If I Got Fat Again, Here’s Exactly What I’d Do

Losing fat and building muscle aren’t mysterious. Learn what you’re eating, learn how much you’re eating, and stop fucking guessing.

I’ve already been the overweight guy.

I’ve been the guy who used to train, stopped training, had kids, got busy, gained weight and eventually looked in the mirror and realized:

Well, fuck. How did we get here?

So let’s say tomorrow morning I somehow woke up there again.

I’m carrying considerably more body fat than I want. I’m out of shape. I want to look muscular again, and the internet is throwing approximately 47 different diets, supplements and “metabolic hacks” at me.

What would I do?

Honestly, almost exactly what I did before.

And the first thing I wouldn’t do is obsess about getting huge.

I’d focus on getting the excess body fat off first.

Why I’d Lose the Fat First

Can you build muscle and lose fat simultaneously?

Yes.

This gets oversimplified in fitness circles.

Body recomposition can happen naturally, particularly in people who are relatively new to resistance training, returning after a long layoff, or carrying significant body fat.

Resistance training during a calorie deficit also helps preserve lean tissue, particularly when combined with adequate protein.

So if you’re overweight and start lifting while losing fat, you might gain some muscle at the same time.

Fucking fantastic.

Take the win.

But personally, if I found myself significantly overweight again, I wouldn’t structure my entire plan around trying to maximize two competing goals simultaneously.

My primary objective would be:

Lose the excess fat while preserving as much muscle as reasonably possible.

Then I’d transition into a muscle-growth phase from a considerably better starting point.

Calories In, Calories Out

People hate this phrase because it sounds too simple.

Calories in. Calories out.

But energy balance matters.

Over time, if your body is consistently taking in less energy than it expends, stored energy has to make up the difference.

If you consistently consume more energy than you expend, that excess energy has to go somewhere.

That doesn’t mean hormones don’t matter.

It doesn’t mean medications don’t matter.

It doesn’t mean sleep, stress, appetite, genetics, activity levels or food composition don’t matter.

They can affect hunger, energy expenditure, training performance, adherence and how easy or difficult the process becomes.

But none of them magically repeal energy balance.

So if I were starting over, I’d first figure out approximately how much energy I was consuming and approximately how much I was using.

Meet Your New Best Friend: The Food Scale

You know what changed my understanding of nutrition more than almost anything?

A fucking food scale.

Not a supplement.

Not a diet book.

Not an influencer.

A scale.

Because people are generally terrible at eyeballing food.

A tablespoon of olive oil can become two tablespoons pretty damn easily.

A serving of nuts can become three.

The bowl of rice you thought was 200 calories may not be remotely close.

That doesn’t mean you need to spend the rest of your natural life weighing individual blueberries.

It means that when you’re learning how much you’re actually eating, measurement beats guessing.

Put the food on the scale.

Read the nutrition information.

Learn what a serving actually looks like.

Eventually you get considerably better at estimating.

But first?

Learn.

Learn to Read the Fucking Label

Calories.

Protein.

Carbohydrates.

Fat.

Serving size.

Those five pieces of information will take you remarkably far.

If the package says one serving is 28 grams and you ate 84 grams, you didn’t eat one serving because emotionally you felt like it was one serving.

You ate three.

The nutrition label isn’t judging you.

It’s giving you data.

Use it.

Figure Out Your Starting Calories

This is where TDEE comes in.

TDEE means Total Daily Energy Expenditure—roughly how much energy your body uses across an average day.

There are formulas that can estimate it based on things like age, sex, height, weight and activity.

Eventually, The Evil Daddy will have its own TDEE and calorie calculators because I want you to be able to plug your information in and get a reasonable place to start.

But here’s the important word:

Estimate.

No online calculator knows exactly how many calories your individual body burns tomorrow.

It gives you a starting point.

Then the real experiment begins.

You eat a reasonably consistent amount.

You track your bodyweight.

You watch the trend.

And you adjust.

Your results refine the estimate.

If I Were Overweight Again, I’d Establish a Calorie Deficit

Not starvation.

Not:

“I ate 900 calories today and did two hours of cardio. Why do I feel like shit?”

No kidding.

I’d establish a reasonable calorie deficit that allowed me to consistently lose weight while still training hard and consuming adequate protein.

The goal wouldn’t be to make the scale fall as rapidly as humanly possible.

The goal would be:

Lose fat while retaining muscle, performance and my fucking sanity.

Faster isn’t automatically better.

Protein Becomes Even More Important

This connects directly to how I structure my normal diet.

During a fat-loss phase, I still prioritize protein.

My personal target generally lives around 0.8–1 gram per pound of bodyweight, depending on what I’m doing.

Protein helps support lean tissue.

Resistance training gives my body a reason to keep that tissue.

So I’m not losing weight by eating lettuce and walking around angry.

I’m lifting.

I’m eating protein.

I’m controlling calories.

And I’m letting time do its job.

The Foods Don’t Change

This is probably the most important thing I can teach you about how I approach fat loss and muscle gain.

