Post: #1

I'm fighting the battle to drop BF from around 18% towards 12% and would to hear some success stories from members about how they improved their body and/or health, and what they did to get there.

My situation is I'm a little bit skinnyfat. My diet is okay - i am extremely aware of nutritional values etc - but I do drink a fuck ton of craft beer. I have decided to substitute much of the beer for Vodka Sodas now but my lifestyle right now means quitting drink wouldn't be worth it really. Just not practical and I love it anyways lol

When I first went traveling around Asia for four months at the end of 2011 I ended up packing on 10 pounds. Mostly through running and eating cleaner, I dropped this in about 4 months to go back to my normal weight.

Right now, I train a lot so I am hoping I can make the cut to 12-13% and then do a clean bulk from there.

Anyone any stories to share?

Post: #2

I usually sit 12 to 15 hours a day and do not have time for daily exercise so what I did to improve my body in last two months is very simple. I just developed the habbit of eating two times a day instead of three times I was used to, and fasting once a week helped a lot.

Post: #3

30 minute walk every morning before work and skip eating for a 24 hour interval on the weekends. It's possible to drop more than a pound of bodyfat per week on this method and will maintain you at a low bodyfat indefinitely. That's all you really need.

Post: #4

I dropped 20 pounds (30wt% -> 20wt%) in 8 weeks just be changing my diet a bit and doing a 45 minute squatting and deadlifting session once a week.

Post: #5

I used to weigh 205 lbs on a 6'1" frame. I got down to 170lbs, which is where my body likes to be. I started off walking one hour every night until I got to about 190. Then I started mountain biking (about one hour) up and down hills at a nature park near my house. I enjoyed it so it didn't seem like work. I also started to run occasionally, either at the same park or at a nearby state college track. At first I could only run 2 miles but eventually got up to 10. I then signed up for a cardio-kickboxing class and went three times a week for one hour each time (lots of decent looking girls there). The key to my success is that I did it 7 days or week, rain or shine. I often ran in the rain and 100 degree heat. It was hard work. There is no other way. I also ate less but didn't make any changes to what I ate.

Post: #6

Quote:I have decided to substitute much of the beer for Vodka Sodas now but my lifestyle right now means quitting drink wouldn't be worth it really. Just not practical and I love it anyways lol

So, youd rather drink a six-pack than have a six pack.

Stop worrying about your body fat, you made your choice already and alcohol won.

Post: #7

I am an ectomorph, my body fat is around 6/7% and I can get muscly relatively easy, not too much though, obviously. But more than enough!

Any advice?

Post: #8

The best way to get in better shape is to find a physical activity that you enjoy. If your exercising and not having fun with it at some point you will give up and go back to your normal self.

I started playing tennis in the Spring and now I do it 3-5x a week.

I would also research foods that act as natural appetite suppressors and eat those periodically throughout the day. Almonds, coffee, apple(s) and water are all at the top of the list.

Post: #9

(06-03-2013 11:26 AM)germanico Wrote:  

Quote:I have decided to substitute much of the beer for Vodka Sodas now but my lifestyle right now means quitting drink wouldn't be worth it really. Just not practical and I love it anyways lol

So, youd rather drink a six-pack than have a six pack.

Stop worrying about your body fat, you made your choice already and alcohol won.

Pretty extreme statement. Granted if you drink a ton you're not going to have a six-pack and get shredded but you can keep your body fat to a range where you're still athletic and have some muscle definition.

Post: #10

@Germanico

Strange response but yeah I would rather drink than have a six pack.

Doesn't mean I shouldn't care about my body...? I work out a lot and it feels great.

I have a ton of friends that are mid twenties like me and have 10-12% bf and good muscles but drink 20 pints of beer on the weekend

Post: #11

(06-03-2013 12:06 PM)Therapsid Wrote:  

(06-03-2013 11:26 AM)germanico Wrote:  

Quote:I have decided to substitute much of the beer for Vodka Sodas now but my lifestyle right now means quitting drink wouldn't be worth it really. Just not practical and I love it anyways lol

So, youd rather drink a six-pack than have a six pack.

