How to lose fat for Noobs - Part II

[scissrm3timbers]

I apologize if this isn't the right place to post this. I just need some pointing in the right direction.

So.....been working out for 20 years. 37 now, recently married, getting fatter and fatter no matter how much racquetball I do and lifting. So I know my diet isn't good enough but I've tried so many plans over the years I'm totally confused. I typically follow Tom Venuto's Burn the Fat, Feed the Muscle book as I believe he's an honest expert and I like his approach. Basically what you guys say here at the beginning of this thread. Calories equation, protein, lift, keep it simple. I still haven't had much sucess, or at least as much as I was hoping. So, I got my cholesterol checked again and it had gone up again! 274. The doctor wants me to go on a statin but my nutritionist at the gym says not to. She did a bunch of tests on me and said my body really needs to go Paleo! Now, I understand the benefits of low carb eating and have actually had sucess with Atkins years ago but I really don't think I can live Paleo. What do you guys think? Is that really necessary to lower cholesterol? Could I just follow the recommendations on this thread, lower my bodyfat and get similar benefits? Why would my body need Paleo and you guys seem to do great on a more bodybuilding diet? FYI they said my fasting glucose was 96. 4 points away from pre diabetic. So odd because I feel very heathy.

Any advice or links would be greatly appreciated guys! Great thread and forum!

Thank you.

And no original post or sticky were read this day.

Go to http://iifym.com/tdee-calculator/
Find your maintenance - reduce by 500cal/20%
Buy kitchen scale
Weigh every single thing that goes in your mouth
Eat LBM in protein
Eat fruits and veggies - normally 2 cups fruit/3 cups veggies
Get essential fatty acids
Lose weight

[ChelaBella]

I apologize if this isn't the right place to post this. I just need some pointing in the right direction.

So.....been working out for 20 years. 37 now, recently married, getting fatter and fatter no matter how much racquetball I do and lifting. So I know my diet isn't good enough but I've tried so many plans over the years I'm totally confused. I typically follow Tom Venuto's Burn the Fat, Feed the Muscle book as I believe he's an honest expert and I like his approach. Basically what you guys say here at the beginning of this thread. Calories equation, protein, lift, keep it simple. I still haven't had much sucess, or at least as much as I was hoping. So, I got my cholesterol checked again and it had gone up again! 274. The doctor wants me to go on a statin but my nutritionist at the gym says not to. She did a bunch of tests on me and said my body really needs to go Paleo! Now, I understand the benefits of low carb eating and have actually had sucess with Atkins years ago but I really don't think I can live Paleo. What do you guys think? Is that really necessary to lower cholesterol? Could I just follow the recommendations on this thread, lower my bodyfat and get similar benefits? Why would my body need Paleo and you guys seem to do great on a more bodybuilding diet? FYI they said my fasting glucose was 96. 4 points away from pre diabetic. So odd because I feel very heathy.

Any advice or links would be greatly appreciated guys! Great thread and forum!

Thank you.

Follow ^ prev response or what u cn do to lose fat right away is do "hiit" cardio sessions. Look it up it high interval intensity training. Ex are 20 min sesh of 1 min sprint 1 min rest till the end, u cn use elliptical or watever. The idea is your heart is getting worked up to high lever then bringing it to rest so heart is working more. I can confirm I had 300+ cholesterol even as a thin girl years ago. Body building and training normalized it.
It's the fastest way to lose fat. And the same time u gotta lift of course coz muscles burn fat. Now I only do 1 sesh of hiit once a week coz i don't want any more fat burning, but goal now is gaining muscles.
Anyway after couple of months on my next check up cholesterol was normal.
(RN and studied nutrition)

[scissrm3timbers]

Follow ^ prev response or what u cn do to lose fat right away is do "hiit" cardio sessions. Look it up it high interval intensity training. Ex are 20 min sesh of 1 min sprint 1 min rest till the end, u cn use elliptical or watever. The idea is your heart is getting worked up to high lever then bringing it to rest so heart is working more. I can confirm I had 300+ cholesterol even as a thin girl years ago. Body building and training normalized it.
It's the fastest way to lose fat. And the same time u gotta lift of course coz muscles burn fat. Now I only do 1 sesh of hiit once a week coz i don't want any more fat burning, but goal now is gaining muscles.
Anyway after couple of months on my next check up cholesterol was normal.
(RN and studied nutrition)

None of this will matter if the poster continues to eat the way that they are. You cannot out train a bad diet.

