Rapid Fat Loss

[Ren]

[quote]jo3 wrote:
You have some serious will power to do such a restrictive diet 3 times! I remember phat and a few of the “original” RFLers (from the old thread) saying the diet was one of the hardest they’d ever done. But congrats on getting it done!

I’m about to finish my first week of my second cycle on the V-Diet. It’s considerably harder than I remember it being (I have about 10 lbs more LBM than last time), so I’m thinking about switching over to RFL for the remaining 5 weeks. We’ll see after I finish reading the e-book.[/quote]

For the most part I kinda like this diet. Fast results and I don’t mind the low calories too much. I have always struggled to eat enough to gain mass though, so that might have something to do with it, plus my diet before the RFL was carb cycling with really low carbs on non-workout days.

I honestly think the better you are eating, the easier the RFL is. Someone coming from horrendous eating habits will prolly struggle with this.

[Ren]

oh, and I wanted to end at 190 after I am back to normal, so 10 lbs of fat loss in all is the goal.

[Bricknyce]

Hello all,

It’s me, Bricknyce (also known as Brick Dick and Brick Head), the original poster of the old RFL thread.

I now have my friend who has to lose 50 pounds on the diet. He lost 5 pounds this first week.

I’m glad another thread was started. This diet is the most effective weight loss diet I’ve seen.

I went through the diet twice - 4 weeks the first time and 5 weeks the second time. It’s brutal!

[Bricknyce]

[quote]Doc L wrote:

[quote]Ren wrote:
I don’t feel like I have lost any LBM. Unless I am getting stronger and losing muscle at the same time, which seems very unikely to me.[/quote]

I seem to also be getting a little stronger, or at the very least maintaining my lifts. This doesn’t necessarily translate into keeping all of the LBM. Don’t forget that we are stimulating our sympathic nervous system a bit here by dieting so hard, especially if the use of stimulants is involved, and this in and of itself can increase our #'s in the weight room.

Don’t get me wrong, I don’t think the loss will be excessive, I just can’t see a biochemical way around it, especially for those of us whose recommended protein intake on the diet is very low. I hope I am mistaken here.

I also have the suspicion that women’s bodies would rather lose LBM than give up precious fat (to a point anyway), but I do not have any hard evidence to support this (to lazy to check out the literature), just anecdotal stuff from when I used to practice (the clinic that I worked out of did a lot of medical weight loss and I sometimes did follow up visits for the other one of the other docs, when I was slow).

Anyway, the proof would be in the data of BF% calculations and subsequent determination of LBM before and after. Problem is that most methods of BF calculations are wrought with error.

Enough of my horseshit. Hope everyone is having a good Saturday! Scale read 135.5 this morning…OMFG! That is almost 10lbs in a little under a week (started on Monday at 144).

I am interested to see where I am after the refeed. I am not sure how high I should run my carbs. My LBM is respectable for a non-competing female and that, coupled with how fast my weight dropped leads me to believe that I have a decent glycogen storage capacity. This may translate into the higher end. I dunno. Thoughts? Comments? Experiences?

Phatkins, Elusive, Bricknyce, Anyone…???

[/quote]

I figured my carb intake like this. Since a carbup involves 5 to 6 grams of carbs per pound per day, I divided that calculation by 3 because my carbup lasted only 5 hours and 5 hours is about 1/3 of a waking day.

I weighed 245 the first time I tried the diet. 245x5/3=408. That’s 400+ grams of carbs to be consumed in 5 hours. This is easily done by keeping fat and protein low and consuming easy-to-down, carb dense foods like bananas, bagels, bread, baked potato and tortilla chips, whole-grain pretzels, pancakes, maple syrup (about 45 grams of carbs for a measly 1/4 cup), raisins, craisins, other dried fruits, pasta, and white rice.

I’d usually go to IHOP for breakfast during a refeed/carbup. Carbing up with that is a joke. With all the syrups and toppings available, you can consume 200+ grams of carbs in one sitting easily. I’d do either that or have breakfast at home of waffles, oatmeal, raisins, and syrup, and then head to a diner that has a special of an omelet (I chose egg whites) a bread (I chose roll or bagel with jelly), home fries, and a soup (I’d choose matzo ball-chicken noodle soup). That’s a ton of carbs in one sitting too.

I experienced almost no muscle loss on the diet, but I’ve been training seriously for over 10 years. Someone with that kind of experience is going to hold onto muscle much more easily than those with less time or involvement invested.

