Best products from r/leangains

Martin Berkhan - creator of Leangains.

Mark Rippetoe - Strength coach and lover of hip drahve.

Best books and blogs? Martin's leangains book is a top recommendation here for obvious reasons. It's a good book to be your foundational approach to training and dieting. Though, the training section of the book essentially just directs you here: https://leangains.com/reverse-pyramid-training-guide/

Depends on what you're looking for honestly. For training, there's tons of blogs out there. I'll just share some of my favorites.

/u/GZCL blog - http://swoleateveryheight.blogspot.com/

Jujimufu's blog is essentially dead, but I love it anyway. I also love his books - http://acrobolix.com/blog/

/u/mythicalstrength blog - http://mythicalstrength.blogspot.com/

Greg Nuckols articles - https://www.strongerbyscience.com/

But I'll say this: most of that reading is unnecessary to successfully reach your health goals. Masterfully apply the basics of training, dieting, and recovery everyday and you'll be successful.

Any program that fits these parameters will be good for strength/hypertrophy. Throw in 20-30 minutes of cardio like 3 days per week for fun/cardio health and you're good. Not saying cardio is necessary at all, but it's good if you'd also like to be a bit athletic. Just play a sport your enjoy a few times per week. Programs that work: Martin's RPT, stronglifts, any program based on GZCL method, 5/3/1, nsuns, PPL.

For nutrition, hit your macros with mostly whole foods. This article covers everything you need to calculate your macros. His other articles are good to read.

For supplements, they're unnecessary if you're eating a good diet. Things that can help: protein powder (if you happen to not get enough protein in your diet on a particular day), caffeine, omega 3 (fish oil or flaxseed oil), creatine monohydrate, vitamin d, multivitamin. But again, unnecessary if eating a well balanced diet with mostly whole foods.

For recovery, this article covers it well. Pretty much: sleep a lot, eat well, minimize stress, have fun.

GLHF!

First off, you don't need to worry at all about the concepts I bring up in this comment before you've spent a good 3-6 months getting into the routine I laid out earlier.

So about running

You have to run for a mile, 1600m, to burn around 100 calories; this takes 10-12 minutes to do. Which is roughly the same as one and a half of my big sugar free wheat biscuits. Or 2 simple low fat ham sandwiches.

Cardio for weight loss is a pointless waste of time. If you're going to do cardio then do it after strength work (so that you still keep good form during the strength work).

However, there are other valid reasons for doing cardio. Improved oxygen capacity helps against drowsiness and makes it easier to concentrate intently for longer periods of time. Very useful if your main job is mentally demanding. I also personally find it a lot easier to sleep on the days where I've run.

If you have feet issues, flat feet, then specific exercises to fix that with a later addition of barefoot running will keep it in check. This will have a knockon posture effect on the rest of your body.

So since I've mentioned that then lets get on with the very real preexisting issues you might be faced with as you begin hitting those 3 month and 6 month marks.

First off you need to cross off a checklist of extremely common body dysfunctions to make sure nothing will get worse as you lose weight and strength train.

We'll start in the order you will have to fix them in. The order is from the bottom to the top.

Because each muscle balance issue that exists lower in the body will affect the issues above it. If you decide to fix upper back issues first then that will simply stall out on its own or worsen your pelvic issues.

1.Preexisting injuries:

• Broken a bone in your wrist? - > Add wrist mobility exercises
  
  Consequence if you do not add wrist mobility exercises: depends on the injury itself and how the healing/treatment went. At a minimum you can expect that that wrist will have less mobility, less range of motion, at worst you will develop chronic pain for a variety of reasons. A physiotherapist or doctor can fill you in there if you're interested. Visit the local clinic and ask /r/askdoctor for good measure.
  
  My local clinics for example are staffed by utter morons who can't fix a rotator cuff or send me to someone competent enough to devise a treatment plan to fix it if so their very own bare balls where on the line.
  
  
• Dislocated shoulder? - > Add rotator cuff mobility & strengthening exercises (You probably should to rotator cuff strengthening exercises anyway for injury prevention) This book is very good. It exists as an ebook too.
  
  Consequence if you do not rotator cuff exercises: reduced mobility in shoulder girdle (especially upwards mobility), as strength grows in the shoulder girdle you will end up spontaneously dislocating your shoulder (I re-dislocated twice while stretching out laying in bed). Instability of the shoulder socket. Chronic radiating pain.
  
  
• Flat feet? - > Do the towel toe grasping strength exercise and find strength progression exercises from there. I progressed to barefoot jogging in sand, and then in forests. For a couple of weeks I had an issue walking up stairs.
  
• Any odd recurring aches or pain anywhere? - > Go see a physio to get it examined and cleared
  
  
  Consequence if you do not fix flat feet: Chronic pain. Difficulty walking. Knees will rotate inwards which in turn will lead to lordosis which in turn leads to kyphosis and forwardleaning vulture neck. Bones in the foot will fuse together (happened to a relative of mine).
  
  2.Check for/treat lordosis (Forward leaning pelvis. Inwardly rotated knees. Lower back pain/soreness.)
  
  Easy to check in the mirror: https://2xm0t92b1vo22py83u40kcv7-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/lordosis-treatment-kyphosis-treatment.jpg
  
  Another live photo: https://st2.depositphotos.com/2171279/11628/i/950/depositphotos_116289940-stock-photo-woman-with-impaired-posture-position.jpg
  
  Forward leaning pelvis example: https://2xm0t92b1vo22py83u40kcv7-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/anterior-pelvic-tilt.jpg
  
  As for the exercises to fix that I've pretty much forgotten what I used. Think it was weighted squats and then I used hip flexor stretches. Very simple fix. Still do the exercises today. You can look it up online and get a progression that works for you. The key thing here is progressively more difficult exercises until you hit the goal you want.
  