Edit - HIIT does not burn fat - caloric deficit does

[wildcat767676]

Thank you very much for taking the time to reply.

I have read this sticky but I was more confused as to the dietitian recommending Paleo for me and the cholesterol, etc. It seems the consensus is lose weight and eat right and it will get better. No need to go Paleo just follow the group on this thread. I get that correct?

Thanks!

[iDrive]

I apologize if this isn't the right place to post this. I just need some pointing in the right direction.

So.....been working out for 20 years. 37 now, recently married, getting fatter and fatter no matter how much racquetball I do and lifting. So I know my diet isn't good enough but I've tried so many plans over the years I'm totally confused. I typically follow Tom Venuto's Burn the Fat, Feed the Muscle book as I believe he's an honest expert and I like his approach. Basically what you guys say here at the beginning of this thread. Calories equation, protein, lift, keep it simple. I still haven't had much sucess, or at least as much as I was hoping. So, I got my cholesterol checked again and it had gone up again! 274. The doctor wants me to go on a statin but my nutritionist at the gym says not to. She did a bunch of tests on me and said my body really needs to go Paleo! Now, I understand the benefits of low carb eating and have actually had sucess with Atkins years ago but I really don't think I can live Paleo. What do you guys think? Is that really necessary to lower cholesterol? Could I just follow the recommendations on this thread, lower my bodyfat and get similar benefits? Why would my body need Paleo and you guys seem to do great on a more bodybuilding diet? FYI they said my fasting glucose was 96. 4 points away from pre diabetic. So odd because I feel very heathy.

Any advice or links would be greatly appreciated guys! Great thread and forum!

Thank you.

Thank you very much for taking the time to reply.

I have read this sticky but I was more confused as to the dietitian recommending Paleo for me and the cholesterol, etc. It seems the consensus is lose weight and eat right and it will get better. No need to go Paleo just follow the group on this thread. I get that correct?

Thanks!

As far as losing weight, eat less. As far as the cholesterol...

Disclosure: I am not a dietician/nutritionist or doctor so do not take my advice as such.

FWIW I've seen A LOT of anecdotal stories of people getting diseases such as high cholesterol and at risk for diabetes under control simply by losing weight. That being said cholesterol tends to be more genetic than dietary (go to the nutrition section and search eggs and cholesterol) so I'd get a professional opinion.

Someone, especially a gym nutritionist, pushing only paleo to me is very fishy (pun maybe intended)

I leave my TDEE at sedentary (then consume 500-750 below that number). yes I work out about 45-65 minutes per day, this allows me to not over eat. I have lost what I have lost by following this same model for 9 months.

Great job, almost 200lbs lost is incredible!

^ With Tony Flo. Lost a little over 40lbs so far.

Set it to sedentary unless you're in a really active job. You'd be amazed how many people go overboard with the activity multiplier. Some people think that from sitting in a chair/school for 8-12 hours and working out for 1 hour every day somehow moves the needle from sedentary. Lets look at a whole week. If you are working out 3 times a week for 1 hour as proposed by Mr. Wavelength that's 3 hours of workout and 161 work/school/sleeping/watching TV... catch my drift? And maybe you are a little more active than sedentary, just think of it as a bonus to losing weight.

Repped. I honestly don't know if I could've worded it better. Great job on the 40lbs so far!

[wildcat767676]

Well put, thank you!

[ChelaBella]

None of this will matter if the poster continues to eat the way that they are. You cannot out train a bad diet.

