Want a diet plan to help me build LEAN mass and burn body fat %

[brazilian10]

thanks Paul Could you be more specific on what exercises you do for each day? How many times a week do you hit abs? Thanks again man.

[paul606]

I mix up the order each workout to keep my body guessing.

Monday - incline bench, peck deck, flat bench, decline pullovers, dumbell curls, preacher curls.
Tue - leg extensions, squats, leg curls, 45deg leg pres, calf raises, weighted sit-ups, hanging leg raises.
Thu - wide-grip chin ups, bent over rows, lat pulldowns, seated cable row, skull crushers, tricep cable pushdowns.
Fri - side dumbell raises, military press, reverse peck deck (for rear delts), upright rows, shrugs.

I'd do more abs after cardio saturday morning, always weighted ab work.

[brazilian10]

Hey people, I followed the diet and til this day (after almost 3 months)****Note that I started being serious 1 month ago*** I'm now down to 150 lbs, but I still cant see my six pack though idk why, but everybody has been telling me I look leaner and I feel like my bf% is around 13 now. I followed the diet Paul gave me and it worked really well I lost 15 lbs in one month and maintained a decent amount of muscle. But will I still gain muscle on this cutting diet?Or did i hit a plateau cause Im not getting any bigger...also how important is to count calories and how do you do it without it driving you insane? I'll post a pic when I get home.

[brazilian10]

can somebody guess my bf%?

[brazilian10]

Here's another pic..I just get frustrated by my mid section, it doesn't matter how low my weight is I can never have a six pack -_- ....hope Paul is still here..

[brazilian10]

Anyone?

[--->>405<<---]

brazilian what r ur complete stats? age weight height bf%? 13% maybe i suggest u get it tested to be sure..

post ur complete diet u have been eating including total cals and macros

i dont even know who paul is. ive been on here daily for a year..

[brazilian10]

hey 305, stats are 5'11 150 lbs 13% bf? TDEE is 2650 cals, and because I was cutting I cut my calorie intake to 1900 cals a day.

My diet:
Breakfast: 4 egg white + 1 whole egg + 40 grams old fashioned oatmeal
meal 2: 1 cup of chicken breast fajitas and 1 cup of brown rice
Work out
Post workout meal: 2 scoops of whey (48 grams of protein) + 40g of oatmeal
meal 4: 1 can of tuna + 2 scoops of whey protein
meal 5: 1 cup of chicken breast fajitas + 1 1/2 cup of Brocolli
meal 6: 1 cup cottage cheese + 2 tbs of peanut of butter

[--->>405<<---]

at 150lbs 13%bf u have 130.5lbs LBM

rough starting maintenance: LBM x 15

130.5 x 15 = 1957cals (rough maintenance)

for deficit id reduce to 1650cals and run it 60/20/20 pro/carb/fat

1650cals
247g pro
82g carbs
36g fat

refeed every 14 days at 250g carbs keeping the rest of ur diet the exact same.

position ur carbs at 40g pre and post workout. the rest of ur meals have green veggies and dont worry about the carbs in them.

cardio 5x per week am fasted or pwo or HIIT..

u could also consider cycling ur carbs. this would require more effort in laying out diet. also some research on ur part..

chek out this thread if ur interested in cycling carbs (which may be a good route for u):

http://forums.steroid.com/showthread...4#.UGcAfk3eemg

[brazilian10]

for deficit id reduce to 1650cals and run it 60/20/20 pro/carb/fat What do you exactly mean by 60/20/20? Do u mean that every mean should have 60g of protein 20g of carbs and 20g of fat? What are the benefits of carb cycling? And will I still keep on losing weight on this diet, because my goal isnt to lose weight anymore but to keep my muscle mass, and slowly keep on losing bf, I want to go down to 10% bf. So in general I want to stay around 150-160 lower my bf to 10% and keep a decent amount of muscle..

[--->>405<<---]

Read sticky: dieting 101: cutting

U know less than i thought (sorry not to sound mean)

60/20/20 is the percentage if total cals coming from each macro group (pro/carb/fat) respectively:

1650 cals x .60 = 990cals from protein (at 4 cals per gram = 247.5g protein)

1650 x .20 = 330cals from carbs (at 4cals per gram = 82.5g carbs)

1650 x .20 = 330cals from fat (at 9cals per gram = 36.6667g fat)

Get it? Keeping protein high (247g 130lb LBM = 1.9g per lb LBM) should help preserve muscle. We are not in the weight loss business here dude. Were in the body recomposition business! U may lose some LBm while cutting which is why i suggested cycling carbs.

