a little confusion on cutting

[kickureface]

based on diesel's guide, eating fewer calories than maintenance requirements results in fat loss right? He also advocates little/no cardio
but does that still apply in cutting down completely? i mean most people who go on subway diets tend to still have a belly, those who don't cardio a little atleast.

so which is the way to go? just confused because diesel's suggestions and some people's results differ. maybe i missed something

also, what's a cheap and accurate way to measure bf%?
thanks

 

[Throttle]

to get rid of a belly permanently, you need to add muscle AND cut fat. Which is why you see a lot of us here advocating methods to do both at the same time, slowly. Most people who do subway diets do not lift weights, and you can't gain much muscle doing cardio (except perhaps HIIT, but no one contemplating a subway diet should try true HIIT / guerilla cardio right off the bat unless they really enjoy puking for fun & profit).

I advocate eating lean protein, fibrous veggies (including simple salads), whole grains, and lowfat dairy, in roughly that order of prominence steadily throughout the day (except right after a heavy weightlifting workout, when you need simple proteins & simple sugars both).

'Cleaning up your diet' like this may very well result in a calorie reduction. Yet there are many other ways to reduce calorie intake even while you load up on too much in the way of simple sugars, starches, or other things that lead to carb craving cycles, muscle loss, or other negative results. I'd rather you change the items in your diet first, and once you've broken the carb cycle, you can fine tune the # of calories.

as for cheap and accurate bf% estimates...photos and/or occasional glances in a full-length mirror. search the forum for a couple threads w/ example photos. otherwise, if you have free access to dunk tank measurements (say at a university gym or through a health care plan) those are the only truly reliable gauge. Otherwise, cheap & accurate bf measurements are pretty much mutually exclusive!

 

[kickureface]

thanks throttle
so those skin caliper fold thingies don't work too well huh? i was kind of coinfused about that idea since the measurement depends on how much you fold...
how about fruits? what are they classified under (im guessing simple sugars) and is it wise to eat a lot of fruit throughout the day for cutting, at least?

 

[Fortunate_Juan]

One of the most accurate BF measuring devices is the acumeasure 3000 its fairly cheap and accurate. You may need to have a friend help you with some of the measuring sites. I have been losing significantly without much cardio (I screw around with a soccerball in the gym for about 20 mins) but it's mostly mutli-muscle group exercises (compound exercises). Fruits have many benefits, they do have natural sugars but I believe that they are not the simple sugars such as the refined sugars.

 

[Throttle]

to clarify, the AC 3000 is useful for intra-person consistency but not inter-person reliability (this is indeed jargon, but wait, it's extremely useful jargon!)

if want you want is a Mt. Sinai-style pronouncement "THIS is your bodyfat percentage" carved in stone, then you're looking for inter-person reliability. The AC3k is not reliable in this sense--there are many reasons, but the margin of error is something around +/- 3.5% (I forget the exact number, this has been discussed in an earlier thread if you're curious). That doesn't sound bad until you consider that a reading of 15% could mean anything from 11.5% (abs probably showing at least a little) to 18.5% (almost certainly a gut & love handles).

Using the AC3k with three site measurement should be fairly consistent for a person who uses it on a regular basis, as long as you have the same friend helping you with the measurements each time and they are consistent in how they use the calipers.

On the other hand, I think that you can get even better indicators by watching the weight you can lift go up while watching your bodyweight stay the same or drop, not to mention watching your gut & love handles disappear while your abs & other signs of definition appear. If you're dedicated enough to bother with calipers, then you can probably use these signs just as reliably. As my geek friends say, YMMV (your mileage may vary).

 

[kickureface]

haha thnanks

is increase in strength a direct increase in muscle mass?

 

[Throttle]

no. but a consistent increase in strength over a period of time is impossible without an increase in muscle mass.