Titan finally getting into shape for good (but just starting)

[Titan]

Ok I just dusted off the old AT account and wanted to make my first post here. There was no health and fitness forum last time I was here.

Fair warning - I am verbose!

Eventually I will be asking for some tips and advice.

I turn 28 in a month and like a lot of 27 year olds I have been through hell for most of the year, strange how that happens. I had to basically disown a parent, find a new job, find a place to live, get a new car. Then I had an old friend turn g/f and move in with me, and then I just had to get through taxes and a bunch of random legal/beauracratic stresses that were urgent. Now I have a budget and am implementing a plan to get out of debt in 2 years. Now that I have gotten all that done, I can focus on what has sadly been a low priority in the face of all that - my physical health.

Where I'm at - Joined the gym mid feb '09 and just started cardio. I need to cut fat. I am 6'3" 382 pounds (down six pounds from end of feb) and I have about a 49 inch waist. For a big guy, I move really well and have in a month built my legs back up to use the elliptical at high settings for a good half hour. I have a lot of muscle from carrying all that weight and I still outpace most walkers at the mall just when I'm going to the store.

This is mostly due to the fact that I work stressful desk jobs (programming) and prefer to cope with stress with food and alcohol. But I am really good at summoning willpower and abstaining for months. The sad thing is that 3 years ago I wasn't working was near my max weight at 392, and dropped 40 pounds in 35 days and eventually lost like 60 pounds in a year. I did the Fat Flush Diet, which is like smart atkins. I am ashamed that I rebounded but it was gradual and due to a nightmarish life that was emotionally abusive that I have gotten far away from now. I am not even ashamed anymore, just ready to work.

So I've dropped weight from this point before, I know I can do it. And I want results. I can get impatient at times but I am known for my persistence. I would like to maybe drop a good 20 pounds in one month. The difference is that last time I lost weight I was injured, broke my toe and hurt my back and couldn't really exercise, I did it all with diet. Now that I am mixing exercise and dieting, I need to be careful because I haven't done it before for a long stretch.

When I was 18, I used to run 2.5 miles to school everyday and had a small belly weighing 240 pounds, So I have a big frame. I did martial arts and threw all kinds of jump-kicks at that weight. I never lost a pound at that weight from all that running because I didn't know that aerobic exercise that is more oxidative burns fat, and running hard doesn't. Plus my diet sucked then.

Also my emotional health is connected to my physical well being and I don't want my slim g/f to be worried about me. I have some persistent issues with borderline anxiety which fish oil and b-vitamins along with my own meditation helps a lot.

Where' I'm at now:

Diet Protocol (just started yesterday) - before this point I've been eating in and doing some portion control.
Wake up, 1 pint of cran-water for energzing metabolism and lymphatic system.
Breakfast - whey shake (360 (60 from fat) cals, 60g protein + 20 cals spirulina 4g protein + high grade fish oil 40 cals - total of 420 cals lo-carb
lunch - same shake - 420 cals
at work - have this habit for year now I drink 4-6 liters of spring water in an 8 hour period.
dinner - need a sinsible dinner here. Last night I had 1 pound of lean chicken breast formanized, and some broccoli type vegies mix. Some low-carb ranch and italian dressings. I also had some good organic cheddar cheese.
before bed - another pint of cran-water (unsweetened of course)

This diet idea is kinda low-carb, kinda south beach, kinda FFP, low calorie ultimately. High protein cuz I'm a big boy. If anyone can give me some carb-cycle cutting tips I would appreciate it. I have heard of cyclical diets but never seen a protocol. I know from expreince that cheating can still let me lose weight, to keep my body guessing. Variety is good. I am doing this diet because it is easy to count calories.

My concern with this diet is I don't want to eat too little and therefore need a big dinner to make around 1600 calories. I used to eat oats with psyllium and grade-b syrup in the morning, but as I want to cut carbs for a week or two, I may just do psyllium for fiber. I also take a PGX supplement.

I have good supplements and am experienced with this.

Exercise - (I have been going 3 times a week minimum for a month)
After dinner typically, but sometimes before, I hit the gym and use the elliptical for at least 30 minutes. I'm too heavy to use a treadmill without injury. I built up my legs and every couple times I increase the resistance a notch. It's not calibrated for my weight but says I did 250 calories last night. What I compare to my running is that now monitoring my heart rate I can feel my body shift from a sprint to a good cardio workout. I notice my phlegm start to get sticky and my chest burn a bit when I go too fast. But when my heart rate is below 160 that doesn't happen and I still get tired, so I am trying to stay there because I think that is where I am oxidative.