Edit - HIIT does not burn fat - caloric deficit does

Caloric deficit for sure will make u lose weight, he would need to eat 500cal less per day to lose a whooping 1 pound of weight per week. But I didnt do any caloric deficit and lost a lot of fat doing 20 hiit 2-3x a week after gaining weight from pregnancy and didnt really lose muscle. Everybody's body is different

[scissrm3timbers]

Caloric deficit for sure will make u lose weight, he would need to eat 500cal less per day to lose a whooping 1 pound of weight per week. But I didnt do any caloric deficit and lost a lot of fat doing 20 hiit 2-3x a week after gaining weight from pregnancy and didnt really lose muscle. Everybody's body is different

UGH... You just contradicted yourself here. You were in caloric deficit by doing HIIT hence the reason you lost weight. You have that option of running on a hamster wheel for hours on end or just keeping the spoon/fork out of your mouth - I prefer to just eat less. You will burn the same amount of calories if you eat 500kcal less each day or create a 500kcal deficit through cardio.

[scissrm3timbers]

Repped. I honestly don't know if I could've worded it better. Great job on the 40lbs so far!

Thanks - Repped Back. Learned all of this through you/wave_length and reading all of Losing Fat for Noobs I & II and wave_length's log! Just spreading my learning!

[rauhae]

UGH... You just contradicted yourself here. You were in caloric deficit by doing HIIT hence the reason you lost weight. You have that option of running on a hamster wheel for hours on end or just keeping the spoon/fork out of your mouth - I prefer to just eat less. You will burn the same amount of calories if you eat 500kcal less each day or create a 500kcal deficit through cardio.

^Exactly.

I'm cutting right now at about 2000 calories, and I'll be damned if I try to cut less than that -- it becomes difficult and monotonous to try and meet macros on too little a caloric budget, and I don't like protein shakes *that* much. At that point, I introduce cardio a couple times a week and see how that affects the rate of loss. Could I increase my rate of loss if I merely reduced my daily caloric intake? Sure, but I like food, and I can stand watching Jeopardy or Seinfeld while on the elliptical or rowing machine a bit better.

[ChelaBella]

UGH... You just contradicted yourself here. You were in caloric deficit by doing HIIT hence the reason you lost weight. You have that option of running on a hamster wheel for hours on end or just keeping the spoon/fork out of your mouth - I prefer to just eat less. You will burn the same amount of calories if you eat 500kcal less each day or create a 500kcal deficit through cardio.

yes ur right..sounded like i did, i shouldve added caloric deficit "via food".
But i was not burning 500cal each hiit session..probably around 200, which i only did a couple of times a week. And by doing that regularly I was increasing my resting metabolic rate.

[JCR1992]

So making a topic got to attention, i'll try asking for help here.
I read the guide and it seems really good, I'm about 5'11 185 and according to the counter i'm around 2600 calories a day.
I'm hoping to cut 1k calories right off the bad, i'm a very dedicated person and when I have something in my head I do it.

My main concern here is not eating the right things and not getting the right amount of vitamins etc etc, any tips on foods to eat when trying to cut calories and lose belly fat?
You gym schedule looks very doable, i'm wondering if maybe since when you first wrote this topic things have changed and maybe there is some better workouts?

Lastly, this is a 3x a week gym, would I be hurting anything or need to do anything else if on the "rest days" I run on the elliptical?

Thanks, hopefully someone sees this!

[ChelaBella]

^Exactly.

I'm cutting right now at about 2000 calories, and I'll be damned if I try to cut less than that -- it becomes difficult and monotonous to try and meet macros on too little a caloric budget, and I don't like protein shakes *that* much. At that point, I introduce cardio a couple times a week and see how that affects the rate of loss. Could I increase my rate of loss if I merely reduced my daily caloric intake? Sure, but I like food, and I can stand watching Jeopardy or Seinfeld while on the elliptical or rowing machine a bit better.

