I'm no expert, but I do have a couple of degrees in related fields.
First of all, there's no way you're close to 30% bodyfat, 15-20% I can see, but definitely not 30. For someone like yourself, I'd recommendy you get into a basic conditioning phase, where you're training you're body to build muscle and also working on your cardiovascular conditioning. A great way to do this is to combine a good diet w/ a modified starting strength style program and continue to do your kung fu, etc.
Allegory is partially correct/but mostly incorrect in his statements, No offense Allegory, just telling it like it is. He does however, make good points about things like Fructose, etc... At this point you don't need to worry about the effects that fructose has on the hormonal regulation of metabolism. You just need to know that you need to eat 5-6 large wholesome meals everyday that are rich in protein and low GI natural source carbs... Eat like a caveman. If a caveman didn't have access to it, then you probably shouldn't be eating it. There are exceptions, for example things like whey isolate, but for the most part, this is a good rule of thumb.
The stuff we eat can be broken down in seven major classes of nutrients:
- Carbs: Carbohydrates, sugars/starches/fiber from things like bread, rice, oats, yams, etc. Carbs, especially glucose are what our cells typically use as their primary energy source.
- Protein: From meats, eggs, fish, cheese, etc. Protein makes life as we know it possible. Protein and water make up the majority of muscle tissue. Eating adequate amounts of protein is absolutely integral for gaining muscle, as well as staying lean.
- Fats: Fats are essential to life. They come from many different sources and include things like oil, butter, etc. Fats are quite calorie dense and make you feel quite full.
- Water
- Vitamins
- Minerals
- Phytonutrients and other miscillaneous crap: Compounds from plants such as things like lycopene that have been shown to have health benefits.
To debunk a few of the things Allegory said:
EtOH (alcohol consumption) doesn't directly lead to atherosclerotic plaque formation. The formation of atherosclerotic plaques is a highly complex evolving pathophysiological process centered around the progressive inflammatory damage to the vascular endothelium and the subsequent sequelae that result. In layman's terms this basically means that plaques in the arteries are caused by something damaging the walls of the blood vessels.... Something has to happen to start this inflammatory process. There is currently strong evidence to show that oxidized LDL (low density lipoprotein) is one of things that gets the ball rolling... However, there are tons of other theories on this matter. CVD (cardiovascular disease) today, kills more people than anything else. People have spent entire lifetimes attempting to characterize the disease processes around atherosclerotic plaque formation, so I'm not gonna get into it anymore... Look it up if you want more info.
Secondly, about the fructose: Allegory is correct that sucrose is a disaccharide comprised of a fructose and glucose molecule. They are hydrolyzed in the gut, and absorbed. With a very few exceptions, our cells cannot directly metabolize fructose, and as Allegory said, it must pass through hepatic metabolism to become available as a fuel source. There is ample evidence to show that a diet rich in fructose causes a whole host of problems including, as Allegory said I think, increased production of "bad" circulating lipids, namely LDL and TAG (triacelyglycerides)... The liver is responsible for the production of many things, including lipoproteins. Lipoproteins are essentially supramolecular assemblies that allow hydrophobic lipid molecules to exist in a water based circulatory system without coming out of solution (think of oil and water). It is oxidized "bad" fats that are thought to be one of the major contributors to CVD. Fructose, alcohol, etc does not directly "collect in the arteries"... rather, it is the effects that consuming these things to an excess, have on the hormonal regulation of metabolism that makes them so damaging.
Fructose also wreaks havoc on the innate satiety mechanisms in place in our bodies, involving hormones like insulin, leptin and grehlin... Basically it doesn't make you feel full, even though you have eaten a fair amount of calories. You can down a half liter pop, full of high fructose corn syrup, and still not feel full... You're gonna want more, and the resultant insulin spike is gonna eventually end up storing all of the extra energy as fat in your adipocytes. In addition, having a chronically high insulin levels will decrease the body's insulin sensitivity, which is one of the etiological bases of type 2 diabetes mellitus.
In nature fructose, from fruits, is always found with dietary fiber... If fructose is a poison, then dietary fiber is the antidote, as it does pretty much exactly the opposite of all the bad shiiit that fructose does when it comes to its effects on metabolic regulation. For example, it decreases insulin secretion, increases satiety, and has beneficial effects on the blood lipid profile.
OP: Don't worry about all this shiit... I've been up for close to 24 hours, and it was a total ramble on my part... Just focus on training hard, staying consistent and having a well planned out diet that gets in adequate amounts of nutrients at the appropriate times.
Eat 5-6 clean high protein, natural source carbs every day mixed with good quality fats from olive oil, fish oils, etc. Train hard, stay consistent, and you'll see great results.
started to learn kung fu 3 months ago but never really trained on my body once in a while i was doing some push ups and pull ups but rarely and the last past month i started to train seriously with jumping rope pull up sit up every day of the week that's it