Thread: Advice on my routine please =]

you should not have any problems losing weight with that diet. how long are you planning to be on this diet? high protein low carbs is the way to do it.

About 5 weeks I want to get to around 154 pounds of lean mass. Then change my routine to start work on muscles.

What's your height to be 175lbs @ 18%BF?

Originally Posted by Mike.B

Hey guys,

I'm a 22 yr old male, 175 pounds,high body fat percentage (around 18%). Relatively physically fit, can maintain 1 hour + running etc.

My goal is to cut the high fat ive put on through junk food over the years. I also want to add defenition to my muscles, but mainly cut fat without looking like a rake.


I do 1hour am cardio and 1hour pm cardio, a mix between running, x training + bike.
Monday - shoulders + triceps
Teusday - Back
Wednesday - Cardio only
Thursday - Chest + Biceps
Friday - Legs + Calves.


My diet is calorie restrictive. 1200 - 1500 a day. Think my maintanance intake is 2450.
cereal for breakfast - no sugar
soup + brown bread for lunch - no butter
brown rice + lean meat (chicken mainly) with 4 items of veg with curry paste for dinner.
I do variations of this but it mainly sticks to these meals. Always within the calorie amount.
I take PHD protein mix as a snack, once after my workout and once in the evening.


Any advice you guys can give would be amazing and well apreciated

Your routine is the least of your worries. You need to get your diet in check. Diet is most important with cutting. Your calories are far too low. Also, you didn't give us your macros (grams protein, carbs, fat) but at a glance the diet looks very disorganized. Your protein intake looks way too low; you have very little fat in that diet (clean fats are crucial to your diet, especially when cutting; fats promote satiety, which, when on a calorie deficit, will help keep you relatively sane), and you're eating random carbs. It's more sensible on a cut to alter carb intake. Protein needs to be constant and fat is needed, but carbs you can play around with.

Read up on carb cycling. In my opinion it's the simplest kind of cutting diet; it's the most realistic approach, as there's nothing really drastic about it.

Enter your diet into fitday.com -- report back to us with the calories and grams protein, carbs, and fat. Tell us in detail what foods you're eating and in what amounts (the more detail the better).

I'd increase the calories. If your maintenance is 2450 (unsual that you included that 50 in there...how did you determine this? some internet formula?) then 1200 - 1500 is too low. Try a 500 calorie deficit and take it from there. Keep in mind that you further the deficit with exercise, so if you're alreayd running a 1250 calorie deficit your body is going to crash really quickly.

Are you refeeding? You can't stay on a calorie deficit for too long, or your body will perceive famine and slow your metabolism considerably -- especially with a deficit as large as the one you're running.

We'll work on the training later.

+1 to what Phineas said. You need to rethink your diet a bit before we get stuck into your program.

Phineas:

thanks alot for the info I've entered my diet into fitday:

Calories: 1491
Fat: 43g 25% of cals
Sat Fat: 11g 6% of cals
Polyunsaturated fat: 14g 8%
Monounsaturdated Fat: 14g 8%
Carbohydrate: 172g 45%
Dietry Fiber: 11g
Protein: 109g 30%

My diet consists of the same food every day, the only thing I change is my cereal, soup flavour or flavour paste with dinner.

300ml 1% fat milk
60g cereal (non sweetend)
Soup 1 can
2 slices of brown bread (no butter)
2 Chicken breasts (cooked in 1 cal spray, no oil)
brown rice 300g or so
3 items of veg (usualy beansprots, corn + cabbage) but can range
2 protein shakes a day (1 after gym + 1 in the evening)

with respect to refeeding I do take in extra carbs on a Friday.


Any further advice would be awesome . Thanks

Originally Posted by Mike.B

Phineas:

thanks alot for the info I've entered my diet into fitday:

Calories: 1491
Fat: 43g 25% of cals
Sat Fat: 11g 6% of cals
Polyunsaturated fat: 14g 8%
Monounsaturdated Fat: 14g 8%
Carbohydrate: 172g 45%
Dietry Fiber: 11g
Protein: 109g 30%

My diet consists of the same food every day, the only thing I change is my cereal, soup flavour or flavour paste with dinner.

300ml 1% fat milk
60g cereal (non sweetend)
Soup 1 can
2 slices of brown bread (no butter)
2 Chicken breasts (cooked in 1 cal spray, no oil)
brown rice 300g or so
3 items of veg (usualy beansprots, corn + cabbage) but can range
2 protein shakes a day (1 after gym + 1 in the evening)

with respect to refeeding I do take in extra carbs on a Friday.


