Maximum Body Fat Loss/Muscle Gain - 3 Weeks

Yucca · 30 Mar 2015 at 20:18

Hi all

July 2013 - 93kg, 28% body fat, 36" waist. To much junk for years/no exercise for years made me fat!

I worked hard with a PT at the gym 3 times a week, 3 day split on weights. Some HIT work also such as sprints at the end of the workouts. Cut out all the junk in my diet and maintained a high protein diet with carb cycling, carb loading on the gym days and reducing on the rest days.I took Maximuscle Cyclone on gym days and Promax on rest days along with creatine throughout.

May 2014 - 83kg, 19% body fat, 40% muscle mass and 32" waist. I looked and felt GOOD!

I got lazy, iv not been to the gym properly now for 7 months and gone back to eating crap. Im back up to 89kg and very poor body fat % and 24" waist.

I know what to do as iv done it before (as above) and it works for me. And I fully appreciate there is no 'quick fix'. I will not get back to where I was in 3 weeks. Iv done the long hard slog so I know this.

Im off to vegas in 3 weeks for my Stag! :O

My question.... What would you do with only 3 weeks time to see maximum results?

NOTE: I intend to continue my hard work after Vegas also!

Gamefreak501 · 30 Mar 2015 at 21:33

Hmm, instead of doing a weight lifting routine in the three weeks you have (which would be impacted by CV work) I would concentrate on doing CV work and keeping a good clean diet.

I'd say 1.5 hours of CV each week - The easiest way to do this is 2 x 30 min swims and 30 mins of cycling.

Maybe the week after you could stretch it out to 45 minute sessions and then after that 1 hour sessions. I wouldn't go bananas but it should quicken up your metabolism a little and burn some of your fat.

wozza2k · 30 Mar 2015 at 21:55

24" waist! That's impressive...

mrthingyx · 30 Mar 2015 at 22:05

3 weeks? Blunt answer is not much.

Crash dieting is not really goimg to help, either, so just chalk this one up to experience. Start on Stronglifts and a calorie deficit and you will be peeled for your wedding.

Yucca · 31 Mar 2015 at 02:55

You both recommended the opposite lol. One says CV and the other says Stronglifts.

Is it really impossible to see half decent results in 3 weeks!?

wozza2k · 31 Mar 2015 at 08:42

Short answer no.

Stronglifts and a monitored diet (as opposed to a 'clean' diet) is the way forward.

mrthingyx · 31 Mar 2015 at 09:17

Yucca said:
You both recommended the opposite lol. One says CV and the other says Stronglifts.

Is it really impossible to see half decent results in 3 weeks!?

Cardio will burn calories, but won't help you build muscle... in fact, it will probably eat muscle. So you will lose weight, and then lose all your shape, too.

As previously, a structured weights routine will help you lose fat and retain (and perfuse/pump up) your muscle, but it's a long game (the rest of your life) with only temporary results achievable in three weeks.

By temporary, yoru muscles will look bigger because they're being used more and under greater stress (through the weights moved), meaning greater blood supply and stored glycogen. However, the amount of hypertrophy that will take place in three weeks (i.e. actual structural muscle growth) will be minimal.

In other words, assuming you were 8-13%, three weeks of lifting would get you some better definition in the muscle groups worked. But anything over 15% and you might notice slight thickening of the worked areas, but nothing significant.

And again: the blunt answer is start now and work hard for your wedding night and honeymoon. You should be looking to impress your future wife, after all.