Here is what my diet might contain while I’m losing fat:

Chicken.

Turkey.

Steak.

Fish.

Shrimp.

Greek yogurt.

Skim milk.

Protein powder.

Rice.

Potatoes.

Quinoa.

Vegetables.

Fruit.

Olive oil.

Avocado.

Nuts.

Cheese.

Now let’s say I’ve finished the fat-loss phase and I’m ready to focus more heavily on building muscle.

What’s on the menu?

Chicken.

Turkey.

Steak.

Fish.

Shrimp.

Greek yogurt.

Skim milk.

Protein powder.

Rice.

Potatoes.

Quinoa.

Vegetables.

Fruit.

Olive oil.

Avocado.

Nuts.

Cheese.

What changed?

The fucking amount.

Fat Loss and Muscle Gain Don’t Require Different Grocery Stores

This is where people make nutrition considerably more complicated than it needs to be.

When I’m cutting, portions come down.

When I’m trying to grow, portions can go up.

Maybe that’s less rice during a fat-loss phase.

Maybe it’s more rice during a growth phase.

Maybe fats get adjusted.

Maybe overall meal sizes change.

But I don’t suddenly throw away every food in my kitchen because I’ve moved from one goal to another.

The foods don’t necessarily change. The amount of food changes.

That’s the principle.

Why I’d Rather Get Leaner Before Focusing on Growth

There’s another reason I personally prefer this approach.

Excess body fat—particularly visceral adiposity—is associated with insulin resistance, while weight loss in people with overweight or obesity can improve insulin sensitivity.

Resistance training itself can also improve insulin sensitivity.

That matters for general metabolic health regardless of whether you give a shit about bodybuilding.

But I want to be careful with how I describe what happens afterward.

Getting leaner doesn’t create a magical nutrient-partitioning switch where every carbohydrate suddenly flies directly into your biceps.

When I transition into a muscle-growth phase, resistance training remains the stimulus telling my body to adapt.

Calories provide energy.

Protein provides amino acids.

Carbohydrates help support hard training and replenish glycogen.

Recovery allows adaptation.

Improved metabolic health is a good thing.

But there’s no magical anabolic cheat code.

Then I’d Slowly Change the Goal

Eventually, I reach a level of body fat I’m comfortable with.

Now the objective changes.

I’m no longer primarily trying to lose fat.

I’m trying to build muscle.

So what happens?

I increase food.

Not:

“CUT IS OVER. ORDER THREE PIZZAS AND RELEASE THE KRISPY KREMES.”

😂

I deliberately increase calories according to what I’m trying to accomplish.

Then I watch what happens.

Bodyweight.

Mirror.

Pictures.

Measurements.

Gym performance.

Recovery.

And I adjust again.

Which conveniently brings us to the next article.

Stop Reacting to Individual Weigh-Ins

One more thing.

Your bodyweight is going to fluctuate.

Water changes.

Glycogen changes.

Sodium changes.

Food sitting in your digestive tract changes.

You take a shit.

You don’t take a shit.

Life happens.

So if you’re 214.2 pounds Monday and 216.0 Wednesday, you didn’t necessarily gain almost two pounds of body fat because you looked at a potato.

Look at trends.

I prefer consistent weigh-in conditions and averages over time.

One measurement is information.

A series of measurements becomes a trend.

The Scale Is Data, Not a Moral Judgment

This is something people need to understand.

If the scale isn’t moving the direction you want, it isn’t insulting you.

It’s not calling you fat.

It’s not disappointed.

It’s a measurement instrument.

Same with the food scale.

Same with calories.

Same with measurements.

They’re information.

Use that information to make decisions.

Don’t attach your self-worth to it.

What I’d Do From Day One

If I woke up overweight again tomorrow, I’d keep this remarkably simple.

I’d estimate my calorie needs.

I’d establish a reasonable deficit.

I’d buy a food scale.

I’d learn nutrition labels.

I’d prioritize protein.

I’d eat mostly the same whole foods I already eat.

I’d resistance train.

I’d track my progress.

And then I’d adjust based on what actually happened.

Not based on what some asshole on Instagram promised would happen.

Once I’d lost the excess fat?

I’d keep eating largely the same foods.

I’d simply eat more of them.

That’s it.

No metabolic reset.

No detox.

No secret food combination.

No ancient Himalayan fat-loss berry.

Just calories, protein, training, measurement and consistency.

And everyone’s genetic response will differ.

That’s why calculators give you a starting point.

Your results give you the answer.

Eventually, you’ll be able to use the Evil Daddy TDEE and calorie calculators to establish that starting point.

And if you don’t want to figure out all of this shit yourself, Evil Daddy coaching is coming soon.

We’ll build the plan around your goals, schedule and actual life.

No magic.

No bullshit.

Just a starting point, a plan and enough data to know when something needs to change.

⭐⭐⭐⭐☆

Five stars require a food scale.

Raw sources:

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26817506/

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24092765/

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21558571/

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28642676/

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34135111/

Once the work is underway, use more than the scale to track whether it is actually paying off.