Fitness and diet for results.

staciw

Looking for suggestions. I’m 47 yo female. 5’5” weigh 173 - so overweight. Hormones are out of whack - going through the change. I’m on week 6 of C25K and I’m enjoying it. Have never pushed myself like this before and I’m amazed that my body can do this. I eat a good (not perfect) diet - 80% Whole Foods. Eat between 1100-1350 cals daily with a couple of splurges a month that might take me to 1600. When I started the C25K I started eating better (I was probably eating 2200 cals a day before), yet I have seen no weight loss at all so far. That’s the only exercise I’m doing.

I have a dream trip planned in a little over three months - I’d like to work toward fat loss and some nice base muscle by then. Even though it’s embarrassing - I am probably the healthiest I’ve been in 15 years right now and I want to keep this going. Maybe even become THE healthiest I’ve ever been.

Does anyone have any suggestions for me? Specifically, what should my calorie intake be if I’m doing C25K 4-5 days a week with the intention of gradually reaching the 5k point and staying there 3-4 times a week? What other activity should I add, and would that make a difference in what my caloric intake should be? And at this point, do macros matter??

quiksylver296

Do you use a food scale to weigh everything you eat, and log it all religiously, no skipping, cheating or forgetting? If no, I'd start there.

Check out this thread.

http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10634517/you-dont-use-a-food-scale/p1

staciw wrote: »

Does anyone have any suggestions for me? SEE ABOVE.

Specifically, what should my calorie intake be if I’m doing C25K 4-5 days a week with the intention of gradually reaching the 5k point and staying there 3-4 times a week? What does this website give you for a calorie goal? And you're supposed to log your exercise and eat back (some of) those calories. Most people eat back 50-75% to account for inaccuracies.

What other activity should I add, - Strength training. Maintaining muscle is important, especially as we age.

and would that make a difference in what my caloric intake should be? Again, you log exercise and eat back those calories. So if you add more activity, log it and you'll know how much to eat.

And at this point, do macros matter?? Adequate protein is important. The rest is just your personal preference.

AnnPT77

staciw wrote: »

Looking for suggestions. I’m 47 yo female. 5’5” weigh 173 - so overweight. Hormones are out of whack - going through the change. I’m on week 6 of C25K and I’m enjoying it. Have never pushed myself like this before and I’m amazed that my body can do this. I eat a good (not perfect) diet - 80% Whole Foods. Eat between 1100-1350 cals daily with a couple of splurges a month that might take me to 1600. When I started the C25K I started eating better (I was probably eating 2200 cals a day before), yet I have seen no weight loss at all so far. That’s the only exercise I’m doing.

I have a dream trip planned in a little over three months - I’d like to work toward fat loss and some nice base muscle by then. Even though it’s embarrassing - I am probably the healthiest I’ve been in 15 years right now and I want to keep this going. Maybe even become THE healthiest I’ve ever been.

Does anyone have any suggestions for me? Specifically, what should my calorie intake be if I’m doing C25K 4-5 days a week with the intention of gradually reaching the 5k point and staying there 3-4 times a week? What other activity should I add, and would that make a difference in what my caloric intake should be? And at this point, do macros matter??

Like the seriously strong woman quiksylver296 said above, strength training would be the perfect complement to what you're doing already. Getting stronger feels great, and helps dramatically as we age (stronger bones, longer independence in aging, all kinds of goodness). (I'm 63, BTW, so this is a real-life perspective.)

There's an excellent discussion of some good strength programs here, including some bodyweight programs that can be a good starting point if you don't have access to a gym or equipment:

http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10332083/which-lifting-program-is-the-best-for-you/

Don't be worried - as some women are - by the "lift heavy" rhetoric you may see in some places. It just means "lift things that are heavy enough to be challenging for you", not "break yourself trying to overhead press 2x your body weight on day 1".

I agree with everything else she said in the bolded, too. Personally, I'd say that while I agree with her point about macros (protein is vital for active people), I personally feel that well-rounded nutrition is the friend of anyone with physical goals, because it fosters all-round good health and energy level. To me, that implies getting not only adequate protein, but also adequate fats (much of it from monounsaturated/polyunsaturated sources like avocados, nuts, seeds, olive oil, etc.), and plenty of varied, colorful veggies and fruits for micronutrients and fiber.

(I'm not a religious "clean eater" (hate the term! ), but do think well-rounded nutrition, from whatever foods you enjoy eating, is a useful thing as a foundation for fitness and health.)

Best wishes!