  The key thing is to activate the glutes and use them more while at the same time stretching out the hip flexors.
  
  Consequence if you do not fix lordosis: Lower back pain. Radiating pain down the leg. Leg weakness. Difficulty doing a proper deadlift. Possible hernias if you deadlift improperly with lordosis still there.
  
  3.Check for/treat Kyphosis (Hunchback, forward leaning posture, forward leaning neck, inwardly collapsed chest)
  
  This one is easy to check. If you are at a decent low BF % (10-20%) and look at your upper back then are the spinal ridges poking out more at around chest height than in other areas? Also check your shoulders, are they rounded and leaning forward?
  
  Take a picture from the decide and compare it to the example picture below.
  
  If any of those are true then you need to work at restoring thoracic mobility & stability (Your ability to twist and turn around the chest spine, as well as the core strength, spinal erector strength, and shoulder girdle strength needed to support it.
  
  Example picture: https://scoliosistreatmentalternatives.com/wp-content/uploads/Kyphosis-Normal-vs-Hyper.jpg
  
  I'll come back and add the exercises I use later with sources.
  
  Consequence if you do not fix kyphosis: Upper back pain, weak shoulder girdle, difficulty standing or sitting for medium to long periods of time (1 hour - 12 hours). Shallower breathing.
  
  4.Check for/treat forward neck
  
  Very easy to check, take a picture from the side with a relaxed posture.
  
  I'll come back and add the exercises I use later with sources.
  
  Consequence if you do not fix forward neck: Sore neck, pain, basically the higher up you go in these common dysfunctions the less serious and less debilitating the symptoms are.
  
  5.Learn how to sit and stand relaxed with good posture
  
  I personally use the esther gokhale method. It's easy, relaxing and helps me breathe better. Heres a preview of her book.
  
  Stretchsitting, that way of standing and stretchlying in particular have been big things for me. She also has a side chapter of exercises to fix common issues.
  
  6. Learn the main lift in the RPT (reverse pyramid training) strength routine that the leangains routine is based on, record your lifts, and stick to it
  
  From here on you simply reap gains and maybe add some accessory exercises when you run into trouble (hand grip strength for example).
  
  7.Do a dexa scan for 100-200$ every 3-9 months & Learn the numbers on how quick you can do a leangains cut at different body fat percentages. Also learn how to to a leangains bulk.
  
  That's it. You know have a perfectly healthy, practical, and safe routine that will keep you strong and lean until breathing appears to difficult and someone spends an afternoon shovelling dirt on top of you.
  
  If you want to add cardio for a specific purpose -> Fits into the routine after the strength training
  If you want to learn a complex physical movement (hanstands whatever) -> Do it after strength training.
  Want to stay nimble and mobile? -> Do a whole body stretch routine daily (starting stretch is a programme you can use. Then find progressions for the exercises there)
  
  Wanna do something sporadic like rock climbing? Go ahead, its low effort cardio and no issue whatsoever with your newfound strength.
  
  I know I've made a lot of unsourced claims in the past few comments and I'll set to fixing that during the week so you can check out the validity yourself. This is something I'm putting together for myself anyway.

I'll try my best to explain since your question is too general.

​

>where to start?

​

This subreddit is based mostly on the work of Martin Berkhan and his leangains method. You can find a lot of info on his page here. The subreddit info has the best articles there. Also to a lesser degree, this sub get a lot of info from other progressive overload programs like starting strength or strong lifts, you can choose whichever fits you best.

​

A lot of people here tend to focus on powerlifting but you are not forced to do that, what most people here agrees on is: use compound movements, lift heavy, progressive overload and take care of your form.

​

The leangains method has evolved through the years, I am not an experienced lifter so I can not tell you which one gives the best results. The latest version as described in the book is a minimalistic approach. you train 3 times per week, you can use intermittent fasting to help you achieve your nutrition goals. and you use compound movements.

​

There are other versions of this where you cycle your carbs and change the amount of food you eat on training and resting days but if you are new I would suggest trying the most simple approach and sticking to it, then when you are good you can fine tune it.

​

>Timing, calories, macros, everything.

​

I would suggest you buy the leangains book since its really cheap and has a lot of great info for newbies, and gives exactly what to do.

​

If you are overweight it would do wonders for you, if you want to gain weight eat at a surplus instead of a deficit as suggested in the books and you can be more relaxed with the amount of protein needed.

> And what are the chances of some recomping through doing this?

if you are completely new to lifting heavy, high. your body will respond to the stress strongly on your first years lifting al long as you eat healthily and rest. since you don't want to gain or lose weight you will eat at maintenance but the new stress on your body will help you prioritize muscle synthesis.

​

I hope this is helpful, I am not an advanced lifter but I too struggled to get what the method was until I bought the book so I hope this clarifies some things, if anyone sees a mistake feel free to point it.

​

Stupid reddit formatting... it messed up the numbering, so I used letters instead.

I'll get right to it. I'll write out the stuff in bullet points for convenience.

