New Member

[LoTeK]

Yo! Thanks for allowing into your corner of the web. It's nice to see such a large group of individuals trying to make a difference in an activity and process they enjoy. For that reason I decided to join and start learning as much as I can.

I'm 44, 6'4 340 lbs. I'm probably 30%bf. I will have to do a test. I dropped down to 280lb 2 years ago just walking every day. I lift every now and again but I'm just inherently big, wide shoulders, size 15 shoes.

I'm wanting to learn the best way to get started on cutting all this fat, I read some on glp1 reta and sounds promising after the release of the phase 3 data.

I don't know if I should go down this route but I just want to look better. I get in the gym and I go for weeks and I don't see any improvements. I can lift heavier, great, but I want some results and they don't have to be fast. I want to learn as much as I can, design a good schedule and start building a low dose regimen and go from there. I'm not in a hurry, I want to be safe with minimal side effect and a lot of knowledge. If anyone has any good links to beginner data I would appreciate it. I'm reading all over the forums. Thank you for your time.

 

[PiscesMoon]

Cheers @LoTeK Welcome to Meso!

 

[adrenalytic]

Welcome to Meso. Nice to see someone trying to do it the right way before hopping on copious drugs. Post up your workout routine, how much time you have to dedicate to training per week, goals (I know you said you want to cut fat but that's too vague. Be specific and intentional about your goals), diet, sleep habits, and recent bloodwork results if you have them.

these are all factors that play into your body composition. Reta is a great GLP-1 for general weight loss but if you have a problem with controlling hunger tirzepitide might be a better choice. Also, consider getting some growth hormone (rHGH). It is great for recomping.

Being a bigger guy you should have no problem putting on muscle and losing weight at the same time as long as you can get your diet, training and recovery in check.

 

[LoTeK]

Welcome to Meso. Nice to see someone trying to do it the right way before hopping on copious drugs. Post up your workout routine, how much time you have to dedicate to training per week, goals (I know you said you want to cut fat but that's too vague. Be specific and intentional about your goals), diet, sleep habits, and recent bloodwork results if you have them.

these are all factors that play into your body composition. Reta is a great GLP-1 for general weight loss but if you have a problem with controlling hunger tirzepitide might be a better choice. Also, consider getting some growth hormone (rHGH). It is great for recomping.

Being a bigger guy you should have no problem putting on muscle and losing weight at the same time as long as you can get your diet, training and recovery in check.

Ty brother, glad to be here.

I'm not great in the gym, I try to stick to a 5x5 routine 3 days a week but can go more. I need to get my gym knowledge up in terms of workouts. Most of the machines I have to look at the picture to see what they do. I prefer the 5x5, squat, bench, deadlift alternating rows. I take 5g of creatine (Thorne) a day in the morning. Diet I need to lock in, I usually eat 2+ chicken breasts a day and I can't get enough roasted broccoli and sweet potato, I love it...

I do eat bad which is why I am as big as I am now. It's tough to knock out 200g+ of protein a day which is why I'm looking for some direction and learning. I always seem to be hungry but that's also bc I stuff myself full of carbs and my insulin goes up, stores fat and hunger goes through the roof.

Anyway..

Goal: To be the most optimal me I can be. Lose fat, build a physique I can look in the mirror and be proud of. Work harder.

Diet: I'm not sure what macros to really hit at my size.
Sleep: Hard for me to sleep, I sit 15 hours a day and work. Night owl, I'm not working out enough in the gym to sleep I bet.
Recent Bloodwork: I will get those, where is the best place you think? Is there an online spot everyone uses? and which bloodwork? a full panel? I'll run over to qwest/labcorp tomorrow.

I'm down to get some rHGH once I get my bloodwork back and get some feedback.

Also I can't thank you enough for the response and direction. I appreciate you.

 

[Elektrobot]

You will find lots of good info here

I'm probably 30%bf.

