Help with losing weight & toning

[Rossco1987wales]

Hi guys this is my first post im new to the forum and was wondering if someone could try and help me.

I have been training 3 times a week doing workouts using light weights but i dont seem to be losing any weight. I train Mon, Wed & Fri

Its hard to train around work but i do the best i can. I work a minimum of 11hrs a day 5 days a week mon-fri and i have increased in weight from 175lbs to 196lbs.

The main reason for increase in weight is that i sit at a desk job 11hrs a day since the demand in my job has increased dramatically over the last year and a half. I used to go boxing training a minimum of 2 sessions per week for 1hr 30mins per session and use the gym 2 times a week up until the demand in my job increased now i cant go boxing and can only get to the gym early mornings.

Any Help would be appreciated.

Stats:
Age: 23
Height: 5ft 10inches
Weight: 196lbs
BF%: 21% (Estimate)

Heres how my day plans out:

6:00am: Wake up for gym

1 apple
1 pint of water
1 Small glass of 100% Orange juice


7:00am: Workout
50min workout depending on which day it is, will depend on which muscle groups im working out. But will do 6 exercisie's 3 set's on each minimum of 10 reps.

8:00am
100% Whey protein shake 2 x 25g scoops mixed with water

8:30am: Breakfast
Shredded Wheat Ceral & Skimmed Milk

11:30am: Break
i Ususally eat 1 of the following.

Orange, Pear, Banana, Apple, Grapes

14:30pm: Lunch
1 x 140g Chicken Breast with vegtable rice (Alternate with tuna salad)
1 x Fruit (Orange, Pear, Banana, Apple, Grapes)
1 x Fat free yoghurt

5:00pm: Break
1 x Fruit (Orange, Pear, Banana, Apple, Grapes)
1 x Cup of tea 1 teaspoon of sugar

6:45pm: Break
1 x Fruit (Orange, Pear, Banana, Apple, Grapes)

9:00pm: Tea (At home finally)
I think this is sometimes one of the problems. On occasions i will cheat because im tired and buy some form of fast food but i have bin strong recently and stopped it!!

1 x Cod Fillet (Will alternate with chicken breast or lean steak)
Mixed Veg
Baked Potato (Will alternate with new potato's)

1 x Cup of coffee with skimmed milk and 1 surgar.

I have noticed myself getting a little leaner but not as much as i should be. I have had blips in my diet in the past i am guilty of that but have been really strong recently and have had very very little junk food.

Any advice or help would be appreciated because i am not used to being overweight and its starting to get me down a bit now.

Cheers

[sanman]

I am also a new member but from what I see your diet is all wrong!!!! I think...lol. But let the experts chime in.Check around for some other memebers diets for losing weight & you can compare diets.Good luck!!!!!

[Rossco1987wales]

any pointers to where im going wrong? any help would be much appreciated. thanks

[sanman]

Like I said I could be wrong. But I started a cutting diet & most members told me to cut out any fruits&yogarts.They also said I should drink at least a gallon to a gallon & a half of water a day.I been eating 8 times a day all healthy food & believe me I thought eating that much all day I wouldnt lose any weight.But in 2wks I see a big diffrence around my waiste.I weighed my self a wk ago & lost 4 pounds after the first 2 wks.But I will leave it up to the experts to help you out!!!!!

[Rossco1987wales]

Ok thx for help.

anyone else have any suggestions?

[caffeine_menace]

Yep...U need to add ur BMR, TDEE and the macros for each of ur meals to properly help u. Without that we would all just be guessing.

Fat/protein/carb/calories or in wut ever order u like.. U can get the macros from fitday.com or nutritiondata.com

Stats:
Age: 23
Height: 5ft 10inches
Weight: 196lbs
BF%: 21% (Estimate)

Heres how my day plans out:

6:00am: Wake up for gym

1 apple
1 pint of water
1 Small glass of 100% Orange juicedrop this whole meal and do something like 6-8 egg whites and 1/2 cup of oats


7:00am: Workout
50min workout depending on which day it is, will depend on which muscle groups im working out. But will do 6 exercisie's 3 set's on each minimum of 10 reps.

8:00am
100% Whey protein shake 2 x 25g scoops mixed with watergood but add maybe 1/2-1 cup of oats again

8:30am: Breakfast (i would do meal at 9am)
Shredded Wheat Ceral & Skimmed Milkdrop this and do 4oz lean pro and a complex carb

11:30am: Break
i Ususally eat 1 of the following.

