Hans' fat loss journey

[Michael Mohn]

I found a lower protein intake, under 1g/kg of desired body weight helps me in fat loss. High carb from fruit/honey and low to medium fat intake.

 

[Kris]

Let's say your maintenance calories is 2500. If you eat fruit, by how much will that increase? If you can't put a number to it, it most likely isn't increasing. I eat fruit and I still have to make sure I eat in a deficit to lose fat. Eating fruit by itself is satiating and eating only fruit that day will put you in a big deficit, which will lead to fat loss.

That's the whole premise of counting calories. To make sure you eat less...in a safe way.
If someone wants to retain maximal amounts of muscle, then unchecked deficits will lead to muscle loss, especially if only fruit is being consumed. Someone can only effectively lose weight without counting calories if they know more or less how much protein they're eating and how many calories.

yes, but not all calories are 'made' equal. that theory of counting calories have been questioned by many people. I for sure eat less than 2000. And i am rather muscular. and not so young anymore, 60.

 

[Hans]

I found a lower protein intake, under 1g/kg of desired body weight helps me in fat loss. High carb from fruit/honey and low to medium fat intake.

How did you feel on higher protein vs lower protein?

 

[Hans]

yes, but not all calories are 'made' equal. that theory of counting calories have been questioned by many people. I for sure eat less than 2000. And i am rather muscular. and not so young anymore, 60.

Yes I have also delved into all that research. However, counting calories is just a sure-fire way to make sure you're deficit is on point. If it's too big, muscle is being lost. That's probably fine for people that don't care about their muscle, but retaining muscle is extremely important, especially as you age.

 

[Kris]

Yes I have also delved into all that research. However, counting calories is just a sure-fire way to make sure you're deficit is on point. If it's too big, muscle is being lost. That's probably fine for people that don't care about their muscle, but retaining muscle is extremely important, especially as you age.

counting calories is just hit and miss. it does not work.

i would say, if you eat normally, make sure that you are satiated to a basic level. if you fast, that is an entirely different matter.

 

[Michael Mohn]

How did you feel on higher protein vs lower protein?

Meat/protein is very anabolic and with some strength training I gain a good amount of muscle. Lower protein helps losing weight and I feel a little bit on the edge, probably higher adrenaline/cortisol. I had some mold/ mite allergens exposure from an old carpet and gained almost 20kg, mostly water weight. I moved out and need some time to normalise thyroid and histamine levels then the weight will melt (piss) off.

 

[OccamzRazer]

counting calories is just hit and miss. it does not work.

Counting cals may be hit or miss, but it can - and does! - work for some people.

 

[OccamzRazer]

@Hans

Just a thought: have you ever tried rucking, i.e. walking/hiking with weights?

I used to climb this small local mountain carrying an 80lb kettlebell, but there are easier ways to do it: r/Rucking

Given you enjoy working out and being active, you might enjoy rucking too!

 

[Hans]

counting calories is just hit and miss. it does not work.

Hit and miss would be 50/50 chance. It actually has around a 90% success rate.

 

[Hans]

@Hans

Just a thought: have you ever tried rucking, i.e. walking/hiking with weights?

I used to climb this small local mountain carrying an 80lb kettlebell, but there are easier ways to do it: r/Rucking

Given you enjoy working out and being active, you might enjoy rucking too!

Climbing a hill with 80lbs is one hell of a workout. :) I don't plan on rucking, but will be experimenting with heavy farmer walks for now. Thanks for the suggestion though, will keep it in mind for the future.

 

[David90]

@David90 re: compound exercise

Depends on your aims but isn't fat loss about physique development?

How do compound exercises move one toward a better physique?

Compound exercises work the target muscles with inferior load with a higher risk
of injury.

Compound Exercises are good, since you work and use more muscle. You can therefore use Heavyer Weight, which is also Crucial for Muscle Growth & Strength. For Example in Barbell Bench Press, you also Train your Triceps and Shoulders indirectly, while your Chest get's trained directly. Of Course Injury Risk could be higher from them (especially if you do the Form Wrong or use way too much Weight that you can handle). But they give you the Most Bang for your Buck and a Good Anabolic Response (especially Squats and Deadlift). So i would not neglect them completly. Keep in Mind, that Most Compound Exercises need around 3-4 Minutes Pause between Sets and the CNS/Total Body Fatigue is a bit bigger with them (especially Squats and Deadlifts).

