Stubborn 10kg to lose

RyanTubs

Hey guys,

I said I'd start one of these as although I have been eating very clean imo and exercising regularly I haven't been making much progress with regards weight loss, which is my primary goal.

Diet breakdown is:

Breakfast:
3 scrambled eggs

Lunch:
chicken/turkey/steak with veg 2x a week
another 3x same with carbs (potatoes/rice)
other 2x = bacon & eggs/smoked salmon on brown bread,etc.

Dinner:
5x steak/chicken/turkey/fish & veg
2x above + carbs

Snack:
Banana/Protein shake/Rice cakes with smoked salmon,etc.


Workouts are varied with upper body weight sessions 1 or 2 x a week & cardio 1 or 2 x also. Usually make gym 3x a week at least.

So I've been doing this for about 6 weeks now and lost ~4kg after the first 2 weeks but since then my weight has stabilised. I'm currently 79kg but would ideally like to be 70kg.

I don't think there's anything up there I need to cut out so it might be down to portion sizes being too big? At the same time I'm often hungry by the time each meal comes around so I don't think I could manage cutting back at all. Perhaps the snacks are the problem considering they would be eaten late at night? Also I'm not taking any supplements currently but am considering starting fish oils/niacin/magnesium tablets soon. Appreciate any help.

El_Dangeroso

Why do you need the snack? Are you really hungry? They are quite substantial snacks, I'd count a snack as a piece of fruit, a small piece of cheese or perhaps a boiled egg, your snacks are more like a small meal.

Could you be 'recomposing'? As in gaining muscle thereby obscuring your fat loss on the scale. What height are you?

Devia

When you combine a weight loss and muscle building routine its common to hit a plateau after the initial water weight drops off. My advice would be to ignore the scales and focus on your routine. Your diet is fine and you're working out 3 days a week so relax and let the mirror do the talking.

RyanTubs

El_Dangeroso wrote: »

Why do you need the snack? Are you really hungry? They are quite substantial snacks, I'd count a snack as a piece of fruit, a small piece of cheese or perhaps a boiled egg, your snacks are more like a small meal.

Could you be 'recomposing'? As in gaining muscle thereby obscuring your fat loss on the scale. What height are you?

You hit the nail on the head to be honest. I was holding back a bit with the OP but my "snack" is pretty much a late night meal before bed. I have my breakfast around 8:30, lunch around 1:30 and dinner around 7:30. They're pretty big gaps so you would think I'd be able to sleep fine around 12/1 without another meal. I think it's just being in the routine of always having eaten something before bed, usually cereal or toast, etc. It also doesn't help that I like to unwind before bed by smoking a joint.

Would you recommend eliminating any food after dinner and just snacking healthier during the day?

I don't think its recomposing to be honest. I'm not doing any training different to what I've done for the last year or two. In fact if anything I'm doing more cardio now.

RyanTubs

How is 16% BF for a 5'11'' 80kg male? And how long would it be expected to get that to drop to ~10% with a clean diet and regular exercise? Or does it require going beyond that?

El_Dangeroso

Yeah, the joint is gonna have to go if you want to get rid of that late night snack. Maybe wean yourself off with a glass of wine instead, otherwise your sleep will probably suffer.

Or, you could try to replace it with something like raw carrot sticks, surprisingly filling.