Riverdragon

I have read all of the stickys and have even made positive changes to my diet. The problem is that I just can't seem to stick to anything that I put together myself. Could anyone help me with a meal plan? My goal is to lose body fat while I continue to gain muscle. Most of my fat is around my midsection (imagine that) and I am pretty lean everywhere else.
I am 6'2" and 215 lbs. I am also lactose intolerant so I am limited as to the kinds of protein powder I can digest. Any help would be appreciated.

It's hard to dance if you just lost your wallet. Whoa! Where's my wallet? But, hey this song is funky

squanto

Something that worked for me is an iso-caloric diet (i think that's what it's called). Here's how it's done.:

First, figure out the approximate amount of calories for everything you eat, using this website: http://www.nal.usda.gov/fnic/foodcomp/search/

Second, record what you eat in a week to maintain your weight. Average out what you eat in a day and that number is (approximately) what you need to maintain.

Figure out how many calories are in one ounce of chicken, beef, steak, turkey, yams, red potatoes, etc. I'm assuming you already know what foods are healthy... What helped me is listing the carb/protein/fat breakdown of every food I'm likely to eat on a piece of paper, then hanging it on the fridge.

Buy a food scale... about $40 or less if I remember correctly.

Next, cook good food and weigh it out. Get your total meals in a day to be 500 calories less than what it takes for you to maintain. If it takes 3000 to maintain, eat 2500 per day.

The iso-caloric part is the breakdown of carbs/protein/fats. Go for 33%/33%/33% of each. Remember, protein is 4 calories per gram, carbs 4 calories per gram, and fats 9 calories per gram. Don't count fibrous vegetables like salad in your daily calculations.

Wow, what a PAIN IN THE ASS! You bet. But only for about 2 weeks. Then you start to know what you're eating, and it becomes habit. Once you have the habit, it's pain free. I had my first cut about 6 months ago, and I don't even really need to weigh my food out anymore. I just know how many calories are in what, and I know how my body should feel when I'm cutting or bulking.

Go for variety in your meal structure. Not only is it healthier, but you won't get so sick of the healthy food. Take 10 minutes out of your day to find a new recipe every once in a while. And another thing. Fuck protein powder. I only use 30g after I work out, but that's not even mandatory. You definately don't need it.

Also, instead of trying to lose weight AND gain muscle (very difficult), try cutting and bulking phases. For 2 months cut, for 2 months bulk, etc.

This is not the ONLY way to lose weight, but it worked for me. Two weeks of work + $40, and you know how to manage your weight for life.... seems worth it to me.

Emma-Leigh

People could 'write' you a program - but I don't know if it would help. If you have read all the stickies etc then I don't think it is to do with not knowing what to do - I think your problem is something to do with your internal drive to change... And no one can help you with the motivation bit.

If you are overweight then I suggest you, at first, just focusing on losing a little more of that fat - then concentrate on building a little more muscle. And there is no magic science behind the basics of weight loss - it still takes the few vital ingredients of:
1. eating less
2. exercising more

If you have read the stickies then you know that, in terms of eating less, you need to ensure you are getting a good balance of protein, fats and carbs and that you should still be eating enough to allow your body to function so you do not just send your metabolism down the drain. You should also know that you will get better results if you stick to the non-processed, high fibre foods such as vegetables, legumes, whole grains, fruits, seeds and nuts and the lean proteins such as seafood, poultry, game meats and eggs. This is because they are more nutritious, have more fibre and fill you up more - which will help you stick to your diet.

You should also eat frequent, small meals and this will help you to remain satisfied and stabilise your blood sugar levels - which will decrease your risks of binging.


With the 'exercising more' bit you need to make sure you are doing some form of heavy resistance training with weights as this willl help maintain your muscle mass while dieting then you need to also add the appropriate amount of cardio - enough to help create a calorie deficiency, to help with nutrient partitioning and to help keep you healthy - but not soo much as to interfere with your fat loss goals.


Then it is just a matter of doing this for a long enough period of time to see results.


If you read around on the boards you might get some idea's so you can work out a rough diet for yourself - then post it up and we can comment on how you could improve it.

BuddyClubNeon

you have it in you
I was that way too
still might be
but for the 5 days ive had my gym membership ive been there 5 days for around an hour each day working hard
its just sometihng you need to say to yourself
"i want to change my body because this does not satisfy me"
and if you go to the gym never skip your posted days
because you will develop an attitude "oo I will go tomorrow" and it will keep happening. you ahve to keep yourself motivated. work out with a buddy. make a diet plan and work with it together. working out with a friend is always better because you can encourage each other. as far as the protein goes I heard of sometihng called "Soy Protein" not sure what it is though. best of luck any questions just let us know well do our best.

Riverdragon

Well I can take protein isolate such as Nectar or Isopure with no problems. I kinda like squanto's advice though "fuck protein powder" hehe I really don't like taking the stuff so I haven't been.
My biggest problem is in fact motivation to sit down and figure out a meal plan. That has been my problem for the past 3 years that I have been working out. I go to the gym 4 days a week and I must say that I have been very disciplined about that. The only time I have missed is 3 months when I had hernia surgery. Other than that I stick with it doing 1-2 body parts a day. For the past 2 weeks I have been going in the morning and doing 30 mins on the stationary bike.
As I said, I know my main part is getting motivated to figure out a plan for myself and that is why I can't shake this spare tire around my waist.

It's hard to dance if you just lost your wallet. Whoa! Where's my wallet? But, hey this song is funky

Emma-Leigh

Well you technically don't need a 'meal plan' either - sure it helps most people, but it is not going to help if:
1/ you can't stick to it
2/ it is a bad meal plan

You could simply try 'eating less than you are now' (specifically you could try 'eating less crap than you are now') see if that helps. So stop eating any chips, pizza, fast food you are eating. Stop eating candy, chocolate, muffins or buscuits... then drop the ice-cream, soda and donuts too.

Then as long as you make sure you eat a serve of protein a few times a day (eg: have some chicken, tuna, lean steak, eggs, cottage cheese/skim milk) and throw in vegetables, fruit, legumes, nuts or seeds and whole grains with it and you'll probably find that this is enough to shift a large proportion of the weight you want.