Isolation Exercises train a specific muscle more directly, and there is also lesser risk for Injury with them. For Example a Bicep Curl very much trains the Biceps and that's it. There are some Stabalizer Muscles Involved and some Synergists that are helping in the Exercise but mostly it target's that specific muscle group.
They are good if you want to give a specific muscle group more ''direct'' volume. They are also good to put in a Workout Plan since most of them need much Rest Time and the Total Body Fatigue is not that big with them.

If i could give a opinion:
The Workout should have a Good Mix of Compound and Isolation Exercises, regardless of Age.
Of course there are some certain Differences that someone has to adjust, especially if someone has a Higher Age. Maybe lowering the Weight a bit, using maybe more Isolation Exercises in the Workout instead of Compound Exercises. Or Dropping the Training Frequency to 1,5/2 Times per Week (instead of 3 Times per Week) for Every Muscle Group (Alternating Upper/Lower, Alternating Push/Pull would be very good for that).

 

[Kris]

i do lift some weights. but i like simple muscle training like pull ups or push ups. you cannot go wrong with those.

anyway, regarding the calories matter. I can just say that if I water fast, i lose 1kg per day average; if you fast too long you lower your metabolism, so it is not good for losing weight, but 1 or 2 days here and there works. But I want to say, that if I eat only fruits, I lose 1kg weight as well. so the calories counting here goes out the window. by the way, has anyone tried dry fasting? I did once 3 days, but i am not really sure about its benefits.

 

[Sven]

As someone who has gone through a few fat loss diets, it's important to remember that weight loss can lag behind fat loss, and sometimes you can even gain a bit of weight while still losing fat. This is due to water retention and afaik the more mass you have the bigger the swings can be. Trust the process and it will even out eventually.

 

[Kris]

As someone who has gone through a few fat loss diets, it's important to remember that weight loss can lag behind fat loss, and sometimes you can even gain a bit of weight while still losing fat. This is due to water retention and afaik the more mass you have the bigger the swings can be. Trust the process and it will even out eventually.

yes, right. measuring waist is more accurate. if you can get into your old pants, from times when you were slimmer, this means that you have lost fat :)

 

[natewill]

Any update on the thread? How is the cut @Hans ?

 

[Hans]

Here is the graph of my initial 2 weeks on the diet.

As you can see, the first few days were erratic and the first week was a little all over the place with quick weight loss. This initial phase is usually why people think a specific diet (especially keto or carnivore) is so amazing.
But after the first week or so, fat loss usually calms down and follows a more "chill" decline. As you can see, I was 100.9 for 4 days in a row and then increased to 101 for 2 days and then dropped to 100.4. So just because your weight plateaus doesn't mean you're not losing weight. As someone is getting leaner and leaner, these "plateaus" can get longer, even up to 2-3 weeks. People desperately want to change their diet during that phase, but don't. It's most likely water retention due to hard workouts, not as good sleep, stress or whatever the case may be.

I also want to show the importance of measuring every day and then taking the average over 2 weeks to see in which direction you're heading. Freaking out over weight loss or gain in a few days rarely means anything.

Lastly, I lost almost 3kg in the first 2 weeks, so my deficit might be too big. I'll continue to track for 30 days before making adjustments.

 

[Hans]

Any update on the thread? How is the cut @Hans ?

Still going great, see post above.
Energy and sleep are still great and I'm not below 100kg. I think my deficit is too big but will see in the next week or so. Will probably add fruit or something, like mango or banana or more honey to my smoothies.

 

[Surfari]

@Hans Do you remember when you added in MCT oil?
Thanks.

 

[Vanset]

Hi @Hans
Do you mind sharing your source on molasses? Do you use it daily? Thanks.

 

[Brandin]

Here is the graph of my initial 2 weeks on the diet.
View attachment 31016
As you can see, the first few days were erratic and the first week was a little all over the place with quick weight loss. This initial phase is usually why people think a specific diet (especially keto or carnivore) is so amazing.
But after the first week or so, fat loss usually calms down and follows a more "chill" decline. As you can see, I was 100.9 for 4 days in a row and then increased to 101 for 2 days and then dropped to 100.4. So just because your weight plateaus doesn't mean you're not losing weight. As someone is getting leaner and leaner, these "plateaus" can get longer, even up to 2-3 weeks. People desperately want to change their diet during that phase, but don't. It's most likely water retention due to hard workouts, not as good sleep, stress or whatever the case may be.

I also want to show the importance of measuring every day and then taking the average over 2 weeks to see in which direction you're heading. Freaking out over weight loss or gain in a few days rarely means anything.

Lastly, I lost almost 3kg in the first 2 weeks, so my deficit might be too big. I'll continue to track for 30 days before making adjustments.

Im so hyped to see you leaner since you got alot of mass!