I'm making this thread to document the changes I feel internally when increasing my caloric intake. I'm doing this because I believe I've been eating to little calories for too long, which can lead to health problems down the line. Also it would be nice to be able to eat a little bit more throughout the day and still lose weight.
No, I'm not bulking to try and get huge. Quite the opposite: I'm trying to lose weight by cutting fat. Of course that's counter-intuitive logically since excess calories normally lead to weight gain. However, check out my stats below:
Age 26
Sex Male
Height 6'2"
Weight 219-221 lbs
BF% 17.75
Those numbers yield a BMR (basal metabolic rate) around the ballpark of 2050-2160. This means that if I were comatose, I'd burn those amounts of calories by simply existing.
The problem now is that I don't feel like I'm cutting efficiently anymore. My body has changed for the better. I've dropped 45lbs of weight and I'm more active. I've been lifting since June and have been lifting 6x a week since December. I've gotten somewhat stronger, especially since I began drinking a few scoops of whey protein every day except my rest day Sunday.
Given my increased activity, I began to wonder if eating 1500-1700 cal on average is even healthy anymore. My metabolism sort of slowed down over time - it hit this strange wall in February after I dropped 10lbs in January.
I broke through the plateau, but weight loss is far slower (if at all sometimes). The plateau was 230. I know this isn't a race, but a marathon. However, results haven't been where I've wanted them. The protein has helped but I felt more could be done.
So I questioned if someone with my stats should be eating 1500-1700 cal period. Interet research points to no. And while I've asked around a while back where people told me this, I didn't pay attention. I felt what I was doing then was working. I mean, it did work, but only temporarily.
My new goal is to see how my body reacts to eating 2200-2600 calories a day for a whole week while keeping the same level of activity. Again, I managed to still progress somewhat while eating so little calories, but I'm curious to see what the increase does for my lifting progress as well. Considering people bulk by chomping down 3000+ calories, I figure my new goal for the week shouldn't be that bad, right?
At the same time, I'm also tracking my protein intake. Figures state I should be eating 180-220g of protein a day. I raided a grocery store last night for salmon, greek yogurt, ground turkey, etc. This is what I'll be trying to exist off of for the next week while lifting.
That said here's what I've tracked so far. FWIW, I'm using MyFitnessPal.
The following are numbers I've gathered from trying to estimate what my TDEE is. I used three different sites which I've labeled. I've also specified the choices I've selected when filling out these calculators.
On Friday, I was at 221 lbs.
Day 1 - Friday April 8th: 2467 calories consumed; 210g protein/215g carbs/67g fat
I felt like shit at the end of the day. I became nauseous and I got kind of scared for a bit. I don't know if it was the sudden jump of eating that many calories or what. My workouts were fine except for my deadlifts. I failed at 345. I'm going to try again on Tuesday. Also I fear my deadlift form needs work, so a reset might be soon. I'm hoping to hit 350 by next week before I do. If not, then I guess I'll be hitting 350 some time later. We'll see.
Day 2 - Saturday April 9th: 2259 calories consumed; 157g protein/188g carbs/72g fat
Chomped on a mix of greek yogurt and whey protein for breakfast, then went to the gym for leg day. The highest I ever got on squats were 250 5x5 back when I did StrongLifts. I stopped because my knees ached like a motherfucker when I sat still for too long. I attribute the pain to poor form. I'm on my second squat reset and I'm back up to 200. This time with proper form. Not bragging, but I felt like I nailed the form and breathing pattern. It wasn't easy to lift it, but it was easier doing it this time with proper form than when I did it before while trying to control my knees so much. The fact my knees didn't hurt at all doing the squats speaks volumes. I didn't struggle at all I don't think. My attention was on my breathing and making sure my upper body was straight as well as making sure I broke at the knees first before doing the squat motion. I felt it was easier to power my quads through the rise.
Also did some Calf Raises and Leg Extensions at 105 3x10 today. Never hit that high before. I hated both of them since I find the muscle ache from them to be agonizing even after all the time.
I ate like shit afterward due to a friend of mine going away. We had planned the meal for about two weeks, so I made sure I only ate my greek yogurt/protein mix from earlier and the two scoops of protein today.
As the day went on, I became nauseous again. I'm still nauseous and am about sleep. I just ate some mixed planters nuts and said screw dinner.
I really don't know what's going on but it is what it is.
I'll post the rest of my observations later on. I have a date Sunday, so I'll have to plan calories around that.