Concerns about workout - Not sure if I should do more cardio. Do 30 minutes, take a break, then another 30, maybe even a total of 90. Also time of day or timing with meals concerns me, is right after waking a better time than evening after work or before/after dinner? I may want to do a 3.5 mile hike in my town before breakfast and then use the gym for other stuff. I hike with poles to get a full-body workout and protect my back. maybe even go hike and then elliptical and cardio twice a day?

That about covers it. My goal is to get to 300 pounds by year's end but would like to lose 20 in like a month to get me jump started. I may get a cord that won't stretch to measure my waist as well, because there are other metrics besides one number of weight.. I want to lose all the fat and keep muscle wherever possible. The goal after that is to hit 220. I think 2 years is a reasonable time frame for this, but the sooner, the better. I'm also curious if there are any health risks losing too much weight too quick. I hear doctors say it's not good, but they never say why.

The point of this thread is to declare I will lose this fat. Please share thoughts, tips and encouragement! I will post progress as I feel it.


CLIFFS:

1 - Titan is back on AT
2 - Help me cut fat. Lots of it. Quickly.
3 - Need advice on my diet protocol
4 - need advice on exercise amount and timing
5 - Thanks! Let's get to Work!

 

[brikis98]

Step 1: read the fat loss sticky.
Step 2: come back here with questions.

 

[Titan]

Originally posted by: brikis98
Step 1: read the fat loss sticky.
Step 2: come back here with questions.

1- I read it and it's full of good stuff. Almost too full - it's full of answers that I might give which are like "It's complicated. Here are the Guidelines." I knew a lot of that, learned some stuff and think it is very very good. It's just hard to translate to my exact case so I am putting myself out here.

2- I realize I'm being a bit of an asshole saying this is my plan and what I'm doing and tell me what you think. All my questions are intermixed in that long post to provide context and avoid "it's complicated" answers

If I think of any more questions I will bring them up!

 

[brikis98]

Originally posted by: Titan

Originally posted by: brikis98
Step 1: read the fat loss sticky.
Step 2: come back here with questions.

1- I read it and it's full of good stuff. Almost too full - it's full of answers that I might give which are like "It's complicated. Here are the Guidelines." I knew a lot of that, learned some stuff and think it is very very good. It's just hard to translate to my exact case so I am putting myself out here.

2- I realize I'm being a bit of an asshole saying this is my plan and what I'm doing and tell me what you think. All my questions are intermixed in that long post to provide context and avoid "it's complicated" answers

If I think of any more questions I will bring them up!

I think the key things you need to take away from the fat loss sticky are:

1. Weight loss is 100% diet. Although cardio has general health benefits, the only contribution of cardio to weight loss is as an efficient means to burning calories. However, if you eat more to compensate, the cardio won't make any difference. Therefore, you MUST track your diet very carefully. The fat loss stick mentions several free websites that make tracking your food intake very easy.

2. It is essential to maintain your lean body mass while losing weight. That is, your goal shouldn't be to lose weight, but to lose fat. Now, at 382 pounds, your body is primed to use fat as a fuel source, so this won't be much of an issue at first. However, as you start to get lighter, loss of muscle mass will become more of a concern. Not only will it make you weaker and less healthy, but since muscles are metabolically expensive to maintain, losing them will reduce your basal metabolic rate making further weight loss more difficult. Weight training is one of the absolute best ways to convince your body to spare your muscles and use your fat as energy. It also has numerous other benefits, such as increased strength, power, increased bone density, etc.

3. Don't lose weight too quickly. At 382 pounds, you can certainly go at a slightly faster rate than someone at 282 pounds, but you should keep the weight loss under ~2 pounds per week (and even less when you get lighter). Any faster and you virtually guarantee that a large portion of the weight loss will be muscle. This could end up slowing your metabolism, cause you to stop losing weight, and become discouraged.

 

[Titan]

Taken from the fat loss sticky:

The first thing you should do if you want to lose weight is look up your basal metabolic rate (BMR). This is the amount of calories your body needs to function. You must be above, even if only slightly, this while dieting at all times or else your metabolism will crash. Check out the link here.

