Starting is the hardest part. Help me Obi-wan! [Forum Archive]

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Starting is the hardest part. Help me Obi-wan!

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Posted by: nadirmg

Just joined today and have already learned a lot that I'll start applying asap.

I would, however, like to ask for some input on
what I’m eating: am I getting to much ____ (fat, carbs, or protein).

Here’s my stats:
Sex: Male
Age: 26
Height: 5’5”
Weight: 134
Goal: Decrease BF to 10% while increasing muscle mass - is this even possible? Don't know my current % now (need to get a scale).

Here’s what I had today, keeping track with fitday:

Breakfast - 7am: 4 scrambled egg whites with 1 yolk (162 cal, 7g fat, 2g carb, 18g protein)

Snack - 10am :
3/4cup of black beans (165 cal, 2g fat, 28g carb, 11g protein)
1cup of sweet potato (180cal, 0g fat, 41g carb, 4g protein)
½ serving of oatmeal w/raisins and peanut butter (200 cal, 5g fat, 33g carb, 5.5g protein)

Lunch – 12pm:
Turkey sandwich whole wheat bread, lite mayo, lettuce and tomato (210cal, 9g fat, 24g carb,12g protein)
1 apple (74 cal, 0g fat, 19g carb, 0 protein
1 string cheese ( 80cal, 6g fat, 1g carb, 8g protein)

Snack – 3 pm:
¼ cup of raisins and ¼ cup of peanuts (330 cal,15g fat,48g carb 10g protein
½ serving of oatmeal w/raisins and peanut butter (200 cal, 5g fat, 33g carb, 5.5g protein)

Preworkout shake – 5pm
(150 cal, 4g fat, 4g carb, 20.5g protein)

Workout - (usually I try to work out 3-4x a week)
Cardio: treadmill – 2 miles in 13 min
Weights: lifting about an hour – different muscle group each day 4 sets of 20 reps at low weight

Post workout shake - 7pm
(150 cal, 4g fat, 4g carb, 20.5g protein)

Dinner – 8pm:
1 cup of boiled chicken breast (211 cal, 4g fat, 0g carb,41g protein
1.5 servings of spinach (75cal, 0g f, 9g carb, 9g, protein)
1cup of brown rice (108cal, 1g fat, 22 carb, 3g protein

Total:
Calories: 2512
Fat: 68g
Carb: 270g
Protein: 209g

Carbs/Protein/Fat Ratio
42%/33%/25%

According to Fitday, I should be getting 3015 calories a day (figuring in my workout)
I don’t have a lot of fat to lose. I want to replace the fat I’ve got with lean muscle while toning and cutting it. Adding a little muscle is fine, but I don’t want to get 'bulky'.

Given where I am now, what I’m eating and where I want to be, am I eating right? I wonder if I’m getting too much protein/not enough? To add lean muscle and NOT bulk up on muscle should I be eating under the 3015 that fitday says I should be getting? Maybe I should not lift 4 sets of high reps and low weight?

THANK YOU SO MUCH for your help! I’m trying to decide how to eat and work out and then be consistent instead of trying something new every week. I've been doing that for a while and I'm sick of it. It’s just that since I’m a newbie it’s the deciding that’s hard….

Any critique/advice?

Posted by: Phred

I would add some carbs to my first meal of the day. Oatmeal with raisins or some whole bread and friut. And on first snack eat an apple instead of the oatmeal and raisins (just trying to get some carbs in sooner than later).

As far as loosing fat, at 134lbs, I am not sure that is really needed. What is your BF percentage? Is your goal to just loose body fat?

Posted by: nadirmg

Thanks, Phred! I usually have oatmeal for breakfast instead of eggs. Sometimes though I like to switch it around. Soyou think I'm not getting enough carbs?

Yea, my goal is to decrease my BF%. I need to get a scale still, so I don't know what it is right now. I should be able to get it checked at the gym later on though. I want to cut the fat down because, to my standards, I'm not as lean as I want to be.

A secondary goal is to stay at 134, meaning I also want to increase my lean muscle mass. Should I be bulking right now??

Thanks againAny thoughts on my protein/carb/fat ratios?

Posted by: Tatyana

I think I would focus on putting on more muscle and not worry about taking off the fat.

No offense mate, but there isn't a whole lot of you.

More muscle will have you burn more fat as it is.

I would increase the protein to closer to 40%, carbs about 35-40% and fat 20-25%.

