same work every day, feeling sore and weak

crimsongrey

I own a horse farm and do a lot of manual labor every day. I've been doing this type of work for 15 years and although it's always been tough, over the past year I've been feeling really sore and weak from the same amount of work. Lugging buckets of water, cleaning stalls, lifting 50lb bags of grain, etc. It's all feeling really hard lately. I'm getting older (46), but I think I'm pretty fit. Would it make sense for me to lift weights or would it just make me even more sore and tired? I already do cardio a couple of times a week.

RuNaRoUnDaFiEld

I'd see your Doctor, just to get a blood test and see if you're deficient in some thing.

RoxieDawn

Are you also trying to lose weight while doing all this labor intensive work?

jessicapk

RoxieDawn wrote: »

Are you also trying to lose weight while doing all this labor intensive work?

I second this! If so, you might simply be eating too little.

As far as cardio, if you're already doing all this manual labor, ditch it and work on your strength. But make sure you're eating enough at the same time. Your body needs fuel.

kenyonhaff

You may need to be doing stretching and work on flexibility. If you've been focusing on strength, you may not realize that overbuilding, slouching, bad posture and so on is slowly making it harder for your body to rebound. Age is also a factor, of course. But as Indiana Jone quipped, "It's not the year, it's the mileage."

crimsongrey

I've had blood work recently and everything is good.
I am trying to lose weight and am doing a modified low-carb diet, which I've been on for about 6 weeks. Despite all the work I do, I'm still not losing much weight. I'm confused.
I like to do cardio for my mental health.

RoxieDawn

crimsongrey wrote: »

I've had blood work recently and everything is good.
I am trying to lose weight and am doing a modified low-carb diet, which I've been on for about 6 weeks. Despite all the work I do, I'm still not losing much weight. I'm confused.
I like to do cardio for my mental health.

Could lack of carbs in your diet along side dieting be something to look at?

How many calories are you eating and what did you setup MFP to lose weight each week? And activity level?

stanmann571

crimsongrey wrote: »

I've had blood work recently and everything is good.
I am trying to lose weight and am doing a modified low-carb diet, which I've been on for about 6 weeks. Despite all the work I do, I'm still not losing much weight. I'm confused.
I like to do cardio for my mental health.

Low carb often contributes to low energy levels.

Unless you're doing low carb for other health reasons, there's no reason to not up your carbs, as long as you're monitoring your calories.

How are you tracking your calories?

Poisonedpawn78

crimsongrey wrote: »

I've had blood work recently and everything is good.
I am trying to lose weight and am doing a modified low-carb diet, which I've been on for about 6 weeks. Despite all the work I do, I'm still not losing much weight. I'm confused.
I like to do cardio for my mental health.

Are you tracking the calories of your food by weighing them? How much is "not losing much weight" have you lost at all? Are you sure low carb is the right diet for you? Low carb isnt really meant for athletes and people who do lots of manual labour. You need to replenish your glycogen stores which mainly comes from carbs.

Need2Exerc1se

crimsongrey wrote: »

I've had blood work recently and everything is good.
I am trying to lose weight and am doing a modified low-carb diet, which I've been on for about 6 weeks. Despite all the work I do, I'm still not losing much weight. I'm confused.
I like to do cardio for my mental health.

When you had blood work did they specifically test for a thyroid problem? You are at the age when the risk of thyroid problems increases greatly for women so you might want to mention the fatigue and problems with weight loss to your doctor. Those are classic symptoms of hypothyroidism.

We don't have horses but I also live on a farm and know the type of work it takes to keep it running. How long have you been eating low carb? Did the problems begin about the same time? You might try upping your carb intake a bit and see if it helps.

LivingtheLeanDream

Sounds like a lack of food and carbs - it takes carbs to help us with energy.
You might have chosen too aggressive a calorie deficit and your body its telling you to feed it.

cmriverside

Yeah, you still didn't mention how many calories you are eating.

I know for me, if I try to cut too much I get the same problem but when I add back some food it solves it.

Try setting your Goals less aggressively, this site's goal wizard is sometimes way off. I know for me it underestimates by about 600-700 calories per day. Try eating more.

leggup

crimsongrey wrote: »

I've had blood work recently and everything is good.
I am trying to lose weight and am doing a modified low-carb diet, which I've been on for about 6 weeks. Despite all the work I do, I'm still not losing much weight. I'm confused.
I like to do cardio for my mental health.

