Question for formerly obese guys (reps)

[anonkunbrah]

I have come across too much competing information from too many different sources regarding what to do nutritionally in order to get lean. Just as an example: low carb, low calorie, low fat, eat every 3 hours, don't eat late, don't skip breakfast, don't mix fat and carbs, carb cycling, etc.... Al of the contradictory information has left me almost incapacitated to act since I simply don't know what to do anymore. I did have past results with low carb and low calorie, both with horrible side effects and eventually regaining the weight. So has anyone here ever dropped from 30%+ bodyfat down to the low teens and remained there without destroying their life in the process? What did you do to pull this off??

[juggernaut74ia]

Forget all that fad diet crap that you mentioned.

The only thing required to lose fat is a calorie deficit - that is - eat less calories than you burn in a given day.

The key for me in sustaining has been approaching the calorie deficit concept with moderation...don't restrict myself too much and find ways to fit in my favorite foods. And don't freak out about the occasional variance from my overall plan (ie - Thanksgiving Dinner).

[spradish]

You need to eat fewer calories than you burn all day long. Look here for guidance on how to calculate an appropriate calorie goal:

http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showth...post1481919401

[anonkunbrah]

Forget all that fad diet crap that you mentioned.

The only thing required to lose fat is a calorie deficit - that is - eat less calories than you burn in a given day.

The key for me in sustaining has been approaching the calorie deficit concept with moderation...don't restrict myself too much and find ways to fit in my favorite foods. And don't freak out about the occasional variance from my overall plan (ie - Thanksgiving Dinner).

so I could eat fast food and as long as I came in under a certain designated caloric limit I would still get lean?

[juggernaut74ia]

so I could eat fast food and as long as I came in under a certain designated caloric limit I would still get lean?

If by "lean" you mean "low body fat", then of course.

What most people think of when they think of "lean" usually connotes an image of someone with a low BF% AND a fair amount of muscle. What trips people up a lot is the "fair amount of muscle" part - which requires a bit more attention to details like macro nutrients and training regimen.

[Hooverville]

In the beginning just eat less. Become acquainted with hunger, and learn the differnce between psychological hunger and physical hunger. Weigh yourself every week (2-3 times) in the morning after using the toilet.

Track your weight in terms of weeks not days, look for a downward trend. Eat whatever you want just eat less of it.

[anonkunbrah]

If by "lean" you mean "low body fat", then of course.

What most people think of when they think of "lean" usually connotes an image of someone with a low BF% AND a fair amount of muscle. What trips people up a lot is the "fair amount of muscle" part - which requires a bit more attention to details like macro nutrients and training regimen.

see that's what i never understood. Perhaps because it didn't make since from a hormonal standpoint. if you did eat fast food only and had massive surges of insulin but you still were under a certain calorie limit that you would still get lean. I'm not refuting what you're saying, I'm just trying to vent my frustration with all of this

[juggernaut74ia]

see that's what i never understood. Perhaps because it didn't make since from a hormonal standpoint. if you did eat fast food only and had massive surges of insulin but you still were under a certain calorie limit that you would still get lean. I'm not refuting what you're saying, I'm just trying to vent my frustration with all of this

Perhaps the problem is you're using vague terms like "lean" and "fast food" and trying to apply them to specific responses.

For example - both of these guys would be considered "lean"



If your goal is simply to be skinny, then calories are the only thing you need to pay attention to. Of course, that means you MIGHT end up looking like the guy on the right. If your goal is more toward the guy on the left, then you need to be cognizant of protein, fat, micronutrient intake, and a proper training routine.

"Fast food" could be 2 big macs and a super sized fry at every meal. Or it could mean a McDouble or grilled chicken sandwich and small fry once a week.

[anonkunbrah]

Perhaps the problem is you're using vague terms like "lean" and "fast food" and trying to apply them to specific responses.

