In 2018, I decided to stop being lazy and started going to the gym. The course to getting from 320lbs to 240lbs has been wrought by many setbacks (COVID, moving, new jobs, new gyms, rich, poor, lymphoma, iron toxicity, high triglycerides, and a slew of other zingers we will get to). But I was always fixated on two basic science elements:
a. You need to burn more calories than you consume to lose fat. End of discussion.
b. You need to build muscle, muscle maintenance increases the floor of your daily caloric burn.
c. I wanted to do both a and b at the same time.
So what did I do? Well I got on a treadmill. That was obvious. Then I started randomly using random pieces of equipment at the gym. This got my weight down to 296lbs in two months (for those doing math, that was 24 pounds in 8 weeks, or 3 pounds a week lost) in the same time I added virtually no new muscle growth. Something was wrong and I discovered it while reading those Men's Health magazines, something about consuming 1 gram of protein per pound of weight. Fair enough, I thought, I will just eat 300 grams of protein a day!
This was, to say it lightly, not easy.
Learning How to Eat "Clean"
One large egg has about 7 grams of protein. I was not, nor will I ever be, in any capacity capable of eating 43 (!) eggs a day. I went on the Abs Diet, which is less of a diet and more of training yourself for a new lifestyle, and is also from Men's Health. Educated, I started eating "clean" and adopted easier foods to scoff down that weren't from a chicken. Like Turkey Chili Con Queso. One serving (a cup) has 18 grams of protein, and I could scoff down 3-4 cups for dinner for a smooth 72 grams of protein. A quarter of the way there! Where I went wrong, was what I was choosing to snack on.
Iron Toxicity from too Many Nuts.
Nobody told me this in my pursuit to get 300 grams of protein, but I started eating trail mix, it hit all the boxes in Abs Diet, it was a mix compromised of mostly peanuts (typical), alongside almonds, walnuts, unsweetened coca bits, and raisins. One serving was very high calorie (180 kcal), but much of it was from the protein (14 grams) and I proceeded to grab a handful several times a day. Then, about two months into my latest addiction I became exhausted, weak, and was actually losing my gains in the gym. The issue? Being a purebred Irish boy, I had what many white men have: iron sensitivity. My ferrous saturation in blood work was 530 ferritin. I immediately dropped nuts from my diet portfolio, and only introduced them back at much more regulated levels of about 1-2 servings a day.
High Triglycerides
Nobody bothered to tell me that all this protein has a best friend hanging around: fat. Fat and protein are best friends and the more I ate of one, the more of the other that came along. Seriously, look at peanut butter's nutrition facts label. Not only that, but Abs Diet was telling me all about the health benefits of Omega-3 fatty acids. So I took those in supplement, too. Moreover, my HGL was low (26) while my LDL was also low (80), but my triglycerides were 240. What gives? I knew that those gross, plain old chicken breasts were in my future so I started a personal investigation into the 1 gram of protein to 1 pound of weight theory. Was it really this high?
Eating 200 Grams of Protein a Day.
I cut my protein intake from 300 grams a day to 200 grams a day. I maintained my gym regimen (HIIT workouts followed by 30 minutes of treadmill at 15% incline or 15 minute jog, 4 days a week). And seen how much more weight I could muster with a bicep curl or bench press or squat. The results? Everything kept increasing despite the decrease. Moreover, my triglycerides dropped to a more modest 170 in the same time period.
How to eat 200 Grams of Protein a Day
Keeping with Abs Diet 6 meals a day regimen, I devised the following meals:
Breakfast
2 Egg English Muffins with Cheddar Cheese = 20g
Snack 1
Apple, sliced, with two spoonfuls of peanut butter = 15g
Lunch
Dbl Quarter Pound Burger (yes!) with cheese, plain, excess fat smashed out with napkins (seriously) = 48g
Snack 2
Gatorade Super Shake Chocolate Flavored, with cup trail mix = 42g
Dinner
Broiled chicken boob, broccoli and carrots (I sub carrots for rice since I am not a fan, otherwise the weight lifters holy grail meal...) = 35g
Snack 3
Oikos Triple Zero Pro Greek Yogurt, 2 cups with fresh berries = 42g
Daily Protein Profile: 202g
We made it! The Abs Diet 6 meals a day is key, especially if you're not like me and detest eating food (weirdo). Of course, much of this is static, although some days I swap the Oikos around for breakfast and nom a couple eggs for a snack and ditch the apple, or double up on the Gatorade Super Shakes. But as you can see, this was far from easy and still riddled with fat (looking at you, double quarter pounder). Although if you listen to Keto Dieticians, this fat is dismissive and instead you should be crying over the 10 grams of carbohydrates packed in the sandwich. I report, you decide.
The Gains
2018 (300 grams a day protein)
Deadlift: 135lb
Bench: 135lb
Bicep Curl: 20lb x 3 sets @ 10 reps
2019
Deadlift: 180lb
Bench: 200lb
Bicep Curl: 30lb x 3 sets @ 10 reps
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2022 (200 grams a day protein)
Deadlift: 240lbs
Bench: 200lbs (...plateau)
Bicep Curl: 35lb x 3 sets @ 10 reps
2023
Deadlift: 420lb (!!)
Bench: 310lb (broke through!)
Bicep Curl: 50lb x 3 sets @ 15 reps
Again, I report, you decide. I broke my plateau, and doubled some areas in a year's time between 2022 and 2023.
