Each time you hit a plateau in your diet and it seems like you haven’t made any fat loss progress for at least a week, it’s time for a change (though a small one). Just make sure you aren’t rushing the process; if you’re still seeing fat loss progress following the Step #2 calorie and macro guidelines, stick with it.
But let’s say your fat loss results have definitely stalled. Since you want to keep protein and fat where they are to maximize muscle growth and strength gains, your best bet is to whittle away your carb intake.
You’ll reduce carbs by 0.25 grams per pound of body weight each time you need to cut again, which will reduce your total calorie intake by about 1 calorie per pound of body weight. For the 200-pound person, that equates to about a 200-calorie cut.
Since our sample 200-pounder is currently consuming 2 grams of carbs per pound of body weight, his first cut will bring him down to 1.75 grams per pound.
You’ll progressively cut carbs each time fat loss hits a plateau until you’re down to around just 0.25 grams of carbs per pound. That is, if you ever have to get that low. Many people won’t have to get anywhere close to that. It just depends on where you’re starting from, what your training consists of, and how your body responds to the training and diet.
The meals plans that follow show examples of how to drop carbs from your diet with each 0.25 gram per pound cut – starting with an initial cut in carbs from 2.0 grams to 1.75 grams per pound of body weight.
Dieting 101 Key: Where to Cut
What meals to start reducing carbs from depends on when you train. Regardless, you will cut post-workout carbs ABSOLUTELY LAST. For those who train in the morning, start reducing carbs from the end of the day and work up as you continue to drop. For those who train at night, start reducing your carbs from the start of the day and work down as you continue to cut. It gets a little trickier if you train at lunch or before dinner.
SAMPLE CARB-REDUCING MEAL PLAN: DROPPING FROM 2.0 TO 1.75 GRAMS OF CARBS
350 grams of carbs total for the 200-pounder, dropping calories to 17 per pound of body weight or about 3,400 total
30 grams of fast-digesting carbs (preferably dextrose, as found in Post JYM Fast Cards)
OFF DAYS SUPPLEMENTATION
On days you don’t train, continue taking 2-4 grams of CarnoSyn® beta-alanine, taking one scoop of Pre JYM and/or one scoop of Post JYM at whatever time of day you like. (Pre JYM and Post JYM each contain 2 grams of CarnoSyn® beta-alanine.)
SAMPLE CARB-REDUCING MEAL PLAN: DROPPING FROM 1.75 TO 1.5 GRAMS OF CARBS
350 grams of carbs total for the 200-pounder, dropping calories to 16 per pound of body weight or about 3,200 total
30 grams of fast-digesting carbs (preferably, dextrose, as found in Post JYM Fast Cards)
OFF DAYS SUPPLEMENTATION
On days you don’t train, continue taking 2-4 grams of CarnoSyn® beta-alanine, taking one scoop of Pre JYM and/or one scoop of Post JYM at whatever time of day you like. (Pre JYM and Post JYM each contain 2 grams of CarnoSyn® beta-alanine.)
SAMPLE CARB-REDUCING MEAL PLAN: DROPPING FROM 1.5 TO 1.25 GRAMS OF CARBS
250 grams of carbs total for the 200-pounder, dropping calories to 16 per pound of body weight or about 3,000 total
30 grams of fast-digesting carbs (preferably, dextrose, as found in Post JYM Fast Cards)
OFF DAYS SUPPLEMENTATION
On days you don’t train, continue taking 2-4 grams of CarnoSyn® beta-alanine, taking one scoop of Pre JYM and/or one scoop of Post JYM at whatever time of day you like. (Pre JYM and Post JYM each contain 2 grams of CarnoSyn® beta-alanine.)
SAMPLE CARB-REDUCING MEAL PLAN: DROPPING FROM 1.25 TO 1 GRAMS OF CARBS
200 grams of carbs total for the 200-pounder, dropping calories to 14 per pound of body weight or about 2,800 total
30 grams of fast-digesting carbs (preferably, dextrose, as found in Post JYM Fast Cards)
OFF DAYS SUPPLEMENTATION
On days you don’t train, continue taking 2-4 grams of CarnoSyn® beta-alanine, taking one scoop of Pre JYM and/or one scoop of Post JYM at whatever time of day you like. (Pre JYM and Post JYM each contain 2 grams of CarnoSyn® beta-alanine.)
SAMPLE CARB-REDUCING MEAL PLAN: DROPPING FROM 1 TO 0.75 GRAMS OF CARBS
150 grams of carbs total for the 200-pounder, dropping calories to 13 per pound of body weight or about 2,500 total
30 grams of fast-digesting carbs (preferably, dextrose, as found in Post JYM Fast Cards)
OFF DAYS SUPPLEMENTATION
On days you don’t train, continue taking 2-4 grams of CarnoSyn® beta-alanine, taking one scoop of Pre JYM and/or one scoop of Post JYM at whatever time of day you like. (Pre JYM and Post JYM each contain 2 grams of CarnoSyn® beta-alanine.)
SAMPLE CARB-REDUCING MEAL PLAN: DROPPING FROM 0.75 TO 0.5 GRAMS OF CARBS
100 grams of carbs total for the 200-pounder, dropping calories to 11 per pound of body weight or about 2,300 total
30 grams of fast-digesting carbs (preferably, dextrose, as found in Post JYM Fast Cards)
OFF DAYS SUPPLEMENTATION
On days you don’t train, continue taking 2-4 grams of CarnoSyn® beta-alanine, taking one scoop of Pre JYM and/or one scoop of Post JYM at whatever time of day you like. (Pre JYM and Post JYM each contain 2 grams of CarnoSyn® beta-alanine.)