Well, this is confusing to me. I went to that link and maybe that calculator is wrong for my stats? It says my BMR is 3223. That's a lot. What confuses me is that my doctor was advising a dietary caloric deficit, said probably not below 1400 calories. Doc estimated my BMR is probably 2500 or more (as a passing thought), and I did find some other calculators online that put my BMR in the high 2000's. Still, with my diet i'm shooting for 1800 or sometimes less and so far I feel fine. What are the symptoms of your metabolism crashing? I have a normal if not higher energy level.

Also, has anyone heard of unsweetened cranberry juice energizing the lymphatic system to flush away surface fats like cellulite? It's kind of the secret to the Fat Flush Plan. I'm commenting that that may help increase fat loss rate.

I avoid caffeine because it has negative issues with anxiety. Between that and no alcohol my body seems to lose fat quickly.

 

[brikis98]

Originally posted by: Titan
Taken from the fat loss sticky:

Well, this is confusing to me. I went to that link and maybe that calculator is wrong for my stats? It says my BMR is 3223. That's a lot. What confuses me is that my doctor was advising a dietary caloric deficit, said probably not below 1400 calories. Doc estimated my BMR is probably 2500 or more (as a passing thought), and I did find some other calculators online that put my BMR in the high 2000's. Still, with my diet i'm shooting for 1800 or sometimes less and so far I feel fine. What are the symptoms of your metabolism crashing? I have a normal if not higher energy level.

BMR is going to vary greatly from person to person, depending on genetics, muscle mass, diet and so on. Any calculator you use, and certainly your doctor's guess, are just very rough estimates. Use them as a starting point and adjust as necessary. For example, say you estimated your BMR at 3000 calories. You probably don't want more than a ~750-1000 calorie deficit per day (which works out to 1.5-2.0 lbs of weight loss per week), so lets say you start eating 2200 calories per day. From this point forward, watch your weight on the scale. If it's going down at the rate you expect, then both your BMR estimate and calorie intake estimate are pretty good, so keep it up. However, if your weight is going down too fast or not fast enough, then your estimates are off, and you'll need to tweak accordingly. Keep tweaking until the weight on the scale is moving in the right direction and you'll get a pretty good feel for it in no time. Just remember that daily weight fluctuations aren't too meaningful, as there are a lot of factors besides fat loss/gain that can affect your weight at any given hour. However, if you look at your weight over a time span of a week or more, the random fluctuations should cancel out and you'll have a much more meaningful number to work with.

For reference, eating 1800 calories per day for a guy of your size is probably WAY too little. To put it in perspective, when I was cutting last year, I maintained a ~500-600 calorie deficit per day. I started at 223lbs and lost 43lbs in ~8 months, which works out to over 1lb per week. How much was I eating? About 2500 calories per day. Taking exercise into account - I burned on average 300-600 calories per day while doing Crossfit - this meant that my BMR was around 2600 calories per day. Although these things certainly vary with genetics, at 382lbs, your BMR should be significantly higher than mine, which means eating 1800 calories per day will be too damn little. I'd say that a BMR of ~3200 calories for a guy of your size is probably a pretty reasonable starting point. Add to that a few hundred calories per day for cardio and I wouldn't be surprised if your body burned ~3500 calories per day. Therefore, the absolute minimum you should be eating is 2500 calories per day and in the beginning, I'd start a little higher to let your body get used to it.

As for your "metabolism crashing", you'll know pretty quick: your energy levels will be low, you'll have no motivation, you'll constantly be hungry, and your weight loss will slow or come to a stop. However, even if you don't run into these symptoms, as I've mentioned before, too much of a calorie deficit will make you lose lots of muscle mass. You should strive VERY hard to avoid this by keeping the rate of weight loss from being too extreme and, even better, by doing some weight training.

Originally posted by: Titan
Also, has anyone heard of unsweetened cranberry juice energizing the lymphatic system to flush away surface fats like cellulite? It's kind of the secret to the Fat Flush Plan. I'm commenting that that may help increase fat loss rate.

Sorry, but it sounds like a load of BS. There are no "magic bullets" that are going to accelerate your fat loss rate. If there were, everyone would've used them and become thin already. In fact, stop looking for "easy" and "quick" solutions. You can't treat weight loss and diet as a "temporary" thing and expect some crash diet to produce good results. Even if they do work - and most don't - as soon as you go back to your old habits, you'll regain all the weight. That's why you need to adopt healthy eating habits that you can maintain over the long term.

 

[BigPoppa]

Very obese individuals (this includes myself) can afford very large caloric deficits without much, if any, lean body mass loss.

