Cutting questions

[JB2]

I just started working out on Diesels cutting plan and I have a few questions.

I am 6'3" and 215 pounds but most of that is fat. I have little muscle mass; will I gain any while doing the cutting thing or is the working out just to keep what I have?

Which supplements are the most necessary for a beginner like me? And what are the risks of ephedra, I've heard some bad reports about it in the news and am just wondering if this is typical overblown media stuff or what.

Should I start doing the HIIT cardio right off the bat to help shed weight faster or wait until I'm a few weeks into the program? And when I do start the cardio, how should I space it out between the lifting?

Hopefully these questions aren't too repetitive!

 

[icepick]

I just started working out on Diesels cutting plan and I have a few questions.

I am 6'3" and 215 pounds but most of that is fat. I have little muscle mass; will I gain any while doing the cutting thing or is the working out just to keep what I have?

You may gain some muscle mass if you are new to weightlifting.

Which supplements are the most necessary for a beginner like me? And what are the risks of ephedra, I've heard some bad reports about it in the news and am just wondering if this is typical overblown media stuff or what.

DIESEL has listed the supplements that you need in his cutting guide. The risks of ephedra are a slight chance of heart palpatations (?) that will go away once you take it for a few weeks. DON'T exceed more than 20mg of ephedra at a time. Make sure you get enough water. Don't overexert yourself (i.e. run around at maximum intensity for 3 hours in 100 degree weather without water) and you should be fine. If you want to "ease into it" I suppose you can start one week taking 10mg then 20mg (10mg twice a day) to 40mg (20mg twice per day.) The stuff in the news is what the idiots do to kill themselves. Ephedra is not a magic pill, all it does is increase the blood flow to fat so you can burn it off instead of muscle.

Should I start doing the HIIT cardio right off the bat to help shed weight faster or wait until I'm a few weeks into the program? And when I do start the cardio, how should I space it out between the lifting?

Depends on your fitness level. If you can handle the high intensity, then go for it. You can always start at moderate cardio and then increase it to high intensity as you go along. If you have been sitting on your ass for a few years, I would say that you probably should start with moderate cardio at least for a couple of weeks or so.

But, I ain't no DIESEL, so take what I say with a grain of salt.

 

[Metaphor]

Ideally cardio should be done in the morning before you eat breakfast. Fruit or something else light is ok before you do it though. Personally I always do cardio on an off workout day or after lifting because I'd prefer the bulk of my energy is devoted to the weights. However, if your goal is simply to lose weight the reverse strategy may be in order. As far as supplements go, you can't go wrong with glutamine. It will ensure that you don't lose muscle mass and help you recover much faster thus reducing the possibility of injury. If 'most' of it is fat though, like you said, I wouldn't be too worried about losing muscle provided you are dieting and workout out intelligently. IE..don't starve yourself, that's just going to be a detriment to your body and ultimately slow your metabolism. Before using any weight loss supplements I'd recommend just seeing how much you can lose on your own. While they probably aren't going to kill you, I don't think anyone is going to argue that there is a good chance they have negative effects upon your body.

 

[Sentrility]

I've found that most common problem, and this is the same with me. When trying to shred weight for more definition, people don't alter their diet enough. Sure they do all the cardio in the world, but you have to alter your diet drastically, if you really want the weight to come off.

 

[JB2]

I changed my diet a ton - went from junk food every day to oatmeal, chicken breasts, eggs, tuna, green veggies, etc. Hard, but it's only food! The easiest way for me to stay on the diet is to think of food as a mean to an end rather than a pleasure. After getting that mindset it was surprisingly easy to stick to the diet.

 

[DIESEL]

Originally posted by Metaphor
Ideally cardio should be done in the morning before you eat breakfast.

NO!! This is a one way ticket to losing muscle mass. This is a gym myth started by Mr. EAS Bill Phillips that has gotten way out of hand. It doesn't matter when you do cardio... cutting is a simple equation of burning more calories than you take in.

 

[Metaphor]

Well, I about about to argue, but I realized after a bit of research that you're correct.

"research has shown time and time again that it is not what kind of tissue that your burn while doing cardio that is important... but rather the amount of total calories you burn (thus creating calorie deficit) and the rise in baseline metabolism you get from the cardio. "

Thanks for clearing that up.