protein, fats, carbs how much?

[lobo924]

I'm new to all the calorie counting that is the rage today. I've read so many articles on how to balance your diet and I am now truly lost! I'm hoping someone out there can give me an idea of how a beginner should set up his diet for fat loss and muscle gain. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

[fireman1]

lobo:
Dieting to cut fat AND gain muscle is very difficult. Generally it's easier to lean out, then bulk up.

Keys to the program: eat clean....you know what's good for you....lean protein and fiber carbs. That means lots of lean meats (chicken, fish, lean beef) and fresh vegetables. Reduce or remove, sugar, saturated fat and alcohol.

Lean out: Generally speaking you need to eat between 10-15 calories per pound. Decide on the weight you want to be, calculate the numbers of calories per day, then try to eat that much. You're right, it's tough to count calories. The other way to do it is to check your weight once a week. So step on the scale and record your weight. Then for one week, eat clean and work-out. At the end of the week step on the scale again, you should lose 1-2 pounds. If you did not lose that much, eat less. If you lost more than 2, eat a bit more.

Bulk-up: Here's the opposite plan....eat more, and when you step on the scale you should gain 1-2 pounds per week. If you don't gain that much, eat more. If you gain more than 2, eat less.

I go through these regular cycles myself and here's a couple things I did. First, read the ingredients on everything you eat. If you find anything that is partially-hydrogenated or contains high-fructose corn syrup, throw it away and don't eat it again (you will be amazed how these two ingredients are int a LOT of your foods)

Eat four to six times per day. Spread all your calories out over the course of the day. Your body is very adaptive. If you each a bunch of calories in the morning but don't eat lunch until late in the afternoon, your body will learn to store the calories from breakfast (as fat) knowing it's going to starve until lunch. But if you eat breakfast at 7:00, then a snack at 10:00, lunch at 12:00, snack at 4:00, dinner at 7:00 your body will learn that it can get rid of excess calories because it knows more fuel is coming in just a few hours. Add to that a regimen of progressive resistance (weight) training and cardio exercise and your body will become a calorie burning furnace.

Finally, don't deprive yourself all the time. I look forward to Fridays (beer) and Saturdays (ice cream) - no matter if I'm leaning out or bulking up.