Yes exactly ! i <3 food too much to cut and rather go on my home threadmill or elliptical while watching my SHOW. But i have reduced my hiit session to 1x a week now b/c dont wanna lose any more weight. I eat the same and just lift.Which reminds me its saturday and haven't done cardio all week.

[KINGC8R]

Back on track, weighing my food, tracking with MFP and hitting macros and working out at least 4-5 days a week at a 20% reduction of my TDEE. Down 15lbs so far...no cardio.

Just keep it simple, eat what you want in moderation as long as IFYM and you will stay sane. I'm just glad I am no longer craving most crappy foods and the healthier choices actually taste better now. This thread has made losing weight easier than any other "diet" or "program" that I have tried as it's sustainable long term.

I feel bad when my friends who eat "clean" all the time and don't enjoy life.

[iDrive]

My main concern here is not eating the right things and not getting the right amount of vitamins etc etc, any tips on foods to eat when trying to cut calories

Things that are green for 500 Alex.
As wave said, eat a wide variety of foods, if you don't want to do that look into a multi-vitamin.

and lose belly fat?

Sorry, I only know of foods to lose ankle fat, wrist fat, and toe fat

You gym schedule looks very doable, i'm wondering if maybe since when you first wrote this topic things have changed and maybe there is some better workouts?

He just listed the straight forward lifts everyone should be doing. You could chop down 3 trees every day if you'd like instead as long as you're recruiting each muscle group each week (and planting 3 new trees)

Lastly, this is a 3x a week gym, would I be hurting anything or need to do anything else if on the "rest days" I run on the elliptical?

Thanks, hopefully someone sees this!

3x per week is the minimum for optimal body composition more could only serve to enhance results.

I feel bad when my friends who eat "clean" all the time and don't enjoy life.

Some people are masochists

[JCR1992]

Things that are green for 500 Alex.
As wave said, eat a wide variety of foods, if you don't want to do that look into a multi-vitamin.



Sorry, I only know of foods to lose ankle fat, wrist fat, and toe fat



He just listed the straight forward lifts everyone should be doing. You could chop down 3 trees every day if you'd like instead as long as you're recruiting each muscle group each week (and planting 3 new trees)



3x per week is the minimum for optimal body composition more could only serve to enhance results.



Some people are masochists

Hah I appreciate the input, I'm starting this week and today is my first day trying to count calories and cut them/eat the right food.

Muffin for breakfast and a blueberry, pineapple, watermelon fruit salad for lunch. Should put me right around 400 on the day not including a coffee.
I just added 700 at dinner with a chicken cesar wrap.
Worked off 200 on the elliptical in 15 minutes.

So either i'm doing this wrong or I should eat a little more? My goal is 1830 calories for the day, my TDDE was 2240, currently i've eaten 1119 calories and worked off 200.. leaving me at 910 calories so far. This seems really low, no?

[JCR1992]

Anyone have any tips to help add more protein to my diet?

My usual day is going to look like this.

Wake up at 5am take a shower and go to work, get a coffee in the morning and that's it.
Around 9 AM i eat a muffin, around 12 PM is a bowl of mixed fruit. How am I supposed to stuff 180g of protein in my dinner and if i happen to have an after dinner snack?
Seems way too hard, any healthy low calorie foods that are rich in protein I could add at lunch?

[tonyflo04]

Anyone have any tips to help add more protein to my diet?

My usual day is going to look like this.

Wake up at 5am take a shower and go to work, get a coffee in the morning and that's it.
Around 9 AM i eat a muffin, around 12 PM is a bowl of mixed fruit. How am I supposed to stuff 180g of protein in my dinner and if i happen to have an after dinner snack?
Seems way too hard, any healthy low calorie foods that are rich in protein I could add at lunch?

what are you macros? Cals, carbs, fats, etc?

[KINGC8R]

Anyone have any tips to help add more protein to my diet?

My usual day is going to look like this.