Orange, Pear, Banana, Apple, Grapesdrop all the fruit do same as 8:30 meal

14:30pm: Lunch (should be 1:30)
1 x 140g Chicken Breast with vegtable rice (Alternate with tuna salad)vegatable rice?? make sure its brown rice with veggies in it does the tuna salad have pasta in it?
1 x Fruit (Orange, Pear, Banana, Apple, Grapes)drop this
1 x Fat free yoghurtdrop this

5:00pm: Break (should be 3:30)
1 x Fruit (Orange, Pear, Banana, Apple, Grapes)drop this and do lean pro/complex carb
1 x Cup of tea 1 teaspoon of sugarsplenda,equal,???wut type of sugar?

6:45pm: Break (should be 5:30)
1 x Fruit (Orange, Pear, Banana, Apple, Grapes)drop this, again lean pro/complex carb

9:00pm: Tea (At home finally) (should be 7:30)
I think this is sometimes one of the problems. On occasions i will cheat because im tired and buy some form of fast food but i have bin strong recently and stopped it!! DONT CHEAT!!

1 x Cod Fillet (Will alternate with chicken breast or lean steak)
Mixed Veg
Baked Potato (Will alternate with new potato's)drop this only do fiberous veggies for dinner

1 x Cup of coffee with skimmed milk and 1 surgar. drop this

And u might be able to add another snack at 9:30 like natty PB with cottage cheese or a casein shake

Spreading ur meals out to about every 2 hours is a good plan...keeps u eating so u dont get hungry and gets the metabolism in fat burnin mode...

[Rossco1987wales]

Thanks for the reply.

Here are the answers to your questions.

I have sometimes just have a tuna salad no pasta just cabbage, carrot etc but most of the time I have tuna & sweet corn with wholemeal pasta.

Sugar is a low cal sugar. Just a regular low cal sugar you would get in the supermarket.

In work at the moment but when I get home I will repost diet using the macros & BMR & TDEE.

These may be silly questions and obvious to some but I must ask because I am confused.

6-8 Egg whites and ½ cup of oats

1. How do I get just the egg whites? lol
2. Do I cook the eggs? If so how? Or do I just drink the egg whites raw with the oats mixed in?
3. Where do the oats come into it? Do I cook the oats? Mix with Egg white? Or 2 completely separate meals?
4. What type of oats would you suggest?

4oz lean pro and a complex carb

Could you provide me with 1 or 2 examples please?

Again thanks for your help & input

[caffeine_menace]

1. How do I get just the egg whites? lolU can buy liquid egg whites or use regular eggs and when u crack it mix it back and forth into each shell till all the white comes out without dumping the yolk
2. Do I cook the eggs? If so how? I fry them in a panOr do I just drink the egg whites raw with the oats mixed in?some ppl do this but i perfer it cooked
3. Where do the oats come into it? Do I cook the oats? Mix with Egg white? Or 2 completely separate meals?u can mix it but its 2 meals. U cook it with water in the micro for about 1 min. then i usually add cinnamon to it to give it flavor
4. What type of oats would you suggest?Its just the regular whole grain oats that cook in a minute, u should be able to find it in the cereal section

4oz lean pro and a complex carb

Could you provide me with 1 or 2 examples please?chicken breast/sweet potato or tuna/brown rice. look at other ppl's diets here to get more examples. plenty of combinations

Again thanks for your help & input

......

[Rossco1987wales]

Just one last thing im worried about.

I have a very in-active job sat on a seat all day. I train 3 times a week for roughly 1hr in the mornings. I'm worried that ill be taking in to many calories through what ive been reading from the above there seems to be a lot of meals or is this usual?

Thanks

[caffeine_menace]

Just one last thing im worried about.

I have a very in-active job sat on a seat all day. I train 3 times a week for roughly 1hr in the mornings. I'm worried that ill be taking in to many calories through what ive been reading from the above there seems to be a lot of meals or is this usual?

Thanks

The usual is 6-8 meals plus u need to figure out ur tdee so u can adjust the meals and portions accordingly along with cardio to fit wut u need.
Trust me i used to do 4-5 meals a day and was advised to bump it to 7 cuz i wasnt getting all i need from the 4-5. When the food is healthier u need to eat alot more of it to reach ur caloric goals. Even with little to no exercise and eating healthy under tdee ur going to lose weight. Ive been there done that, unfortunately me like plenty others were brain washed since young to believe u had to eat less to lose weight when in fact its the opposite. I eat more now than i ever did(clean of course) and hav trouble finishing meals sometimes. Its definitely the hardest part.

[Rossco1987wales]

That’s made me feel a lot more comfortable about eating more and I can see what your saying makes sense.

I’ll work out my BMR and TDEE when I get home later and post a new diet using the macros and hopefully it will improve on my current diet and if you could tell me what your opinion of my new diet is.