It's probably higher, but right now it also doesn't matter. I wouldn't worry about body comp tests right now. .... it's just going to tell you that you have excess fat. You already know that.

Focus on building a plan that optimizes for fat loss

Program your training around the idea of preserving muscle while in a deficit.

The idea is that you want to create frequent muscle stimulus so that your body remembers "hey, I'm using that, better not get rid of it". And hopefully it will break down adipose tissue and leave the muscle alone.

Calculate your maintenance calories

I like using this calculator: Bodyweight planner link

Get a food scale

Start using a macro tracking app

Weigh and track everything you eat

Stay in your deficit

As you go, remember there is a difference between fat loss and scale weight

If you are giving your body less calories than it burns in a day, you will lose tissue. Hopefully a majority of that tissue will be fat and not muscle.

Your water weight will go up and down and the scale will reflect that.

Be assured that if you are truly in a deficit and have tracked it carefully to make sure you are staying there.......you will lose tissue. Your body will have no choice. It will happen. Guaranteed.

A lot of people here have had luck with using reta. If you have an interest in starting a GLP medication- you will find all the resources you need here.

Get a calcium score. Google calcium score and the name of your city, and you will find what health networks provide them. They are usually a self pay preventative test that costs about $50. It will tell you how much, if any, calcified plaque you have in your arteries.

Keep in mind that a calcium score does not show soft plaques. A calcium score is a good jumping off point to get to a cardiologist for further cardiac imaging. An echo, cardiac mri, and ct angiogram

If you have high cholesterol- fix it

If you have high blood pressure- fix it. Lower than 120/70

Diet I need to lock in

Make learning about food a hobby. Your food is 70% of your goals right now. The gym will have very little to do with weight loss. Changing our food is where we change our bodyfat %.

Recent Bloodwork: I will get those, where is the best place you think?

Goodlabs is a great service. This link has a referral code that will save you 20% on your tests. It will also give me a coupon for 20%. I'm not shilling. Its a good service.

Goodlabs Link

This is a list of tests another member here put together, comparing prices with Fitnomics.

If you aren't running gear right now, you probably won't need all of these.

But the "full panels" most places sell are probably not comprehensive enough for your anticipated needs.



Ask more questions in the serum blood testing forum if you want to know which test are what. Blood testing is a big topic.

'm down to get some rHGH once I get my bloodwork back

If you plan on starting HGH, make sure to test your natty IGF-1 first. that will be valuable information as start dialing in your dosing.


***** check out this thread for a custom bloodwork panel a member here put together

Thread '“New” Custom Panel'

Nov 4, 2025

So I have seen goodlabs pop up in a few different threads and I did use them for recent bloods. I thought it would be cool to see if a “custom” panel could be made of common labs pulled. With the contribution of the labs @Ghoul routinely pulls I reached out to good labs directly and they made a specific panel. When shopping tests (for quest only) the last panel is labeled Body Builder Panel. Panel is $280, $61 less than ordering each independently, and the below sign up link gives 20% off first order (shameless plug, bastards, this took a few days of my time). Included tests below...

• imthankful
• Replies: 29
• Forum: Serum Blood Testing

• 

 

[adrenalytic]

Elektrobot pretty much nailed it. Things I'll add:

I usually eat 2+ chicken breasts a day and I can't get enough roasted broccoli and sweet potato, I love it...

Make this your cornerstone meal then. If you have to eat it every day so be it. Learn to love rice if you can (no added fats - I use pan drippings from the chicken I cook to flavor it).

I try to stick to a 5x5 routine 3 days a week but can go more. I need to get my gym knowledge up in terms of workouts. Most of the machines I have to look at the picture to see what they do. I prefer the 5x5, squat, bench, deadlift alternating rows.

3 times a week is plenty for a beginner. I would look into full body workout routines for that frequency. If you can go 4+ look into PPL or bro splits.

That's not to say there is anything wrong with 5x5. I did the Fierce 5 split for years. But adaptation is real and it's good to change up the routine every few months. Keeps the muscles guessing.

