# So bored with dieting



## Straight30weight (Jul 24, 2018)

I think I’ve hit my dieting limit. I’m finding it almost impossible to continue with fasting and keto, I don’t enjoy my workouts very much. I’ve dropped from 285 to 235-240. My initial goal was 220 (I’m 6’4), but I’m just not really into it. I miss lifting heavy, going to the gym and attacking it. I miss carbs and enjoying eating. I’m weak in the gym and it feels like lifting is just going through the motions while waiting to get in the treadmill. 
So I want to switch gears. I want to start working on my strength and adding size, while maintaining my current level of body fat. I’d like some recommendations on how to change up my diet to start moving in that direction. I’ve lifted for years, but the food portion is where I’ve always fallen short. I don’t mind the fasting too much, but I’m done with keto for now. I’m not opposed to going back on a cycle, in fact I’d like to do a test only (maybe another compound) once I find another reliable source. I’m on trt and just had my bloodwork so I should be clear for the next several months to run a cycle. I appreciate any thoughts.


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## PillarofBalance (Jul 24, 2018)

Let's sort out the diet before you go on. That will just complicate things. 

You need to know how much to eat. So google a tdee calculator and input your data. It will give you your maintenance cals. 

From there we will calculate macros. Let us know how many cals we have to work with.


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## BrotherJ (Jul 24, 2018)

How long have you been dieting/keto? You could enter a calorie/macro maintenance period (whatever that number is for you) and recomp for a few weeks before you jump back on the diet train. Could give you a reprieve and mix things up a bit.


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## Gibsonator (Jul 24, 2018)

220 @ 6'4 is very thin... get that tdee calc and work on ur diet brutha, ain't no reason why you can't sit around 250/260 lean and mean with the proper diet/training


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## Straight30weight (Jul 24, 2018)

PillarofBalance said:


> Let's sort out the diet before you go on. That will just complicate things.
> 
> You need to know how much to eat. So google a tdee calculator and input your data. It will give you your maintenance cals.
> 
> From there we will calculate macros. Let us know how many cals we have to work with.



3900 calories is what it equates to (3856 if you wanna be technical lol)


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## Straight30weight (Jul 24, 2018)

BrotherJ said:


> How long have you been dieting/keto? You could enter a calorie/macro maintenance period (whatever that number is for you) and recomp for a few weeks before you jump back on the diet train. Could give you a reprieve and mix things up a bit.



3 months. The first 2 months I lost 50lbs, the last month I’ve been maintaining and kind of slacking. I’ve always really looked forward to lifting, and I’m losing that. It’s like let me get through this so I can go run 3 miles. Which I hate too lol.


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## snake (Jul 24, 2018)

I'm not a big keto diet fan; it's hard to maintain and if it's effecting your workouts, it's gotta go. Switch up some of your training and adjust the diet. If you're falling out of love with training and dragging yourself through it, you are probably in a downward spiral already. 

Just wondering; when was your last layoff?


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## Straight30weight (Jul 24, 2018)

Gibsonator, for some reason it won’t let me quote your post but I don’t disagree with you. I’d love to be 250, 15% body fat, and bench 405. I gotta figure out how to eat to accomplish that. Im really mobile at this weight, running, biking and canoein with ease. At 285 not as mobile. But I feel so weak and small right now and I hate it


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## Straight30weight (Jul 24, 2018)

snake said:


> I'm not a big keto diet fan; it's hard to maintain and if it's effecting your workouts, it's gotta go. Switch up some of your training and adjust the diet. If you're falling out of love with training and dragging yourself through it, you are probably in a downward spiral already.
> 
> Just wondering; when was your last layoff?


Define layoff? I’d say I’m in the beginning stages of a downward spiral and I want to catch it ASAP before it gets out of hand.


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## snake (Jul 24, 2018)

Straight30weight said:


> Define layoff? I’d say I’m in the beginning stages of a downward spiral and I want to catch it ASAP before it gets out of hand.



Layoff= no gym for a week


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## PillarofBalance (Jul 24, 2018)

Straight30weight said:


> 3900 calories is what it equates to (3856 if you wanna be technical lol)



Ok so 3900 cals daily. I would suggest you maintain your weight for a few weeks and let's recoup some strength. As to the macros.

Anywhere from .8 to 1g of protein per lb of bodyweight.

