Hi all,

Just started a new cutting plan, I'm 6'1" around 196lbs with around 12% BF. My question is that I'm currently eating 2600 calories a day, I have my split so that carbs are only consumed around breakfast and pre and post training and the rest is lean protein, greens and EFA's......

I used maximuscle's calorie calculator which told me my maintenance would be around 3000 calories so to lose a pound a week I would need to eat 2000 calories a day and add on for any exercise

So my calculation was :- 2000 calories a Day + 600 Calories burned through weights and cardio = 2600 calories a day.

Could anybody please advise me whether this seems about right? Only I've been reading a lot about people saying lean mass X 15 is maintenance etc (Which would be 172 X 15 = 2580 calories a day) which would mean I should only be eating around 2180 a day?

I know it probably doesn't seem like a lot but I was aiming for 2 pound of fat loss a week and the difference between the two isn't far off a pound of fat a week so I'm trying to use a realistic starting point.

So my question is which figure would you say is more accurate? 3000 a day (Maximuscle) or LBM X 15 ?

Any help would be appreciated

Thanks

2600 sounds about right really with your height/weight IME.

How long have you been cutting for, have you lost weight yet? if so how much?

My posts are all my opinion and based on current knowledge/understanding.

Thanks for your reply.....

I've been cutting for a while now but with a different diet, the weight loss seemed to slo wdown quite a bit of late.......

A few kind people give some recommendations on my diet and I wasn't eating many fats and my protein wasn't as high as it should of been and I was having carbs midday etc so I revamped the diet now as follows as I presumed now I'm down to around 12% my body is less leniant with the mistakes I had in there before??? :-

7am 90g Porridge with water, 2 boiled egss, 100g Chicken breast
10am 200g chicken breast with green veg and 20g Walnuts
1pm As above
4pm As above
Pre Training 2 tins of Tuna with 245g sweet potato and Veg
Post Training 200g Chicken Breast with 325g Sweet potato or other carbs and veg

My training would be weights 2 days on and a day off and a 3 mile job after training.

I was just a bit worried that I might be aiming a bit high with my calories and because it was a new diet program wanted to try and get it right from the start really so I thought I'd try to get a bit of advice to get off on the right foot.

Thanks

Sorry I missed a bit off your question .......

I weighed 15st and am down to 14st now so have lost a stone

Thanks

As you're 196lbs with around 12% BF, your fat mass is ~23.5lbs. If you lose 2lb a week, you are likely to lose excessive muscle mass*. Adjust your food intake so that you lose 1lb a week. As your fat mass reduces, you'll need to lose weight at a proportionately lower rate to keep muscle mass loss to a minimum.

*based on Lyle McD's Maximum Dietary Deficit guideline.

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ORIGINAL: Brummylad1981
I weighed 15st and am down to 14st now so have lost a stone

In what time frame mate?
Have lifts suffered at all?

ORIGINAL: Nigeepoo
As you're 196lbs with around 12% BF, your fat mass is ~23.5lbs.

I agree with nige, it will be nice to see 2lb lost every week but in reality you may be screwing yourself.
According to the article nigee is referring to, you should have no greater "calorie deficit per day" than 23.5 * 31 = 728.5Kcal/day.
(NOTE: This rate is effected by drugs and exercise, so we won't place to much emphasis on it).

Thats around 1.4lbs maximum fat loss a week which is what i'd really be aiming for (2lb is probably a bit excessive at 12%).
Monitor your lifts though, if they dip it could be due to either lack of energy(so youd replan your carb intake perhaps) or potentially some muscle loss etc.

My posts are all my opinion and based on current knowledge/understanding.

I think fat loss will slow drastically over time. My suggestion would be to up the cardio rather than lower the food content. I personally dont think your wanna go any lower in your carb intake than you currently are going, except for maybe dropping a little bit out of your morning porridge.

You may also want to drop your protein content - I think its quite high actually. 150g chicken breast is fine, and 1 tin of tuna pre workout - 2 tins is excessive.

Id also add in a PWO shake containing whey and a bit of dextrose - 2 tablespoons.

This would be similar to the plan I followed - I dropped from 20% bodyfat to 6% in 6 months with very minimal loss in muscle mass and lifts (if any).

You just gotta stick at it. If you started your diet and were losing weight happily, you should not need to calorie count. Just tweak as you go. Take body fat and weight measurements every week. As soon as you see a week with no progress, up your cardio (or, drop your calories if you cant do more cardio). It will take time but you get there.

http://www.eattrainsleep.co.uk

Thanks to all who replied, I'll take all your comments into account.

One final question, on the days I'm not training how will this affect my diet? I mean I'm eating carbs for breakfast/Pre training/Post training at present........... Do I keep breakfast carbs and drop all others?

Thanks guys.

I would def keep carbs for breakfast. The rest of the day depends on how you feel. I would probably choose one meal where you add a half your usual portion of carbs. Every other meal should contain protein and fats.

However, you may want to work your way down to this if you currently eat more carbs on your day off.

http://www.eattrainsleep.co.uk

Cheers for the advice Lobo, much appreciated mate!