Once again thx a lot for your help. Really appreciate it.

[kingfish]

The usual is 6-8 meals plus u need to figure out ur tdee so u can adjust the meals and portions accordingly along with cardio to fit wut u need. When the food is healthier u need to eat alot more of it to reach ur caloric goals... I eat more now than i ever did(clean of course) and hav trouble finishing meals sometimes. Its definitely the hardest part.

This is the problem I'm having. I'm just used to eating less, and preparing food to bring to work everyday is a PITA. I've noticed I don't poo everyday like I did when i was following a meal plan my trainer worked out for me. I assume this is because my metabolism has slowed down and isn't working as quickly as before. I'm thinking about adding in a daily weight gain shake, around 500cal or so to see what effect it has. It might the lazy solution, but if it has the effect I'm looking for I'm ok with that.

[Rossco1987wales]

Sorry about the delay in posting Macros but been getting in to late from work so this is the first chance ive had to do it

Ok a little worse than i thought, my BF% is higher got it checked at the gym correctly

Stats:
Age: 23
Height: 5ft 10inches
Weight: 196lbs
BF%: 27% (correct BF%)
BMR: 1755
TDEE: 2412
TDEE = 2412 - 500 = 1912 TDEE to lose weight

Macro = Fat/protein/carb/calories

Heres my new diet plan:

6:00am: Wake up for gym

Oats mixed with 100% Whey Protein
45g Oats 3.6/5/27/150
Whey Protein 1.4g/30/1.5/99

6:30am: Workout
50min workout Mon/Wed/Fri/Sun, will depend on which muscle groups im working out. But will do 6 exercisie's 3 set's on each minimum of 10 reps.

Also havent started yet but am planning on doing 30mins cardio on a thurs & sat

7:30am: PWO
25g Whey protein shake 1.4g/30/1.5/99

8:45am: Breakfast
118g/4oz Chicken Breast 8.7/33.5/0/221.5
Brow Rice 0.45/1.25/11.2/54.1

10:45am: Break
118g/4oz Turkey Breast 8.3/25.8/0/185.3
Brow Rice 0.45/1.25/11.2/54.1

1:45pm: Lunch
118g/4oz Turkey Breast 8.3/25.8/0/185.3
Brow Rice 0.45/1.25/11.2/54.1
or
118g/4oz Chicken Breast 8.7/33.5/0/221.5
Brow Rice 0.45/1.25/11.2/54.1
or
130g Canned Tuna Drained 0.6/35.2/0/146
45g Wholemeal Pasta 0.91/5.5/29.8/149

3:45pm: Break
130g Canned Tuna Drained 0.6/35.2/0/146
45g Wholemeal Pasta 0.91/5.5/29.8/149

5:45pm: Break
118g/4oz Turkey Breast 8.3/25.8/0/185.3
Brow Rice 0.45/1.25/11.2/54.1
or
118g/4oz Chicken Breast 8.7/33.5/0/221.5
Brow Rice 0.45/1.25/11.2/54.1

7:45pm: Tea
1 x BirdsEye Simply Be Cod Fillet 11/22/0.8/190
1 Cup of Cauliflower 0.1/2.0/5.3/25
1 Cup of Broccoli 0.33/2.5/5.8/29.9

Macro = Fat/Protein/Carbs/Cal
Total Intake = 54/254/121/1828

I know its not exactly 1 meal every 2 hrs but its the way my breaks / lunches are planned at work and this is the best i could do.

could you give me your thoughts please caffeine_menace. also should i change my diet on the days i dont workout?

thanks

[Rossco1987wales]

Bump - Could someone please critique my new diet plan. Any help would be much appreciated. Goal is 2 loose weight.

[nk92mi]

i would eliminate the carbs after 4 pm. looks good to me. may want to do more cardio. what kind of work do u do? i have the same goals as you and about to start hitting it hard. we are about the same size (20% BF). i havent hit the gym since august of last year, but have been running a lot. i think if you bump up your cardio to 45min and do it one/two more times a week, you will start to see a difference. also, do your cardio in the AM on an empty stomach, it is what i have been reading in a lot of these forums. i cant wait to start! will follow your progress

[Wingman1]

I'll let the gurus help u out cause im on the loosing weight side same as you,, but i think there should be more greens in there somewhere, plus you might need something else after the 7:45 meal,, i do natty almond butter and cassein shake,,, cardio u should up it a little more than 2 days a week i do 5 days for 45-55 mins each time,,, but like i said i'll let the diet gurus help u out dont want to miss-inform you

[caffeine_menace]