I highly suggest you spend at least 3 weeks just following a regular 1-2-3-whatever meals everyday eating whatever you like. Just avoid IF for now. Do the following instead:

a) Get your Vitamin D levels checked. Go to a good doctor and have the 25-hydroxy Vitamin D test done. Get a high dosage prescribed in consultation with your doctor while discussing test results. One of the benefits of adequate Vit D levels in the body is better function of your gut + intestines.

b) Buy 'apple cider vinegar with mother' from your local store. It's basically unpasteurized organic ACV that looks cloudy. Take two tablespoons of this after all your meals. It will help break down your food faster, provides digestive enzymes and reduces the acidity in your stomach. Remember to drink lots of water.

c) Buy the following herbs and spices in bottle form (easier to open, use and store away):

Coriander seeds
Thyme
Fenugreek seeds (or leaves)
Cumin seeds (or ground cumin)

I've had success of varying degrees trying the above 4 individually at different times, especially coriander seeds. Either take it after your meal, or an empty stomach. Shove a small palmful of it in your mouth, chew well, swallow, and drink plenty of water.

Thyme has some cooling effects in your gut + intestines.

Fenugreek helps with colic, energy and a notable increase in testosterone. I'm still experimenting with this.

Cumin, when ingested, is transported directly to your liver. So just either chew the seeds or mix the ground cumin in water and drink. Wait for a while and see how your gut + intestines react.

You can also try ground ginger or ginger root.

d) Substitute cow's milk with either goat, sheep, camel or almond milk. I personally suggest camel's milk as it is the thinnest of all milks and is way more beneficial and tolerable.

e) Introduce a natural fermented drink in your system for a good source of probiotics. I recommend you search for 'milk kefir grains', buy some and start cultivating it in your favorite milk. Google on kefir how to guides etc. It's very easy, I strain mine every other days in a plastic colander in 10 secs and I get kefir-milk.

f) When eating, chew the hell out of your food, make sure it turns into mush in your mouth before you swallow. This will ease the strain on your stomach. The extra 2-5 minutes you take chewing your food well will translate to x hours saved not spending time in the bathroom.

g) Gelatin. One of the major benefits is healing leaky gut. Other benefits include healing cartilage, joints, skin, hair, nails etc.

Buy this one, it's beef collagen: https://www.amazon.com/Great-Lakes-Gelatin-Collagen-Hydrolysate/dp/B005KG7EDU/ref=pd_sim_325_4?ie=UTF8&pd_rd_i=B005KG7EDU&pd_rd_r=QT9T0VRV9Y330F85KN8N&pd_rd_w=yXfnn&pd_rd_wg=WUE94&psc=1&refRID=QT9T0VRV9Y330F85KN8N

You can also find marine collagen here: http://www.vitalproteins.com/

Additionally, buy gummy bears or fruit loops or whatever that are manufactured with beef gelatin and fish gelatin. They're cheap. I personally buy Haribo Gold gummy bears (made with halal beef gelatine) and some random American-made marshmallows (made with fish gelatine). I alternate between a few pieces of gummy bears one day, and a few pieces of marshmallows another day etc.

h) Last and one of the more important points in this post, bone broth. Either buy good bone broth with nice filmy collagen from a nice restaurant everyday, or make your own. I recommend making your own will produce more collagen/mineral content. Use a pressure cooker to make some and it will only take 1.5 hours: https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=bone+broth+pressure+cooker


OP, I feel your pain about GI intolerance and using IF as a workaround. I do the same thing in some of my rest days, except I do a 'full' fast which is, no eating or drinking from dusk till dawn. It does work really well as I do not get the frequent annoying GI issues/painful constipation/frequent flatulence etc, but it's STILL a band-aid solution to the problem. So I turned my attention to conventional remedies written in all the points listed above and I've had good improvements. I hope you'll benefit from it too.

This woman's kimchi is super spicy. I only used 1.5 cups of hot peppers. Anyway, I've gotten used to how hot it is and find myself craving it. I eat 2 tablespoons of it with every plate. And I drink kefir milk or kefir water. Kombucha sometimes, but that takes 2 weeks to get good. The kefirs take 2 days and are pretty strong.

I mention kefir because if you make milk kefir in a Fido jar for say a day and a half at room temperature. The curds and whey will separate and you strain that whey into a jar with either olives, baby cucumbers, hardboiled eggs and beet juice, asparagus, cabbage (kimchi and sourkrout), pear onions, salsa, Brussels sprouts, garlic, and I'm sure more. You use the curds you made with the milk kefir grains to make fermented hard cheeses, yogurt (awesome for ball jar parfaits, cream cheese,

If you want to get really crazy you can buy a 5\8" glass drill bit off amazon for 6 dollars. Drill holes in the lids. Use either rubber grommets or a drilled airlock grommet and airlocks to let the CO2 buildup release without letting fresh air back in. The company that makes and sells them call them Pickl-It jarsImage. They look identical to what you can make for much cheaper. This isn't necessary but it costs about 5 bucks to do to each jar and the result is that you now have a 40 - 120 dollar fermentation crock.

Buy this jar: http://www.crateandbarrel.com/fido-5-liter-jar-with-clamp-lid/s495151?a=1552&device=c&network=g&matchtype=&gclid=CJ7Whp7ZkroCFabm7AodOmkAHQ

Or at surlatable if you want more than 1 jar, and want 1.5 liters like the legit picklits. I found 3 liter Fido jars at hobby lobby for $5 each. I suppose just look for clamped glass jars with italy stamped on the bottom, not china.