Stop worrying about your body fat, you made your choice already and alcohol won.

Pretty extreme statement. Granted if you drink a ton you're not going to have a six-pack and get shredded but you can keep your body fat to a range where you're still athletic and have some muscle definition.

Yeah, I've found it's definitely not impossible to have both things, you just have to offset the negative with a lot more effort.

I eat fast food or restaurant food for almost every meal and drink a TON of beer and when done properly with common sense and awareness of the nutritional makeup of what i'm eating/drinking, i have no problem dropping 10-15lbs in no time. The more I experiment with my own body, the more I believe that nutrition is not nearly as complicated as people would love for you to believe. And for some reason, people REALLY want you to believe it's complicated.

If I couldn't eat shit food and drink beer I wouldn't want to live. I also wouldn't want to live if I didn't have the discipline to make that possible within my goals to not be a fatshit. No use doing anything if you're miserable all the while.

Post: #12

(06-03-2013 02:40 PM)MasterBacja Wrote:  I eat fast food or restaurant food for almost every meal and drink a TON of beer and when done properly with common sense and awareness of the nutritional makeup of what i'm eating/drinking, i have no problem dropping 10-15lbs in no time.

Interesting. Not contesting the claim, but do you mind elaborating more on your techniques?

Beyond All Seas

"The individual has always had to struggle to keep from being overwhelmed by the tribe.
To be your own man is a hard business. If you try it, you'll be lonely often, and sometimes
frightened. But no price is too high to pay for the privilege of owning yourself." - Kipling

Post: #13

(06-03-2013 03:00 PM)Beyond Borders Wrote:  

(06-03-2013 02:40 PM)MasterBacja Wrote:  I eat fast food or restaurant food for almost every meal and drink a TON of beer and when done properly with common sense and awareness of the nutritional makeup of what i'm eating/drinking, i have no problem dropping 10-15lbs in no time.

Interesting. Not contesting the claim, but do you mind elaborating more on your techniques?

I cut to very visible abs eating Wendy's doubler baconaters and eating candy almost every day. All it has to do with is how many calories you eat per day.

Post: #14

I dropped 10% body fat. I used to be 28 now I am 18%. The road is still long to my goal of 8% however.

Post: #15

(06-03-2013 03:05 PM)Jaylow Wrote:  

(06-03-2013 03:00 PM)Beyond Borders Wrote:  

(06-03-2013 02:40 PM)MasterBacja Wrote:  I eat fast food or restaurant food for almost every meal and drink a TON of beer and when done properly with common sense and awareness of the nutritional makeup of what i'm eating/drinking, i have no problem dropping 10-15lbs in no time.

Interesting. Not contesting the claim, but do you mind elaborating more on your techniques?

I cut to very visible abs eating Wendy's doubler baconaters and eating candy almost every day. All it has to do with is how many calories you eat per day.

Nice - so just portion control? That's what I assumed but was wondering if you meant more as you said common sense and nutritional makeup. Any intermittent fasting? Were you working out a lot too?

I read an article about a guy who lost weight on a diet of twinkies and other shit, so I know it's certainly possible.

Beyond All Seas

"The individual has always had to struggle to keep from being overwhelmed by the tribe.
To be your own man is a hard business. If you try it, you'll be lonely often, and sometimes
frightened. But no price is too high to pay for the privilege of owning yourself." - Kipling

Post: #16

(06-03-2013 03:07 PM)SexualHarrasmentPanda Wrote:  I dropped 10% body fat. I used to be 28 now I am 18%. The road is still long to my goal of 8% however.

You're already halfway there! Good work, Man!

