Basic Diet Questions

[cpjones13]

Everyone has been really helpful thus far, so I figured I'd ask some incredibly basic questions:

1) What is the difference between complex and simple carbs? Also, which are more importatnt and which should I eat less of to lose my "spare tire"?

2) How do I determine the correct # of calories to consume each day in order to bring my body fat % down? (I'm currently at 22-24% BF with the majority of it around my gut and hips) I am currently eating almost nothing but protein and very little carbs..i.e 5-7 hard-boiled eggs and cottage cheese for breakfast, a snack of protein shake, 2-3 tunafish sandwiches on whole grain wheat bread for lunch, a snack of V-8 and cottage cheese, a whole grain tortilla with fat-free cheese and salsa for early dinner and then turkey breasts and grilled bell peppers for dinner.
I haven't started working out yet because I want to get my diet in order first.

Am I on the right track or not?

I'm 6'5 230lbs and 28 y/o I've neglected my physique for about a full two years and have been relying on work to act as my exercise. Any help would be great!!

[BIG TEXAN]

Lets see
breakfast- I'd stick with 6-8 egg whites
cottage cheese
at least 1/2 cup oats
meal 2 - something besides protein shake (stick with real food unless time doesn't permit)

meal 3 - tuna fish sandwhiches, ok but try using maybe mustard instead of mayo or cool whip. Perphaps on lettuce as a salad instead of the bread than you can use a small portion of real mayo

meal 4 - V-8 and cottage cheese, not my first choice but doesn't sound all that horrible except the high sodium

meal 5 - whole grain tortilla with fat free cheese and salsa, I'd go with some tuna and 1/2 cup rice or something of that sort.

Meal 6 - looks good

I'd have something like cottage cheese right before bed. Also start getting some morning cardio in before you eat.

As for simple carbs.... ex. sugar, honey, dextrose, fruit, etc.
complex carbs - oats, whole grain breads and pastas, potatoe, yams, beans, rice,

Complex is what you want in most of your meals you only want simple carbs like dextrose right after a workout.

[ColdSore]

Yeah BT made it alot better, i think you had way to many carbs in the original plan. Maybe try and split you meals up a little more...like more snacks throughout the day rather than 2-3 sandwiches for lunch. And definatley eat a good source of protien before bed to avoid going catabolic, and you wont be as hungry when you get up.

If i was cutting at your size i would consume about 2500-3000 a day then as the weight starts to go lower the number a bit, but not for long.

You might also look into carb cycleing????