best diet for Leaning out while maintaining muscle?

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Elijah8468
Elijah8468 Posts: 37 Member
in Goal: Maintaining Weight
Just seeing what others do as far as dieting to lose fat but not lose size and strength. I know some will go but trying to hold on to most I can.

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  • aubintex
    aubintex Posts: 29 Member
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    I try to eat often while keeping to a restrictive calorie budget. Also no beer or packaged foods for me. Following Chris Pratt on Instagram has been inspiring because he's doing the same thing.
  • Elijah8468
    Elijah8468 Posts: 37 Member
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    Yeah I been sticking to high protein diet and keeping my rep range ten and lower. Only go higher for ending hypertrophy workouts
  • CJ_Holmes
    CJ_Holmes Posts: 759 Member
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    Small deficit, heavy lifting, adequate sleep, patience. Eat whatever foods you find most filling and energizing so your training won't suffer. Take pictures regularly because it can be hard to see progress.
  • ndj1979
    ndj1979 Posts: 29,139 Member
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    Elijah8468 wrote: »
    Yeah I been sticking to high protein diet and keeping my rep range ten and lower. Only go higher for ending hypertrophy workouts

    8-12 would be considered hypertrophy..or am I missing something...
  • ndj1979
    ndj1979 Posts: 29,139 Member
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    CJ_Holmes wrote: »
    Small deficit, heavy lifting, adequate sleep, patience. Eat whatever foods you find most filling and energizing so your training won't suffer. Take pictures regularly because it can be hard to see progress.

    this
  • Lavelle1980
    Lavelle1980 Posts: 367 Member
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    high protein low carb. Calorie restriction. Get's no better than the basic stuff.
  • rainbowbow
    rainbowbow Posts: 7,490 Member
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    ndj1979 wrote: »
    Elijah8468 wrote: »
    Yeah I been sticking to high protein diet and keeping my rep range ten and lower. Only go higher for ending hypertrophy workouts

    8-12 would be considered hypertrophy..or am I missing something...

    1-5 maximal strength
    6-12 hypertrophy
    12+ endurance

    Although to be fair, your "gains" so to speak are more limited by your diet than training. Don't even get me started on the fact that *most* people have a serious case of *kitten*-around-itis so it especially doesn't matter.

    In any case, OP - Small calorie deficit, adequate protein, foods you enjoy and can maintain, etc.

    If you're one of *those* people, you can use intermittent fasting as a tool to stay on track.
  • psuLemon
    psuLemon Posts: 38,395 MFP Moderator
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    rashadlc1980 wrote: »
    high protein low carb. Calorie restriction. Get's no better than the basic stuff.

    Cutting carbs really isn't basic stuff and it's overly exaggerated these days. Especially considering the linkages between carbs and lifting performance, it may not be the best approach for many people. In the end, macros are more personal, with the exception of adequate protein (1.5-2.2g/kg of weight).

    usmcmp wrote: »
    Small deficit, adequate protein, weight lifting.

    All this.
  • Elijah8468
    Elijah8468 Posts: 37 Member
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    rainbowbow wrote: »
    ndj1979 wrote: »
    Elijah8468 wrote: »
    Yeah I been sticking to high protein diet and keeping my rep range ten and lower. Only go higher for ending hypertrophy workouts

    8-12 would be considered hypertrophy..or am I missing something...

    1-5 maximal strength
    6-12 hypertrophy
    12+ endurance

    Although to be fair, your "gains" so to speak are more limited by your diet than training. Don't even get me started on the fact that *most* people have a serious case of *kitten*-around-itis so it especially doesn't matter.

    In any case, OP - Small calorie deficit, adequate protein, foods you enjoy and can maintain, etc.

    If you're one of *those* people, you can use intermittent fasting as a tool to stay on track.

    Haha not one of "those" people. Been pretty much doing what everyone is agreeing on. Just wanted to make sure I was on right track
  • Elijah8468
    Elijah8468 Posts: 37 Member
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    ndj1979 wrote: »
    Elijah8468 wrote: »
    Yeah I been sticking to high protein diet and keeping my rep range ten and lower. Only go higher for ending hypertrophy workouts

    8-12 would be considered hypertrophy..or am I missing something...

    I guess as far as definition yeah. I keep my 10 and 8 reps heavy enough to warm me up for the heavy sets.
  • SideSteel
    SideSteel Posts: 11,068 Member
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    1) Make sure your deficit size isn't too aggressive to compromise muscle retention. Aim for about .5 to 1% change in BW per week, give or take.
    2) Make sure your diet (calories, macronutrient, nutrient timing) does not compromise gym performance.
    3) Make sure you are eating enough protein to maximally maintain muscle. I think .8 to 1g/lb BW is a range that's going to work well for most people.
    4) Make sure your training promotes muscle retention. This is a bit of a grey area but I'd start by making sure you train every muscle group at least twice per week at a relative intensity that has you training close to failure but not necessarily all the way to failure. You can probably accomplish this with a really wide range of repetitions.




  • sgt1372
    sgt1372 Posts: 3,981 Member
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    A macro 40P/40C/20F based on 1900 cals/day is what I have been shooting for during my recomp resulting in a loss of 10# of BF and a gain of 10# of LBM while maintaining at 160.

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