New with a Few Questions/Concerns :)

morkiemama

Hello all!

You seem like a great, friendly group of people. I've been a lurker for a long time now. I was waiting to start until I started a heavy lifting program to really get into this mentality, but it no longer looks like that will be happening any time soon as I do not have access to a gym.

So, I have a few questions before I go and jump head first into something that might get me into a pickle lol.

Do I need to lift heavy before starting a program like this?

Lately, I've been doing C25K at least 3x a week (averaging around a 400cal burn according to my HRM). Sometimes I run more, sometimes I throw in a DVD, but my schedule is a bit hectic with prepping for my CPA exam coming up. I do run at least the 3x per week at a minimum. I would love to lift heavy, but it isn't in my cards right now.

How much weight gain are we talking if I begin following this new way of eating?

My sister's wedding is in late September and I need to continue to fit in the bridesmaids dress I have already ordered (and I don't want to look puffy in the pictures >_<). I can easily begin the regimen after the wedding if I do not have enough time for my body to adjust beforehand.

A few things about me:

5'5"
141ish lbs
23 years old

My MFP goal sets me at 1480 net. I always eat back my exercise calories. Thus, on non-workout days I usually hit 1480 and on workout days I generally average around 1600-1800 cals total (meaning I try to always net around 1480).

I've recently begun focusing on hitting my protein macro. I am focusing on that more than my overall diet at this time. There is significant room for improvement in my eating and I know that. Note: These past few weeks have been particularly bad on the quality of calories, but I'm working on it.

I do not know my BF% and have never been tested for it.

morkiemama

Okay, so I went to the Scooby site and it gives me the following estimates:

BMR: 1459

TDEE: 1751

Goal: 1488 (15% reduction)

The goal is close to my MFP net.... sooooooo does that mean I should try to NET the 1488 or I should be eating 1488 flat and not eat back my exercise calories?

I have Scooby set to desk job because I do not do much outside of my exercise. Am I supposed to include my exercise into Scooby because it isn't like MFP that adds it in after?

Sorry. I'm a bit confused. >_<

bethad5

Okay, so I went to the Scooby site and it gives me the following estimates:

BMR: 1459

TDEE: 1751

Goal: 1488 (15% reduction)

The goal is close to my MFP net.... sooooooo does that mean I should try to NET the 1488 or I should be eating 1488 flat and not eat back my exercise calories?

I have Scooby set to desk job because I do not do much outside of my exercise. Am I supposed to include my exercise into Scooby because it isn't like MFP that adds it in after?

Sorry. I'm a bit confused. >_<

Yes, include your activity level on Scooby. Then when it gives you those three numbers (BMR, TDEE, and Goal), if you just want to do the cut, eat the Goal value - every day. Don't eat back exercise calories because they're already factored in, UNLESS you burn more than your net BMR. But eat that 'goal' number every day, including days you don't work out

StephieWillcox

You definitely need to go back and reconsider your numbers - your TDEE will be quite a lot higher than that when you take into consideration your exercise.

Also, although people do gain weight in the reset phase it usually isn't too much - but it depends on your background. Since you have always eaten enough to make sure your net is above your BMR I would suspect upon won't gain much (if anything).

Personally I had eaten at 1200 for years, with binges, and I have so far gained 5/6 lbs in over 6 weeks of EM2WL, so nothing major. Also I think the scale is starting to move back downwards.

As for lifting, everyone says it is a good thing to do as it can drastically change your body composition and shape and you can lose MEGA inches, but I also can't join a gym and am getting on perfectly fine with my Jillian Michaels Dvd's and 3kg (6.6lb) weights.

You can always adjust your calories slowly if you are worried (I.e up 100 cals at a time) or just jump straight on in (like me).

I'm sure one of the moderators will jump in to clear things up for you, but I hope I helped a bit

Good luck! X

mommamuscles

Hi and welcome!
First of all, its not "required" that you lift heavy, but your results will be better if you do. You can do quite a bit with body weight exercises and there are some great workout videos out there that you can do from home with minimal equipment.
Sounds like right now your activity level falls somewhere between lightly and moderately active on the scooby site. You do want to make sure you are choosing the correct activity level and then recalculate as you revamp your workout schedule. Its hard to tell without knowing your stats, but it does seem like your calories are pretty low.
I wouldnt expect you to gain much weight, as you havent been following a super low calorie diet. Anything you do gain should be water weight. Everyone is different. Some people don't gain at all, others begin losing right away, and others gain a small amount of weigh for about 6-12 weeks before the scale starts to turn around.
Hope that helps a little!

morkiemama

Thanks all for your input!

I took the suggestions and recalculated factoring in my exercise.

Here is the light exercise:

BMR 1459

TDEE 2006

Goal (-15%) 1705

Versus the moderate exercise:

BMR 1459

TDEE 2262

Goal (-15%) 1922

I'm not sure which to go with. My exercise varies a lot. Some weeks I can easily do 3-5 hours (moderate) and others I only make my minimum 3 hours. I would say a 200 cal difference isn't going to make or break me, but what do I know? :P lol

mommamuscles

I think if I were you I would average the two activity levels. Should be a good starting point. Keep us posted on your progress!

morkiemama

I think if I were you I would average the two activity levels. Should be a good starting point. Keep us posted on your progress!

Thanks again for all your help! I appreciate it.

I'm going with 1815 as a daily goal. I will (hopefully) eat this consistently each day and not eat back my exercise calories and see progress.

I'm a bit nervous about jumping in like this before the wedding, but I have 14 weeks so I'll give it a go! I'm a bit scared about putting on weight, but I have faith this will work. I just wish I could lift heavy like I planned when getting into this thing. I will try to look up body weight exercises to compensate.

morkiemama

Bad news. I just tried on my bridesmaid dress and I have absolutely NO wiggle room AT ALL. If I put on weight, there is no where for it to go. This makes me extremely nervous. However, I'm going to forge ahead and pray it works... I'm really scared now though. I thought trying it on would make me feel better and I could see how much room I had and still be okay. It had the opposite result. -_-

I don't even know how this happened, since it fit fine in May. I didn't change up my routine that much since then either. : /