I do eat bad which is why I am as big as I am now. It's tough to knock out 200g+ of protein a day

Sounds like you know what your problem is, you just need to muster up the willpower to fix it. GLP-1s can be a huge help here. I lost 45 lbs in 3 months of reta (and insane cardio, clean diet). If you just buckle down and get serious you can shed the weight and transform your bad habits into healthy ones that will last a lifetime with discipline. And I gotta tell ya, once you see that lean guy underneath all the fat you will never want to go back.

You can do this brother. Here is me for some inspiration:

 

[LoTeK]

You will find lots of good info here


It's probably higher, but right now it also doesn't matter. I wouldn't worry about body comp tests right now. .... it's just going to tell you that you have excess fat. You already know that.

Focus on building a plan that optimizes for fat loss

Program your training around the idea of preserving muscle while in a deficit.

The idea is that you want to create frequent muscle stimulus so that your body remembers "hey, I'm using that, better not get rid of it". And hopefully it will break down adipose tissue and leave the muscle alone.

Calculate your maintenance calories

I like using this calculator: Bodyweight planner link

Get a food scale

Start using a macro tracking app

Weigh and track everything you eat

Stay in your deficit

As you go, remember there is a difference between fat loss and scale weight

If you are giving your body less calories than it burns in a day, you will lose tissue. Hopefully a majority of that tissue will be fat and not muscle.

Your water weight will go up and down and the scale will reflect that.

Be assured that if you are truly in a deficit and have tracked it carefully to make sure you are staying there.......you will lose tissue. Your body will have no choice. It will happen. Guaranteed.

A lot of people here have had luck with using reta. If you have an interest in starting a GLP medication- you will find all the resources you need here.

Get a calcium score. Google calcium score and the name of your city, and you will find what health networks provide them. They are usually a self pay preventative test that costs about $50. It will tell you how much, if any, calcified plaque you have in your arteries.

Keep in mind that a calcium score does not show soft plaques. A calcium score is a good jumping off point to get to a cardiologist for further cardiac imaging. An echo, cardiac mri, and ct angiogram

If you have high cholesterol- fix it

If you have high blood pressure- fix it. Lower than 120/70



Make learning about food a hobby. Your food is 70% of your goals right now. The gym will have very little to do with weight loss. Changing our food is where we change our bodyfat %.



Goodlabs is a great service. This link has a referral code that will save you 20% on your tests. It will also give me a coupon for 20%. I'm not shilling. Its a good service.

Goodlabs Link

This is a list of tests another member here put together, comparing prices with Fitnomics.

If you aren't running gear right now, you probably won't need all of these.

But the "full panels" most places sell are probably not comprehensive enough for your anticipated needs.

View attachment 373798

Ask more questions in the serum blood testing forum if you want to know which test are what. Blood testing is a big topic.


If you plan on starting HGH, make sure to test your natty IGF-1 first. that will be valuable information as start dialing in your dosing.


***** check out this thread for a custom bloodwork panel a member here put together

Thread '“New” Custom Panel'

Nov 4, 2025

So I have seen goodlabs pop up in a few different threads and I did use them for recent bloods. I thought it would be cool to see if a “custom” panel could be made of common labs pulled. With the contribution of the labs @Ghoul routinely pulls I reached out to good labs directly and they made a specific panel. When shopping tests (for quest only) the last panel is labeled Body Builder Panel. Panel is $280, $61 less than ordering each independently, and the below sign up link gives 20% off first order (shameless plug, bastards, this took a few days of my time). Included tests below...

• imthankful
• Replies: 29
• Forum: Serum Blood Testing

• 

ty ty all valuable information. Calculated my calories below.
In order to maintain
your current weight,
you should eat:

3,550​

Calories/day
To reach your goal of
250 lbs in 180 days,
you should eat:

1,479​

Calories/day
To maintain your goal
of 250 lbs,
you should eat:

3,424​

Calories/day

Food, like I said ill eat anything except for avocados and liver. My go to is chicken, broccoli, sweet potatoes, rice, broth...

