Post: #126

Went from about 172 to 166 lbs after my first week on this. Seems to be mostly water weight, with a little fat coming off in my face, arms, and stomach. Really pigged out from friday night to saturday night with drinking and engorging myself with burritos and cookies. Was good the other 5.5 days. Did 3 1.5 hour cardio sessions and didnt feel too bad at all. I expect energy levels to be slightly lower this week. Loving the rapid results. Highly encouraging knowing that 6 lbs cant possibly be a random fluctuation. Subsisting on mostly proteins shakes. On to the next one.

Post: #127

Day 3 of RFL.

Hungry pretty much all the time. This will be worth it.

Sparkling water and the occasional diet soda does a good job blunting the hunger.

I'm doing my first RFL workout today and after that I get my first free meal.

Post: #128

First workout successful, although it took Gatorade and abundant amounts of caffeine to stay alert and keep my form right. First free meal was a salmon burger with some sweet potato fries. Fucking awesome. Back to the onslaught of lean fish, rabbit food, protein powder, and egg whites until my refeed on Saturday. I've lost three pounds already.

Post: #129

Just wanted to share with you guys what I've been eating lately.

Disclaimer: I pick and choose between metric and imperial. I think in Calories but measure in Grams.

Daily Cost: $15AUD
From: Coles Supermarkets
Diet: Protein Sparing (Low Calorie, main source of energy from Proteins)
Prep: 5 minutes
Cook: 2 minutes Microwave

Height: 183cm (6'0")
Weight: 96KG (211 lbs)
(I'm using height and weight to give context on my daily macros)

Calories: 980 (Daily limit is 1100 to 1240 depending on working out or not)
Protein: 208.5g
Fat: 13.5G (Limit 23)
Carbs: 4-7G (Mainly Sugars in the egg whites) (As low as possible)
Sodium: 3400MG
Very high in Calcium
Very high in Potassium
Very Little Fiber (take your husk supps / eat your vegetables)

Egg Whites in a Carton x2 at about $5 each
Kraft Higher Protein Cheese x1 at about $5
Mixed Italian Herbs (Neg. Cost)
Chilli Powder (Neg. Cost)
Basil Paste or Fresh Basil (Neg. Cost)
Minced or Fresh Garlic (Neg. Cost)




This isn't the most delicious meal I've ever made, but with that being said it's ticking off some very important boxes for me.

A) It's very rich - obviously in the making of this higher protein cheese they've matured it
B) It's very filling, especially with a plate of greens on the side
C) It basically smashes all of my daily macro requirements for protein

The basil and garlic really moderates the Cheesiness/Sodium. And it tastes good. I have very complex taste buds from a lifetime of Garlic, Thai/Indian food and all sorts of crazy shit, this keeps my desire (so to speak) for strong tasting food.

My ratio of Egg White(1kg) to Cheese(250g) is 4:1. If you aren't so keen on the cheesiness you could go 1:6 or 1:8. I do it this because it's simple and I'm just using the full volumes from the packets/cartons.

It also expands like crazy. About 1L of volume basically doubles. I microwave it in a container and it comes out looking like a loaf of bread.

Overall, this is quick and easy and adheres to the principles of the diet rather well. I also suspect it will be a good baseline in the future as a dietary staple. Maybe with a cheese with a lighter taste like Mozzarella.

And prep time is a piece of piss. Pour 2 cartons, 1 packet of cheese and preferred condiments into a large container and pour your portions out throughout the day into a microwaveable container. 10 minutes a day. For the little bit extra a day it costs me the time value factor is massive. If I cook chicken breasts for example, it will take me the better part of an hour.

It's not perfect at all, but this diet in its essence is somewhat unnatural. Make sure you keep your fiber up with supplementation.

I'll post up a nice photogenic picture later on.