I'll update this OP with each day's observation as well as bump the thread for discussion if anyone wants to deride me on my weird experiment with my body.
No, I'm not bulking to try and get huge. Quite the opposite: I'm trying to lose weight by cutting fat. Of course that's counter-intuitive logically since excess calories normally lead to weight gain. However, check out my stats below:
Age 26
Sex Male
Height 6'2"
Weight 219-221 lbs
BF% 17.75
Those numbers yield a BMR (basal metabolic rate) around the ballpark of 2050-2160. This means that if I were comatose, I'd burn those amounts of calories by simply existing.
The problem now is that I don't feel like I'm cutting efficiently anymore. My body has changed for the better. I've dropped 45lbs of weight and I'm more active. I've been lifting since June and have been lifting 6x a week since December. I've gotten somewhat stronger, especially since I began drinking a few scoops of whey protein every day except my rest day Sunday.
Given my increased activity, I began to wonder if eating 1500-1700 cal on average is even healthy anymore. My metabolism sort of slowed down over time - it hit this strange wall in February after I dropped 10lbs in January.
I broke through the plateau, but weight loss is far slower (if at all sometimes). The plateau was 230. I know this isn't a race, but a marathon. However, results haven't been where I've wanted them. The protein has helped but I felt more could be done.
So I questioned if someone with my stats should be eating 1500-1700 cal period. Interet research points to no. And while I've asked around a while back where people told me this, I didn't pay attention. I felt what I was doing then was working. I mean, it did work, but only temporarily.
My new goal is to see how my body reacts to eating 2200-2600 calories a day for a whole week while keeping the same level of activity. Again, I managed to still progress somewhat while eating so little calories, but I'm curious to see what the increase does for my lifting progress as well. Considering people bulk by chomping down 3000+ calories, I figure my new goal for the week shouldn't be that bad, right?
At the same time, I'm also tracking my protein intake. Figures state I should be eating 180-220g of protein a day. I raided a grocery store last night for salmon, greek yogurt, ground turkey, etc. This is what I'll be trying to exist off of for the next week while lifting.
That said here's what I've tracked so far. FWIW, I'm using MyFitnessPal.
The following are numbers I've gathered from trying to estimate what my TDEE is. I used three different sites which I've labeled. I've also specified the choices I've selected when filling out these calculators.
On Friday, I was at 221 lbs.
Day 1 - Friday April 8th: 2467 calories consumed; 210g protein/215g carbs/67g fat
I felt like shit at the end of the day. I became nauseous and I got kind of scared for a bit. I don't know if it was the sudden jump of eating that many calories or what. My workouts were fine except for my deadlifts. I failed at 345. I'm going to try again on Tuesday. Also I fear my deadlift form needs work, so a reset might be soon. I'm hoping to hit 350 by next week before I do. If not, then I guess I'll be hitting 350 some time later. We'll see.
Day 2 - Saturday April 9th: 2259 calories consumed; 157g protein/188g carbs/72g fat
Chomped on a mix of greek yogurt and whey protein for breakfast, then went to the gym for leg day. The highest I ever got on squats were 250 5x5 back when I did StrongLifts. I stopped because my knees ached like a motherfucker when I sat still for too long. I attribute the pain to poor form. I'm on my second squat reset and I'm back up to 200. This time with proper form. Not bragging, but I felt like I nailed the form and breathing pattern. It wasn't easy to lift it, but it was easier doing it this time with proper form than when I did it before while trying to control my knees so much. The fact my knees didn't hurt at all doing the squats speaks volumes. I didn't struggle at all I don't think. My attention was on my breathing and making sure my upper body was straight as well as making sure I broke at the knees first before doing the squat motion. I felt it was easier to power my quads through the rise.
Also did some Calf Raises and Leg Extensions at 105 3x10 today. Never hit that high before. I hated both of them since I find the muscle ache from them to be agonizing even after all the time.
I ate like shit afterward due to a friend of mine going away. We had planned the meal for about two weeks, so I made sure I only ate my greek yogurt/protein mix from earlier and the two scoops of protein today.
As the day went on, I became nauseous again. I'm still nauseous and am about sleep. I just ate some mixed planters nuts and said screw dinner.
I really don't know what's going on but it is what it is.
I'll post the rest of my observations later on. I have a date Sunday, so I'll have to plan calories around that.
I'll update this OP with each day's observation as well as bump the thread for discussion if anyone wants to deride me on my weird experiment with my body.