Why do you want to stay at 134? Are you involved in some sort of fighting competitions?

Posted by: Smoo_lord

Yeah but at 5"5 he isnt a giant either.

'IF' I was you mate, I would bulk up a bit before trying to cut. If you read the stickies and do a clean bulk, you wont be adding too much fat. And for bulking your cals will be too low with that diet.

Anyway, good luck with whatever you choose.

Posted by: IainDaniel

Quote:

Originally Posted by nadirmg

Here’s my stats:
Sex: Male
Age: 26
Height: 5’5”
Weight: 134
Goal: Decrease BF to 10% while increasing muscle mass - is this even possible? Don't know my current % now (need to get a scale).

Here’s what I had today, keeping track with fitday:

Breakfast - 7am: 4 scrambled egg whites with 1 yolk (162 cal, 7g fat, 2g carb, 18g protein) Balance out this meal more Some Oatmeal would be good.

Snack - 10am :
3/4cup of black beans (165 cal, 2g fat, 28g carb, 11g protein)
1cup of sweet potato (180cal, 0g fat, 41g carb, 4g protein)
½ serving of oatmeal w/raisins and peanut butter (200 cal, 5g fat, 33g carb, 5.5g protein)

Lacks a significant Protein source.

Lunch – 12pm:
Turkey sandwich whole wheat bread, lite mayo, lettuce and tomato (210cal, 9g fat, 24g carb,12g protein)
1 apple (74 cal, 0g fat, 19g carb, 0 protein
1 string cheese ( 80cal, 6g fat, 1g carb, 8g protein)

If you are looking to cut I would drop sandwiches and processed meats.

Snack – 3 pm:
¼ cup of raisins and ¼ cup of peanuts (330 cal,15g fat,48g carb 10g protein
½ serving of oatmeal w/raisins and peanut butter (200 cal, 5g fat, 33g carb, 5.5g protein)

Raisins aren't the best choice for a cut, lacking protein.

Preworkout shake – 5pm
(150 cal, 4g fat, 4g carb, 20.5g protein)

Get some Carbs in here for PWO

Workout - (usually I try to work out 3-4x a week)
Cardio: treadmill – 2 miles in 13 min
Weights: lifting about an hour – different muscle group each day 4 sets of 20 reps at low weight

Post workout shake - 7pm
(150 cal, 4g fat, 4g carb, 20.5g protein)

Get some Carbs in here for PWO

Dinner – 8pm:
1 cup of boiled chicken breast (211 cal, 4g fat, 0g carb,41g protein
1.5 servings of spinach (75cal, 0g f, 9g carb, 9g, protein)
1cup of brown rice (108cal, 1g fat, 22 carb, 3g protein

This is probably your best meal listed here as in a balanced meal. The only thing I may add is some more fat.

Total:
Calories: 2512
Fat: 68g
Carb: 270g
Protein: 209g

Carbs/Protein/Fat Ratio
42%/33%/25%

Comments inbedded. Your diet lacks any significant veggies or EFA's. Ideally you want 4 servings of Veggies a day

Your math is way off on your macros. I have you around 150g or Protein a day, I didn't add up the rest. So you may want to double check that.

I think your macros look decent. But I wouldn't focus on cutting.

Posted by: nadirmg

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tatyana

I think I would focus on putting on more muscle and not worry about taking off the fat.

No offense mate, but there isn't a whole lot of you.

More muscle will have you burn more fat as it is.

I would increase the protein to closer to 40%, carbs about 35-40% and fat 20-25%.

Why do you want to stay at 134? Are you involved in some sort of fighting competitions?

Tatyana, thanks! I agree with you that there isn't much of me. If I were taller I'd be all about adding lots more muscle, but the more muscle I add it only makes me look shorter than I already am.

I've actually been thinking about bulking any way though, as cutting would just compact what I've got and only end up making me look really skinny (if I correctly understand what cutting is).

And I guess the reason I said I wanted to stay around 134 is so I wouldn't gain a lot of muscle, though now that I might bulk for a while it would matter .

I keep trying to figure out how I'm going to get more protein in. I really don't like the idea of having shakes more than pre/post work out. Guess chicken and tuna will be my best friends. It's a shame there isn't a protein packed veggie that I could use. That would kill two birds with one stone.

Yesterday I started dropping the number of reps, and increasing the weight with each set on my exercises. I think that will naturally drive me to eat more protein or I'll be exhausted constantly.