With working out how should I calculate the macros?

Protein200-220g
Fat65-75g
Carbs75-100g

I looked up calcium score near me and it looks like I will need to get a referral. So I'll have to find a doctor that will give me one.

I definitely have high BP. I'll get my cardio up and start getting it lowered. It's always been kinda high bc of being southern and big.

 

[LoTeK]

Elektrobot pretty much nailed it. Things I'll add:



Make this your cornerstone meal then. If you have to eat it every day so be it. Learn to love rice if you can (no added fats - I use pan drippings from the chicken I cook to flavor it).



3 times a week is plenty for a beginner. I would look into full body workout routines for that frequency. If you can go 4+ look into PPL or bro splits.

That's not to say there is anything wrong with 5x5. I did the Fierce 5 split for years. But adaptation is real and it's good to change up the routine every few months. Keeps the muscles guessing.



Sounds like you know what your problem is, you just need to muster up the willpower to fix it. GLP-1s can be a huge help here. I lost 45 lbs in 3 months of reta (and insane cardio, clean diet). If you just buckle down and get serious you can shed the weight and transform your bad habits into healthy ones that will last a lifetime with discipline. And I gotta tell ya, once you see that lean guy underneath all the fat you will never want to go back.

You can do this brother. Here is me for some inspiration:


View attachment 373801

Wow! What a transformation! Thank you for that.

I can switch to a PPL, I'll just need to figure out the workouts and days.

ToDo: Food Scale, Calculate Macros, Bloodwork, Calcium Score, Meal Plan, Gym Plan, find glp1

I appreciate all the information! I tried to message you but it wouldn't let me. Cheers Brother!

 

[adrenalytic]

Calories/day
To reach your goal of
250 lbs in 180 days,
you should eat:

1,479​

that is very aggressive. I'd be careful. That kind of deficit can really mess with your metabolism and you could lose muscle in the process regardless of body fat %

Protein200-220g
Fat65-75g
Carbs75-100g

The general rule is 1-1.5 grams of protein per pound of target body weight, fat less than 60 grams and should come from unsaturated sources like nut butters, olive oil, avocado, etc. Fill the remaining calories with whole food complex carb sources.

I definitely have high BP. I'll get my cardio up and start getting it lowered. It's always been kinda high bc of being southern and big.

Def get that under control. High BP is the killer of hearts and kidneys. Consider telmisartan and cilnidipine. Ask your doctor if it is appropriate for you.

 

[Elektrobot]

Calculated my calories below.
In order to maintain

Awesome

That's a very steep deficit.

Can it be done? Yes, and it will be a triumph as well as a fantastic learning experience.


Will there be ups and downs? Probably.

Planning and prepping your food so that you are always prepared and don't end up making last min off plan decisions will help a lot.

I like using the macro tracking app called my net diary. It has a function that scans the barcode of foods and automatically imports the nutrition data. All you have to do is tell it how many grams of it you ate.

Lots of other apps have that feature, but mynetdiary is the only app I know of where this feature is in the free version.

I looked up calcium score near me and it looks like I will need to get a referral. So I'll have to find a doctor that will give me one.

That's unfortunate but I'm sure a dr won't refuse the request

I definitely have high BP

Talk with your dr about treating it.

You mentioned the possibility of starting HGH. HGH will increase your water retention, which in turn will raise your blood pressure.

Same thing will happen if / when you start test

Do what needs to be done to get blood pressure below 120/70 before starting anything. Because once you start, it's going to want to go back up. Keep it controlled.

 

[adrenalytic]

Wow! What a transformation! Thank you for that.

I can switch to a PPL, I'll just need to figure out the workouts and days.