U are fairly lean now, lean enuff to cycle carbs IMO. Did u read the thread i bumpd for u? If not read it.

[brazilian10]

Ohh makes complete sense,thanks man. Thanks for laying the math it really helped me understand it better. But How am I supposed to make a diet plan with the precise amount of calories and grams of p/c/f? I never exactly counted how many calories and grams of p/c/f were in each meal. For example, I know 1 boneless skinless chicken breast has 26 g of protein, and because my daily protein intake should be around 247.5 g I divided it by 6 meals which told me I should eat 41 g of protein Per meal..so all this time I've only been eating a lil more than half of the protein, because i only ate 1 chicken breast -_-'. i guide myself on cups, like when im cooking for the week i make chicken breast fajitas and make one cup of chicken breast one meal, so i suppose i was only eating 26g if protein right ?? also I'll get right on reading carb cycling.

[GirlyGymRat]

^^^ yes, looks like you are not eating enuff chicken.

there are apps that give you the macros such at fitnesspal, livestrong.com. Just select the food item, enter the portion size and adjust as necessary.

[--->>405<<---]

Ohh makes complete sense,thanks man. Thanks for laying the math it really helped me understand it better. But How am I supposed to make a diet plan with the precise amount of calories and grams of p/c/f? I never exactly counted how many calories and grams of p/c/f were in each meal. For example, I know 1 boneless skinless chicken breast has 26 g of protein, and because my daily protein intake should be around 247.5 g I divided it by 6 meals which told me I should eat 41 g of protein Per meal..so all this time I've only been eating a lil more than half of the protein, because i only ate 1 chicken breast -_-'. i guide myself on cups, like when im cooking for the week i make chicken breast fajitas and make one cup of chicken breast one meal, so i suppose i was only eating 26g if protein right ?? also I'll get right on reading carb cycling.

how do u know 1 chikn breast has 26g protein? what if one chikn breast weighs 7.6oz and another one weighs 8.3oz?? by ur logic they both will have the same amt of protein because they are both "one chikn breast"..

in reality 4oz RAW chikn has approx 26g protein. u need to purchase a food scale and weigh everything u eat uncooked. this will give u the most accurate guesstimation of the total cals and macros ur putting in your body.

u need to do like GGR said and get an online calorie/macronutrient counter to track ur cals and macros. i personally use caloriecountdotcom. i have an app for my iphone. these cal counters are the only way to go. im going to assume ur a fairly intelligent fellow and can figure it out once u start playing with it if u have a prob feel free to ask here and im sure we can trouble shoot for u.

build a diet hitting the macros i suggested at 60/20/20 (if thats what u decide to run) and manipulate the serving sizes in the cal counter app until u hit ur desired totals. considering the fact that u do not count or track macros its no wonder ur progress has stalled. (makes me think of the "intuitive eating" LOL).

let me know when u have read the carb cycle thread and have a decent understanding of what it entails.

[brazilian10]

Ok, first thing ill go but a food scale from Walmart today, read the carb cycling and download calorie count app :-) will get back at you soon bro

[brazilian10]

Downloaded myfitnesspal app and it seems very helpful an I also Bought a food scale today ...I'm just a bit confused on how people say to measure you're food especially meat raw? what about measuring it cooked? Wouldn't it be a pain in the ass to measure meat and chicken raw...
So you measure it out and cook them separately??
What if you are cooking in bulk??

[Riptorn]

When you say measure do you mean weigh the meats? If so most meats are weighed precook due to varying degrees of moisture loss resulting in post cooked meat weights varying as much as 33ish%. For the most part post cooked meat retains 95-99% of its protein. Fat can vary a lot.

[--->>405<<---]

weigh all ur meat raw dude.. like rip torn said. meat loses moisture when its cooked and weighs less.

same goes with foods u add water to like oats and brn rice. u wanna measure it DRY not cooked.

all food should be measured (weighed) in its natural (pre-cooked) state.

