low calorie diet/weight training

Question
Hi Iain. I need some help because I'm stumped. I began a low calorie diet 4 months ago and have lost close to 40 pounds now. I am a pretty lean guy now 5'8" 156 pounds. Down from 196. I did 1600 calories a day comprised of chicken, veggies,fruits, yogurt.etc.. Now I have started lifting weights and I am seeing these guys eat things I swore off. Nuts, bread, pasta's,eggs. I want to maintain my weight but understand I will gain muscle weight. Can I continue to keep my current 1600 calorie diet and lift? I forgot to mention while losing weight I was doing cardio 30 min a day 5 days a week. I guess what im saying is did I do this backwards, I was looking to be fit. I dont want to be a fat guy again and stronger. I am looking for a lean muscular, healthy body. I hope I made sense. Thanks for your help. Mark

Answer

Hi,

You did everything the correct way, firstly by just losing the weight will be healthier for you. Can you tell me what your body fat is now, as this is the indicator to how well you body will show off muscle definition.

You generally don抰 put on more than 10 lbs of pure lean muscle per year anyway. So there is no rush to gain weight. Also the word 搘eight 搃s misleading as you want to put on specifically muscle, and little fat.

The muscle gain is achievable if you continue to keep your low fat diet, and consume more protein. Lean white meat like chicken, port, turkey and very low fat red meat. Avoid nuts and any other high fat products. Also remember you will need energy for all this weight training so use complex cars like whole meal cereal, grains, pasta and breads.

Lastly you can cut down on the aerobics to just twice a week. You don抰 say how old you are?

Also 1600 calories id probably the minimum for your size, I would aim to get nearer 2000, but again low fat diet and complex carbs. 60% protein, 30% complex carbs, 10% fat.

Thanks

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