Low carb = low energy for a lot of people. If you've been on it for 6 weeks and you haven't lost weight, then you are netting your maintenance calories. Low carb does not always lead to weight loss, a calorie deficit is what is needed. What's you % macro split? How are you measuring your calories?/carbs?

crimsongrey

Thanks for all of the input! To lose 1.5 lbs/week, MFP says to eat 1200 calories a day. I haven't been tracking my calories lately so I'm not sure where I am with that. Maybe I'll start adding in some carbs and tracking my foods to see if it helps. I chose the low carb option b/c it's worked really well for me in the past. However, when I used it before I probably wasn't doing as much physical labor. I have had extensive blood work done (thyroid, B12, Vit D and a few others) and the only thing that was abnormal was a really low Vit D. Now that I've been supplementing for that, I feel great other than the soreness and weakness. I also do a gentle yoga once a week to help my back problems....maybe I'll do it more often to work on flexibility. If I add more carbs, should I do some lifting to get stronger?

rheddmobile

The soreness is odd, I think - I can think of many diet and health related reasons why you would suddenly be tired, but not many reasons that your muscles would start becoming sore from the same amount of work you have done for years with no soreness. What did your doctor suggest as a reason for this? If your doctor blew you off, find another doctor.

Your age should not be a factor. My mother is 81 and did all the things you mention today.

mmapags

You goal is likely too aggressive at 1.5 lbs per week and you aren't getting enough nutrition to fuel your activity. What is your current weight and your goal weight?

Add in low carb and that would explain the lack of energy and recovery.

crimsongrey

current is about 160, with a goal of about 140.

mmapags

crimsongrey wrote: »

current is about 160, with a goal of about 140.

Yes, way too aggressive. You are within 20 lbs of goal weight. 1 lbs per week max. 3/4 or a half would be even better. You don't have the fat/energy stores to make up that difference. As you are closer to ideal weight, the rate at which you lose should be slower. Reset your goal, eat more and I'm betting your energy level will get better.

And, you are very active. You need adequate carbs!! If you need input on setting appropriate macros, say so and I'm sure you'll get some some suggestions.

crimsongrey

I blame beer for the gaining of weight, despite all the work. I haven't had any in over 6 weeks.

crimsongrey

What types of carbs would be best? Fruits? Grains? ??

mmapags

crimsongrey wrote: »

I blame beer for the gaining of weight, despite all the work. I haven't had any in over 6 weeks.

Certainly cutting beer will significantly reduce calories. 2 beers a night is an extra 300 calories. Good carbs like fruits, veggies and some grains will help sustain your energy level.

crimsongrey

will give it a shot. How many calories should I eat at my level of activity?

mmapags

crimsongrey wrote: »

will give it a shot. How many calories should I eat at my level of activity?

I'd plug it into MFP as active and 1lb per week. Give it a try and adjust from there based on results. What was your activity level set to previously.

Maxxitt

If your muscle pain and feelings of weakness persist despite tweaking your nutrition, see your primary care provider to rule out a medical issue.

ahoy_m8

crimsongrey wrote: »

What types of carbs would be best? Fruits? Grains? ??

The kind you like best! Eating at a 250 calorie daily deficit (to lose 0.5 pound per week) doesn't mean you shouldn't enjoy every meal. Women should get at least 25g fiber daily, but beyond that eat what you enjoy.

Fwiw, I, too, think your deficit is waaay too aggressive for the amount you have to lose and your current weight & activity. I weigh 115 lb, and I can't sustain 1200 at much lower activity than you. AND I'm older than you. Try more food. Also, a food scale takes away the mystery and guess work, greatly simplifying weight loss. It's also very handy in the kitchen for many things besides plating your meals. Best $10 you can spend for weight loss.

crimsongrey

I just changed my settings to Active vs. Lightly Active and my goal to 1lb/week and it bumped my calories to 2000/day instead of 1200. That scares me. I don't want to gain, but I'll try it.

mmapags

crimsongrey wrote: »

I just changed my settings to Active vs. Lightly Active and my goal to 1lb/week and it bumped my calories to 2000/day instead of 1200. That scares me. I don't want to gain, but I'll try it.

I think you set it appropriately. Do this for about 6 weeks and assess what happened and adjust from there. It is generally a good idea for women to give it 6 weeks to get through 1 cycle +. That way the water weight fluctuations of a cycle are averaged out.