Cutting diet - please critique!!

[|D_J^B_J|]

I have never needed to cut before, so could do with a little assitance. I am also playing football 3 x week (including a game once a week) so need to keep carb levels moderate to maintain high energy levels and strength and cannot afford to go hardcore with my diet.

I have an ectomorphic body type, am currently 72kg, 14% BF and am looking to shed a little fat from my lower abds:


BREAKFAST:
3/4 cup raw steel-cut oats
1 banana + strawberries
1/2 cup milk
1 cup egg whites

800 Cals
115g Carbs
30g Protein
10g Fats


LUNCH:
4 slices of rye bread
3 small tins tuna
Cucumber

580 Cals
54g Carbs
54g Protein
4g Fats


SNACK:
1 chkn breast
Veggies
1 TBSP UDOs oil

250 Cals
50g Protein
0g Carbs
10g Fats


[WORKOUT]


POST-WORKOUT: [ONLY ON WEIGHTLIFTING DAYS]
40g whey protein
20g dextrose
20g maltodextrin

320 Calories
40g Carbs
40g Protein


DINNER:
1 lean steak (approx 230g)
3 medium - large potatoes
Veggies

640 Calories
75g Carbs
50g Protein
10g Fats


PRE-BED SNACK:
1 large bowl of fat-free yoghurt (approx 500g)
50g casein protein

525 Cals
50g Carbs
60g Protein
0g fats


TOTAL: (WEIGHTLIFTING DAYS)
3115 Calories
330g Carbs
280g Protein
34g Fats


TOTAL: (NON-WEIGHTLIFTING DAYS)
2800 Calories
290g Carbs
240g Protein
34g Fats



I lift 3 x week incorporating all the core lifts (squat, DL, bench, press, powerclean) and play footy 3 x week (which is pretty intense), so I only have one rest day.


A few questions:

• Is the diet okay? Too many carbs?

• Is it okay to train without getting any carbs in the previous meal? The last meal with carbs before I train will be approximately 4 hours earlier.

• Roughly how long will it take for me to get to 11 - 12% BF? Ideally, I would like to start dieting to gain muscle again in two or three weeks and don't want to be on a cutting diet for too long.

Thanks for all replies. It's been a while.

 

[|D_J^B_J|]

Bump

 

[|D_J^B_J|]

Errr, ANYONE care to help??

 

[poysyn]

Foods are good..but you MAY be taking in a little to many calories or to close to maintenance.. I'd ditch the yogurt at the end of the day and try to add a fat while maybe reducing a little bit here and there (one of the potatoes, some of the rye bread, milk at breakfast)

 

[mordy]

You need to do a calorie breakdown on about how much you are burning. You may be taking in too much. If you maintain a negative balance, you'll drop the weight.

I would keep carbs down except before the football practices and games. Pre-load to keep energy, otherwise your bloodsugars will rise and keep you from burning fat. I think anyways

 

[*Bunny*]

Sorry guys If I repeat any of the suggestions / comments ... see BLUE

But first ... you weigh ~158 lbs? How tall/old are you? i.e. are you still growing?

I have never needed to cut before, so could do with a little assitance. I am also playing football 3 x week (including a game once a week) so need to keep carb levels moderate to maintain high energy levels and strength and cannot afford to go hardcore with my diet.

I have an ectomorphic body type, am currently 72kg, 14% BF and am looking to shed a little fat from my lower abds: This can be done with cleaning up the diet & making some better food choices, even if you are keep carbs up for energy ... slower, but do-able


BREAKFAST:
3/4 cup raw steel-cut oats
1 banana + strawberries
1/2 cup milk What kind of Milk? Low Fat? Skim? Soy? Whole
1 cup egg whites

800 Cals
115g Carbs
30g Protein
10g Fats


LUNCH:
4 slices of rye bread Can you find a better carb source?? i.e. Brown Rice, Potato (baked or SWEET/Yam)
3 small tins tuna
Cucumber

580 Cals
54g Carbs
54g Protein
4g Fats


SNACK:
1 chkn breast
Veggies What kind? Fibrous Green ones?
1 TBSP UDOs oil

250 Cals
50g Protein
0g Carbs Why no carbs before your workout? Any reason?
10g Fats


[WORKOUT]


POST-WORKOUT: [ONLY ON WEIGHTLIFTING DAYS]
40g whey protein
20g dextrose
20g maltodextrin

320 Calories
40g Carbs
40g Protein


DINNER:
1 lean steak (approx 230g)
3 medium - large potatoes I would focus on more veggies & minimize the tater serving
Veggies

640 Calories
75g Carbs
50g Protein
10g Fats


PRE-BED SNACK:
1 large bowl of fat-free yoghurt (approx 500g)
50g casein protein I prefer slow digesting protein (GOOD CASEIN, you got it) and/or a fat before bed ... just a personal preference that has been successful for me

525 Cals
50g Carbs
60g Protein
0g fats


TOTAL: (WEIGHTLIFTING DAYS)
3115 Calories
330g Carbs
280g Protein
34g Fats


TOTAL: (NON-WEIGHTLIFTING DAYS)
2800 Calories
290g Carbs
240g Protein
34g Fats



I lift 3 x week incorporating all the core lifts (squat, DL, bench, press, powerclean) and play footy 3 x week (which is pretty intense), so I only have one rest day.Are you stretching? i cannot stress the importance of this ...

