Newbie Question(s) about EFAs(and cutting)

[Statementstyle]

I am currently in the process of figuring out a good diet that will work for me. I intend to start a bulking period over the next month+ I don't know my specific goal realistically, since I don't have much experience. But my guesstimate/uneducated goal would be to add 10-15 lbs of muscle(and fat) over the next few months.

I weight 165 and I'm 6'4, I don't know my bf% exactly but I think it is around 14% So, I'm a little flabby for being a skinny guy, I'd like to add a little more mass and then cut a little bit of fat after that.

My question about EFAs is this: Does supplementation of Essential Fatty Acids have an effect on fat already present in the body? I have been reading plenty about it, many sources say that EFA fats are less likely to be stored as fat, this is good, but is that limited to just EFA intake? At the moment my diet is observing a slight caloric deficit as I figure out exactly how and when and what to eat. I have been fitting it around 5-6 small meals a day. By the end of yesterday I consumed 2286 calories, 147g protein and 64g fat. That's just for now, I will be refining this over the next weeks. I figure I probably need closer to 3000 calories to start bulking.

64g fat seems like a lot but almost all of it was from 'good' sources(flax oil, canola oil and the likes). there was probably only 12g of saturated fat tops. No trans fat at all.

Is that bad?

I chose Muscle Milk as a MRP for inbetween meals, that accounted for 32g of fats which are mostly EFAs.

Should I be worried of consuming too many EFAs. When people say they are more likely to be used as energy than stored as fat, does that mean that they can be stored as fat? if so, under what circumstances will they be stored as fat and not energy?

Also, does supplementation of EFAs help prevent your body from eating your muscles in the case of caloric deficit?

Sorry if these questions are a little beginner, I've been researching as much as I can, but sometimes it can be difficult to find conclusive or practical information.

My last question is about caloric deficits and muscle loss. Currently I'm planning on going into a bulking phase, I understand the general concept(and many specifics) of bulking, eat more, grow more, lots of protein, carbs, etc..etc. But after that I would like to do some cutting. I am much less knowledgeable about cutting. In a cutting phase, how do you prevent your muscles from cutting too?

Is it correct that eating 5-6 meals a day with a slight caloric deficit will only burn fat and not muscle?


thanks for any help.

[Mad120987]

you want fat to be around 20% of your diet. 1 gram of fat = 9 calories. 1 gram of protein= 4 calories and same for carbs. So if your fat intake comes in the range of 15-25% your fine. Protein you want to be around the 30% range and carbs to be around the 50% range.

For cutting, i believe you should cut calories and not just cut carbs. Maybe cut some carbs but dont try to go on a atkins type diet. If you want to loose fat without loosing muscle or the minimal amount, you want to create around a 500 calorie deficit from your maintinence calorie needs. IMO the best diet is a "zig zag" diet where you have a 500 calorie deficit for 3-4 days then 1 day at maintenence and repeat. You will also want to have the most carbs in the morning and pre/post workout. Try to eat only fiberous carbs (veggies) for your last meal while cutting.

also while cutting, you will want to do cardio 3-5 times a week. I suggest HIIT because it is less likely to burn muscle while doing it than long distance medium intinsity cardio.

You got a good grip on the bulking idea but i might bump the calories up another 200 or maybe even 500 calories so that you would hit between 3200 and 3500 calories. 2800-3000 calories seems too much like a maintenence diet for a guy your heigth.

I would go to www.thefitnesshub.com to take measurements to get an estimate on your bodyfat and to track your meals.

I cant really answer your questions about EFA's. I do know that you want to avoid saturated fats and definately stay away from trans fat. I also know that the fat you want to take in are EFA's but other than that, i cant tell you much.

Best of luck to ya bud!

[Statementstyle]

Thanks for the input.

I have one more question, with regards to caloric intake. I understand that it is optimal to eat 5-6 meals a day with about 500-600 calories in each(scaling up with your own personal requirements). How big of a deal is it if you miss one meal? Is it much of a detriment to double up on calories for the next meal or the next 2 meals to compensate?

[Mad120987]

its not the end of the world but its best to get it. Sumo wrestlers eat one meal a day cause it helps them gain weight. Eating smaller frequent meals allows you to speed up your metabolism by constantly feeding it and it also allows you to use more of the nutrients you feed yourself by not giving it way more than it can handle to digest and absorb at once.