Another Question About Exercise vs Food

rlmadrid

Okay, I know that this has been more than overdone but I searched and searched. I can't seem to find exactly what I am looking for; all I see is debates about exercise calories.

Here's the confusion:
I try to keep my intake around 1700-1900 calories per day. On top of this I aim to burn 300-600 calories through exercise. This places me within MFP's recommended 1440. I originally selected to lose 2lbs per week and was told to eat 1200 cals per day. I found this frustrating and unattainable. I shake, I starve, I get headaches... It was downright awful. Even if I ate more and exercised, I felt horrible. Worse, I had such little energy to exercise when I ate that little, that I felt useless. Since I have changed, I have gradually lost weight... about 7 lbs in 6 weeks. I hate how slow this progress is, but I feel healthy and energetic every day. I feel like I could actually succeed.

Experience directs me to continuing my painfully slow journey. However, ambition pushes me to want more. I want to lose 2 lbs a week, not 1. I want to see success and 7 lbs just doesn't show! :sad: I'm curious about how you guys manage to eat less, but still have the energy to work out. Should I be eating different foods? At different times? Please feel inclined to look at my diary... I really need all the help I can get.

Sidesteal

Since I have changed, I have gradually lost weight... about 7 lbs in 6 weeks. I hate how slow this progress is, but I feel healthy and energetic every day. I feel like I could actually succeed.

Rate of loss is related to amount needed to lose. A 400lb person can lose much faster than a 170lb person, etc. I'm throwing numbers out there to make a point, hopefully you understand where I'm going.

If you have 20lbs to lose, you're kidding yourself trying to lose 2/week and I'd absolutely advise against it.


Stick to your plan.

Zichu

Success shouldn't be determined at how quickly you are losing weight, it should be determined on how long you are able to sustain this healthy lifestyle. Losing 1lb should be fine, you lost 7lb within 6 weeks. So another 13 weeks and you will definitely reach your goal. That's just over 3 months away.

Don't force your body into losing more weight in a shorter amount of time if you can't handle it. If you are getting headaches, feeling weak, shaking and hungry, that really isn't a healthy way of living if you have to keep putting up with it. It's 13 weeks and that's it, you can maintain after that. Time will fly by, you might plateau and find it a struggle to get past it, you might not.


You are doing great at losing about 1lb a week, some people struggle at that. The heavier someone is, the more weight they are going to lose compared to someone a hell of a lot lighter. Don't give up and don't push above your limits.

carol1930

I agree with the others. You should continue with what works for you because this will be sustainable for the long haul. Remember, this is not a diet, but a lifestyle change. Feel good about where you are and continue to move forward. Slow but steady wins the race.

melaniecheeks

You've found a method that works for you (7lb in 6 weeks is fantastic - well done!), and that you can manage without getting weak or shaky.

Stick with it!

Sabine_Stroehm

You don't have a lot to lose. I don't think 2LBS a week is possible, frankly.

Have you ever done one of those diets with an "induction phase" or whatever they call it? You probably wouldn't lose the promised amount there either. 2LBS a week (or more) really is only possible (and sustainable) when you have a lot to lose.

You're doing great. Keep it up!

Martucha123

1 lbs is what you should aim for
and it's only 13 weeks more to go (on average)
stick to what you are doing and even consider going for 0.5lbs per week for last 5 lbs
remeber that weight itself is nothing, you want to lose slowly, preserve muscle, give your skin time to tighten up in the process

juliebeannn

a pound a week is awesome. as others have said, that close to your goal weight, 2lbs/week just wouldn't be healthy.

remember, slow and steady wins the race

ixap

I agree that 1 pound/week is a good plan for someone without that much to lose.

To nudge things ahead just a little, I had two thoughts.

Food -- looks like you are doing great staying within your calories, but I don't see hardly any vegetables in your diary. If you add a generous serving of vegetables to 3 of your 6 meals, you may find you feel a lot more satisfied without increasing your calories. There are lots of really easy options. Frozen vegetables can just be microwaved (broccoli, peas, carrots, edamame); there are fresh veggies all cut up (carrots, radishes, snap peas, cauliflower); prewashed salads (esp. dark green leafies like spinach, mache, romaine), etc. and you can add just a drizzle of olive oil or dab of butter (1 tsp = 40 calories) and a splash of cider vinegar and/or lemon juice, plus a dash of salt, or an .5 to 1 ounce of grated high quality cheese for some flavor. Or cut up zucchini, yellow squash, mushrooms, or other such veggie and saute in a tiny amount of oil and/or top with the above suggestions for flavor. These are all packed with vitamins, water, and fiber and will make you feel great - less bloated so you look thinner, give your skin a healthy glow, etc.

These can make a really really low calorie meal. You can then use the calories saved to apply to the meal(s) right before/after your workout, so that you have the energy you need to hit it a little harder.

Second, what workouts are you currently doing? If you are mostly doing low intensity cardio, you might consider mixing it up with some high intensity intervals and/or adding some weights.

rlmadrid

Thanks for all the support...I guess I was focusing on not making enough progress that I just rejected the progress I made. I'm just at my biggest and I want 135 lb me back. It's frustrating to have gained 25lb in the past two years. I guess I'll just try to stay motivated at the pace I'm going

rlmadrid

I agree that 1 pound/week is a good plan for someone without that much to lose.