Article by Lyle McDonald on maximum deficit

So the 1-2lbs/week is bullshit. Any axiom that tries to shoehorn the entirety of a population into it is sure to be garbage.

Keys:
-Setup a healthy eating plan. High protein, lots of veggies.
-Get enough sat/poly/mono fats to maintain bodily needs.
-Only protein and fat are essential for human life. Carbohydrates are not.
-That said, do not be afaid of carbs.
-MEASURE. You'd be surprised at what an actual serving is. 1 serving of ranch has 140cals. Thats in 2 tablespoons which honesty is a lot less dressing than I thought. Multiply that by multiple foods and thats how we got to where we are. Always be mindful and know exactly what you're eating.
-To reiterate Brikis: There is NO MAGIC BULLET. Put in the effort, receive the reward.

I'm in a similar boat, Titan. At my heaviest I was 330lbs at 5'9. Currently I'm at 300lbs and falling. I'd recommend you add weight training and optionally replacing the cardio with it. Turn your cardio into a few brisk walks a week or even daily.

My setup:
200g protein per day. I guesstimated my LBM to be around 200lbs and want 1g/lb of body weight.
Lots of green veggies and salads. Broccoli is my friend. Veggies are high in fiber, low in cals. They fill you up.
Fats through olive oil, meats, eggs, limited cheeses.
Weight training: 3x/week following Starting Strength protocol but not rec split on days of lifting(M/T/Th). I've added 1 extra day on fridays of performing Olympic lifts as my good friend is helping me learn them. That extra day is mainly for technique work on snatch/clean while slowly moving up in weight.

 

[brikis98]

Originally posted by: BigPoppa
Very obese individuals (this includes myself) can afford very large caloric deficits without much, if any, lean body mass loss.

Article by Lyle McDonald on maximum deficit

So the 1-2lbs/week is bullshit. Any axiom that tries to shoehorn the entirety of a population into it is sure to be garbage.

Keys:
-Setup a healthy eating plan. High protein, lots of veggies.
-Get enough sat/poly/mono fats to maintain bodily needs.
-Only protein and fat are essential for human life. Carbohydrates are not.
-That said, do not be afaid of carbs.
-MEASURE. You'd be surprised at what an actual serving is. 1 serving of ranch has 140cals. Thats in 2 tablespoons which honesty is a lot less dressing than I thought. Multiply that by multiple foods and thats how we got to where we are. Always be mindful and know exactly what you're eating.
-To reiterate Brikis: There is NO MAGIC BULLET. Put in the effort, receive the reward.

I'm in a similar boat, Titan. At my heaviest I was 330lbs at 5'9. Currently I'm at 300lbs and falling. I'd recommend you add weight training and optionally replacing the cardio with it. Turn your cardio into a few brisk walks a week or even daily.

My setup:
200g protein per day. I guesstimated my LBM to be around 200lbs and want 1g/lb of body weight.
Lots of green veggies and salads. Broccoli is my friend. Veggies are high in fiber, low in cals. They fill you up.
Fats through olive oil, meats, eggs, limited cheeses.
Weight training: 3x/week following Starting Strength protocol but not rec split on days of lifting(M/T/Th). I've added 1 extra day on fridays of performing Olympic lifts as my good friend is helping me learn them. That extra day is mainly for technique work on snatch/clean while slowly moving up in weight.

I agree with most of your post and that someone sufficiently obese can afford to lose weight at a faster rate than someone leaner. That's why I wrote in my earlier reply "Now, at 382 pounds, your body is primed to use fat as a fuel source, so this won't be much of an issue at first." Even at a 1000 daily calorie deficit per day, he probably won't lose muscle mass for a while.

However, and this is important, the loss of LBM is NOT the only thing to consider. First, even Lyle's article discusses how the dieter is faced with an "adaptive component" to weight loss where the "maintenance requirements go down due to the loss of bodymass along with the adaptive component of metabolic rate (due to insulin, leptin, ghrelin, peptide YY, etc)". A heavy person might be able to spare muscle mass while on a large caloric deficit, but large caloric deficits can cause metabolism to slow and cause a plethora of issues. As Lyle mentions "people?s daily activity tends to go down due to the hormonal changes from extreme dieting" so energy levels will be lower. However, even worse is that too extreme of a calorie deficit will often also lead to increased hunger levels. One of the toughest things about dieting is being consistent with it and being constantly hungry will make things all that much tougher. If at 382lbs Titan ate just 1800 calories per day, I'd be willing to bet he'd lose a lot of weight quickly, but then find himself constantly tired and hungry, start cheating, and end up plateauing or going back up in weight.