Sorry about the delay in posting Macros but been getting in to late from work so this is the first chance ive had to do it

Ok a little worse than i thought, my BF% is higher got it checked at the gym correctly

Stats:
Age: 23
Height: 5ft 10inches
Weight: 196lbs
BF%: 27% (correct BF%)
BMR: 1755
TDEE: 2412
TDEE = 2412 - 500 = 1912 TDEE to lose weight

Macro = Fat/protein/carb/calories

Heres my new diet plan:

6:00am: Wake up for gym

Oats mixed with 100% Whey Protein
45g Oats 3.6/5/27/150
Whey Protein 1.4g/30/1.5/99

6:30am: Workout
50min workout Mon/Wed/Fri/Sun, will depend on which muscle groups im working out. But will do 6 exercisie's 3 set's on each minimum of 10 reps.

Also havent started yet but am planning on doing 30mins cardio on a thurs & sat

7:30am: PWO
25g Whey protein shake 1.4g/30/1.5/99
Definitely add some oats here too

8:45am: Breakfast
118g/4oz Chicken Breast 8.7/33.5/0/221.5good but try to get leaner meat 4oz of CB should be like 1-2g of fat...
Brow Rice 0.45/1.25/11.2/54.1

10:45am: Break
118g/4oz Turkey Breast 8.3/25.8/0/185.3again leaner meat...
Brow Rice 0.45/1.25/11.2/54.1

1:45pm: Lunch
118g/4oz Turkey Breast 8.3/25.8/0/185.3again leaner meat...
Brow Rice 0.45/1.25/11.2/54.1
or
118g/4oz Chicken Breast 8.7/33.5/0/221.5
Brow Rice 0.45/1.25/11.2/54.1
or
130g Canned Tuna Drained 0.6/35.2/0/146
45g Wholemeal Pasta 0.91/5.5/29.8/149

3:45pm: Break
130g Canned Tuna Drained 0.6/35.2/0/146
45g Wholemeal Pasta 0.91/5.5/29.8/149

5:45pm: Breakmaybe bump this to 6:30-7 and replace this food with ur 7:45pm meal
118g/4oz Turkey Breast 8.3/25.8/0/185.3
Brow Rice 0.45/1.25/11.2/54.1
or
118g/4oz Chicken Breast 8.7/33.5/0/221.5
Brow Rice 0.45/1.25/11.2/54.1

7:45pm: Teado at like 8:30-9pm
1 x BirdsEye Simply Be Cod Fillet 11/22/0.8/190use this as ur prior meal and replace with either casein shake and natty PB or natty PB with cottage cheese for bed time snack...
1 Cup of Cauliflower 0.1/2.0/5.3/25
1 Cup of Broccoli 0.33/2.5/5.8/29.9

Macro = Fat/Protein/Carbs/Cal
Total Intake = 54/254/121/1828

I know its not exactly 1 meal every 2 hrs but its the way my breaks / lunches are planned at work and this is the best i could do.

could you give me your thoughts please caffeine_menace. also should i change my diet on the days i dont workout?

thanks

Everything seems to be good just get leaner meat and make the few changes i did in bold. U and i are similar in stats just that ur younger and about an 2" taller but this is almost my exact meal plan ive been following since jan 1st and to date ive lost about 30lbs. Cardio is key!! keep lifting and make room for cardio 5 days a week. Even if its at home for like 30 min...Do stuff like high knees or lunges with out rest just get ur heart rate up for those 30 min and u should be good Almost forgot...Once u start doing more cardio and lifting regularly u might want to readjust ur tdee and start taking in more calories. I used to do like 1800 like you and now i eat like 2500-3000 a day and still burning the fat off, once it slows down u can always adjust it down...Not to much room to adjust when ur 1800 u get my drift???

[Rossco1987wales]

Ok thanks 4 input. Dont think macros are correct 4 chicken an turkey i will double check. Ive started diet plan and feeling leaner and less bloated already. I am finding it very hard 2 eat so much though is that normal wen u start? Do u think i should cut carbs down in the afternoon? And should my diet change for non training days? Thanks for all the input. Also are there alternatives 2 brown rice cos it gets a bit bland lol

[caffeine_menace]

I still have trouble eating so much....everyone does its normal...If u follow wut i put in bold for the carbs u should be ok...Usually low carbs after 5pm is wut works for me but ull just hav to see how ur body reacts to it...sum cut it earlier sum eat it all day...On training days u should be eating as close as possible to tdee(the cals u burn will put u back down) on non training days do like 300-500 lower than tdee. Alts to brown rice....hmmm.... Oats, whole wheat pasta, sweet potato and if u look in the recipe section i have a home made hummus thats easy to make and taste good...those r pretty much my staples but try looking at other diets for more ideas.

