Hi folks… I’ve been lifting for about a year and a half and have stuck right at 215lbs, however I’ve got a stronger, healthier look now indicating to me that I’ve lost fat and gained muscle. My lifts have made decent progress, and I love the feeling of lifting heavy so that’s what I’ve been concentrating on.
Recently I’ve decided that I’d like to shed this coating of fat that I have, so that I can look good at the beach this summer. Grudgingly, I am willing to see a slow-down in my strength increases.
So on to the specifics. I figure I could stand to lose 20 pounds of fat, ie my goal is ~195lbs for the moment. I’ve throttled back my diet from 3000 to 3500 calories daily to between 2000 and 2500 calories daily. I get around 200g of protein from this diet. Should I look at further modification to the diet, or leave it as is?
Supplementation: I take 1-3 servings of Optimum whey protein for 24-72g of protein with little carbs or fat. I’ve just started taking Met-RX tribulus terrestris, and I’ve been taking fish oil caps for a couple weeks now. I don’t have tons of money for a bunch more supplements, so I’d like to avoid the whole fat loss pill aspect of things.
I currently lift five days/week (chest Monday, legs Tuesday, shoulders Wednesday, back Thursday, arms Friday). My lifts focus on the big three plus overhead pressing; I tend to be in the gym between half an hour and 45 minutes (I did a month of ~1.5 hour workouts and didn’t see any extra benefit strength-wise). Should I perhaps combine some days to increase volume? Should I do some sort of cardio?
Just a general note: I’m a poor-ass college student who eats in a cafeteria and is strapped for time. If any folks have been similar, feel free to chime in with specific things you may have done or seen others do.
Thanks in advance for your input!