Q&A for: 4-Jan-06
1205. Q:
Lets say i have obtained some muscles and now i wanna lose some of the last fat.What approach is the best so i will lose only fat and no mucles at all very slowly?I think that it is good to increase the protein and decrease the carbs at the same time.This way with protein i should be able to keep my muscles impact and lose slowly only fat.What is your suggestion?
A:
You have the right general idea -- you'll need to cut calories, mainly at expense of carbs while continuing to keep protein intake high. However do NOT assume that just because you are eating a lot of protein that all of your muscles will be spared no matter how low your carbs and/or calories drop! You will want to create only a small caloric deficit of a few hundred calories per day by cutting down on carbs and so lose weight very slowly. Fill out Mike's Fitness Guide specifying 'Lose Fat' as the goal to get a sample daily diet with protein/carbs/fats/calories breakdowns.
1206. Q:
How many nuts can i eat a day ?They contain healthy fat but i dont wanna eat too much.I use merely butter made on nuts.How much should i eat?I mean in each meal so as not to get too much fat.
A:
It's really impossible to give an exact answer without knowing what the rest of your diet looks like. The rule of thumb is to have about 30% of your daily calories come from fats (healthy fats, of course!), so if you are already eating a lot of foods that contain fats (like oils and salad dressings, mayonaise, eggs, full-fat dairy) then there isn't much room left for nuts or nut butter without taking some other fatty food out. On the other hand if your diet is quite lean, then 1-2 ounces of nuts or 2-3 tablespoons of nut butter might be OK daily.
Just remember that if your weight is stable now and you want to keep it that way that you can't just add lots of nut foods into it without starting to put on some weight. In this case you'd want to cut down on some other carb-rich or fat-rich food as you add more nuts to your diet.
When you buy nuts make sure they are either raw or dry-roasted and not oil-roasted. When you buy nut butter (I recommend almond butter, but peanut butter is OK too) make sure the only ingredients in it are nuts and maybe salt. Most peanut butter you see in stores has a ton of unhealthy preservatives and some sugar added in! Instead you should look for 'Natural Peanut Butter' -- again look at the ingredient label to make sure it only has peanuts and salt.
1207. Q:
What would happen if I, 15, 215 lbs, 5'11 male, (i am very fat- i have man boobs, a HUGE gut, and pretty much a sedentary lifestyle) went on a healthy eating program and lifting weights a lot? I think I would be better off. I'm not really into losing weight. I would like to become 'BUFF' What do you think would happen? Nice Site by the way :)
A:
Absolutely, you would be WAY better off, even if you don't lose a single pound of weight! If you eat healthy and become physically active, including weight training, at your age your body is quite good at burning fat and replacing it with muscle so you'll look and feel much better and be much healthier even without losing any weight. So by all means do it! You won't get a six-pack this way quickly (or maybe not even at all), but you can still make terrific progress compared to your current situation. After a few years of healthy lifestyle like that if you're still carrying too much fat then you can consider losing weight. But at your age I would 100% agree with you and just start on eating healthier and being active and weight training instead of focusing on actively trying to lose weight. You'll be able to build very good muscle with time and can certainly be buff by 17-18 years of age. Good luck!
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