Rapid fat loss experiment

[Dominique]

After bulking for the past five months (from 62.9 to 67.4 kg, +4.5 kg / + 9.9 lb, 0.9 kg / 2 lb per month), I’ve decided to experiment with a rapid fat loss phase: I intend to lose 6 kg (13.2 lb) in two months.

Here is how I’ve structured this phase:

1. During the first four weeks (January 2017), I will have 4 low calorie days and 3 maintenance days each week
2. The fifth week (first week of February 2017) will be a break, i.e. I will eat at maintenance
3. During the last three weeks of February, I will have 3 low calorie days and 4 maintenance days each week

"Low calorie" means 1084 calories, while expending 3000 calories (which has been my average expenditure for the past four months according to the more conservative estimate of my Surge). To keep it simple, I will be eating the exact same items each low calorie day (I’m not easily bored and this won’t last forever anyway). "Maintenance" means 3000 calories. If things go according to plans, I should have a weekly deficit of 7664 calories during the first four weeks and of 5248 calories during the last three weeks. The expected weight loss should be 1 kg per week during the first four weeks and 0.75 kg per week during the last three weeks. Total weight loss therefore should be (1 x 4) + (0.75 x 3) = 6.25 kg.

My low calorie day includes my usual breakfast (skimmed milk with dark cocoa, oatmeal, three egg whites), 250 grams of spinach, 250 grams of brocoli, 3 protein shakes (30 grams of unflavoured whey protein isolate, 90 grams of skimmed milk, 20 grams of ripe banana and 5 grams of dark cocoa) and 8 grams of fish oil. This comes to 140 grams of protein and 11 grams of fiber.

Don’t know if it’s going to work, but at least that’s the plan! Once it’s over (end of February), I intend to slowly bulk (+ 0.75-1.00 kg/month) for at least six months.

[WendyB]

I will be interested in how it goes. your experiments always intrigue me

[katanel]

Hi @Dominique,

Few questions from my part:

1. I'm assume that 3000 calories daily include also steps and exercises, right? If so, you probably need to maintain the same level

2. 1 kg lose weight per week - isn't too high (dramatic)? Have you calculated/measured your muscle/body fat?

3. Regarding what you eat you said "This comes to 140 grams of protein and 11 grams of fiber" - how about sugar and fat in grams? Or you don't count?

I wish you good luck, keep us updated!

[Tave]

This looks interesting but doable.  Definitely keep us updated on your progress. 

[Dominique]

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@katanel wrote:

1. I'm assume that 3000 calories daily include also steps and exercises, right? If so, you probably need to maintain the same level

2. 1 kg lose weight per week - isn't too high (dramatic)? Have you calculated/measured your muscle/body fat?

3. Regarding what you eat you said "This comes to 140 grams of protein and 11 grams of fiber" - how about sugar and fat in grams? Or you don't count? 

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@katanel:

1. Yes, 3000 is my total expenditure, including everything (BMR, formal activity, NEAT), well except not TEF (thermic effect of food), since Fitbit doesn’t figure that out AFAIK, even if you log your food in it, which I don’t.
   Because NEAT (non-exercise activity thermogenesis) is known to subconsciously increase when you eat at a surplus and decrease when you eat at a deficit, I now try to pay special attention to keeping myself busier (outside format exercising). For that, I do things I normally don’t, like scrubbing the floor of my entrance hall yesterday .
   
   
2. Yes, 1 kg (2.2 lb) per week is probably too high as a long-term weight loss strategy, especially for someone who needs to lose a lot. However, I’m starting from a BMR of 22.3 and I only want to lose 6 kg in total, after which I intend to stop my diet and start eating at a surplus again. The situation would be different for someone looking to lose 50 kg and planning to be in a deficit for 1+ year.
   I do have a Fitbit Aria scale that estimates BF%: according to it, I’m currently 18.5% (vs. 15.5% at my lowest last August). I don’t know how accurate it is in absolute terms, but at least it’s moving in an expected way: up when gaining weight, down when losing. I would be very happy (and positively surprised) if I managed to go under 15%, which would be a first for me since I got my Aria (almost 4 years ago).
   I also monitor my waist circumference, which is supposed to correlate quite well with BF%: indeed, it has increased by about 5 cm since last August, which I don’t particularly like!
   And I also bought myself a Skulpt Scanner, a BF measuring device that was mentioned recently by  @Jeff2017. It’s on its way from Amazon UK, I should have it later on this week. It’s supposed to be more accurate than a BIA scale, as it takes measurements from several body parts, instead of just sending an electric current through your feet like scales do. 
   
