeping on keeping on)

rabbitjb wrote: »

Boring Protein macro question .. sorry

But I go from pillar to post with this one ..

rabbitjb wrote: »

I read a month or so back that protein macros should be set at 0.64 - 0.82 g P per lb of bodyweight based on studies on a range of different athletes .. there would be no harm in exceeding but there was no further benefit .. I believe the 0.82 per lb bodyweight was for serious bodybuilder types

Link from heybales http://bayesianbodybuilding.com/the-myth-of-1glb-optimal-protein-intake-for-bodybuilders/

DeguelloTex wrote: »

Lyle McDonald, and his book based on over 500 references, recommends 1.1 - 1.4g per pound for men. Alan Aragon is in the same ballpark, depending on the size of the person involved and whether the goal is gaining or losing (1g per pound of target bodyweight).

I guess, like most questions like this, opinion is divided.

Your opinion would be appreciated

We're talking about normal (wo)man in the street, not pro bodybuilders,

I'm 158lb and try to hit around 100g protein as a minimum and lift 3 x a week which fits with the first recommendation but not the second (possibly on recomp at maintenance but not overly concerned as I'm happy just keeping on keeping on)

You are getting opinion with the following, just FYI:

Menno Henselmans did a great job with that link above and I'd tend to go by that for the general population but I'd make a few potential mentions worth noting:

- Helms paper points to some evidence that higher intakes may be beneficial.
- I'm about 99% sure that Helms would also recommend exceeding the .82g/lb bodyweight recommendation that Menno lists in his paper for lean athletes in a caloric deficit.


As far as my own coaching recommendations -- for overweight and obese clients I primarily lean on protein intake purely for satiety and I structure that balancing out satiety with personal preference/ease of use. So for example if a calculator tells me I should stick someone at 180g and they are way happier at 150g and they are also satiated at 150g you can bet that I'll move them to 150g and distribute the rest according to preference and satiety.

For leaner clients and people who are primarily training for physique I'll tend to go around 1g/lb bodyweight as a safe target to hit, or just slightly under.

For clients in a caloric surplus I'll freely drop as low as about .8g/lb bodyweight and not have any concerns over maximizing muscle gains.

Generally speaking, energy deficits increase protein demands and energy surpluses reduce protein demands due to the availability of other nutrients.

wabmester wrote: »

I'm looking for long-term sustainable lifestyle changes I can make to improve my health. I understand the benefits of weightlifting, but I haven't found a free-weight "habit" I enjoy or can sustain. Probably due to the lack of convenience, the risk of injury, and my dislike of lactic acid. More interested in increasing and maintaining strength than hypertrophy.

So I've been focusing on bodyweight exercises, and the "convict conditioning" series looks like something that includes good variety as well as enough progressive increases in difficulty to keep me busy for a LONG time.

Questions:

Any critiques on convict conditioning or alternatives I should consider?
Any suggestions on how to make strength training a habit that I can enjoy and sustain?
How quickly do you lose the benefits once you stop training and go back to "normal" activity levels?

1) I do not personally do BW work so this recommendation is not experience based, it's "I've heard good things about this": Check out You Are Your Own Gym.

2) That's a tough question but also a great one. I think trying a variety of modalities of training would be a good place to start. For example barbells, dumbbells, machines, bodyweight, kettlebells, random strongman stuff, etc.

I also think trying to identify WHY you dislike them can be helpful. I have a client who LOVES BW circuit-like, metabolic, fast paced stuff and she hates heavy lifting. So we do a ton of metabolic work.

When you say you dislike lactic acid can you elaborate on that? Are you actually referring to the feeling of soreness?

3) That's going to vary based on a bunch of factors and I don't think I'd be able to specifically tell you. It also depends greatly on what you mean by "benefits". For example, there are people who stop deadlifting a few weeks out from a competition and also do zero training the week prior to a competition and they get stronger during that week because fatigue drops.

bonniejo wrote: »

zzia15 wrote: »

This is a Noob question too. I have read through a number of the beginner files, and played with some of the calculators, but I am stills struggling with where to set my calories. I am 152lb, I would like to get down to about 130-135. I would say I am lightly active - though I also use a fitbit and get in about 10000 steps per day (at least, more on running days). Right now I am lifting 3x per week, and running or doing cardio 2-3x per week. I am also EBF, which I think is where the wrench gets thrown it for me.
MFP says I should be eating 1500 per week for 1lb per week weight loss. I had previously been using that calculation, but eating back some of my exercise calories, which typically had me eating on average 1800 cals per day. I have tried the other calculators listed, and it comes out to about 1800 calories. I don't know then if I should eat 1800 + calories from EBF, or 1500 + exercise cals + ebf cals. I have been losing, but I don't want to be eating too little.

Do you have any further guidance on this? Or would you recommend sticking with a certain number for a few weeks and monitoring how it goes?

Thanks!

Thought I'd give you some advice from my nutrition text book. I'm assuming EBF is exclusive breast feeding? My book says you can lose up to 1lb/week, and that it takes .67calories to make a mL of breast milk. It suggests to not eat less than 1800 calories per day because milk production can decrease. This is possibly why calculators are giving you 1800, it's the 1200 calories of breast feeding, the number to never go under. Also, make sure you are drinking enough water.

I would say eat 1500 + EBF (which should be around 330cal) + at least half of exercise calories. That will put you at at least 1830 calories, likely 2000 on workout days. Also make sure you're getting enough protein and omega 3s. Does that help?

^ Thanks!

Which text is this from btw?