Not sure which diet to do and an ECA question....LONG!!

[AbsolutelyLethal]

First some background...I started working out about 3 yrs ago this month...I weighed like 215 then and was 6 foot....Last summer i was my heaviest at 247...I dieted for a month took some xenadrine for a couple weeks....I also lifted ever day for an hour on a six day split and did areobic exercise too, varied up between bike, treadmill, stairmaster, ecliptic machine....Id say i lost about 5-7 pounds....I also lost A LOT of strength....I went from 225 X 10 on bench to 225 X 3 or 4, Squat(never did it often till last summer) went from like 225 X 10 to 185 X10.

I came to college and continued working out about 5-6 times a week with less auxialary stuff...Went from doing like 6-8 exercises a day to like 4-5....I didnt do any cardio besides walking around campus and i started eating 3 times a day....One giant meal at 12 PM, a fruit smoothie with 20-30 grams of protein powder, and another big meal at 7.....My weight some how further dropped to 233....Strength increased slightly to 225 X 5 on bench.

This semester had been the same strength wise...Weight fluctuates between 233 and 237 but i did notice i lost about an inch on my waist(use one more belt loop now)....I cut out the little bit of cardio i use to do, did some brazilian jui-jitsu up here...I attempted to run but quit once i realized my stamina blew and i could only jog for a 1/4 mile at most....

Recently my weight has stayed at 237-238 and the strength has been increasing...I can now do 255 X 3(todays lift) and 295 X 5 on squat.

My plan for the summer is to try to cut weight again, like try to get to 225, hopefully 215(205???? PLEASE!!!)....Im not sure if i should go for a low cal/low fat diet, the egg/chicken/tuna plus complex carb diet, or what. I tried Xenadrine, i really shouldnt have since my BP is 135-140 / 70-75 , and the results were not good anyway. It gave my indigestion and made me burp a lot. i constantly felt tired on it too. Like it made me feel lethargic and i would go to sleep earlier...My father said i got "angry" on it but i dont think so.

Whats the best diet and cardio to approach and supplements to take, im scared of ECA since i got high BP. I was thinking low cal and low fat, with swimming or jogging 5 times a day. PLEASE help....

[beenie]

It seems highly probable that your boarderline high blood pressure is associated with your weight.

It seems very strange to me that a 5 lb weight loss would cause such a drastic impact on your strength. Are there any other factors you have not considered?

You leave out other important information. What is your body fat percentage. It you weigh 235 and are 30% bf thats one thing but if you are 235 and 8% that is quite different.

Xenedrine and ECA are nearly identical chemically, so if you can handle one you can hadle the other. That said, either is not a substitute for good diet or exersise. For cutting I do a low carb diet. Others do low calorie. Do which ever you feel you can tolerate and stick to. They both work. Cardio also does wonders for cutting. When I was cutting I did 60 minutyes fairly high intensity 5x/wk. You should be doing no less than 30 minutes (and I do not mean a brisk walk- I mean running (or whatever the equivilant is on the eliptical machine)). Weight lifting is great for building, and it even promotes fat loss, but its terribly difficult to cut by lifting alone.

[AbsolutelyLethal]

I started off ar 215 like 20-21% body fat and im done to about 18-19 now....

I cant figure out what causes my high blood pressure....I have even done medical studies....I dont eat much salty food, i dont drink caffinated beverages(only water or milk in my cereal), i have even done exercising...It doenst matter.....

I know an ECA and Xenadrine are the same, i was saying is it worth going on it with the high BP....Last summer it made my resting heart rate shoot like to 60....

Im thinking of doing this diet:

Breakfast:6 Egg whites and 1 Cup oatmeal
Snack: Protein shake after workout
Lunch: Can of tuna or Some chicken and brown rice
Snack: Protein bar
Dinner: Protein and very little complex carb

Every meal i drink 2-3 cups of water...Plus the water i drink at the gym....