Post: #130

Second gym day and first refeed of RFL today. 400g of carbs in 5 hours is bananas (and pomegranates, carrots, pita and hummus, sandwiches, strawberry smoothies, whole wheat buns, etc). Very welcome break from the usual grind though. Back on it tomorrow.

I did my full body B workout but swapped RDLs for trap bar deadlifts due to equipment availability. Had an easier time getting through this one. What I'm having before the workouts is a scoop of whey with two scoops of BCAAs and 1 tsp of creatine, a Quest bar (that's my fast acting carb), and some kind of calorie-free caffeinated drink. I don't do well training on an empty stomach, I lose energy and my form slips. That is one of the very few ways I am modifying the diet's protocol, if it slows my fat loss by like 1lb a week than so be it.

Here are a couple things new RFLers should expect that I haven't seen covered here:

1. You will feel dizzy and queasy your first few days on the diet. This clears up, don't worry. It's your body getting used to such a drastic calorie deficit, especially if you've been eating at maintenance or a surplus beforehand. The effect was more pronounced for me my first day because I fasted for longer than I usually do due to circumstances that day (job interview and other stuff).

2. Insomnia is a thing on this diet for some reason. I am using a 5-HTP/Melatonin/L-Theanine stack to help with that for the time being, although I will have to cycle off it soon so I don't build a tolerance. I also switched my magnesium supplementation to the evening after I get home from work and before bed. That reminds me, I gotta take my magnesium supps now.

Also, some easy to make RFL recipes:

EGG WHITE OMELETTE:
2 cups egg whites
1.8 cups fat free cheese
5 tbsp salsa

Spray a nonstick pan with cooking spray of your choice. Pour the egg whites into the pan and let it harden into omelette consistency. Sprinkle the cheese on to the omelette and let it melt. Put the salsa in the omelette and fold it over.
Macroz: 15g net carbz (mostly from the salsa which Lyle says we can have as much of as we want), 37g protonz, 0.4g fat

RFL PROTEIN PANCAKES:

1 cup egg whites
1 scoop chocolate whey protein powder
1 scoop chocolate casein protein powder

Mix the egg whites and protein powders in a cup measure or bowl. Spray a nonstick pancake griddle or pan with nonstick spray of your choice and pour the batter on the pan into pancake shapes. Let sit until they bubble and flip them. Once flipped, let sit for about a minute and then serve.
Macroz: 11g net carbz, 51g protonz, 5g fat

Eat with Walden Farms' Calorie Free Pancake Syrup. These are Victory Pancakes for sure, but they're RFL friendly and a welcome break from the usual onslaught of typical RFL foods.

Post: #131

A SOMEWHAT RFL-FRIENDLY GREEN PROTEIN SHAKE THAT ACTUALLY TASTES GOOD:

3-4 cups greens of your choice (kale, spinach, collard greens, lettuce, whatever, doesn't matter, you aren't going to taste them)
2 cups unsweetened almond or cashew milk (very little carbs or fat)
1 scoop chocolate whey protein powder of your choice (I recommend ON Performance Whey Chocolate Shake flavor because it's delicious and according to independent tests actually has the amount of protein it claims to have)
1 scoop Barlean's Chocolate Greens Powder
1 tbsp cinnamon
stevia to taste

Blend in your blender and pour into a cup.
Macroz: 331 calories, 21.6g net carbz, 10.7g fat, 32.2g protonz

This tastes like a delicious cinnamon chocolate vanilla shake but has greens and is kind of RFL friendly. It's high in net carbs but it is possible to fit it into your RFL macros with some Tetrising of your other meals. Could be good for knocking out a big chunk of your calories and other macros in one fell swoop.

Post: #132

Couple of refeed things new RFLers should expect:

1. You will shit a lot. Some of it will be of the liquid variety. This is normal - it means you are accomplishing the goal of a refeed which is to confuse your body's metabolism into not adapting to the RFL diet.