Any further advice would be awesome . Thanks

Great. Thanks for entering that. Okay, let's go over it:

(1.) Immediately I my attention was drawn to your protein intake, which is way too low. Even the most casual gym go-er knows protein is important, and it is, but when cutting it's crucial. On a bulk you have a little more leeway with how much you take because you have other calories which can take up some of the slack, but on a cut you don't have the same amount of resources available to comfortably maintain the muscle mass that your now-calorie deprived body wants to burn for energy (remember, metabolically expensive muscle is counter-productive to the body's survival because it demands more resources...the body doesn't want this). Protein is useful because it will help you provide the necessary resources to keep that muscle mass despite calorie deficit.

The formula generally suggested is 1-1.5g protein per pound lean body mass (LBM). On a cut, I would ALWAYS go with the high end of that. You said your weight is 175 lbs @ approximately 18% BF, so we calculate: 0.18 x 175 = 31.5 lbs fat; 175 - 31.5 = 143.5 lbs LBM; 143.5 lbs LBM x 1.5g = 215.5g protein.

Also, note that in one gram of protein there are 4 calories, so now you have to calculate how many calories your protein comrprises: 215.5 x 4 = 862 calories.

(2.) I originally said your calories are too low. At 143.5 lbs LBM I think 2450 might not be too far off your maintenance. I'm guessing it might be a little higher, like 2600. My suggestion is to cut down your deficit to no more than 500 calories under maintenance. Try 2100 calories, and see how that works. However, with your changed protein intake, this means you now need to adjust your other nutrients.

(3.) Fat: you need a hell of a lot more of it. Not only will this keep you feeling fuller, as I mentioned before, it will help keep your hormones in check during an otherwise chaotic state on your body's metabolic system. When you subtract your protein calores from your new total of 2100 you get: 2100 - 862 = 1238, meaning now that you've covered your protein -- which, by the way, should remain constant each day -- you have those remaining calories to divide between fat and carbs (note that 1g carbs has 4 calories and 1g fat has 9 calories). This is where you need to decide what dieting approach you'll take. I suggested carb cycling because this is what I feel to be the most accessible diet approach for beginner cutters. I used carb cycling my first time and not only saw good results but enjoyed the shift away from carbs. It was interesting. Here's how it would work:

There are three days: (1.) No Carb Days -- I liked to call these no grain days, as you'll still take in carbs from veges and a little from milk or dairy if you choose to keep those sources. For instance, on my "no carb" days I took in about 40g carbs from veges and 22g lactose from milk, for a total of approx 62g. This isn't low enough for ketosis, but that's okay because that's not your goal. 62g is still plenty low.

(2.) Low-carb days -- these would be on your training days. You would eat the same as on the no carb day but you would add one complex-carb grain source prior to training for energy. Nothing too significant. A source that provides about 60g carbs would suffice. A large bagel, an 85g serving of most pastas equal this, a large baked potato. That many carbs usually adds about 300 calories to your day's calories, but keep in mind you'll also burn calories from training and cardio if you do it.

(3.) Refeeds -- these are basically a day for you to break your diet in a structured manner. You would aim for something like 500 calories or a bit more over maintenance, but emphasize carb intake. The idea is to prevent your body from perceiving starvation and slowing your metabolism to preserve fat. When your body is in calorie deficit for too long your leptin levels decrease (a hormone which signals to the body that you're fed well enough to survive). A refeed is used to outwit your body and spike leptin back to normal levels. Your fat burning will stop for a day or two, but then progress will speed right back up.

Leptin responds best to carbs, so your eating on a refeed would go like this:
(a) add 500 calories to your 2,100.

(b) Eat your usual protein 215.5g (862 calories).

(c)Suggested fat intake is no more than 50g (so that you can take
in as
many carbs as possible. In my opinion, you should take in the amount fat
you feel you need. I decreased mine to about 80g, so I still took in plenty
of carbs.

(d) So, with 50g fat that's 450 calories from fat. Protein and fat total
calories is now 1312. 2600 total calories - 1312 calories from protein and
fat = 1288 calories from carbs / 4 calories per gram = 322g carbs.

You'll want to refeed anywhere from 2-7 days, depending on how large your deficit is. The greater the deficit the more often you'll need to refeed. In your case, with your new 500 calorie deficit I'd suggest every 5-7 days. You also need to get a feel for how your body responds.

Also, since you've been running such a major deficit, I'd suggest taking a week or two off your diet and eat at maintenance calories or just above, and emphasize carbs, just to make sure your hormones are in check prior to beginning a structured cut.

One last thing, my rule of thumb is no more than 1/5 daily protein from supplements. They're useful, but whole foods are ideal.