For example - both of these guys would be considered "lean"





If your goal is simply to be skinny, then calories are the only thing you need to pay attention to. Of course, that means you MIGHT end up looking like the guy on the right. If your goal is more toward the guy on the left, then you need to be cognizant of protein, fat, micronutrient intake, and a proper training routine.

"Fast food" could be 2 big macs and a super sized fry at every meal. Or it could mean a McDouble or grilled chicken sandwich and small fry once a week.

no pics came through. lean for me would be low teens of body fat%. fast food would mean anything you want from there really

edit: actually the pics came through when I replied. ya who wouldn't want 10% on the left

[Dorich]

OP, check out the link in my signature. And as others have pointed out, a calorie deficit is all you need. Forget the "clean eating" nonsense. You can be in a huge calorie surplus by eating "clean", which is why that approach is so deceiving. Accurate calorie tracking is the key to success. Proper macros and proper training go along with that, to preserve muscle.

[anonkunbrah]

OP, check out the link in my signature. And as others have pointed out, a calorie deficit is all you need. Forget the "clean eating" nonsense. You can be in a huge calorie surplus by eating "clean", which is why that approach is so deceiving. Accurate calorie tracking is the key to success. Proper macros and proper training go along with that, to preserve muscle.

but the macros themselves don't matter in terms of getting lean? isn't it just calories?

[Serpentarius]

but the macros themselves don't matter in terms of getting lean? isn't it just calories?

it is calories, and always will be

[ironwill2008]

ya who wouldn't want 10% on the left

Based on their posts in this forum, most of the skinny kids on this site.


You must be new here.

[haikaldingle]

That's the exact problem with crappy diet programs that tell you to go on low carb and low calories. It slows down metabolism and once you revert to normal eating habits, you gain all the weight back twice as fast. Aim for something long term, it should be a lifestyle type of thing. All you need to do is to go on 200-500 calorie deficit from your everyday diet. Have balanced meals and plan your carb intake earlier in the day or around workout timings.

[rydin4life]

it is calories, and always will be

It took me a long, long time to come to that simple conclusion, but that's the big ticket right there....may not be 100%, but it's pretty damn close!

[blue9steel]

You MUST:
1) Lift weights
2) Control calories
3) Eat enough protein and fat

Pretty much everything else is optional.

[Dorich]

but the macros themselves don't matter in terms of getting lean? isn't it just calories?

It is indeed just calories in terms of weight loss.

In terms of maximizing fat loss and minimizing muscle loss, proper macros and well structured resistance training is necessary.

The goal, as you say, is getting lean, and not merely losing weight.

[Tourden]

Follow http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showth...hp?t=129247741

I lost 96lbs. Guranteed

[libtolu]

It seems like you're using information as an excuse to not do anything. Just pick something, do it for a couple months and see if it works. Doing anything is better than doing nothing.

[Znik]

see that's what i never understood. Perhaps because it didn't make since from a hormonal standpoint. if you did eat fast food only and had massive surges of insulin but you still were under a certain calorie limit that you would still get lean. I'm not refuting what you're saying, I'm just trying to vent my frustration with all of this

Assuming macros are near identical, there is pretty much an identical response to a "fast food" meal and super healthy organic meal.
http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/res...ood-meal.html/

Insulin doesn't make you fat, it simply short term changes the primary fuel your body uses and you can gain/lose fat no matter if insulin is present or not, hence why Keto diets provide zero benefits in terms of fat loss over a high carb diet.
http://weightology.net/weightologywe...ad-reputation/

but the macros themselves don't matter in terms of getting lean? isn't it just calories?

In terms of losing body mass, it's all about the calories (energy balance), in terms of ensuring the mass lost is actual fat and retaining LBM it's all about the macros and resistance training, but not the actual food sources in itself.

That's the exact problem with crappy diet programs that tell you to go on low carb and low calories. It slows down metabolism and once you revert to normal eating habits, you gain all the weight back twice as fast.

