Help me with my diet

[eck]

Here's my problem(or maybe there isn't much of a problem but just very slow progress)...

I'm trying to lose bodyfat and build muscle at the same time or at least lose bf and maintain the muscle I do have. I did 1 body for life challenge from april to july and didn't lose all that much.

Some stats:

5'3" , 26 yrs of age, BMR is ~1400 calories and I have a medium build and currently weigh 138lbs.

I used to shoot for 1600 calories daily and I've tracked this via fitday to insure I am not going over or getting too few calories. My protein/carb/fat intake is 40/40/20 or sometimes slightly higher in protein or carb but it remains relatively the same.

Daily foods can look something like this:

meal1: 1/3 cup of oatmeal + 1tbsp sugar free maple syrup & 5 egg eggwhites
meal2: an apple and half a nitrotech RTD(45grams split in 2)
meal3: salad with tuna and veggies or tuna sandwich made with light mayo on whole grain flax bread with celery sticks.
meal4: Protein RTD with fruit or 1cup plain nonfat yogurt.
meal5: lean protein(chicken, beef or fish) with either veggies or carb like yam(usually veggies though).
meal6: non-fat cottage cheese + medium sized apple or protein shake with strawberries(20g protein).

My workout schedule used to look like this:

day 1: 20 minutes HIIT
day 2: chest/triceps/abs
day 3: 20 minutes HIIT
day 4: legs & shoulders
day 5: 20 minutes HIIT
day 6: back, biceps & abs

Supplements include 2g creatine post-workout on weight days, 1-2 protein shakes, multi-vitamin, calcium and 1 tbsp flax oil. I try and drink 4litres of water a day(just recently augmented this from 2).

Current problems:
#1 - I'm not losing as much bodyfat as I would expect to, however what I have lost was lost in the lower chest area. I used to try and eat ~1600 calories daily but with the results I experienced, I was wondering if this was more of a maintenance diet for me rather than one actually creating a caloric deficit.

#2 - Even though I get 8 hrs of sleep a night, i feel I need more rest.

In regards to my first problem, I read some posts on the board and other articles about my maintenance intake and I never factored in activity(I sit at a desk all day, workout at 5pm) which brings down my calorie intake for maint to ~1600 from some near 2000 calories.

I know there are 3500 calories in a lb of fat so I am looking for suggestions as to how many calories a day I should be cutting to achieve my goal of fat loss(need another good 10lbs of fat to drop off) while trying to maintain the muscle I do have.


As for the lack of rest, I'm thinking of modifying my schedule to have 5 days of workouts and 2 days of rest. Opinions?

Any suggestions how my workout routine are also welcome.
Any help would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks,

Eve

 

[Jodi]

Hi eck.

As I said in my PM back I would be here tonight to take a look.

Here are a few suggestions.

1. Shoot for 1700 cals daily. This will put most likely be maintenance (right on the board), burn fat, retain LBM and give you energy.

2. Raise your cals by 100 every few days til you reach there. You can't just force your body into that much all at once especially if you've been eating lower than that. Its not much of increase but enough to make a difference.

3. Add some more fats. Egg Yolks, fish oil, natty pb, full fat mayo etc. try and even the fats outs throughout your meals

4. I would pass on the yogurt and make it a meal of protein, fat & veggies

5. Ease up on the cardio. Do only 2 HIIT sessions a week instead of 3 and you shouldn't workout 6 days a week. 5 is sufficient. Taking a day of cardio out will take care of that.

6. Increase your water to 5-6L

7. Make sure 3 meals include green veggies. I only see 2 and thats not all the time either.

8. Try and even out your meals so that 3 meals include P/C/F evenly and the remaining 3 are P/F and again, don't forget the veggies.

9. Make sure you read the sticky at the top of the forum called Guide to Dieting. Lots of great info in there and good reads on EFA's

 

[eck]

Originally posted by Jodi
Hi eck.

As I said in my PM back I would be here tonight to take a look.

Here are a few suggestions.

1. Shoot for 1700 cals daily. This will put most likely be maintenance (right on the board), burn fat, retain LBM and give you energy.

