Not new to fitness, but it has been a while :/

[clee215]

I am 20 years old, 6'4" 230 pounds. Ever since i graduated high school and had knee surgery I have gone on and off of diets and my weight has yoyo'd from as high as 265 down to 235, then up to 245, then down to 218 was the lowest, then back up to 242 as of 10 days ago and now down to 230. I guess you can say I have had series of crash diets where I eat the bare essentials to keep my calorie intake low and at the same time try to get back into the workout routines I had in highschool(football/wrestling year round). The most I have ever been able to keep that up was 1.5 months. The fact that I have lost 12 pounds in 6 days then haven't lost any weight for 4 made me start re-evaluating my diet plans. I have done all kinds of online research but I am not sure how accurate the BMR calculators are or even the calories burned based on different types of exercise. So, my first question to this forum is: With my height, weight, and age, as well as working out from moderately to intense 4-5 days a week for 20-40 min; is over 3000 calories burned a day a realistic number to plan my meals around. My second question would be if I create more then a 1000 calorie defecit consistently per day will that have an adverse effect on my body's ability to burn fat, could that be the reason for my recent 3-4 day plateau. My average calorie defecit(given 3200 calories burned is accurate) has been 1200-1400 for the first 9 days of my so far 10 days of dieting. I know that was alot to read so I want to thank everyone ahead of time for reading it and responding because I have been looking everywhere for answers.

Also, I wanted to post my current meal plan.

Breakfast-640 calories-10AM
4 egg whites-120 calories
2 whole eggs- 150 calories
2 slices of wheat toast-180 calories
1 serving of peanut butter- 190 calories
Meal #1- 445 calories-2PM
2 slices of wheat bread- 180 calories
2 servings of turkey- 150 calories
Pepperccinis – 5 calories
Mustard- 0 calories
1 ounce of cheese- 110 calories
Meal #2-445 calories-5:30PM
2 slices of wheat bread- 180 calories
2 servings of turkey- 150 calories
Pepperccinis – 5 calories
Mustard- 0 calories
1 ounce of cheese- 110 calories
Dinner-445 calories-8:30PM
2 servings of lettuce- 20 calories
3.3 ounces of chicken breast- 170 calories
1 ounce of cheese- 110 calories
1 serving of ranch- 140 calories
1 serving pepperchinnis- 5 calories
1975 calories total/1000 calorie deficit

the meals are labeled with total calories and time of day eaten.

 

[03gt]

Some of the more knowledgeable members will chime in, but 1000 deficit is a bit much. I would try to intake around 2500-2800 and with some good cardio and weights it should come off.

What type of exercise are you doing? Cardio, weights, a mix of both?

I am 6'2 205lb 27yo and if I stay in that range, under normal circumstances, I can lose weight. I am just a sucker for good (non-healthy) foods and drinks with friends!

 

[clee215]

I share you love for drinks with friends but I have been able to keep that under control, so far...

My workouts have been running 15-20 min 2-3 days a week, and I have picked up a body weight compilation of exercises from iwantsixpackabs.com, week 1. If you dont want to follow the link the workout involves multiple sets of push-ups, lunges, squats, pull-ups, burpees, and then three 45 sec planks. I am getting a gym membership soon so I can get on a schedule because my house isn't the best athletic environment.

My issue is that I have a hard time believing that eating 2400+ calories a day will help me lose weight. Here's a little background, I wrestled in highschool for 4 years, as well as played football. So the football season would end and I would have 4 weeks to cut 20-30lbs to make weight, so the only dieting that feels natural to me would be considered starvation. So for me to think that I can eat even more then 2000 calories and have the most productivity with my weight loss is alien to me.

To sum the second paragraph, is my estimated BMR of 3200 calories with moderate activity an accurate number?

 

[tic]

Do you want to hear some good news or some bad news?

Good news: try to keep a 1,000 calorie defecit, but I AM crazy like that. Honestly, you are figuring out serving size and calorie expenditure so 1,000 may actually wind up only being 300-1,200 calorie. Try to lose consistently 1-2 lbs a week.

Bad news: that 12 lbs that you lost might be combination of Bowl movement and water weight. Now, start keeping a more accurate weight measurement each week. How does your clothes fit? You maybe losing fat AND gaining muscle which you can see / feel with the clothes you wear. Try really hard to adhere to a strict diet / cardio routine and you should NEED to wear a belt on your pants. That should be the first month's or two's goal.

More bad news: sorry if this comes out like mean and "ass-hole" like but I cannot find a delicate way to say this: Your mentality towards this is wrong. You just started this adventure and hit a small bump and already getting frustrated and from what I am reading, slightly giving up. I hope I am wrong and that you are NOT a quitter. A true diet is more of a lifestyle change and it's a journey / adventure; NOT a destination. What would happen once you reach your weight goal and you start eating "normal" (what you used to eat before) again?

What I suggest is eat and carefully watch the calorie intake for first couple weeks to what your target bodyweight that you want and use cardio (burn extra 500 calorie via excercise per day) to burn off that weight in meantime. This way, you are losing bodyfat from your diet b/c you are eating at your target weight and NOT current bodyweight AND you will burn 1 lbs a week from excercise a week if you can burn 3,500 calorie per week. That would add up to 1-2 lbs a week.

What is your reward / reason to losing bodyweight; both short and long-term reason and keep your eye on the prize. Mine is: Increase energy level, easier to get up in the morning, people are superficial and being fit gets me more attention than not, I want to see grandkids (if I ever even have kids), and tons more. Just wanted to share some but you have your reason and hold onto it and focus on it b/c dieting is HARD, very hard physically but also mentally exhausting/challenging. Are you ready to step up and take the challenge to transform yourself into a new healthier you?

Sorry for the novel, had to write one b/c you did.

 

[03gt]

My issue is that I have a hard time believing that eating 2400+ calories a day will help me lose weight.

To sum the second paragraph, is my estimated BMR of 3200 calories with moderate activity an accurate number?

Well if your BMR is 3200 and you are taking in 2400, that's an 800 calorie deficit. Why is that hard to believe?

I am 2in shorter and 25lbs lighter and I can lose weight at that intake. I know everyone is not the same, but you have to test and see what that magic number is.

I have just started getting my "summer" diet in place (aka cutting) and I will be doing 3-4 days of cardio which consists of some good 5-6 mile runs and a few early morning HIIT sessions. That, along with my normal weight routine is normally what works for me as far as losing some weight.

Also, how much water do you drink in one day? How much sleep are you getting? Any multi-vitamins?

 

[clee215]

I appreciate the detailed honesty.

I didn't mean to make it sounds like I am frustrated or discouraged in any way, on the contrary I am more motivated then ever. I just have to admit that I have been going about dieting the wrong way my entire life so I have not been sure what is fact and what is fiction when it comes to weight loss information.

The 12 pounds that I have lost is what normally happens when I start "dieting". After realizing the continual pattern that I put myself through I gained the motivation to educate myself on how to do it properly.

I would also appreciate any specific critiques on my meal plan, as I said, I am new to this whole eat more to lose weight thing.

 

[clee215]

Well if your BMR is 3200 and you are taking in 2400, that's an 800 calorie deficit. Why is that hard to believe?

Also, how much water do you drink in one day? How much sleep are you getting? Any multi-vitamins?

Like I said before its hard for me to grasp because of my past beliefs on dieting, im just checking to see the general validity of that high of a number.

I drink anywhere from 1/2 gallon to 1 gallon of water a day and get 6-9 hours of sleep a night. I dont currently take a multi-vitamin.