This is why I recommended a maximum weight loss of ~2lbs per week - which is still more than I recommend for the average overweight person, which is closer to 1lb per week. This works out to a deficit of roughly 1000 calories per day and if he actually manages to maintain it, he'll be under 300lbs in well under a year. It will also be easier to gradually reduce caloric intake rather than suddenly and drastically cutting intake, as an abrupt change will be harder to stick with. That's why I suggested starting with a moderate deficit and gradually increasing it depending on what the scale is showing.

 

[Titan]

Thanks for all the replies guys, I really appreciate the attention and help.

I just made it through day 3 and into day 4 of dieting. I'm getting a little tired of tasting whey shakes in my mouth long after I've had them, but they are quick and really good for me. Been sticking to lean chicken, veggies and some cheese (cheddar) with dinner and maybe a bit of light dressing. My energy level is really good so far. Much improved.

@brikis - The cranberry juice isn't a magic pill, but it is the centerpiece of the Fat Flush Plan, which is a very heavily researched diet that has a lot of New Age/Cleansing aspects to it. It's not cheap, good tasting or quick, but cranberry is a natural diuretic and you will pee a noticeable amount more on it. First thing in the morning I find it to be an incredible energizer that gets my metabolism going in a non-addictive way (such as caffeine). Anyway, I recommend the Fat Flush Plan book, I gave my copy away because it reads like a technical manual and I was sick of looking at it. The other thing I took away from the book is the giving your liver a break aspect, and allowing it more freedom to do it's job of burning fat.

@Big Poppa - I've lost 40 pounds in 35 days before and while some of that might have been muscle, I have a lot of muscle from carrying fat around and felt and looked fine.

I trained in martial arts when younger and even taught as a black belt. So when I got fat, I barely noticed because I still move so quick, and efficiently. I still run up stairs at my current weight. (though not the best idea cuz I will injure a joint often) I know I am far too heavy at 382, but trust me, I wear it well, and there is a lot of muscle under that fat.

My workout thoughts are this - I am so heavy that doing a cardio workout based that uses my own weight is resistance training. The elliptical I use my friends still won't touch because it's too hard and I've been toning my legs on it, and I'm glad I can move my arms to get all kinds of secondary motion in. When I hike with poles I hammer the ground with my arms from shifting so much weight that it is like a full-body workout. My arms get tired and the balance keeps my back from getting injured. So my point is, between eating mostly protein for calories and moving my body around at moderate intensity cardio at my weight, I may lose some muscle but I think I will keep enough to start. If I lose 50 pounds then I may do more weight training. My issues with this are 1) lifting routines are complicated to design and track 2) you have to work different things different days and 3) I want to avoid bulk I want to be built for speed and train my muscles to move fast. I may get to lifting, but not just yet, let me nail down these habits first.

My other diet question is, how do you do "good" cheating? I hear it's called cyclical dieting and helps avoid plateaus. Anyone know about it?

I go to the doctor friday morning for my official weigh-in and was 389 last time. I believe i'll already be at 382 and was supposed to lose at least 4 pounds in the 4 weeks off. I've started to be more considerate and weigh myself at the gym with shoes on so my figures are a bit confused ATM. I am patient and only weigh myself once a week.

Thanks again for all the help!

 

[KoolDrew]

Originally posted by: brikis98

Originally posted by: BigPoppa
Very obese individuals (this includes myself) can afford very large caloric deficits without much, if any, lean body mass loss.

Article by Lyle McDonald on maximum deficit

So the 1-2lbs/week is bullshit. Any axiom that tries to shoehorn the entirety of a population into it is sure to be garbage.

Keys:
-Setup a healthy eating plan. High protein, lots of veggies.
-Get enough sat/poly/mono fats to maintain bodily needs.
-Only protein and fat are essential for human life. Carbohydrates are not.
-That said, do not be afaid of carbs.
-MEASURE. You'd be surprised at what an actual serving is. 1 serving of ranch has 140cals. Thats in 2 tablespoons which honesty is a lot less dressing than I thought. Multiply that by multiple foods and thats how we got to where we are. Always be mindful and know exactly what you're eating.
-To reiterate Brikis: There is NO MAGIC BULLET. Put in the effort, receive the reward.