2. You will have a massive carb crash afterwards. Consuming 400-500g of carbs in 5 hours will give you a food coma (or "the itis" as they call it where I'm from) like you have never had before, especially after consuming less than 30g of carbs a day all week. You will probably want to drop off to sleep shortly after your refeed is done and should expect to sleep for 9-10 hours afterwards. Therefore, I recommend starting your refeed 6 hours before you intend to go to sleep and doing it as your last meal of the day.

Post: #133

Both statements are very true.

I would start my refeed on Sunday around 10ish and make a giant pot of mashed potatoes, rice, or waffles (with sugar free syrup) and smash two plates at a time for about six hours. Oftentimes I would crash and fall asleep in the middle of the refeed. That's OK though, the refeed has to last at least five hours and it can go on for 24 hours if you want it to. Otherwise you don't get the hormonal benefit of the refeed.

Eatthishomie, how much weight have you been losing? When I RFL it's about 2/3rds of a pound of fat per dieting day but I don't do it to the letter (sometimes I'll have a casual beer during the week or have two cheat meals and a refeed).

Post: #134

My refeed meals last night were: a triple-decker PB&J with Arnold Double Protein bread, 8 oz of black bean pasta with tomato sauce and mozzarella cheese, beet/carrot juice, and a homemade mixed-berry sorbet made in the Vitamix with mixed berries, EAS chocolate whey protein, reduced sugar almond milk, Barleans greens powder, and Hershey's unsweetened cocoa powder. I started at about 6:30 and ended around 11:50 and crashed out shortly after.

I have been losing about 5-6 pounds a week so far, down to 228 from 237 when I started. I'm doing it maybe 85% by the book. I'm more liberal with fat and sugar during refeeds than Lyle suggests (as you can see above), and I am also not using an EC stack, and have not started on Yohimbine yet. I also had two free meals last week in addition to refeed due to a social circumstance. I haven't done a caliper reading since I started the diet but visually I appear to have less bodyfat and people are telling me I look leaner.

Post: #135

(03-27-2016 03:43 PM)eatthishomie Wrote:  My refeed meals last night were: a triple-decker PB&J with Arnold Double Protein bread, 8 oz of black bean pasta with tomato sauce and mozzarella cheese, beet/carrot juice, and a homemade mixed-berry sorbet made in the Vitamix with mixed berries, EAS chocolate whey protein, reduced sugar almond milk, Barleans greens powder, and Hershey's unsweetened cocoa powder. I started at about 6:30 and ended around 11:50 and crashed out shortly after.

I have been losing about 5-6 pounds a week so far, down to 228 from 237 when I started. I'm doing it maybe 85% by the book. I'm more liberal with fat and sugar during refeeds than Lyle suggests (as you can see above), and I am also not using an EC stack, and have not started on Yohimbine yet. I also had two free meals last week in addition to refeed due to a social circumstance. I haven't done a caliper reading since I started the diet but visually I appear to have less bodyfat and people are telling me I look leaner.

How do you plan to use the Yohimbe cl? With other items or just stand alone?

When I was doing RFL the first time, I planned the shit out of my refeed day. Then I stopped caring as much and just eating. I literally was taking the labels and punching them into a spreadsheet.

Post: #136

Planning to take it in the morning before all my other supps then go for a walk as Lyle suggests.

I plan my refeed days with MyFitnessPal as I do for all my other days. Without MFP I would overeat on other days and either overeat or possibly undereat on a refeed day (e.g. under 400g of carbs).

Post: #137

(03-27-2016 05:02 PM)eatthishomie Wrote:  Planning to take it in the morning before all my other supps then go for a walk as Lyle suggests.

I plan my refeed days with MyFitnessPal as I do for all my other days. Without MFP I would overeat on other days and either overeat or possibly undereat on a refeed day (e.g. under 400g of carbs).

