Diet fat-loss

creasing muscle and losing fat simultaneously.

My current condition is, well… pretty poor. I am 6ft. and weigh a not so lean 190 pounds. I’m currently working out 3-4 times a week. And I rollerblade and do mountain biking a couple times a week too…

I’ve done some reading and basically have come to the conclusion that I should be eating aprox 3500-4000 cals/day. My problem is I’m not 100% on what I should be eating to maximize muscle growth while ensuring fat loss…

Also, what supplements should I be taking? Whey protein looks like a “must” to ensure 1-2 grams of protein per pound… I’ve read up on some other supplements but get blown away by the volume of different diet strategies. I’m not really in that great shape so I’m geussing that my diet wont need to be that strict. Do I really need flax oil, creatine, or any other supplement right now?

Also, I am considering using a “mass gainer” to get to the desired level of calories… but I’m concerned that the calories in those are empty calories… am I better off getting the cals from real food?

there is an easy solution. Read EVERYTHING that John Berardi has written here, particularily Massive Eating. Another good article to check out is “Foods That Make You Look Good Nekid”. DO NOT focus on supplements. Get your diet “dialed in” first.

Paul,

There wouldn’t be to many supplements that you would need, but I always suggest the food supplement cod liver oil. I keep saying this over and over, and I bet people are thinking I have some sort of CLO fetish, but I just think it’s a great supplement. It gives the EFAs that are supposed to help in weight loss, and vitamin A is used in protein utilization.

Maybe I haven’t read well, but I don’t think you should be eating above maintenance if you want to lose fat. I’d suggest looking at some of the articles to know for sure.

Another “supplement” would be to buy chicken breasts in bulk as well as individually frozen fish fillets in bulk, and then go get a cheap George Foreman Grill for about $15. Just run the frozen meat under water for several minutes, throw it on the grill, season it a little, and you have a good protein meal in 10 minutes or so.

I would always suggest getting calories from real food unless you absolutely cannot.

Hope this helps,
Neil

Don’t use a weight gainer, pretty much garabage to me. Make your own with a few scoops of powder, skim milk, and a couple scoops of all natural peanut butter. If you are trying to lose some weight your calories look a little high.