Best Diet for Losing 40 Lbs?

Nutrition
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[quote]moofs wrote:
wow, I’ve got the best responses here then I did on another forum. Thank you all for your help. I’m just a little overwellmed but will start tomorrow…actually tonight.
I’m probably gonna have a protein shake, then a salad for dinner and a glass or milk or 2 before bed.

The part that really kills me is breakfast. Is an oatmeal bar and a banana ok? thats all I rly can grab before school. The rest will come easy since I can pack my lunch like chicken or so and buy fruit at school.

So I see the key to this is simple, just make healthier choices and do cardio. I’m only still confused on what my fat and carbs should be post workout or just later in the day.

This may sound stupid since this is a simple diet but what should my progress look like to get to this 15% or so bf this will take me to? Should 2 lbs a week be the standard? I read that the first month or so will drop faster. I’m just curious so I dont think I’m doing it wrong and end up adding more calories/food. I’m assuming at 15% my weight should be around 190 or so.
[/quote]

There is too much information, even if it is good information in the beginning. Why drink the milk if you are trying to lose so much weight? Drink water. The milk is good for building muscle at night if you are not worried about gaining a little weight but not for losing weight. You are making the mistake of picking and choosing information.

Just keep it simple. You have been given the information you need. Do not reinvent the wheel. It still sounds like are trying to create a plan to build muscle and lose weight at the same time. Bad mistake. You really just need to focus on losing the fat. If you are dedicated it can be lost fast.

If you keep it simple and learn while you are losing the weight you will be able to gain muscle the right way after you lose the fat. Did you see those links I gave you? Those were grown men who lost weight fast and you are a kid with a faster metabolism. How many forums do you need to post on? Really you only need a little knowledge and a lot of dedication.

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hu, I guess I still am over thinking it. I only have 2 questions…

  1. What to eat for breakfat? With school its hard so I grab a bananna and a oatmeal bar. Is this ok, the rest of the meals are fine to manage.

  2. My current calories are like 2200 a day. If I start following the 7 healthy habits I will be eating more. So If I’m eating more calories like 2500 or so I will still lose fat correct? Since I’ll then be eating healthier food but more of it and doing more cardio (2-3 times a week, mostly HIIT). Just making sure i got this right. b/c if i cut my current calories I’d be at like 1xxx. And thats WAY low.

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[quote]moofs wrote:
hu, I guess I still am over thinking it. I only have 2 questions…

  1. What to eat for breakfat? With school its hard so I grab a bananna and a oatmeal bar. Is this ok, the rest of the meals are fine to manage.

  2. My current calories are like 2200 a day. If I start following the 7 healthy habits I will be eating more. So If I’m eating more calories like 2500 or so I will still lose fat correct? Since I’ll then be eating healthier food but more of it and doing more cardio (2-3 times a week, mostly HIIT). Just making sure i got this right. b/c if i cut my current calories I’d be at like 1xxx. And thats WAY low.
    [/quote]

Find a way to get some more protein with each meal, especially breakfast, even if this is a protein shake. This is part of the 7 habits.

You should lose weight at your current amount of calories just fine. Believe it or not many people estimate their calories wrong because they snack an extra 2,000 calories a day that they do not include and wonder why they do not lose weight. Maybe you can estimate correctly but many people are way off. If you are not losing weight than keep a food journal.

Do not do more HIT, but do not be afraid to some more cardio on the other days, with at least one day off for rest.

Given an update in 3 months.

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In addition to your 2 or 3 HIIT sessions, you may want to throw in a 30-45 minute walk daily. I dont know how close your school is, but maybe wake up 30 minutes earlier than you currently do and just walk there instead of getting a ride. Or walk home if that is more convenient.

Also, now that I know you are school aged and are still a growing boy so to speak, I would definitely think about adding in activity MORE than I would about cutting calories. Now dont me wrong, definitely still make the best food choices you can, but cutting calories at your age is a tender issue because of so many things (hormones, growth, development) that adding in activity is a much smarter answer.

In response to your breakfast thing, in addition to an oatmeal bar and a banana, how about some eggs? What I do personally is fry them up the night before and then zap them for 30 seconds in the morning. Quick, easy, nutritious. 3 eggs in addition to a banana and your oatmeal would be a good breakfast at your age.

Also, I know they are expensive and not very likable sometimes, but try and eat veggies AT LEAST once a day. Those of us not in high school have the added benefit of a little more free time and money to fix some good meals, but try and throw in some veggies at least once a day. As you get older this will need to increase to every meal.

