Hello,

I have been reading through the forum for the past months and I find it a great motivation.

I am male, 35 years old, 184cm and currently ~74 kgs. According to an electronic scale that claims it can calculate bf% I am around 13% at this moment in time - I personally think it is about 15-18%.

I am slowly changing my lifestyle - initially by quitting cigarettes 6 months ago (60-70 cigs/day :d_frown: ), a "once-a-week-junkfood-habbit" about a month ago and now drinking only a few beers one dedicated evening every week.

I do have the occasional cheat in the shape of pop-corn, some jelly beans or a chocolate bar once a week, the odd soda and the above mentioned beers.

Here is a typical day in terms of eating:
09:00
- Oatmeal with little natural honey and Klim 0% fat milkpowder
- Scrambled eggs (2 x egg whites 1 x full egg)
- 1 cup of coffee and .5 liter water

12:00
- One small no-fat yogurt (125g)
- One apple
- One small portion cream cheese about 30g with a 6 breadsticks (La Vache Qui Rit)
- .5 liter water

15:00
- Half chicken, boiled, no skin OR 250g lean meat sliced
- mixed raw vegetables (cucumber, tomato, carrots, cauliflower)
- 1 glass soya milk

18:00
- One small no-fat yogurt (125g)
- One apple
- One small portion cream cheese about 30g with a few breadsticks (La Vache Qui Rit)
- .5 liter water

19:00
- Cardio all days except Tuesday
- 5 minutes warm-up brisk walk
- 6 km run ~ 30 minutes outdoor
- 10 minutes stretching / light aerobics
- 5 minutes cool down brisk walk
- .5 liter water during and .5 liter water after

On Sundays I replace the 30 min run with 60 min as follows:
1 minute brisk walk, 2 minuttes run - Rep 20 times

21:00
- two slices of brown bread with thin layer of butter and two slices of low-fat turkey or chicken with tomato
- mixed apple, carrot and raisin "salad"
- .5 liter water

For a snack in between if feeling hungry I sometimes eat a GenSoy Protein Bar (229 cal, 14g protein, 4.5g fat, Carbohydrate 33g, 1.9g dietary fiber, 150mg Sodium, 290mg Potassium)

Every day I take 1 x Pharmaton capsul (multi-vitamin) and 2 x Hi-Strength Clucosamine & Chondroitin for my joints.

Tuesday is rest day - Monday and Thursday I do weight training - this is a new development (only the past 3 weeks) as follows:

Monday:
(all exercises are 10 reps x 4, increase weight on each set - last set as many as I can - typically around 9-10)
- Behind neck military press
- Front military press
- Upright-row
- Roman-Chair sit-up
- Triceps-Pushdown
- Biceps cable curl

Thursday:
(all exercises are 10 reps x 4, increase weight on each set - last set as many as I can - typically around 9-10)
- Leg press
- Ham curls
- Standing calf rises
- Flat bench press
- Incline bench press
- Seated cable-row
- Behind neck Lat pulldown

I am not too sure about all the terminologies as this is all a bit new to me - so this is all taken from my training plan.

My goal is to be <10% bf and nicely toned muscles preferably abs showing up at some point. I am not in a rush - since I started (about two months ago) I have lost 4 kgs so things are moving in the right direction -- it should be said that I was in a pretty bad shape when I started (was hardly able to jog 500 meters without losing my breath)

Any advise/comments/suggestions on the above is welcomed - particularly if something is directly contradicting my goals.

Thank you in advance and thanks for all the motivation this site is providing.

Cheers
Klaus

No suggestions or comments from anyone at all? - is no news considered good news then?

my only suggestion is getting more protein in your diet by adding more things like.. Fish, Eggs, Protein Powder, Turkey, Chicken, Cottage Cheese,... You should have at least 1.5 grams of protein per pound of body weight. If you don't, you will loose a lot of muscle while you loose the weight. I have actually gained muscle while loosing weight. I went from 215 down to 177 in 3 1/2 monhts. My BF is still at 17 percent but my goal is ten as well. Also, if you eat frequently (every 2.5-3 hrs) your body burns more calories. Try to split up the protein between each meal. Feel free to ask more questions.

my only suggestion is getting more protein in your diet by adding more things like.. Fish, Eggs, Protein Powder, Turkey, Chicken, Cottage Cheese,... You should have at least 1.5 grams of protein per pound of body weight. If you don't, you will loose a lot of muscle while you loose the weight. I have actually gained muscle while loosing weight. I went from 215 down to 177 in 3 1/2 monhts. My BF is still at 17 percent but my goal is ten as well. Also, if you eat frequently (every 2.5-3 hrs) your body burns more calories. Try to split up the protein between each meal. Feel free to ask more questions.


Thanks a lot - I'll try to add some more protein - perhaps the protein powder is a good idea. I am also going to replace the running on the days I lift with biking to get a bit of variation. I usualy do cadio about 3-4 hours after lifting - and typically a bit shorter cardio on the days I lift. I also try not to eat 1 hour before and one hour after cardio and lifting - should I take for example a proteing bar/powder right after lifting even if fat loss if my goal?

