Dieting as an FTM lifter
How to not crash - diet yourself into oblivion leading to “fuck - it” mode lol
Dieting is something that many FTM lifters find themselves in the midst of, whether it's purely aesthetic and you want to see your abs and get shredded to the gills, or if it’s more health-focused—you want to make sure that your A1C levels are in check and that you avoid any familial history of health issues. We almost all end up here somehow lol.
No matter where your goals lie and what your motivation is, there's a healthy way to go about things to make sure that your success is practically guaranteed. I'll be sharing my personal experiences as well as my professional experiences as a coach specifically for the FTM community. So let's get into it :)
The start point - establishing your baseline
Before devising a plan for your dieting phase, you first need to establish your start point. There are a few key variables when establishing your start point to assess. Don't think in hopes and dreams. Think about what you’re doing right now !
How many steps are you getting each day?
What does your current food intake look like?
How many times a week are you training? Are you generally active or sedentary?
Weigh in fully fasted (first thing in the AM no food or drink) for 2-3 days to find your average !
You can use a food tracking app—I suggest MyNetDiary— take a week and just track your food intake, what you're eating, to get a clear look at what your food intake currently looks like. What is your average protein, carb, and fat intake? What is your average calorie intake? This gives you a clear baseline for your food intake.
Now steps wise, you can grab a pedometer from any online shop and just track a week of steps to see where you fall. This gives you your baseline.
Now, are you doing any cardio? If not, that's something to play with later on in the diet. Do not try to throw a million things at your system at once. Start small and ramp your way up.
The Science Behind the Baseline…
When establishing this start point, you are mapping out your Total Daily Energy Expenditure (TDEE). TDEE is made up of your Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR), the Thermic Effect of Food (TEF), Exercise Activity Thermogenesis (EAT), and Non-Exercise Activity Thermogenesis (NEAT)—which is made up by those daily steps.
Research consistently shows that tracking your baseline before making quick and honestlyemotional changes is critical for long-term fat loss Ws.
How cycles can impact your dieting phase 🩸
(Sorry if this is triggering but it needs to be discussed homie)
Now let’s talk about a major variable normie dieting advice doesn’t take into account… whether you’re on HRT or not, many of us still experience a "phantom cycle."
Personally, my weight spikes by about 2 lbs every month. I hold onto water, feel sluggish, etc I also have clients on lower testosterone doses who still experience actual bleeding, while others have no cycle symptoms at all.
You MUST account for this. If the scale spikes because of cycle symptoms, it does not mean you gained fat, and it does not mean you should reduce your food intake!!
Listen to your body instead of blindly starving it. These are critical differences we have to navigate, and they make our fitness journeys different than cis dudes. Ignoring these variables that make us different doesn’t make them go away and makes your life harder in the end. With love lol.
Devising your plan of action!
Now that you have your baseline for steps, food, and weight, it’s time to make changes (FUN ! lol)
If your weight maintains on 2,000 calories and 5,000 steps, decide whether to increase your steps or decrease your food. Do NOT do both at once, or you’ll use up your resources too soon and burn out.
I suggest a small cut of around 300 calories just to get the deficit going. Don't do too much too soon. Really prioritize protein and carbs - if you’re on testosterone and have that exogenous support + are strength training I like to go with :
15% fat
30% protein
55% carbs
Carbs are going to do a TON of heavy lifting here, and you want to protect your energy + recovery. Protein is important however muscle protein synthesis is not an infinite process so you don’t need more than about 0.75-1g per lb of LEAN body mass.
If you are AFAB and not on testosterone we want your fat intake a bit higher to support hormone production -
25% fat
30% protein
45% carbs
From here, weigh in at least once a week on the same day, fully fasted. If your weight doesn't budge for two weeks, pivot. Decide whether to increase your step count, reduce food further, or introduce cardio. If you love food (same tbh)bumping your steps to 8,000 or adding 10 to 15 minutes of low-intensity cardio (aiming for a 140 BPM heart rate) is a great option to get things moving without doing tooooo much!
How much weight should you be losing?
Now, the rate of loss you're shooting for is highly person-dependent. I have clients who can lose 2 lbs a week and be perfectly fine—still have amazing training sessions, no cognitive decline, and no crazy appetite spikes.
But for the average lifter, losing about 0.5 to 1 lb a week is ideal. It might need to be even slower if you have a naturally high appetite- you can only white knuckle those cheesecake cravings for so long lol. Slow and steady wins the race, unless you have a specific deadline like a photo shoot (feel free to email me for coaching if so lol)
You want to play the long game here. Your hormones, your appetite, and preserving your hard-earned muscle mass are nothing to play around with.
The Science of Rate of Loss & Muscle Retention…
Aiming for a conservative rate of loss—typically 0.5% to 1% of your total body weight per week—is pretty supported by sports nutrition data for preserving fat-free mass.
A study published in the International Journal of Sports Physiology and Performance compared an aggressive rate of weight loss (1.4% body weight loss per week) to a slow rate (0.7% per week) in athletes. The researchers found that the slow weight loss group not only preserved their lean muscle mass but actually managed to increase it slightly while dropping fat (person dependent of course!)
For my fellow FTM lifters, protecting muscle during a deficit is EVERYTHING. An overly aggressive calorie deficit causes a sharp decline in muscle protein synthesis. Research from The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition shows that when energy deficits are too much, the body increasingly relies on breaking down skeletal muscle for fuel, even in resistance-trained and experienced lifters…
TLDR..
Establish a REAL Baseline: Before changing anything, spend a week tracking your actual food intake (using an app like MyNetDiary) and tracking your daily steps to find your true starting point. Don't guess!
Pull Only One Lever at a Time: If your weight is stable, either slightly decrease your food (around 200 calories) or increase your daily steps/low-intensity cardio. Never do both at once, or you'll run out of adjustments too early
Aim for a Steady Rate of Loss: Slow and steady wins the race. Aim to drop about 0.5 to 1 lb a week to protect your hard-earned muscle mass, energy levels, and brain function
Protect Your muscle with Protein & Carbs: Keep protein moderate (around 0.75 to 1 gram per pound of LEAN body weight) from lean sources to rebuild muscle, and don't slash your carbs into the depths of hell. Carbs keep your muscles full with glycogen, and prevent you from feeling zombie mode while training
Track and Respect "Phantom Cycles": Whether you are on HRT or not, hormonal shifts can cause temporary water retention, fatigue, and sudden scale jumps (often 2+ lbs). If the scale jumps during this time, do not crash your food—it's fluid, not fat and don’t mentally crash out either.
Good luck with the dieting and remember you are worth more than having or not having visible abs…
If you’re interested in free guides that includes low cal snacks check it out !
If this all sounds like a lot feel free to work with me on a custom meal & training plan
Should you want thorough Coaching I am taking on 1:1 clients :) Apply here!