.45 to .5g per pound of bodyweight in fat.

Use the rest of your calories for carbohydrates. 

So that's 240g protein, 108g fat and 492g carbs. You can play with those ratios however you like. Just keep the cals at 3900 for a little while and watch the scale. Keep it steady.

Anyone feel free to check my math pls.


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## PillarofBalance (Jul 24, 2018)

I would just add that what you are experiencing we have all been thru. Cutting down can suck balls. I try to stay positive by keeping my focus on building muscle and strength and just don't get carried away with my meals. 

By doing that I feel like I am working towards a goal rather than depriving myself of sustenance or pleasure.


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## Straight30weight (Jul 24, 2018)

snake said:


> Layoff= no gym for a week


What year is it? Lol. Actually January of 2017 I think. I cut my wrist at work and my left hand was useless. I couldn’t do anything with it, I took a week off and then went back and did what I could with what I had. Incidentally, that was when I was on last, I was well on my way to strength and size goals and the injury ruined everything. I want that back....


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## Straight30weight (Jul 24, 2018)

snake said:


> Layoff= no gym for a week


What year is it? Lol. Actually January of 2017 I think. I cut my wrist at work and my left hand was useless. I couldn’t do anything with it, I took a week off and then went back and did what I could with what I had. Incidentally, that was when I was on last, I was well on my way to strength and size goals and the injury ruined everything. I want that back....


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## Straight30weight (Jul 24, 2018)

PillarofBalance said:


> I would just add that what you are experiencing we have all been thru. Cutting down can suck balls. I try to stay positive by keeping my focus on building muscle and strength and just don't get carried away with my meals.
> 
> By doing that I feel like I am working towards a goal rather than depriving myself of sustenance or pleasure.


See I’m similar, extremely goal oriented. Right now eating nothing, endless cardio and starving all day is not a goal I care for anymore!


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## Straight30weight (Jul 24, 2018)

PillarofBalance said:


> Ok so 3900 cals daily. I would suggest you maintain your weight for a few weeks and let's recoup some strength. As to the macros.
> 
> Anywhere from .8 to 1g of protein per lb of bodyweight.
> 
> ...



im down. I need my workouts to go back to intense and fun. Not millions of reps with no weight. Honestly I don’t know if I could bench 315 for one rep right now. I struggled with 225 for 10 last night...


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## dk8594 (Jul 24, 2018)

I'm going to go against the grain here....

You are only 15 lbs away from your goal.  Have a the discipline to set a goal and not give up until you make it.  Giving up on a goal now will make it that much easier to give up on any goals you make in the future.

When you reach 220, you're going to say it sucked getting there, but you'll know for certain that you have the ability to change your body as you see fit.

Dieting is one of life's great mind fuks.  Don't let it get to you.  It's not supposed to be easy.


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## snake (Jul 24, 2018)

Straight30weight said:


> What year is it? Lol. Actually January of 2017 I think. I cut my wrist at work and my left hand was useless. I couldn’t do anything with it, I took a week off and then went back and did what I could with what I had. Incidentally, that was when I was on last, I was well on my way to strength and size goals and the injury ruined everything. I want that back....



That diet is 90% of your problem but a week off would do you a world of good both mentally and physically. Trust me!


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## Elivo (Jul 24, 2018)

No need to starve yourself. I’ve been working at dropping weight and bf for a little while and have been really dialing in my diet. But I’ve never gone hungry. I don’t do macros I just watch total calories and stay away from the shit foods.

Drop keto, give POBs recommendation a go. 
Snake also has a good point too, a week off from the gym may give you a reboot, I took last week off for vacation and I was itching to get back in there come Monday. 

You our got a lot of good advice from the vets here, go with what you think will work for you and keep at it.


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## Viduus (Jul 24, 2018)

Straight30weight said:


> See I’m similar, extremely goal oriented. Right now eating nothing, endless cardio and starving all day is not a goal I care for anymore!



I’m with DK on this one. You’re pretty close to your goal. Don’t take a break just switch up your strategy. To me it’s just a mindset change.

like POB mentioned, go to maintenance and take a short pause while you get your energy back. You have to fix your mental state first.

Next, I’d change up your game plan. Drop the Keto, drop the fasting. Go for a straight caloric deficit eating every few hours. It’ll work just the same but the different style might make you feel fresh again.

