Going to try and attempt IF but need a few answers

[ErikHutson]

First my stats

5'9
250lbs
25-30%bf

Goal:
5'9
165-175
10% bf

Ok so Im switching to Paleo come Monday as well as trying IF 1-2 times a week to start out so I dont go to overboard.

My setup like I said is IF 1-2 times a week more or less depending on my work schedule (i work overnights) and it would be a ton easier to not eat while at work then at work so id like to do it while im working. my window for eating I believe will be between 2pm-8pm since I work at 10pm-6:30am

My question is this, will I be getting sufficiant fasting time or do I need to increase it?


I will be doing crossfit also with a 3 on 1 off schedule to become in better shape while taking in around 2000-2500 calories.

As far as PWO what kind of carbs should I also be taking in since Im attempting a Paleo eating style im guessing fruits with protein and maybe some nuts?

Also am I looking at a 40-30-30 type of eating with fat as the main source or should it be protein?

I read how to begin on the iflife blogs and its very interesting and I would eventually like to do a 1 on (w/window) 1 off routine once my body has adapted to it

[George Mounce]

Originally Posted by ErikHutson

First my stats

5'9
250lbs
25-30%bf

Goal:
5'9
165-175
10% bf

Going to break this down in chunks. Realize this is only my opinion based on a year total of IF and about 9 months of using the Zone previously.

I like the BF goal, forget the weight goal. You will literally make yourself go crazy standing on the scale. Let your body figure out what it should weigh for your activity level, if you eat good whole foods (drop grains and dairy) you will get there.

Ok so Im switching to Paleo come Monday as well as trying IF 1-2 times a week to start out so I dont go to overboard.

My setup like I said is IF 1-2 times a week more or less depending on my work schedule (i work overnights) and it would be a ton easier to not eat while at work then at work so id like to do it while im working. my window for eating I believe will be between 2pm-8pm since I work at 10pm-6:30am

Personally, I like to eat when I'm awake, wouldn't you be sleeping at 2pm, or are you just getting up? Using the 8 hours of sleep time during your fast, since you'd be fasting anyways is much much easier when first starting out. Take food to work.

My question is this, will I be getting sufficiant fasting time or do I need to increase it?

You should start out slow with 12-15 hours fasts then work into longer ones if it suits you. By going Paleo you are going to get huge headaches coming down off the addiction to processed carbs. I only suggest this to stop a huge amount of pain in the beginning. Once you get used to it, then you can make them longer.

I will be doing crossfit also with a 3 on 1 off schedule to become in better shape while taking in around 2000-2500 calories.

Why do you need 2000-2500? What math did you use to figure this out? You can do 3/1 on CF with 1700-1800 or 1100-1200. It is possible, I've done it and so have all those others who have done strict Zoning for long periods of time without adding fat blocks.

As far as PWO what kind of carbs should I also be taking in since Im attempting a Paleo eating style im guessing fruits with protein and maybe some nuts?

Whole foods. Can of salmon with an apple and maybe some nuts would work. I often work out during a fast so I eat nothing after a workout except maybe some black coffee with cinnamon. Sure there is probably 4-5g of carbs in the coffee and cinnamon, but its liquid, it goes through fast, and it doesn't really upset the balance I'm looking for that much.

Also am I looking at a 40-30-30 type of eating with fat as the main source or should it be protein?

40/30/30 is a Zone quanity. You want to do IF, using Paleo food choices. It isn't broken down into an exact quanity and it will probably vary day by day. I would suggest tracking what you eat using a website like www.fitday.com.

I read how to begin on the iflife blogs and its very interesting and I would eventually like to do a 1 on (w/window) 1 off routine once my body has adapted to it

This is entirely possible once you get used to it. Start off slow, let your body get rid of all the crap its holding from the bad food you used to eat, and you'll see amazing changes.

[ErikHutson]

Excellent post Ill break down my answers

Originally Posted by George Mounce

Personally, I like to eat when I'm awake, wouldn't you be sleeping at 2pm, or are you just getting up? Using the 8 hours of sleep time during your fast, since you'd be fasting anyways is much much easier when first starting out. Take food to work.

As far as I know im on a set schedule looking like this

10:00pm-6:30am

I'll be home by around 7am, and stay up for about 30 minutes to an hour before going to bed.

Ill wake up between 2-3pm, but no later then 3pm

You should start out slow with 12-15 hours fasts then work into longer ones if it suits you. By going Paleo you are going to get huge headaches coming down off the addiction to processed carbs. I only suggest this to stop a huge amount of pain in the beginning. Once you get used to it, then you can make them longer.

12-15 hours counting my sleep correct? So pretty much stop eating about 4 hours before going to bed and that would put me at 12 hours of fasting. and just increase as my body adapts.

Why do you need 2000-2500? What math did you use to figure this out? You can do 3/1 on CF with 1700-1800 or 1100-1200. It is possible, I've done it and so have all those others who have done strict Zoning for long periods of time without adding fat blocks.

I dont want to lose muscle and being 250 pounds my current Intake to maintain this weight is about 3300 calories.

Only taking in 1100-1200 calories isnt that starving my self and bringing up the possibility of muscle breakdown? 1700-1800 I can understand somewhat but that is still pretty low for XFIT workouts isnt it? I dont want any energy problems.

I figure to lose healthy amount of fat I would need around 2000 calories

[George Mounce]

Originally Posted by ErikHutson

Excellent post Ill break down my answers





As far as I know im on a set schedule looking like this

10:00pm-6:30am

I'll be home by around 7am, and stay up for about 30 minutes to an hour before going to bed.

Ill wake up between 2-3pm, but no later then 3pm






12-15 hours counting my sleep correct? So pretty much stop eating about 4 hours before going to bed and that would put me at 12 hours of fasting. and just increase as my body adapts.





I dont want to lose muscle and being 250 pounds my current Intake to maintain this weight is about 3300 calories.

Only taking in 1100-1200 calories isnt that starving my self and bringing up the possibility of muscle breakdown? 1700-1800 I can understand somewhat but that is still pretty low for XFIT workouts isnt it? I dont want any energy problems.

I figure to lose healthy amount of fat I would need around 2000 calories

1100-1200 would definitely be too low for you, 1700-1800 isn't. That is 17 strict blocks on the Zone. At 5'9" you'd be less even.

I would definitely try the fast to include your sleeping time. I start my fast between 7-8pm then don't eat until noon the next day usually. This changes based on my schedule somewhat, I'll often start the fast earlier.

You need to eat to what you want to weigh, and I can tell you that someone at 5'9" doesn't have to have 2000 calories to maintain weight, and perform. CrossFit is given a .7 for activity level so for me, thats 135g of protein a day, a lot less than the 180 for a 1/1 ratio of body weight to protein. Believe me, I don't think you'll be losing much muscle doing XF, but you will drop the fat if your nutritional choices are in check.

If you haven't already, I'd give Gary Taubes Good Calories, Bad Calories a read, what we eat is just as, if not more so important than how much.

[ErikHutson]

Thanks George for the replies, have helped out a bunch.

Where can I go to see the formula to determine how many calories I need while doing crossfit 3-5 times a week