cannboys's Journal, 28 Feb 21

good loss 🥰👌 

Exactly. Great job. 

Did you decrease your protein intake over that time as well? 

Don’t know how you’ve managed to gain fat when doing F45, BUT, when you described what F45 actually entails - 45 minute circuit of HIIT - I was worried that it would have the effect of burning away muscle as well as fat. Maybe you need to do bodybuilding instead, 4 intense half hour workouts per week, 2 x 20 minute HIIT cardio, 1 complete rest day - with sufficient very moderate exercise at regular intervals throughout the day on all days, to keep the burn elevated. I’m in my 11th week of ‘Back to Fit’ which is based on these principles, and I believe it’s working for me now, as it has in the past, despite my abysmally low starting point. 

To my knowledge our main dietary changes in that time were more legumes (lentils & chickpeas), but less eggs (tho I continued snacking on hard boiled eggs every few days). The most likely culprit, was not enough calories on the days we did exercise (which is every day), so my body has burned muscle for energy, because I didn’t have sufficient carbs on board. 

Losing weight overall is still my primary goal, so not especially worried. But longer term it’s bringing down my body fat %, so will need to pay more attention to my macros, fibre etc... 

Not enough carbs will definitely do that, but the amount required is often exaggerated. A 50/50 balance of C:P enable muscle maintenance and growth, no problems, as long as the protein is sufficient. 

Too much protein tho & it can cause misery in the kidneys, so we’re trying to keep protein at sensible limits. 

I looked into this supposed link between higher protein intake and renal function, there’s no conclusive evidence, though other better outcomes were noted for plant protein. 

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3730112/ Health effects of protein intake in healthy adults: a systematic literature review Agnes N. Pedersen, Jens Kondrup, and Elisabet Børsheim 

Unless you already have a problem with your kidneys the studies are showing no decrease in renal function with high protein diets. If your body was eating your muscle your carb intake must have been super low. I would be surprised if you weren't tired alot of the time.  

Yep, the studies show no decrease in renal function on a higher protein diet, and there is no recommended maximum. A systematic literature review on the effects of protein intake in healthy elderly populations suggests 1.2-1.5g of protein per kilo of body weight is a safe daily intake and another study on prediabetic subjects over 55 yo found higher protein diets posed no risk. (I was looking at older populations because I’m one of those decrepit old creatures myself) I’m currently on 150-180 g per day, I will of course have everything tested at my next checkup. Adequate carbs are essential - timing is important - half an hour before workouts is best for a substantial intake. 

My partner’s been told by their Dr to moderate protein intake due to kidney issues. Part of the blessing of shared meals. 

We really need to support some level of hyperlinks in comments after the spammers are dealt with - typing long URLs is quite a challenge...