Beyond All Seas

"The individual has always had to struggle to keep from being overwhelmed by the tribe.
To be your own man is a hard business. If you try it, you'll be lonely often, and sometimes
frightened. But no price is too high to pay for the privilege of owning yourself." - Kipling

Post: #17

(06-03-2013 11:26 AM)germanico Wrote:  

Quote:I have decided to substitute much of the beer for Vodka Sodas now but my lifestyle right now means quitting drink wouldn't be worth it really. Just not practical and I love it anyways lol

So, youd rather drink a six-pack than have a six pack.

Stop worrying about your body fat, you made your choice already and alcohol won.

Beer is basically liquid bread as far as I'm concerned and to me is one of the number one reason people in their early twenties to early thirties gain weight. I live in an area with a high concentration of micro-breweries and great beer, I know a lot of people who love their beer, and I see them gaining or keeping their weight due to their beer consumption.

Beyond observing others, I've experienced it myself, around 24 I really let myself go, would drink probably 2-4 good micro-brews a day, and got a big beer gut (Homer Simpson style). I was walking around at 195 pounds at 5 ft. 10.5 in., but I didn't work out and had little to no real muscle. Now, since I cut beer out to only one day a week (in moderation), in addition to healthy lifestyle/diet/weight lifting, I'm about 190 lbs, but strong and pretty muscular, though I don't have a six-pack, and probably at like 12% BF if I had to guess.

I am pretty convinced that carbs are the main cause of weight gain, or not being able to lose weight. I like to eat my carbs and so much of the American diet is based on carbs, eat a sandwich (bread), eat pasta, rice, etc., carbs usually appear at most of my meals. I try to cut back on carbs or go "light" on them, but if I have to choose between eating bread, pad thai, rice, or drinking beer, I will choose the food over the drink. So if you are intent on keeping up with your beer drinking, make every effort to go very light on carbs that day, and if you do get carbs make sure they come from a good source like sweet potato or carrots.

Sure there are tons of other foods that will make you fat, and the guy who said he eats candy and wendy's double bacon burgers is either joking, trolling, or has some kind of freakish metabolism that allows him to stay cut or lose weight very easily. I'm sure we all know someone who is naturally skinny who can eat as much pizza, burgers, ice cream, etc. and not gain a pound, human genetics as far as body composition ranges widely. Some people will have trouble gaining weight, other gaining, muscle, while others will struggle and toil to lose pounds, because their bodies naturally want to put on the pounds.

Final note, my good friend who loves beer, almost to the point of obsession, he wants to lose weight he's an out of shape 210 pounds at 5 ft. 10 in., he whines about dieting, he's eating healthier, he exercises a little bit more that before, but he still drinks about 4 heavy micro brews every day of the week, then he wonders why he doesn't lose weight. I've tried to tell him, but he won't listen to me, he's not ready to give up his love affair with good beer, it's so central to his identity and happiness, he's not willing to sacrifice it in order to lose weight and get in shape.

Post: #18

Agree wih many points in here.

You can eat a lot of so called bad foods and drink IF you have a big energy expenditure.

The last two months whilst on vacation I have drank about 40 craft beer PER WEEK. I have scoffed about 5 restaurant meals a week - I have gained no weight at all. 155 pounds, 5' 8".

I have worked out at least an hour pd though. I am pretty fit - smashed a mile outdoors in 5:16 yesterday for example.

Every body is different of course.

Post: #19

I just wanted to add...

I do wonder my body just likes being like this (16-18% bf) as it never changes as long as I've been exercising regularly at that period in life but my diet has always been as aforementioned.

Post: #20

(06-03-2013 03:00 PM)Beyond Borders Wrote:  

(06-03-2013 02:40 PM)MasterBacja Wrote:  I eat fast food or restaurant food for almost every meal and drink a TON of beer and when done properly with common sense and awareness of the nutritional makeup of what i'm eating/drinking, i have no problem dropping 10-15lbs in no time.

Interesting. Not contesting the claim, but do you mind elaborating more on your techniques?