The dehydrated food you weigh after and portion out into serving sizes. If I'm packing them as a lunch I separate atleast the meat from fruits and vegetables. Match each serving of meat with what used to be one or two cups of kale. A solid ammount of tomato chips and mango, peaches, apples or banana leathers. (Go easy on the mango) Blend and fruit rollup your berries. I'm not a nut and grain person, but a granola bar probably wouldn't be bad in there. I suppose you could stuff all these bags into a food saver bag and have like a cheap, fresh and healthy MRE all set and ready. No cooking required. I'm not sure how long the meat would last. So I wouldn't let it sit too long. Plus make sure your jerky sits in a brown paper bag for a few days first. To draw out any more moisture before vacuum sealing it.

Hi Dan!

Thanks for the hints! I will try the Joseph's pitas and the Pb2 peanut butter stuff and also ordered some Shirataki noodles to check if they taste well when fried. I do not like them boiled since they become sort of slimy after boiling, but I never tried to fry them yet. Sounds like a good idea. ;-)

BTW I have another good suggestion: You can replace normal noodles with veggie noodles by using this. For example carrot noodles with bolognese taste absolutely great! Just fry the carrot noodles for 5-10 minutes in a pan and use like normal noodles. It's a great substitute.

> Why do you apply studies that used non-ketosis diets to determine protein requirements for ketosis? Please tell me where in that link that it says the studies were carried out using ketosis. Isn't that like applying studies on petrol engines to diesel engines?

Because the results and recommendations in the studies, do not contradict the ones for a ketogenic diet. You seem to think that you need a lot of protein to need muscle, when in fact the studies shown that it is quite the contrary. And once keto adapted, you actually may need less, as a ketogenic diet is muscle sparing:

> Within the nutrition and dietetics fields, most advice on protein intake is based on the recommended dietary allowance (RDA) and daily recommended intake (DRI) values. These recommendations, however, were developed for the average weight stable, unstressed individual. Add any degree of energy restriction (i.e., for weight loss) or physical or emotional stress, however, and the RDA/DRI values become inadequate.

> Thus consuming somewhat more protein than the recommended dietary allowance is probably justified if you are losing weight or frequently doing high stress exercise.

> That said, however, significantly over-consuming protein can be problematic because some of these extra amino acids can be converted to glucose in the body, raising insulin levels, and thus driving down ketones and suppressing fat burning. Even if your goal is gaining muscle, there is a limit to how much new muscle protein can be added each day, and under most circumstances, this amount is relatively small.

> Over-consuming protein beyond the level that allows maximum anabolism in skeletal muscle thus puts a burden on the body to get rid of the extra nitrogen. Since protein is not a particularly efficient fuel source and for the reasons mentioned above, it therefore makes little sense to consume it in excess.

> For all these reasons, we recommend aiming for an intake in the range of 0.6 to 1.0 grams per pound lean body mass. The table below provides a few examples of protein intake ranges for men and women with different weights and body fat contents. The key point here is that while these protein intakes are above the minimum RDA values, they are certainly not high protein intakes compared to current standards. Note also that our recommended intake ranges are pretty wide, allowing you a fair degree of flexibility in choosing your level of protein intake.

> TABLE

Source: The Art and Science of Low Carbohydrate Performance, page 65-66

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

> "A ketogenic diet can be very good for lean mass growth, while a high carb diet for total weight gain (meaning you will also gain fat)." <-- Please explain how a keto diet and carb diet of equal calorific surplus will result in different levels of body fat gain.

Here: (thanks /u/ashsimmonds, your book Principia Ketogenica is a wealth of knowledge. I'm sure you have a lot more references on this, as well as /u/Naonin.

> a) "Two very low calorie diets were studied, one high in fat and low in carbohydrate content, the other high in carbohydrate and low in fat.
The high fat-low carbohydrate diet resulted in a greater weight loss during the 2-week observation period, then significant rapid weight gain and urinary retention of sodium in subjects who returned to a maintenance diet. Fasting triglyceride and cholesterol levels declined to a greater extent following the high fat regimen. These changes reflected decrements in VLDL alone."
Effect of diet composition on metabolic adaptations to hypocaloric nutrition: comparison of high carbohydrate and high fat isocaloric diets. - 1977

> b) "Subjects overate different diets for 30 days by 1,000 calories a day more than they needed to maintain weight. On a standard American or a high carbohydrate diet they gained ~2.7kg, however on a high fat diet they only gained ~1.75kg."
Adaptation to overeating in lean and overweight men and women. - 1983

> c) "37 obese children were put on a diet of either ad-libitum very low carb or a low calorie balanced diet for 2 months. Subjects in the very low carb group lost ~5.2kg whereas the subjects restricting calories actually gained ~2.4kg."
Effect of low-carbohydrate, unlimited calorie diet on the treatment of childhood obesity: a prospective controlled study. - 2003

> d) "28 healthy, overweight/obese men and women were prescribed 2 energy-restricted diets: ketogenic, or low fat with a goal similar to accepted recommendations.
Daily calories on the ketogenic diet for the men were ~1,855 compared to the ~1,562 on low fat. A distinct advantage of keto over low fat was demonstrated for weight loss, total fat loss, and trunk fat loss for men. The majority of women also responded more favorably to the ketogenic diet, especially in terms of trunk fat loss. Resting energy expenditure was decreased with both diets as expected, but was better maintained on the keto diet for men only. Individual responses clearly show the majority of men and women experience greater weight and fat loss on a low carb than a low fat diet."
Comparison of energy-restricted very low-carbohydrate and low-fat diets on weight loss and body composition in overweight men and women. - 2004

> e) "96 insulin-resistant women were randomised to one of 3 dietary interventions: a high-carbohydrate high-fibre diet, a high-fat Atkins diet, or a high-protein Zone diet. There were supervised weight loss and weight maintenance phases (8 weeks each).
When compared with the high carb diet, the high fat and protein diets were shown to produce significantly greater reductions in weight, waist circumference, and triglycerides."
Comparison of high-fat and high-protein diets with a high-carbohydrate diet in insulin-resistant obese women. - 2005

