Diet - What to eat when trying to lose weight / gain muscle?

[montrealman76]

Hello everyone..

I used to post here a long time ago and always found a great answer to my questions.. and so im back.

Ive been off working out for WAYY to long. The last time i worked out i was on 0-20 carbs a day, and eating mass meats / limited veggies / eggs / with protien drinks like 3 times a day.

I ended up losing 35lbs overall and thats with dropping about 4 waist sizes and gaining a few inches on my biceps. My chest also improved greatly. Thing is.. it was a low carb diet.. so now that ive been back on the carbs.. the weight just FLEW back on. Im wondering if anyone has a site, link, post regarding what to eat for when your first back into training and trying to keep enough energy to workout.. yet eating clean enough to drop weight?

Ill be doing mass cardio to start to get my fat weight off quickly, and I try to eat light enough so as it doesnt feel like im working out with 2lbs of meat in my stomach. Any ideas, opinions, hints, or links would be great.

p.s. Id like natural solutions please, no chemical, enhancing drug recipes.

Thanks again.

[Bear03]

Oy vey....you might be carb sensitive, mate.  Although, it might help if you define what "back on the carbs" means....a few bowls of oatmeal a day, or white bread and all that crap? 

I think the problem with your last diet, and probably the reason you became especially sensitive to increased calories was that it was TOO drastic.  The one thing we know about diets such as these is that they DO work....briefly.  Your results are good, but unsurprising.  However, they are difficult to maintain as they were achieved so quickly and so drastically.  Unless you're a pro bodybuilder, don't diet like one.

This time i would emphasize a moderate carb, moderate fat, high protein diet extended over 3 months or so (still gives you time for summer) and you can gradually drop your carbs or add a fat burner as you begin to plateau.  Keep lifting, of course, and 5 20-minute sessions of very intense cardio 5 times a week should do it.

[montrealman76]

moderate carb and moderate fat intake, with high protien?

Can you give me some examples? I started the diet due i was 5'10", and hitting the 230lbs mark.. and thats not muscle. I do have strong legs and large bones.. but feel my "mark" would be around the 180-175lb area but semi built. More towards the atheletic look rather then the lifter look if you know what i mean.

What i mean about carb intake was i was VERY selective of what i eating. The only carbs i was intaking was the carbs found in fruit juices, fruits, very few potatoes/breads... and was geared towards the meat/fish/veggie meals.

I dont mind cooking.. specially if its for dieting.. but was wondering if there are any foods i SHOULD be taking to improve my energy levels while still maintaining a low carb intake.

Oatmeal is a good start. I know fish/meat etc... but what about snacks etc? I used to down like 2-3 cans of tuna a day when hungry, maybe a few veggies like 8-10 baby carrots, 1/4 of a cucumber, or even 1/2 a green pepper.. but that was pretty much it.

When i was intaking very few carbs.. my biggest complaint was that i had no energy due to using all the carbs/fat already in my system to fuel my workouts. This lead to me being sleepy / slow after working out. I did drop weight fast.. and it was a really big motivator.. but like i said. the minute i started intaking bread, rice, potatoes again.. the weight just crept right back on.

Thanks for the response...

[Bear03]

Yeah, if you're shooting for 180, i'd say something like...

250 g protein
170 g carbs
50 g fat

that equals about 2150 calories.  Should be ok if you're doing your cardio and lifting hard.  Make sure you take in the majority of your carbs at breakfast and PW, fats can be saved for night time.