Looking for advice - diet/fasting/cutting

SmoothSailing

SmoothSailing

Member
Trusted Member
Hello Everyone,

I am looking for advice, ideas and ways to improve what I am doing or to get feedback in general.
I am 38 years old and weigh around 190-195lbs and 6 foot.... not sure of my body fat but I just have a bit on my stomach (ton abs can be seen lol) but I am not fat by any means, the goal is to lean out, build muscle and lose unwanted fat.

I've ran many different cycles and started too young at 22 years of age. Due to all the mistakes over my years I am not on TRT at 120mg/week for the last 2 years.
I've recently (a week ago) upped my dose to 500mg/week, added in 60mg of Var and TORCH at 2 tabs per day.
I am not sure how many calories I should be taking in but I am aiming for 2000 calories (45% protein, 35% fats, 20% carbs)
I am doing cardio (20 miles, 60 minutes) 5-6 days a week + weights 6/7 days a week.

Looking for advice, tips and tricks and anything.
Here is a day of a diet I was thinking of following:

Meal 1: 11:00 AM - Breakfast​

  • Egg White Omelette
    • 6 egg whites
    • Spinach, peppers
  • Oatmeal
    • ½ cup dry oatmeal
    • Handful of blueberries
  • Protein Shake
    • 1 scoop of protein powder

Meal 2: 2:00 PM - Lunch​

  • Chicken and Brown Rice Bowl
    • 200g grilled chicken breast
    • ½ cup cooked brown rice
    • Mixed veggies (bell peppers, onions, snap peas)

Snack: 4:00 PM​

  • Fruit Smoothie
    • Frozen strawberries, blueberries, and half a banana
    • 1 scoop of protein powder

Meal 3: 6:00 PM - Dinner​

  • Chicken and Salsa
    • 200g chicken breast
    • Homemade salsa
  • Steamed Vegetables
    • Broccoli or green beans

Evening Snack: 7:30 PM​

  • Cottage Cheese with Cinnamon and Nuts
    • 1 cup of low-fat cottage cheese
    • Sprinkle of cinnamon
    • A small handful of almonds

Nutritional Breakdown (Estimates)​

Meal 1: Breakfast​

  • Calories: ~400 kcal
  • Protein: ~40g
  • Fats: ~5g
  • Carbs: ~40g

Meal 2: Lunch​

  • Calories: ~500 kcal
  • Protein: ~45g
  • Fats: ~10g
  • Carbs: ~40g

Snack​

  • Calories: ~300 kcal
  • Protein: ~30g
  • Fats: ~5g
  • Carbs: ~30g

Meal 3: Dinner​

  • Calories: ~500 kcal
  • Protein: ~50g
  • Fats: ~10g
  • Carbs: ~30g

Evening Snack​

  • Calories: ~300 kcal
  • Protein: ~30g
  • Fats: ~10g
  • Carbs: ~10g
Or

Hard-Boiled Eggs

  • Calories: 150-200 kcal
  • Protein: 18-24g
  • Fats: 10-15g
  • Carbs: 1-2g
Here's the updated nutritional breakdown for the revised meal plan:
  • Total Calories: 2000 kcal
  • Total Protein: 195 grams
  • Total Fats: 40 grams
  • Total Carbs: 150 grams


Thanks everyone for your help!!!!!!!!!!
 
Your most likely not going to gain and mass at 2000 calories a day, that’s for sure but at 2000 calories and a hour cardio a day you should be dropping fat you protein is low if your trying to add muscle as well are you sure you got your calories counted correctly 2000 calories a day and a hour cardio you should be burning 400 to 500 calories should be dropping fat
 
NovaScotiaMan said:
Your most likely not going to gain and mass at 2000 calories a day, that’s for sure but at 2000 calories and a hour cardio a day you should be dropping fat you protein is low if your trying to add muscle as well are you sure you got your calories counted correctly 2000 calories a day and a hour cardio you should be burning 400 to 500 calories should be dropping fat
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So with 2000 calories doing 45% of my calories from protein, that's too low?
I am not looking to gain mass, I am looking to cut so hoping to grow muscle but more realistically maintain muscle while I diet.


Based on 2000-2200 calories a day what % should I be aiming for regarding protein if 45% is too low?

I guess I could do
55% protein
30% fats
15% carbs

Open to your feedback.
 
SmoothSailing said:
So with 2000 calories doing 45% of my calories from protein, that's too low?
I am not looking to gain mass, I am looking to cut so hoping to grow muscle but more realistically maintain muscle while I diet.


Based on 2000-2200 calories a day what % should I be aiming for regarding protein if 45% is too low?

I guess I could do
55% protein
30% fats
15% carbs

Open to your feedback.
Click to expand...
I definitely couldn’t grow on it I need 3500 minimum
 
SmoothSailing said:
So with 2000 calories doing 45% of my calories from protein, that's too low?
I am not looking to gain mass, I am looking to cut so hoping to grow muscle but more realistically maintain muscle while I diet.


Based on 2000-2200 calories a day what % should I be aiming for regarding protein if 45% is too low?

I guess I could do
55% protein
30% fats
15% carbs

Open to your feedback.
Click to expand...

Most fitness apps/forums will allow a much higher carb ratio for cutting than 15%. I feel that 55% protein and only 15% carbs is unrealistic with the diet plan you laid out.