> f) "The effect of a very-low-carbohydrate, high-saturated-fat diet on markers of endothelial function and cardiovascular disease risk was compared with that of an isocaloric high-carbohydrate, low-saturated-fat diet. Weight loss occurred in both groups and was significantly greater in the low carb group, BMI also decreased, with a differential effect of diet such that the reduction was greater in the low carb group. HDL cholesterol did not change with the high carb group, but increased with low carb. Triglycerides decreased overall, to a greater extent with the low carb diet.
A very-low-carbohydrate high fat diet with significant portion as saturated fat diet not impair brachial artery flow-mediated dilatation."
Effects of weight loss from a very-low-carbohydrate diet on endothelial function and markers of cardiovascular disease risk in subjects with abdominal obesity. - 2008

> g) "Subjects were put on a 20 day ketogenic or a low-calorie Mediterranean diet. Both diet protocols lead to a significant decrease in body weight, the reduction was significantly greater on keto. The ketogenic diet also lead to increased fat oxidation at rest without any effect on resting energy expenditure. Interestingly this effect was long lasting, at least for up to 20 days following cessation of the ketogenic diet.
Medium term effects of a ketogenic diet and a Mediterranean diet on resting energy expenditure and respiratory ratio. - 2012

And I especially like this one:

> h) "Reduced resting and total energy expenditure (REE / TEE) following weight loss is thought to contribute to the prevalence of weight regain after dieting and then resuming a normal diet.
21 overweight young adults were put on a weight loss diet, after achieving 10-15% weight loss they were put on a weight maintenance diet of the same calories, but consisting of either low-fat, low-glycemic index, or very low-carbohydrate. This was one in a controlled 3-way crossover design in random order, each for 4 weeks.
Compared with the pre-weight-loss baseline, the decrease in REE and TEE was greatest with the low-fat diet, intermediate with the low-glycemic index diet, and least with the very low-carbohydrate diet, meaning the low-fat diet caused as much as a 300 calorie drop in expenditure despite the same intake and activity levels as the low carb diet.
Effects of dietary composition on energy expenditure during weight-loss maintenance. - 2012

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I'm sure you can put two and two together and get your own conclusions.

For you I wouldn't worry about cycling macros for now. I'd eat 100g carbs, 275g protein, & 80g fat daily. Focus on lean meats, healthy fats, and whole grains.

Here's a chart to help with heart rate. Not exact, but will give you a good idea.

Take fish oil! This is a good cheap brand with good amounts of DHA & EPA. For a calculator as to how much you need go here

Oh, and be sure to track everything you eat for at least a month to make sure you're getting the right number of calories/macros - I like myfitnesspal.com but there's tons of options.

Howdy OP,

Welcome to /r/leangains! Congratulations on taking control of your health. I have a few questions and a few bits of feedback for you:

Questions

• How much do you want to weigh? How much weight do you want to lose?
  
  Feedback
  
  To lose 1lb, you need to 'burn' 3,500 calories. The easiest way to do that? Eat at a caloric deficit and, over a week, run a ~3,500 - 4,000 calorie deficit.
  
  What's that look like? Let's say your Total Daily Energy Expenditure (TDEE) is ~2,000 calories. That means in a week you'll consumer (2,000 * 7 =) ~14,000 calories. If you want to lose 1lb/week, you'll need to run a 3,500 calorie deficit in a week. That means eating 10,500 calories in a week or 1,500 calories/day.
  
  That's a 'cut' (or a 'diet'). What can you do to succeed in your cut?
  
  
• Identify a specific goal that you're working towards. We all want abs, but a specific, quantifiable goal like 'Weigh 175lbs' or 'Have 11% Body Fat' is easily attainable. 'Soft' or 'fuzzy' goals like 'Look sexy' are wonderful to identify, but are crap for setting a goal.
  
  So? What's your specific, quantifiable goal?
  
  
• Calculate your Total Daily Energy Expenditure using this calculator. Note: Set the exercise level as 'No Exercise (Desk Job)
  
  
• What gets measured gets managed - so start measuring your caloric intake. Use the app 'My Fitness Pal' to log your calories. Buy a simple digital kitchen scale to weigh your food. Log everything you eat.
  
  
• Eat at a weekly deficit! Log your weight every 2-3 days. Keep at it for ~4 weeks and check in on your progress. If you've lost ~4lbs, you're on target! If you're losing less than expected, adjust your daily calories down by ~50-100.
  
  Good luck!
  

I bought a Cuisinart [ice cream maker] (http://www.amazon.com/Cuisinart-ICE-21-Frozen-Yogurt-Ice-Sorbet/dp/B003KYSLMW) a month or so ago. A couple scoops of Casein and a couple cups of milk will make almost a quart of soft serve ice cream.

I've been tweaking the recipe to get the best taste, so far this is my best mix:

• 2 scoops chocolate Casein (I use Allmax Casein FX)
  
• 1/2 scoop unflavored whey (comes out smoother than just plain Casein)
  
• 1/8 tsp salt
  
• 2 tsp cacao
  
• 2 cups milk
  
• 1/2 tsp guar gum (thickens and reduces ice crystals, but not critical).
  
  Changing up the dairy source (or using a milk substitute) can tailor macros to whatever you need. Coconut milk is particularly good for rest days, and if you use half and half you can let it freeze to hard ice cream. (Low fat milks are best eaten within 1-2 hours of freezer time otherwise they get too icy and hard).
  
