Cutting 15-20 lbs in two months

[loftoid]

Looking to cut 15-20 lbs before entering a smoker in another two months while I continue to train. I'm about 5'7, just under 165 lbs but I also have huge thighs that probably aren't going anywhere. Boxing 60-90m 3-4 times a week, running every other day. I've stuck to the same routine for about 3 months now. Eating pretty consistently clean already, trimmed a few lbs but I don't seem to be dropping any significant amnt of weight. What should I be doing differently?

[Eastbound]

Count your calories. Figure out how many calories you burn a day and try to eat 500 less than that. If you eat more than what you burn, it'll be stored as fat, you'll gain. If all is equal you will stay the same weight. eat less and you'll lose weight

Intermittent fasting is bit more extreme but will help burn fat faster. Not eating forces the body to burn fat instead of the food you just ate. Working out in a fasted state will burn fat fast. This can be difficult because your body is used to getting food every few hours. It will require an adjustment period mentally and physically

[tcbender]

I just cut from 165 to 152.

You have to track your calories. Be wary of how much calories are in oils and butter. Tip #1 would be to swap those out with cooking spray (I use organic olive oil and avocado oil sprays). You need to be eating around 1,500 calories a day, no more than 1750. Tip #2 eat a lot of eggs and Tip #3, swap out eggs with egg whites to save a ton of calories and still get the same amount of protein. Aim for protein intake to be the desired weight you want to reach in grams. So if you want to be 150, try to eat 150grams of protein a day while staying under the 1500-1750 calories a day range.

Then you have to up your cardio. You need to be running everyday, and start to increase the total distance. You can also add in walks. You will burn close to 100 calories per mile you walk and 125 or so per mile you run depending on the speed.

Cycle your carbs. Each gram of carb you eat you hold on to 3 grams of water. But once you start cutting your caloric in take your body wants to store the things you eat, so you have to cycle your carbs. I usually eat higher carbs saturday and sunday, moderate on monday and low carb the rest of the week. For low carb days aim to be closer to 50carbs, moderate 100 or less and high carbs 150-200 carbs without going over your caloric intake.

Drink more water, like a ton of water. And yeah I guess that's about it. I hit a plateau after a while, but wasn't tracking my oils so was actually consuming more calories than I thought. Got more strict on that and upped the cardio and the rest of the weight came off. Took me like 3 maybe 4 weeks to drop 10-12lbs.

Edit: Oh I also only eat after I work out and only eat twice a day (so I guess its considered intermittent fasting).
I run in the morning fasted and sometimes workout again in the afternoon while fasted, then I eat lunch after that (after 12pm but before 2:30pm usually). I then eat after I train at night on Tuesday/Thurs (so around 8:30pm) if I'm not training at night then I eat around 5:30-6pm.

And get a lot of sleep. Unless I'm training later on Tues/Thur I'm in bed by 8pm and asleep by 9pm. I'm still asleep before 10pm on days I train late (have to get home to eat and shower and all that).

[tcbender]

I'll post some healthy low carb easy recipes that I would eat.

[Eastbound]

Great advice here from TC!

[loftoid]

Yes, great really advice! Thank you TC. I'm definitely going to try the protein by gram trick, what does 150 grams of protein a day look like for you? Recipes would be awesome if you have any to share!

[tcbender]

Oh and lift at least once a week. Cutting weight that quickly will cause you to lose muscle, lifting helps you keep your strength and also keep your muscle higher (which also helps burn more calories).

<- These are your friend. I don't **** with tuna fish, but these are great. I buy the no salt added, 6 oz cans (for about $4-5 each) and they are only 180 calories, 4 grams of fat, 0 grams of carbs, and 36 grams of protein, plus the fish oil is good for your muscles and joints, etc.

Also I only eat organic (including condiments like mayo and mustard), so while I won't list the ingredients as organic for sake of time, please note that everything is organic.

