Will Someone Pull the Trigger???
For the last few weeks I have been madly searching for a plan diet wise. I am very happy with where I am workout wise and I will touch on that later. I think I am settling in on a Low Carb/Low fat/High Protein diet. I did the Atkins thing before but just can't stomach the high sat/trans fat thought mentally or physically. I know that lower carbs works for me cause I have done it in the past with the most success. The only question in my mind is the possibility of it working because I wasn't eating enough. Last time I got so sick of eating just meat and veggies that I would just skip meals. I don't really want to do that again but I really want to loose weight. I am also afraid of loosing the lean body mass I feel I have put on if I get too low calorie wise. The crappy thing is its a catch 22. I totally agree with Will on the subject of loosing weight and gaining lean body mass not going hand in hand. I think I am a perfect example of that over the last 3 months or so. As I have said before even at my lightest I have the skinny fat look (just soft). With that said I think I need to touch a little more on my last 6 months....
The Workouts...
So for the last half year or so I have been using some beachbody workouts to get moving. I didn't really say much on this blog cause I didn't know how it would be received. I was skeptic about any workout dvd program being a gimmick. Anyway I saw the P90x infomercial ( yeah infomercial I know ) up late one night and thought it looked pretty good. I liked the fact that it appeared to use large body movements allot (squats, lunges, pull ups, push ups etc). It's what I already believed worked and it produces the type of body I would like. A defined not overly large sport physic. This workout was something I could do at home also, which was important to me. Anyway I felt that given my current condition P90x was probably too extreme so I went the P90 route instead for the first 90 days. I followed there diet and exercise regiment to a T for the most part. It worked and I lost 29 pounds in 90 days which was really good for me. The only bad thing about the P90 workouts is they get very repetitive (not allot of variety). After those 90 days I ordered the P90x. Let me tell you these workouts are some of the hardest workouts I have ever done in my life. They are not a joke in any way shape or form. I was having to pause several times during the workouts or else I would puke... The beauty of the majority of the workouts (12 in total) is they are scalable. Meaning you up your intensity or weight depending on what you need. They are very hard but very good I would highly recommend them.
Back to Diet.
With P90x the diet is very laid out too. The only difference is they have you eating way more than when you doing your P90 workouts. So I adjusted thinking I would just try and follow what they said. I have very slowly lost another 8-10 pounds (the ones I keep going back and forth on). So my thought is I need to get back in a calorie deficit but they strongly advise against that. I agree that working out 6 days a week is going to take substantially more calories but I am not loosing as fast as I would like too. I want to be at 1.5-2 lbs a week weight loss until I hit my goal weight. I guess to their credit they don't market P90X as a weight loss routine but more of a get in great shape routine. I know at this point its not a goal weight but most likely a body fat percentage. As I mentioned in my last few blogs, my current body fat is around 30% which is absurd in my eyes. That high of body fat percentage is not good for anyone and it says to me that I am still very un-healthy.
What does all this mean?
I don't know... I feel like a racer standing in the gate waiting for my own stupid brain to pull the trigger. My diet is what is holding me back and the reason I cant get out of the starting blocks at this point. So I guess at this point I need to suffer along with a low carb/low fat/high protein diet and get on with it. I really feel like I can maintain my weight well with exercise. I just cant reduce it with a sensible diet and exercise. I am really scared to loose the lean body mass I have gained forfeiting my last 3 or so months working out. I don't know what all this rambling means to any of you, if anything at all. To me its what's been rattling around in my head for some time. I need to piece it all together and get out of the gates. What do you all think?
8 comments:
First of all Rip let me say this: I'm impressed as hell that you're doing P90X! That looks like a kick-ass workout that I would not look forward to.
I will say this: You CANNOT expect to lose 2 lbs a week anymore. That's just not going to happen. At this point you should be very happy with 1 lb a week as your goal.
Don't worry too much about losing lean mass. If you're doing serious resistance training it's not going to happen. Try to follow what P90 says. If you stop losing weight, try cutting calories. Or, look into fasting 1 or 2 days a week ala eat stop eat.
I've nothing but horror stories (in all the "good" ways) about P90X being very brutal and effective. It reminds me quite a bit of Crossfit - not designed for fat loss but general fitness and cardiovascular health.
I agree with Billy in part about your weight loss goals, and am pretty mystified that you're at 30% body fat... you seem to be pretty lean at this point. But like you've said, maybe you really are as skinny-fat as you talk about.
If that's really the case, then your body should be able to adapt to putting on muscle mass pretty quickly - and honestly, I wouldn't worry about how much muscle mass you've put on in the past three months.
Have fun with the P90X... sucka!
BANG! There, I pulled the trigger.
Seriously, I am a former Atkins dieter as well, and I still believe in that diet as it worked incredibly for me. Unfortunately, I am not committed enough to do Atkins right now, which is a sign that it is not a good lifestyle for me. After much research, I decided on the South Beach Diet, which contrary to popular belief is not that similar to Atkins outside of the first two weeks. It may not be the right diet for you, but I encourage you to check it out.
+1 to everything Billy said !
I also think losing 2 lbs a week is unreasonable at this stage (after losing 29 lbs)
As for the diet, i don't know, i don't hold a very high opinion in radical diets like Atkins. Everyone i know who did it has gained it all back. I prefer eating sensibly, moderate portions, cut most of the complex carbs but still eat plenty of simple carbs like fruits and vegetables.
If you're going to go low-carb, you can't avoid fats if you want to get enough calories in. Also, saturated fat is not the enemy that it's been made out to be. I eat a lot of saturated fat in the form of butter, coconut oil, eggs, and red meat, and I have had zero issues with cholesterol or triglycerides (check out http://www.westonaprice.org/knowyourfats/index.html for more info). You don't have to consume massive amounts of saturated fats, though, on a low-carb diet. And you also don't have to go quite as low as the Atkin's initiation period would have you go. My rule of thumb is to try to stick to under 100 grams of carbs a day, mainly from fruits and vegetables (minimal grains), and get the rest of my calories from meat, eggs, nuts, and sometimes protein shakes.
Also, check out This site for a great diet guideline that's pretty easy to stick to.
Thanks for your post and keeping up on me, I'll try to post a little more frequently. Nice disturbed reference by the way, keep at it man!
you're like the 5th person I know who has started the P90x. I'd never heard of it before a week or so ago. Anyway, it's great to see you still have the fire going, and good luck!
How are we doing Dude ?
Is P90x kicking your ass ?
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