[Rossco1987wales]

Ok thanks for all your help. already starting to feel better and leaner and not as bloated so ill post back in a few weeks and let you know how im getting on. The one thing i think i will find difficult is keeping to the meal times but so far so good. My TDEE IS 2412 so should i eat as close to 2412 as possible on training days and 2412 - 500 = 1912 on non training days?

[caffeine_menace]

My TDEE IS 2412 so should i eat as close to 2412 as possible on training days and 2412 - 500 = 1912 on non training days?

You got it...Any time you dont train cut the calories for that day only..Leaving 1 meal out is wut i usually do...

[RoadToRecovery]

Take your LBM and multiply it by 4 and subtract that from your caloric needs for the day.

Your diet: Too much fruit.

Key staples:

Sweet potato
Boneless & skinless chicken
93% Lean Ground Beef
Turkey
Oats
Tuna
Salmon
Eggs
Egg whites (in a carton)
Whey Protein
Whole wheat breads and pastas

And the list goes on and on.

Complex carbs should be the majority of your diet, coming in second is protein and lastly fat.

You need to be doing cardio and lifting a decent weight to stimulate proper anabolism.

Timing - you cant eat a full meal and then workout a half hour later. It takes a bit of time to get you that complete rise in your blood sugar levels.

[RoadToRecovery]

Ok thanks for all your help. already starting to feel better and leaner and not as bloated so ill post back in a few weeks and let you know how im getting on. The one thing i think i will find difficult is keeping to the meal times but so far so good. My TDEE IS 2412 so should i eat as close to 2412 as possible on training days and 2412 - 500 = 1912 on non training days?

No. You are eating for a defecit always. The difference is how big of a defecit. Above, I mentioned TDEE - (LBMx4). Now lets say you are 160lbs lean. 160 x 4 = 640. 640 x 7 days a week = 4480kcal. Now to take it a step further - 1lbs of fat = 3500kcal - Ff you are eliminating 4480kcal a week from your total caloric intake... that equates to 1.3lbs of fat.

If you only eliminate 500kcal a day from your non workout days, that comes to a 2000kcal deficit. It would take you 2 weeks to lose 1 lbs.

[caffeine_menace]

If you only eliminate 500kcal a day from your non workout days, that comes to a 2000kcal deficit. It would take you 2 weeks to lose 1 lbs.

This would be the case if he never worked out. But this with workout days he should be losing any where from 1 to maybe 3lbs a week depending on how hard his training days are..

[RoadToRecovery]

This would be the case if he never worked out. But this with workout days he should be losing any where from 1 to maybe 3lbs a week depending on how hard his training days are..

No, if your TDEE is 2400kcal then thats how many calories you need to maintain your exact composition. Your TDEE is comprised of your daily activities.

[caffeine_menace]

No, if your TDEE is 2400kcal then thats how many calories you need to maintain your exact composition. Your TDEE is comprised of your daily activities.

I understand this. But lowering the cals on non workout days and on workout days ur burning more cals wouldnt this put u in the negative in the end of the week so you would lose weight?? If not then wut would his cals need to be on non workout days according to his stats to lose 1-2lbs a week???? Just trying to understand the math of it better...

[RoadToRecovery]

The point is, you want to have 3500kcal a week subtracted from your weekly tdee to lose 1lbs of fat. A general way of going about things, is subtracting 2kcal per lbs of body weight from your daily caloric intake.

[RoadToRecovery]

This is also while keeping that 640kcal deficit on workout days. Now this is just a generalization - but the idea is just to keep a constant deficit so you can hit at least 1lbs of fat loss weekly.

[caffeine_menace]

A general way of going about things, is subtracting 2kcal per lbs of body weight from your daily caloric intake.

Is this from full weight or lbm? If its full body weight he would have to eat about 1300 cals on non workout days to be able to burn fat? Seems a bit low doesnt it??...

[RoadToRecovery]

Is this from full weight or lbm? If its full body weight he would have to eat about 1300 cals on non workout days to be able to burn fat? Seems a bit low doesnt it??...

Its very general like I said. There are many ways to go about it, but regardless - his calories are too low to begin with. I would guess about 3000 as a TDEE.

[RoadToRecovery]

I dont know what the OPs activity level is, but if he is working out... his TDEE is around 2977 according to my calculations.

196 @ 27%bf

[caffeine_menace]

From his post he doesnt work out much at all...But said he was gona try and do more...Thats why i suggested as he gets into a better workout routine that he starts upping his cals later but didnt want to undercut his cals as of now....