Caloric Maintenance?

[Magsz]

Hey guys, ive done some research, found a few calculators but i havent found a realistic way to compute my maintenance levels.

Im a 26 year old 205 pound 6'0 male.

The research that ive done has led me to believe that my maintenance level is 2700-2800 calories a day.

The weird thing is, im eating about 1900-2100 a day 170-220 grams of protein in a rough 40/40/20 split. When i weigh myself im not losing a single pound, in fact, the last time i weighed myself i was 211, the heaviest ive been in the past five months of working out.

I am doing heavy resistance training with my bowflex home gym and changing up my routine every two weeks as per the instructions. Once or twice a week i hit up the gym and add a routine of bent over rows, deadlifts and squats in addition to the bowflex exercises. I am supplementing with creatine monohydrate, omega 3 fish oil caps and whey protein.

I have not calculated my body fat levels since i began my weight routine in September but when i started, i was 28%.

Im not sure if im still in a fat burning state as i havent really seen any noticeable gains. The only gains that are noticeable is that my back is straightening out a little bit and im getting some definition in that area.

Im wondering exactly where i should be eating calorie wise. When i first lost in excess of 100 pounds i ate like an Ethiopian. I was eating probably 50 grams of protein a day and i was skinny fat to the extreme.

This time around im trying to take things super slow, ie not eating at a huge deficit and focusing on proper supplementation and tons of protein and complex carbs to keep my energy up. Im well aware of the fact that its all a numbers game and i would like to be as accurate as possible if that is indeed possible!

Thanks in advance for any help anyone can offer!

[WillBrink]

I have not calculated my body fat levels since i began my weight routine in September but when i started, i was 28%.

Not sure how you calculated your BF, but a cheap, easy, accurate method is to use an Accumeasure:

http://www.accumeasurefitness.com/

That will allow for fairly accurate measurements that will you to track changes in LBM from BF, which may account for the scale not changing quite how you thought it should.

[Magsz]

Will,

I used one of those horrific electronic handheld calculators that most popular gyms have.

I averaged three different readings on a M/W/F split.

I figured an average taken at the same time of the day on three different days would be at least somewhat accurate and a good starting point.

[WillBrink]

Will,

I used one of those horrific electronic handheld calculators that most popular gyms have.

I averaged three different readings on a M/W/F split.

I figured an average taken at the same time of the day on three different days would be at least somewhat accurate and a good starting point.

As I said, get an accumeasure. The handheld calcs, scales, etc use BIA, which is essentially worthless outside a well controlled research setting.

[Magsz]

Will,

Does loose skin affect the skinfold measurements?

I read a little of the documentation on the website and my question didnt seem to be answered there.

[WillBrink]

Will,

Does loose skin affect the skinfold measurements?

I read a little of the documentation on the website and my question didnt seem to be answered there.

No doubt, lose skin would have some effects, but the product was well researched (I read their published research and compared the product to the Lang medical calipers which are the gold standard and used in all the studies using calipers to test BF) and no doubt, they would account for the effect. It's still an estimate based on a formula, vs something like a DEXA scan, but it's going to be a much more accurate estimate then those scales and such using BIA methods which really just test hydration levels, which is why the figures can swing to all over the place day to day.

[Derek_Connor]

Magz,

your 40/40/20 split, I assume that is Protein/Fat/Carbs?

If so, on a 1900-2100 calorie diet, 280-420 calories is from carbs? So thats approximately 70-105grams of carbs a day..

I'd venture a guess as well you are intaking alot of water during workouts and through out the day?

When did you start Creatine? How many days in gym a week?

Let me know if I am off on any of this, and sorry for the 20 questions, just getting a background.

I'd definitely invest in a better set of calipers, or even spring for a true water dunk. I've been looking for that myself in JAX lately.

let me know the scoop on the above...im interested to see your responses..

[WillBrink]

Magz,

your 40/40/20 split, I assume that is Protein/Fat/Carbs?

I had read it as P/C/F. That's usually how the ratio is written, but he may have it different.

[Magsz]

Derek,

Sorry for the delay in responding, been busy with a ton of crap lately.

My ROUGH intake is a 40/40/20 split of Protein, Carbs and fat.

Im eating a ton and i mean a ton of chicken breast, tuna, whey protein, turkey and skim milk for my protein sources. For carbs im rocking fresh fruit, brown rice, that barilla plus pasta, whole grain/whole wheat bread and oatmeal, not the instant crap but the whole oats. I dont even cook the stuff, i just slop some milk in there and eat it like cereal.

For fats im getting it from peanut butter, whatever is in my protein source and olive oil.

Im doing a M/W/F split on my bowflex, roughly 30-40 minutes per day of various routines outlined in the included manual.

Im also hitting the gym once or twice a week depending on how sore i am to do a quick routine of bent over rows, deadlifts and squats. I will also sometimes add in the leg press or a calf routine depending on what im doing with my bowflex that particular week.

Ive been on Creatine since December 3rdish so less than a month. Im taking 5mg's a day with about a cup of grape juice.

I did NOT load and i tend to drink my creatine mixture over the course of the day. I always take the creatine post workout but again, its usually spread out over the course of about six hours while im at work so i dont get all "swoll" immediately post workout.

Im also drinking roughly 1-2 gallons of water a day as im peeing every 30-40 minutes. Urine is crystal clear 95% of the time with zero odor so i think my kidneys are handling everything just fine.

My only concern at this point is that im using a little more caffeine than i would like and ive heard that caffeine has very negative effects when it comes to creatine absorption.

I bought the generic creatine mono at GNC but i think once i run out of what ive got im going to get some creapure as per Will's recommendations. I find it very hard to dissolve the powder that ive got right now in my water and ive also read that non dissolved creatine is generally turned into creatinine and flushed right out of the body.

Conversely, ive also read that you can take creatine in its powder form direct and it will function the same...not sure which is true but i tend to believe the former instead of the latter.

As far as getting calipers goes i think im going to invest in a set when i get some spare change. I will tell you guys that the mirror is finally showing some results as i can actually feel stomach muscle and i can literally pull loose skin, not loose skin AND fat but just loose skin off of my stomach. Its both a good and a bad feeling but at least its progress and i know for a fact im not going too fast this time around as i feel rested, strong and healthy.

The only downside to all of this is that im finding myself always stuffing my face and im always full. Its really hard to eat 400 calories worth of chicken breast in a sitting lol. I never thought i would complain about eating but when you literally sit down and stuff yourself with an entire head of brocolli and then down some lean protein you start to wonder what the hell you're doing to yourself. :P

I can see why people gain weight, its SO easy to eat calorie dense (ie mostly unhealthy) foods and alot of them.

[Derek_Connor]

Good Scoop.

Could you try 40/20/40 instead?

40% carbs is a bit up there when trying to drop body fat..anyone else agree?

And the stall in weight recently could easily be attributed to the starting of creatine on the 3rd..