[General Mayhem]

When I was younger I could get away with just running to get me down to 8%.

Nowadays it takes more work. Right now I am lifting harder than ever. Not heavier. On top of that I've been fasting and running several miles in the evening.

I do a lot more dynamic stuff in the gym. Today I did a superset of deadlifts and box jumps, and after that a superset of hip thrusts and squat thrusters.

Make sure you are always sweating in the gym.

Workout harder, and eat less. Drink less if you can help it (I can't).

[Scesci]

old thread but ive been getting some results with the following
(for extreme measures)

keto + IF + ECA + yolombine + betahistine

garlic extract,alpha lipoic acid,green tea extract, policosanol

double or triple water daily intake

work out fasted and wait for 2 hours before eating

drink 1,5 liters of frozen cold water at waking up, take cold showers regularly everyday (heat transfer is why Michael Phelps had a 12,000 calories diet without looking like a fat bloat, this is nasa research)

kettlebell swings are one of the best cardio out there
but don't bother with cardio if you can workout without resting between sets (be careful to not fuck your rotator cuff), supersets works very well, get your heart pumping some blood
do a lot of compound exercises, yates row's, pull downs, deadlifts

(06-13-2014 09:09 AM)calihunter Wrote:  

(06-13-2014 06:06 AM)Maciano Wrote:  

This thread seems dead, but highly informative.


Is fasting rly a good idea, because I'm afraid I'll lose muscle tissue that way. Another problem I have with fasting is that when I work & train hard, I feel like having zero energy w/o food.

definitely not, this is from my own experience, i've wasted a lot on money with fast and slow digesting proteins,BCAA, eating every 3 hours, nowadays i just eat a huge plate of eggs, bacon, steak, garlic, brown beans and cabbage (i LOVE that shit with vinegar,salt and olive oil) once a day and voila, same muscle gain with great fat loss

not saying supplements are bullshit but i didn't see a difference without them, i'm still experimenting with fasting without bcaa's to see how it works out, this shit is very expensive in Brasil

you will lose some muscle mass if you're on keto, but its mostly water, when you carb up your body swells, i can't believe how much my chest and biceps just explode in size from night to day after carb refeeding

i never felt tired working out fasted, must be some problem with your insulin, sugar levels

keto again is what makes you very tired because of the lack of glycogen, my strenght didnt dropped on keto, but i would set to failure more early

(06-13-2014 04:35 PM)runsonmagic Wrote:  

I've heard a lot of people suggest fasted cardio on waking up, but a lot on this thread are saying no cardio. Why's that?

my guess is that prolonged cardio releases too much cortisol, it will prevent muscle gain and fat loss, high intensity brief cardio is best if you are on ECA stack, you will sweat like a fatso climbing mount everest on all fours

staying 3 hours at the gym only lifting weights is not as damaging/catabolic as one hour of cardio (especially if fasted or after workout)

[Jazzman92]

Walk on an empty stomach every morning.

keep your protein intake to your lean mass in pounds (basically your weight x (1 - bf%/100))

Eat lots of healthy fats

Find your BMR and add the calories you burn to it. If you eat that much you will maintain your weight. Eat about a 500-600 calorie deficit from that value

Manage your macros. I already mentioned protein but also stay aware of your fat and carb intake.

Do strength training 4-5 times per week

Drink lots of water

[PHC19]

I eat approximately 2700 calories a day, and have lost ~45lbs in just over a year.

My BW has dropped from 230# to 183#, and am on the verge of having a 6 pack (5'10").

I'm also much stronger. For example, on bench press I previously repped 225 @ 230BW. Now, I rep 265 @183BW.

I pretty much eat whatever I want, following a "flexible dieting" (AKA IIFYM) plan.

It's laid out pretty well here.

[Maciano]

(06-14-2014 12:45 AM)PHC19 Wrote:  

I eat approximately 2700 calories a day, and have lost ~45lbs in just over a year.

My BW has dropped from 230# to 183#, and am on the verge of having a 6 pack (5'10").

I'm also much stronger. For example, on bench press I previously repped 225 @ 230BW. Now, I rep 265 @183BW.

I pretty much eat whatever I want, following a "flexible dieting" (AKA IIFYM) plan.

