Caloric Maintenance?

[Magsz]

Derek,

Even before starting the creatine i didnt appear to be losing any weight.

My actual scale weight was hovering in the 205 range regardless of what i was doing.

Im thinking this has been attributed to noob gains in lean body mass and the way im eating.

I lifted heavily for about a year to two years while losing well over 100 pounds but the problem i ran into was that i was NOT eating enough protein to sustain the growth of muscle which was why i didnt put on any mass and became skinny fat. I was also lifting six days a week repeating a three day split workout twice in one week...too much. I never gave myself any time to grow.

This time around im eating like a horse lol.

As far as changing around my macro ratios im not even sure how i could begin to eat that much fat to get the acceptable level of calories. Also, like i said that guideline above is just a very rough outline of how im eating. I dont want to be on a specific diet for the rest of my life, i just want to eat a certain way to maintain a certain physique and weight. Matt (from the magpul classes) commented that i was less pear shaped than i was so at least someone is noticing some changes.

IF i ever decide to go absolutely nuts, ie cut into the 10% body fat range then i will go hog wild with the diet but right now im focusing on a lifestyle change that i can stick to. I fooled myself into thinking the first time i lost weight i was performing a lifestyle change but what i found out was that what i was doing was not sustainable.

[Dos Cylindros]

What is your goal?

I ask because if you want to cut body fat and maintaiin strength there is a very simple formula. I will give you my background so you know where I am coming from. I was in very good shape all through school, but when I became a cop I let myself go. It culminated when I weighed 291 lbs and had a body fat of 28% (I am six feet tall). I was lifting wieghts heavily at this time and pounding weigh and various other "supplements." Sure I could bench alot, but had no cardio stamina at all, and pound for pound was not strong even though I could throw up more than 300 lbs. I vowed to get back into shape, and began research.

First I changed my diet. This is simple, the only supplement that is worth taking is wiegh protien (IMO). As far as diet goes, 5 to 6 small meals a day and never skip breakfast. Plenty of whole grain, fruit and veggies as well as lean protien in the form of beef, turkey, chicken and tuna. When you shop, avoid any food that has the following ingreedients; Enriched flours of any kind, high fructose corn syrup, any hydrodgenated oils. Pay particular attention to breads as most brands use enriched flours, stay with true 100% whole or stone ground wheat. At the beginning I consumed about 2000 calories a day spread out over five to six meals every two and a half to three hours. Pack your food (I do it every day in a patrol car, so there is no excuse). I also significantly cut down on alcohol consumption.

Second, and at the same time I totally revamped my excersice routine. I dropped weight lifting almost entirely and switched to plyometric and body wieght excercises (push ups, pull ups, crunches etc) and I began a dedicated running program.

Three years later I weigh 174 lbs, went from a 44" waist to a 32" waist and have a body fat percentage of 9.5%. I can still bench close to 300 lbs and can do 20+ dead hang pull ups on demand (15 in full uniform on a good day) and I can run 7.5 minute miles for five miles straight on demand. I just finished my first half marathon in sub two hours and am training for a full marathon. My resting heart rate went from 80 plus to 60 BPM and I know I am in as good and likely better shape than anyone I may run into on the street.

Supplements were meant to make you big, the unfortunate part is if you don't count them as part of you caloric intake, or don't expend enough energy through the day you get fat (you may also get muscle). proper diet, alot of cardio and realistic strength training will help you cut fat and not loose muscle. I know plenty of guys who can bench 400 plus, but can't walk up a flight of stairs without sucking wind. How much you can bench means nothing if it's not tempered with diet and cardio. As far as cardio in concerned, there is no substitute for running.

The "average" healthy adult male should be between 16 to 18% body fat. Over 18 is considered overweight. Some people don't fit into this obviously, but they are mostly pro athletes like NFL linemen and are the exception and not the rule. I certainly don't intend to sound preachy, but cutting fat without loosing mucsle is really very simple.

A few good references would be the book eating for life by Bill Phillips and www.freedieting.com. The last has a bunch of calculators to help you figure out calorie intake, and the first has great information about the proper diet.

Good luck to you. Anyone can do it, I did.

[Magsz]

Good question and good info, thanks for contributing.

To answer your question, my goal is fairly simple. I want to be in the best shape possible to support my somewhat active lifestyle. I spent five years of my life sitting on my ass in front of a computer playing videogames, im done with that crap now.

I spend the majority of my time working, shooting and being outdoors.

Ideally, strength to me is vitally important as it makes life easier. Pushing, pulling, picking up, setting down, just doing every day activities is easier. You know what im talking about. Picking anything up and trying to move it when you're 300 pounds absolutely sucks. You find yourself fatigued immediately due to a lack of strength and a horribly under developed cardiovascular system.

Right now, my goal is tempered by the fact that i still have alot of fat, alot of loose skin and im somewhat knock kneed, not terribly but its enough to make running uncomfortable. When your thighs slap together and chaff unbelievably it makes going for a run somewhat of a chore.

Im working with weights primarily right now to build a muscular structure that will support my bones and improve my posture. Im trying to do away with my hunch back and im attempting to fix other minor issues. Its going to take time.

I do NOT want to be big. I see a ton of guys that are muscular that have no functional strength and coordination. I also think its disgusting looking when you cant touch your own head or shoulders so i think ill avoid falling too deep into the whole body building thing.

So to sum it all up, my long term goal is to maintain an effective weight, whatever that may be with a maximum amount of lean body mass, minimal fat, functional strength and good cardiovascular health.

Right now im working on building muscle and burning fat at the same time. Im trying to go about doing it the right way this time, ie not sloughing the fat and muscle off by creating such a huge calorie deficit that im essentially starving myself.

Im also not pushing myself to cardiovascular extremes six days a week.

[Dos Cylindros]

Cool, it sounds like you have a realistic goal, as good cardio and lean mass are deffinately the way to go.

My maint. calories are now at about 2600 to 2700 a day, which keeps mebetween 174 and 180 give or take. High fiber and protien are diet staples, as well as avoining the ingredients I listed in my last post. I am actually not opposed to a bowflex, as they tend to focus on developing strength over a wide range of movement as opposed to the limmiting more focused gains provided by free weights and other machines.

As far as the loose skin, I went from 291 to 174 and I don't have any to speak of. When you maintain the muscle mass, and even add some it will fill in the skin. I do have a little "sag" when hunched over or in a pushup position but that is my little reminder of how I used to be and a motivator to never go back. I also STRONGLY agree that developing a diet plan that is a lifestyle change as opposed just a diet to cut weight is the only effective way to make sure the weight does not come back.

Good luck to you.

[Magsz]

Dos,

Thank you very much man. Eventually ill post up some progress pictures. I dont know if i have any from back when i was pushing 300 but ill see what i can dig up.

I figure in another six months ill be alot closer to where i want to be as the last five months have been fairly incredible from a transformation perspective. Ive never had as much muscle as i do now on my frame. Ive also never seen strength increases like im seeing during my resistance training. Im still fighting my spare tire but i figure its only a matter of time before it goes away for good.

Its pretty cool when you can actually do a chin up and a string of pushups and FEEL strong throughout the motion.

One thing that made this decision easier for me was a realization. Food is fuel. Fuel your car with bottom of the barrel low octane fuel and you're going to receive shit performance. Put top quality race fuel in that bad boy and you're going to be burning rubber.

Same principle with your body. Enjoy what you put into your body but remember, the quality of what goes in counts tremendously.