To nudge things ahead just a little, I had two thoughts.

Food -- looks like you are doing great staying within your calories, but I don't see hardly any vegetables in your diary. If you add a generous serving of vegetables to 3 of your 6 meals, you may find you feel a lot more satisfied without increasing your calories. There are lots of really easy options. Frozen vegetables can just be microwaved (broccoli, peas, carrots, edamame); there are fresh veggies all cut up (carrots, radishes, snap peas, cauliflower); prewashed salads (esp. dark green leafies like spinach, mache, romaine), etc. and you can add just a drizzle of olive oil or dab of butter (1 tsp = 40 calories) and a splash of cider vinegar and/or lemon juice, plus a dash of salt, or an .5 to 1 ounce of grated high quality cheese for some flavor. Or cut up zucchini, yellow squash, mushrooms, or other such veggie and saute in a tiny amount of oil and/or top with the above suggestions for flavor. These are all packed with vitamins, water, and fiber and will make you feel great - less bloated so you look thinner, give your skin a healthy glow, etc.

These can make a really really low calorie meal. You can then use the calories saved to apply to the meal(s) right before/after your workout, so that you have the energy you need to hit it a little harder.

Second, what workouts are you currently doing? If you are mostly doing low intensity cardio, you might consider mixing it up with some high intensity intervals and/or adding some weights.

I'm really lazy about logging my strength training. :embarassed:
I usually do a 30-45 minute chest/bicep workout and a back/triceps workout each twice a week. For the time being I have stopped doing leg work-outs as it negatively affects my cardio for 1-2 days.
I also do HIIT cardio on the eliptical 5 times a week. Typically for 30-45 minutes and the sequence is: 2 min low to start then 2 min med / 4min high until the last 2 min on low. I try to keep my low resistance at 20%, my medium at 50%, and my high at 70%. I felt that this was enough of a leg muscle workout for the time being.

Is there a more effective way I could be using my gym time?

rlmadrid

Also, thanks for the veggie ideas. They sound delicious!

lissaann22479

You are on the right track, stick with what works!

bcattoes

When I want to lose more, I exercise more. If that means I need to eat more, then I do that too. Just enough not to be hungry and I try to keep it healthy. I lose more slowly when I cut calories than when I increase exercise. Not everyone is the same, but exercise is really the key factor in weight loss for me.

Lleldiranne

Along with what others have said (1 lb per week is great where you are, you can't expect to go very fast with only 20 lbs to lose), keep in mind that, by doing this slowly, you're setting yourself up to be able to maintain long term. If you feel like you're getting enough food you won't crash and go on a binge (probably ) and have to redo 2-3 weeks of effort, either.

I would love to be losing just over a pound a week! I am down to my last 10 and 1/2 pound lost a week is an achievement for me! (Hopefully you don't get to that point, I'm just a wimp when it comes to staying under calories :ohwell: )

ninerbuff

Your goal should be 1% of your body weight per week. Anything more will usually cause your body to "fight" to keep energy higher.


A.C.E. Certified Personal/Group FitnessTrainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 28+ years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

Jbarbo01

I think your diary doesnt look bad actually, Ive seen worse. However, you eat a lot of sugar. A clementine and chocolate milk for breakfast isnt going to fill anyone up. 5 meals a day is supposed to help keep you full, but you dont have to eat like that if it doesnt help. I think you should lay off the sugary stuff for a bit, stay away from ice cream, chocolate milk, alcohol, etc. A better breakfast would be a 1/4 cup of sunflower seeds and two clementines. You want to try to have a lean protein, healthy fat, and a complex carb at every meal. For example a perfect meal would be, grilled chicken, avocado slices, and some brown rice or quinoa. Try eating like that at every meal and see if it helps. it helped me a lot.

rlmadrid

I think your diary doesnt look bad actually, Ive seen worse. However, you eat a lot of sugar. A clementine and chocolate milk for breakfast isnt going to fill anyone up. 5 meals a day is supposed to help keep you full, but you dont have to eat like that if it doesnt help. I think you should lay off the sugary stuff for a bit, stay away from ice cream, chocolate milk, alcohol, etc. A better breakfast would be a 1/4 cup of sunflower seeds and two clementines. You want to try to have a lean protein, healthy fat, and a complex carb at every meal. For example a perfect meal would be, grilled chicken, avocado slices, and some brown rice or quinoa. Try eating like that at every meal and see if it helps. it helped me a lot.

Thanks, I know that wasn't great today but my Meal #1 happens at 5:30 am on weekdays because I start my commute at 6. It's really hard to eat anything solid...I really just eat something to get the metabolism going. Should I just skip it and not eat until 9:30am at work?

ninerbuff

Thanks, I know that wasn't great today but my Meal #1 happens at 5:30 am on weekdays because I start my commute at 6. It's really hard to eat anything solid...I really just eat something to get the metabolism going. Should I just skip it and not eat until 9:30am at work?

"Kickstarting" the metabolism is a myth. It's been scientifically debunked several times over.


