Protein-Sparing Modified Fast (aka Rapid Fat Loss Diet)

[spemma]

This is a log that I had regarding success on a protein-sparing modified fast as taken from Lyle McDonald's Rapid Fat Loss diet. If you want to lose weight fast, while retaining muscle, this diet is very effective and wasn't hard to do at all. It's a one time thing - it's not to be done more than 1x/year. It's just if you are trying to lose some serious pounds in a short time frame, kicking off a diet, or trying to shed those last stubborn pounds.

Rapid Fat Loss Diet
On May 20, 2015, I decided to start Lyle McDonald's Rapid Fat Loss diet. The gist of it is as follows - eat your bodyweight in grams of protein per day; as many veggies as you want (except for starchy veggies); no fruit, fat, etc. It's a protein-sparing modified fast, with some veggies thrown in. I was going to only do it for 2 weeks because I thought it would be hell, but I was able to do it for 4 weeks, and could have gone longer but I reached my goal.

Results
Starting bodyweight - 201.4
Ending bodyweight - 189.6
*Once I started eating normal, I only added 2-3lbs. of water weight.

Diet
On average, I ate about 1,200 cals/day, which is very very low obviously. Majority of those cals were from protein, and the rest with some carbs from low fat cottage cheese, and some tag along fat in my boneless skinless chicken breasts and cottage cheese again.

You get 1 carb refeed per week, where I would eat at maintenance cals, protein still at bodyweight, kept the fat low(er) and had a bunch of carbs...even some candy. You also get 1 cheat meal per week. Lyle specifies to eat that cheat meal at a restaurant, not an all you can eat buffet, so you still practice some restraints.

Btw, the diet rec's are based on what body fat level you are starting the diet.

Exercise
I actually felt okay, only boredom with the food. I still kept my weights up, and was able to train decently in BJJ. My libido sucked though. Although the first week I did it my sex drive was pretty normal. <

Why?
I dieted from 214 to 202. It took me about 3 months. Very slow....mostly my fault, should've done a bigger deficit over that time. But it's painstaking. I went on a cruise and got back up to 205ish after the cruise.

I didn't want another 3 months + to go from 205 to 190. I found Lyle's diet and thought it would be worth a try. Initially, like I said, was only going to do it 2 weeks and was hoping to get down to 195. But the diet was easy enough that I figured I might as well keep it going to get to my goal weight/bf.

[Barkadion]

On average, I ate about 1,200 cals/day, which is very very low obviously.

I've done Leangains protocol several years ago. I was able to drop ~35ish lb over 10 months period while still doing compounds and NONE cardio. My lowest intake was about 1800-1900cals/day. I ended up with ~10%BF and feeling like miserable irritable old grumpy man I am in you weight category and I would probably be dead with 1200cals.....

[spemma]

i tried leangains and like the theory, but i'm a creature of habit and like to just prepare the similar/same foods everyday. it's easy to track, shop for, maintain, etc. trying to do the undulating high fat, high carbs drove me kinda crazy in food planning.

this was only 4 weeks at the 1,200 cals, and only 5/7 days. one day i ate at maintenance, and one other day i had a cheat meal that probably brought my cals up to or past maintenance for the day.

i made sure to chew all my protein. honest to god, other than being bored with the food, there were plenty of times that i was actually physically tired of eating. i had to stuff down some of my protein snacks.