Weights, cutting, and muscle maintainance

I gathered from your first post that you weren't lifting at full speed. But it seems like your doing either double cardio or cardio + weights every day of the week. Are you giving yourself any days of doing nothing?

You don't even need to transition into crossfit/circuit training. Just shorten your rest times and employ routines that involve supersets, trisets, drop sets, and gain sets. As long as you're working your heart rate you really don't need to deviate from your normal exercises that much.

Given what you've told us so far, I can't imagine you being able to cut calories much further without going into a serious deficit. You may be better off tapering down to about 2000 and altering your routing to elicit some fresh response.

Originally Posted by rambo

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I gathered from your first post that you weren't lifting at full speed. But it seems like your doing either double cardio or cardio + weights every day of the week. Are you giving yourself any days of doing nothing?

Yeah, I sometimes go to once a day cardio (I lift friday morning and typically don't run friday night or saturday morning).

You don't even need to transition into crossfit/circuit training. Just shorten your rest times and employ routines that involve supersets, trisets, drop sets, and gain sets. As long as you're working your heart rate you really don't need to deviate from your normal exercises that much.

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That might work, I just figured completely blowing up my workout wouldn't be a bad way to switch things up, but making some modifications might not be bad either.

Given what you've told us so far, I can't imagine you being able to cut calories much further without going into a serious deficit. You may be better off tapering down to about 2000 and altering your routing to elicit some fresh response.

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That might not be a bad idea, that's what I was thinking about doing with the crossfit but we'll see how a little workout modification helps.

Your calories sound crazy-low considering your weight and activity level. Be careful with your metabolism. Personally, I'd throw in an eat-everything-in-sight day once a week.

Originally Posted by ken

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Your calories sound crazy-low considering your weight and activity level. Be careful with your metabolism. Personally, I'd throw in an eat-everything-in-sight day once a week.

+ a million...

Originally Posted by whacked

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+ a million...

I think he'd be better off doing a slightly more structured refeed based on mostly ****** carbs and protein with small reasonable amounts of fat.

I have eaten 200 gms of P, 50 gms of F and 1100 gms of C in 24 hours and still lost fat the next day. Moslty cereal/FF chips/FF ice cream/bagels/pasta.

If you're under 15% and up for the challenge, look into UD 2.0 for a well-regarded approach to fat loss that will retain muscle.

lefty

Originally Posted by lefty

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I think he'd be better off doing a slightly more structured refeed based on mostly ****** carbs and protein with small reasonable amounts of fat. I have eaten 200 gms of P, 50 gms of F and 1100 gms of C in 24 hours and still lost fat the next day. Moslty cereal/FF chips/FF ice cream/bagels/pasta. If you're under 15% and up for the challenge, look into UD 2.0 for a well-regarded approach to fat loss that will retain muscle. lefty
It would take your body more than 48 hours to fully digest and absorb all those carbs and calories. You wouldn't bloat for for 3 days. Cheat days are a good metabolism refresher but they should be used sparingly. I usually recommend once a month but to each their own.

Originally Posted by rambo

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It would take your body more than 48 hours to fully digest and absorb all those carbs and calories.

I know of people who eat more than that every day.

Originally Posted by rambo

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It would take your body more than 48 hours to fully digest and absorb all those carbs and calories. You wouldn't bloat for for 3 days.

Cheat days are a good metabolism refresher but they should be used sparingly. I usually recommend once a month but to each their own.

Not if you're glycogen depleted.

Don't think "cheat day," think "refeed."

lefty

Your weights for your lifts don't matchup at all or else your muscles are just weird. Skull crushers at only 90 yet you do curls with 55s????????? That doesn't make sense at all. You'd look deformed if that is halfway true. Damn and I just read back over your weights you only rep squats with 225??? Yet are pretty strong in everything else? Also a 225 deadlift is pansy weight. Not trying to downtalk you but your weights have to be off. If you are 213 and have a strong enough upper back to do weighted pullups with 45's you can deadlift a whole HELL of a lot more than 225 for reps. 99% of weight lifting numbers posted on the internet are bullshit and I'm a certified trainer (I don't really train people other than friends I just took the classes last year as I'm in college) and I have lifted everyday for years and your numbers are way off.