It's laid out pretty well here.

I love reading stuff like this, go on with what you're doing. If you keep this up you will succeed.

[RexImperator]

(06-14-2014 12:45 AM)PHC19 Wrote:  

I eat approximately 2700 calories a day, and have lost ~45lbs in just over a year.

My BW has dropped from 230# to 183#, and am on the verge of having a 6 pack (5'10").

I'm also much stronger. For example, on bench press I previously repped 225 @ 230BW. Now, I rep 265 @183BW.

I pretty much eat whatever I want, following a "flexible dieting" (AKA IIFYM) plan.

It's laid out pretty well here.

I'm also following Jordan's recommendations but it's slow going. I've gone down to kcal = 12 x BW (lb.) and only lost about 1-2 lbs. in the last month.

[Sanblz33]

Keto, Keto, keto.


Staying <10% BF prolonged can do damage to your hormones.


Personally I try to stay 10% year round

[Mongo]

What I've found works well for me is to train and eat like an athlete. If I need to do conditioning work, I generally will run sprints or do metabolic conditioning with rope/farmers walks/sled pushes/kb swings. Basically I train to be strong and explosive with a gas tank to go all day. I eat fairly clean, enough to recover for the next workout but try not to overeat. And I make sure I get plenty of sleep. It's not complicated.

[roberto]

(06-14-2014 06:34 PM)Sanblz33 Wrote:  

Keto, Keto, keto.


Staying <10% BF prolonged can do damage to your hormones.


Personally I try to stay 10% year round

Link? Interested in this idea. Is the 10% fixed in stone, or is there a margin either side where your body will naturally stick at if you eat right? I am around 8% but can get lower easily by counting calories and strict keto.

[Maciano]

(06-13-2014 11:21 AM)roberto Wrote:  

^ That sounds like it would work, if only I could give up my 1000 calorie breakfast....

I'm at 10% but want to get more defined.

10% is good.

My take is that it takes a very different plan to get from 20% to 13-15%, then to get 13-15% to 10%. The former is achievable through calisthenics & low-carb easily, but the latter is a whole other animal.

I sure have got the will, but I need the correct plan.

How did you do it? Can you give a summary of the plan, say what you did in your first week to get going and what you do to keep at 10%?

-- training (how often, long, what kind)
-- food (amount of meals, type of meals)
-- supplements (what kinds? I use magnesium, fish oil, vitamin B, multivitamin, whey & BCAA)
-- sleep (7hrs, up at 6:00hrs)
-- tips & tricks

[PHC19]

(06-14-2014 05:05 PM)RexImperator Wrote:  

(06-14-2014 12:45 AM)PHC19 Wrote:  

I eat approximately 2700 calories a day, and have lost ~45lbs in just over a year.

My BW has dropped from 230# to 183#, and am on the verge of having a 6 pack (5'10").

I'm also much stronger. For example, on bench press I previously repped 225 @ 230BW. Now, I rep 265 @183BW.

I pretty much eat whatever I want, following a "flexible dieting" (AKA IIFYM) plan.

It's laid out pretty well here.

I'm also following Jordan's recommendations but it's slow going. I've gone down to kcal = 12 x BW (lb.) and only lost about 1-2 lbs. in the last month.

How long have you been following his plan? It took me a while for things to really get going.

What would you estimate your compliance % to be?

[PHC19]

(06-14-2014 04:00 PM)Maciano Wrote:  

(06-14-2014 12:45 AM)PHC19 Wrote:  

I eat approximately 2700 calories a day, and have lost ~45lbs in just over a year.

My BW has dropped from 230# to 183#, and am on the verge of having a 6 pack (5'10").

I'm also much stronger. For example, on bench press I previously repped 225 @ 230BW. Now, I rep 265 @183BW.

I pretty much eat whatever I want, following a "flexible dieting" (AKA IIFYM) plan.

It's laid out pretty well here.

I love reading stuff like this, go on with what you're doing. If you keep this up you will succeed.

Thanks - are you asking me to describe in greater detail with what I'm doing?

[Basil Ransom]

Surprised no one has mentioned carb cycling.