So no caffeine or L-tyrosine to go with it? When I was using yohimbe cl I was doing it like this guy.

http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread...=153149361

Post: #138

I was supplementing L-Tyrosine for a while and still have some on hand. I don't have any caffeine pills though. Could I get the same effect by taking it with a caffeinated drink?

Going to start with smaller doses to assess my tolerance as well.

Post: #139

(03-27-2016 05:21 PM)eatthishomie Wrote:  I was supplementing L-Tyrosine for a while and still have some on hand. I don't have any caffeine pills though. Could I get the same effect by taking it with a caffeinated drink?

Going to start with smaller doses to assess my tolerance as well.

Be very careful with yohimbe cl. You cannot eat any food for 4 hours after taking it. If you do the areas you are trying to reduce could get bigger. Yohimbe cl is taken on an empty stomach.

Post: #140

First week of RFL in a little while and feeling shitty. This will be worth it in a month.

Post: #141

I'm consistently perplexed by these "diets" and how people glom onto these fads. Its a quick fix to a long term problem. I don't need a book, it's simple:

1. eat all the meat, fruits and veggies you want, cut out grains, legumes, dairy, excessive alcohol and processed sugars.
2. exercise every day for an hour, start with something simple and brainless like 5x5

guarantee that in a month if you're on a SAD you'll lose 10lbs the first month and gain muscle mass.

Takes time to do anything right, there is no quick fix to anything. Took me a few years to go from a fat fuck to a statue resembling a greek demigod - but it can be done. There is no try, there is only do.

Post: #142

That's great. You miss the point of the rapid fat loss diet.

First of all, it is absolutely not a fad. This is not a hausfrau diet. It is definitely not easy to stick to. This is not a casual diet with one weird trick discovered by a mom where you stop eating bananas or whatever and you magically drop weight.

Rapid fat loss is foremost a slash and burn approach. It is a reset button if your weight has gotten out of control. It is a way to get your bodyfat percentage down to a manageable level as fast as possible.

For me, it is a way to eat whatever I want while I lift as much volume as I have time for and take the absolute least amount of time to cut fat so I can do it again. It is a tool and for what it is, it works very well. I can bulk for six months at a time, cut for a month and reap the gains.

An average sized man drops three pounds of fat a week or more. A fat man loses a pound a day. This diet takes me 5 minutes a day to prepare. Once you have it all set up there is no calorie counting required.

On this diet you lift twice a week and preserve most, if not all your strength gains. Combine all your diet and lifting and that's a grand total of three hours a week.

What is a SAD? Steroidal anti-inflammatory drug? Seasonal affective disorder? Squat all day?

Post: #143

I am at around 12-13% body fat. Hades, can this be used at any body fat percentage or is it optimal for those above 15%?

Post: #144

(01-18-2016 08:53 PM)Hades Wrote:  Anybody scared off by the drastic approach offered by the RFL, but still wants to cut weight, ought take heed of this "Every Other Day" refeed diet that I just found on Lyle McDonald's forums. I might actually give it a shot. Here are some links ->

http://forums.lylemcdonald.com/showthread.php?t=638&

http://forums.lylemcdonald.com//showthread.php?t=788

Essentially you eat normally one day (high protein, like 300 grams of carbs, low fat) and PSMF the other day (so about 1g protein/pound bodyweight in shakes or chicken).

Hannibal, think it is possible to do this every other day thing, and then hit it hard for 6 weeks? 6 weeks is the max before a maintenance period based on what you told me. I am maybe 8 weeks away from a goal and having been eating a bit more sloppily since hitting the weights harder. Wondering if I do every other day for the next 2 weeks and then full RFL if that would be ok, or will my hormones already be off when I start the program again.

Also (I know so many questions!), think it is possible to go two cheat meals and a carb reload day? I working on a 3 day heavy lifting program (2 upper body one lower body split - MWF) - would like to try and keep that up, if possible.

THANKS!

