Calorie Counting and Workout Question

Yeah, knowing how much in calories you were eating is a big step. I progress in weight gain for 13yrs after the military. Looked back at how much I was eating was crazy. A lot of people are brought up 3 squares a day eating. Well that 3 squares could be eating and drinking 3-5k cals which what I was doing. When your younger you can handle this when you are older and sitting around your body starts packing it on. Plus people back in the day did more physical work all day. If you drop your calories too low you'll lose muscle weight. It's why the calories seem so high when it says 2585. 1380 is way too low unless you aren't gonna work out or do cardio. I stay between 1980-2585 in my opinion if your exercising. If weights not moving tweak it by dropping a little bit. 200 cals. It's important to lose fat weight not muscle weight. It's what makes you look skinny fat if you lose more muscle then fat. You shrink down but look the same.

 

The best thing you can do is write down everything eat. Amount of sugar, fats, protein. And of course, exercise. Definitely shop around for some supplements that give you good nurltrition. Nutrition and what you eat is very under rated, but very important.

 

The problem to solve about not gaining weight is how to contain cravings. I eat at Iron Skillet sometimes too, but portions I see some folks are grabbing blow my mind. On the other hand, what's left in life if we could not eat good. I used to carry my bicycle with me and rode at least for an hour three -four time a week. The walking and walking an walking seems the best way to stay active.

 

Eating healthy can only get you so far. The most important thing IMO to losing fat is to build muscle mass. Trying to lose weight doesn't necessarily mean your becoming more healthy, because muscle actually weighs more than fat. Doing cardio will give you a temporary increase in metabolism, but building muscle will increase your metabolism all throughout the day. The more muscle you have, the more calories you burn because it takes calories and protein to build and maintain muscle. And it also strengthens and hardens your bones as well to prevent osteoporosis.

You don't have to go all Arnold or look like this guy.....



....just enough weights to gradually increase your strength and muscles. And also take Protein supplements immediately after your workouts to rebuild your muscles. It's a lot easier to get 30-60 grams of protein drinking a Whey Protein supplement rather than eating a chicken to get the same amount of protein.

On a side note, to maintain a muscle mass like Ronnie Coleman has means you have to eat around 10,000 calories or more a day. The calories that you burn having that much muscle mass is beyond what any normal human being would burn. But Steroids probably has a lot to with that as well lol.