Carb Cycling Cliffs: Eat carbs on workout days, and little to none on non-workout days. Some people do a 'refeed' day where they eat carbs on a non-training day once every 7-10 days, I don't. Unless I lift in the morning, I get tired very easily during training if I haven't had carbs. I have about 500 calories of rice before a workout, and 500 after.

Cutting out milk and wheat can help too.

[Maciano]

(06-15-2014 08:36 PM)PHC19 Wrote:  

(06-14-2014 04:00 PM)Maciano Wrote:  

(06-14-2014 12:45 AM)PHC19 Wrote:  

I eat approximately 2700 calories a day, and have lost ~45lbs in just over a year.

My BW has dropped from 230# to 183#, and am on the verge of having a 6 pack (5'10").

I'm also much stronger. For example, on bench press I previously repped 225 @ 230BW. Now, I rep 265 @183BW.

I pretty much eat whatever I want, following a "flexible dieting" (AKA IIFYM) plan.

It's laid out pretty well here.

I love reading stuff like this, go on with what you're doing. If you keep this up you will succeed.

Thanks - are you asking me to describe in greater detail with what I'm doing?

Yeah, but especially what worked for you specifically.

For example, I tend to get tired of eggs every morning or even 2+ times per week. So, I switched my breakfast more to a mix of forest fruits (strawberry, framboises, blueberries, etc), nuts (almonds, walnuts, pecan), Greek yoghurt, cinnamon, cacaopowder & some raw cacao. This made me decrease fat % even faster, while also enjoying breakfast a lot more. Whatever low-carbers say, I grow tired of a high-fat lifestyle all the time, I lose my lust for food; I stop enjoying it.

I'm sure a lot of guys have your own tricks to make a lifestyle change (such as paleo + crossfit) work for you. That's what I'm most interested in. Did you start doing new routines in the gym, good supplements, good meals that fit into the diet, etc.

[Maciano]

(06-15-2014 08:46 PM)Basil Ransom Wrote:  

Surprised no one has mentioned carb cycling.

Carb Cycling Cliffs: Eat carbs on workout days, and little to none on non-workout days. Some people do a 'refeed' day where they eat carbs on a non-training day once every 7-10 days, I don't. Unless I lift in the morning, I get tired very easily during training if I haven't had carbs. I have about 500 calories of rice before a workout, and 500 after.

Cutting out milk and wheat can help too.

I second dropping milk & wheat. If you want to lose weight fast, these two foods should be limited for sure.

[Fighting888]

(04-07-2012 01:03 PM)RaulValdez739 Wrote:  

I want to get down to less than 10%. Any advice you can give...

-High intensity cardio
-High reps lifting
-Eat more complex carbs, fewer "white carbs"
-Don't eat out
-Do stairs and sprints

[JayMillz]

[speakeasy]

Interesting thoughts on cardio. I'm starting to find that cardio just doesn't seem to be working for me. For cardio I've been doing 30 minutes on the stair mill at medium intensity intervals. Shit works me good. Then sometimes I'll follow up with 15-20 minutes on the treadmill, 3mph at max incline. Been doing this at least several times a week for the last several weeks and I've seen basically no change in my weight. I'm 5'8" at 194lbs. Not sure what my body fat is, I'm guessing around 15%. I don't look fat per se, but I have a solid type of build with some muscle and more fat than I'd like. My legs are very lean, an barely even pinch of skin. But I have a lot of "baby fat" around my abdomen that I can just never seem to get rid of. I'm pretty sure I don't even eat over 2,000 calories a day. A typical day for me would be a bowl of oatmeal, a couple eggs. Some strawberries with nutella. Some days I just eat a standard American breadfast of 2 strips of bacon, couple scrambled eggs, hash browns cooked in olive oil and 2 waffles. Either tea or orange juice. Some days I just eat a bowl or whole grain cherios or bran flakes and a banana and some nuts. I frequently snack on almonds and cashews through the day as well as strawberries. Dinner is pretty random. Usually some meat, some vegetables, some carbs. I don't drink beer or alcohol at home, but on the weekend I may have a few drinks if I go out. Either a couple beers or a few whiskey drinks. I mostly drink water for hydration. I buy cranberry juice and go through about a 1 liter bottle over the course of a week. Soda, I don't drink it much but I do like ginger ale and will have about 2 cans a week on average at 140 cals per can.

