Lean gains
05-01-2014, 08:46 PM
#1
Moderator
Thread Starter
Lean gains
Anyone follow this?
I was previously on an eating schedule, 5-6 meals a day. I couldn't keep up. Plus I'm going to the gym 4-5 times a week, 2.5 hours a day. It fucking sucks. I'm looking to squeeze everything into an eating window because I'm not trying to bulk up for summer.
It involves intermittent fasting. I was planning to do it daily, fast for 16 hours, eat within 8. It fits my work and workout schedule perfectly.
I was previously on an eating schedule, 5-6 meals a day. I couldn't keep up. Plus I'm going to the gym 4-5 times a week, 2.5 hours a day. It fucking sucks. I'm looking to squeeze everything into an eating window because I'm not trying to bulk up for summer.
It involves intermittent fasting. I was planning to do it daily, fast for 16 hours, eat within 8. It fits my work and workout schedule perfectly.
05-02-2014, 09:31 AM
#2
Moderator
Thread Starter
What I've found is simple. I'm really skeptical of fad diets and workout routines, which I won't name. Leangains is founded upon a eating window which allows you to have a relatively flexible diet. You typically skip breakfast, which is cool because I don't get hungry in the morning anyway.
I've found the workouts are generally centered around the big four. Clean & press, deadlift, squat, bench press. That's perfect, because those are some of my favorites. Lift heavy, low volume... I could be working out just three days a week! I plan on following reverse pyramid training. Will sub cleans for OHP or similar.
http://www.precisionnutrition.com/in...ting/chapter-6
http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showth...hp?t=153538261
http://www.reddit.com/r/leangains/
I've found the workouts are generally centered around the big four. Clean & press, deadlift, squat, bench press. That's perfect, because those are some of my favorites. Lift heavy, low volume... I could be working out just three days a week! I plan on following reverse pyramid training. Will sub cleans for OHP or similar.
http://www.precisionnutrition.com/in...ting/chapter-6
http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showth...hp?t=153538261
http://www.reddit.com/r/leangains/
The Leangains program is based on a few simple rules.
- Fast 16 hours every day.
- Eat within an 8-hour window every day.
- Exercise with high intensity, a few times per week, often while still in a fasted state.
- Use 10 g of BCAA before or during your exercise session.
- On your exercise days, eat 2-3 big meals of protein (meat), veggies, and carbs.
- Eat your largest meal directly after your workout.
- On non-exercise days, eat 2-3 meals of protein (meat), veggies, and fats.
- Eat mostly whole, minimally processed foods, instead of processed foods or supplements.
The principles
- High protein intake
- Low processed food intake
- Carb cycling
- Calorie cycling
- Nutrient timing
05-02-2014, 09:33 AM
#3
Moderator
Thread Starter
One dude's progress
Four months!
http://www.reddit.com/r/leangains/co...ide_thank_you/
http://imgur.com/a/AKEXo#0
ap4si.jpg
pPraf.jpg
http://www.reddit.com/r/leangains/co...ide_thank_you/
http://imgur.com/a/AKEXo#0
ap4si.jpg
pPraf.jpg
05-02-2014, 09:40 AM
#4
like all programs; they take the meat and potatoes of exercise and eating healthy and condense it or refine it or modify it.
its the same basic principles on fat loss and exercising.
just presented in a different way.
if it works for you, keep doing it.
I will never skip breakfast.
that is the most important meal of the day, because you just fasted for 8 hours sleeping.
you'll need to break that fast, hence why we call it breakfast.
but again, if this program works for you,
its the same basic principles on fat loss and exercising.
just presented in a different way.
if it works for you, keep doing it.
I will never skip breakfast.
that is the most important meal of the day, because you just fasted for 8 hours sleeping.
you'll need to break that fast, hence why we call it breakfast.
but again, if this program works for you,
The following users liked this post:
Devil Dog 21 (05-03-2014)
05-02-2014, 11:47 AM
#5
Moderator
Thread Starter
like all programs; they take the meat and potatoes of exercise and eating healthy and condense it or refine it or modify it.
its the same basic principles on fat loss and exercising.
just presented in a different way.
if it works for you, keep doing it.
I will never skip breakfast.
that is the most important meal of the day, because you just fasted for 8 hours sleeping.
you'll need to break that fast, hence why we call it breakfast.
but again, if this program works for you,
its the same basic principles on fat loss and exercising.
just presented in a different way.
if it works for you, keep doing it.
I will never skip breakfast.
that is the most important meal of the day, because you just fasted for 8 hours sleeping.
you'll need to break that fast, hence why we call it breakfast.
but again, if this program works for you,
It makes sense to me. I will try it because half the time when I eat breakfast I'm semi-forcing myself - I'm just not hungry that early.
