Confused newbie looking for advice

[dreampuppy]

Hi everyone. I recently joined. I am 5'4 female who dropped from 135 to 125 pounds through low carb and gained muscle through the Body by Science (once a week heavy weights to failure). I have been maintaining for the better part of a year (with lots of cheats) but wanted to drop some more fat and gain more muscle, especially in my back and glutes. I need to drop off fat from my stomach, especially the lower portion.

-wanted to post pics but cannot yet-

I am so confused with the conflicting advice regarding intermittent fasting, low carb, leangains, low fat, chronic cardio, etc etc etc so am looking for some advice. Especially if you are a woman or have worked with them and seen results.

Here is the diet and workout plan I have devised for myself.

Two workouts a week:

#1:

Chest press (currently 98lbs)
Bent over row (60lbs)
Leg press (210lbs)
Shoulder press (72lbs)

#2:
HIIT
Six sets of 30 second all out sprints followed by 1:30 minutes of walking. Warm up and cool down. (Hoping to add more intervals as I get more fit)
Chin ups
Negative pull ups
Deadlift (A question on this. Considering my leg press weight, what is a good weight to start for deadlifts?)

Diet:

Paleo and Intermittent fast. On non-workout days try to eat once a day. 23/1 or something similar. Meat/eggs/veggies/nuts/oils on non workout days.

On workout days eat something small prior to working out (I work out in evenings). Could be half an avocado, some nuts, coffee with cream, etc.

After working out eat a huge meal of steak/eggs/vegetables. Will add a paleo starch like half a sweet potato or some home fries or some berries (is this wise? or should i stay lower carb?).

I would also have a cheat day every 3 weeks, because well....I like chocolate and ice cream Would not be a binge, just a day to eat whatever I wanted until i was full.

So what do you guys think? Would this help me to lean out and gain strength? Should I add/omit anything? I am really open to suggestions. I am late twenties and 5'4.

Thank you in advance.

[always_sunny]

Looks good to me, if you specifically want back/glutes i would throw squats in there somewhere.

[Cor]

Hi everyone. I recently joined. I am 5'4 female who dropped from 135 to 125 pounds through low carb and gained muscle through the Body by Science (once a week heavy weights to failure). I have been maintaining for the better part of a year (with lots of cheats) but wanted to drop some more fat and gain more muscle, especially in my back and glutes. I need to drop off fat from my stomach, especially the lower portion.

No offense, but a once a weak to failure routine just doesn't cut it in my opinion (everyone has them). It seems exercises like this are marketed and sold to people that want to get in shape but don't want to have to work hard for it.

I have no doubt it can be effective to begin with, because at the beginning any exercise is better than previously no exercise. So people see a bit of progress and think it's an effective way to work out.

As far as dropping the fat is concerned you say you'd especially like to drop off subcutaneous fat from the midsection. I'm sorry, but we don't get to pick where it comes off from. It'd be nice, but the only way to lose body fat is to consume calories at a deficit of the number your body needs to maintain it's current stature.

I am so confused with the conflicting advice regarding intermittent fasting, low carb, leangains, low fat, chronic cardio, etc etc etc so am looking for some advice. Especially if you are a woman or have worked with them and seen results.

Don't fast. Where this ever came from I don't know. You need to eat, just make sure what you eat coincides with your training to meet your goal.

As far as cardio is concerned I personally don't think it is necessary for most goals. Yes, I do a minimum amount on occasion, but really, once you learn to control caloric intake you can alter your workout to meet your cardio needs.

However, some people just love to run, and there's no denying you burn more calories quicker with more movement. It seems you've already turned to HIIT, so that's a really good start.

http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/bbinfo.php?page=HIIT

#2:
HIIT
Six sets of 30 second all out sprints followed by 1:30 minutes of walking. Warm up and cool down. (Hoping to add more intervals as I get more fit)
Chin ups
Negative pull ups
Deadlift (A question on this. Considering my leg press weight, what is a good weight to start for deadlifts?)

There is no good weight to start at. If you walk in to a gym you can see three different people doing the same exercise and with different weight.

