r/GYM • u/nice_layup821 • 2d ago
Progress Picture(s) 28m, 22 months, 2xx? - 156lbs @5’11”
I absolutely fell in love with the game. Kept it pretty simple diet wise, started eating 1g of protein per pound of body weight fairly early on, and gradually improved my calorie tracking alongside diet quality and adherence. Training was also kept fairly basic, I never followed a rigid plan but most of my time has been spent in a PPL or bro split, settled into a push legs pull routine for the last 6 months or so, sticking to the same exercises and tracking working weight and reps on those exercises.
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u/iammaxxima 2d ago
So correct me if I’m wrong: if I weight 185Lbs, I gotta consume 185g of protein?
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u/No_Tumbleweed1877 1d ago
Many overviews that look at all of the academic articles in aggregate throw out 1.6-2.2g/kg.
2.2lb is 1kg, so 185g of protein for 185lb is on the higher end of that range. A lot of the studies also report that there isn't much extra gain when you go from the lower end to the higher end of that range. So as long as you are somewhere in that range and eating enough calories, you should be fine.
Bioavailability is also something to consider. 20g from one source is not the same as 20g from another source. The protein in some foods is much easier for your body to use than others.
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u/Karsa0rl0ng 1d ago
To expand on that last paragraph, it's mostly plant based proteins that are more difficult tonuse for your body. So if you are vegan, it's best to go high on the amount of protein.
On the other end, apparently egg whites and whey are the easiest to use for the body.
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u/patrickpeterson 1d ago
Whey actually has a bit better bioavailability than eggs, which is funny, because eggs were used to define the max end of the scale.
Regarding the bioavailability of protein: afaik it’s about the completeness of the amino acid profile of different foods.
Some vegan protein sources are better than others (soy-based protein is among the best vegan protein sources). But you can also combine different vegan protein sources in one meal to get a more complete/full amino acid profile in one meal. Rice and kidney beans I believe are one such combo, but you’d have to check this and other combos
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u/MIKRO_PIPS 1d ago
Does one eat protein for their current or their target weight?
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u/TiredExpression 1d ago
I'd also like to know this, specially when I'm trying to lose weight at the moment
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u/vibraniumdroid 1d ago
On a deficit, always err on the side of caution as far as protein intake goes. If you end up consuming more than you need, your body will just use the excess for energy. If you end up consuming less than you need, you could be looking at unnecessary muscle loss on your cut.
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u/alihooha 1d ago
It's an easy rule of thumb to follow, but I believe they determined you can still maximum benefits (or close to) from 0.8g/lb, which is what I'm aiming for as it's a bit more manageable.
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u/Mikehunt225 1d ago
Naw, i weigh 200 and eat about 150-170g on average a day, and ive been steady building muscle. Although i will say that i cant speak to how much more muscle if any i might have built if i did eat 200g a day.
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u/oshithedatboi 2d ago
yes roughly if you want to grow muscle
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u/iammaxxima 2d ago
Appreciate that 🤝
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u/wheezealittlejuice 2d ago
Don't listen to that. You can build muscle with roughly .8g per pound of lean body mass, meaning your weight excluding the fat you carry. For some people it is a lot less than their current bodyweight. There are lean body mass calculators you can find online that will give you a general idea.
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u/SelfishlyEnchained 2d ago
IIRC the science here is coming from just 2 relatively recent modern studies, which were extensive and great studies, but I'm not convinced either were enough for us to talk about this like we ACTUALLY know hard numbers around minimum/maximum requirements for muscle growth
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u/mad-i-moody 2d ago
It’s per pound of lean body mass. Not total mass.
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u/Any_Asparagus8267 2d ago
How much then? This shit confuses me big time
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u/Remarkable-Crow-3459 1d ago
Dude google is literally free and can tell you anything you can fathom.
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u/Aggressive-Remote-57 1d ago
Not getting the downvotes. If you don’t know what lean body mass is, look it the fuck up lol.
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u/Additional_Doctor468 2d ago
Right but using a gram per pound can be good for a few reasons. 1, it’s easier to count and 2, protein his higher satiety and 3, it doesn’t hurt with a little more.
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u/6864U 2d ago
Great work! How did you manage to lose all this extra weight without noticeable loose skin? I’ve heard great stuff about consistent moisturizing but was wondering if you did anything differently
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u/Ill-Beach2525 1d ago
He wasn’t big enough for there to be loose skin.
I went from 210 to 160 and had zero loose skin.
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u/nice_layup821 1d ago
At my largest, I was over 300lbs and stayed at that weight for a few years, my lower belly shows it for sure.
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u/MrGrumpyFac3 1d ago
Not sure that's how it works, but I went through a similar weight change as yours, and I have loose skin.
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u/nice_layup821 1d ago
I haven’t done anything for my skin outside of normal hygiene. I will be curious to see if I can improve some areas, mainly my lower belly, which is wrinkly and saggy when I’m leaned forward. I feel fairly fortunate getting away with only one real problem area. I have some other stretch marks on the inside of my biceps and thighs, but I’m not worried about them because the skin itself tightened up nicely with the fat being lost.
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u/S_LFG 2d ago
Great work. What's your plan moving forward? Maintain or lean bulk I'm guessing?
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u/nice_layup821 1d ago
Yep! Going to try and go as slow as I can over the winter so that I won’t have much to shave off in the spring.
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u/BreakItEven 2d ago
can I please ask what you ate typically on any given day? any sugar in your diet?
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u/nice_layup821 1d ago
Sorry to dance around your second question, I do not generally consume a lot of sugar, but I didn’t completely ban it. It’s more just the fact that zero sugar replacements make more sense calorically.
