I’ve been lifting weights seriously for about a year now and got a good progression going. My raw DL is at 440 lbs, my bench at 240, both steadily climbing.
I want to lose weight, but not at the cost of strength. Lifting heavy is fun and working on those maxes keeps me engaged.
Can I re-shape my body through proper nutrition over a long period of time or do I have to lose some strength, do a serious cut and start from a healthier position?
Thanks for the message and for being here with us. At this time, I would advise that compromising your strength training is okay at this time. I do not say this to be contrarian or be mean, but losing weight is more important than your lifting at this time. I think training with barbells can be a conduit for losing weight, but I would not advise that any compromises be made in order to preserve strength.
I would advise weight loss while training. You’ll be stronger and lighter in a year.
There’s no one calorie deficit that works well, as there are multiple moving parts. I’d start by finding an intake where you’re losing weight weekly at a significant rate- 3-5lbs or so- then adjust as needed to keep that going.
I’m in a similar boat (46" waist). IIRC, you recommend doing the NLP combined with some conditioning for weight loss? I think TBAB recommended one day/week for conditioning; would you recommend increasing that until the weight situation improves?