Weight-Loss Diet plan. Thoughts? Advice?

Weight-Loss
T

TheDude

New member
Hello folks,

I’ve been lurking and reading around on these forums (very few posts) for the last few weeks. The amount of information in one location is fantastic. Really makes it easier to find some good info. I’ve been able to read around and find answers to questions I have (which are endless really. I’m always looking to learn something new). I was hoping I could get some advice/critiques on my diet plan. I know I have plenty of holes to fill, and am always tweaking things as I learn, but the advice and help given by so many members here is great, so I thought it would be a huge help.

Quick Background: I’ve never been in stellar shape (well, when compared to where I want to be). I’m not super obese or anything, and can play just about any sport without any troubles. I’m fairly athletic, but I have plenty of body fat I need to shed. About 7 weeks ago, the light in my head finally clicked, and I realized I need a serious lifestyle change. So here I am, on my quest to be healthy, and have a body I’m not embarrassed about.

-Goals:
o Short term – Cut my body fat %. Plain and simple. I’m not worried about my number on the scale. I just want to look and feel good (though I’ll admit, staying at or above 200 would be swell, but not at the risk of keeping excess fat). Will also like to gain some (well, keep the loss at a minimum) lean muscle in the process.
o Long term – Once I get the body fat into check, I plan on bulking up. I’m not looking to compete in bodybuilding competitions, but would like to add some mass and strength. The best example I can think of is say…Vin Diesel if that helps. I’m not saying I want to “look like him”, but it gives a rough idea of the goals in mind.

-Like I mentioned above, I do consider myself overweight, but I can handle rigorous workouts and such. Currently I do a 1 hour “Fighter Fit” boxing class, which is a very intense 1 hour session using various routines the martial arts establishment uses to train their fighters, adjusted to be a fitness class. It involves a lot of heavy bag work, some light weight training at times (very light, more endurance training than strength training), always a full body and core workout. Lots of ab work as well as pushups. I do this 3 three times a week (M, W, F). Think of it as a very intense cardio/endurance session.

I also try to get 3 days of weight training in as well, usually M, W, F. These are full body workouts. And on days I’m not in the boxing class, I tend to do some light cardio, ranging from riding bicycles around town, swimming, and the occasional jog.

-Stats:

o 28 Years old
o Male
o 6’1”
o 225
o Bodyfat % - Not entirely sure, but I guess around 20-25%.

-My progress has been ok I think for the last few weeks. Haven’t measured body fat (which I know I should), but I feel a heck of a lot better. I can see some spots where the fat is starting to burn, but it’s a slow steady process, which is a-ok by me.

-I believe my BMR is around 2,300.

This is what a typical day looks like

Meal 1 - 4:30 AM
3 whole egg omelet
1 slice low fat cheese
1 slice whole grain bread
1 cup fat free milk
1 banana (most days)
~500 – 530 calories

Some days I will consume a morning shake on workout days which consists of the following:
1 cup ice
1 cup fat free milk
1 oz almonds
1 banana
1 scoop ON whey protein
~450 calories

Meal 2 - 7:30 AM
1 sliced apple (on occasion 1 cup of melons, but typically an apple)
½ cup low fat cottage cheese
~150 calories

Meal 3 - 10:30 PM
1 sandwich (whole wheat bread, sometimes natural peanut butter, sometimes mustard and turkey or ham)
1 cup low fat cottage cheese
½-1 cup veggie or fruit
~600-650 calories

Meal 4 - 1:30 PM
1 sandwich (whole wheat bread, sometimes natural peanut butter, sometimes mustard and turkey or ham)
½-1 cup veggie
~450 calories

Meal 5 - 4:30 PM
1/2 cup low fat cottage cheese most days
1 scoop whey in skim milk on workout days
~200-250 calories

Meal 6 - 7:30 PM
Typically 2 (maybe 6 oz each?) pieces of some sort of grilled meat or fish. Chicken, Pork or salmon most of the time, and occasionally a steak (but not often)
1 cup veggie (usually broccoli or asparagus, sometimes red potatoes)
Some nights I will add about a cup of brown rice
~400-600 calories


A rough calorie count for the day is 2300 calories, obviously varying slightly day to day, but typically right around that amount. Also, one day a week, typically Saturday that amount will go up to around 3000-3500, depending on the meal I eat. We tend to go riding on our motorcycles and have a meal or two while we’re out and about. The worst being hamburger and fries, but we keep it sensible, but my calorie count is higher usually one day a week. I’ve read this is helpful to avoid keeping your body out of “survival mode”, but I have no facts to back that up. So far it seems to be working, but your opinions on this would be great.