Originally Posted by KBW

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Your weights for your lifts don't matchup at all or else your muscles are just weird. Skull crushers at only 90 yet you do curls with 55s????????? That doesn't make sense at all. You'd look deformed if that is halfway true. Damn and I just read back over your weights you only rep squats with 225??? Yet are pretty strong in everything else? Also a 225 deadlift is pansy weight. Not trying to downtalk you but your weights have to be off. If you are 213 and have a strong enough upper back to do weighted pullups with 45's you can deadlift a whole HELL of a lot more than 225 for reps. 99% of weight lifting numbers posted on the internet are bullshit and I'm a certified trainer (I don't really train people other than friends I just took the classes last year as I'm in college) and I have lifted everyday for years and your numbers are way off.

Did you read my post at all before commenting? I can squat and deadlift well over 400 but I'm lifting well under my maxes because of knee problems.

I'm also working biceps harder than triceps now. None of the lifts are anywhere near my maxes, I'm not bulking at the moment, but cutting.

Originally Posted by lefty

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Not if you're glycogen depleted. Don't think "cheat day," think "refeed." lefty
He was referencing a normal person not during a cycle. I prefer "restart" for someone who is kicking their metabolism. A cheat day is when you just go bat **** and eat everything you want no matter what the costs. Cheescake, pizza, case of beer, etc.

Originally Posted by rambo

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He was referencing a normal person not during a cycle. I prefer "restart" for someone who is kicking their metabolism. A cheat day is when you just go bat **** and eat everything you want no matter what the costs. Cheescake, pizza, case of beer, etc.

Sorry, I'm not following. Cycle of what?

I know what a cheat day is, but again based on the BB approach that this kid seems to be taking, he'd be better off with a refeed for recomp and psychological issues. And investigating a completely new approach to fat loss.

Unfortunately, he's stymied by the "must not lose 1 gm of muscle/must eat clean/must blast my chest in every possible manner" mindset that, in this case, seems to be to limiting his fat loss. I posted a few links. He'd be perfect for UD as it will take him below 10% (as long as he's not an idiot about it), will retain his muscle and provide for a power WO that may in fact increase some of his lifts.

lefty

Eh, either way he needs to change up his regiment and diet. From what short reviews of UD I saw it does that in a structured way. Honestly, from what I remember, he's been supplementing and exercising pretty much the same way for the past year so changing either his diet or routine could do wonders.

Drizzt, you've been working out for quite some time and know what you've done so just take what we think to be helpful and apply it as necessary.

Originally Posted by adversity04

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Eh, either way he needs to change up his regiment and diet. From what short reviews of UD I saw it does that in a structured way. Honestly, from what I remember, he's been supplementing and exercising pretty much the same way for the past year so changing either his diet or routine could do wonders.

Drizzt, you've been working out for quite some time and know what you've done so just take what we think to be helpful and apply it as necessary.

I've actually switched workouts a few times this year, I was doing a HST based workout earlier in the year to bulk and have gradually switched to a split during cutting. I did a little reading on UD and it sounds interesting. I will peruse it further.

Drizz I don't care what you say if you are cutting/bulking whatever you are doing you don't know what the hell you are doing. You don't go heavy on one part of the arm and light on the other part. It doesn't make sense at all. Also it is good for your knees to use them if you have good form. Hell do stiff legged deads. You are only listing 10 reps for them so either it is too light for you to get **** out of it or it is still doing nothing for you. You aren't "cutting" with only doing 10 reps at low weight. I don't think you realize reps at 225 is about equal (almost not quite) a 400 max with deads. 225 for reps is what some women do. I just got back from the gym. My gf cheers here at school and she lifts with me, she is 102 lbs and she deadlifted 205 for 12 reps a few minutes ago. With your upper body strength you should be able to dead wayyyyyy more than 225 for reps even with bad knees. Don't compare yourself to other lifters as most of them are too ***** to do deadlifts and squats so at least you are trying.