Please help me make sure I'm doing everything correctly.

[PyroBurns]

I hate to bother this section about all of this, but I feel with all the knowledge we have here about keto, things will go a little easier than if I posted it elsewhere. And, of course, there will be less "stop doing keto" posts.

First of all, I'm cutting. Yeah, I know I'm too small to be cutting and all that jazz. The thing is, in three weeks my friends and I are all going to go to a big water park, and I want to be cut by then. Then I will be able to begin putting on mass.

I'm doing great with the diet. I make sure to stay pretty close in all my macros, and don't cheat. I also make sure to switch up my sources of proteins, fats, and fibers all the time so I get a really good variety. I've been taking in 1,450 to 1,600 calories for the past few weeks [(124x15)-~400], and that's one of the things I'm worried about. I do a lot of cardio, and weight training, and am concerned if I'm losing too many calories. btw, my carb ups start sunday night and end monday night.

My training routine goes something like this:

M: Workout A/ or B depending on the week. PWO nutrition. Then 50 minutes cardio
T: 50 minutes cardio
W: Workout A/ or B depending on the week. PWO nutrition. Then 50 minutes cardio.
T: 50 minutes cardio
F: Workout A/ or B depending on the week. PWO nutrition. Then 50 minutes cardio.

Workout A:
3x5 squat
3x5 bench press
1x5 deadlift
3x5 dips
3x5 ab crunches weighted
2x10 leg raises

Workout B:
3x5 squat
3x5 power cleans
3x5 clean and press
3x5 pull-ups


Yeah, I know that's a lot of cardio, but I'm trying to get into shape/ get my endurance up. The cardio is usually running at around 6mph or so, in different forms (on eliptical, on treadmill, on treadmill in intervals, etc.).

On my workouts, I've noticed some strength loss but it's really hard to tell how much. The weights I'm lifting now are more than I was doing on my previous diet (only by a few pounds though), but sometimes I'm not getting in all the reps. On some days I do, on some days I don't. I'm in the process of finding a weight I can do each time without such a variation between days.

To explain it better:

Before I started keto I was doing 80lbs clean and presses easy. Then I started keto and did 85lbs clean and presses without much difficulty. Then maybe on one day I'll do them poorly, and on another day I'll do them fine again.

I'm considering eating at maintenance now so I can fit in all that cardio without worrying about losing too many calories, but I just don't know what to do.

Can someone please help?

[Druluv75]

Judging by your weight, you seem like a slim built already. So I don't feel like you need an intense cut in order to reach your goals.

With weight training, decrease amount of time between sets. Increased heart action with weight training is a good fat emulsifier. This will nicely shape your muscle, while burning fat. When your body adapts to this training, up your sets and reps. Shoot for 8 sets X 8 Reps 15sec rest between sets

With Cardio - Decrease your intensity and duration. Incline walking on a treadmill will nicely shape your calves. The less cardio you do, the more lean mass you'll save, and make your cutting much easier. Most of your fat burning with come from your diet.

Diet - A well balance keto-diet, is where the real fat burning happens. This diet will not make you lose body weight all that much but you will find that you are starting to lean out at the same body weight. Make sure you study yourself in the mirror or take pictures, because your scale will not move as much as you would like it. If you are serious about fat loss no in-between meals. Nicely space out meals will force your body to use more bodyfat as fuel. Don't worry about losing lean mass because the break down of dietary fats and bodyfat are protectors of lean mass. As long as your meals have fat in them, your body will burn bodyfat in preference to lean mass.

A good sample keto diet
Eggs and Cheddar -

Lunch
Protein and fat

Dinner
Protein and Fat

Your go to proteins should always be Red Meat and Salmon.

Cut down or eliminate all forms of vegetable oils except olive oil. Processed Plastic Vegetables oils are no good.
Cook Foods with butter, Lard, Beef Tallow, or Olive oil.
Make your own mayo and salad dressing with eggs and olive oil


Try to consume as much salmon as you can. Omega - 3 fatty acids will do wonders for your cutting program.
If you want to add any veggies its up to you.

The only supplement I really recommend is Desiccated Liver Tablets. You have to chew them to experience the effects. Its a great blood builder, plus its rich in amino acids, and heme iron.



As far as PWO nutrition, I don't believe much into protein shakes. Why waste time on shakes when there is whole food sitting around. If you get good results with PWO shakes don't stop, but take out the sugar. Keto Warriors use fat and protein as fuel and for repair. Sugar should be limited as much as possible and saved for your weekly carb spikes or carb loads. When you limit sugar after working out, your body will build better pathways for growth and repair and insulin intensity will be more during the carb load or spike.

Carb loads and carb spikes - Try and limit the amount of time on carb loads if you are reducing body fat. For some two days may be too much. After time your addiction to sugar will decrease, and it will be easy to limit the carb fest.

Good Luck and hope this helps! :)

[PyroBurns]

I've decided to up my calories to around 1900-2000 on workout days and 1500-1600 on non workout days. Oh, and I'm dropping the cardio.

Like you said, ditch the sugar in PWO so I'm going to experiment with coconut milk. We'll see how that goes.


Hopefully I won't be doing the wrong thing.