How many extra calories for weight training?

Domane1963

Hi there, First the bad news, I'm a 50yo granny. But the good news is that in my head I'm still only 12 and deciding what I want to do when I leave school!!! I'm also an active one who runs 5km a couple of times a week and goes to the gym 2-3 times a week too. On top of that, I also have four horses that keep me active daily, especially with poo-picking!!

I've been overweight for most of my adult life and yo-yo dieted, but earlier this year, with my 50th birthday looming, I overhauled my food intake, pretty much gave up all "white carbs", took up the running, switched to 5:2 fasting and calorie counting and have lost 46lbs. I've now hit the target I gave myself and I'm wondering if I'd be stupid to start thinking about weight training to tone up my new shape body? I've been lucky that the weight came off sensibly, with the running helping me to tone so I haven't really got any saggy 50yo skin but I'm a definite "pear" shape and would like to still tone up my thighs, abs and upper arms. I don't want to look like a body-builder, just a bit more svelte.

Having read on here that you can't build muscle whilst eating a calorie deficit, I'm wondering what percentage of additional intake I should be eating for general toning? I'm nervous about venturing down the "additional calories" line for obvious reasons, having had yo-yo problems in the past, but to be honest, this is the first time I've really committed to improving my life so I know things will be different this time round.

Or perhaps I don't NEED anything additional for what I'd like to achieve (???) Any tips or advice would be gratefully received, thank you.

Jane

FrnkLft

First of all, poo-picking... that's nasty.

Moving on, pick up a copy of New Rules of Lifting for Women. It will answer your question about "general toning", and give you a good basis for moving forward. Don't have to do the routine at the end of the book though, I find it overly complicated.