Dieting - Kindly requesting advice

Nutrition Q&A [Moderated]
1

Hi Jordan

For the past eight weeks I’ve been making a concerted effort to lose fat. I’m currently 216lbs and 6’1 with a 37.5" waist circumference. Visually I have no idea what my bodyfat percentage is, but I tend to be pretty harsh - let’s just say way fatter than I need to and want to be. I’ve got a solid decade of training behind me, uninspiring and less-than-impressive save for a year layoff during quarantines (my state’s gym had several closures) where I did my best to keep active with jogging and walking but gained some weight (peaking at around 245, up from 220.) I’ve slowly lost weight from that period up until the point eight weeks ago - where I’ve really decided to hammer home with it.

At this point in my life (mid 30s) I just no longer want to be fat. As a teenager I was 100lbs overweight and have battled to keep that loss off repeatedly over the years - especially alongside my training goals which has involved multiple weight cycles.

However it seems this time that in order to get the modest results I’ve been getting (starting at 227 and now only 216) I’ve had to come in pretty aggressively over the past eight weeks.

I’ve been tracking intake and macros since 2012 and I’ve never had to go this low or be this aggressive to counter obesity but nothing was changing until I did. I started at 2400kcal a day, which resulted in the most minor of gradual loss for the first six weeks, which often included random 2lbs jumps up on the scale daily. I saw no visible changes and my waistline reminded stubbornly plump.

In frustration with little progress I am now at 1800kcal a day. I have also greatly increased my activity, shooting for 90 mins of dedicated activity a day covering up to 12km a day across walking and light hiking. I’m training with weights 4x a week as well as 60 min of steady state cardio.

It feels excessive, my performance with weight training has gone down the John - I have very little set endurance and have had to drop the load on most exercises. My protein intake is around 130g a day, my calorie intake is so low that I am struggling to objectively meet any of the recommend requirements beyond fibre and keeping saturated fat down.

I’m not abnormally hungry either. In fact I feel sufficiently satiated on such low calories relative to my size (below BMR) and current levels of activity. But seemingly, the scale doesn’t want to move, and really that’s what matters to be most. I want to be 200lbs, although I’m under no illusions I’ll probably have to go lower. Only just this week physically can I see visible changes to my face and some parts of my body, although I’ve got a lot of fat to lose - but this still seems pretty aggressive as an approach.

I’m perfectly healthy otherwise.

What the heck is going on? What would you suggest I do? I don’t feel this is sustainable.

​​​​

2

Hey Rick,

Thanks for the post. Given what’s been going on, I think some coaching would likely be beneficial to help you manage your weight, body composition, and training. That said, here’s my take: 1. I can say with a fairly high level of confidence that you’re consuming > 1800 Cal/day right now and likely were > 2400 Cal/day before. Your maintenance level is ~2900-3200 Cal/day, so a legitimate deficit from there would be realized over weeks and months (not days). It’s just really hard for people to measure their intake accurately, even if professionally trained. This also assumes no deviations from the diet, which can vary by individual. You are also not hungry, which points towards a modest (if any) deficit. If it is < 1800, you will lose weight quickly if it’s maintained. Outside of situations where fluid status rapidly changes in the short-term, there are no medical conditions or outright “weight loss resistant” states that violates this relationship.
2. Weight loss is realized from an energy deficit over a much longer time than most people think. I don’t have a good timeline here for you, but again- weeks and months (many), not days.
3. I don’t have a good sense on your conditioning level prior to this current program, but taking ~ 15000 steps per day likely puts you in excess of the current physical activity guidelines. I don’t think the benefit on cardiorespiratory fitness is equivalent compared to formal conditioning, but that’s for a different discussion.
4. Sounds like your programming is not setup appropriately for you with respect to training load. As far as what to do, I’d be aiming for ~2500 Cal/day, 160g protein/day minimum, 35g fiber/day minimum, and run one of our templates that interests you. I would not advocate hiking/walking 12km/day for improved weight loss, body comp, and performance in the gym.

3

Hi Jordan, many thanks for your reply.

I will look into this, if this is available!

  • I can say with a fairly high level of confidence that you’re consuming > 1800 Cal/day right now and likely were > 2400 Cal/day before. Your maintenance level is ~2900-3200 Cal/day, so a legitimate deficit from there would be realized over weeks and months (not days). It’s just really hard for people to measure their intake accurately, even if professionally trained. This also assumes no deviations from the diet, which can vary by individual.[/QUOTE]

I would say there’s been some deviations, certainly when I gained a lot of weight in quarantine. I have recently been eating the same things every day and I’ve not seen a very good rate of progress for my current level of very high obesity. So I think this is getting me down a bit.

You are also not hungry, which points towards a modest (if any) deficit. If it is < 1800, you will lose weight quickly if it’s maintained. Outside of situations where fluid status rapidly changes in the short-term, there are no medical conditions or outright “weight loss resistant” states that violates this relationship.

I get hungry but not ravenously to the point I’m not able to sustain it. It feels like every small deficit I’ve undertaken has felt .

Weight loss is realized from an energy deficit over a much longer time than most people think. I don’t have a good timeline here for you, but again- weeks and months (many), not days.

Are you saying it has to be absolutely sustained for months and there’s no progress concurrent to the process?

  1. I don’t have a good sense on your conditioning level prior to this current program, but taking ~ 15000 steps per day likely puts you in excess of the current physical activity guidelines. I don’t think the benefit on cardiorespiratory fitness is equivalent compared to formal conditioning, but that’s for a different discussion.[/QUOTE]

Above average, I am not running marathons or doing triathlons, but I make an effort to get moving and walk wherever practical to do so. I have probably objectively made more progress with conditioning activity than I do with strength training over the years. I don’t get tired easily and can keep pushing on with aerobic work for longer than resistance training.

As far as what to do, I’d be aiming for ~2500 Cal/day, 160g protein/day minimum, 35g fiber/day minimum, and run one of our templates that interests you. I would not advocate hiking/walking 12km/day for improved weight loss, body comp, and performance in the gym.

That’s a lot more than I’ve been consistently tracking since the beginning of the year. I don’t mean any disrespect but if your conjecture about me being wrong about tracking my intake is correct, then aiming even higher would imply I’d go over that amount too, right?

Is it not simply possible that my maintenance is a lot lower at this point in my life than an equivalent person?

4

I am saying that if an individual is not in a sustained deficit, they will not lose weight.

Is it not simply possible that my maintenance is a lot lower at this point in my life than an equivalent person?
​

A small amount perhaps, but not 1000 Calories plus, no.

My thought about giving you a more appropriate energy target is that you may be able to more closely approximate that routinely vs. periodic overeating while trying to eat 1800 Cal/day.