ToDo: Food Scale, Calculate Macros, Bloodwork, Calcium Score, Meal Plan, Gym Plan, find glp1

I appreciate all the information! I tried to message you but it wouldn't let me. Cheers Brother!

thanks my man. You seem like you have the drive to do just the same so get after it! I have DMs disable to keep spammers out but if you follow me you can message.

 

[LoTeK]

that is very aggressive. I'd be careful. That kind of deficit can really mess with your metabolism and you could lose muscle in the process regardless of body fat %



The general rule is 1-1.5 grams of protein per pound of target body weight, fat less than 60 grams and should come from unsaturated sources like nut butters, olive oil, avocado, etc. Fill the remaining calories with whole food complex carb sources.



Def get that under control. High BP is the killer of hearts and kidneys. Consider telmisartan and cilnidipine. Ask your doctor if it is appropriate for you.

Last month I did a 7 day fast with just water. Lost around 25 lbs. I'm sure some of it was muscle and a significant amount of water weight.

That general rule always get's tough for me... 1-1.5g for 250lbs

Protein 250g -- 1kc
Fat 60g -- 450-540c
Carb 65-115g -- 260-460c
Total ~1700-2000c

I will definitely incorporate some protein shakes. I use olive oil, avocado oil, and almond butter every day.

I definitely have a craving for eggs. I eat like 6 - 9 a day with a splash of siracha.

For the high BP, I've tried taking some meds for it but they always make me pass out. I got it under control but changing my habits by walking daily and eating raw spinach with every meal. I will lock in.

 

[LoTeK]

Awesome

That's a very steep deficit.

Can it be done? Yes, and it will be a triumph as well as a fantastic learning experience.


Will there be ups and downs? Probably.

Planning and prepping your food so that you are always prepared and don't end up making last min off plan decisions will help a lot.

I like using the macro tracking app called my net diary. It has a function that scans the barcode of foods and automatically imports the nutrition data. All you have to do is tell it how many grams of it you ate.

Lots of other apps have that feature, but mynetdiary is the only app I know of where this feature is in the free version.




That's unfortunate but I'm sure a dr won't refuse the request


Talk with your dr about treating it.

You mentioned the possibility of starting HGH. HGH will increase your water retention, which in turn will raise your blood pressure.

Same thing will happen if / when you start test

Do what needs to be done to get blood pressure below 120/70 before starting anything. Because once you start, it's going to want to go back up. Keep it controlled.

Ty for the feedback brother. I will get the app and start tracking and get my BP down.

 

[adrenalytic]

Last month I did a 7 day fast with just water. Lost around 25 lbs. I'm sure some of it was muscle and a significant amount of water weight.

I don't think 7 days is long enough to go catabolic but I could be wrong. It was most likely metabolic weight. You'd be surprised how much waste hangs out in our intestines at a given time. Consider psyllium husk if you're not getting enough fiber from food.

I will definitely incorporate some protein shakes.

protein powders are great on a cut - whey isolate or clear have the lowest calories. Just don't rely on them too heavily.

I definitely have a craving for eggs.

Eggs are an ultimate food source. I'd consider egg whites while cutting. The yolk is where all the fat and cholesterol hang out. What I like to do is maybe use 1 or 2 whole eggs then add some egg white to make an omelet. I also add raw egg white to my post workout shakes for that extra whole food protein. You can't taste it. Neat little hack.

 

[Elektrobot]

use olive oil, avocado oil, and almond butter every day.

You might find that cutting fats way down leaves room for calories from other things. Keep in mind that fat has more than twice the calories of carbs and protein. Carbs and protein are 4 calories per gram. Fat is 9 calories per gram. Keeping fat high = less room for calories from other things,

I definitely have a craving for eggs.

If you like them scrambled, try egg whites with 1 whole egg cracked in. If you scramble just the whites, they get kind of watery and it's not very palatable. 1 egg yolk is about 4g of fat, and really improves the texture of the eggs.

In my area, Aldi has the best price on egg whites. I buy them by the case @ $4.79 per 32 ounce carton.