I'm in a similar boat, Titan. At my heaviest I was 330lbs at 5'9. Currently I'm at 300lbs and falling. I'd recommend you add weight training and optionally replacing the cardio with it. Turn your cardio into a few brisk walks a week or even daily.

My setup:
200g protein per day. I guesstimated my LBM to be around 200lbs and want 1g/lb of body weight.
Lots of green veggies and salads. Broccoli is my friend. Veggies are high in fiber, low in cals. They fill you up.
Fats through olive oil, meats, eggs, limited cheeses.
Weight training: 3x/week following Starting Strength protocol but not rec split on days of lifting(M/T/Th). I've added 1 extra day on fridays of performing Olympic lifts as my good friend is helping me learn them. That extra day is mainly for technique work on snatch/clean while slowly moving up in weight.

I agree with most of your post and that someone sufficiently obese can afford to lose weight at a faster rate than someone leaner. That's why I wrote in my earlier reply "Now, at 382 pounds, your body is primed to use fat as a fuel source, so this won't be much of an issue at first." Even at a 1000 daily calorie deficit per day, he probably won't lose muscle mass for a while.

However, and this is important, the loss of LBM is NOT the only thing to consider. First, even Lyle's article discusses how the dieter is faced with an "adaptive component" to weight loss where the "maintenance requirements go down due to the loss of bodymass along with the adaptive component of metabolic rate (due to insulin, leptin, ghrelin, peptide YY, etc)". A heavy person might be able to spare muscle mass while on a large caloric deficit, but large caloric deficits can cause metabolism to slow and cause a plethora of issues. As Lyle mentions "people?s daily activity tends to go down due to the hormonal changes from extreme dieting" so energy levels will be lower. However, even worse is that too extreme of a calorie deficit will often also lead to increased hunger levels. One of the toughest things about dieting is being consistent with it and being constantly hungry will make things all that much tougher. If at 382lbs Titan ate just 1800 calories per day, I'd be willing to bet he'd lose a lot of weight quickly, but then find himself constantly tired and hungry, start cheating, and end up plateauing or going back up in weight.

This is why I recommended a maximum weight loss of ~2lbs per week - which is still more than I recommend for the average overweight person, which is closer to 1lb per week. This works out to a deficit of roughly 1000 calories per day and if he actually manages to maintain it, he'll be under 300lbs in well under a year. It will also be easier to gradually reduce caloric intake rather than suddenly and drastically cutting intake, as an abrupt change will be harder to stick with. That's why I suggested starting with a moderate deficit and gradually increasing it depending on what the scale is showing.

Metabolic rate is not going to be nearly as much of an issue either and at the weight he is now it would take him almost 2 yrs to reach an "ideal" weight (using BMI). That's if he were dieting the entire time and losing a consistent 2 lbs a week. This is only my suggestion, but if I were at that weight I would take advantage of the fact that your body is primed to burn fat for fuel and using a faster approach, but doing it correctly. Seeing such slow weight loss when you have so much to lose could be very hard.

Therefore I would suggest checking out Lyle McDonalds Rapid Fat Loss handbook:
http://www.bodyrecomposition.c...apid-fat-loss-handbook

It's a very low calorie diet based around a lot of lean protein and veggies, and Lyle does a great job explaining everything and laying the whole diet out for you. If you purchase it you also get access to an online calculator that calculates how much protein to eat and everything for you. However, I would still highly suggest reading the book. Don't just follow the calculator.

I've had very good success with the diet in the past, but since I'm always below 15% bodyfat Lyle only recommends sticking tot he diet for 12 days at a time. At your weight you could stick to it form 12 WEEKS with no adverse effects. Lyle has a lot of the book dedicated to ending the diet as well, explaining how to keep the weight off when the diet is over. Since the diet is based around lean protein and veggies, it goes a long way in teaching you good habits as well, since your normal diet would pretty much be the same, just with some fat and carbs sources added.

Definitely give it a consideration and if you do decide to follow it, please read the book and do it correctly. While there is some specifics Lyle requires you to get (EFA's for example) the diet overall is very simple and rather easy to follow. He also allows a little bit of flexibility, in the form of free meals. IIRC, at your weight you would still get two free meals a week.

 

[Titan]

Thanks KoolDrew, I first heard of the Lyle MacDonald books at the clutchfitness forum which I found to be a good place for level-headed geeks to hang out, just a small community. I will look into getting a copy.