2. Raise your cals by 100 every few days til you reach there. You can't just force your body into that much all at once especially if you've been eating lower than that. Its not much of increase but enough to make a difference.

3. Add some more fats. Egg Yolks, fish oil, natty pb, full fat mayo etc. try and even the fats outs throughout your meals

4. I would pass on the yogurt and make it a meal of protein, fat & veggies

5. Ease up on the cardio. Do only 2 HIIT sessions a week instead of 3 and you shouldn't workout 6 days a week. 5 is sufficient. Taking a day of cardio out will take care of that.

6. Increase your water to 5-6L

7. Make sure 3 meals include green veggies. I only see 2 and thats not all the time either.

8. Try and even out your meals so that 3 meals include P/C/F evenly and the remaining 3 are P/F and again, don't forget the veggies.

9. Make sure you read the sticky at the top of the forum called Guide to Dieting. Lots of great info in there and good reads on EFA's

Thanks for all the tips. So you are proposing that I gain my calorie deficit from my workouts instead of my foods then? Why the higher increase in fats? I figured I would likely be getting enough from the foods on their own. This diet would seem higher in protein and fats and lower in carbs. What carbs should I focus on taking? Oatmeal, potatoes, strawberries, bread? I usually try not to have too many high glycemic carbs.

Thanks!

Eve

 

[Jodi]

Thanks for all the tips. So you are proposing that I gain my calorie deficit from my workouts instead of my foods then?

Your Welcome and yes.

Why the higher increase in fats?

Did you read how important EFA's are? Also, they are a good way to increase your caloric intake especially if you are already at 40% carbs.[/quote]

This diet would seem higher in protein and fats and lower in carbs. What carbs should I focus on taking?

On the contrary, its moderate carb, moderate protein, lower fat. 40/40/20 You just need to proportion your meals a bit better.

Oatmeal, potatoes, strawberries, bread? I usually try not to have too many high glycemic carbs

Please make sure you read the stick. It has a shopping list in there too. Oatmeal, sweet potatoes, brown rice, legumes, apples, peaches, berries, grapefruit

 

[eck]

Originally posted by Jodi
Your Welcome and yes.


Did you read how important EFA's are? Also, they are a good way to increase your caloric intake especially if you are already at 40% carbs.

On the contrary, its moderate carb, moderate protein, lower fat. 40/40/20 You just need to proportion your meals a bit better.


Please make sure you read the stick. It has a shopping list in there too. Oatmeal, sweet potatoes, brown rice, legumes, apples, peaches, berries, grapefruit [/QUOTE]


I read the sticker, thanks for the tip I was just always under the impression that if I calculated my total intake of fat per day, this would be equal to that 20%. For example, I could track my meals for the day on fitday and find that I hit 24% of my calories from fat and it actually specifies the ratios between mono/poly and saturdated fats and thought of was fine so was I looking at the ratios the wrong way? Instead of looking at it from a 'daily' perspective, I should have been looking at it from a meal by meal one?

 

[Jodi]

You look at it from both. If you are getting 20% of your cals from fat on each meal then by default your entire day will be 20% of cals come from fat

 

[Freeman]

Eat tons and tons of meatlover's type pizza...you'll shed the weight!

sorry, jk. I just couldn't help it.

Welcome to IM

 

[eck]

water intake, how much of a difference does it make?

Originally posted by Jodi
You look at it from both. If you are getting 20% of your cals from fat on each meal then by default your entire day will be 20% of cals come from fat

Hi Jodi! Sorry for the late reply(was away on short road trip).

In any case, I know I've been told to increase my water intake more than I do now but I find it hard to increase it when at work. It's not that I don't like
water but more that I 'forget' to drink it. At a very minimum(on the not
so good days) I'll take in 1.5 lL of water(rare) and on most days I'll
take 3L or a littler more.

How much of a role could the lack of water play in my trouble to lose bodyfat? I know you probably can't provide me with numbers but I can't but think that 3litres should still be enough to see a good deal of improvement? Am I wrong in this assumption? I'm really trying to now shoot for +4 L a day( I carry a 1.5L bottle with me at all times and try to have one morning/afternoon and night).

Thanks,

Eve