Wake up at 5am take a shower and go to work, get a coffee in the morning and that's it.
Around 9 AM i eat a muffin, around 12 PM is a bowl of mixed fruit. How am I supposed to stuff 180g of protein in my dinner and if i happen to have an after dinner snack?
Seems way too hard, any healthy low calorie foods that are rich in protein I could add at lunch?

Seems like you're not willing to take the right steps if you're already saying it's too hard. You need to know your macros.

I only use one protein shake a day and I can get to 180g protein easily. Chicken breast is always a good source that is also not too calorie dense. Another great choice is Tilapia. I hate fish but I used the McCormick Kick'n Chick'n on it and it's delicious.

You also need to track your meals. It takes 5 minutes to fry up two eggs in the morning. Or you can buy some egg whites in a box, pour a cup of that into a tupperware with one egg and some veggies and some turkey bacon or steak or chick and throw it in the microwave in the morning.

I'd stay away from muffins as they tend to be very calorie dense and don't usually satisfy you.

My Grocery list has been looking like this

Chicken Breast
Tilapia Fillets
Lean cuts of steak
Frozen Steamer style veggies
Fit & Light Greek yogurt
Bananas
Apples
Broccoli
50/50 Spring mix/spinach
Tomatoes
Avocado
Green Onions
Bell Peppers
Steel cut oats

to name a few things.

I typically cook enough food for 2-3 days and spread it out, measuring everything. I use tupperware that is section and put my choice of meat and whatever veggies I decide to eat on the side. If you eat not boxed up calorie dense food you'd be surprised how full you get.

I used this to calculate my macro needs. I used no exercise since my job isn't strenuous and 4-5 workouts a week at about an hour or so each isn't that much in the grand scheme of things
http://iifym.com/iifym-calculator/

I use myfitnesspal to track calories and usually try to hit my macros or get close +/-. Good luck let us know if you need more help.

[Beerculez]

Can a low fat diet cause joint pain/slower joignt healing? The last couple of days I've been eating 45-50g pf fat per day (i usually keep it around 70) and I haven't taken any omega 3 supllements like I usually do. Woke up today with a bit of pain in my shoulders, also I banged up my wrist a couple of weeks ago and it still hurts. Last time I hurt my wrist I was bulking and it only took about a week and a half to completely heal then.

[JCR1992]

Seems like you're not willing to take the right steps if you're already saying it's too hard. You need to know your macros.

I only use one protein shake a day and I can get to 180g protein easily. Chicken breast is always a good source that is also not too calorie dense. Another great choice is Tilapia. I hate fish but I used the McCormick Kick'n Chick'n on it and it's delicious.

You also need to track your meals. It takes 5 minutes to fry up two eggs in the morning. Or you can buy some egg whites in a box, pour a cup of that into a tupperware with one egg and some veggies and some turkey bacon or steak or chick and throw it in the microwave in the morning.

I'd stay away from muffins as they tend to be very calorie dense and don't usually satisfy you.

My Grocery list has been looking like this

Chicken Breast
Tilapia Fillets
Lean cuts of steak
Frozen Steamer style veggies
Fit & Light Greek yogurt
Bananas
Apples
Broccoli
50/50 Spring mix/spinach
Tomatoes
Avocado
Green Onions
Bell Peppers
Steel cut oats

to name a few things.

I typically cook enough food for 2-3 days and spread it out, measuring everything. I use tupperware that is section and put my choice of meat and whatever veggies I decide to eat on the side. If you eat not boxed up calorie dense food you'd be surprised how full you get.

I used this to calculate my macro needs. I used no exercise since my job isn't strenuous and 4-5 workouts a week at about an hour or so each isn't that much in the grand scheme of things

I use myfitnesspal to track calories and usually try to hit my macros or get close +/-. Good luck let us know if you need more help.

Thanks buddy this is the kind of help I'm looking for.
This is my first time ever even looking into a diet and I can assure you I'm serious.