Plus, although I can’t prove it, and as I wrote in my original thread, my friend and I believe that taking Androgel allows me to keep muscle mass with very few calories.

[Bricknyce]

[quote]gregron wrote:

[quote]Doc L wrote:

[quote]Ren wrote:
I don’t feel like I have lost any LBM. Unless I am getting stronger and losing muscle at the same time, which seems very unikely to me.[/quote]

I seem to also be getting a little stronger, or at the very least maintaining my lifts. This doesn’t necessarily translate into keeping all of the LBM. Don’t forget that we are stimulating our sympathic nervous system a bit here by dieting so hard, especially if the use of stimulants is involved, and this in and of itself can increase our #'s in the weight room.

Don’t get me wrong, I don’t think the loss will be excessive, I just can’t see a biochemical way around it, especially for those of us whose recommended protein intake on the diet is very low. I hope I am mistaken here.

I also have the suspicion that women’s bodies would rather lose LBM than give up precious fat (to a point anyway), but I do not have any hard evidence to support this (to lazy to check out the literature), just anecdotal stuff from when I used to practice (the clinic that I worked out of did a lot of medical weight loss and I sometimes did follow up visits for the other one of the other docs, when I was slow).

Anyway, the proof would be in the data of BF% calculations and subsequent determination of LBM before and after. Problem is that most methods of BF calculations are wrought with error.

Enough of my horseshit. Hope everyone is having a good Saturday! Scale read 135.5 this morning…OMFG! That is almost 10lbs in a little under a week (started on Monday at 144).

I am interested to see where I am after the refeed. I am not sure how high I should run my carbs. My LBM is respectable for a non-competing female and that, coupled with how fast my weight dropped leads me to believe that I have a decent glycogen storage capacity. This may translate into the higher end. I dunno. Thoughts? Comments? Experiences?

Phatkins, Elusive, Bricknyce, Anyone…???

[/quote]

almost 10 lbs? Wow thats great! keep it up

Really just feeling a lot better after one day of being on this break. My energy level was higher, and just knowing that I could eat what I wanted helped me not even really want it. hahaha definitely a psychological boost. I’m excited to see and hear about everyones results from the diet. Good luck everyone

.greg.[/quote]

As far as energy levels go, I was never lethargic on he diet, just really irritated and jumpy. And by jumpy, I don’t mean “good” energy levels. I mean I was just really on edge. It does affect the sympathetic nervous system when you go this low on calories.

[gregron]

[quote]Ren wrote:

[quote]jo3 wrote:
You have some serious will power to do such a restrictive diet 3 times! I remember phat and a few of the “original” RFLers (from the old thread) saying the diet was one of the hardest they’d ever done. But congrats on getting it done!

I’m about to finish my first week of my second cycle on the V-Diet. It’s considerably harder than I remember it being (I have about 10 lbs more LBM than last time), so I’m thinking about switching over to RFL for the remaining 5 weeks. We’ll see after I finish reading the e-book.[/quote]

For the most part I kinda like this diet. Fast results and I don’t mind the low calories too much. I have always struggled to eat enough to gain mass though, so that might have something to do with it, plus my diet before the RFL was carb cycling with really low carbs on non-workout days.

I honestly think the better you are eating, the easier the RFL is. Someone coming from horrendous eating habits will prolly struggle with this.
[/quote]

I agree with you on this point. I’ve always enjoyed a meal of a couple chicken breasts and a big old plate of veggies… so the dieting wasnt too much of a stretch. probably woulda been a lot easier as a cat 2 with the refeeds and carb ups… wouldnt have been too far off of my usual eating habits (minus the occasional treats here and there)

.greg.

[Doc_L]

[quote]mom-in-MD wrote:
Doc- why not go with what the calculator says?

Is this your first refeed? Think of it as an experiment… I would start at the higher end, and then you can always go back down next time.

Have you been taking measurements/pics?
And I think you may be right about the body letting go of lbm before fat…but then it depends on how much you have to lose…congrats on the loss so far…

just keep lifting heavy!!

[/quote]

Thanks MIM!

The calculator give a range of 150 - 300g of carbs. That is quite a range as 150 was considered my ‘high carb’ day when I carb cycled. Gonna aim high me thinks and see what happens!

I took pics and measurements on day1 and will redo on monday. My ‘snug’ jeans were looser today, especially in the waist so we are getting somewhere fat wise. I can also pinch less pudge!

How tightly does everyone stay in that 5 hour window? 300g is going to be a challenge for me. I can’t even imagine trying to scarf down 500ish like you Ren.