You’re still on your way to your goal, you’re just making the necessary changes to get there in the long run. Good luck!


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## PillarofBalance (Jul 24, 2018)

dk8594 said:


> I'm going to go against the grain here....
> 
> You are only 15 lbs away from your goal.  Have a the discipline to set a goal and not give up until you make it.  Giving up on a goal now will make it that much easier to give up on any goals you make in the future.
> 
> ...



I'm not saying give up to be clear. Just a reminder that our progress is never linear. A break from the diet while he is at the point of not even wanting to train? Why not. It isn't supposed to be easy. But it can be easier than some have experienced in the past.


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## stevenmd (Jul 24, 2018)

Maybe I missed it but are you super strict with sticking to your diet?  Do you have any "cheat" meals or days?  I have found that having the scheduled cheat meal not only helps me psychologically, it also helps me physically.  My body seems to burn through that cheat meal and I actually wake up lighter.  I think it's the leptin hormone at work???


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## dk8594 (Jul 24, 2018)

I agree that there is nothing wrong with a break (see my cheat week post)

OP said he was switching gears and going back to building strength and getting big.  Nothing wrong with that, unless it's his "diet brain" thinking. Every time I cut I have a "fuk this, I want to get big again" moment.  I know it's coming and I either need to remind myself, or have someone else remind me, that if I don't have discipline to set a goal and see it through I might as well throw in the towel.  I never want to get in the habit of giving up on a goal once it's been made.  It's a slippery slope.


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## Elivo (Jul 24, 2018)

I think someone on here told me when i started this to pick a diet and workout that you will be able to stick to or else you will run into the kind of problem you are having now.  Just reevaluate things and go with something different, youll get it down and keep moving on!


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## jennerrator (Jul 25, 2018)

Again, this is a personal thing..we all do different things for different reasons but I personally don’t ever give up on what I said I’m going to do period...to me..for me..that’s a weakness 

and NO...male or female doesn’t change shit:32 (17):


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## Straight30weight (Jul 25, 2018)

stevenmd said:


> Maybe I missed it but are you super strict with sticking to your diet?  Do you have any "cheat" meals or days?  I have found that having the scheduled cheat meal not only helps me psychologically, it also helps me physically.  My body seems to burn through that cheat meal and I actually wake up lighter.  I think it's the leptin hormone at work???


I’ve incorporated a cheat meal every Sunday.


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## Maijah (Jul 25, 2018)

Gibsonator said:


> 220 @ 6'4 is very thin... get that tdee calc and work on ur diet brutha, ain't no reason why you can't sit around 250/260 lean and mean with the proper diet/training



Gibby how's your journey going? You swole yet?


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## Straight30weight (Jul 25, 2018)

dk8594 said:


> I'm going to go against the grain here....
> 
> You are only 15 lbs away from your goal.  Have a the discipline to set a goal and not give up until you make it.  Giving up on a goal now will make it that much easier to give up on any goals you make in the future.
> 
> ...



Fwiw, 220 is a number I pulled out of my ass. At 285 I imagined that it would take dropping 65lbs to get my bf% down to an ok level and look halfway decent for summer. It was never meant to be set in stone.


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## dk8594 (Jul 25, 2018)

Straight30weight said:


> Fwiw, 220 is a number I pulled out of my ass. At 285 I imagined that it would take dropping 65lbs to get my bf% down to an ok level and look halfway decent for summer. It was never meant to be set in stone.



What you do from here, whether it’s bailing on your diet or continuing on your journey, is up to you. You are close to your initial goal, though, and I am guessing that when you set it you had expectations of what that would mean from either an appearance or health perspective. If I were you, I would continue on that journey to see if those expectations come to fruition. You haven’t hit your diet limit, but as many have said it might be time for trying something other than keto and fasting or giving yourself a pause.

Just make sure it isn’t your “diet brain “ speaking to you. The mind does funny things when you are running below maintenance calories.  220 is still within your grasp. Don’t let it go because of discouragement. If you do, you’ll always wonder what could have been and what you could have looked like.


