Is there anything more discouraging than being criticized? I love criticizing people, but I hate being critiqued. And so it's been with my nutrition. I'm smug and I "know" that I know better. I told my trainer as much when she first started reviewing my food logs. I said, "Look, it's the calories. That's how you lose weight." That's still true. But then I said, "If what you're saying [about protein requirements] is true, I'm going to have to learn the hard way." And I
Let's consider some numbers:
- 34% body fat - that's where I started
- 32% body fat - 6 weeks in
- 31% body fat - 12 weeks in
Looks like good results to me, but it's not telling the whole story. In that time I've lost 20-25 pounds, of which 5 pounds are lean mass. No, not muscle put on, but muscle lost. How can that be when I've been diligent in my training? The answer may be protein, but I don't expect you to accept that at face value.
The USDA recommends that people get 0.8g of protein for every kilogram of the person's mass. So, when I tipped in at 285 pounds, that's 129.5kg. That means I'd need 104 grams of protein a day just to maintain my then-current body composition. The protein is used to replace nails, skin, hair, organ & muscle cell replacement, etc. It's not for building additional muscle.
So how much protein does one need to build additional muscle? ExRx.net says that endurance atheletes need 1.37g/kg*day, and that 2.2g/kg*day was "barely sufficient" during moderate intensity weight training with needs increasing proportionally to training intensity. 2.0g to 2.6g "are required for periods of very intense weight training". I'm not clear on how those periods are defined, but I'm assuming it means the training period and not just the days that one lifts.
I figured the right number for me is probably 2.4g/kg*day. Doing that alone is a piece of cake (or maybe I should've said steak). Doing that while losing weight? Ridiculously difficult. Here's why:
To lose two pounds per week, I need a 1000 calorie daily deficit. Currently, that gives me about 2000 calories to work with each day. With protein's energy value of 4 kcal per gram and a current need of 284g, I've got a daily sunk cost of 1136 calories. And that's if I had some magic source of pure protein.
Just one unrealistic ways to get to 284 grams of protein: Eat just a hair over 3 pounds of boneless, skinless chicken breast.
That'd give me 1240 calories, leaving me a scant 700 or so for anything else. I could toss in a bowl of oatmeal in the morning. 300 calories, 40 of which come from protein (allowing me to save a bit on the bird). Maybe I could make a sandwich with some of that chicken for lunch. After I try fitting a pound of chicken on two slices of bread, I'd be adding another 200 calories for that. Repeat for dinner, add in some low calorie vegetables and my day is complete.
Alternately, I could use other sources of lean protein, protein powders, or even not-so-lean protein. I just have to account for the additional fat & carbs found in any of the possible choices.
But man cannot live on protein alone. You need carbohydrates and fat for energy (among other things). In fact, if you're not getting enough carbs, your body is going to break down those proteins into glucose so you can keep on living. And that defeats the purpose of getting all that protein to begin with. There's got to be a way to make this work. The key is exercise, but not just any exercise...
You need to do your weight training to tear and stimulate the muscle. You need protein to repair and build the muscle. And you need cardio to burn some calories, which will come from the fat you've conveniently got stored away. To burn that fat, you need to start the fire with some carbohydrate kindling. You take the calorie credit for the exercise you are doing and you feed yourself the energy sources based on that.
Rough numbers: 2000 sedentary calorie budget - 1200 for protein + 700 for 60 minutes of daily cardio = 1500 calories of fat and carbs.
This is what I'm doing at least for the next 6 weeks, holidays be damned. I'll make a new post when the time comes to share my results.
Oh, and how have I been doing with my protein thus far? I made a chart for that! Negative numbers mean that I'm below target. If my analysis above is correct, the answer to the titular question is obvious. It just took me some time to realize it.
"In fact, if you're not getting enough carbs, your body is going to break down those proteins into glucose so you can keep on living."
ReplyDeleteThat's not entirely true. Your body can get the energy it needs from fat, by forming ketone bodies. If you're eating enough energy (or your body can get it from your fat tissue), gluconeogenesis from catabolizing your own muscle tissue shouldn't be necessary.
There is no dietary requirement for carbohydrates. Fat is a good energy source.
"And you need cardio to burn some calories, which will come from the fat you've conveniently got stored away."
You don't need "cardio", you just need activity that requires energy. If you're lifting heavy enough weights during your weight training sessions, you'll likely spend more energy than 45 minutes on a treadmill (unless you're sprinting).
And you'll only use your fat stores if your body is able to access it. Many believe that the amount of insulin in your system plays an important role here. If you have too much insulin, your body will store fat, if you don't have much, your body will release the fat. Insulin release is a response to high blood sugar. Carbohydrates, and to a lesser extent, protein, cause your blood sugar to rise.
Most people in the body building community don't try to gain muscle and lose fat/weight at the same time. They usually do a gain/cut cycle, where they eat excess food with heavy weight lifting during the gain, and then cut calories/clean up the diet for the lean phase (while still lifting). To do both at the same time is a challenging thing to do. There are some intermittent fasting programs out there, like LeanGains, that try to achieve that. I've been doing such a thing myself, and I do see strength/muscle gains with a reduction/stabilization in my weight, but nothing like I would see if I did a full gain cycle.
A good read about Ketosis if you're interested: http://eatingacademy.com/nutrition/ketosis-advantaged-or-misunderstood-state-part-i
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