A few questions:

• Is the diet okay? Too many carbs?

• Is it okay to train without getting any carbs in the previous meal? The last meal with carbs before I train will be approximately 4 hours earlier.

• Roughly how long will it take for me to get to 11 - 12% BF? Ideally, I would like to start dieting to gain muscle again in two or three weeks and don't want to be on a cutting diet for too long.

I am a little confused by this statement ... in 2-3 weeks you want to gain muscle ... which indicates a bulk, excess cals? In 2 weeks I don't think you are going to drop TOO much BF but when you clean up your diet, weed out the processing & make better choices, your body should respond favorably. Your fat looks low to me ...

Thanks for all replies. It's been a while.

^^

 

[|D_J^B_J|]

Cheers for your replies.

Bunny:
Yes, I am 20, 160lbs and 5'9 at about 14% BF. I'm not really carrying that much fat and don't gain fat easily, just over the past 6 months the only exercise I was doing was weightlifting, which caused me to gain a bit of fat around my lower abds which I would like to get rid off.

In answer to your other questions:
The milk with breakfast is fat-free milk. Sorry, I should have made that clear in my initial post, and 'veggies' indicates fibrous, green vegetables.

WRT the carb source at lunch, it is hard for me to have anything other than bread because I am always at uni or in a rush, so I need to prepare it the night before. I use a natural rye bread made with rye sourdough flour and water, with no added sugar, so I think it is the best option possible.

WRT the lack of carbs in the meal before training, this was one of my initial concerns. In the past I have always had a carb source before training and when I trained the other day without any carbs, I felt much less energised. I am thinking maybe to have a banana on my way to the gym, and then to minimise the potato serving afterwards.... ? Also, do you think it may be wise to lower my carb intake to the same level as protein and bump up the fats slightly?

As I said in the initial post, I do plan to eat to gain muscle or at least maintain in two to three weeks. With the high intense sport I'm playing, going light on carbs is flirting with danger.

 

[*Bunny*]

Cheers for your replies. You're welcome Protein Shakes only tho

Bunny:
Yes, I am 20, 160lbs and 5'9 at about 14% BF. I'm not really carrying that much fat and don't gain fat easily, just over the past 6 months the only exercise I was doing was weightlifting, which caused me to gain a bit of fat around my lower abds which I would like to get rid off. We're almost the same size but I weight more than you heehee ... to add to your statement, generally, what you were eating was the cause of your fat gain, NOT the weightlifting ...

In answer to your other questions:
The milk with breakfast is fat-free milk. Sorry, I should have made that clear in my initial post, and 'veggies' indicates fibrous, green vegetables. Good ... no worries... good

WRT the carb source at lunch, it is hard for me to have anything other than bread because I am always at uni or in a rush, so I need to prepare it the night before. I use a natural rye bread made with rye sourdough flour and water, with no added sugar, so I think it is the best option possible. I understand being in a rush, food prep (no I do not compete & this is the lifestyle I live), all that fun stuff... but when you want to take your body to the next level, you HAVE to GO there... make some sacrifices ... nuke some tatos the night before ... eat um cold ... I cannot eat oats cold, or sweet/regular tato's cold (haven't tried it yet though), etc. but if the rye works for you & you FEEL that's the best you can do... then there is really nothiing else for me to suggest if you are doing the BEST you can ...

WRT the lack of carbs in the meal before training, this was one of my initial concerns. In the past I have always had a carb source before training and when I trained the other day without any carbs, I felt much less energised. I am thinking maybe to have a banana on my way to the gym, and then to minimise the potato serving afterwards.... ? Sure why not? Couldn't hurt. You never will know until you try it out anyway, plus like you said, you already have sensed waning E levels... so get in a PWO carb to test it out for you ... again
Also, do you think it may be wise to lower my carb intake to the same level as protein and bump up the fats slightly? This depends on you ... i always use a 40/30/30 as MY base and it works great ... base line to tweak from to judge from etc.. you have to start somewhere, but how can you make accurate conclusions if you're bouncing around trying new things not really paying attention? Now, it's all instinctive to me, yes I do track my daily intake & %'s , but my body will say FEED ME, I'm hungry, and I listen ... may take a little while while some people never get to that level ... ALL too often people skimp out on carbs & fats ... If you are eating the right ones you will be fine ... if you feel energy lagging, zig zag the cals a bit, do a carb rotation, there are many options ...


As I said in the initial post, I do plan to eat to gain muscle or at least maintain in two to three weeks. With the high intense sport I'm playing, going light on carbs is flirting with danger.

My training is INTENSE ... I love carbs, I eat them all the time ... Low carbing is NOT for me nor do i recommend it for athletes ... the diet I created for Mr B. (baseball player) worked fabulously, energy wise... + he played basketball on top of that & weight trained ... He noticed the difference right away ... If you want to cut up a bit, sure, cutting carbs may help with that ... if you want optimal energy & performance, then keep 'em ... you need to pick a #1 priority ... and stick to it ... and FOCUS of that

 

[|D_J^B_J|]

Bunny, have you got a link of the diet you created for the basketball player?

 

[*Bunny*]

Bunny, have you got a link of the diet you created for the basketball player?

It was personalized my dear ...

Here is a link from some immediate results though Pay attention to the dates.. what a clean diet can do ..

p.s. baseball, basketball was for 'fun'

http://www.elitefitness.com/forum/showpost.php?p=5317488&postcount=2817