Lean Gains 9-5er

Rest days it doesn't really matter but most people prefer the bigger meal first.

Training days biggest meal (and the majority/most of your carb intake) is post-workout - although this doesn't mean immediately after you workout, just in the feeding window period in general.

This is just LeanGains style I.F. there are numerous other protocols like Eat. Stop. Eat, Warrior Diet etc.
 
On rest days do you still fast until lunchtime and is there a requirement for carb heaviness on training days?

(sorry for the questions which I could probably just google :p)
 
Today was a rest day. I finished eating yesterday at like 9:30pm. Technically 16 hours fasted would be 1:30pm... I didn't feel hungry until about 3-4pm and broke my fast then, which is typical.

I use Leangains as a guide in as much as I cycle carbs/fats, do the PWO feast type thing and have adapted to IF, but it's not like I eat dead on 12pm and finish eating dead on 8pm or make sure I have an exact % of carbs PWO - I just adhere to the basic principles.
 
Maxeh said:
On rest days do you still fast until lunchtime and is there a requirement for carb heaviness on training days?

(sorry for the questions which I could probably just google :p)
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Should keep your eating windows consistent, so if you break at lunch on workout days then the same on rest days too. If you didn't, you'd end up going 20 hours without eating from end of rest day window to work day window.


Technically, you could make all your eating windows go from 8am to 4pm. If you did, however, you'd miss the social benefits of having your calories in the later part of the day.


In terms of meal size, on workout days most calories should be consumed in the post workout period. On rest days, have your biggest meal first of all. This helps stave off hunger for most of the eating window. Useful, as you're on restrictive calories on rest days.



EDIT: I just want to say, I am NOT an intermittent faster. I eat throughout the day. But having done IF, I can attest to it being a useful diet strategy. I write in this thread merely to illustrate how LEANGAINS IF is supposed to be done.
 
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I think if I applied a 16/8 approach (break fast at midday) then I can work it around days when I might train later on in the afternoon (providing the main bulk comes post work-out).

For example later this week I won't train till 4pm so say between 12-4 pre-workout I can consume a small amount of calories as I am still in my fasting window?

Hope that makes sense!
 
Maxeh said:
I think if I applied a 16/8 approach (break fast at midday) then I can work it around days when I might train later on in the afternoon (providing the main bulk comes post work-out).

For example later this week I won't train till 4pm so say between 12-4 pre-workout I can consume a small amount of calories as I am still in my fasting window?

Hope that makes sense!
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Yeah. E.g. have 20-25% of calories pre workout (lunch time), then have two post workout meals making up the rest, i.e. 75-80% calories.
 
Ah ok, this could work pretty well for me then, only issue I may run into is having to cram 80% of my carbs in 1 meal for instance, but as I am only really on 100g a day splitting that into 2x PWO meals will be fine with my blood sugars :)

Thanks for the help mate.
 
Maxeh said:
Ah ok, this could work pretty well for me then, only issue I may run into is having to cram 80% of my carbs in 1 meal for instance, but as I am only really on 100g a day splitting that into 2x PWO meals will be fine with my blood sugars :)

Thanks for the help mate.
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Do check though with your doc about whether this sort of thing's alright. I'm always weary when it comes to things like diabetes.
 
Another question, If I do cardio on the odd rest day calculated at 1hr Xtrainer = 650 Kcal

Will Raise my rest day Kcal be 2250 instead of 1600? If so should my largest meal be before or after the cardio? ( note I am going to try a 2PM-8:45PM window/4 Day Lift )

Does it work like that for lean gains?
 
I just treat it like a rest day regardless, on the odd occasion I'll ride my bike somewhere or go for a run when the sun's come out at the weekend, just to avoid staying indoors all day. If you start changing your macro targets for cardio etc it just over-complicates things, and it's why most ppl doing LG don't bother with cardio for fat loss at all because the rest day macro cycling is effective as is.
 
Even if you do some cardio, that's no reason to add calories to your rest day/fat loss day diet. More like, take it as an extra fat burn!

1 hour is a lot though. 20-30 minutes is plenty.
 
Maxeh said:
Ah ok, this could work pretty well for me then, only issue I may run into is having to cram 80% of my carbs in 1 meal for instance, but as I am only really on 100g a day splitting that into 2x PWO meals will be fine with my blood sugars :)

Thanks for the help mate.
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I am in the fifth week of leangains doing the times you describe... Eating window 12pm - 8pm, but workout at 4:30pm on workout days. Just for consistency I have a carb free (veg only) lunch everyday as I found eating carbs after fasting made me tired in the first couple of weeks. I see it as a challenge to eat 315g of carbs post workout :p, although I try and have them from 'clean' sources only.
 
I've never properly lifted before so I used the 'untrained' values off this website (http://www.exrx.net/Testing/WeightLifting/StrengthStandards.html) as a starting point so I could concentrate on form initially. This doesn't mean these values was the maximum I could lift in week 1. My initial aim is to get to 10% bodyfat, and some visible abs for summer :cool:.

