Don't know what to do next.

[Locutus]

Hi all, new member here. I have kind of reached a point where I am not sure what to do next.

About 4 months ago I weighed 270lbs. I purchased the Micheal Thurmonds 6 week body makeover program (I know some people say this progam is BS, but it sounded right to me).

I now weigh 224lbs.

I have always been a big guy, but didnt really consider myself overweight until after I got married and got a desk job. I am 6'0 with a large frame. I have also always been considered "strong", I am the guy everyone calls when someone needs something moved or someone has a blowhard friend that needs beat in arm wrestling. lol

Anyways, now that I have reached this point, I have for the time being went of the body makeover diet and just eating sensabily and I have maintained the same weight for the past month (well, actually lost 4 more lbs).

Ideally, I would like to weigh about 200lbs. Thats what I weighed in High school, but I had significantly higher muscle mass back then.

I would like to get back to that state. I feel if I continue to loose weight the way I have been, I will be skinnier, but I will no longer be very strong. So I am considering going to a higher protien diet and hitting the weights hard. Will I continue to loose weight by doing this while building additional muscle mass? What is the best weight for me to reach my new goal? I am totally lost and not sure what to do. Any help would be greatly apprieciated. Thanks!

(sorry for the long post!)

[Paul Stagg]

I'm confused what your ultimate goal is?

I would include heavy weight training regardless. Use diet and cardio to manipulate your body composition.

[Workhorse]

Welcome!! :windup:

I'm first going to start off by saying WAY TO GO on losing the weight you have!! It's a very hard thing to do and I congratulate you!

Now, If you switch to a higher protein based diet and hit the gym hard you will gain some muscle. This in turn, will increase your weight because muscle weighs more than fat. So, my advice is to not worry about the number the scale gives you, but worry about how you want your body to look and your clothes to fit. These are the 2 easiest ways of tracking progress and goals. You are right when you said that you may get down to 200# but you may not be as strong as before. Well, if you hit the weights hard, keep the protein up, adjust your cals so that you lose 1-2 pounds a week you should lose the fat and still maintain (if not gain a little) muscle. It is very hard to lose fat and gain muscle simultaneously, but if you work hard, you will stay strong and lose the fat you want. It will take longer than just losing weight by itself, but it can be donw. The big thing is that you have to be strict with your diet and figure out exactly what your bodies' requirements are. If you judge cals by around 15xBW this should be close to what you'll need to take in each day. Cardio is key to losing the fat... keep that in mind.

Good luck with everything and if you have questions, post away!! :D

[Locutus]

Thanks workhorse, thats kind of what I thought. So you think its better to go ahead and hit the weights and not worry about my wieght than to loose ALL the weight I want first and worry about gaining the muscle back later?

Paul, sorry I was unlcear. My goal is to get down to a lower weight, but retain and even gain more muscle mass.

Thanks guys!

[bradley]

If you can I would recommend getting your bodyfat tested and this will provide a better way for you to gauge your progress. The WBB routines would be a great place to start. If you like you can post your diet and the people on the board are very responsive and helpful. Congrats on teh weight loss and welcome to WBB.

[thatdaveguy]

I can relate to your story - I was 260 at 6'4 with a bf at about 20%! It took me about a year to get to 210, then another 3 months to get to 195. at that point I did not know how to loose weight without loosing muscle. I looked really bad. My advice is to use and abuse everyone on this board to increase your knowledge of all things related to diet/training.

My personal findings are that a high protine diet and smart use of carbs/fat is a sure bet. I am now 227 at 16%bf (in a bulking phase!) with a goal of 215, 9% by june 1.

Dont be afraid to put some pounds on to help add muscle - you now know (as I do) that is it possible to loose the weight if you feel you got a little too big.

Dive into the weights and protine head first! you wont regret it!

dave

[Thor]

when i quit smoking i gain about 15# really quick.i had also planned to start lifting but i was a little late and most of my weight gain was fat.what i noticed when i started lifting is that i had gotten stronger without lifting(im assuming this was due to leverage)id reccomend that you start lifting and use your extra weight as leverage and go super heavy on your lifts.summer is still a ways away put on some lean mass and then start cutting.