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Not sure about my diet?

Shaolin_911 Posts: 92 Joined: 2003/01/20	2003/01/25, 12:58 PM Hey, just going to remind ppl im 5'6 and 135lb around. OK, so im not sure how many calories is best for me right now. my macronutrient breakdown is usualy 40/30/30(p/c/f). I also usualy end up eating 1500cal to about less then 2000cals. Sometiems ill get less than 1500cal. Is this too little? I am trying to cut, but im afraid it might not be healthy, or i might just not be doing the right thing... Any help?
bb1fit Posts: 11,105 Joined: 2001/06/30	2003/01/25, 06:22 PM Well, by your stats, I would say that you should be trying to put muscle on. At 5'6" and 135, I would think you are pretty slim. Cutting involves losing more weight. Is this what you really want? Are you satisfied with your current muscle size? You will not gain any more with a cutting diet. You may want to reasses your goals. Just my opinion.. -------------- Failing to plan is like planning to fail!
Shaolin_911 Posts: 92 Joined: 2003/01/20	2003/01/25, 07:17 PM Im pretty happy with my muscle size. i want to drop my body fat a bit. i want that ripped look, but most of all i want to get rid of my spare tire. Once im happy with my bodyfat, i will go for gaining. so what do u think?
Lumina20 Posts: 966 Joined: 2001/10/31	2003/01/26, 11:11 AM I agree w/ bb1 in that you really oughta consider putting on lean mass instead. Your profile says that you have been working out for about a year now, but what was your diet like in that past year? If you were barely getting in 2000 calories then that could account for the lack of mass that you have. It would help to know your bodyfat percentage: calipers are relatively cheap and it will at least give you some idea of how much lean mass you actually have. As an example, let's say that your bodyfat is around 15%, this means you would have around 115 lbs of lean mass, in order to get to the point where you could see your abs you probably need to get to about 10% BF or to about 128 lbs. and that's without losing any muscle at all.
Shaolin_911 Posts: 92 Joined: 2003/01/20	2003/01/26, 11:35 AM Ive been workin out for a year yes. But i only started training smart about a few month ago. My diet has never really been strict either. So u guys think i should try to add mass? Problem is i never really have done a "bulking" phase. So i guess ill need help in that department. I just thought it would be better to get lean, to like u said about 128lb, and then add some mass.
Lumina20 Posts: 966 Joined: 2001/10/31	2003/01/26, 11:41 AM As a beginner, it is very possible to gain mass and shed bodyfat at the same time. Your calorie intake is too low, though. A 40/30/30 P/C/F is probably good to start with, but you gotta up those calories to around 2500. You can do this slowly by adding 200 calories per week to your current intake until you get to that point. This will help to minimize fat gain. But your diet is number 1. This means that you're going to have to write down what you eat for a while until you get into the swing of eating correctly (5-6 small meals per day).
Shaolin_911 Posts: 92 Joined: 2003/01/20	2003/01/26, 11:53 AM yeah i track what i eat over at fitday. but my diet is different everyday, somedays ill go over 2000, somedays below, its not consistent at all. If i go out with my friends, ill tend to eat junk food. What routine should i do if i am to bulk?
Shaolin_911 Posts: 92 Joined: 2003/01/20	2003/01/26, 04:17 PM Is bulking for 2 month enough? Then can i go back to cutting if i see some good gains? How long u think it would take to gain 10lb of hopefully lean muscle...?
Lumina20 Posts: 966 Joined: 2001/10/31	2003/01/26, 08:24 PM Be consistent with your diet and training and gaining 10 lbs. of muscle in 2 months is possible, try to limit your junk food to one day a week (better yet, one meal a week). You can follow FTs mass gaining program.
Shaolin_911 Posts: 92 Joined: 2003/01/20	2003/01/26, 09:04 PM Yeah thx, i changed that, im starting tommorow... I guess ill have to work extra hard on my diet, i used to have a cheat DAY once a week, i realised now that could have compromised my improvement cause i really abused that 1 day a week thing, i guess ill try to limit it to 1 meal or 2. Do u think lifting 3 days a week is enough? And what should i do about my cardio? eliminate it completely? or is 10-15min of light cardio after my workouts ok?
Lumina20 Posts: 966 Joined: 2001/10/31	2003/01/26, 11:27 PM 3 days is fine if that's all you have time for, but I personally prefer 5 days because I'm not in the gym as long each day and it's easier to keep my intensity up. Try to do cardio on the days you don't lift, but if that's the only time you can fit it in, then I say go for it.
Shaolin_911 Posts: 92 Joined: 2003/01/20	2003/01/27, 08:25 AM With school and everything i wish i could do 5 days. On some days i start at 8am and finish at 5:30pm, i get pretty tired from it, so i keep those as a rest day. Thx for all ur help.
Shaolin_911 Posts: 92 Joined: 2003/01/20	2003/01/27, 07:46 PM Since now im bulking, do u guys recommend having some carbs for dinner?
Shaolin_911 Posts: 92 Joined: 2003/01/20	2003/01/28, 04:51 PM bump