Not it doesn't. Metabolic adaptions to calorie deficits is a finite number, doesn't matter if you crash diet, go low carb or whatever, it's going to have a minor adaption to X deficit and it's highly limited. Those adaptions are rapidly reverted to baseline (or above if in a surplus), so you don't gain the weight back twice as fast, you only do that if you eat twice as many surplus calories.


For OP: Calorie deficit, ensure you get adequate protein/fat and lift heavy stuff. That's all you need to get lean and maintain it. Everything else is just overly complicating things for a negligible advantage at a high cost of a lot of stress and micro-managing things.

[lsi1]

I weighed 305 lbs at my heaviest. Today I weighed 221.6. How did I get there? Well I can tell you a steady diet of fastfood and soda got me to 305.

What I did was started by counting calories. That really sucked. Logging all those meals and focusing on how much I could stay under my calorie goal wasn't good for me I would try to lose more by eating less. I lost about 40lbs but fell off the wagon and put 20lbs of those back on then I decided to make some real changes.

I decided to only have 1 soda per day at first and only 1 sandwich at lunch instead of 2. This in combination with me starting to run dropped me to about 250 in just a couple months.

Around that time I started lifting weights and trying to clean up the rest of my diet to make better progress and not feel like I was throwing all those hours in the gym away. I got down to about 215 in late November. I was getting burned out so I decided to tr to stay between 251 and 220 for a few weeks to give my body a break. Last night was a big splurge meal before I try really hard to crack that 200 lb goal I've set for myself.

Some other changes I've made are I buy my meat from local farmers now instead of getting it from the grocery stores(specifically for me a dairy farmer as she turns the entire cow into ground beef and its entirely grass fed.), I try never to eat anything light or low fat(if they strip out fat then they replace it with something else to make it taste goodand thats probably worse.) I try not to catch myself doing any fad diets(they might work but I wouldn't stay on it), and most importantly if I want something I eat it(I don't stress over it I just eat one bad thing and move on.).

[rydin4life]

I weighed 305 lbs at my heaviest. Today I weighed 221.6. How did I get there? Well I can tell you a steady diet of fastfood and soda got me to 305.

What I did was started by counting calories. That really sucked. Logging all those meals and focusing on how much I could stay under my calorie goal wasn't good for me I would try to lose more by eating less. I lost about 40lbs but fell off the wagon and put 20lbs of those back on then I decided to make some real changes.

I decided to only have 1 soda per day at first and only 1 sandwich at lunch instead of 2. This in combination with me starting to run dropped me to about 250 in just a couple months.

Around that time I started lifting weights and trying to clean up the rest of my diet to make better progress and not feel like I was throwing all those hours in the gym away. I got down to about 215 in late November. I was getting burned out so I decided to tr to stay between 251 and 220 for a few weeks to give my body a break. Last night was a big splurge meal before I try really hard to crack that 200 lb goal I've set for myself.

Some other changes I've made are I buy my meat from local farmers now instead of getting it from the grocery stores(specifically for me a dairy farmer as she turns the entire cow into ground beef and its entirely grass fed.), I try never to eat anything light or low fat(if they strip out fat then they replace it with something else to make it taste goodand thats probably worse.) I try not to catch myself doing any fad diets(they might work but I wouldn't stay on it), and most importantly if I want something I eat it(I don't stress over it I just eat one bad thing and move on.).

This is a great reply. My heaviest was close to you at 334 lbs and I'm at 220.2 as of Thursday. Like you, a lot of fast food and eating whatever I want got me to that weight. To be honest, I'm totally opposite in my approach. For me, two things have worked to lose weight: Weight Watchers, and tracking macros. I need to write or log my food. I've seen it work and I've seen what happens when I don't. For you, you can do it a different way and have success.

There are so many things out there, but it all comes down to what works for the individual. Everyone needs to find what works for them and be consistent. Congrats on your loss so far..stick with it man!