A little advice on weight gain/loss

NoQuarter

My objective is probably a little contradictory here but here it is anyway.

Im 25, male and about 72kg. Im pretty fit in general, slim enough etc, but recently there has been a little winter coat around the tummy, so I cleaned up the diet, went into a deficit and of course the weight is falling off.

The problem is that the weight is falling off from all over rather than just the stomach (which is of course what happens) but without any weight on the rest of me I look scrawney!

There is still fat left to burn there so ill keep with the deficit but is the solution to my problem to hit the weights hard & get some protein or is that just pissing into the wind?

Can I keep burning the fat for a couple more and (at least) maintain the muscle mass I have or even improve the muscles with weights?

sharky86

Lift heavy compounds and keep the diet bang on.

Squat, deadlift, press, chin ups, dips

NoQuarter

Thanks for that, slight problem I forgot to mention. I cant join a gym right now so I do the weights in my room.

I have a bench, and dumbells with as much weight as I can lift and then some so chin ups and dips are out, any alternatives?

I try do chest & triceps one day and back & biceps the next. Thats all ive been doing really, I bet I need more right? What am I missing? (legs I run quite a bit with hill/sprint work)

sharky86

You got a back wall? You could do a few chins on that.

Grap a couple of chairs to do dips between is nothing else.

As for squats and deadlifts, go grap a bag of coal and put it on your shoulders and squat or pick from ground for deads.

NoQuarter

Ill give them all a go thanks.

And thoughts on protein to supplement the diet? Is it worth taking on the extra cals? My gut is saying yes as I am doing weights!

ray jay

You could try split squats, you don't need as much weight for them. Are you doing anything for your shoulders and abs?

NoQuarter

ray jay wrote: »

You could try split squats, you don't need as much weight for them. Are you doing anything for your shoulders and abs?

Nothing for the abs as there is a layer of fat covering them right now anyway! Im doing flys which tend to target my shoulders, at least thats where i feel it the next day. But nothing specific to the shoulders no.

NoQuarter

Any advice on whether I should get protein guys?

Mellor

No, you don't need it.
It's just food, nothing special. A couple of shakes will wipe out your deficit.
Just eash a protein heavy diet from whole foods and keep the defict. Enough protein, plus weights will help maintain muscle mass.

how many cals a day you eating

NoQuarter

I was aiming for about 1700 but all the calorie counting got too technical for me so I just stopped it. Im sure Id still be in a deficit because im eating a lot cleaner than usual and the weight is still coming off. Even with the weights the muscles look pretty small. Usually when I go through a training phase without a deficit they get noticeably larger, thats what leads me to believe im not getting enough protein.

Ill give you yesterdays diet:

Breakfast:
Bowl of readybrek - slimline milk & honey. 2 slices of brennans wholegrain toast peanut butter.

Lunch:
2 slices of wholegrain bread with ham + cottage cheese - some mixed nuts - banana

Dinner - Chilli con carne with brown rice and beef + kidney beans (CCC came from a tin though)

Supper - 2 slices of beans on toast.

snacks throughout the day:

couple of celmentines - drink only water.

TODAY:

going to have readybrek for breakfast again and toast

Chicken and brown rice for lunch.

Dinner I will have chicken, cous cous and try eat a few veg (hate veg unfortunately)

then whatever snacks i feel like throughout the day. Probably a clementine and a banana or nuts.

Not a huge amount of protein in there thats why I feel like i need some. Im usually too lazy to make a boiled egg in the morning!

Burkatron

NoQuarter wrote: »

I was aiming for about 1700 but all the calorie counting got too technical for me so I just stopped it. Im sure Id still be in a deficit because im eating a lot cleaner than usual and the weight is still coming off. Even with the weights the muscles look pretty small. Usually when I go through a training phase without a deficit they get noticeably larger, thats what leads me to believe im not getting enough protein.

Ill give you yesterdays diet:

Breakfast:
Bowl of readybrek - slimline milk & honey. 2 slices of brennans wholegrain toast peanut butter.

Right, IMO you're getting far too many carbs here & 0 Protein

Lunch:
2 slices of wholegrain bread with ham + cottage cheese - some mixed nuts - banana

Again a massive amount of carbs

Dinner - Chilli con carne with brown rice and beef + kidney beans (CCC came from a tin though)

Loadsa carbs & I cant see the meat in this being good quality

Supper - 2 slices of beans on toast.

Where's the protein? It's all carbs again

snacks throughout the day:

couple of celmentines - drink only water.

TODAY:

going to have readybrek for breakfast again and toast

Chicken and brown rice for lunch.

Dinner I will have chicken, cous cous and try eat a few veg (hate veg unfortunately)

then whatever snacks i feel like throughout the day. Probably a clementine and a banana or nuts.