I read that if you want to loose fat then don't eat for an hour before and after - but I also read that if you don't take protein right after lifting then you burn muscle - so ?!

Cheers
Klaus

First point that struck me was no EFAs
Second point was you seem to have been a bit harsh overall on the fats. Is the cream cheese low fat aswell ?
I dont think the problem is that you burn muscle if you dont eat straight after lifting. There is a window after lifting where the muscles will take up nutritients much quicker and thus recover quicker so you might want to search the forum for pwo nutrition to get a little clued up on the topic.

Congrats on giving up the smoking and getting off to a good start.

Widers

First point that struck me was no EFAs
Second point was you seem to have been a bit harsh overall on the fats. Is the cream cheese low fat aswell ?
I dont think the problem is that you burn muscle if you dont eat straight after lifting. There is a window after lifting where the muscles will take up nutritients much quicker and thus recover quicker so you might want to search the forum for pwo nutrition to get a little clued up on the topic.

Congrats on giving up the smoking and getting off to a good start.

Widers

Thanks Widers - I'll read up on EFA's. No the cream cheese is not low fat - just a normal "nutritious snack". Thanks for the advise on eating after lifting - I'll look into pwo as well and try it out.

Cheers
Klaus

Hey Klaus-

To a get a better idea as to your diet I would like to see what it adds up to calorie wise. Overall it isn't bad. Like you said you are slowly changing and congrats for it! Making lifestyles changes is the name of the game... dieting gets us no where. As far as your "diet" my suggestions-

-pick a calorie range and stick to it so you can adjust it as your progress dictates
-i would ditch the honey, breadsticks, butter, and perhaps the cream cheese (depending on nutrition facts)... honey isnt a bad PWO thing but sugar isn't your friend generally speaking especially the level of fructose in honey.
-i would add some healthy fats look into nuts, fatty fish (like salmon), flax seeds, etc...
-i would incorporate a hearty PWO shake for after your lifting sessions
-you've got the fruit based pretty covered although variety wouldn't be bad...
-VEGGIES!!!!! makes friends with at least a couple man.... brocolli, sweetpotatos, squash, etc....

Just a couple suggestions. Good work so far.

Hey Klaus-

To a get a better idea as to your diet I would like to see what it adds up to calorie wise. Overall it isn't bad. Like you said you are slowly changing and congrats for it! Making lifestyles changes is the name of the game... dieting gets us no where. As far as your "diet" my suggestions-

-pick a calorie range and stick to it so you can adjust it as your progress dictates
-i would ditch the honey, breadsticks, butter, and perhaps the cream cheese (depending on nutrition facts)... honey isnt a bad PWO thing but sugar isn't your friend generally speaking especially the level of fructose in honey.
-i would add some healthy fats look into nuts, fatty fish (like salmon), flax seeds, etc...
-i would incorporate a hearty PWO shake for after your lifting sessions
-you've got the fruit based pretty covered although variety wouldn't be bad...
-VEGGIES!!!!! makes friends with at least a couple man.... brocolli, sweetpotatos, squash, etc....

Just a couple suggestions. Good work so far.

Hi DeafNgari,

Thanks a lot for your suggestions - I do actually eat veggies every day as per above (cucumber, carrots, etc)- not lots but some at least.

I'll replace the honey with a banana blended into my morning oatmeal along with 5 wallnuts and some rasins - does that sound good? What sort of natural PWO shake can you recommend?

As for calories - I try to hit the 2,000 mark at the moment

On a seperate note - I see you are a "running man" - I really feel good when running but my knees are a bit sore after I finish running (specially if I just sit for an hour or so after, when I want to stand up it is sore). It should be said that I have no pain or soreness while running at all..?!

- I do stretch like 10 minutes and put some ice on after running and it helps but I don't want it to end up a real problem for me in the long run (so to speak) - do you have any other suggestions?

Thanks in advance

Klaus

Bananas are really high in sugar also.... they are great to throw in PWO shakes though. My typical PWO shakes

-Whey Protein
-Strawberries
-Banana
-Dextrose

Glad to hear you eat your veggies. A lot of people's knees get a little achey... although if they really hurt that isn't a good sign. It could be your joints. It could be your shoes. It is tough to tell. The Glucosamine & Chondroitin you take definately are a good thing for yoru joints though.

Bananas are really high in sugar also.... they are great to throw in PWO shakes though. My typical PWO shakes

-Whey Protein
-Strawberries
-Banana
-Dextrose

Glad to hear you eat your veggies. A lot of people's knees get a little achey... although if they really hurt that isn't a good sign. It could be your joints. It could be your shoes. It is tough to tell. The Glucosamine & Chondroitin you take definately are a good thing for yoru joints though.

Thanks will try the PWO shake formula you suggest. As for shoes I am using Nike Shox and they feel really good - I hope that over time my knees will be ok. It should be said that I have only been running the past few months so I guess I need to give it a bit of time.

From today I am replacing running on the days I lift with stationary bike for 20-30 minutes as I can't do HIIT just yet.

Any suggestions with regards to oatmeal mix if banana and honey are not good options..

Cheers
Klaus