Sorry for the long winded post. I wanted to give as much detail as possible. Any advice on the diet or workout would be immensely appreciated.

Thanks!
 
I'm gonna let someone else comment on the exercise, but I'll throw in my $0.02 on the food.

First of all, I just quickly entered everything into a calorie program and came up with a calorie count of 3080 at the high end.

You didn't mention your current weight, so I'm not sure what a good calorie number would be for you. At 200 lbs, your maintenance would be around the 3000 mark. So if you think you're eating 2300 calories and you're really eating closer to 3080 calories, and then adding in a once a week upswing to 3500 or more, you'll definitely have problems losing weight/fat.

It looks like you're getting nearly 40% of those calories from protein (somewhere around 280g), but it only looks like you're getting around 10% from healthy fats. I think you could probably back off on the protein just a hair and add some healthy fats - olive oil, that kind of thing.

The veg and fruit look ok to me - but not great. 6 servings is on the low side, but better than a lot of people get. Still, can you add some additional veg and maybe some variety? For example bananas and apples are ok, but also very high in sugar. How about subbing some other fruits - especially berries, which are high in antioxidants - for the banana at least a couple days a week. I buy frozen blueberries at Costco and add them to my smoothies and to my yogurt in the mornings.

Or when you have a turkey sandwich, throw on some baby spinach leaves for added nutrition. Actually whirl some baby spinach in your smoothies/shakes as well (I promise it doesn't change the taste at all, although it might make your protein shake a rather virulent shade of green! :) ).

Overall I don't think it's a bad diet and it's healthier and more balanced than what probably 90% of people eat. :) But I think tweaking it a bit and paying really close attention to quantities and calories would help!
 
Sorry, I mentioned above I was 225, but it’s buried in the info I think, especially since I didn’t specify “lbs”.

Thanks for the comments. I have been starting to mix up the fruits a bit. Not with berries, but I can start doing that (not a fan of strawberries or blueberries, but I can make myself become one). And I love spinach leaves, so I’ll definitely implement those into the diet, as well as some more healthy fats.

Things are going good so far, with slow and steady progress with the fat coming off. I’m always looking for ways to improve and things to learn, so my diet is under self-scrutiny a lot, hence the long post.
 
*gasp* How can you not like blueberries! :D

Ok, ok ... don't force yourself to eat anything you hate, but a general rule of thumb that *tends* to hold true (like all generalities, there are exceptions), the darker and more colorful your fruits veggies, the more nutritional value they have. Dark romaine lettuce and spinach are more nutritious than pale iceberg lettuce, for example. Although cauliflower is obviously an exception to that rule - as it's full of great nutrients. Bananas are also amazingly nutritious, just very full of sugar, so you have to watch the cals/carbs there.

And I did go back and find your weight - I saw the part about wanting to stay around 200, missed the other. Whoops! :)

Anyway ... just really wanted to gasp about the blueberries. :D
 
Haha yeah, my fiance thinks I'm nuts too. I've been mixing them in with smoothies and they seem to add a nice flavor that way. I still cannot eat them raw though.

Also, to clear things up, on workout mornings when I do make the shake, I substitute that for breakfast, and don't eat the usual egg breakfast. I don't do both in the mornings. I think I would explode if I tried.

And we've recently picked up a juicer. Not sure if this is a feasible option for getting the correct nutrients, but we've found it to be quite a nice way to get lots of fruits/veggies in one serving. And the smoothies we can make with the pure juice are just awesome. Really enjoying the juicer.
 
Ah gotcha.

I'm mixed on juicing. Yes, it's a good way to get in some extra nutrients but you're still not getting a lot of the benefit of veggies/fruits when you juice because you're losing the fiber and bulk that aids your digestive system and helps you feel full.

Also the thing about juicing is that exposure to oxygen almost immediately begins to destroy many of the nutrients - so if you juice something, you need to drink it nearly immediately. Juicing things and then putting them in the fridge for later means you lose anywhere from 20%-60% of the nutrition.

But truthfully my biggest problem with juicing is that I'm not willing to drink my calories. Juicing concentrates the sugars, especially in fruits, so you're consuming more calories for less volume. Since my calories are much more restricted than yours, 200 or 300 calories is a big chunk of my daily allotment. For 200 calories I'd rather have a whole apple and a slice of cheese, than a 10 oz glass of apple juice (as an example).
 
Yeah, that makes sense. Most of my consumption of fruits/veggies is in whole, but I do whip up a smoothie here and there, especially on weekends. Such an awesome drink on hot summer days. The mixture of various flavors is great, and not to mention it completely curbs the sweet tooth while still being healthy.
 
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