Losing to much weight, need help with diet.

spongela

I am trying to tone up and build some muscle, i do cardio and weights 5 times a week, but at the same time i am losing to much weight. I want to maintain a healthy weight but dont want to put on to much fat. Any suggestions on what i should include in my diet.

MaureenCreates

In building muscle your body is burning fat, and you need to burn off the fat to see the muscle, right?
But how much do you weigh? How much are you losing?
What kind of diet are you incorporating? Would you consider opening up your diary's privacy so we can take a look to be able to help you out better?

EricMurano

I hear that the body builders like doing HIIT as their cardio. It's the long, endurance cardio that burns lean body tissue.

Do your own research, of course

NyxDominique

Make sure you at drinking or eating protein after each workout. Protein will help build and restore muscles.

spongela

Well i am trying to maintain my weight pretty much, but i dont think i am eating enough at the same time. I weight about 135 pounds right now. I have opened my diary up.

spongela

I am trying to maintain at least 140 pounds as i am 5ft 8

flimflamfloz

You should include a lot of proteins in your diet, if you don't do that already - something like 50% of your cals from proteins.
Fat AND muscle loss is unavoidable, but you will lose less muscle.

If I were you, I would reach an ideal weight/body fat percentage, and then increase the portions to build muscle on top.

Also if you are starting, you might be losing a lot of fat - which is good for body definition as pointed out by someone earlier (EDIT: just saw your post.. this is unlikely )

2nd EDIT: IMO your daily goal (1200+ cals) is a joke for someone who do a lot of training and intend on gaining muscles. You should increase that to a maintenance level at least! (1600+ if you want to build muscles).
Your calorie intake is basically too low... So yep, you're losing weight. Which might be fine in most cases... but not when you're that close to your goal weight.

MaureenCreates

Yeah, that isn't enough calories for a muscle building diet.
Change your calorie goals to "maintain weight", you'll probably be given at LEAST 1600 calories as a base depending on your activity level.
Eating healthy and clean is very important for muscle building, you have to give your body enough to feed the muscles to build them properly. As we all know, protein is massively important.
Check out BodyBuilding.com, they have a lot of really good information!

spongela

thanks for the advice guys., i pretty much thought i wasn't eating enough calories and probably need to include more protein in my diet as well.

MyEi

Hi. You need to do a bit of research. Take a wrist measurement to check your body frame (small med large). find a chart that will show your height, weight and body frame and find the optimum for you. Had a quick look at food diary. Your diet doesn't appear to be varied, try different foods, more vegetalbes, pulses/lentils, white meat, fish, low GI foods. I found the men's exercise magazines more useful than women's particularly strength training and diet. There comes a point were you need to eat the calories that you are burning in workouts. The bodies metabolism contiunes to burn higher 24 - 48hrs after strenous exercise. I'm 177cm and 64kgs, at the peak of my weight lose/training hit 58kg BMI 18.5 and had similar concern that you do. Now trying to tweak back down to 61kgs! Goodluck hope I could help:)x

nsimportant

Estimate your daily calories like this.
Get a week or two week period

Start Weight = x (lets say 80 kg or lbs doesnt matter)

Current Weight = y (lets say 77 or lbs doesnt matter)

Sum your calories from those days = z (lets say eating 1300 cals a day in two weeks thats 1300*14 = 18200 )

1kg of fat or 2.2lbs of fat is around 7000 calories.

for kg ((x-y) * 7000 + z)/14 = (((80-77) * 7000) + 18200) /14 = 2800 calories needed per day.
for lbs ((x-y)* 3181 + z)/14 = (((176.36 - 169.75) * 3181 )+ 18200)/14 = 2801.88 calories needed per day

Its an estimate of your maintenance calories deduct that by 500 to 700 (2300/2100) and you should be loosing around 0.5 kg or 1 lb in week if you keep training like You do.

This is what I do don't take my word for it ... cos who am I

My recommendation is eat at least 1 gram of protein for 1 lbs body weight.
Depends on your height around 30-35g fats rest carbs.

spongela

Yeah i agree i do need a more varied diet, i am just looking for some nutrition advice online

laddyboy

Bottom line is if you continue to eat like you are you're going to continue to lose and you'll also eventually run out of energy. You are only neting 7-8 hundred calories a day. Not good. You will slow your metabolism too and start storing fat. Sounds like fun times are ahead. Eat at a slight surplus 50-100 calories aday & do high reps on the resistance workouts 12-15 reps to gain some lean sexy muscle.

spongela

What are good resistance workouts to do?

MyEi

Hi - book I found useful loads of nutritional advice and core resistance training you can work in some lunges and arms plenty on internet. the Abs Diet David Zinczenko. If you are with a gym do ask the staff for advice correct technique is important so not to do an injury. Goodluck