I do Egg Salad (which lasts 2 days - there are 4 servings but my girlfriend eats half of it with me).
6 large brown eggs - hardboiled
3 tablespoons mayo
1 tsp mustard
1 tsp buffalo sauce
1 tsp worcestshire sauce
1/2 onion diced
1 large cucumber
1/4 tsp salt
4 green onions chopped thin
pepper
paprika

Alone its less than 185 calories per serving (4 servings total) 15 g of fat, 1g carb, 9.5 g protein. I however add one of the 6 oz cans of pink salmon (drained first of course) and a little more buffalo sauce and its only 365 calories, 19g fat, 1 gc, 45.5g protein. Ton of protein, no carbs, and some good fat.

I then do Egg white omelette.
1/2 onion sliced
3 cups spinach
9 tablespoons of egg whites (3 servings per my container)
1 can 6oz salmon
Some sriracha

If I have some left over veg from meal prep (I'll post that recipe later) then I'll start with a bit of the oil spray and the leftover veggies in a nonstick pan. Otherwise I'll chop half an onion and cook it up a bit then add in the spinach and let it wilt, I also will add in the drained salmon. Let it cook for a few minutes, then turn the heat down to about medium and add in the egg whites. Move the pan around to get it evenly dispersed. Cover the pan and cook til desired doneness (about 3-5 minutes). Make sure the edges are loose then slide it onto your plate. I usually fold it over and add some sriracha.

The omelette is only 225 calories per serving, 4 grams of fat, 5 grams of carbs, and 51 grams of protein.

Then I do banana pancakes on the weekend.
2 ripe bananas (not fully ripe bananas can be ripened in the oven on 350 degrees for about 10-15 minutes until brown)
1 package instant oats (1/3 cup out of my big bag of oats. Make sure theres no sugar added)
2 scoops of protein powder (I use unflavored, just whey protein, no sugar, no added anything else)
2 eggs (separate the egg whites from the yolk)
2 tablespoons of almond butter (or peanut butter - make sure its no salt and is raw/organic)
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp vanilla extract
a pinch of salt and a pinch of sugar

Beat the egg whites with a mixer for 3-5 minutes until nice and fluffy, then add in the baking powder and beat a bit longer to distribute evenly.
In another bowl combine the rest of the ingredients. Add in the egg whites and evenly mix together.

Preheat a nonstick pan on a little below medium heat (4 or 4.5 out of 10 on my stovetop), make sure you let it preheat for a while. Right before adding the dough give it a nice spray (I use the avocado oil for these), then scoop 1/3 cup of batter onto the pan. Pour it all in one spot. Let cook for a bit then flip and let cook til desired doneness. I add a bit of raspberry preserves and organic maple syrup.

That makes about 10 pancakes, if you are making them for just yourself I would split the recipe in half or save the rest of the batter for the next day.

The total for all of the pancakes are 950 calories, 32 grams of fat, 95 grams of carbs, and 78 grams of protein. Since I only eat half (my gf eats the other half and likes chocolate chips in hers lol), then for me its only 475 calories, 16 grams of fat, 47 grams of carbs, and 39 grams of protein.

Steak dinner
I cook steak with mushrooms, and cook onion, kale and spinach up together. I'll have a sweet potato if I am allotted the extra calories or am on a moderate carb day.

I'll post some more stuff later as well. Have to get ready to train.

[scbb]

Looking to cut 15-20 lbs before entering a smoker in another two months while I continue to train. I'm about 5'7, just under 165 lbs but I also have huge thighs that probably aren't going anywhere. Boxing 60-90m 3-4 times a week, running every other day. I've stuck to the same routine for about 3 months now. Eating pretty consistently clean already, trimmed a few lbs but I don't seem to be dropping any significant amnt of weight. What should I be doing differently?

Try the cabbage soup diet. It is only 1 week. You won't have energy to train but I lost 6 lbs

[OctoberRed]

A friend of mine joined a gym and did a six week challenge, a diet mixed in with exercise, and cut 20 pounds down. The challenge was 20 pounds in 6 weeks.