Replacing Quest Bars and A General Diet Critique To Get To 6-7% BF

[Oznomal]

I am trying to get my bf into the range of 6-7% and right now I am at 8.5% coming down from 18% 13 weeks ago. However, since my diet has become more restrictive I am often times left feeling hungry, so I am trying to replace a few items, mainly the quest bar and the GNC lean shake RTD bottle with REAL foods. Looking for some more filling options to still fit the same macros and calorie count. This is what I eat every day, I just find it easier to eat the same thing every day instead of having to constantly recalculate everything. Please throw out any options or advice, never done a competition before but thinking about trying to do my first in November.

My current diet/schedule works like this

7:00 AM Cardio & Lean Mode Serving 1

7:30 AM Post Cardio Snack

Banana


8:30 AM Breakfast

GNC Vanilla Lean Shake RTD (Trying to Replace) (Cals: 170, P: 25g, C: 6g, F: 6g)
Kiku Apple
Opti-Men Serving 1

11:00 AM Snack

Quest Bar (Trying to Replace) (Cals: 190, P: 20g, C: 23g (14g Fiber), F: 7g)

1:00 PM Lunch

4 oz portion of chicken breast
2 Cups of Broc****

4:00 PM Pre-Workout Snack

4 oz portion of chicken breast
2 Cups of Broc****
100% whole wheat sandwich thin
Opti-Men Serving 2

5:00 PM Pre-Workout

4 scoops of ON Amino Energy

7:00 PM Post Workout

Banana
2 Scoops of Isopure Whey Protein
5 oz of Baked Sweet Potato Fries or Red Potatoes
0.5 Tbs of Olive Oil


8:00 PM Lean Mode Serving 2

9:00 PM Dinner

8 oz of Sockeye Salmon
0.5 Tbs of Olive Oil
2 Cups of Broc****
Opti-Men Serving 3


At the end of the day my numbers end up being 1996 cals, 225g of protein, 185g of carbs (including veggies and fiber), 49g of fat.

I weight 182 at 6'0 and 8.5% bf.

[AdamWW]

Unless you're prepping for a show or are making a significant amount of money as a result, why would you ever want to be 6-7%?

How do you even KNOW you're 8.5%?

I recommend getting more important things in your life unless you are cutting for a significant amount of money for a photo shoot or a show. Even then... not healthy.

[Mrpb]

I weight 182 at 6'0 and 8.5% bf.

Do you have a picture?

I guess you're using a BIA scale to measure body fat. They are completely inaccurate.

[gbullock32]

3 eggs would be ~ the same calories/protein, good source of fat too but would lose the fiber if that is important to your intake.

[AdamWW]

I somehow missed the part of a competition in your first post.

To be honest, if you're already 8.5%, I wouldn't worry about cutting more fat right this second because you're so far away from needing to peak for something in the fall.

That is, unless you're actually above 8.5%

[Oznomal]

Do you have a picture?

I guess you're using a BIA scale to measure body fat. They are completely inaccurate.

Yes, I am using a BIA scale and I know its accuracy is highly questionable. However, I have used it consistently under the same conditions throughout the entire process so while the number I get may not be completely accurate in terms of what I would get if I got measurements through another method, it does represent progress on my behalf!

I don't have that many super recent pics, the steam emoji is from Friday, the shots of my back are about 1.5 weeks ago and the the red shorts was about 2.5 weeks ago, at that time the BIA was telling me I was ~10%. The picture where I was fat was from 12.5 weeks ago when I started.

[Mrpb]

You look great with a lot of mass but I don't think you're under 10% yet.

Many people believe that being consistent improves the accuracy of a BIA scale but this is not the case. The main reason why it's giving you a lower reading is that you've lost weight. It uses an algorithm to estimate your fat mass. Explained in detail: http://weightology.net/weightologywe...impedance-bia/

If you want to get more accurate information on your progress: a 10$ caliper does a better job. If your skinfolds are becoming thinner you're losing fat (this is assuming you're reasonably skilled in using it).

[Oznomal]

You look great with a lot of mass but I don't think you're under 10% yet.

Thank you for the insight! However, I'm not really too concerned with the actual number, whether I am 8% now or 13% it doesn't matter too much to me, I just know that I want to be leaner lol so I am really just trying to find a way to replace the quest bars & lean shake with something a little more filling so I can go through the day not constantly thinking about when I'll get to eat again!

Once I am satisfied with the way I look then I plan to shell out the money to get either a bod pod or another more accurate analysis just so I know!

[Mrpb]

Thank you for the insight! However, I'm not really too concerned with the actual number, whether I am 8% now or 13% it doesn't matter too much to me, I just know that I want to be leaner lol so I am really just trying to find a way to replace the quest bars & lean shake with something a little more filling so I can go through the day not constantly thinking about when I'll get to eat again!

Once I am satisfied with the way I look then I plan to shell out the money to get either a bod pod or another more accurate analysis just so I know!

You might want to try a flavorless casein shake. This is very satiating for me, it keeps me full for hours.

0% Greek yogurt can work too.

[Oznomal]

Actually now that I'm thinking of it, could I replace the protein powder for food? I definitely could replace the 2 scoops of powder for another 8 oz of chicken breast and prob be more full throughout the evening as a result?

[Mrpb]

Actually now that I'm thinking of it, could I replace the protein powder for food? I definitely could replace the 2 scoops of powder for another 8 oz of chicken breast and prob be more full throughout the evening as a result?

Definitely. It will be even more filling if you add broc oli, spinach or lettuce etc. More volume is generally better for satiety.

[Cronos1247]

Chicken and vegetables always fills me up a lot more than a shake or a bar. Honestly, I'm so deep into my prep right now (about a week out from peak week) that I don't even drink the one shake meal I have, I mix it like sludge, microwave it for 35 seconds and top it with waldens farm chocolate syrup. I drink none of my meals.

[jimsmith9999]

Skyr will get you in the same ballpark as the Quest Bar macro wise, but it won't have the fiber. Very filling - more so than greek yogurt.

[ErikTheElectric]

Haven't seen you answer the question yet, so.. what's the point of being at 8% BF? Are you preparing for a show?

[EjnarKolinkar]

Thank you for the insight! However, I'm not really too concerned with the actual number, whether I am 8% now or 13% it doesn't matter too much to me, I just know that I want to be leaner lol so I am really just trying to find a way to replace the quest bars & lean shake with something a little more filling so I can go through the day not constantly thinking about when I'll get to eat again!

You look lean, not much point in getting much leaner. Why not stop now, and cement those 13 weeks of work? Somewhere in the 10-18% is a good place to "live" for a lot of men.

[jonnicola]

You look good, probably about bang on 9.5-10% (not sure if dry in those photos).

It's exponentially more difficult every % below 12 men try to go, so bear that in mind and GL with your goals

[Oznomal]

Just wanted to provide a quick update, I started out by replacing just the lean shake in the morning and that worked a little better. I since moved to replacing the quest bar as well as protein powder in general and I feel so much better. I literally have to force feed myself at times, the only negative is my wallet has really taken a hit. I went from eating 8 oz of chicken and 8 oz of salmon per day to 20 oz of chicken, 8 oz of salmon, and 8 oz of wild caught tilapia per day to make up for all of the powder, replacement shakes, and protein bars and I'm still consuming less calories than I was before.

I have continued to lean out in the process and am approaching right where I want to be, planning on testing out a 10 days out routine soon to give myself a better assessment of what I may need to work on before contest season!