cutting. not seeing results i think i should. what should i do?

[PoutineEh]

stats:
height: 5'9-5'10ish
start of cut: ~183 lbs
weight: ~167 lbs

i dont have a fitday journal to show you, but ill describe my diet as best i can with some of the following guidelines i follow.
-typically have 3 meals in the schools cafeteria. i do 1 scoop of protein before and after each meal
-whenever im hungry, ill typically have another scoop of protein.
-if the cafeteria is serving truly crappy food (ie spaphetti w/ alfredo sauce), ill just come back to my room and eat a can of tuna or chicken with a slice of whole wheat organic bread.
-typically will snack on some almonds if im hungry, as well

id try and get more protein from food, but powder is almost the only option i have here.

so basically what im getting at is i believe my protein intake is good at probably about 120-150g a day. fats/carbs fill in the rest of the gaps, with more carbs pre/post workout than other days.

i have been consistently losing ~1lb a week and i am down probably about 15 lbs since i started late september, yet i still dont think i am getting the results i should be. there are a few little differences, but i did a few picture shots yesterday and compared them to the start of my cut, and there are only a few minor differences i can notice. its just slightly depressing to know i am down weight and i have been trying to do everything right, yet i am not getting the results i think i should have been. have any of you had a similar situation? is it perhaps i just have a lot more weight to lose than i first thought and is 15 lbs just not as much as i think?

i am going to keep cutting until spring break in a month. ill post my pictures ill take from then and the ones from the start of my cut just before i leave. this post is mostly just a rant since im slightly upset at the current state of my "progress." any helpful input from people would be nice.

[Mr. D]

So you are saying you have lost 15 lbs but look the same?my guess is that cals are too low and you are burning muscle along with fat.What was your starting bf%?

I would definitely up protein 120g is way too low on any day. If you are 167lbs with say 15% bf, you need at least 141lbs and I would eat more than that.Try to get up to 175lbs of protein, 70g of fat and fill the rest of your cals with carbs, im guessing you are prolly eating arond 2000 cals,so 175g of carbs. Drink lots of water.

Are you lifting heavy with low reps? Try adding a moderately intense cardio session after lifting, say 15-20 minutes of low speed(3.5-4.5),high incline(7.0+) treadmill work.

Does your school cafeteria not serve lean meats on the spaghetti days?

[PoutineEh]

So you are saying you have lost 15 lbs but look the same?my guess is that cals are too low and you are burning muscle along with fat.What was your starting bf%?

I would definitely up protein 120g is way too low on any day. If you are 167lbs with say 15% bf, you need at least 141lbs and I would eat more than that.Try to get up to 175lbs of protein, 70g of fat and fill the rest of your cals with carbs, im guessing you are prolly eating arond 2000 cals,so 175g of carbs. Drink lots of water.

Are you lifting heavy with low reps? Try adding a moderately intense cardio session after lifting, say 15-20 minutes of low speed(3.5-4.5),high incline(7.0+) treadmill work.

Does your school cafeteria not serve lean meats on the spaghetti days?

starting bf, im not sure, if i were to guess, maybe between 20-22%, but im not that great at bf estimates.

ill definitely try and get more protein in.
for my routine, im following bill starr's 5x5, but it slightly adjust so that my 5 rep max occurs on the 6th week (instead of 4th) that way i dont stall too early and i continue progressing.

ill see what i can do about the cardio. im already waking up at 7am to do my lifting because i have a hard time fitting it in after going to classes and still do my homework. ill see if i can fit in a short 15 min cardio session after my morning lifts.

as for my cafeteria, they pretty much serve dog ****. today for lunch they served cheese tortellini, spaghetti w/ alfredo or meat sauce.
you can see the menu here, its pretty pathetic:
http://www.housing.umich.edu/dining/menu_squad.php
they are one of the reasons its real hard for me to get in lots of protein, because everything they serve is bleached pasta with a bunch of saturated fats... and they always tote about how healthy their food is now which i find ironic.

[Mr. D]

well post workout, make your own whey/dextrose shake. After that if you lunch, you could eat the scrambled eggs with green beans.

For dinner roast turkey,green beans and if you're adventurous some of the veggies from teh World Harvest menu, excluding anything with potatos,rice.

[PoutineEh]

when they do serve things higher in protein, ill eat it, but its sort of rare. if they do serve meat by itself, it is usually high in fat, so i end up getting lots of fat per protein. an example ratio would be the turkey, which is ~20g protein, 10g fat, or something silmilar. i like to stock up when they do serve chicken breasts etc.
i think ive been making all the right choices food wise, i just need to get that little extra bit of protein in each day... ill find a way somehow.

[Chris686]

You could post the pics for some extra encouragement.

[PoutineEh]

ill be posting some comparison shots in about a month, just before i go to florida. ill also be tanning alittle before then, so maybe with the tan it will be easier to tell if there is improvments since im ghost white right now.

[RedSpikeyThing]

I just quickly skimmed that menu you posted and it doesn't look too bad. Dinners usually have some sort of meat on its own: turkey, roast beef, pot roast, etc.
It'll be tough with the pizza and hamburgers starring you in the face, but no one said cutting was easy ;)