Body Recomposition · building muscle while losing fat ｜ Right knee ACL reconstruction + partial meniscectomy · Phase IV — Return to Sport (24+ weeks post-op). The graft is still maturing; keeping weight down is the top priority for protecting the knee.
Protein / day
198g
2.2 g/kg · fish day ~197g / oat day ~190g
Calories / day
2300
kcal · fish day ~2,070 / oat day ~2,110
Water
3L
Spread across the day, more on training days
Fiber
25~35g
At least two fists of vegetables daily
01
Daily Timeline
09:00 – 22:30 · five checkpoints · two menus
Daily total ·
Carb Exchange Tableone serving ≈ 200 kcal · pick any one
Corn2 ears
Soup dumplings4 pieces
Cooked rice150g (~60g dry)
Oats50g dry
02
Weekly Training
StrengthSwim
03
Red Lines
the parts you can't get wrong
Supplement red lines
No further stacking: standalone zinc, standalone vitamin D, any selenium-containing supplement, Brazil nuts (selenium stacking risk)
Zinc cap 40mg/day — Alpha Men already provides 30mg
Switching whey to a 5.5lb bag cuts monthly cost from $160 to about $135
Training red lines
Breaststroke kick: avoid until 6 months post-op (2026-07-27); arms-only breaststroke until then
Jumping / cutting / ball sports: only after in-person PT clearance — never self-unlock
Knee swelling or pain lasting over 24 hours after training = too much load; cut back next session
No knee cave on squat patterns — lighter and clean beats heavy and crooked
Training principles
Progressive overload: clean reps at the top of the range → add 2.5~5kg next time
Operated-side graduation standard: single-leg work matches the healthy side for weight and reps
Running: start with 5-min brisk walk + 1-min jog ×6, increase the running share weekly, progress only if fully pain-free
04
Supplements
about $160/month total
Alpha Men multivitamin 2 caps AM + 2 caps PM, with meals
Micronutrient insurance; already includes vitamin D 4000IU, zinc 30mg, selenium 200mcg
$18
Creatine monohydrate 5g/day, post-workout with whey
Post-op quad strength recovery, strongest evidence base
$4.5
Collagen peptides 15g, 1 hour pre-workout
Raw material for tendon / ligament / graft remodeling
Replaces the fish day dinner only (short ribs 180g); bump the bedtime yogurt to 250g that day.
Never on an oat day — the protein won't hold up.
Instant-noodle day≤1 / week
Replaces lunch; drop in 200g of shrimp.
That day's carb budget is spent.
Soup dumplingsDemoted
Demoted to a lunch carb option (4 pieces) — no longer a standalone breakfast.
06
Shopping List
Costcoevery two weeks · Pentagon City
Kirkland frozen salmon
Chicken breast or frozen shrimp
Eggs, 24-36
Greek yogurt tub + cottage cheese
Frozen corn
Beef short ribs (portioned 180g, frozen)
Frozen soup dumplings
Frozen mixed vegetables
Whole Foodsweekly · downstairs at Navy Yard
Creamy milk
Coffee beans
Fresh leafy greens for the week
Don't buy meat at Whole Foods (50%+ pricier); Whole Foods for weekly top-ups, Costco every two weeks.
07
Progress Tracking
Weightsame time every week
Waistevery two weeks
Progress photosevery two weeks
Operated vs healthy legtraining load gap
6-month expectation: 90kg → 82-84kg, right-leg strength catching up to the left. Smaller waist + bigger legs = success; a slow-moving scale is not failure.
Never below 2,000 kcal — too large a deficit breaks down muscle and impairs graft maturation.