View Full Version : Maintenance Phase?
Hey guys,
I just finished about 2 months of a clean bulk. I was eating about 450-480 grams of protein that consisted of eggs, chicken, lean ground beef, and some tuna. I've been eating about 350-380 grams of carbs from oatmeal, brown rice, whole wheat pasta, and black beans. With a few supplements thrown in, I went from 222lbs. to 230 lbs., and my lifts have gone through the roof. I haven't noticed increased body fat, so I think i did a pretty good job.
I'm not really looking to put on any more size right now, but I would like to keep gaining on my lifts and hopefully get a little bit leaner. I lift with a combination of Olympic lifting and some powerlifting, so my workouts are tough and tiring. I haven't done much cardio because I've been so exhausted after my lifts.
Can I keep a similar diet to this and maintain my lifts and size? I know I don't eat a ton of carbs even for someone who was trying to get bigger, so I'm hesitant to cut them. I feel like with Olympic workouts and very heavy lifting, I would be dead if I ate any less.
I was thinking of cutting out the ground beef, replacing it with chicken or fish, and maybe trying to hit a 4-5 quick and hard sessions of cardio a week. I figure this would lean me up a bit, and as long as I was taking a BCAA supplement, like Nitro, I will keep my muscle.
Any thoughts?
Hey guys,
I just finished about 2 months of a clean bulk. I was eating about 450-480 grams of protein that consisted of eggs, chicken, lean ground beef, and some tuna. I've been eating about 350-380 grams of carbs from oatmeal, brown rice, whole wheat pasta, and black beans. With a few supplements thrown in, I went from 222lbs. to 230 lbs., and my lifts have gone through the roof. I haven't noticed increased body fat, so I think i did a pretty good job.
I'm not really looking to put on any more size right now, but I would like to keep gaining on my lifts and hopefully get a little bit leaner. I lift with a combination of Olympic lifting and some powerlifting, so my workouts are tough and tiring. I haven't done much cardio because I've been so exhausted after my lifts.
Can I keep a similar diet to this and maintain my lifts and size? I know I don't eat a ton of carbs even for someone who was trying to get bigger, so I'm hesitant to cut them. I feel like with Olympic workouts and very heavy lifting, I would be dead if I ate any less.
I was thinking of cutting out the ground beef, replacing it with chicken or fish, and maybe trying to hit a 4-5 quick and hard sessions of cardio a week. I figure this would lean me up a bit, and as long as I was taking a BCAA supplement, like Nitro, I will keep my muscle.
Any thoughts?
I would back the protien levels down to around 350g and slowly start backing your carbs down. If you start dropping weight or noticing a drop in your workout performance, increase the carbs a bit. Also, track your healthy fat intake. You could stand to drop your protien intake, it is a bit high IMO....
priority
05-12-08, 2:29 pm
I would say keep your diet exactly the same, just add in at least 3 cardio sessions per week. If you can addthem after your workouts, it can be 25 mins of low intensity thats nice and easy. If not then try get it in first thing in the morning, then increase your cardio session numbers and see where you end up with that. Either method should give you some good steady results and not impact on your performance
simpleguy
05-12-08, 3:07 pm
I would say keep your diet exactly the same, just add in at least 3 cardio sessions per week. If you can addthem after your workouts, it can be 25 mins of low intensity thats nice and easy. If not then try get it in first thing in the morning, then increase your cardio session numbers and see where you end up with that. Either method should give you some good steady results and not impact on your performance
agreed that's what I'd do... and honestly, I think your current diet is more of a cutting diet, or at least meaning you can easily burn fat with it... shit if you drop them carbs by another 100 or so and start doing some moderate instensity cardio you'll start leaning out big time
agreed that's what I'd do... and honestly, I think your current diet is more of a cutting diet, or at least meaning you can easily burn fat with it... shit if you drop them carbs by another 100 or so and start doing some moderate instensity cardio you'll start leaning out big time
If you really hate Cardio that much you could cut cals a little bit, If you've been seeing good gains on you current ratio of macros I would cut them proportionatley, so the calorie percentages should be the same.
If you really hate Cardio that much you could cut cals a little bit, If you've been seeing good gains on you current ratio of macros I would cut them proportionatley, so the calorie percentages should be the same.
I don't hate cardio, I'm just usually exhausted from my lifting, but I can still motivate myself to do it 4-5 times a week. Sounds like a good idea though.
simpleguy
05-12-08, 11:20 pm
I don't hate cardio, I'm just usually exhausted from my lifting, but I can still motivate myself to do it 4-5 times a week. Sounds like a good idea though.
you don't need to start off with 4-5 sessions a week, trust me... start with 3... increase duration / intensity gradually... when needed go with 4-5 sessions but at start 3 sessions will produce good results