  There's something pretty awesome about eating four bowls of ice cream... can make any day feel like a cheat day.
  

I literally just went through rehabbing this condition. Get this and use it to do this. Then use the same ball to roll the glutes. Then, only if it doesn't cause pain, do a hip flexor stretch. The Thomas Stretch done with a partner seems like it is least likely to involve a miscalculated hyperextension episode that would cause a spasm particularly in doing stretches like this where the core is already unstable.

I did this along with doing planks for 30 second reps and 15 second rests inbetween, followed by side planks for the same amounts of time (4-6 holds on each side, and 4-6 holds for the prone as well) helped immensely. Makes checking and correcting posture less of a distraction throughout the day. I feel significantly better following deadlift and squat sessions after this.

Along with all of that that, I had to be sure to correctly contract the glutes (think of the feeling you get in them when you do a glute extension on a machine, NOT the feeling you get by going overboard by using them to round the back out of extension in efforts to compensate for lordosis caused not by the erectors, but your tight psoas). Also be sure to brace the abdominals adequately in tandem with the glutes to keep the spine supported. This is especially important during the plank.

Hope that helps. It's certainly helping me. That massage ball is something I keep with me all day so I can roll if I have to. Loosens the spasms (caused by tight psoas and glutes that overtake the abdominals) right up. No more spasms almost immediately. I do it frequently to release tightness that would otherwise surely develop into spasms.

Warning Wall of Text.

Personally, I freaking love it. Of all the "diets" I've tried, it has been the easiest to transition into a long term habit. Its also one of the more laid back/forgiving ones despite the numbers. As long as I get 190g protein/day and am reasonable about my carb/fat split, I don't stress. I have definitely strayed and didn't feel a shred of guilt about it. I have seen consistent weight lost with minimal strength reduction on my -30/-10 intake with a 25/75-75/25 macro split. My exercises are a bit different because I'm actually doing this P90X knockoff, but hey if it's working, don't knock it. I don't vocalize my routine often because this sub can be unkind to differences.

I don't know if its my routine or a direct effect of the program, but here are some things that I have noticed. My alcohol tolerance is shit but I sober up quicker. It takes all of two good beers (or four bud lights) per hour to get me drunk and about 1.5 to sober up once I'm at full steam. Mind you, this is a notch above buzzed drunk and not blackout, shitfaced, drunk. The hangovers aren't are non-existent if I chug water before bed. I also have more energy to get up in the mornings. I used to struggle to get up at 8:30a for my 10am job. Now I snap awake before my 7am alarm and do a fasted workout. Again, not sure if routine or direct effect.

As I've progressed, I've seemed to have fallen in a positive feedback loop. I lose a bit of weight, gain self-esteem, which gives me extra energy/willpower to work out harder or muscle through a fast, which helps me lose a more weight. The one thing about LG I want to stress is each macro split has its own set of goals. Since I'm on a cut, am not expecting to make any significant, short term gains in strength. I'm not trying to get swole or push my max, there will be time for that later. I'm simply trying to get rid of all this body fat.

The dietary restrictions have taught me the value of forethought and planning. If I know I'm going to go out, I tend to pad my protein intake with a shake or two, because everything else is usually fat and carbs. But again, if I miscalculate, tomorrow's another day. I've also learned a helluva lot of ways to cook chicken breasts. Link to an earlier post with my favorite chicken recipes. Oh, you'll also want to invest in a decent kitchen scale. I've had this one for over a year and it's still accurate to 5 grams (test it by weighing a nickle).

Eating/Diet Tips:

• Count net carbs (subtract fiber)
  
• Visit /r/keto for great rest day recipes and ideas. Just use leaner cuts
  
• They recommend you not drink your calories, but fruit and veggie smoothies make damn tasty and quick carbs.
  
• Fresh, baby spinach can go in damn near anything. Even smoothies.
  
  I'm tired of typing. If you have any additional questions, I'll be glad to answer. Progress pics are coming. I'm hitting the gym to lift heavy shit soon.
  
  Best of luck, friend.

1. Do you mean 5 sets or 3 sets of 5 reps each? While the former is not necessarily a terrible idea, it does depend on some factors. Are you trying to cut, bulk, or recomp? How advanced of a trainee are you? If you are cutting and are going to be in a caloric deficit, more sets may actually prove detrimental. One of the benefits of Reverse Pyramid Training is how well it pairs with Leangains for preserving/building muscle during a cut.
   
   Also, I'd avoid broscience ideas that sets/reps create more "definition." How defined you look is going to depend on the amount of muscle mass you have and how low your body fat is.
   
   2)I'd modify that plan so that your first work set is a weight that you can do AT LEAST 3 reps with, and then work your way up to 6 or so reps before adding more weight to the bar.
   
   I think always starting with a ORM is likely to sacrifice form and unnecessarily fatigue you prior to your real work sets. I'd be happy to see any evidence to the contrary, but my understanding/experience has always been that using a weight which allows me to crush out several reps with proper form will yield the greatest improvement.
   
   I think part of this is that it will naturally take longer to double the number of times you can press or pull your ORM than it will to add another rep to a weight you can already press/pull more times. Once you become an advanced trainee (or if you already are) you will be fighting even harder for every extra pound or rep, and you must train accordingly
   
   *One helpful tip Stuart Mcrobert mentioned in his classic Beyond Brawn is to get yourself a pair of 1.25 lb plates, so that you can still increase the weight by a total of 2.5 lbs should 5 lbs be too much. When it comes to progressive overload, every improvement counts.
   