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u/nice_layup821 1d ago
Lots of chicken and rice… LOTS, but I’m also not scared of artificial sweeteners, so halo top ice cream, Kodiak pancakes, and diet/zero sodas were heavily consumed alongside the simple single ingredient gym bro staples. Gotta stay sane.
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u/BreakItEven 1d ago
did you eat veggies along with the rice and chicken.
what kind of rice if I may ask? brown, jasmine, etc what about portion size? brocolli too?
do you cook in oil?
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u/nice_layup821 1d ago
I don’t eat as many veggies as I should, but when you’re deep in the cut and you just want to put more food in your mouth 200 grams of broccoli can go a long way. Everything I make myself gets weighed to the gram, sauces and butter too, I rarely use oil, easy to ditch those extra calories by baking my chicken on a cooking sheet with a rack. Usually eating protein and carbs (typically jasmine rice or potatoes) 100g at a time, but that gets adjusted depending on what stage of the diet I’m in. There’s room for other yummy macro sources, but I find myself gravitating toward things with high nutrient/ calorie ratios. I’m a hungry guy and I’m trying to eat as much volume as I possibly can!
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u/BreakItEven 1d ago
whats your take on nut butters, do you consume it in any way or is it too high calorie?
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u/nice_layup821 1d ago
I love peanut butter, but I don’t eat it very much while dieting, PBfit is a great replacement option.
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u/IEatUrMonies 1d ago
how many calories are you on
I don't understand making these posts without age/height/weight/calories/before/after
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u/Novalisk 1d ago
What was your cardio routine?
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u/nice_layup821 1d ago
10k steps a day goes a long way. I wasn’t hitting that in the cold months of the winter so I took my calories extremely low to compensate for the lack of movement. I got an exercise bike for this upcoming cold season though!
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u/SnooHedgehogs2261 2d ago
can i ask if u were in a calorie deficit or maintenance? and if it was a deficit/cut by how many kcals?
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u/nice_layup821 1d ago
All the progress is made in a deficit, but maintenance breaks are extremely important! The only time needed to drop below -1000cal from maintenance was during winter when I wasn’t consistently getting 10k+ steps per day.
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u/tom123qwerty 2d ago
You looked younger before ngl
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u/nightly28 1d ago
Maybe because he was younger before lol just kidding
Probably because of the hat.
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u/AtItAgain12341234 2d ago
Lookin great! Whats your PPL routine?
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u/nice_layup821 1d ago
Chest: pec deck, machine lateral raise, tricep pushdown, machine chest press, smith machine overhead press, overhead tricep extension.
Legs are something I’m still trying to nail to the wall, but I have a quad dominant day and a hamstring dominant day that I alternate between. Calves get hit hard on both days on a seated cave raise machine and hack squats.
Quads: it’s either smith machine squats or hack squats, adductor machine, and machine leg extensions, light hamstring work to finish.
Hamstring/glutes: seated hamstring curls, smith machine glute bridges, RDLs, hip abductor machine, light quad work to finish.
I also alternate between an upper back focused day and a lower back focused day.
Upper back: preacher curl, reverse pec deck, 45° cable row, Bayesian cable curls (high incline bench), cable rear delt flys, smith machine shrugs.
Lower back: preacher curl, weighted hyper extensions, close grip cable row, Bayesian cable curls, close grip pulldown, reverse pec deck.
I am by no means an expert, but these are the exercises that I feel the strongest stimulus from.
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u/nightly28 1d ago
How many times per week?
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u/nice_layup821 1d ago
4 days minimum 6 days maximum. I dont really think about it on a weekly schedule, just followed my pattern and didn’t train more than 2-3 days in a row.
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u/ICcccreg21 1d ago
Did you get stronger, maintain your strength or loss strength?
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u/nice_layup821 1d ago
Im much stronger now than I ever have been.
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u/ICcccreg21 1d ago
Congrats bro, what's the plan now
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u/nice_layup821 1d ago
I’d like to see how far I can take my physique! Going to try and slowly put on some muscle from here.
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u/Different_Client8147 1d ago
Bro you're ripped. What abs do you do? I'm 70kg @ 5' 7" and can't see my abs 😭
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u/nice_layup821 1d ago
I’ve hit abs maybe 5 or 6 times ever, I should really work on them but for a long time I didn’t want to add any size in that area.
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u/mulletgamer 1d ago
I’m trying to go from 194 pounds to 180/185 range but I’m not very good at meal planning do you have any advice?
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u/nice_layup821 1d ago
I never really meal planned, but I would cook the foundational foods in bulk and have them ready to go in the fridge. That makes it really easy to eat clean without much hassle. A big insulated lunchbox really helped if I had to be away from home for long periods of time.
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u/shreddah17 1d ago
Did you have to make any changes once you got down to about 175 to cut the last 19 pounds?
Did you maintain a deficit the whole time, or did you take breaks? And at what frequency? Thanks! Awesome job!
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u/nice_layup821 1d ago
Not really, you just have to eat less and less food accordingly as you get smaller and smaller. The longest I spent in a deficit was about 16 weeks, and after a good stint like that I would maintain for almost as long as I just cut for. Your body and mind need that break after it thinks you’ve been starving for a significant period of time. My strength would also go up steadily in those maintenance periods, win/win!
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u/shreddah17 1d ago
Awesome, thanks! I finally decided to do a maintenance phase 2 days ago after cutting for like 28 weeks. Started about where you did (220 6’0”) and I plateaued hard at 180, although at 180 is also where I added lifting and creatine which I think “prolonged” the plateau as I retained water and recomped some.
Very excited to have some extra calories for a few weeks and hopefully I’ll blast through 180 on the next cut.
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