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SUCK IT UP! ok…my little rant is over. How bad do you want to lose this massive fat you have on yourself? You seem to be pretty hesitant on the whole idea. Not to bring you down, but comon, you definitely need a good kick in the ass. Breakfast? got no clue? Wake up earlier. I mean like an hour before usual. This way, you can cook some eggs(which only takes 3-4 mins) and then you can go for a nice walk either to school or just around the blocks(early in the morning equals more fat utilization).

Next point, you seem to have a real dogmatic approach to nutrition. It’s either this or that. Look up the concept of the law of energy balance. You lose weight(some fat, some muscle[try to minimize]) by taking in less calories than you expend…aka…calorie deficit. I could tell you from this approach that you could eat pizza everyday and still lose weight. It wouldn’t be the best way, shoot not even close, but it’s possible. Taking in less cals = WEIGHT loss. Second, macronutrient ratios are important. This is the second concept that’s applied to someone trying to lose FAT and keep MUSCLE. So, in this sense, you want to eat lots and lots of protein and some fats and some carbs. Depends upon you, you’ll have to find out. After you can manage to blend these two ideas together, you basically have the ultimate approach to the nutrition aspect. (side note: eat Pro+carb or Pro+fat, not carb+fat together)

So, now, quit making excuses for breakfast or some other obstacle in your way because I’ve been there and so has all of these other guys who’ve been helpin you. And, I guarantee you that one thing that’s most common among us all is the dedication and motivation to our plans. If you have what it takes, you will succeed as well.

Chris said it best in the physique clinic article, “Physique transformation: It’s perhaps the most difficult challenge a person can accept”.

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You say that you are eating 2200 calories/day – and yet you have 40lbs to loose. You also say that you eat “what ever school serves” or “whatever mom makes.” Obviously we can make estimates. For example, if school serves grilled chicken breasts and green beans – then you are looking at about 25 grams protein and 100 calories from chicken, and about 4 grams of carbs and 16 calories from the green beans – depending on serving sizes (no skin, not fried, no butter on green beans). But if they serve something like lasagna, then look out – who knows how much is in there.

I think it would help to start a food log – and keep track of the ratios of prot, carb, and fat. You may find out that you are eating more than you think – or that if you are trying to avoid carbs – you may not be avoiding as many as you thought you were. Then you can adjust accordingly.

It is not as hard as it seems given internet resources of today.

[quote]moofs wrote:
mintyfresh353 wrote:
First, what is your starting weight? I can probably estimate closely, but I’d rather you tell me. Second, are you looking for fast fat loss or a long-term goal? Third, as Lonnie said, those diet strategies are meant for someone with a leaner body ~ 10-14%. Reason being, they are considered advanced tools that should be implemented when fat loss and muscle retention start to become a struggle.

At your level of bf right now, you do not have to worry so much of losing muscle as long as you keep protein intake relatively high. There are tons of information out there that will tell you that the amount of fat lost is far greater than the muscle loss at your level.

So, for now, concern yourself with a clean diet. Side Note: Subway may seem healthy, but please that’s like saying foods labeled “low-fat” are good for you too. Eat healthy fats, good sources of protein, and you may want to limit your carbs. Carbs are burned first, then fat sources. So, logically speaking, lower carb equals more fat lost (not always the case, but it is for most ppl).

But, for your level, you do not need to restrict them entirely to such an extreme level like 30g a day. You can start using this strat later when you’re nearing 13%. I’d say around 150-200g would be a start.

Also, it seems that you are consuming almost 3000 cals. I just hope that this amount is a deficit in comparison to maintaince levels.

Lastly, do look up the 7 habits. They are very helpful for your goals.

P.S. 90% compliance is a must. You may not even want to cheat, since you don’t have to at your level (ie. leptin levels are very high). I would only cheat once a month for psychological purposes. Personally, I’ve lost taste for junk foods, I only crave healthy carb sources now. So, there you go! Get to it! Train hard, eat right!

I am currently 220lbs. Thats not my current diet. That was one I want to try. My current calorie level is probably like 2000-2400. It kinda goes like this-
Breakfast- bananna

Snack- Protein bar

Lunch- whatever school serves

Post protein shake- whey, oats, milk

Some times a snack

Dinner- whatever mom makes

Before bed- 3 glasses of 2% milk

Thats pretty much it, suck doesnt it…yes it does.

So while getting down to 15% through cardio and just basic diet clean up I can still gain some LBM correct?
If you want me to, I can post a picture of myself.