   **Typing that was my finger workout for the day.
   
   
   
   

I'd suggest purchasing a Bio Impedance scale to help keep track of your body fat percentage. It's not perfect in that it can be off from time-to-time, but as long as you measure at the same time of day each week you'll get a roughly consistent measurement. This way you can eat more and know if you're gaining muscle or just gaining more fat (at least to a degree).


Below is the one I purchased a few years ago but seems like there's a lot of options now so you may want to do some research.


https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B004L6NTHU


I've gotten official DEXA scans which is the most accurate way to measure BF% according to many but costs $45 each time. The scale above was off by about 0.6% BF when compared to my DEXA scan. Eg. My scale said I was 10%, but the DEXA reflected 10.6%. No food or water before either measurement.


Outside of that, make sure you're getting enough protein (many studies suggest between 0.82g of protein per pound of body weight is the max your body can utilize, but some prefer to go by 1.0g per pound of body weight).


Hope this helps.

What calipers do you have? This have markings and instructions on them to make it super simple. Does yours have markings?

If not there is still a way but it may be less accurate since it'll depend on you making more measurements so the possibility of making a mistake is higher.. This came up doing a quick Google search, you may want to search more.

progress look good, congrats!

You should, like, read the book. Its pretty succinct in its advice. I read it in about 2 days, so it isn't like this is too much to ask.

Quite frankly, I found this book and the 4 Hour Body to be the best diet/lifting advice that there is. Couple that with some basic /r/bodyweightfitness knowledge and it seems to be a lifetime of knowledge.

You should definitely weigh your food.

http://www.amazon.com/EatSmart-Precision-Digital-Kitchen-Silver/dp/B001N07KUE/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1393992527&sr=8-1&keywords=food+scale

A food scale like that is an excellent investment

The Leangains Method: The Art of Getting Ripped. Researched, Practiced, Perfected. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07G3GFLTX/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_w1r-BbDN105EC

Best $10 I've ever spent. It'll answer all your questions.

I buy Optimum Nutrition Gold Standard Whey, as well as their unflavored Creatine Monohydrate.

ON's gold standard whey is widely accepted to be high quality, as well as one of the less expensive brands. I personally use the milk chocolate and double rich chocolate flavors. And creatine monohydrate is just creatine monohydrate, no matter how you slice it.

You should check out Optimum Nutrition - they're pretty well known for good quality at reasonable prices for all their workout supplements

Get a bodyfat scale. I just bought one and it's fucking awesome. My bodyfat matches up with the caliper numbers. It syncs the data to a app on your phone so you can see trends. You could also export the data to Google Fit

Here's the one I got:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01N1UX8RW/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&th=1

I've tested and compared most BF measurement methods. It was kind of my obsession for a while.


What I can tell you for sure is that bioimpedance measurements (like your scale) are pretty worthless once you get leaner. They are wildly affected by fluctuations in water retention, up to a few percent of BF off from day to day in my experience.

DEXA and BodPod are expensive, and very NOT worth it because it can also fluctuate a lot depending on hydration levels, especially if you're alternating low carb/high carb while cutting/bulking.

Hydrostatic is reasonably priced ($30 for re-tests in my area), and precise. It is not affected whatsoever by your hydration level since the weight of water under water is 0. Of all the more advanced BF measurement methods, hydrostatic has the best precision and the lowest price to boot.

But my #1 recommended BF measurement method: A good pair of BF calipers and someone to help you measure. You can get a cheap pair on Amazon for $5, but I recommend these larger ones. $13 one time cost. My caliper measurements match my hydrostatic almost exactly. And when you learn how to make consistent and precise measurements with the calipers, you're set for life. You should do a multi-site measurement including the vertical abdominal fold. You can use this online calculator. I've found little difference in readings between Jackson/Pollock 3, 4, or 7 site measurement. So I just go with the 3 site measurement out of laziness.

owning a rice cooker and food scale will make LG 9999x easier and enjoyable:

cooker: http://www.amazon.com/Aroma-ARC-914SBD-Uncooked-Digital-Steamer/dp/B007WQ9YNO

put in 2 cups of uncooked white rice (or more, it's the cheap stuff in big bags), fill to the correct line with water, press power, then press white rice . . . when it finishes it will beep and then start to keep the rice warm until you get to it

scale: http://www.amazon.com/EatSmart-Precision-Digital-Kitchen-Silver/dp/B001N07KUE

i use this for everything, calculating macros is almost effortless.

i can’t speak to its efficacy from personal experience yet, but I’ve been looking into them as a way to get more information about my body composition than weight can provide alone. You can get a relatively inexpensive body fat scale that uses “a technology called bioelectrical impedance analysis to measure body fat. A small, unnoticeable electrical current is sent from one foot, up one leg and down the other leg. Fat is a poor conductor of electricity compared to other components of the body such as muscle. The more resistance the electrical current experiences, the higher the fat.”

I’ve just purchased one for about $40 CAD on Amazon, I’ve never used one before but it has thousands of good reviews. I’m also insanely curious if there is a legitimate, reliable way to measure %BF without having to go to the doctor or have someone at my gym do it for me. I’m also keen on this option as it works with an iOS app that allows me to keep track of more than my weight over long periods of time. I’m keeping myself skeptical but hopefully nonetheless!

Referenced example

Body fat scale

Book title is: The Leangains Method: The Art of Getting Ripped. Researched, Practiced, Perfected.

https://www.amazon.com/Leangains-Method-Researched-Practiced-Perfected-ebook/dp/B07G3GFLTX

But you are insisting on keto then this book isn't for you. Probably the wrong forum too, leangains is not keto.