I have no problem cutting with the following:

I try to stay under 2000 calories
Carb 40%
Fat 30%
protein 30%

If I go over on any it's generally protein, as long as I hit my minimum with the other 2.

I do think people overthink things a bit. For me what works is to make sure I'm in a caloric deficit every day. Ultimately that's the best way to cut fat. Adding an extra bit of daily cardio like skipping, assault bike or a short sprint is great too.
 
Okay so the consensus is that for dieting I am not eating enough?
I need to eat more calories and I will lose more weight?

I don't know about the comment of 3500 calories to grow when my goal is to cut and lean out.
I am confused as I thought cutting calories down would help with losing weight.

Any other tips would be greatly appreciated.
 
SmoothSailing said:
Okay so the consensus is that for dieting I am not eating enough?
I need to eat more calories and I will lose more weight?

I don't know about the comment of 3500 calories to grow when my goal is to cut and lean out.
I am confused as I thought cutting calories down would help with losing weight.

Any other tips would be greatly appreciated.
Click to expand...
the idea of eating more is to increase your metabolism. Are you familiar with metabolic adaptation?
Your metabolism doesn’t appear to be in a good spot for fat loss considering your food is already very low and you’re doing plenty of cardio/activity.
That being said, you need to take a period of time where you’re not focusing on losing weight, rather building your metabolism back up. Once you’ve built it up and are eating plenty of food, you can start focusing on the fat loss again. If done correctly (increasing food in small increments), the scale will go up slightly but fat gain should be very minimal. Think of it as taking ONE step back to take TWO steps forward.
 
BanditNOLIMIT said:
the idea of eating more is to increase your metabolism. Are you familiar with metabolic adaptation?
Your metabolism doesn’t appear to be in a good spot for fat loss considering your food is already very low and you’re doing plenty of cardio/activity.
That being said, you need to take a period of time where you’re not focusing on losing weight, rather building your metabolism back up. Once you’ve built it up and are eating plenty of food, you can start focusing on the fat loss again. If done correctly (increasing food in small increments), the scale will go up slightly but fat gain should be very minimal. Think of it as taking ONE step back to take TWO steps forward.
Click to expand...
I love that you're talking about metabolism. I'd like to expand on what you wrote if you don't mind.

Metabolic momentum is what i call it. Eat more do more. Once you got the engine running(the body) then you can pull back on the food and keeping from stalling out with either refeeds or cheat meals. Or if your carbs are already low go straight to keto, no cheat meals or refeeds required so long as you have enough protein(this is why i recommend 1.5g/lb) and you're not already shredded. This kind of style of keto i do isn't glamorous but its efficient AF and really not for the crowd that looks forward to cheat meals.

Currently losing 0.5lbs/day on keto. 1hr cardio, 180mg test/ week, zero fat burners and actually still getting stronger in the gym. But its only working so well because I built up my metabolism in the offseason/ bulk period.
 
CoolRick said:
I love that you're talking about metabolism. I'd like to expand on what you wrote if you don't mind.

Metabolic momentum is what i call it. Eat more do more. Once you got the engine running(the body) then you can pull back on the food and keeping from stalling out with either refeeds or cheat meals. Or if your carbs are already low go straight to keto, no cheat meals or refeeds required so long as you have enough protein(this is why i recommend 1.5g/lb) and you're not already shredded. This kind of style of keto i do isn't glamorous but its efficient AF and really not for the crowd that looks forward to cheat meals.

Currently losing 0.5lbs/day on keto. 1hr cardio, 180mg test/ week, zero fat burners and actually still getting stronger in the gym. But it’s only working so well because I built up my metabolism in the offseason/ bulk period.
Click to expand...
Exactly!

I also suggested to OP (in another thread) that he puts focus into eating with the focus of training like an animal and getting strong as possible rather than cutting. Without any photos to reference, I can only assume he isn’t carrying much muscle mass based on his stats. As we know, more muscle = higher metabolic rate.

Basically a textbook case of “you can’t carve a pebble” (with all due respect to OP lol).
 
BanditNOLIMIT said:
Exactly!

I also suggested to OP (in another thread) that he puts focus into eating with the focus of training like an animal and getting strong as possible rather than cutting. Without any photos to reference, I can only assume he isn’t carrying much muscle mass based on his stats. As we know, more muscle = higher metabolic rate.

Basically a textbook case of “you can’t carve a pebble” (with all due respect to OP lol).
Click to expand...
For sure, im glad i spent last year growing, yea i looked like a wrestler but now cutting i wont just shrink up to nothing and my body was primed for the cut.

This applies for anyone really not just OP, if you're fat cut first. You probably wont be satisfied with the muscle you have at the end but to be fair on a bulk you wont be either its a conundrum lol. Being too fat while bulking will usually come with serious health problems especially with gear like high BP, digestive problems, insulin resistance etc. Not good for growing!

As far as gear goes, i dont see the point going on a cycle for most people to cut unless you're getting into competition shape.
 
SmoothSailing said:
Open to your feedback.
Click to expand...
Do you track your calories and weight now? If you do, you will have an exact number for your metabolic rate, which makes it a helluva lot easier to know how many calories you have to cut over how long, to lose x amount of weight.
 
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