Height - 5ft11"
Age - 28
Activity - Sedentary (I ran at least 5k every other day before trying this)
Bodyfat - 14% (guesstimate)

Week 1 (beginning)
Weight - 70.8kg
All 8 reps followed by x10, and x12 at -10%
Squat - 45kg
Bench Press - 50kg
Deadlift - 60kg

Week 4 (end of)
All 8 reps followed by x10, and x12 at -10%
Weight - 68.9kg
Squat - 100kg
Bench Press - 70kg
Deadlift - 100kg

I will add some pictures tonight if you are interested? - took some initial ones but none since. Body wise I feel really good, my recovery times initially were slow, and then they got a lot better week 3, only to get worse again in week 4. I'm going to be honest and say I do get hungry on rest days, but I find myself drinking at lot more to compensate. Food wise, variety was the problem initially, but now I have found a happy medium and some favourites that are well within my macros - I know the theory is 'if it fits your macros' but eating low GI foods definitely keeps me fuller for longer:

Workout Days

Brown rice pudding (made with skimmed milk)
Lasagne (with lean pork, brown lasagne sheets, extra light Philadelphia and home made sauce)
Spaghetti bolognaise (lean pork, and home made sauce)
Chicken Fajitas

Non-Workout Days

Mixed grill with eggs (whatever meat I have to hand)
Spicy chicken salad (only have a little sauce but very hot, and don't count it)
6 egg omelette with bacon/ham/onions/cheese/tomato/chillis
Home made ice cream (with Stevia)
Home made chicken curry (no rice or naan, just broccoli and courgettes)

Any questions, fire away.
 
chet84 said:
Height - 5ft11"
Age - 28
Activity - Sedentary (I ran at least 5k every other day before trying this)
Bodyfat - 14% (guesstimate)
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Sedentary? Not so. If you are doing weights 3 days a week, you are NOT sedentary. This is not just semantics - based on assuming a sedentary activity level, you'll end up miscalculating your energy requirements.

And the squats - from rank beginner to intermediate level squatter in 4 weeks? I'm thinking you cannot be doing them properly. Unless you are a super human, muscle building tends to take somewhat longer than that!!! Or, quite simply, you must have been lifting for a while and not be a beginner at all.
 
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I used the description below off another thread on this forum, and chose 'sedentary' as I have a desk job, and only exercise three times a week. Would you suggest adjusting it?

1.2 = Sedentary (Little or no exercise and desk job)
1.3-1.4 = Lightly Active (Little daily activity & light exercise 1-3 days a week)
1.5-1.6 = Moderately Active (Moderately active daily life & Moderate exercise 3-5 days a week)
1.7-1.8 = Very Active (Physically demanding lifestyle & Hard exercise or sports 6-7 days a week)
1.9-2.0 = Extremely Active (Hard daily exercise or sports and physical job)

I could probably squat 80kg when I started - as I said in my post I started at the lowest to concentrate on form (initially). 45kg was nowhere near the maximum I could squat week 1.

In addition to the above, I have been exercising regularly for two years now, and following various regimes to improve my 'appearance'. One of the exercises was doing dumbbell squats (of which I got to a weight of 32kg per dumbbell - the maximum weight I had - they were bodymax selectabells). I probably did that for 4 months approximately.
 
chet84 said:
I used the description below off another thread on this forum, and chose 'sedentary' as I have a desk job, and only exercise three times a week. Would you suggest adjusting it?

1.2 = Sedentary (Little or no exercise and desk job)
1.3-1.4 = Lightly Active (Little daily activity & light exercise 1-3 days a week)
1.5-1.6 = Moderately Active (Moderately active daily life & Moderate exercise 3-5 days a week)
1.7-1.8 = Very Active (Physically demanding lifestyle & Hard exercise or sports 6-7 days a week)
1.9-2.0 = Extremely Active (Hard daily exercise or sports and physical job)

I could probably squat 80kg when I started - as I said in my post I started at the lowest to concentrate on form (initially). 45kg was nowhere near the maximum I could squat week 1.

In addition to the above, I have been exercising regularly for two years now, and following various regimes to improve my 'appearance'. One of the exercises was doing dumbbell squats (of which I got to a weight of 32kg per dumbbell - the maximum weight I had - they were bodymax selectabells). I probably did that for 4 months approximately.
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Sedentary is just wrong. If you're doing intense exercise (i.e. weightlifting) properly for 3 days per week, you would be at least lightly active if not moderately active.

One way or another, you ought to be able to burn on average something like 2300 to 2500 calories a day.

I notice that, for a 5'11 male, your body weight really is very low indeed. At 14-15% body fat and, by the sounds of things, some fair muscle mass, I'd expect you to be more in the 75-80kg range and perhaps even a little more. Obviously, your weight is what it is, but from a standpoint of pure curiosity, I was wondering what the reasons might be for this low weight. Is it a bone thing?
 
I'll change that then and see if it makes a difference in the next four weeks - thanks!

With regards to body fat, I might be wrong because when I said 'guesstimate' I used this website: http://www.leighpeele.com/body-fat-pictures-and-percentages

I used to weigh 80kg before I started running - at which time I lost a lot of muscle mass, but became a lot fitter (this was my goal at the time).

I have photos on my camera at home which I can upload tonight - maybe i'm totally out on the bodyfat as well?
 
chet84 said:
I'll change that then and see if it makes a difference in the next four weeks - thanks!

With regards to body fat, I might be wrong because when I said 'guesstimate' I used this website: http://www.leighpeele.com/body-fat-pictures-and-percentages

I used to weigh 80kg before I started running - at which time I lost a lot of muscle mass, but became a lot fitter (this was my goal at the time).

I have photos on my camera at home which I can upload tonight - maybe i'm totally out on the bodyfat as well?
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How defined are your abs? Any other leanness e.g. shoulder striations, visible upper leg muscles etc?
 
No definition on my abs but I wouldn't say I have a belly either. Here's a picture i've just found on my mobile before I started LG and this training (it's rubbish but might help) .



Uploaded with ImageShack.us
 
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