Reducing bodyfat- any advice, please? (reps)

Hey all!

I'd like some (friendly) advice, please. I'm trying to lower my bodyfat and gain muscle to achieve high muscle definition. I am 5'6 and I weigh 153 lbs. I've no idea what my current bodyfat percentage is.

I do 45 minutes of cardiovascular exercise most days. I also do either 3 or 4 sessions of heavy weight training per week. I recently attained a personal trainer who has suggested I try circuit training, so I started that this week. So far so good.

My diet is typically as follows:

Breakfast: Oats, nuts and semi-skimmed milk, 2 egg whites
Lunch: Chicken/turkey/fish, wholegrain bread/brown rice and lots of vegetables
Dinner: Same as lunch
Snacks: Vegetables, cottage cheese (maybe 100-150 g)

On days where I'm not weight training I cut the carbohydrate portions in lunch and dinner.

After weight training I eat cottage cheese.

It works for me having three large meals a day, snacking only on vegetables and cottage cheese if I want it. I like to eat large portions so it's easier for me to eat fewer large meals, than more smaller ones. Larger meals are more satiating and stop me from snacking.

Can anyone advise me, please?

Thank you!

do you eat before you do cardio? if so i'd cut that out.

You can only lose fat and gain muscle if you A: Train hard enough and B: Are pristine with your diet, even then, it would be a slow process. Since your main goal seems to be losing fat, you can either keep all activities the same and cut calories just enough, or if that's not your route, then increase your activity level and keep eating the same. Also, the stronger the hunger level, the greater weight loss. What the ratio of that weight loss is exactly will depend on how many calories are being cut out and how much load is being put on your body.

[QUOTE=Mortum;376796701]do you eat before you do cardio? if so i'd cut that out.[/QUOTE]

Hello Mortum,

Yes, I eat before. I am far too hungry at breakfast to not eat (I do CV after breakfast). I thought the starved cardio thing was a bit of a myth?

A big key to success is to avoid doing that which is stupid, and I don't see anything stupid in your program.

Now, you have to measure! The scale works of course, and you also need to do some tape measurements. If you don't track progress from here, how will you know it is working and how will you know whether changes are fat or muscle? While the fat formulas (like the US Navy formula) are not perfect, they are not that bad. Maybe invest a few pounds is a set of calipers as well.

Once you have done that for 3-4 weeks, you can see if changes are needed or whether you are on the right track. So far, you look to be on the right track!

Hey ZD,

Just a few ?

1. How long have you been on your diet?
2. Have you seen any results with it?

Remember fat loss doesn't happen over-night. This stuff takes time!

Hope to hear from you,

GB

[QUOTE=gbardahl;376818911]Hey ZD,

Just a few ?

1. How long have you been on your diet?
2. Have you seen any results with it?

Remember fat loss doesn't happen over-night. This stuff takes time!

Hope to hear from you,

GB[/QUOTE]

Hey GB!

Thank you for your encouragement. I think I just feel a bit lost right now.

1. I started this 3-meals-a-day thing just this week, so not long.
2. Clearly not long enough to tell.

I just wanted to make sure I was heading in the right direction.

Avoid sweet tea and you should be fine. Maybe up your weight lifting and cut back on cardio. Your body may have gotten used to what you are doing.

[QUOTE=RichmondBread;376821721]Avoid sweet tea and you should be fine. Maybe up your weight lifting and cut back on cardio. Your body may have gotten used to what you are doing.[/QUOTE]

Hello RichmondBread,

Yes, it probably has adjusted. I am scared of reducing cardio in case I gain fat. :( I have reduced it a bit though. I just finished quite an active job (cycling there and back, lots of walking around) so that's been cut out now.

Hey ZD,

There is the problem. You have only been doing this for a week. Give it time. Time will tell if this diet is good for you when it comes to burning fat and building muscle. I would at least try it for a good month and see what happens.

Things that I think should not be overlooked.
1 make sure you are eating enough cals
2 make sure you do your cardio and weights
3 make sure you eat balanced meals
4 make sure you are getting enough sleep
5 listen to your body---if you are hungry eat/ if you are not hungry than don't eat

I hope you reach all of your goals that you have set out for yourself and best of luck!!!!!!

Best regards,

GB

OP, everything looks golden with your plan from a generic point of view, but it's hard to get into the nitty gritty unless you provide macros and caloric intake totals. However, if it is working for you thus far, keep with it, and make adjustments as necessary.

[QUOTE=Zero_Degreez;376809871]Hello Mortum,

Yes, I eat before. I am far too hungry at breakfast to not eat (I do CV after breakfast). I thought the starved cardio thing was a bit of a myth?[/QUOTE]

I agree here I would be way to hungry to workout, I have tried in the past and after about 40 minutes of cardio got really dizzy, plus I lift also in the morning so if I did not eat I would not have any energy to lift.

Sorry I know this is not allot of advice kinda just backing you up here.

[QUOTE=xAlphax;376805231]You can only lose fat and gain muscle if you A: Train hard enough and B: Are pristine with your diet, even then, it would be a slow process. Since your main goal seems to be losing fat, you can either keep all activities the same and cut calories just enough, or if that's not your route, then increase your activity level and keep eating the same. [B]Also, the stronger the hunger level, the greater weight loss[/B]. What the ratio of that weight loss is exactly will depend on how many calories are being cut out and how much load is being put on your body.[/QUOTE]

/facepalm

[QUOTE=TheAntar;376854141]/facepalm[/QUOTE]

Ha I knew I had it coming, but it just seems every other day that a repeat of this thread is put up. Is it so hard to use the search engine?

Substituting higher calorie meals with lower calorie ones. Use artificial sweeteners instead of sugar in your tea. Drink water or no/low-cal drinks intead of the heavier stuff. A lot of lean meat is good. Though I really can't see anything wrong with what you've shown us of your diet. The main thing is to keep the eye on the prize and stick to the good meal plans and don't eat too much.

I find that, eating meals, without gorging myself, has generally reduced my appetite, so I don't feel I need to just fill my stomach as much as possible. I also eat slowly, so as not to eat more than I really should. A lot of it is all those little things that you keep doing to reach your goal. Be consistant and it'll work out. Good luck! :)

Looks solid as long as you have your calories under control. The only thing I would think about adding is I am pretty sure I read somewhere that after a good solid workout a little bit of fast burning carbs are good for you. I am FAR from a nutritionist, but I am experimenting with eating a serving of protein via tuna/turkey/chicken and a Naked juice drink for some fruity goodness or just a banana. Though there are tons of threads on PWO nutrition. I would suggest you research it.

Alan Aragon's sticky
[url]http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showpost.php?p=11356062&postcount=3088[/url]

Looking at your diet it looks like you need to:

1) Stick with 5-6 small meals a day. This will step up your metabolism and keep your body burning. Small meals digest better than large ones.

2) Protein. Get 1gm per lb of LBM spread out over the 5-6 meals

3) Fats. make sure your taking in plenty. omega 3's esp.

4) Post Workout Meals is important. Liquid within 1.5 hour of workout, Fast Carbs (60gm), Protein (30gm), 2 hours later a whole complete meal.

5) Bedtime Protein. Casein

As far as training goes, I would make your weight training workouts more cardio by reducing the rest periods, (90 secs starting off, reducing to 30 secs). If you need a workout plan pm me. I focus on using basic compound lifts, stay away from a lot of isolation work.
45 mins a day of cardio is not good for fat loss, you'll end up losing more muscle than fat.
5 days a week of weight training and a good spot on diet will do wonders for you. I went from 25% bf this January to currently 10% using these principles, I hope this helps U.