Follow this basic 8 week cutting plan to help with your cutting goals.
Pre plan requirements
- Know your maintenance calories.
- Get your diet clean and in order.
- Allow for 4 cheat meals in 8 weeks to have something to look forward to and break the monotony.
- Have a solid supplementation plan in place.
Food
Should be planned and well thought out, please see list of foods in the sub section below. Eating should be frequent, balanced and portions lowered accordingly to allow for a 200-300 calorie drop each day. Carbs should not be cut out but utilised around training time to give the dieter a natural energy boost pre training and glycogen restore Post Work Out (PWO). For example I would have low GI carbs in the source of a meal replacement shake or oats, Intra workout it would be carb free and just use aminos in the form of BCAA's and PWO a small amount of high GI carbs in the form of 20g of dextrose or maltodextrin or a small banana. The rest of my meals would be high in protein, moderate essential fats, low in carbs and high in vegetables. IMO fats should be minimal around workout times as you don’t want the fats to slow down the uptake of protein.
Fat misperception – Not all fats are bad period. Essential fats e.g. omegas found in fish and other essential fatty acids actually help burn fat and also are essential for well being.
Frequency of meals:
7 x 310 calorie meals each day for an individual that maintain their body weight on 2500kcals. This allows for a small daily reduction in calories and steady weight loss plan of action.
Types of foods:
Protein
- Chicken breast
- Turkey Brest
- Lean steak
- White fish
- Tuna
- Whey protein isolate
- 0% fat yoghurt
- Low fat cottage cheese
- Quark
Carbohydrate sources
- Oats
- Wholemeal pasta/rice
- Wholemeal breads
Pwo Carbs
- Dextrose
- Maltodextrin
- Banana
Fats
- Salmon
- Mackerel
- Peanut paste
- Raw nuts
- Avocado
- Udos – a blend of omegas 3,6,9
- Extra virgin Olive oil
- Fish oils
Supplements
There are many out there but I would just stick to the basics highlighted below to begin with:
- Caffeine tablets for energy and endurance
- Green tea - contains polyphenols and caffeine has been shown to induce thermo genesis and stimulate fat oxidation, boosting the metabolic rate 4% without increasing the heart rate
- Pure iBCCA - for minimal muscle loss and reduced muscle ache
- Pure Whey Protein Concentrate 80 - Pure Whey Protein Concentrate 80 is instantised and undenatured, making it ideal for those looking to boost their daily protein intake, and build (or maintain) a lean, healthy physique. It is also ideal post workout – feeding your muscles fast, when they need it most!
- CREATINE – there are many forms, however i would use monohydrate to start off with and then reassess. Aids endurance, promotes strength gains, muscle gains and increased recovery.
Training for fat loss
- Weights are sometimes overlooked by beginners for fat loss. Simple fact is that weights are excellent for fat burning. The heart is kept at a constant high intensity Style training rate where the heart rate rises sharply and then comes down again at resting between sets. See my next point below.
- High Intensity Interval Training (Hiit training) – Cardio that pumps your heart rate to its max for 1 minute ( for example) and then you lower the pace and in turn your heart rate for a 2 min cool down period and then ramp it back up again for another minute for a 10 hit cycle.
- Steady State Cardio Vascular Training(SSCV) after each weights session choose a cardio machine e.g. stationery bike or cross trainer that allows you to control your heart rate at a constant level. The best percentage you should adopt is between 55%- 65% of your max heart rate for 30-45 mins whilst sipping on BCCA. For example a 30 something male should keep his heart rate between the ranges of 115bpm to 135bpm for the duration of the cardio.
- Fasted cardio – my secret weapon for attacking blubber. Upon waking take 1 caffeine tablet and 1 green tea extract tablet followed by one serving of bcca Excel. Then choose a form of cardiovascular exercise (CV) that will allow you to maintain your heartbeat at roughly 60% of your max Beats per Minute (BPM) in my case about 120bpm for 30 – 40 minutes followed immediately by an isolate protein shake.
By Mark Marcou