I'm currently using that app and will look into replacing the muffin with maybe 2 eggs and a shake.
When I Butter The Pan do I Add That aswell?

[KINGC8R]

Thanks buddy this is the kind of help I'm looking for.
This is my first time ever even looking into a diet and I can assure you I'm serious.

I'm currently using that app and will look into replacing the muffin with maybe 2 eggs and a shake.
When I Butter The Pan do I Add That aswell?

I don't log it as I only use it once a day, well I use pam that is not butter and I spray the pan very sparingly

To give you an idea of what I ate today:

Hard Boiled egg & a Fit & Light Greek Yogurt
2 Scoops of MP Whey
6oz Chicken Breast
1/2 cup of Green Giant Cheesy Rice & Broccoli
Double Turkey Burger with 2 slices of Turkey Bacon and Shredded Pepper Jack on a Sesame Bun
6oz Chicken Breast
1/2 cup of Green Giant Cheesy Rice & Broccoli

Still have 150 cals left over and I'm debating if I want my 150 cal skinny cow ice cream lol

Macros are 199g Protein, 80g Carbs, 72g Fat


Went a bit over on protein and a bit under on carbs but that's ok. When I keep it lower carb my weightloss seems to stay steady

[maxcabral]

Im currently 15.4% bodyfat and im trying to cut to 10 or 9% in 9 weeks.i try to follow the rules the best i can but im not too sure about counting calories so i get in a little cardio.late at night i get the urge to eat..alot so i usually go for a protein meal.could eating late at night hinder my weight loss?..awesime thread wavelength really helpfull to noobs lyk myself

[Thunar]

Good guide.

[scissrm3timbers]

Im currently 15.4% bodyfat and im trying to cut to 10 or 9% in 9 weeks.i try to follow the rules the best i can but im not too sure about counting calories so i get in a little cardio.late at night i get the urge to eat..alot so i usually go for a protein meal.could eating late at night hinder my weight loss?..awesime thread wavelength really helpfull to noobs lyk myself

Unless you are experienced like Wave_length you need to weigh/measure everything that goes in your mouth. Eating at night or 1 second before you fall asleep will not hinder your weight loss... AS LONG AS YOU ARE IN CALORIC DEFECIT!!! Please follow this link on how to properly count calories: http://www.fitnessfactreview.com/the...orie-counting/

[rauhae]

Well, you'll certainly know if your caloric intake guesstimating is off if your weight doesn't budge. The digital scales are relatively inexpensive, and it's somewhat eye-opening to see what you've actually been consuming (for better or worse). If you can track consistently over a couple weeks and see how weight fluctuates, you'll have a much more accurate handle on your TDEE.

Considering the TDEE is the number from which you base your deficit and/or your small surplus, I'd say an accurate reading is one of the more valuable figures we can work with. The return on investment is more than worth it.

[KINGC8R]

Well, you'll certainly know if your caloric intake guesstimating is off if your weight doesn't budge. The digital scales are relatively inexpensive, and it's somewhat eye-opening to see what you've actually been consuming (for better or worse). If you can track consistently over a couple weeks and see how weight fluctuates, you'll have a much more accurate handle on your TDEE.

Considering the TDEE is the number from which you base your deficit and/or your small surplus, I'd say an accurate reading is one of the more valuable figures we can work with. The return on investment is more than worth it.

I agree, everyone should be using a scale. It drives my GF crazy that I weigh and measure everything lol

[bitfw]

Is it possible to get decent resistance training out of dumbbells only?

I can't go to the GYM anytime in the next year (distance, price etc). However, I can manage to get a dumbbell set, is it worth getting?

[Gotit4cheap16]

Great info thanks

[LuxoDave]

Is it possible to get decent resistance training out of dumbbells only?

I can't go to the GYM anytime in the next year (distance, price etc). However, I can manage to get a dumbbell set, is it worth getting?

I would say yes. I use dumbells and do pull ups to get all the big muscle groups.