[brazilian10]

weighing meat raw it is Could you guys critique my diet plan? I want to try to make each meal have around 40 grams of protein, just want to make sure if you guys can tell me if I'm hitting my macros right. Heres what 405 told me my diet should be close to: 1650cals 247g protein 82g carbs 36g fat..am I hitting my macros correctly?? Any suggestions on foods I should incorporate in this diet? Any foods I should take out?

DIET- protein/carbs/fat/calories

1)Breakfast: 5 egg whites + 1 whole egg 21/0/5/156 + whole grain oats 40g 5/27/3/150 + 1/2 scoop of whey (13g of protein) 13/4/1/70
[ 39/31/9/376 ]

Workout

2) Post workout meal: 1 1/2 scoops of whey protein 40/12/3/210 + 40g of oats 5/27/3/150 [ 45/39/6/360 ]

3) Lunch: 6 oz of chicken breast 40/0/3.8/165 + 3/4 cup of brown rice 4/38/2/170 [ 44/38/5.8/335 ]

4)Meal: Crackers + 6 oz of tuna in water 43/0/1/197

5) Meal: 6 oz of chicken breast 40/0/3.8/165 + Veggies 74g 1/3/0/20 [ 41/3/3.8/185 ]

6) Meal: 1 cup of low fat cottage cheese [ 22/14/5/180 ]

Grand Total: 235 grams of protein/ 125 grams of carbs/ 31g of fat/ 1633 calories

[--->>405<<---]

weighing meat raw it is Could you guys critique my diet plan? I want to try to make each meal have around 40 grams of protein, just want to make sure if you guys can tell me if I'm hitting my macros right. Heres what 405 told me my diet should be close to: 1650cals 247g protein 82g carbs 36g fat..am I hitting my macros correctly?? Any suggestions on foods I should incorporate in this diet? Any foods I should take out?

DIET- protein/carbs/fat/calories

1)Breakfast: 5 egg whites + 1 whole egg 21/0/5/156 + whole grain oats 40g 5/27/3/150 + 1/2 scoop of whey (13g of protein) 13/4/1/70
[ 39/31/9/376 ]

Workout

2) Post workout meal: 1 1/2 scoops of whey protein 40/12/3/210 + 40g of oats 5/27/3/150 [ 45/39/6/360 ]

3) Lunch: 6 oz of chicken breast 40/0/3.8/165 + 3/4 cup of brown rice 4/38/2/170 [ 44/38/5.8/335 ] drop the rice/replace with green veggie

4)Meal: Crackers + 6 oz of tuna in water 43/0/1/197 add green veggie, crackers have 0 carbs? id prob drop em

5) Meal: 6 oz of chicken breast 40/0/3.8/165 + Veggies 74g 1/3/0/20 [ 41/3/3.8/185 ]

6) Meal: 1 cup of low fat cottage cheese [ 22/14/5/180 ]

Grand Total: 235 grams of protein/ 125 grams of carbs/ 31g of fat/ 1633 calories

dropping the rice should put ur carbs closer to where u need them. u could add a couple egg whites to meal 1 to get ur protein closer to 247g. dont worry about the carbs from the green veggies u add.

also not that it matters but ur brn rice carb macro for 3/4 cup is 38g?? my rice i use has 132g carbs in 1 cup. u must be measuring this cooked. when u use rice u should weigh/measure it dry.. same with oats or anything u add water to. (pasta, etc..)

[brazilian10]

Hey guys just wanted to keep in touch and let you know that its been a couple weeks on this diet and I weigh 160 lbs (gained around 5 lbs ) guessing those 5lbs come from mostly muscle, It def seems that my bf% has lowered though, I'll post some pics later..and would def like for you guys to guesstimate my bf%...I have a couple questions on how important is it to eat breakfast early in the AM? Recently I've been taking breakfast around 10 am, is it too late?.
Here are the pics:

[brazilian10]

Anyone? 405?

[--->>405<<---]

id put u around 15%bf.. give or take.. from the looks of u u could prob benefit from cycling ur carbs. that would be my next move if i were u if reducing bf% further is ur goal.

[brazilian10]

Reducing bf% is definitely my goal 405, while still being able to build muscle. I read the cycling carb link you posted and it was clear. So bc I went from 155 lbs to 160 now I should readjust.