It is also recommended to workout in this fasted state. The idea is without glucose or glycogen stores, your body is more likely to use fat as energy. Though it is suggested to take BCAAs right before a workout to stimulate protein synthesis. People have noted having good energy for a fasted workout, but don't see the same growth without the BCAAs.
We will see. I read up on it for hours, scrutinizing every progress album and story. I need something easy to follow - and it sounds like it.
The following 2 users liked this post by Costco:
Devil Dog 21 (05-03-2014),
justnspace (05-02-2014)
05-02-2014, 02:04 PM
#6
ive been eating steel cut oatmeal every day for about 8 months now.
i wake up and force myself to eat it at 530am.
i'm not so much hungry, but i have found over the course of six months that as soon as I put it into my body, i get instant energy.
I noticed i'm not as groggy and have energy till about 9am, where I have a snack.
ive been holding the same weight since January.
and its all from eating and timing.
Edit* since sept. 2013 ive lost 25lbs and holding
i wake up and force myself to eat it at 530am.
i'm not so much hungry, but i have found over the course of six months that as soon as I put it into my body, i get instant energy.
I noticed i'm not as groggy and have energy till about 9am, where I have a snack.
ive been holding the same weight since January.
and its all from eating and timing.
Edit* since sept. 2013 ive lost 25lbs and holding
Last edited by justnspace; 05-02-2014 at 02:09 PM.
05-13-2014, 09:43 AM
#7
Team Owner
In the 10 diet fads thread in this section we talked about int fasting. My friend does it and he set his diet metrics to cut weight and the dude went from a sort of six pack to a ripped six with oblique muscles showing. He does 0 ab exercises (situps, crunches, etc) and 0 cardio. He uses the "Starting Strength" methodology which focuses on the lifts you mentioned. And I've seen him workout almost every time. Mind you, he only works out 3 times a week.
I started doing it but not as dedicated as him dietwise and have started to lean out. However I'm doing my another buddy's routine since he owns the gym I'm at and lets me work out for free. It's not like Starting Strength everyday but I'm fine with it as long as I see improvement which I have.
Cutting breakfast was easier than I thought because you can have coffee with some creamer to maintain the fast which I was drinking anyways. Honestly in reading and talking to my friend, the fasting isn't the biggest thing. The most important thing is hitting your metrics (protein, carb, fat, calories). Even some former fasters were saying they saw improvements regardless of fasting or not during the 16 hour window. However working out fasted seems to be a pretty popular idea even outside of leangains. My friend who is a big paleo guy avoids carbs to burn fat for his workouts. I did paleo as well and lost around 40 pounds eating low carb. I eat more carbs now because the principal with the leangains diet is heavy carbs on lift days POST-workout with low fat. On rest days little carbs with more fat. Protein always a factor.
Sorry if this was disorganized and disjointed. Disclaimer: I'm not trying to push anyone towards a certain thinking. I'm not here to argue. Just sharing what I've read, seen, etc.
I started doing it but not as dedicated as him dietwise and have started to lean out. However I'm doing my another buddy's routine since he owns the gym I'm at and lets me work out for free. It's not like Starting Strength everyday but I'm fine with it as long as I see improvement which I have.
Cutting breakfast was easier than I thought because you can have coffee with some creamer to maintain the fast which I was drinking anyways. Honestly in reading and talking to my friend, the fasting isn't the biggest thing. The most important thing is hitting your metrics (protein, carb, fat, calories). Even some former fasters were saying they saw improvements regardless of fasting or not during the 16 hour window. However working out fasted seems to be a pretty popular idea even outside of leangains. My friend who is a big paleo guy avoids carbs to burn fat for his workouts. I did paleo as well and lost around 40 pounds eating low carb. I eat more carbs now because the principal with the leangains diet is heavy carbs on lift days POST-workout with low fat. On rest days little carbs with more fat. Protein always a factor.
Sorry if this was disorganized and disjointed. Disclaimer: I'm not trying to push anyone towards a certain thinking. I'm not here to argue. Just sharing what I've read, seen, etc.
The following 2 users liked this post by Doom878:
Costco (05-13-2014),
justnspace (05-13-2014)
Trending Topics
05-13-2014, 10:23 PM
#8
So wait, are people gaining with this, as the name implies, or is it just a method for going through a cutting phase? I dunno about anyone else, but the guy in the before/after photos does look like he just lost fat.
05-13-2014, 11:19 PM
#9
Moderator
Thread Starter
I took a week off in the gym due to a lingering knee problem, but did start off with the fasting. Skipping breakfast wasn't hard for me at all, and my stomach is tolerant enough of coffee/tea on an empty stomach.