Is cardio 3 times a week ok, like 2 days of HIIT and 1 day of low intensity like fast walking for 20-30min?
And also, starch carbs like bread, pasta, ect. is ok to eat after my workout I guess to say, before bed?[/quote]

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So I started the diet and just have a quick question- I’ve been on this diet for like 3-4 days and already lost 4lbs. Is this to fast? I know I’m gonna lose weight fast in the start but this seems a little 2 fast. Thoughts?

My diet today was…

-Banana

-Protein bar

-Salad with turkey slices/ celery sticks

-Protein shake

-Fish with a sweet potato

-Salad with salami/ vinegar dressing

Breakfast will be better tomorrow, I bought eggs today. I’m gonna make like 2-3 eggs and microwave them.

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Good job mah man! add in your training to your log so we can evaluate that as well. as for your question, the first couple POUNDS of WEIGHT will be fast due to healthier behaviors but 98% will be water weight. So don’t sweat it. After I pig out on a cheat day (which should be a cheat meal) I bloat up, but within couple days I lose all the excess water held by carbs. After the water’s gone, you’ll start shifting in your weight loss to fat which should be a slower pace, i.e. 2 lb/week. But with your stats, it can be even higher (don’t wanna put a number down to limit the amount; it varies). So, keep up the work, update as much as possible, and don’t be lazy.

Sidenote: cut the salami, add a better substitute, could be chicken breast or salmon. Everything else seems “alright”. Hopefully your banana complements your eggs for breakfast. Protein w/ every meal should be your new motto!

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[quote]moofs wrote:
I got like 40lbs to lose, Im at 30% bf and want to get to like 12 or so. I’ve packed on some muscle but i want a more athletic body as well as preformance.

I was thinking of carb cycling since im concerned about losing the muscle I’ve gains but i hear carb cycling is really only good for smaller weight lose goals. What do you think would be a good diet to try? Velocity, keto, what?
I need some help,
Thanks[/quote]

Well i hope i inspire you crosses fingers
A month ago, my bf% was at around 20%
I lost 10lb of fat, and GAINED 3lb of muscle in a month
Before:
5’7.5"
190lb
19.?? bf%

After:
5’7.5"
183lb
13.?? bf%
srry i forgot my exact bf%, ill look it up later
its hard 2 lose a lot of weight, but ill keep on this diet for a few more months, then do the velocity diet

All i did was cut out junkfood, ALL junkfood, no cheat meals, quit coke and drank diet coke instead, took lots of protine, skip rope, HIIT once in a while, and regular running.

Long way 2 go, wish me luck lol

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Now you are worried you are losing too much weight? I told you not to even worry about how much weight you lose the first month. Again you are overanalyzing this whole process. It will be mainly water, possibly some shit, and some quicker initial loss of fat. I think I lost almost 25 pounds my first month. After the first month I usually lost 3 pounds each week, but some weeks as low as 1 pound and some weeks as high as 5 pounds. 2 pounds per week is a generic rule of thumb, but if you are hardcore and 100 percent dedicated you can likely lose up to about 4 pounds a week.

I gained 15 pounds after thanksgiving, and taking a few days off. It was gone the next week; obviously it was mainly water, carbs and some shit and not fat or muscle gain. This may be shocking to some, but I know my body well now and this is just how I am. I would not even worry if you lost 15 pounds your first week. Like I said your first month does not really count. It counts, it is just you can realistically expect to keep losing at that rate. After that you aim for 2 to 4 pounds per week. Weigh yourself in the morning after you piss at least once a week.

http://www.T-Nation.com/readArticle.do?id=1846703

Shugart lost 70 pounds in 4 months.
I have lost 80 pounds in less than 6 months.
Many other people have done it even quicker. Did you see the links I posted? Did they lose it too quick? Who cares if you have a lot to lose?
Not that losing fat is easy, but once you have done it you realize it happens fairly fast if you are very dedicated.

You have the tools and it seems you are off to a good start. Remember this is a marathon (the rest of your life) and not a sprint. Keep your compass pointed in the right direction and you will get to your destination. Do not worry how long it takes you to get there. If you do it in 3 months great. If it takes you a year, than it takes you a year.

Focus on losing the weight. When you lose the weight do not go on some ridiculous all out bulk to trying to gain muscle. Remember that fat loss can be much, much, much, much, much quicker than muscle gain.

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icecold I think the problem with listening to you is that everyone sees that you wrote something, but nobody cares because Shakira is in permanent booty shake mode right next to it.

moofs try not to overanalyze this, eat healthy food 5-6 times a time, try to get protein in each meal, weight train and do something to help you burn extra calories and be consistent. That’s IT.

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Best diet:

Whatever you’ll stick to.

PS: Keep your carbs low. No, seriously. Lower.

Dan “K.I.S.S.” McVicker