Today was fine, did some cardio (belch) and am going to lift tomorrow. I really have cut down on the frequency and intensity of my training. I figure that if I was even able to keep up with it, I would have no where to go if things started to stall.

Sleep tight!

[mom_in_MD]

Jo3- Thanks! Tho, I don’t think it has anything to do with willpower? Is there such a thing? I think its more a matter of how bad you want something, and how determined you are to get it!

For me, I had been struggling for nearly two years…I was tired of doing all the ‘right,’ things to lose weight…then I happened to stumble upon Bricks thread(thanks, btw!!) and it was ON!!

The diet is challenging! Id say the hardest part is being hungry, haha…But its nothing to fear. Thats probably why half of America is obese…dieting is hard and no one likes to be hungry!

DOCL- I stuck to the 5 hr window kind loosely…If I went over an hour or two, it was no biggie…and it didn’t affect the scale any differently…To avoid tummy troubles, I took the advice of someone here and ate low volume food, but high carbs(raisins, maple syrup,etc) And the last thing you want to do is load up on Fiber, OUCH!

[belle1]

[quote]gregron wrote:

[quote]Ren wrote:

[quote]jo3 wrote:
You have some serious will power to do such a restrictive diet 3 times! I remember phat and a few of the “original” RFLers (from the old thread) saying the diet was one of the hardest they’d ever done. But congrats on getting it done!

I’m about to finish my first week of my second cycle on the V-Diet. It’s considerably harder than I remember it being (I have about 10 lbs more LBM than last time), so I’m thinking about switching over to RFL for the remaining 5 weeks. We’ll see after I finish reading the e-book.[/quote]

For the most part I kinda like this diet. Fast results and I don’t mind the low calories too much. I have always struggled to eat enough to gain mass though, so that might have something to do with it, plus my diet before the RFL was carb cycling with really low carbs on non-workout days.

I honestly think the better you are eating, the easier the RFL is. Someone coming from horrendous eating habits will prolly struggle with this.
[/quote]

I agree with you on this point. I’ve always enjoyed a meal of a couple chicken breasts and a big old plate of veggies… so the dieting wasnt too much of a stretch. probably woulda been a lot easier as a cat 2 with the refeeds and carb ups… wouldnt have been too far off of my usual eating habits (minus the occasional treats here and there)

.greg.[/quote]

I also agree!! the better your diet was before this the easier it is!!
i have never been a bad food eater… always the good stuff!! however where my downfall
has always been is NOT eating enough… So to me going on a diet with numbers to hit
is so much more effective… It is tough to consume the refeed carbs but the rest of the diet is great!

[belle1]

so upon waking this morning I feel tighter… muscles seem more visable, and the soft stuff isnt so
thick LOL Did notice a difference yesterday when putting my lotion on … hard to explain but when your
in tune with your body you just know! SO im loving this diet!!

today is my brothers birthday… and my free meal day worked out great!

so heres to another sucessful day!

[gregron]

[quote]robilyn29 wrote:
so upon waking this morning I feel tighter… muscles seem more visable, and the soft stuff isnt so
thick LOL Did notice a difference yesterday when putting my lotion on … hard to explain but when your
in tune with your body you just know! SO im loving this diet!!

today is my brothers birthday… and my free meal day worked out great!

so heres to another sucessful day! [/quote]

congrats. Its always nice to see results in the mirror, not only on the scale.

So I went to the gym this morning after two days of carb splurging and weighed in at 210. So I went from 218 down to 204 then back to 210… So I’m thinking that I’ve gained my water weight back and overall I’m down 8ish lbs? If I can just drop a little more BF soon then it’ll be time to start packing on 5-10 lbs of muscle. I think 210-215 with 10%bf or less would be ideal. I already have trouble finding pants that fit my waist that also aren’t tight as shit on my thighs So i’d like to add more upper body mass (specifically arms and shoulders) and also some calf size. I’ve got a lot of “junk in the trunk” but I just like squatting too much to stop.

Alright everyone thats all for now. Almost time for the NFL games… I’m pumped.

.greg.

[gregron]

[quote]mom-in-MD wrote:
…The diet is challenging! Id say the hardest part is being hungry, haha…But its nothing to fear. Thats probably why half of America is obese…dieting is hard and no one likes to be hungry!
![/quote]

totally agree. It takes some will power and most people dont have what it takes to make a few simple changes to not be overweight. If lookin good was easy everyone would do it lol

.greg.