Post: #145

For everyone questioning it, you can try it or not. But for those of us who have done it, it works. Just takes some discipline. And even if you stray a bit (a few too many calories), etc, you will still lose weight if you can stay with it over decent amount of time.

Post: #146

(04-01-2016 07:42 AM)ThrustMaster Wrote:  Takes time to do anything right, there is no quick fix to anything. Took me a few years to go from a fat fuck to a statue resembling a greek demigod - but it can be done. There is no try, there is only do.

Care to back up your pretensions with a selfie and a sign saying "RVF Thrustmaster" written on today's news?

If you don't like scientifically modified ways to lose fat the fastest way possible, while preserving as much lean mass as possible, then get out of the thread.

Nobody asked your opinion.

Nobody is arguing you can't lose weight doing other things.

Nobody thinks your dad trolling or platitude advice is brilliant.

There are slow ways to lose weight in a proven manner. This is the rapid way to lose fat. All the extras are cut out, only the bare essentials to sustain life are left in. It's not complicated.

Give the diet a shot and probably end up agreeing with us or leave the thread and take your concern trolling and pretentious attitude with you.

Post: #147

Not only did losing fat the slow "right" way not help me, but it probably hurt more than it helped (lost LBM and was more vulnerable to injury). RFL has been working for me with almost no ill effects (a mild "keto flu" on my first few days being one).

I hate cutting and want to spend as little time doing it as possible and as much time in an anabolic state as possible.

I know RFL is a short term jump off to more comprehensive and holistic means of staying lean, but it undeniably is working for me - 14lbs so far in 4 weeks and that's a more conservative result than others have gotten.

Post: #148

(04-02-2016 01:47 AM)cubanlinx Wrote:  I am at around 12-13% body fat. Hades, can this be used at any body fat percentage or is it optimal for those above 15%?

I would say the diet works the best (and is the easiest) if you're above 15% bodyfat.

It is doable when you are below it, but it's going to look like 12 straight dieting days (very hard to do) and a 2 to 3 day refeed (also hard to do).

Most folks say that dieting as a category 1 sucks dick. I'm inclined to agree. I've never given the category 1 diet a solid go because I end up having to eat 300 grams of protein a day, which works out to like 15 scoops of whey a day, or a whole 11 lb bag of whey powder for the 12 day period.

Given the math at that point, I would be burning about 1/4 lb of fat a day or less due to the increased protein consumption, so return on my investment would be something like 3 pounds of fat burned in that 12 days, $60-80 worth of protein powder depending on sales, and then a two week maintenance period to prevent metabolic fatigue.

If you did a "sensible" diet where you lost a half pound to a pound of fat a week, your results over, we'll say twelve weeks, would look like this.

RFL category 1 :
3 cycles
2 weeks dieting
2 weeks maintenance
12 weeks total
Fat burned (educated guess) : ~9 pounds
A 185 lb man who started at 15% bodyfat goes to 176 lbs at 10% bodyfat.

This is an estimate, by the way. Very few people do the category 1 diet because it's so hard to stick to, so there aren't a lot of examples on the internet (or Lyle's forum).

Regular diet
12 weeks total
Intermittent fasting, one 24 hour period once a week
->works out to a half a pound to a pound of fat lost per week
Fat burned (educated guess) : ~7 pounds fat, maybe a pound or two of muscle

A 185 lb man who started at 15% bodyfat goes to 176 lbs at 11% bodyfat.

Is it worth it? You tell me. The results really do not look much different and this echoes what I was saying earlier, RFL is a reset button when you've gotten too sloppy or a hammer when you want results quick.

I'm all about time and money. A $60-80 dollar bag of protein eaten in two weeks of dieting hell where you can't even go out and have a decent lunch is not a very good return on the investment.

The same bag lasts a whole month on a category 2 dieter. Per pound of fat burned, I'm spending $5 on category 2 and $20 on category 1. This is where a slower, more moderate approach truly shines.