Originally Posted by Phineas

Great. Thanks for entering that. Okay, let's go over it:

(1.) Immediately I my attention was drawn to your protein intake, which is way too low. Even the most casual gym go-er knows protein is important, and it is, but when cutting it's crucial. On a bulk you have a little more leeway with how much you take because you have other calories which can take up some of the slack, but on a cut you don't have the same amount of resources available to comfortably maintain the muscle mass that your now-calorie deprived body wants to burn for energy (remember, metabolically expensive muscle is counter-productive to the body's survival because it demands more resources...the body doesn't want this). Protein is useful because it will help you provide the necessary resources to keep that muscle mass despite calorie deficit.

The formula generally suggested is 1-1.5g protein per pound lean body mass (LBM). On a cut, I would ALWAYS go with the high end of that. You said your weight is 175 lbs @ approximately 18% BF, so we calculate: 0.18 x 175 = 31.5 lbs fat; 175 - 31.5 = 143.5 lbs LBM; 143.5 lbs LBM x 1.5g = 215.5g protein.

Also, note that in one gram of protein there are 4 calories, so now you have to calculate how many calories your protein comrprises: 215.5 x 4 = 862 calories.

(2.) I originally said your calories are too low. At 143.5 lbs LBM I think 2450 might not be too far off your maintenance. I'm guessing it might be a little higher, like 2600. My suggestion is to cut down your deficit to no more than 500 calories under maintenance. Try 2100 calories, and see how that works. However, with your changed protein intake, this means you now need to adjust your other nutrients.

(3.) Fat: you need a hell of a lot more of it. Not only will this keep you feeling fuller, as I mentioned before, it will help keep your hormones in check during an otherwise chaotic state on your body's metabolic system. When you subtract your protein calores from your new total of 2100 you get: 2100 - 862 = 1238, meaning now that you've covered your protein -- which, by the way, should remain constant each day -- you have those remaining calories to divide between fat and carbs (note that 1g carbs has 4 calories and 1g fat has 9 calories). This is where you need to decide what dieting approach you'll take. I suggested carb cycling because this is what I feel to be the most accessible diet approach for beginner cutters. I used carb cycling my first time and not only saw good results but enjoyed the shift away from carbs. It was interesting. Here's how it would work:

There are three days: (1.) No Carb Days -- I liked to call these no grain days, as you'll still take in carbs from veges and a little from milk or dairy if you choose to keep those sources. For instance, on my "no carb" days I took in about 40g carbs from veges and 22g lactose from milk, for a total of approx 62g. This isn't low enough for ketosis, but that's okay because that's not your goal. 62g is still plenty low.

(2.) Low-carb days -- these would be on your training days. You would eat the same as on the no carb day but you would add one complex-carb grain source prior to training for energy. Nothing too significant. A source that provides about 60g carbs would suffice. A large bagel, an 85g serving of most pastas equal this, a large baked potato. That many carbs usually adds about 300 calories to your day's calories, but keep in mind you'll also burn calories from training and cardio if you do it.

(3.) Refeeds -- these are basically a day for you to break your diet in a structured manner. You would aim for something like 500 calories or a bit more over maintenance, but emphasize carb intake. The idea is to prevent your body from perceiving starvation and slowing your metabolism to preserve fat. When your body is in calorie deficit for too long your leptin levels decrease (a hormone which signals to the body that you're fed well enough to survive). A refeed is used to outwit your body and spike leptin back to normal levels. Your fat burning will stop for a day or two, but then progress will speed right back up.

Leptin responds best to carbs, so your eating on a refeed would go like this:
(a) add 500 calories to your 2,100.

(b) Eat your usual protein 215.5g (862 calories).

(c)Suggested fat intake is no more than 50g (so that you can take
in as
many carbs as possible. In my opinion, you should take in the amount fat
you feel you need. I decreased mine to about 80g, so I still took in plenty
of carbs.

(d) So, with 50g fat that's 450 calories from fat. Protein and fat total
calories is now 1312. 2600 total calories - 1312 calories from protein and
fat = 1288 calories from carbs / 4 calories per gram = 322g carbs.

You'll want to refeed anywhere from 2-7 days, depending on how large your deficit is. The greater the deficit the more often you'll need to refeed. In your case, with your new 500 calorie deficit I'd suggest every 5-7 days. You also need to get a feel for how your body responds.

Also, since you've been running such a major deficit, I'd suggest taking a week or two off your diet and eat at maintenance calories or just above, and emphasize carbs, just to make sure your hormones are in check prior to beginning a structured cut.

One last thing, my rule of thumb is no more than 1/5 daily protein from supplements. They're useful, but whole foods are ideal.

+1^^^^ Excellent post

sorry if this makes you feel bad but your program is terrible. a bodypart split is what professional bodybuilders use when training for hypertrophy, not what knowledgeable people use when training for fat loss. find a program that is designed for fat loss, not hypetrophy