Fitness Grind Second Opinions

slw732

Hi everyone! Firstly, I appreciate you taking the time to read this and any feedback you may have for me! I am currently on a 'mad fitness grind' as I call it - training for a half marathon in March followed by a marathon in the fall. That's all well and good and I have shifted my focus from weight loss to fitness, however.....I can't help but feel discouraged by my weight loss results. I have lost weight although the amount has been nothing to write home about.

My diary is public. It might be beneficial to have a couple of opinions, maybe you can spot some habits that may be hindering me?

I look forward to hearing from you! Thank you

rsmorlen

After looking at your diary, I'd say you aren't staying consistent with how much you eat at different times of the day. You'll eat a big lunch some days with almost no dinner, no lunch with a huge dinner, or small lunches and dinners with a tone of snacks. You need to be consistent.

Also, how is it you've already logged what you've eaten today when the day has just begun? This leads me to believe your diary is inaccurate.

Have you tried eating 5-6 smaller meals every 3-4 hours that are roughly the same calorie densities? That may also help with weight loss.

TavistockToad

After looking at your diary, I'd say you aren't staying consistent with how much you eat at different times of the day. You'll eat a big lunch some days with almost no dinner, no lunch with a huge dinner, or small lunches and dinners with a tone of snacks. You need to be consistent.

Also, how is it you've already logged what you've eaten today when the day has just begun? This leads me to believe your diary is inaccurate.

Have you tried eating 5-6 smaller meals every 3-4 hours that are roughly the same calorie densities? That may also help with weight loss.

meal timing is irrelevant... it doesnt matter if the OP has some big lunches and some big dinners as long as she is hitting her calorie goal and macro goals.

as for pre-logging, its a great way of making sure you hit your goals, i always log the whole day after my breakfast as i will have prepared my lunch (weighed and measured everything) and know what i will be having for dinner... if it changes through the day, you can change your log. probably more accurate than logging at the end of the day in case you forget something you have eaten!

TavistockToad

Hi everyone! Firstly, I appreciate you taking the time to read this and any feedback you may have for me! I am currently on a 'mad fitness grind' as I call it - training for a half marathon in March followed by a marathon in the fall. That's all well and good and I have shifted my focus from weight loss to fitness, however.....I can't help but feel discouraged by my weight loss results. I have lost weight although the amount has been nothing to write home about.

My diary is public. It might be beneficial to have a couple of opinions, maybe you can spot some habits that may be hindering me?

I look forward to hearing from you! Thank you

diary looks ok... i would just make sure you were using the most accurate record in the database... for example your coffee with milk in cant then be carb and protein free... make sure you weigh and measure EVEYTHING.

with only 5kg to go, and given that you are training for a half and then full marathon i would suggest changing your calorie goal to lose 0.5lb per week and make sure you are eating your exercise cals back. but i wouldnt expect a lot of weight loss as you dont have much to lose now anyway.

maybe add some strength/resisitance a couple of times a week to help retain muscle.

guytr

I dont know much but it looks like you maybe eat way too much fat. I only checked back about 6 days into your diary. I'm not saying your high fat intake is the cause for your weight problems....I'm just making an observation.

woodml1

I would tend to disagree about your fat macros. While it's true that you are over on fat lots of days, most of your fats are from healthy sources (nuts, nut butters and avocados). Omega fatty acids like that actually pay a role in metabolizing stored fats and can help you lose weight. Also for me personally, I've found that when I drop my fat intake to the 'recommended' level I have a much harder time controlling my cravings. But that's just me!

I would suggest increasing your protein and fat macros by 5% and decreasing your carb macros by 5-10%. You may want to continue to eat higher higher carb on days before and/or of your long runs. Also, keep in mind that you'll only need to carb supplement (i.e. energy gels) when your long runs go over 1 hour at a pop.

And, as others have said, expect any weight loss to be slow while you're training!

ElliottTN

You may be more disappointed in the near future. All my long distance friends have complained that they actually started gaining weight while training for marathons. Go figure.

I found this little gem online:

Untrained athletes who begin an endurance-training program can increase their body’s ability to store muscle glycogen by 60-70%. Endurance-trained athletes consuming a high carbohydrate diet and/or carbohydrate loading can also increase muscle glycogen stores by nearly double that of the untrained state.
As you may have read in the article on carbohydrate loading, for every ounce of glycogen, the body also stores 3 ounces of water. That extra water your body is storing will show up as extra “weight” on the scale. Water weight will contribute even more to overall weight if you are being more diligent at staying hydrated than you were before beginning your training regimen.
Water weight will fluctuate throughout the days and weeks and is not reflective actual weight gain as fat mass. Remind yourself that being able to store extra glycogen and fluids is a good thing- you will need this for training and especially race day.