   
3. Yes, I was primarily interested in calories and protein when setting up the diet for my low calorie days. The reason for calories is because I believe energy balance is the main driver of weight loss and protein because I wanted to go for a "protein sparing diet" (more about this in another reply) and also because of the satiety it provides, and of the higher thermic effect of food.
   But since you asked about the other macros, here you are: the protein powder I use has 3 g of carbs (all sugar) and 0.4 g of fat per 100 g. So for 3 x 30 g I get 2.7 g of carbs/sugar and 0.4 g of fat. From my oatmeal (actually, it’s not pure oat, I mix four different ingredients), I get 15.7 g of carbs (of which 0.7 g of sugar) and 1.7 g of fat. 3 x 20 g of banana is 13.8 g of carbs (of which 7.2 g of sugar) and 0.3 g of fat. 250 g of broccoli has 5.7 g of carbs (3.5 g of sugar) and 2.2 g of fat. 250 g of spinach has 1.2 g of carbs (0.7 g of sugar) and 2 g of fat. 585 g of skimmed milk has 28.1 g of carbs (all sugar) and 0 g of fat. 23 g of cocoa powder has 2 g of carbs (0.1 g of sugar) and 4.8 g of fat. So total sugar is 2.7 + 0.7 + 7.2 + 3.5 + 0.7 + 28.1 + 0.1 =  43 grams and total fat is 12 + 0.4 + 0.3 + 1.7 + 2 + 2.2  + 4.8 = 23 grams. If I got the numbers right. I have no idea if these numbers are good or bad. For me, carbs are just fuel for activity (and sugar the main ingredient for delicious desert!). I understand a minimum amount of fat is necessary for hormone regulation, but I’m not too concerned about it, since I’m eating plenty of fat during the three maintenance days of the week.

[Dominique]

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@WendyB wrote:

I will be interested in how it goes. your experiments always intrigue me

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Yes, I like to (self-)experiment, as it’s the best way to find out what works for you! I tried to eat low-carb and found it was not for me: I’m too active for that, and carbs make almost all the delicious foods I love. I also tried intermittent fasting, but found I prefer to eat more often rather than less often. The main benefit I saw in IF is it results in far less dish-washing .

Last year I found it was perfectly possible to both lose and weight gain by eating several times a day and not restricting carbs: it’s just a question of playing with your intake and your activity level (good old energy balance).

My experimental diet looks similar to the 5:2 diet on paper: it just includes 4 low calorie days instead of 2. However, it has me eat almost twice as much on the low calorie days. It also has some common points with what Lyle McDonald decribes in his Rapid Fat Loss handbook.  What I took from it (in addition to the title) is the "protein sparing" aspect of it: the idea is to supply a high quantity of dietary protein in order to minimize breakdown of protein from your own body (lean tissue). However, I found his diet too extreme for my taste as it puts you in a large caloric deficit every day of the week and amounts to a ketogenic diet without the fat: I preferred to trade maximum fat loss for the carbs I need to fuel my training (in addition to my 20k steps every day, I also lift weights 5 days a week).

In January, my weeks will be structured as follows:

1. Monday: low calorie
2. Tuesday: maintenance
3. Wednesday: low calorie
4. Thursday: maintenance
5. Friday: low calorie
6. Saturday: maintenance
7. Sunday: low calorie

So I only have two consecutive low-calorie days each week. Since I started yesterday, today is my second low-calorie day. So far so good, I feel surprisingly full at 6.30, even though I already burned 2830 calories, clocked 20k steps and still have my broccolis and two protein shakes to get down. 

[katanel]

Hi @Dominique,

2. Skulpt Scanner - wow, interesting piece of kit, let me know how you evaluate it!

Personally I use a Tefal scale which I find very consistent between measurements and has body fat measure also.

Regards.

[Dominique]

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@katanel wrote:

2. Skulpt Scanner - wow, interesting piece of kit, let me know how you evaluate it!

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I will! In addition to @Jeff2017, another community member who already has one is @josephz2va (see this post).

[emili]

I have to know why. You don't need to lose weight.. why are you doing this? Just because? I am completely intrigued.