I'm trying to figure out a new strategy to get myself down to 10% body fat or less. It seems as though exercise isn't going to cut it. It's like my body just adjusts to whatever I do.

The only time I rapidly drop weight is when I'm traveling. I think it's the combination of not eating as much because I'm on the go and doing a lot of walking since I don't have my car and I'm sightseeing. Plus maybe they don't use corn syrup and GMOs in other countries and the food is a different quality. A year ago I went to Mexico for 12 days and literally went down a couple button holes on my belt in that short time. Having diarrhea probably had something to do with it though.

[RexImperator]

(06-22-2014 08:57 PM)JayMillz Wrote:  

I thought I recognized that gym and I was right!...

[RexImperator]

(06-15-2014 08:36 PM)PHC19 Wrote:  

(06-14-2014 05:05 PM)RexImperator Wrote:  

(06-14-2014 12:45 AM)PHC19 Wrote:  

I eat approximately 2700 calories a day, and have lost ~45lbs in just over a year.

My BW has dropped from 230# to 183#, and am on the verge of having a 6 pack (5'10").

I'm also much stronger. For example, on bench press I previously repped 225 @ 230BW. Now, I rep 265 @183BW.

I pretty much eat whatever I want, following a "flexible dieting" (AKA IIFYM) plan.

It's laid out pretty well here.

I'm also following Jordan's recommendations but it's slow going. I've gone down to kcal = 12 x BW (lb.) and only lost about 1-2 lbs. in the last month.

How long have you been following his plan? It took me a while for things to really get going.

What would you estimate your compliance % to be?

I think it's pretty good, as far as weekly averages go, since I track everything I eat with myfitnesspal.com. In the last few weeks I've crept back up to 13x BW which seems to be maintenance.

I read his article when I started on SS last year.

[SteveCR]

(06-14-2014 12:45 AM)PHC19 Wrote:  

I eat approximately 2700 calories a day, and have lost ~45lbs in just over a year.

My BW has dropped from 230# to 183#, and am on the verge of having a 6 pack (5'10").

I'm also much stronger. For example, on bench press I previously repped 225 @ 230BW. Now, I rep 265 @183BW.

I pretty much eat whatever I want, following a "flexible dieting" (AKA IIFYM) plan.

It's laid out pretty well here.

This guy knows what's up. Everybody else is just following various dietary "rules" that all lead to what this guy is doing. Eating less.

I also eat whatever I want, even the "evil" white bread, white rice and white pasta. Peanut butter and jelly sandwiches with a glass of milk all the time. Ice cream or cookies before bed every night. Cereal for breakfast in the morning (Lucky Charms, Frosted Flakes or Cinnamon Toast Crunch ftw), eggs with toast for 2nd breakfast.

For breakfast this morning, I had a bowl of Lucky Charms. For 2nd breakfast, I had 2 pieces of buttered toast with apple butter. For lunch, I just had a big bowl of cheeseburger macaroni. For dinner, I'm going to have tilapia and a big glass of milk. For my bedtime snack, I dunno, depends on what I want. Oreos, M&Ms, ice cream, whatever I'm craving really.

I also juice my vegetables daily. I use the "Mean Green" recipe from Joe Cross' Fat Sick & Nearly Dead documentary.

You can eat whatever you want - it's the amounts that matter.

[Giovonny]

(08-03-2014 03:38 PM)SteveCR Wrote:  

You can eat whatever you want - it's the amounts that matter.

This is generally true when it comes to reducing body fat and/or "losing weight".

Quality of food does matter when it comes to things like:

- maximizing muscle growth
- skin health
- bowl movements
- colon health
- disease prevention
- energy level
- organ health
- vitality

For best results -- Optimize quantity and quality

[bacan]

What is the most pain-free way people have come up with to track what they eat and monitor their calories? I've never consistently gotten in the habit of tracking my calories or macronutrients.

I found myfitnesspal to have a good database and you can scan food in, which is nice. Anyone have any good routines/habits/shortcuts/systems?

[RexImperator]

I've been doing myfitnesspal for over a year (about 15 months) . It's just become an ingrained habit at this point.

[SteveCR]

+1 on mfp.