Hey guys,
I'm 18 years old, 5'11", and 195 pounds.
My main goal is and has for a while been to lose fat. I've been a bit overweight for the the past number of years. So, about five weeks ago, I started on a fairly rigorous diet and exercise program essentially built around shedding the pounds. Ultimately I'm creating a fairly wide excess of the calories I take in to the calories I burn off, leaving about a 1000-1400 calorie deficit per day. I've been doing a lot of cardio as well to strengthen the heart and to help burn the calories. Thus, I'm burning quite a bit of fat, with a noticable difference in how I look so far, even at this early stage.
Now, in order to make sure I get enough vitamins on such a diet, I take a multivitamin every day and occasionally calcium pills. As well, I lean towards foods with fiber and vitamins and minerals and eat pretty healthfully most of the time. After reading up on it, I found out that most people lose muscle when they're on a weight loss diet - which is something I do not want to do. So, I came upon some shakes that have 110 calories, 4g of fat and 15g of protein and I've been drinking one or two each day to help fill up on protein. Of course, I've been making sure to put protein in my diet quite a bit more than usual to help stave off muscle loss. The thing is though, before about two weeks ago, I never have weight lifted in my life. After having a summer job for about four weeks where I was lifting lots and lots of boxes, and standing all day, I was sore for the first week. By the end of the fourth week, though, I felt stronger and the soreness had gone away - I realized that this would be a good time to perhaps start weight lifting, rather than wait many months while my muscles atrophied a bit and would become sore again because of disuse when I would start up a program. After doing some good research, I realized strength training would be great for a number of reasons, including the following:
1) Added muscle will help me burn more calories overall, even when I'm sleeping/doing nothing.
2) Lifting weights raises the heart rate and burns a fair amount of calories in itself
3) If nothing else, it should help me at least maintain and not deplete what muscle I have now.
4) And if things go right, I can get a head start so when more fat starts to peel off I'll be more physically fit from the get go. Makes the time span from where I am now to where I want to be even shorter by starting now.
So, over just the past two weeks, at the gym, I've been using the weight machines to do some training. I split it up into four days a week - two days upper body/arms, two days legs/glut per week with spacing. Two to three sets on about six different machines with reps of 6-10. I figured that this was an alright setup. I am allowing my muscles time to recover, lifting a good amount of sets/reps for muscle growth and strength, eating a bit of carbs before lifting and having protein right after the workout, etc., so I figure I'm doing the right things.
Now here's my main question: will I actually gain any muscle with the kind of diet I'm on? I know that I'm eating a lot fewer calories than I need to even maintain my body weight, but it has to be this way - the main goal is to burn fat. Again, I am trying hard to include lots of protein throughout the day, making it about 40-45% of my intake. And I'm making sure i get enough sleep for regrowth. But, still, will muscle growth take place with my situation?
If you guys have any advice for me, let me know. What kind of things could I do that would help me reach my goals in my particular situation. I don't want to have a body-builder type physique, nor one of a super-ripped guy. I just want a fairly moderate amount of muscle growth from where I am now, nothing too major but still enough to be noticeable when I get to the body fat percentage that I like. But gimme some tips.
I'm 18 years old, 5'11", and 195 pounds.
My main goal is and has for a while been to lose fat. I've been a bit overweight for the the past number of years. So, about five weeks ago, I started on a fairly rigorous diet and exercise program essentially built around shedding the pounds. Ultimately I'm creating a fairly wide excess of the calories I take in to the calories I burn off, leaving about a 1000-1400 calorie deficit per day. I've been doing a lot of cardio as well to strengthen the heart and to help burn the calories. Thus, I'm burning quite a bit of fat, with a noticable difference in how I look so far, even at this early stage.
Now, in order to make sure I get enough vitamins on such a diet, I take a multivitamin every day and occasionally calcium pills. As well, I lean towards foods with fiber and vitamins and minerals and eat pretty healthfully most of the time. After reading up on it, I found out that most people lose muscle when they're on a weight loss diet - which is something I do not want to do. So, I came upon some shakes that have 110 calories, 4g of fat and 15g of protein and I've been drinking one or two each day to help fill up on protein. Of course, I've been making sure to put protein in my diet quite a bit more than usual to help stave off muscle loss. The thing is though, before about two weeks ago, I never have weight lifted in my life. After having a summer job for about four weeks where I was lifting lots and lots of boxes, and standing all day, I was sore for the first week. By the end of the fourth week, though, I felt stronger and the soreness had gone away - I realized that this would be a good time to perhaps start weight lifting, rather than wait many months while my muscles atrophied a bit and would become sore again because of disuse when I would start up a program. After doing some good research, I realized strength training would be great for a number of reasons, including the following:
1) Added muscle will help me burn more calories overall, even when I'm sleeping/doing nothing.
2) Lifting weights raises the heart rate and burns a fair amount of calories in itself
3) If nothing else, it should help me at least maintain and not deplete what muscle I have now.
4) And if things go right, I can get a head start so when more fat starts to peel off I'll be more physically fit from the get go. Makes the time span from where I am now to where I want to be even shorter by starting now.
So, over just the past two weeks, at the gym, I've been using the weight machines to do some training. I split it up into four days a week - two days upper body/arms, two days legs/glut per week with spacing. Two to three sets on about six different machines with reps of 6-10. I figured that this was an alright setup. I am allowing my muscles time to recover, lifting a good amount of sets/reps for muscle growth and strength, eating a bit of carbs before lifting and having protein right after the workout, etc., so I figure I'm doing the right things.
Now here's my main question: will I actually gain any muscle with the kind of diet I'm on? I know that I'm eating a lot fewer calories than I need to even maintain my body weight, but it has to be this way - the main goal is to burn fat. Again, I am trying hard to include lots of protein throughout the day, making it about 40-45% of my intake. And I'm making sure i get enough sleep for regrowth. But, still, will muscle growth take place with my situation?
If you guys have any advice for me, let me know. What kind of things could I do that would help me reach my goals in my particular situation. I don't want to have a body-builder type physique, nor one of a super-ripped guy. I just want a fairly moderate amount of muscle growth from where I am now, nothing too major but still enough to be noticeable when I get to the body fat percentage that I like. But gimme some tips.