Not a huge amount of protein in there thats why I feel like i need some. Im usually too lazy to make a boiled egg in the morning!

(I'm in a pissy mood because Im hungry & avoiding course work, so if this seems like a rant it's not meant to be)

Your diet is extremely carb heavy! You're right you need more protein but cut down on the bread, rice (even though its wholegrain oh and the canned CCC,nasty tasting stuff) & start eating more meat & veg!
Yesterday you had NO protein till lunch time, you don't need a supplement you need to eat right!

Why are you aiming for 1700 cals a day? Im roughly the same weight as you & my maintenance is 2,500 - 2,700 depending on sources! I feel better at 2,700 so go with that, I like food 1,000 calories a day deficit imo is too much (the urge to kill from hunger, while been too weak to do it is a horrible feeling :P)

How tall are you btw? I cant see it in the thread!

NoQuarter

Thanks for the reply, I WAS aiming for 1700 because I thought I needed around 2200 normally so i was aiming for a 500 cals deficit, but like I said, that all went out the window because if it gets too technical I lose interest!

Just to clarify, the beef wasnt from a can, it was a superquinn packet, bad punctuation on my part there!

With the diet the way it is I am never hungry, and I do have decent energy but ill happily take your advice.

Is an egg in the morning the only thing I can do?! I was thinking a scoop of protein in with the porridge would be just the ticket!

Im 5'9! I should also say that for the past and next few weeks im spending about 10 hours sitting on my ass in the library preparing for exams so Im not expending too much energy which is why there is no way id need 25-2700 cals!

sharky86

NoQuarter wrote: »

Im 5'9! I should also say that for the past and next few weeks im spending about 10 hours sitting on my ass in the library preparing for exams so Im not expending too much energy which is why there is no way id need 25-2700 cals!

Granted i'm 91kg but I have to eat 2000 kCals just to stay alive each day before I lift my finger and start training.

I have an office job too, When I cut I eat 2800 - 3200 a day..maintaince is around 3500... what makes you think you dont need 2500

NoQuarter

Nothing in particular but its a moot point anyway. When I eat like i previously did I maintain weight, when I eat like I am now I lose weight.

Id rather leave the accounting to the side if possible!

Burkatron

NoQuarter wrote: »

Thanks for the reply, I WAS aiming for 1700 because I thought I needed around 2200 normally so i was aiming for a 500 cals deficit, but like I said, that all went out the window because if it gets too technical I lose interest!

I could be way off but on any of the calculators I use at 5'6 & fluctuating between 68-75kg at different times of the year the lowest maintenance calories I've worked out was 2500!

NoQuarter wrote: »

With the diet the way it is I am never hungry, and I do have decent energy but ill happily take your advice.

No one else can tell you how you feel on what you do so if you feel your diet works for you in terms of energy & controlling hunger you're doing well

NoQuarter wrote: »

Is an egg in the morning the only thing I can do?! I was thinking a scoop of protein in with the porridge would be just the ticket!

Ah, you can have what you want in the morning! A scoop of protein in porridge is as good as anything! You could have steak, Mhmmm steak!

NoQuarter

No you guys could be right, as I said a few times, I threw the calorie counting out the window early on so while I said 1700, i n reality I probably underestimated what i needed from the start and I was more than likely also taking on somewhere in the low 2000's.

A scoop in with the porridge and a shake after I work out sounds like the best way to go!

Where can I get some cheapish Whey? Havent taken it is a few years so is there anything else better out on the markets nowadays?

Mellor

NoQuarter wrote: »

Usually when I go through a training phase without a deficit they get noticeably larger, thats what leads me to believe im not getting enough protein.

NoQuarter wrote: »

No you guys could be right, as I said a few times, I threw the calorie counting out the window early on so while I said 1700, i n reality I probably underestimated what i needed from the start and I was more than likely also taking on somewhere in the low 2000's.

A scoop in with the porridge and a shake after I work out sounds like the best way to go!

Where can I get some cheapish Whey? Havent taken it is a few years so is there anything else better out on the markets nowadays?

If you are losing weight and you aren't overly hungry then you don't need to increase.
You could easily be underestimating and eat 2000 cals when you are aiming for 1700.

Laisurg

NoQuarter wrote: »

Any advice on whether I should get protein guys?

Depends on the money situation, you can get mackeral in tescos for 70 cent a tin which have about 20-25g of protein, they taste like ****e but protein is protein, you could get around a months supply of 50 grams of whey protein a day from powder for 45-50 quid on fitnessupplementsvitamins.ie which works out at about 1.60 a day so it's up to you really, only difference is that whey protein will be absorbed by your body faster than protein from food so it might be better post workout but i honestly don't think it would have a noticeable difference.

Just don't buy it in the shops if you do decide to get it because it's a bloody rip off, you could probably find protein that's even cheaper as well on other sites.