It's gonna sound pretty grimey but I just get a Mcdouble and a hamburger (comes to $2.00 even, like 640 cals) or get a crunchwrap from Taco Bell (540 cals i believe) and eat that in a cycle for 2-3 meals a day depending on the day. I do intermittent fasting insofar as I typically skip breakfast and some days keep myself too busy to get hungry. I also lift 3 times a week (just a simple 3x10 routine hitting all the muscle groups i feel like doing). On days I plan on drinking to excess (which is often) I'll drop a meal to compensate. So i end up eating ~2000 cals/day for cheap and I (personally, YMMV) don't notice any issues with energy or health. To be fair, as much as I drink and smoke, the least of my worries at this point is too many hamburgers.

Jaylow sounds like he's got a similar system to me - it's all about controlling intake and being willing to eat that type of food. If you don't like fast food, obviously it's not the best choice. Either way i'd say if you don't work out, it's just going to make it that much tougher but that goes with any diet/eating habits.

Post: #21

Question...

Craft beer v vodka sodas...

How much of a difference do you think it would make I drink he latter over the former?

Post: #22

(06-03-2013 04:05 PM)Jbk Wrote:  I just wanted to add...

I do wonder my body just likes being like this (16-18% bf) as it never changes as long as I've been exercising regularly at that period in life but my diet has always been as aforementioned.

I'm in the same boat I feel. I can get my BF down to around 13% (and it's rare) but it won't stay there without being crazy diligent on my calories (~1500 a day tops) and mixing in cardio. If I go back to a default state (working out and being loose on calories, ~2000-2500/day) I'm usually back to 16-18% in no time.

Lately i've been packing on muscle which offsets it for me - I'm not super defined or ripped but I can feel pretty confident at that BF so long as I'm more muscular as well.

(06-03-2013 04:05 PM)Jbk Wrote:  Question...

Craft beer v vodka sodas...

How much of a difference do you think it would make I drink he latter over the former?

It'll make a huge difference IMO. I am also a vodka-soda guy when I take breaks from beer and it will help CALORICALLY. There is a lot of evidence that your body has trouble burning fat if you're drinking enough alcohol though, but if you're choosing between beer and vodka-sodas, it will definitely not be worse relatively speaking. I personally notice that alcohol has negligible effects on my weight, diet/exercise impacts me much more overall, but everybody is ultimately different in that regard.

Post: #23

Good points MB, thanks

Post: #24

I went from maybe 15-20% BF (70 kg @ 178cm) to undetectable BF on the scales (62.5 kg), the last it showed was around 5,5%, I'm sure the scales are generous but I'm pretty confident my bf is under 7%.

How? Cardio every single day of the year. 30'' on crosstrainer high intensity, for 2500 joule (~600 kcal?). Aside from that, weights 3 days a week, crunches with weight on chest, pushups every night.

There was a time when I hit 58 kg and I was basically just veins and bones, that's when I scaled back on some of the cardio.

Post: #25

did not eat for 32 days straight on a water diet and lost 30 pounds. overall I went down from 250 to 150 over the course of the year
I wrote this after my last fast http://curezone.com/forums/fm.asp?i=1485026#i
"This is the first time I had a scale and although the results of total weight loss are not atypical for me for a fast of this length, the journaling is something new. Have been writing the weight loss on a small dry erase board next to the scale. This is not my first fast. First fast was 32 days, second 28 I think. I had a 10 and 17 day fast too. Started @ 250 a year ago.
The weight ins have always been done in the morning after rest, after emptying bladder and before drinking anything.
Here is the table:
8/10 186
8/11 184
8/12 179
8/13 176.4
8/14 172.8
8/15 171.6
8/16 168.8
8/17 167
8/18 165.4
8/19 164.2
8/20 163.4
8/21 162.8
8/22 161.8
8/23 160.8
8/24 159.8
8/25 158.8
8/26 158.2
8/27 157.8
8/28 156.2
8/29 155.8
8/30 155.2
8/31 154.6
9/01 154
9/02 153.2
9/03 152.6
9/04 152.1
9/05 151