Um... what? Overwhelmed with information :(

rainingsun
rainingsun Posts: 5
in Fitness and Exercise
Warning, this might get long-winded so bear with me please!!!

So I recently got a gym membership to help motivate me to go to the gym (i'm currently unemployed so need to get my money's worth!). I have dabbled with weight lifting over the last year by doing some Jaime Eason programs but they became too cumbersome and complicated and I lost interest. I did the food plans too but it was way too bland and egg-y for me (5-6 hardboiled eggs a day!) I am about to start the All Pro workout next week tho :)

I'm just confused how to manage my diet and cardio (I hate cardio but love a good sweat and get winded walking up 4 flights of stairs). I am a 5'7 female who currently weighs 130lb, so I am not looking to lose weight but just get fit and be less squishy haha. I plan to weight lift 3x per week, and 2x do cardio + abs (I have bad posture and a weak core so I think this will also help) and/or yoga.

Now,my question is a) is 20-30 mins jogging at a moderate pace too much to maintain muscle? I am planning to work on my protein intake b) according to IIFYM my BMR is 1368 and my TDEE for 5x week exercise is 2000 cals. Should I go by cals or macros?? I have trouble going up to or over 1200 on most days unless i try really hard and getting to 1400 is a bit tough. I am hoping to aim for 1500.

In short....does anyone have recommendations for what has worked for them? Should I even bother counting calories??

Replies

  • pander101
    pander101 Posts: 677 Member
    Your macros are suppose to be fitted inside your calories. If you don't want to lose weight or gain weight you need to be aware of what you are eating. So if you want to stay at maintenance weight you need to eat at a maintenance level. Your jogging sounds fine. Exercise regimes are something you kinda of to tweak as you go. But to be less "squishy" you probably want to lower your bodyfat percentage. Lifting weights will help.
  • MeanderingMammal
    MeanderingMammal Posts: 7,866 Member
    Now,my question is a) is 20-30 mins jogging at a moderate pace too much to maintain muscle?

    Your mistake here was believing the fiction that CV eats muscle...

    You're talking about 200-250 calories per session, if that. You'll be fine.
  • rainingsun
    rainingsun Posts: 5
    thanks for the input guys!
  • dbmata
    dbmata Posts: 12,950 Member
    Yes count and analyze your intake.

    20-30 minutes won't impact your muscle. If it were me though, I'd go for 3 days lifting, 3 days cardio, and make those cardio sessions an hour each.

    You definitely don't want to be winded by 4 flights of stairs unless you're sprinting up them.

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