I weigh 164 pounds and I have 10% body fat. I want to gain muscle and lower my body fat percentage. What should I be eating? -Kevin
Well, it’s hard to improve upon ideal—10% body fat is quite good!
To move beyond ideal to near perfection and drop below 10% body fat, your diet will need to be absolutely “clean”—meaning NO refined grains, added sugars, alcohol etc.
Drink at least 8 glasses of water daily, not counting shakes, smoothies or iced tea. Getting enough calories, without excess, is essential.
You’ll need about 150 grams of Protein from egg whites, milk/whey, poultry breast, beans, pork/beef loin or fish. Compliment these with sweet potato, oats, brown rice, quinoa, and corn on the cob to provide your body with complex carbohydrates to drive workouts.
Include healthy fats in each meal, and for snacks have things such as avocado, nuts, nut butters, seeds, olives or canola oil. You can snack on fruit with cheese, yogurt or nuts between meals. Soybeans or roasted soynuts are great, too. You may incorporate protein bars or shakes with about 20 grams of Protein before/after workout. The remainder of your intake should be unlimited vegetables. – Debbie J., MS, RD
Check out some of our other articles right here at LIVING HEALTHY for more tips on reducing body fat percentage.
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10% bf is wonderful, i havent been able to lower mine from 23 and i only want to get it down to 20%, its hard and i dont want to lose muscle, i am a hard gainer.
While eliminating carbs from your diet initially brings about some results in the way of less water retention and a sudden drop in weight, the body immediately puts itself into an emergency state and thus begins to take measures in order to lower its metabolic rate. It will do this through a reduction of thyroid hormone production (which is the hormone responsible for keeping the metabolism high) and the only way to bring this production back up (and thus, boost the metabolic rate) is through an increase in carbohydrate intake. So instead of just eliminating carbs from the diet, a better way to accomplish fat loss when already at 10% body fat is through the use of an advanced technique called carbohydrate cycling. – See more at: http://www.hugorivera.net/fat-loss-tip-how-to-go-below-10-bodyfat-without-eliminating-carbs-from-your-fat-loss-bodybuilding-diet.html#sthash.JYaYa9Bd.dpuf
What is an ideal BMI for a male 6’2″ weighs 180?
A 6’2″ male weighing 180 lbs. has a body mass index BMI of 23.1, within the normal parameters (18.5-24.9 BMI). Weights between 145 lbs to 195 lbs would make said 6’2″ male fall into the normal range for BMI.
Remember, what matters is body composition, so actual musculature versus fat mass makes the most difference in health and physique!
A six-foot two-inch male weighing 180 pounds has a body mass index BMI of 23.1, within normal parameters of 18.5-24.9 BMI. Weights between 145 and 195 pounds would make said man fall within that BMI range.
Remember, what matters most is body composition as actual musculature versus fat mass impacts health and physique.