Posts by imccarthy

His protocols are valid but are aimed more at bodybuilders than anyone else. Following his P+C and P+F meal plans will probably not have any noticeable effect.

Here is a very simple idea of protein needs:

Minimal Requirement  = .5 grams per pound of bodyweight

Active and maintaining = 1 gram per pound

Gaining or losing weight = 1.5 grams per pound

Extreme cases (bodybuilders)  = 2 gram per pound

Considering your case I would recommend 1-1.5 grams per pound which is probably 125-175 grams per day. Don't feel this required however as you could easily get away with 100 grams daily.

Protein needs do vary depending on daily activity but weight training increases protein synthesis for 36-72 hours and thus you should continue eating adequate protein to support recovery.

If your long term goal is to be 14-15% with more muscle than you have at present I would recommend you get down to that level first before working to put on some muscle.

It's pretty simple really: the more fat you have to start with, the more fat you will gain when you attempt to put on muscle. If you are very lean to start with, more of the calories you eat will go to muscle growth and less will go to fat cells.

At 119lbs and 22% bodyfat you have a Lean Body Mass (LBM) of 93 pounds and carry 26 pounds of fat (not as bad as it sounds).

If you drop 10 pounds of pure fat and 2 pounds of water weight (just a guess), you will be 107 pounds with 16 pounds of fat = almost exactly 15%.

I can see why you would be concerned with your weight at that level as ~110 pounds at 5'3" is very light.

However, I would recommend you get yourself to that level for the reasons stated above. Remember that once you lean out you can jump into muscle gain and thus won't stay at 110 pounds for long. Also, muscle is far more dense than fat and thus someone at 110 pounds with 14-16% bodyfat will look far healthier than someone at 110 pounds with 30-40% fat.

If you feel that 110 pounds is too low for you I suppose you could go ahead and work to put on some muscle put to be perfectly honest with you it isn't ideal.

Concerning whether or not 15% is maintainable...absolutely. If you keep you diet in check and don't slack off in the gym 15% is a very healthy level to be at and is a very realistic lifestyle goal as opposed to something you achieve for a month or two.

I hope I've answered all your questions...if not, just ask again...

10-12 reps.

1-6 reps builds strength.

10-12 builds size.

15+ improves muscular endurance.

You won't get huge unless you're on steroids.

Your sugar intake is fine as long as it comes in its natural form - fructose in fruit and other natural sugars.

Your protein intake is fine if you are sedentary, if you are regularly active I would recommend you increase it 100-120 grams daily. 55 grams on a daily basis would most likely cause a protein deficiency.

The belief that protein should be 12-20% of daily calories is flawed.

1 - 3 days.

The body is incredibly effective at adapting to a certain calorie intake, particularly starvation levels.

I've seen the program in use and have to say it's nothing special. Personally I wouldn't pay $120 for a program you could get off of a decent fitness site.

The biggest problem I have with it is the fact the program claims you will improve definition, muscle shape, etc. with almost entirely body-weight movement. The website makes some fairly simple routines seem absolutely incredible. It is essentially several workout routines thrown together into one program, put in attractive boxes, and sold at a fairly expensive price.

It's not worth it, in my opinion.

Original Post by queensaline:

I went to the gym today and had a body fat and BMI test done. I had to hold this Sonic Control Player-looking device out in front of me and it measured it using an electric current sent through my body. It turned out I have 7% body fat. Is this a reliable test?

 Sorry to say those are just about the least accurate. A bodybuilding friend of mine had his bodyfat tested with one of those and it said he had 31%. He's more like 8%.

A few points that I feel are relevant:

1. The 'bounce-back effect'. Obviously the lack of calories during your ED period stunted growth. However, the influx of calories now that you are recovering may well make you grow rather quickly. I grew an inch in height in a couple of months when I was recovering.

2. The first place the body stores fat after a period of starvation is the stomach. As you continue to gain weight your body will realize this is unnecessary and will start putting weight back where it once was.

Get your hands on a sledge hammer as soon as possible and smash your scale to pieces. Or just get rid of it.

Seriously, the scale is a major trigger for many. Do whatever you can to stay away from weighing yourself.

Your body fat is far more important. Below 12% is risky, with below 8% being the absolute threshold.

However, eating enough healthy fats will help.

Original Post by katiemcguire:

To slim and tone your muscles you want to do low weight with high reps.  That way you are working your slow twitch muscles.  You also might want to try yoga or pilates.  Hope that helps a little!

 I disagree. High reps with lower weights is a complete waste of your time.

If you are gaining size in your legs and butt, your are gaining muscle. This is a good thing. However, in order to lose the unattractive fat covering these areas you will need to deal with your calorie intake.

You are starving for a simple reason: leptin. Leptin is a hormone released by adipose tissue to suppress apetite. The less fat you have, the less leptin is in your system. Until your weight gets back to a normal level, leptin levels will remain low and you will be incredibly hungry on a regular basis.

When I initally recovered I was eating upwards of 6000 calories per day voluntarily. I was utterly starving ALL the time. After a few weeks my appetite fell off completely, as I had regained enough weight for my body's hormonal appetite controls to get back to normal.

Original Post by techraven:

If your obesse you can probably get away with eating just about anything and loosing weight. The lower your BF gets the harder that will be. And if your shooting for fitness model body fat levels, then no way in hell unless your blessed with some awesome genes. Macro's are important to be healthy tho, your not getting your macro's or micros from eating cookies. You need protein and fiber and fat. Carbs aren't required, but most of us do need them. The body will survive, just not well.

Try to get your macro's inline, I personally shoot for 40/40/20 (carbs/protein/fat), and try to make the fat's healthy as possible, unsatured's, healthy saturated, fish/olive oil/flax. Make sure your taking your multi-vitamins to help keep your micro nutrients inline.

A lot of people on these boards say a 'calorie is a calorie', which works to an extent. But its not the 100% truth, nutrient timing is important. Body builders who constantly cut/bulk are aware of how to get their body to shed and gain quickly, and all of them differ slightly on their diets. But i've yet to come across anyone in atheletic condition that honestly believes a 'calorie is a calorie' and you can eat whatever/whenever as long as your 'calories' are at the end of the day/week, under your BMR for optimal fat loss (that is FAT loss, not weight, if you wanna burn all the muscle off your body, go eat all the cookies you want).

 That has got to be one of the best posts I have ever read on CC. Couldn't have put it any better.

Original Post by mortalmonkey:

Yeah, I think I'm gonna have a large salad for dinner: Lettuce, cucumber, spinach, carrots, tomato, maybe some broccoli.

 Um...protein? Perhaps add some chicken or other lean meat to this.

Don't worry about messing up one meal. I know several extremely lean folk (competition-level bodybuilders) that allow themselves one cheat meal per week. One screw-up doesn't mean you are screwed.