Once 15% bodyfat is reached I could simply not eat a whole day out of the week, save money and time, and keep my workload relatively high with cheap sources of carbs.

If I wanted to get really lean and get the best return on my time and money (lets say 6% bodyfat), I would do something like this.

RFL until 15% bodyfat
A week or two at maintenance
A slower cut until 8% bodyfat, say fasting, counting calories, or whatever.
A week or two at maintenance
RFL to 6%, using fatburners, caffeine, and all the other chemical voodoo I know.

It makes sense to do RFL once your goal is almost reached because of how fast it is in that two week window of time compared to conventional dieting. After that, you'd slowly dial up the calories over time from maintenance and hit the gym hard.

(04-02-2016 03:19 AM)samsamsam Wrote:  

(01-18-2016 08:53 PM)Hades Wrote:  Anybody scared off by the drastic approach offered by the RFL, but still wants to cut weight, ought take heed of this "Every Other Day" refeed diet that I just found on Lyle McDonald's forums. I might actually give it a shot. Here are some links ->

http://forums.lylemcdonald.com/showthread.php?t=638&

http://forums.lylemcdonald.com//showthread.php?t=788

Essentially you eat normally one day (high protein, like 300 grams of carbs, low fat) and PSMF the other day (so about 1g protein/pound bodyweight in shakes or chicken).

Hannibal, think it is possible to do this every other day thing, and then hit it hard for 6 weeks? 6 weeks is the max before a maintenance period based on what you told me. I am maybe 8 weeks away from a goal and having been eating a bit more sloppily since hitting the weights harder. Wondering if I do every other day for the next 2 weeks and then full RFL if that would be ok, or will my hormones already be off when I start the program again.

Also (I know so many questions!), think it is possible to go two cheat meals and a carb reload day? I working on a 3 day heavy lifting program (2 upper body one lower body split - MWF) - would like to try and keep that up, if possible.

THANKS!

Every form of dieting will mess with your hormones somewhat.
The "every other day" diet is slower, but still very sensible. After an EOD diet for two weeks, and this is just a half assed guesstimation, I would keep the RFL max time at 6 weeks anyways because it looks like you want to have a second cheat meal in a week.

An extra cheat meal in a week wouldn't be a huge deal. Your results won't be as good obviously, but it shouldn't slow you down that much as long as it isn't a trip to the local chinese buffet.

Lyle himself has said that the keto part of the diet isn't why you lose weight, it's the ridiculous caloric deficit that does it. One extra cheat meal is just less of a deficit, but it's no dealbreaker. Give it a shot and see where you're at after a week (or two), it shouldn't be too long to tell if it still works.

Post: #149

(04-02-2016 02:59 PM)eatthishomie Wrote:  Not only did losing fat the slow "right" way not help me, but it probably hurt more than it helped (lost LBM and was more vulnerable to injury). RFL has been working for me with almost no ill effects (a mild "keto flu" on my first few days being one).

I hate cutting and want to spend as little time doing it as possible and as much time in an anabolic state as possible.

I know RFL is a short term jump off to more comprehensive and holistic means of staying lean, but it undeniably is working for me - 14lbs so far in 4 weeks and that's a more conservative result than others have gotten.

This, exactly this.

I can bulk for 5-6 months straight and then undo all the sloppy damage I did with 6 weeks of RFL.

I can focus on lifting more weight and just eating whatever the hell I feel like (while keeping protein intake moderately high).

Once I get to where I want to be strengthwise, then it's time for the moderation lifestyle approach when I maintain what I have.

Until then, it's all about getting results in the most productive way possible. RFL happens to be the most productive way to get lean for newbie and intermediate lifters who are trying to get to the next level.

Post: #150

If I was lean enough to do cat 1 I'd probably be looking at a less extreme approach to staying lean at that point, or I'd be bulking, depending on the time of year.

Even Lyle himself doesn't recommend doing RFL as a cat 1 dieter.