I have been away from lifting for 20 years (how time flys) and things sure have changed. Now I find myself needing to lose over 100 lbs and need a little advice. I am 38 and weigh approx 300 @ 5'10". I have lost 70 lbs before @ 5lbs/week on 1200 calories and over an hour of cardio/day, but as I always hear, it came back with a vengence. Now I'm ready to get off my fat butt and do this right. I am currently eating 1200-1500 calories (<30g carbs) and doing 30 min of cardio daily and losing at a rate of 5 lb/week. I am going to start lifting again sticking with the basic movements probably on a 4-day split, easing into it slowly and building intensity as I go. I am doing the low carb route in hopes of maintaining as much lean mass as possible. I am also taking several vitamins/mins and a eff/caff stack, adding flaxseed oil soon.
I know the best approach is to take it slow and lose 1-2 lbs/week but I want it off quicker. But I don't want to end up looking like Jared on the Subway commercial or a dried up tom turkey with loose skin. I feel there is some decent lean mass under there somewhere from the old days. Should I keep my protein up over 150 g/day? Should I try creatine and glutamine at this point. I have a good supply of MRP's and protein ready to go. Health wise I am in good shape (as much as a fat boy can be) and still feel like a kid. Any suggestions sure would be appreciated. I'm new here and really enjoy the info and the courtesy I have found on this forum.
Posted by: w8lifter
Excellent dgl! You sound like you're going about it sensibly and you sound like you have a good head on your shoulders!
You can safely lose 1% of your BW per week, which at your BW is 3 lbs per week. I know you must want it off as fast as possible, but you've already mentioned the possible problems. Loose skin, if the weight comes off too fast, will be a major problem you're not going to want to deal w/ when you have your new buff bod. So I really suggest you bring up your calories until you're loosing ~3 lbs a week. Don't worry about raising your calories, as long as we raise them w/ the right foods, you're not going to 'gain' fat, but you may gain muscle, which as you probably know is only going to burn more calories!
You should definitely keep your protein over 150g! Can you give us a typical days diet, w/ srving sizes & meal times? That would help a lot. Also, if you work or have some other problems that keep you from eating on a regular schedule, let us know so we can try to come up w/ some tips to get around it.
Definitely need to get in the gym and start lifting weights...build up your muscles again, the more muscle you have, the more calories you burn!
Posted by: dgl
Thanks for the support W8. I'm just now getting started good. Here's what I have planned:
5-6 meals/day consisting of chicken, beef, fish,eggs, etc spreading everything out as evenly as possible. Keeping carbs low and supplementing w/vitamins. etc.
At the recommended 3lbs/week I believe I will be able to consume more calories & protein & probably raise the carbs some. I should also be able to drop the eff/caff stack for now. I work shift so my eating schedule changes through the month but I try to keep it as consistent as possible. I try to eat veggies (broc, grn beans, etc) for my carbs. I will also be using mrp's and protein powders. Cardio @ 30 min/daily and I will develop a lifting routine as I progress.
Is the low carb/high protein the best for retaining/gaining lean mass through the weight loss process? It seems there are opinions from one extreme to the other. From what I have read, the low carb approach make sense.
Also, is it worth it to supplement with glutamine at this point.
I really appreciate the help.
Posted by: w8lifter
Yes, glutamine is worth it now.
Try to get 6 meals, 5 is understandable w/ work though.
I have found that the low carb diet is the best for fat loss w/ retaining LBM. Normally we don't count the carbs from the veggies. If you're staying under 30 carbs per day and veggies are you're only source of carbs, it's important for progress to carb up every couple of days. This is usually done twice a week or every 4 days or so, in the final meal of the day and would consist of 1-1.5 cups oats, 8-10 oz sweet potato, banana & tbsp of fat such as peanut butter or butter.
For your protein, I would aim for ~250-300g a day (split evenly amongst meals).....and ~15-20 g fat per meal.
It's important to stay away from sugars on this type of diet....you're trying to get your body to use fat for fuel instead of sugar, so you can see adding sugar to the diet would be counter-productive. Your MRP will have sugar in it....much better to stick w/ a plain protein shake w/ under 3 g carbs & add flax or whipping cream.
What are your fat sources?
Posted by: dgl
Sounds great. The carb up meal will be a treat to look forward to every 4 days. My MRP is a low carb (Protein Diet) but I will go to the protein drink with added fat as you suggest. The protein source will be much better that way.
As for the fats, I have not thought that through much. Never really counted much except calories & protein. Considering most of what I eat will be proteins, I guess I will need to be adding flax and creams to my shakes for my fats. Should I be looking at other sources as well? Anything specific? Can flax be overdone?
Thanks again, I am in you debt. I'm ready to do this right this time. I'll keep you posted as I progress. I feel myself growing already. (and not the waistline this time)
Posted by: w8lifter
Fats to use would include flax seed oil, extra virgin olive oil, safflower oil, full fat, no sugar mayo...preferrably made from safflower oil, egg yolks, fatty fishes & natural peanut butter. Flax & safflower can be added to your shakes and/or salads, mayo/olive oil goes good w/ tuna, peanut butter/almonds go well w/ chicken or turkey
