newbie nutrition questions

[ShockCollar]

alright. i posted another thread in dieting because im having a rough time making gains and losing weight. I have very little muscle mass and about 20% bf so im working out to shape my muscle and burn some fat at the same time. I know there are different views on bulking/cutting at the same time, but as a beginner (moderate beginner, i worked out consistently about 4 years ago. weighed 180 with 11%bf). anyway i feel like i am making no improvements here.

DIET:
am: 8oz v8, 2 boiled egg whites, 2 slices plain multigrain toast

snack1: tuna wrap (1 can),

lunch: chicken (baked breast) and brown rice (1/4cup) with mixed vegtables, 8oz skim milk

snack2: muscle milk (8oz musclemilk light)

dinner: fish (1fillet tilapia/mahimahi), veggies, brown rice (1/4c),2tsp olive oil

snack3: 2 scoops muscle milk in 8oz skim milk (68g)


im going nowhere, guys. Its been two weeks, and as a flabby skinny dude, i feel like i should see SOME improvement by now. so, if you paitently read through all my babble, i have a few questions i cant find solid answers to.


1. Carbs- complex carbs (multigrain bread and brown rice)
-are these carbohydrates building fat? I have a steady carb intake throughout the day, and im worried about not burning them as energy and them being stored as fat. should i cut out carbs after 8pm and only consume them before and after a workout?

2. Unsat fats-
-i consume about 14g monounsats and 5g polyunsats. too much?

3. Protein-
-this diet is high in protein, and i dont know how much i need and how much i am storing as fat. How many grams should i get? I have it steady at 1.5g per lb of bodyweight.

4. nighttime snack
- i fear carbs at night, in case they turn into fat. I also am starving at night, my stomach sounds like a diesel engine. should I eat another meal and make it 7, or deal with the hunger?


yeah, im new at this.

 

[PublicEnemy]

Height? Weight? Avg Daily Calorie intake?

Looking at this right away I can say less muscle milk more whole foods. Its probably not going to be convenient, but your wallet will feel heavier.

Its difficult to give suggestions if you don't know your maintenance calories and the actual amount of calories you're consuming daily. Some people might bash on the milk but IMO opinion there is nothing wrong with it. Personally i'm not partial to fruit juices because they are quite high in sugar and fructose when all things are considered.

 

[CrazyBassGuy]

I would go with losing that fat first, then build your muscle up after. If you are looking for fast results.

Cut your cals to 1800 - 2000 a day (alter this depends on how cruddy you feel after a couple of days, you might need more than this)

If you are impatient (and I don't really advocate this but hey) Throw in 2 x Biotest Hotrox Extreme with breakfast and again 2 with lunch (it worked for me)

Keep protein high, fats good (evoo/peanut butter/nuts/oily fish), carbs complex and no beer/processed meat macburger crap.

Add some running / biking / lifting / skiing whatever and make sure that you drink a whole load of water.

Then take a picture in the bathroom mirror..............do the same after 8 - 12 weeks of this and hopefully smile a lot.

Once you are smaller and leaner, then work on lifting heavier, eating more and building your muscles up.

 

[AntonG42O]

Height? Weight? Avg Daily Calorie intake?

Looking at this right away I can say less muscle milk more whole foods. Its probably not going to be convenient, but your wallet will feel heavier.

Its difficult to give suggestions if you don't know your maintenance calories and the actual amount of calories you're consuming daily. Some people might bash on the milk but IMO opinion there is nothing wrong with it. Personally i'm not partial to fruit juices because they are quite high in sugar and fructose when all things are considered.

so you are against naturally derived vitamin rich fruit juices and for pasteurized, over medicated w/ hormones, genetically modified, forced out of the cow at a rate 10 times normal..milk??

sure if you live on a farm and can get clean milk from a normal cow with good feed, milk is good. but the stuff that you get at the store is so overprocessed its not worth it.

no offense to you or milk. I just dont like when people write off fruit because of its fructose content. generations of people in many countries have grown up eating massive amounts of fruit, and dont have a fraction of the body fat or diseases that our super advanced milk drinking country has.

 

[PublicEnemy]

so you are against naturally derived vitamin rich fruit juices and for pasteurized, over medicated w/ hormones, genetically modified, forced out of the cow at a rate 10 times normal..milk??

Yes.

no offense to you or milk. I just dont like when people write off fruit because of its fructose content. generations of people in many countries have grown up eating massive amounts of fruit, and dont have a fraction of the body fat or diseases that our super advanced milk drinking country has.

I wasn't writing off fruit because of fructose content. Fruit is great stuff. What I don't like are concentrated sources of fructose, like processed fruit juices, HFCS, soda. Its physiology, fructose does not have the "ideal" metabolism in the body (in the sense of perfectly healthy), and when ingested in high amounts, for example concentrated fruit juices (you could also replace this with carbonated beverages or anything else containing HFCS), then hands down, it is not good for you. I'm strapped for time right now but once I get back from lab I'll elaborate.

EDIT: Here's a thread where Seth Roberts goes into some detail about fructose metabolism which pretty much sums up why a high intake of fructose isn't a good thing.

LINK:
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[captgarrett]

well first off you sound too impatient. this is a marathon, not a sprint and two weeks is nothing. Your diet looks pretty good, but i'd encourage you to either bulk, or cut. You can't effectively do both at the same time. At least not optimally imo.

you need to find your BMR. just google it, there are calculators. Not perfect, but it'll give you an idea. for bulking, way over your bmr in caloric intake, not so extreme opposite for cutting.

I recommend whey protein for all scenarios except pre-sleep. Eat those boiled eggs before bed. Eggs are much slower digesting protein then whey, this helps to curb catabolism at night. (*body eating muscle for protein during a fasting period with nothing to digest at night) Cottage cheese works well too. I like putting either some yogurt or sunflower seeds with mine.

*trust the mirror, not the scale. staring at the scale every day will drive you nuts. You need pics, maybe even measurements consistantly to monitor progress. Not to mention how you feel. Eating better and excercising should make quite an improvement in your overall general well being. More energy, etc.

*the other guy said cut then build. I say the opposite. Build then cut.

 

[ana420]

well first off you sound too impatient. this is a marathon, not a sprint and two weeks is nothing. Your diet looks pretty good, but i'd encourage you to either bulk, or cut. You can't effectively do both at the same time. At least not optimally imo.

*the other guy said cut then build. I say the opposite. Build then cut.

I second that, CUT or BULK you will probably be much more successfull at one or the other if you choose one and stick to it. I don't think its a good idea to bulk if your afraid of carbs. It will probably hinder your progress.