Data and Knowledge

Collecting and analysing data is worthless unless you turn that data into meaningful knowledge. I have been pouring over my numbers for the last three weeks and it appears I have started to lose lean body mass rather than fat.

I consulted the Bible and Tom says

When you lose LBM and your body fat does not decrease at all or increases this usually means your metabolism has slowed down and you are burning up muscle for energy; you are no longer in fat burning mode. Losing lean mass means you need to eat more to stimulate your metabolism. Severely restricting your calories below the recommended levels will always result in a loss of muscle mass.

So once again I search for the number of calories I should be eating [I adjusted my BF% because I think my scales are generous but I kept the targeted 5% relative adjustment].

So let's say 2200 is maintenance and I am averaging 1600 calories a day (600 under maintenance) and burning 500 calories a day - I am in a calorie deficit of 1100 calories a day or taking in a net calorie total of only 1100 calories which is only 50% of what I need to maintain.

So long story short, I am going to increase my cycle calories to 1550/1950 to give me an average of 1650 per day and see if I can't kick start the fat loss again. This is still under the above recommended estimated daily caloric need for weight loss but I am taking baby steps and going up in small increments.

I must keep reminding myself that this is about maintaining my muscle at any cost, even if I don't get to my scale weight goal in time for the May competition. Part of me really wants to spend the last 8 weeks on a 'strict contest diet' but muscle is too hard to come by to throw it all away just to hit some pre-conceived number on the scale.