The ketogenic diet is the best book on keto.

https://store.bodyrecomposition.com/product/ketogenic-diet/

As far as lifting, I wasn't suggesting longer workouts. Most of my strength gains came doing RPT, also in the leangains book. Short but intense workouts. Just did mine.

If you were doing low-calorie/high-cardio + low-carb, then that is why you lost muscle. Keytosis (where your body turns it's own fat into keytones to be used as a carb substituent) only works if you have enough fat (body + dietary). Once your body + dietary fat gets low enough, your body will start turning protein into carbs (body + dietary).

Was going from 165lbs back up to 180 planned?
How long did it take?

The reason why I ask is because 165 is actually dead center of the average weight range for someone our height. That is actually a good weight to be at if you have 15-18% body fat.

Being stuck at the exact same weight for a month has happened to me twice. If nothing has changed (in your diet/exercise/life) it might not mean anything. Sometimes you body doesn't like what's going on (losing weight for too long, too quickly, whatever..) and will slam on the breaks.

You should invest in some cheap fat calipers. That way you will know what your fat is doing.

There is no rule for taking pictures. I just try to be consistent so that it is easier to compare what's going on. I go for the exact same pose, same lighting, not flexed, but standing with best posture. Lighting makes a huge difference. Bathroom lighting rocks.

High caffeine is highly recommended in the Leangains Method book. So you can achieve this with black coffee and zero-calorie energy drinks.

Not only will it not break your fast, but it will also improve your metabolism for the day. So in a way, it is "negative calories". This can be useful on a cut.

That said, it's probably better to prefer coffee to diet sodas any day.

They are completely unnecessary, unless you are choosing to do fasted training. That is, your Stronglifts session would begin not until at least the 10-12th hour of your fast, and your first meal of the day would be your post workout meal. Since you are basically working out with nothing at all in the tank, the BCAAs are there to prevent possible muscle catabolism during your workout. BCAA specifically are recommended only because they are 'pure protein', so 10grams of BCAA are 10 grams of protein (40cals). If you were to use the-next-best-thing, which is probably whey protein isolate (which contain BCAA, other amino acids, and some carbs) you'd need over 100cals of the whey to get the same amount of protein, which could break the fast.

Anyway, I only take them on Saturdays before a fasted workout. During the week I have a small meal, usually chicken breast, at around noon, followed by a workout around 3. In this case the BCAA are completely unnecessary because of the previous small meal. I do prefer and feel I have a better workout doing the fast training but because of scheduling I can't really do it that way during the week.

Other than that, food is always the preferred source of protein. Chicken breast on sale for 2$/lb. is about as cheap as it gets. If you find it difficult to hit your protein macros for a day, whey protein is a solid option to get about 24g protein, 3g carbs, 1g fat in a scoop. This stuff is pretty highly regarded and if you get the 5lb tub its nearly 80 servings, at about 68cents per serving. So actually quite cheap for the protein. For reference, a 2lb tub of purple wraath (EEAs) is about the same price.

No worries. I've been eating this for years:


https://www.amazon.com/Optimum-Nutrition-Standard-Protein-Chocolate/dp/B000QSNYGI/ref=sr_1_2?s=hpc&ie=UTF8&qid=1505152360&sr=1-2-spons&keywords=gold%2Bstandard%2Bwhey%2Bprotein&th=1


Double rich chocolate is pretty good.

The good thing about Lean Gains is that it is available to anyone regardless of bodyfat. It just costs $10 if you have a kindle.

Here you go

I use this one and I love it.

This is a sub for leangains.com. Best place to start is to leangains.com and start reading. Here is martin's book:
https://www.amazon.com/Leangains-Method-Researched-Practiced-Perfected-ebook/dp/B07G3GFLTX

I go with optimum nutrition. It tastes awful, but I believe all unflavored ones do. I trust the brand though.

edit:

http://www.amazon.com/Optimum-Nutrition-Instantized-5000mg-Unflavored/dp/B002DYIZIU/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1381280186&sr=8-3&keywords=optimum+nutrition+bcaa

Approximately, 2 heaping teaspoons. I like ON.

Well it's released

https://www.amazon.com/Leangains-Method-Researched-Practiced-Perfected-ebook/dp/B07G3GFLTX

Leangains is a specific protocol, with a website and associated book .

The approach utilizes intermittent fasting, macro cycling (carbs on lift days), and heavy compound lifts. The book is worth the $10 to get the distilled and organized version of what is otherwise a wide-ranging series of articles and online discussions.

http://www.amazon.com/Accu-Measure-Fitness-3000-Personal-Tester/dp/B000G7YW74/ref=sr_1_2?s=hpc&ie=UTF8&qid=1325111426&sr=1-2

Also, if you want more accurate results you may want to try to find somewhere where they do hydrostatic weighing or using the BodPod.

This is too much volume man, 40 sets is crazy.
The book that this sub is based on and i strongly encourage you to buy is : https://www.amazon.com/Leangains-Method-Researched-Practiced-Perfected-ebook/dp/B07G3GFLTX
A ridiculous price of 12$ to get a ton of knowledge.

This is the one i got

Comes down to $23.51 USD. Which is only 3 dollars cheaper then what Amazon has it listed as -$26.08

i have this (http://www.amazon.com/EatSmart-Precision-Digital-Kitchen-Silver/dp/B001N07KUE/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1342291038&sr=8-1&keywords=food+scale)... i like it a lot.