Posted by: nadirmg

Quote:

Originally Posted by Smoo_lord

Yeah but at 5"5 he isnt a giant either.

'IF' I was you mate, I would bulk up a bit before trying to cut. If you read the stickies and do a clean bulk, you wont be adding too much fat. And for bulking your cals will be too low with that diet.

Anyway, good luck with whatever you choose.

Yea, I just started considering bulking yesterday, so I'll need to go back and reread the stickies as I was mainly looking for info on cutting before.

Yes, I'm not a giant. I think short bulky guys look even shorter, so that's what kept me from really considering bulking. Obviously, I'm aware that I want turn into arnold swarchenegger overnight. But when I work out.. maybe it's just the way my body is, but my muscles just look really puffy and not hard/cut.

THAT's why I was thinking about cutting as opposed to bulking. Any thoughts on that? If I bulk and then cut do you think it will it take care of those puffy muscles?

Posted by: nadirmg

Quote:

Originally Posted by IainDaniel

Iain, thanks for the advice.
You mentioned in your embedded comments that I wasn't getting enough protein and fibrous veggies. That's pretty easy to fix on the breakfast and lunch meals, but what do you eat for your other meals?

Short of always carrying around some precooked veggies and chicken breast or some kind of canned meat I'm not sure how to increase protein, or at least balance it throughout the day.
Also about my snack:

Snack- 10am :
3/4cup of black beans (165 cal, 2g fat, 28g carb, 11g protein)
1cup of sweet potato (180cal, 0g fat, 41g carb, 4g protein)
½ serving of oatmeal w/raisins and peanut butter (200 cal, 5g fat, 33g carb, 5.5g protein)
You said it lacks a sufficient source of protein but it's got almost 20g, almost the same as my protein shake. This really still isn't enough? If it were your snack, how would you change it/replace it?

Posted by: Smoo_lord

Quote:

Originally Posted by nadirmg

If I bulk and then cut do you think it will it take care of those puffy muscles?

At a low enough BF% then the 'puffy' muscle look shouldn't be apparent. You do know that Increasing LBM raises your resting metabolic rate. So generally that makes it a bit easier to cut.

Also are you taking any other supps? such as creatine for example? I know when I first started taking creatine I added a lot of water weight, and this made my body appear 'softer'.

What is your situation throughout the day? As in are you at school, working in an office etc? For me I can place food items in the fridge at work, and im also practically living off canned tuna and sardines (Im a cheap bastard lol).
Other times when I have to, I have some whey in a shaker dry, and then i can just add milk or water as required. For veggies I normally steam a shitload of broccolli and cauliflower when i cook up my rice and stuff, chuck it in a tub and then lasts for a few days.

Posted by: nadirmg

Quote:

Originally Posted by Smoo_lord

At a low enough BF% then the 'puffy' muscle look shouldn't be apparent. You do know that Increasing LBM raises your resting metabolic rate. So generally that makes it a bit easier to cut.
What is LBM?

Also are you taking any other supps? such as creatine for example? I know when I first started taking creatine I added a lot of water weight, and this made my body appear 'softer'.
Other than a multi-vitamin and whey protein shakes before and after workouts I'm not taking any supps.

What is your situation throughout the day? As in are you at school, working in an office etc? For me I can place food items in the fridge at work, and im also practically living off canned tuna and sardines (Im a cheap bastard lol).
Other times when I have to, I have some whey in a shaker dry, and then i can just add milk or water as required. For veggies I normally steam a shitload of broccolli and cauliflower when i cook up my rice and stuff, chuck it in a tub and then lasts for a few days.

I work at a manufacturing plant, but most of the time I'm sitting at my desk. I've got easy access to both frig and micro, so bringing stuff to work is no problem.

I was doing an incline bench press with dumbbells and hurt my shoulder. ARGH! Not sure how long its going to take to be able to lift the baby weights Not sure if I damaged a tendon or pulled a muscle but it's most likely not a rotator cuff injury, according to the Dr. That's good and all, but still no upper-body workouts

Posted by: IainDaniel

Quote:

Originally Posted by nadirmg

Quote:

Originally Posted by nadirmg

Short of always carrying around some precooked veggies and chicken breast or some kind of canned meat I'm not sure how to increase protein, or at least balance it throughout the day.

That would be what I would do.

