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Greetings all. About five months ago I was 178 and now I am 180-181. I usually eat a little less than I did when I was 178. Yet when I eat the quantity I would when I was 178 my weight goes up a pound or two. I have definitely gained muscle since the 178 but I wish to burn some fat but the couple of pounds just isn't coming off on the scale unless I start cutting back food alot, which is detrimental. Any suggestions? A typical diet of mine would be a 1-1.5 lb steak, 5-6 chicken thighs, and a fruit shake in the morning consisting of 16 oz oj, half an apple and pear and a banana. I train for 2-3 hours every other day in tae kwon do and usually weight train once or twice a week between that. I don't use salt or shady sauces or anything like that.

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3 Answers

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Stop eating so much fruit! And that 16 oz of orange juice, if pasteurized, is like poison to you!

If you're gonna consume that much sugar in the morning, at least temper it with some protein such as chicken sausage or bacon or fish. Avoid fatty protein sources if you're gonna eat so much sugar because it might all get stored as fat! And find a non-pasteurized juice source, like pineapple juice or fresh-squeezed oranges.

But ideally, you should minimize your sugar intake, especially if you want to lose body fat. So I'd suggest cutting the fruit in the morning and switching to eggs and avocados. Maybe add a few blueberries or strawberries to your chicken plate if you can't do without some sugar.

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 Agreed. No good reason to drink 16oz. juice. Even fresh-squeezed oranges are probably best avoided except as an occasional indulgence, especially if you want to lose some fat. Try just eating protein and fat in the mornings, no carbohydrate at all, for a few weeks, and see how you do. – JJ Apr 6 2010 at 17:37
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 To be concrete, that 16oz of OJ is essentially equivalent to 16oz of coke -- see hookedonjuice.com. Replace your smoothie with some fried eggs cooked in butter or coconut oil and let us know how it goes. – Michael Apr 10 2010 at 16:04
16 oz of oj equivalent to 16oz coke? haha maybe if you were drinking sunny d – Sky Apr 10 2010 at 23:42
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 raw orange juice 16 oz = 42 g sugars, didn't break into fructose/glucose/etc Carbonated beverage, cola, contains caffeine 16 oz = 44 g sugars source - nutridata.com always look it up – Karen Jun 25 2010 at 12:06
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Have you tried intermittent fasting? IF can get you through a plateau in your body composition quest. There are several previous threads on IF, including this one: http://paleohacks.com/questions/3/intermittent-fasting .

I agree that a 16+ oz. fruit smoothie is way too much. I estimated your fruit shake to have 105gm of carbs, using this chart: http://www.ntwrks.com/ . You're getting a full day's worth (or more) of carbs in one serving, which really spikes your insulin level. Try skipping breakfast and train fasted. Have a small smoothie (6 to 8oz.) if you must, but only after training, to replenish glycogen.

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I am not trying to lose weight necessarily I am just wondering why when I am eating less than I was at 178 I actually weigh more. – Sky Apr 6 2010 at 18:05
@Sky: I consider 100 gm of carbs per day to be a weight maintenance level for most healthy people, if you spread them throughout the day (see Mark Sisson's "The Primal Blueprint"). If you consume them all at once, as in a fruit shake, it may spike your insulin level high enough to throw your body into a slight weight gain mode. It's not just what you eat, but when and how you eat it that counts. – Ed♦ Apr 6 2010 at 19:04
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 Sky, you're weighing more because of all the sugar you're consuming in the morning. – gilliebean♦ Apr 10 2010 at 21:08
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Fructose is much more fattening than other carbs. Compared to other fruits, pears and apples are very high in fructose. Perhaps switching to lower-fructose fruits such as strawberries, cantaloupe, peach, etc. for your fruit shake would make a difference.

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