Hey folks, I just wanted to hear your thoughts on the best way to structure my diet.
I’m at about 15% body fat @ 75kg right now. My goal is to reduce body fat to 10 to 12% and to increase muscle mass. If this can be obtained simultaneously, even better.
On the one hand it is always said that you need a caloric surplus in order to build muscle, and a caloric deficit to lose fat.
Then I came across the 5/2 article by CT. He basically said that there will be a total caloric deficit over the course of a week due to the 2 low caloric days and that it would still be possible to add muscle due to increased insulin sensitivity and the surplus on the other days.
Now, I can’t follow a strict 5/2 diet. I’ve tried it last year, and I was not able to keep sharp and concentrated, which I need to be when I draft contracts, write my PhD, etc. And while I was able to reduce my body fat, I was not able to add any muscle mass (I even feel like I lost some).
So I was thinking about a softer version of the 5/2 diet (or maybe make it a 4/3 diet):
I train weights on 4 days per week. On these days I would try to reach a caloric surplus, comprised mainly of carbs and protein. On my off days, I would stay very low carb and stay below maintenance, in a way that allows me to stay in a slight deficit over the course of a week.
Does this make sense and will it work? And if so, what caloric amounts should I aim for?
My basic metabolic rate is 1784 kcal, but I’m not sure how the maintenance level should be calculated. Most calculators only offer an average number based on the amount of exercise you do. Should I calculate two separate numbers instead (One for training days, taking into consideration that I burn like 500 kcal through training, and one for off days, where I spend my day in front of the desk)?
Thanks in advance.