At 5'11 160 lbs 15% bf my TDEE would be 2823 calories, my LBM would be 140? Are my numbers correct? Please feel free to make any corrections bro

so, (TDEE)2823 cals - (a deficit of)800 cals= 2023 cals which I should consume on my moderate days.
so Moderate days look like: 2023 calories
How much protein?
How much carbs?
How much fat?
I ask this because my stats have changed and I assume that the number of calories, grams of protein, carbs, and fat I should consume should increase? Also, I'm aware of how I need to reduce my carb intake on low days by half the grams I take on moderate days, and on high days double it. While leaving the amount of proteins, fats and (calories?)the same all through the week of course.
I'll use the same schedule you use as in: Mon(low), Tues(low), Wed(low), Thurs(High), Fri(mod), Sat(mod), Sun(mod) =)
I'm definitely excited to start this, and hopefully see my stubborn fat go away lol

[--->>405<<---]

at 160lbs 15%bf u have 136lbs LBM

136 x 15 = 2040 (rough maintenance)

IMO u should start ur moderate day at 1750cals

carbs 150g = 600cals
fat 20% = 38g (350cals)

600 + 350 = 950cals

1750 - 950 = 800cals (protein) 200g

moderate day:
1750cals
200g pro
150g carbs
38g fat

low day:
200g pro
50g carbs (veg only)
38g fat

high day:
200g pro
250g carbs
38g fat

i would get ur bf% chekd if possible. u dont wanna be guessing at how much LBM u have..

cardio am fasted days 1-4 (refeed day 4) and pm day 7 moderate intensity 45mins

[brazilian10]

ok, so on moderate and high days Im allowed to eat carbs such as brown rice, oatmeal, sweet potato,wheat bread, and even pasta? while on low days solely vegetables? (that meaning no oatmeal for breakfast?), so breakfast on a low day would be an egg white omelet w veggies, as opposed to my regular egg white, oatmeal breakfast..? Also, how early should I eat breakfast??

[--->>405<<---]

Doesnt maTter when u eat brkfast as long as its after ur cardio. On low days my breakfast is 1cup egg whites and 8oz 96/4 ground beef cookd together and then topped with texas pete. Of course this is with me eating 350g protein but u get the idea. I usually have 1000g green beans and 1000g broccoli (these are daily totals and work out to 65g carbs which is fine IMO).

[brazilian10]

Oh ok, makes sense. Could you please check my moderate day diet man?

DIET- protein/carbs/fat/calories

1)Breakfast: 5 egg whites + 1 whole egg 21/0/5/156 + whole grain oats 40g 5/27/3/150 + 1/2 scoop of whey (13g of protein) 13/4/1/70
[ 39/31/9/376 ]

Workout

2) Post workout meal: 1 1/2 scoops of whey protein 40/12/3/210 + 40g of oats 5/27/3/150 [ 45/39/6/360 ]

3) Lunch: 6 oz of chicken breast 40/0/3.8/165 + 3/4 cup of brown rice 4/38/2/170 [ 44/38/5.8/335 ]

4)Meal: 6 oz of tuna in water 43/0/1/197 + 1 cup of brocolli 2/4/0/30 [45/4/1/227]

5) Meal: 6 oz of chicken breast 40/0/3.8/165 + Veggies 74g 1/3/0/20 [ 41/3/3.8/185 ]

6) Meal: 1/2 cup of fat free cottage cheese 11/16/0/80 + 1 tbsp of natty peanut butter 3.5/8/7.5/95 [14.5/16/7.5/175]

GRAND TOTAL: 228g of pro/ 131g of carb/ 33g of fat/ 1658 calories

I need 19g of carbs and 5g of fat more to reach my my new macros goal of ( 200/150/38/1750 ) for moderate days.. I'm having trouble finding where and what foods to incorporate in my diet to reach it...any suggestions?

[--->>405<<---]

totaling ur macros i get 1733cals.. leave the diet where u have it. i suggest weighing/measuring ur rice dry. 3/4cup dry brn rice i use has about 90g carbs. u have 3/4cup of rice = 38g carbs which tells me ur measuring it cooked.