And I can stick to a diet plan for 12 weeks, especially in spring/summer in VT, because in winter I crave more dairy fat.

Can anyone just give me a personal comment on my diet I laid out in my initial post of 2 weigh shakes a day and one meal that is lean meat and veggies? Curious to know how close I am because I am doing this based on prior diet experience and research. It's not like I never have done this before.

 

[KoolDrew]

Can anyone just give me a personal comment on my diet I laid out in my initial post of 2 weigh shakes a day and one meal that is lean meat and veggies? Curious to know how close I am because I am doing this based on prior diet experience and research. It's not like I never have done this before.

I'm the type of person that isn't too picky about diet composition. As long as you are eating in a calorie deficit, getting sufficient protein and EFA's, and hunger isn't a problem I see little reason to make adjustments. If hunger is a problem getting rid of the shakes and replacing it with whole foods would be a better idea.

 

[BigPoppa]

Originally posted by: KoolDrew

Can anyone just give me a personal comment on my diet I laid out in my initial post of 2 weigh shakes a day and one meal that is lean meat and veggies? Curious to know how close I am because I am doing this based on prior diet experience and research. It's not like I never have done this before.

I'm the type of person that isn't too picky about diet composition. As long as you are eating in a calorie deficit, getting sufficient protein and EFA's, and hunger isn't a problem I see little reason to make adjustments. If hunger is a problem getting rid of the shakes and replacing it with whole foods would be a better idea.

Have to 100% agree with KoolDrew here. I actually own Rapid Fat Loss. That and Starting Strength were some of the best book buys I've ever had.

The beauty of high protein and veg is satiety. You never really feel like you're going without food. One thing I would recommend is buying and consuming mostly Casein protein rather than whey. It'll sit in your stomach quite a bit longer. Continue to use whey pre/peri/post workout. I'm a big fan of trueprotein.com for protein. And I totally forgot to mention fish oil. I never noticed a difference with fish oil until I stopped taking it.

Brikis has great advice, too. This needs to be a complete lifestyle change. When we're both closer to our goal weights, we will absolutely have to change things up. You can't run a 1500-3000cal/day deficit and expect to not lose LBM forever. At 250-240-230 and beyond I'll need to adjust and make sure to up intake to avoid the lean mass loss that does become a real and absolute thing at lower body fat levels. Other than behavior/intake changes, we're actually probably in the easiest portion. Getting to sub 15% body fat is where much more work/diligence is required.

 

[Titan]

Just got back from the doc's office this morning. I was surprised in a good way.

To try an get an accurate read, I wore the same belt and pants and did no shoes as my last weigh in here. When I jumped on the digital readout was flickering between 374 and 379, and the nurse wrote down 374.

So the doc was kinda surpirsed that I lost 15 pounds in 4 weeks but I think the readout is wrong (didn't have time to debate and re-weigh). Still making it 10 pounds in 4 weeks if I am right. Doc gave me the better to not lose more than 2 pounds a week speech but couldn't really justify a reason for me. Just said I need to make sure I don't feel light-headed, which I don't. Scale at the gym is probably more right anyway for consistent reads I will check it once a week and won't see the doc for maybe a year. I didn't really eat before weigh in and had my shake in the car after, so at my size there are a lot of factors.

I know I need to keep consistent in my work and won't get lazy now. If I can find a scale that can weigh me, I'd always weigh first thing in the morning. (There are none at wal-mart). I used to use an old mouse cable to measure my waist the same way every morning but I ended up stretching the mouse cable too much, so I was thinking of getting some steel twine with a plastic housing to measure. Unless there is something better I can look for in the hardware store.

 

[KoolDrew]

I have a Myotape that I use for measurements. It goes up to 60" so it's plenty long enough.

 

[Titan]

I just weighed in at the gym saturday and was glad to see that the doctor's scale was right meaning I lost 5 pounds in 48 hours flat! I then took a cheat day with some friends and loaded up on carbs. Today is recovery day and I'm back to low-carb for a week.

I find the cranberry juice is kicking in a working well too. First thing in the morning I fill a pint glass with about 1/2 inch of cranberry juice concentrate and fill in the spring water. It gets me going, I wake up, feel energized can't go back to sleep again and don't crash or feel addicted. Taking the same before bed doesn't hurt my sleep and I just pee more of myself out in the morning first thing. It has a very noticeable cleanse factor. It just costs like 12 bucks a bottle which lasts a little over a week.