EDT and Low Calorie Diets

I am very overweight and starting a low calorie Doctor-supervised diet program. I have started some light lifting like the break-in programs in Cosgrove’s New Rules of Lifting. I am interested in using the EDT fat loss program that Staley and Cosgrove described in their Ripped article. Is the EDT approach too much for a very low calorie diet (like around 800 calories per day)?

After a life-long battle with weight problems, I am trying to get to a normal range where exercise and good eating habits can keep me there. I know the arguments for doing this slow and easy; but, I am finally attacking this problem with a vengeance and want a lifting program that will be equally aggressive.

I am 45 years old. Is EDT too demanding or can it be adjusted for my situation? I have Staley’s books (e.g. Muscle Logic and EDT for Arms); I just do not think they are intended for low calorie diets. I may just stick with the workouts in the New Rules of Lifting if that makes more sense. Thanks for any constructive advice anyone can give.

Well, personally I think EDT would be great because it would help condition you. Also you might also try straight sets of the compound lifts, but only using 1 min rest periods. Also about your diet, 800 calories, way to low. That’s below the amount required for basic function.

I would first start with just eating clean, which is detailed in Berardi’s 7 Habits article and others here on T-Nation. When you’ve got 4-8 weeks of clean eating under your belt, then try cutting calories. Just keep reading and learning.

^^^ He’s doing it under the supervision of a doctor, so I don’t think it’s our place to tell him what is or isn’t too low. He may be on a fat fast type program, and if he’s dramatically overweight it may not be too low.

I think you CAN do it, but it’s a bit on the severe side. That said, if you use weights that permit the indicated loading parameters, you should be OK…let me know if I can help!

[quote]ERISA wrote:
I am very overweight and starting a low calorie Doctor-supervised diet program. I have started some light lifting like the break-in programs in Cosgrove’s New Rules of Lifting. I am interested in using the EDT fat loss program that Staley and Cosgrove described in their Ripped article. Is the EDT approach too much for a very low calorie diet (like around 800 calories per day)?

After a life-long battle with weight problems, I am trying to get to a normal range where exercise and good eating habits can keep me there. I know the arguments for doing this slow and easy; but, I am finally attacking this problem with a vengeance and want a lifting program that will be equally aggressive.

I am 45 years old. Is EDT too demanding or can it be adjusted for my situation? I have Staley’s books (e.g. Muscle Logic and EDT for Arms); I just do not think they are intended for low calorie diets. I may just stick with the workouts in the New Rules of Lifting if that makes more sense. Thanks for any constructive advice anyone can give.[/quote]

Thank you for the responses, especially Coach Staley. I want to try EDT for a number of reasons. I like the time element so I can control how long my workouts last given my work schedule. I also like the simplicity of how the system works. If it can cut fat and increase my work capacity, I will be very satisfied.

The concensus around here is Dr.'s are for the most part idiots. I don’t care how fat you are 800 calories a day is too low for even a large dog. All you’re going to do is rapidly lose energy, lose motivation, your body will hold on to the fat like a crack addict holds his pipe. You will lower your metabolism so much your body will conserve as much fat and calories as possible. This is a scientific fact.

Without writing several pages and going into great detail the best advice is to hire the BEST trainer you can afford. Don’t go cheap and hire who has the lowest fees. If your moribidly obese then you need someone very experienced. Also I’d hire a performance nutritionist with an equally impressive resume. These can you between $75 to over $500 per hour but if your life depends on it DO IT. I lost over 165 lbs in 7 months and it is easily possible with ball-busting work. I had a thread going several weeks ago called TOO MANY BUFFETS in Performance photos. Check it out for tips. Good Luck.

Take what your Dr. tells you with a grain of salt. They’re only people after all.

my post was found courtesy of a cool moderator:

[b]"i am unfamiliar w/EDT so i cannot comment specifically…

but what i can tell you is that you’re going to need to develop a relationship with you body in the sense that your mind and your body talk to each other.

what i mean is this: since you’re new to lifting the beginning will be a lot of self-discovery.

i.e. what am i good at? what am i ok at? where are my opportunities for improvement? how is my technique? how much weight can i lift on my exercises? how many sets of this weight, how many reps with that weight?

you need to try things out and learn what you can handle, and learn the signals your body gives you in order to let you know what’s too much and what’s too little.

your ability to read into your body’s cues will improve greatly over time, but it’s important to simply listen to the body and be honest with yourself.

if you are on a low calorie diet you should be careful about how much work volume you demand of your body through exercise, it can be easy to overdo it if you’re too aggressive and that is counterproductive to your goals.

finally, i would recommend that you simply do a basic program at the beginning. get your form down on the major exercises, learn the principles of the exercise movements, learn what kind of weight you can move and what kind of volume you can tolerate. once you know a bit more about your work capacities, then you can begin to customize routines for yourself.

so i’d say if you’re just beginning fuck 99.9% of the programs on this site. just learn the main compound movements that you’re able to do and work at those."
[/b]

are you doing the dr. bernstein diet?

I am doing a Doctor-supervised program mainly with protein shakes to start. Eventually I will add vegetables and fruits and, then, move to a diet supervised by a nutritionist. Thanks for the advice.

well, hopefully you’re receiving proper help with your doctor supervision. with an 800 calorie per day diet you will lose a lot of weight quickly to start.

maybe that is to motivate you? i’m not sure. but it is very very very little calories.

My personal experience with EDT is that when I cut calories too low, I start getting too sore and not properly recovering from my workouts even when using proper post workout nutrition. I agree with everyone else here that 800 is just not enough calories, regardless of the workout you want to do. I start having recovery problems when I eat less than 2500 cals a day using EDT, so I can’t imagine the world of hurt you’d be in eating only 800. Just be patient and don’t try to be so drastic with cutting back the cals.

That’s being said, I do think EDT is great for losing weight and leaning out. I’m currently using a bit of an EDT variant workout as we speak. Go for it!

also, your statement about attacking your weight problem aggressively, while a good idea in one sense, might actually be a bad idea in the sense that i think you’re implying.

don’t overdo it. there’s nothing rare about people who try too hard in the initial phases and burn themselves out quickly.

this isn’t a express process. discipline is just as important in knowing when to slow down as it is in getting a person off their ass and into the gym when they’re feeling lazy.

you must exercise disipline and not demand more from your body than it can deliver, otherwise you will pay a price.

heres a question about low calorie stuff

im on “the zone” and im 6’3 300 pounds 26-29% bodyfat

they have me eating 20 food blocks a day ( which is allot of food because its all clean) the average male eats only 14 blocks, now 20 blocks is ABOUT 2000 calories but ive read the way the diet works is you are feeding your lean body weight and making up the rest with your fat stores? it also states that since my insulin levels and hormones are balanced with this diet that i can eat less calories

im NEVER hungry EVER and its a chore some times to physically eat that much food, now im laid off right now and i work out 5 days a week 4 days weights, and a bit of cardio every day of the week AFTER weights

once i start playing rugby/working again im going to up my blocks to 25 and then if im hungry or if i notice mybody fat isnt going UP ill up it to 28-30 and go from there since im trying to build muscle