MEASURE ALL FOOD IN ITS RAW STATE

run the diet like u have it for moderate. simply drop ur carbs completely and add in veggies for low days and increase ur carbs to 250g for high days..

when u run short on a particular macro all u need to do is increase ur portions to compensate. if, for example, ur 20g carbs short and eating 40g oats, simply increase ur oats portion to 50g and see where ur at. u just have to play with it until u hit ur goal macros.

[brazilian10]

hey 405, today is my first day starting carb cycling. How does your post workout meal look like on low days? Giving the fact that I need to avoid oatmeal..and what kind of exercises do you do on low days when your energy is scarce?

[--->>405<<---]

since this is ur first day i would not expect ur energy to be low since u ate carbs yesterday.

low carb days i have 8-16oz meat + 300g-600g broccoli usually PWO.. lately its been 16oz chikn breast and 600g broccoli

LOW DAY COMPLETE DIET FOR ME

meal1: 1cup eggwhites, 8oz lean beef

meal2: (PWO) 16oz chikn, 600g broc

meal3: 8oz beef, 500g green beans

meal4: 8oz chikn, 500g green beans

[brazilian10]

My post workout meals usually consist of 2 scoops of whey and oatmeal, so is 2 scoops of whey protein and 400g of brocolli ok? why do you eat 8-16 oz of meat :0, thats a lot compared to the 6 oz of meat i consume. just wondering... And how does your workout schedule look like? could you show me a brief summary of it? Thanks in advance bro.

[largerthannormal]

just my 2 cents but id worry about throwing some muscle on those bones bro if those pics are 165lbs you wont even start to look cut until u drop 15lbs..

if this pics are at 190( i dought) cause im 190 and am much much larger at 12% and 5'11"

unless your goal is to become a shredded toothpick id reconsider(similar to your models which are not 145lbs)

[largerthannormal]

although ur second pics do look much better

[brazilian10]

@largerthannormal yeah I understand but a year ago I packed muscle and fat by eating a bulk diet and reached 180 lbs (the highest i ever been) and I hated it, I felt bloated and I didn't look right. The thing is my goal isn't to be huge, but have decent muscle and be cut..I dont want to weigh more than 170 lbs that's for sure... and Isn't carb cycling all about losing bf while building muscle?? And the models weigh 180 not 145 lol

[mockery]

carb cycling is more about getting a set amount of calories ( lets say over 8 days) on the days that you really need the calories or dont need them. Cycling them to make much better use of them then following teh exact same micros day in and day out.

[brazilian10]

I'm confused ...so I can't build muscle while lowering bodyfat? Will I get even skinnier with carb cycling?

[--->>405<<---]

I'm confused ...so I can't build muscle while lowering bodyfat? Will I get even skinnier with carb cycling?

typically NO u cant do both. occasionally it occurs (usually with gear). think about it. u build muscle with a SURPLUS of cals. u lose fat with a DEFICIT of cals.

how can u be both in a surplus and a deficit at the same time??

define skinnier. do u mean lose muscle or body fat?? on a carb cycle diet u should retain most LBM and drop bf%.

[brazilian10]

I didn't know that, I thought you told me carb cycling would've help me gain muscle mass while still lowering my bf...like largerthannormal said and I agree, I def don't want to look like a toothpick. My goal weight is to be 170 lbs and 10-12% bf (got ten more lbs of muscle to gain, and around 5% bf to lose)...so should i stop with carb cycling? I dont want to get fat though like last time bros, kinda scared...i dont know what to do? calorie surplus? then after reaching goal weight start carb cycling? Ugh it always seems that when I finally start getting something its always ends up wrong, Fml. I mean I did lose weight with 405s tips and went from 175 lbs to 160 lbs..but I want to still be able to gain some muscle while keeping my bf low..like I said b4 I want to go up to 170 lbs with avoiding the most fat gain possible...so that cutting wont be a bi*ch like this time.

[--->>405<<---]

And will I still keep on losing weight on this diet, because my goal isnt to lose weight anymore but to keep my muscle mass, and slowly keep on losing bf, I want to go down to 10% bf. So in general I want to stay around 150-160 lower my bf to 10% and keep a decent amount of muscle..

This is what i am going by. If u want to gain muscle ur gonna have to either lean bulk or bulk. Chances are with either u will put on some fat. Hopefully less with lean bulk but still prob some.