There is no formula to derive how much you'll be able to lift. Simply lift within the confines of your established rep range with good form and that's all you can ask for to build from.

BB.com has plenty of videos and pictures on how to perform the exercise properly. But it's much better if you know someone that knows what they're doing and can show you, especially with deadlifts.

But also keep in mind that as helpful as these forums may be, everyone is different. With all the suggestions you'll get some may not produce results. What works for one person may not work for another. The only way to find out what works for you is to hit the iron.

Hell, maybe even what I wrote may be garbage.

Good luck, and I'll try to be helpful in the future.

[joelash302]

Some parts I agree with Cor on, others deviate.

I don't think your lifting schedule is a good idea. Take a look at the stickies in the routines section to get a little better idea of how to program a routine. If you are a flat out beginner, just start with a pre-made routine as programming takes a bit of knowledge about your own body to develop. Also, start your deadlifts at the bar and just work up until you hit a comfortable level without compromising form and go from there.


Your diet should initially be based on what's comfortable and easiest for you to follow. If you love to eat every 37 minutes that's fine, just be more focused on how your overall macronutrients and calories are going on a daily basis.

For IF - Martin doesn't recommend 23 hour fasts for women, his recommendation is 14/10. So if IF style eating is something you like, keep this in mind. It can and does work for many, some hate it. It's more a matter of preference and what you will adhere to.

For how to eat, again preference plays a large part in it and what you personally respond to best. The standard suggestion is -

1-1.5g of protein per pound of lean body mass
around .5g fat per pound of lean body mass
fill the rest with carbs until you hit your calories for the day

I'm also a firm believer in making 1 change at a time as a more scientific approach to determining what works for you (in this case, I am suggesting these changes to reset you to a more "baseline" approach before tailoring dieting macros and timing, routine, etc.). So start out simple and straightforward, then make tweaks and adjustments as you determine what is making the best results you are looking for.

[dreampuppy]

double post sorry

[dreampuppy]

1-1.5g of protein per pound of lean body mass
around .5g fat per pound of lean body mass
fill the rest with carbs until you hit your calories for the day

But wouldn't a keto diet help me cut more fat? Plus I also like to eat pretty big. I find carbs pretty addicting.

For IF - Martin doesn't recommend 23 hour fasts for women, his recommendation is 14/10. So if IF style eating is something you like, keep this in mind. It can and does work for many, some hate it. It's more a matter of preference and what you will adhere to.

I wonder why this is? Why wouldn't fasting for a bit longer be acceptable? I would do it for fat loss (up my HGH, reduce calories etc) and would only fast 23 hours on the non work-out days. I'm just wondering why people think it's such a bad idea.

Thank you for suggestions on the types of exercises to do. I've looked into the workout forum stickies and they look good. I'll also look for someone to teach me the deadlift.

Thanks so much! Btw I don't know if posting pics would help with the suggestions, but if anyone can do me a solid and post for me, IM me

[joelash302]

He's done quite a bit of tweaking over the last several years, based on his logs it's just been the most ideal situation for the majority of his female clients. As a side for why not 23/1 specifically, I also couldn't even imagine getting enough calories down in an hour, I did the Warrior Diet for a while and spent the entire 4 hours eating a full plate every hour to get to my calorie needs (3,000 was my minimum target).

For diet - Some love keto and some don't. If adhering to a keto diet is going to work best for you in your mind, then it probably will. I don't want to steer you to a specific thought process for diet (let alan, lyle, and emma do that with their ridiculous knowledge of the subject), just more so give you the idea that a lot of things can work so you don't necessarily have to sit and worry if diet x is superior to diet y and if you are missing out on something.

[dreampuppy]

I also couldn't even imagine getting enough calories down in an hour, I did the Warrior Diet for a while and spent the entire 4 hours eating a full plate every hour to get to my calorie needs (3,000 was my minimum target).

Yeah, i hate you. Wish I had that same problem. IF works for me as it allows me to "eat big" and not overdo calories.

Thanks so much for the advice. Will look @ the keto boards.