The biggest problem for me is counting calories. Especially when I'm eating out. I still can't eyeball it. I may need to get back to meal-prepping... at least this time it won't be as intense. I got a scale, I'm still getting used to that. For the first time in a long time - I finally went under the 150 lb mark. I was about 165 last September, and ~153 before starting LG. I think the last time I weighed 150 was in high school
I spend less than 45 mins in the gym now, compared to 2-2.5 hrs, 5x a week. LOVE working out just 3 times a week. I've been eating like shit, so I threw in low-intensity cardio. I still spend less time in the gym on a weekly basis, even though I did very little cardio before.
If by gaining you're talking about increasing strength, yes. I've been following the Stronglifts 5x5 routine - the goal of which is to increase your strength, fast. I may throw in assisted chin-ups though - the guy who created it recommends 3x12, if anything.
Building muscle is very slow. A few lbs makes a huge difference, assuming you're at low body fat % and nothing else changes. On the other hand, losing/gaining fat is much easier (relatively). It is mandatory to meet minimums as far as macros go - especially protein if you want to keep/gain muscle. Of course, everyone is different as far as what their recommended intake is.
The biggest problem for me is counting calories. Especially when I'm eating out. I still can't eyeball it. I may need to get back to meal-prepping... at least this time it won't be as intense. I got a scale, I'm still getting used to that. For the first time in a long time - I finally went under the 150 lb mark. I was about 165 last September, and ~153 before starting LG. I think the last time I weighed 150 was in high school
I spend less than 45 mins in the gym now, compared to 2-2.5 hrs, 5x a week. LOVE working out just 3 times a week. I've been eating like shit, so I threw in low-intensity cardio. I still spend less time in the gym on a weekly basis, even though I did very little cardio before.
Building muscle is very slow. A few lbs makes a huge difference, assuming you're at low body fat % and nothing else changes. On the other hand, losing/gaining fat is much easier (relatively). It is mandatory to meet minimums as far as macros go - especially protein if you want to keep/gain muscle. Of course, everyone is different as far as what their recommended intake is.
05-13-2014, 11:23 PM
#10
Moderator
Thread Starter
One big reason why I'm going with this is because I want to have a leaned out body year-round. I can still go with a slow bulk come winter time, or even a regular bulk.
05-13-2014, 11:28 PM
#11
Moderator
Thread Starter
Another thing - for the past month or so I've been trying to take in at least 1.5 gallons of water a day. I feel good every day.
05-14-2014, 07:07 AM
#13
Team Owner
I took a week off in the gym due to a lingering knee problem, but did start off with the fasting. Skipping breakfast wasn't hard for me at all, and my stomach is tolerant enough of coffee/tea on an empty stomach.
The biggest problem for me is counting calories. Especially when I'm eating out. I still can't eyeball it. I may need to get back to meal-prepping... at least this time it won't be as intense. I got a scale, I'm still getting used to that. For the first time in a long time - I finally went under the 150 lb mark. I was about 165 last September, and ~153 before starting LG. I think the last time I weighed 150 was in high school
I spend less than 45 mins in the gym now, compared to 2-2.5 hrs, 5x a week. LOVE working out just 3 times a week. I've been eating like shit, so I threw in low-intensity cardio. I still spend less time in the gym on a weekly basis, even though I did very little cardio before.
The biggest problem for me is counting calories. Especially when I'm eating out. I still can't eyeball it. I may need to get back to meal-prepping... at least this time it won't be as intense. I got a scale, I'm still getting used to that. For the first time in a long time - I finally went under the 150 lb mark. I was about 165 last September, and ~153 before starting LG. I think the last time I weighed 150 was in high school
I spend less than 45 mins in the gym now, compared to 2-2.5 hrs, 5x a week. LOVE working out just 3 times a week. I've been eating like shit, so I threw in low-intensity cardio. I still spend less time in the gym on a weekly basis, even though I did very little cardio before.
If by gaining you're talking about increasing strength, yes. I've been following the Stronglifts 5x5 routine - the goal of which is to increase your strength, fast. I may throw in assisted chin-ups though - the guy who created it recommends 3x12, if anything.
Building muscle is very slow. A few lbs makes a huge difference, assuming you're at low body fat % and nothing else changes. On the other hand, losing/gaining fat is much easier (relatively). It is mandatory to meet minimums as far as macros go - especially protein if you want to keep/gain muscle. Of course, everyone is different as far as what their recommended intake is.
Building muscle is very slow. A few lbs makes a huge difference, assuming you're at low body fat % and nothing else changes. On the other hand, losing/gaining fat is much easier (relatively). It is mandatory to meet minimums as far as macros go - especially protein if you want to keep/gain muscle. Of course, everyone is different as far as what their recommended intake is.
Thread
Thread Starter
Forum
Replies
Last Post
ExcelerateRep
Sponsored Sales & Group Buys
0
09-22-2015 10:39 AM