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## Straight30weight (Jul 25, 2018)

jennerrator50 said:


> Again, this is a personal thing..we all do different things for different reasons but I personally don’t ever give up on what I said I’m going to do period...to me..for me..that’s a weakness
> 
> and NO...male or female doesn’t change shit:32 (17):





dk8594 said:


> What you do from here, whether it’s bailing on your diet or continuing on your journey, is up to you. You are close to your initial goal, though, and I am guessing that when you set it you had expectations of what that would mean from either an appearance or health perspective. If I were you, I would continue on that journey to see if those expectations come to fruition. You haven’t hit your diet limit, but as many have said it might be time for trying something other than keto and fasting or giving yourself a pause.
> 
> Just make sure it isn’t your “diet brain “ speaking to you. The mind does funny things when you are running below maintenance calories.  220 is still within your grasp. Don’t let it go because of discouragement. If you do, you’ll always wonder what could have been and what you could have looked like.



Perhaps you’re right. I am relatively happy with where I’m currently sitting in terms of bf%, but I set out to hit 220 and I should see that through. I don’t think I’m going to continue to use keto to get there though. I was thinking about this last night, for the first 60 days everything was fine. About 3 weeks ago i changed the timing of my workouts. I used to go at the end of the day, around 9pm. A few weeks ago I changed that to after work (around 5pm). At 5pm I was still fasting, so my workouts had absolutely no fuel. That being said, my workouts have been garbage since I started cutting but they’ve gotten worse. 

Im going to continue the path I set out but I’m going to take the advise said earlier and change the diet. Using the tdee calculator I’m going to go about 3500 calories, I just gotta figure the macros out (feel free to chime in!). 

And if if anyone wants to help out with the next goal after that, please do! 250, 15% bf, benching 405. I know for sure I want to cycle again, maybe blast and cruise for a while. I’ll be 41 in a week so I don’t even know if that’s realistic anymore.


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## jennerrator (Jul 25, 2018)

Well..awesome to hear...and the part of how you changed your training time is part of it. Sometimes we don’t see those things as we are mind set on what we’ve been doing for so long and might not think certain things will trip our bodies out..until it does!

Im a 125 female so I wish I could help you with a diet lol ...but don’t think you could lift 50 lbs if you ate what I did..someone will help you...good luck!!!!:32 (20):


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## folkey (Sep 7, 2018)

Keto and fasting can cause these symptoms if used over a long period of  time.  I would suggest adding back more complex carbohydrates slowly.   This should increase your energy level without causing you to gain  excessive weight.


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## Straight30weight (Sep 10, 2018)

folkey said:


> Keto and fasting can cause these symptoms if used over a long period of  time.  I would suggest adding back more complex carbohydrates slowly.   This should increase your energy level without causing you to gain  excessive weight.


I’ve since abandoned keto and moved on to happier times (carbs lol). The funny thing is as soon as I started eating carbs weight came back up quite a bit. It’s ok though, I’m back to loving my workouts and am much happier.


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## Jin (Sep 10, 2018)

Straight30weight said:


> I’ve since abandoned keto and moved on to happier times (carbs lol). The funny thing is as soon as I started eating carbs weight came back up quite a bit. It’s ok though, I’m back to loving my workouts and am much happier.



You don’t retain water without carbs.


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## Viduus (Sep 10, 2018)

Jin said:


> You don’t retain water without carbs.



I believe it’s a 3:1 ratio of water to carbs. 

OP it’s good because the carbs get stored as glycogen in your muscles along with that water. You’ll have energy for lifting, better pumps and your muscles will look fuller.

Once your glycogen stores are full the rest will eventually get stored as fat so top off the tank when depleted but don’t over do I.


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## Straight30weight (Sep 11, 2018)

You guys wanna help me with something? It’s pretty evident that I’m holding water as I’m definitely feeling bloated. What I’d like to do for now is maintain my current weight (sitting at about 250) for a while until I get a cycle sorted out (source is being an issue right now). Where I’m struggling is with macros. Can you guys give me a suggested protein/fat number as a starting point? I’m shooting for at least 300g protein but I worry that I have my carbs too high right now.


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## Jin (Sep 12, 2018)

So what if you’re holding water? You going on stage or something?

Get your 300g of protein then:

(keto) less than 100g of carbs, remainder fats

Or 75-85g fat, remainder carbs. 

Really over all all calories is the thing that matters most.


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## Straight30weight (Sep 12, 2018)

Jin said:


> So what if you’re holding water? You going on stage or something?
> 
> Get your 300g of protein then:
> 
> ...


Efff no, the water thing was simply an observation.


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