[Dominique]

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@katanel wrote:

2. Skulpt Scanner - wow, interesting piece of kit, let me know how you evaluate it!

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@katanel: you can find my review of the Skulpt here!

[Dominique]

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@emili wrote:

 I have to know why. You don't need to lose weight.. why are you doing this?

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@emili: you are correct, if I look at most common indicators, I could just stay put. My BMI at 67.4 (starting point of my fat loss) is 22.3, my waist circumference is < 90 cm, my blood pressure is perfectly normal etc. However, I want to make changes in my physique: gain some muscle, lose some fat. Both are very hard to achieve at the same time and if your weight stays the same: to lose fat, you need to be in a caloric deficit, while optimal muscle gains require a surplus. This is why I have chosen to alternate between deficits and surpluses. The aim is to be a little bit leaner at the end of each "cutting" phase, and a little bit more muscular at the end of each "bulking" phase. This will take time, but I’m not like a Hollywood movie star who needs to be super-fit for a role six months from now.

I had been gaining almost 5 kg during the past six months (Aug. to Dec. 2016). I couldn’t carry on forever, as this would eventually get me to my pre-Fitbit size (75 kg). Hence this rapid fat loss experiment. Btw, I’ve just completed one week with four low-calorie days (2000 cal. deficit) and three maintenance day (eating about 3000 cal.) and so far so good: 

I’m down to about 66 kg on the scale. Due to its nature, the red Trendweight curve will always be lagging behind scale readings, but it’s nicely pointing in the right direction. Best of all, I had zero craving issues on low-calorie days, so all these proteins, veggies and fiber really kept me full. 

[WendyB]

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@Dominique wrote:

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I tried to eat low-carb and found it was not for me: I’m too active for that, and carbs make almost all the delicious foods I love.

I so agree with this. I tried it once to but I love my Carbs!

[emili]

Cutting and bulking, I'm with you now. I'm glad you're seeing results. Even more glad you're feeling good doing it. 

[Dominique]

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@emili wrote:

I'm glad you're seeing results. 

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It’s only the first week. Total planned length is 8 weeks (4 + 1 + 3), or 6 kg, whichever comes first. We’ll see! What I don’t know is how fast metabolic adaptation will take place, requiring a bigger deficit to produce the same amount of weight loss. 

[Pro_Fetus]

Dominique, I'm very interested to see how this works.  I found incredible success on another program, but I'll hold that until your experiment is complete.

-150 pounds and counting

[Dominique]

@Pro_Fetus: I would only recommend this approach to someone wanting to lose a limited amount of weight in a relatively short period. In my case, it is 6 kg (13.2 lbs) in 8 weeks. I don’t think it would be optimal for a much longer period of time. If you have found something that has worked for you so far, stick to it (if it’s sustainable).

[katanel]

@Dominique,

Do you have an estimation of how many calories do you burn weekly through exercises? Apart from 20k daily steps...

Thanks.

[Dominique]

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@katanel wrote:

Do you have an estimation of how many calories do you burn weekly through exercises? Apart from 20k daily steps...

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I mostly follow my total daily energy expenditure (try to have it around 3000). This is what I look at in the mobile app:

However here is the list of my activities for the past 7 days:

Walks that have no distance were in most cases autodetected by my Surge (or in some cases I forgot to record a longer walk). "Workouts" on Saturday was snow removal.

[katanel]

Hi @Dominique,

Ok, thanks for info provided.

Did you enter manually Workout and Weights or it's autodetected by Fitbit Surge?

Run and Walk for sure autodetected.

Regards.

[Dominique]

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@katanel wrote:

Did you enter manually Workout and Weights or it's autodetected by Fitbit Surge?

Run and Walk for sure autodetected.

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Yes, "Workout" and "Weights" need to be manually started and stopped on my Surge. "Walk" can be either started/stopped by me, or autodetected. When I go out for a longer walk, I usually record it on my Surge, in which case GPS is activated and the exact distance logged. For shorter walks (e.g. to the nearest bus stop, which is 25 minutes away), the autodetection feature kicks in, but there’s no GPS. I seldom specifically run, but when I do, I also record them on my Surge as "Free Run". However, most of my runs are short bouts (1 km at a time) during my longer walks, so they just get lost inside the walks (Fitbit does take them into account for calories, though).