is strength loss during weight loss process inevitable?

alondrakar

This is my first week of calorie counting (this year, I have used this tool before many times) and one of the things I forgot about dieting was that less calories affects my endurance during a workout. My coach demands a lot from me in the hour I meet with him and yesterday was a difficult day. Any suggestions on how I can tackle this issue?

shadow2soul

How big of a deficit are you set to?

Are you using a TDEE - % calculation for your goal or MFPS method?

If using MFPs method are you eating any extra calories to account for your training?

MikePTY

I don't think they are inevitable, as long as your deficit is reasonable and you are not restricting too heavily. I am stronger and in significantly better athletic shape while I have been in a deficit than when I was not in one. I think anyone doing athletic performance has good days and bad days. You may have just been having a bad day.

If you continue to experience issues and are not restricting too heavily, I would look more at the "what" is in your diet. Are you getting enough protein? Complex Carbs? Potassium? Vitamins and Minerals? Water? Sleep? All these things can affect athletic performance. Some tinkering with your diet may be the cure to it.

It's also important to make sure you are eating back all of your exercise calories. If you are not doing that, that could be an issue.

Cassandraw3

Depending on your current level, yes it is preventable. Make sure you keep a small to moderate deficit and get adequate protein (about 1g per pound of lean mass) and fat (about .35g per lb lean mass).

Also, as a female, your monthly cycle can impact strength as well. The site below talks about the impact that can play on strength and training.

https://coconutsandkettlebells.com/training-with-your-menstrual-cycle/

RunsWithBees

If you are doing low carb or keto that might be something to take into account. I tried keto out of curiosity about satiation (I was maintaining though not trying to lose) and my energy levels plummeted, I stuck with it for 6 months to give it a fair shot but I continued to suffer with fatigue, my running performance suffered as well. I stopped the keto and immediately got my energy back, felt normal again, and my running improved. So low carb just wasn’t for me, I need the carbs! Also, check with your doctor and make sure to get a check up. Lots of insidious conditions can zap your energy, like hypothyroidism, anemia, etc.

alondrakar

shadow2soul wrote: »

How big of a deficit are you set to?

So I was hoping that for the first week I would just track to see what I was working with. My NET cals for Monday was 1167 and intake for Tuesday (didn't workout) was 1747. So maybe my lack of energy was due to Monday although that was not done at all on purpose and am making sure it does not happen again.

Daily goal is 1800 (I believe my TDEE is around 2k).

MikePTY wrote: »

It's also important to make sure you are eating back all of your exercise calories. If you are not doing that, that could be an issue.

Honestly, I wasn't planning on eating back my calories but now I am. I burn to much to not eat them back and that is how I found myself under eating on Monday.

Cassandraw3 wrote: »

Make sure you keep a small to moderate deficit and get adequate protein (about 1g per pound of lean mass) and fat (about .35g per lb lean mass).

Thank you for the info! I am tackling my protein intake next week for sure. I know how important that is.

monkeefan1974 wrote: »

If you are doing low carb or keto that might be something to take into account.

I don't like saying the word 'never'.. but I will NEVER do Keto! Ha. I like bread way too much.

Spadesheart

So dependant on how well trained you are, and how high your body fat percentage is, from my reading and personal experience, no, it is not inevitable. That is so long as you are fueling your body correctly. Keep in mind that much of what follows here is anecdotal, but it has been well researched and informed by literature.

So if you are brand new to exercise, there is about a 12 week period (if you are working out regularly) during which you have neuromuscular adaptation. Your brain and body are literally getting used to the exercises, so strength gains are immediate. After that there is more gradual growth, parabolically becoming more difficult to get stronger the more well trained you are.

I am a fairly new lifter, and at this point in my own weight training, I'm in the early part of the second stage. I have a very substantial calorie deficit, losing about 2 pounds a week, and have managed to get stronger every week, as well as build a surprising amount of muscle when I was told that wasn't possible. If you are overweight, calorie counting to your body is a high fat diet. It is metabolising what calories it needs and is not getting from your food from your own fat/calorie reserves. That's why the composition of the remaining food is more important than even I thought, especially if you're trying to maintain or build muscle, as that's what's being used to maintain or build muscle.

When I first was entering the slowing down of strength gains, which really was about a week period of plateau, I tried to find ways that I could continue having growth in the gym as well as have weight loss. What I decided to do, was increase my protein intake to 0.8 grams per pound of goal weight as well as try my best to intake the amount of other vitamins that is suggested. This remains challenging for iron and potassium but I digress. 0.8 grams of protein is heavily suggested on a cut to at least maintain muscle mass. I then continued to log my workouts, pushing myself every session. I do 4-5 weight training days weekly as well as 1 high resistance cardio day. What I found was that I continue to get stronger every week, barring injury.

If I were to have any clear suggestions from my experience, it would be these:

-Make sure you're at least hitting the minimum calories, and trying your best to hit your nutritional needs.
-Protein intake is very important. If you have to go slightly over to get to that 0.8 grams per pound of goal weight number, just research protein dense foods and do it.
-Eat close to exercise sessions. Seriously. Having more than an hour between eating and proper exercise has been demonstrably detrimental to me. You'll feel kind of gassy and gross, but you'll get used to it.
-Push yourself hard, but listen to your body. If you have sharp pains, stop, and maybe go lighter next time.

I realize this is a very annoying new level of difficulty, but it has been working surprisingly well for me, and did almost immediately. From my reading, it is not sustainable forever, as at a certain point, one's body fat percentage becomes low enough as to make it difficult to receive all of that expenditure from your reserves, as your fat can only give off energy at a certain rate, and when you have less there is less to give. I have a scientific journal to explain that. From my tertiary calculations, I haven't hit that yet, so I should be able to continue this way until my goal, and do recomposition thereafter.

If your body fat percentage is already low, and you are already well trained, this is definitely not a route for you.

If you don't believe you could maintain such a diet, as it is somewhat challenging, don't. Slow down. I don't know how high your deficit is and what your goals are, but consistency is the most important. I'm trying to speed through but that's not what is best for everyone. Building muscle is hard. It is not worth losing it. I just wanted to say that it is possible, because I am doing it, and it is working.

pierinifitness

Depends on how strong you were to begin with.

If you’re new to strength training and weight loss, your newbie strength gains can outpace weight loss. If you have done strength training and set some proud PR lifts, then embark on weight loss, more likely than not, you’ll experience strength declines as measured by those lifts.