Mental block on nutrition.. halp!

[gizzer94]

Ok,

I need some help from you guys on what my cal intake should be, how many prot, carbs, etc (although i still want to stay low carb cause I want to continue to lose weight)

Quick history..

Used to weigh 280 pounds, in the last year and some change I dropped to 198 as of Oct 8th... Most people say I don't look anywhere near 200 pounds, waist went from 46 to 34 jeans... I don't think I have much of a belly standing up.. but the kangaroo pouch sitting down pisses me off enuff into not eating enough cals.. I probably eat 1600-1800 a day.. no carbs.. I weight lift 5x a week but obviously the low cal is not giving me much strength or progress...

Below are some pics..

Maybe with ur opinion I can get over the mental state of eating = getting fat and maybe actually start putting on some decent muscle - I just don't wanna look like those guys that are big but are still fat... i want lean mass

my stats r 5'11 198 pounds...

how much cardio should I do a week to keep cutting but maintain and grow muscle? I'm in excellent cardio shape and I don't wanna lose it

[PopeGregorius]

Good work taking off the weight.

I suggest 50min cardio per day, 6 days per week. Try doing some swimming as part of this, it targets all the muscle groups.

1600 calories is a little low, maybe add some cottage cheese, tuna/salmon, an apple to bring it up to 2000. Make sure you eat plenty of vegetables even if you are on low carb.
And it may take up to a year to lose the excess skin, but you are not too bad.

[nithos]

how much cardio should I do a week to keep cutting but maintain and grow muscle? I'm in excellent cardio shape and I don't wanna lose it

2-3 days of cardio is good for bulking yet maintaining cardio endurance. You don't have to go balls to the wall like when cutting.