Quote:

Also about my snack:

Snack- 10am :
3/4cup of black beans (165 cal, 2g fat, 28g carb, 11g protein)
1cup of sweet potato (180cal, 0g fat, 41g carb, 4g protein)
½ serving of oatmeal w/raisins and peanut butter (200 cal, 5g fat, 33g carb, 5.5g protein)
You said it lacks a sufficient source of protein but it's got almost 20g, almost the same as my protein shake. This really still isn't enough? If it were your snack, how would you change it/replace it?

You are lacking complete protein sources. On top of that, the math from your original diet is off. So you are eating less then you think you are.

BTW LBM is Lean Body Mass.

Posted by: nadirmg

Iain. dude, you're right. I don't know how I messed up on my math. I thought I just copied and pasted the numbers over from fitday... all said and done I was only at 178g of protein for that day.

But still if the general rule is 1g per pound of body weight then I'm eating more than enough protein, right? Maybe not as much as the two-hundred something number, but I'm not undereating, am I?

Last Saturday I pulled a muscle or something doing incline presses with dumbbells. Looks like I'm off of bulking AND cutting for a month at least. any ideas for what I can do for a quick-ER recovery besides resting?
I should still keep eating tons of protein no matter what though, right?

aaarrrgggaaaghh! right when i was getting into my routine!

Posted by: Smoo_lord

damn bro, sounds rough.

Touch wood, I have not had any serious injuries that have prevented my workouts. If is just your shoulder that is injured, prehaps you could do some cardio and a few other things like BW squats. Keep the diet in check during this period as well, otherwise you might gain excess fat, or lose LBM.

Good luck on your recovery bro, all the best!

Posted by: Uthinkso

Quote:

Originally Posted by IainDaniel

Break is usually Eggs, sprouted Bread, and Salsa
I have a couple of shakes with Cultured Yogurt, Oatbran, Milled Flax Seed, Raspberries, Skim milk
Salad, and shrimp or Chicken.

That usually gets me through the work day.

That would be what I would do.

You are lacking complete protein sources. On top of that, the math from your original diet is off. So you are eating less then you think you are.

BTW LBM is Lean Body Mass.

Off topic, but I assume you are self-employed Iain? I ask because I don't have the means to make shakes at my work if it entails a blender. I assume you are using a blender with the yogurt to get things mixed well.

Posted by: P-funk

Quote:

Originally Posted by Uthinkso

you could always drink RTDs.

Posted by: Uthinkso

Quote:

Originally Posted by P-funk

you could always drink RTDs.

Oh no I'm fine without the shakes I eat real food. I'm just saying looking at his shake making habits I just made that assumption.

Posted by: IainDaniel

Nope just mix them up in the morning and throw them in a lunch cooler. There is a fridge at work so I throw it in there when I am there, or in the cooler when I am on the road.

Posted by: Tier

Just remember protein turns in to fat just like anything else, dont eat 200+ grams of protein a day unless you are really working it off.

Posted by: IainDaniel

200 g of protein is only 800 cals.

I get what you are saying in a round about way. But it is the cals that are going to dictate any fat gain.

Posted by: nadirmg

got back from an orthopedic clinic today. looks like it's not a rotator cuff injury but they can't tell how bad it is/isn't unless i get an MRI done. scheduled for about two weeks out with a follow up consultation the next week after that.

while i'm riding this out i'm "not supposed to do upper body workouts" but the doctor said i could try lifting and let pain, or lack thereof, tell me what is a no go.

i've been lifting for a couple months and really don't want to lose the momentum i've built up. to lift or not to lift... that question aside. should i change my caloric intake now that my muscles won't be burning up so much during workout and the 24-48 hrs after?

i don't want to lose the LBM but i don't want to end up with a high bf%.
any ideas? i'm still eating 6 meals a day, just wondering if i should decrease the amount i eat in each meal.

Posted by: nadirmg

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tatyana

I'm coming back to this post after quite a while. But I'm wondering how would I get my protein % up while decreasing my fat %?

seems like to do this will just cost a lot more money to buy all the fish/poultry.

Posted by: nadirmg

...how to calculate how many grams of protein i'm actually getting in a given day. i'm using fitday to count calories and it tallies up the number of P, F, and C. but it's telling me that i've got 205g of protein yesterday.

the correct way to count those grams to to just take the number that fitday gives me, right? or do i have to run it through an equation or two to get the % right?

Posted by: vortrit

Quote:

Originally Posted by IainDaniel

Nope just mix them up in the morning and throw them in a lunch cooler. There is a fridge at work so I throw it in there when I am there, or in the cooler when I am on the road.

That's how I do it.

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