[mom_in_MD]

The not getting fat is the easy part! just exercise and dont eat junk, but thats no fun! haha

I wouldn’t ever recommend this diet to ‘common folk,’ unless they already have solid dietary habits and have been exercising regularly…This method is more extreme, and fat loss doesn’t have to be that way…

[Doc_L]

Thanks so much for popping in here Brick. Totally helpful!

This thread gets a little frustrating at time as it appears to be heavily moderated. There was an especially big lag time to see Bricks posts. I had to go back through the thread to find them.

I managed to shove in my 300g but had a tough start. Almost tossed after 2 cups of cereal, skim milk and a banana. I think it was the milk After my stomach settled down I went to train (uneventful, couldn’t make any headway with my DLs and I decreased my volume for everything else. #'s were just ok). Commenced refeed and didn’t have any additional issues. So it lasted a little over 5 hours due to the nausea in the beginning.

Next week I will train first then hit the diner or IHOP and do some damage there

Was up a pound this morning, no biggie, didn’t drink enough water the day before and I can tell that my thyroid is getting a little wonky. Hopefully the refeed will help with that otherwise I may have to intervene.

I am very interested to see what the scale says and if I look a little fuller because flat is not where it is at.

Thanks everyone for your contributions to the thread. Hope you enjoyed your weekend!

[Ren]

I like to drink a double serving of Surge to kick off the refeed. Suppose chocolate milk or something like that could work too. Followed with loads of rice-based meals. And potato chips. Yum!

[gregron]

[quote]Doc L wrote:
Thanks so much for popping in here Brick. Totally helpful!

This thread gets a little frustrating at time as it appears to be heavily moderated. There was an especially big lag time to see Bricks posts. I had to go back through the thread to find them.
[/quote]
totally agree… some good advice and insight on the diet that was almost missed.

for everyone going strong keep up the good work.

.greg.

[belle1]

day 7 here have been suffering from a migraine… the salon does that to me sometimes?
think its the smell from the dye… AHHH the price we women pay to look great!!
suffered through it and had a great workout last night…

feel like a taxi this morning … off to 5 am class back home take the two big kids to their
seperate schools… back home, then dentist appointment for me in thirty …
Had a great workout this morning, had more energy than usual for a monday morning
and got 6 hours of sleep well close enough lol

started my morning out with Metabolic Drive shake choked down a HOT-ROX tons of water
a coffee and then omelet more water and my daily pills… does any one else have trouble
with the Flameout pills going down>? just seems they get stuck or something???
now onto getting my pearly whites cleaned

Ren~ great idea on the Surge!! forgot how loaded with carbs it is… THANKS!!

happy monday everyone!

[Ren]

ok, looking great right now. Feeling good about how I will look this weekend down in Florida!

And yeah, I love Surge, for the ladies it can easily account for half of your carbs in your refeed depending on how many servings you have.

[mom_in_MD]

we could all start logs on the rfl forum…I have one!

just sayin

Surge, BRILLIANT!! why didnt I think of that? I normally start the Friday refeed normally, go train, come home and om nom nom nom…

DOC- your only up 1lb after your refeed? Thats awesome!! seeeee, not so scary!! Three lbs is the norm for me…

Ren- keep it up!! How much longer do you have?

Soooo, I inadvertently think I started dieting today…I was only going to do it as a modified fast for the week to see if I can drop some water, but now I’m like SCREW IT!

I’m going for 10lbs or 4 weeks, whichever comes first! I want to be solidly in the low 170s…(my official fighting weight) Ultimately I’d love to get to 165, and riiiiipped! I’m 5’9 1/2" and am at 183 as of this morning…

[Ren]

I only planned to go till this weekend…flying to Florida on Friday. Today is the start of weel 4. Down 11 pounds in 21days. HAH!

[quote]mom-in-MD wrote:
we could all start logs on the rfl forum…I have one!

just sayin

Surge, BRILLIANT!! why didnt I think of that? I normally start the Friday refeed normally, go train, come home and om nom nom nom…

DOC- your only up 1lb after your refeed? Thats awesome!! seeeee, not so scary!! Three lbs is the norm for me…

Ren- keep it up!! How much longer do you have?

Soooo, I inadvertently think I started dieting today…I was only going to do it as a modified fast for the week to see if I can drop some water, but now I’m like SCREW IT!

I’m going for 10lbs or 4 weeks, whichever comes first! I want to be solidly in the low 170s…(my official fighting weight) Ultimately I’d love to get to 165, and riiiiipped! I’m 5’9 1/2" and am at 183 as of this morning…

[/quote]