A.C.E. Certified Personal/Group FitnessTrainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 28+ years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

mcarter99

I'm curious about how you guys manage to eat less, but still have the energy to work out. Should I be eating different foods? At different times? Please feel inclined to look at my diary... I really need all the help I can get.

I aim for 2 lbs. and usually hit the calorie deficit for 1.5ish, with 20 lbs. to lose. I feel fine around 1200 calories/day, I eat more if I want more, I never feel weak or lacking energy, but I'm miserly with my calories especially the first 3/4 of the day. I get a lot of volume and nutrition in for a small calorie load. It was just finding the foods/meals that work for me, to 'spoil my appetite' without racking up a lot of calories. I do fine with small portions, though. A half bowl of oatmeal holds me fine til lunch so I cut my portion in half. That sort of thing. Just glancing at your recent day, I probably wouldn't eat 200 calories of banana, 140 of choc milk and cereal in a day. Maybe 80 of steel cut oats, 80 of banana and 60 of almond milk. I'm old enough to be your mother, though. You might just need more.

RedHeadDevotchka

Thanks for all the support...I guess I was focusing on not making enough progress that I just rejected the progress I made. I'm just at my biggest and I want 135 lb me back. It's frustrating to have gained 25lb in the past two years. I guess I'll just try to stay motivated at the pace I'm going

Stop thinking about HOW much you NEED to lose. Before you know it you will have lost 10 or 15 lbs and that goal will be that much closer and you won't be as focused. Start taking pictures of yourself instead of using a scale...the scale is deceptive and evil!

rlmadrid

I'm curious about how you guys manage to eat less, but still have the energy to work out. Should I be eating different foods? At different times? Please feel inclined to look at my diary... I really need all the help I can get.

I aim for 2 lbs. and usually hit the calorie deficit for 1.5ish, with 20 lbs. to lose. I feel fine around 1200 calories/day, I eat more if I want more, I never feel weak or lacking energy, but I'm miserly with my calories especially the first 3/4 of the day. I get a lot of volume and nutrition in for a small calorie load. It was just finding the foods/meals that work for me, to 'spoil my appetite' without racking up a lot of calories. I do fine with small portions, though. A half bowl of oatmeal holds me fine til lunch so I cut my portion in half. That sort of thing. Just glancing at your recent day, I probably wouldn't eat 200 calories of banana, 140 of choc milk and cereal in a day. Maybe 80 of steel cut oats, 80 of banana and 60 of almond milk. I'm old enough to be your mother, though. You might just need more.

Maybe it's another myth, but I was under the impression that heavy, carb and fibre laden foods such as bananas and oatmeal early in the day will help me need less food in the afternoon/evening. Sidenote: today I am over by 300 calories based on my planned foods, but I intend to burn more than that at the gym between meals 4 and 5... That just can't be logged until it's completed.

mcarter99

I'm curious about how you guys manage to eat less, but still have the energy to work out. Should I be eating different foods? At different times? Please feel inclined to look at my diary... I really need all the help I can get.

I aim for 2 lbs. and usually hit the calorie deficit for 1.5ish, with 20 lbs. to lose. I feel fine around 1200 calories/day, I eat more if I want more, I never feel weak or lacking energy, but I'm miserly with my calories especially the first 3/4 of the day. I get a lot of volume and nutrition in for a small calorie load. It was just finding the foods/meals that work for me, to 'spoil my appetite' without racking up a lot of calories. I do fine with small portions, though. A half bowl of oatmeal holds me fine til lunch so I cut my portion in half. That sort of thing. Just glancing at your recent day, I probably wouldn't eat 200 calories of banana, 140 of choc milk and cereal in a day. Maybe 80 of steel cut oats, 80 of banana and 60 of almond milk. I'm old enough to be your mother, though. You might just need more.

Maybe it's another myth, but I was under the impression that heavy, carb and fibre laden foods such as bananas and oatmeal early in the day will help me need less food in the afternoon/evening. Sidenote: today I am over by 300 calories based on my planned foods, but I intend to burn more than that at the gym between meals 4 and 5... That just can't be logged until it's completed.

I didn't mean to comment on your food choices, in a bad way. I was just illustrating some portions, mainly. I'm not sure about the macro timing stuff. I think 2 bananas in the morning might not be 'worth' their calories to me because of the high sugar content? I don't track sugar but I think it might not hold me over like 200 calories of say eggs and/or oats- something with more protein and fat. I agree with you- fiber is good for filling you up, and I think I do need less at night if I consistently eat in the morning. Good luck!

rlmadrid

Thanks! I think maybe I should lower the oats a bit and have only one banana. That should be a good start already as it knocks off about 275 cals. I'm glad you took the time to look and give me input!

mcarter99

Good plan. See how you feel. Something I noticed recently is if I add a little flax meal (not a lot, it's high fat/calorie) to my morning oats, it fills me up for longer. I think any healthy fat would have the same effect.

Thank you for being appreciative! I was just thinking this morning how annoying it is when you take the time to look into someone's issue and type up an answer and their response is "bump". LOL

rlmadrid

Good plan. See how you feel. Something I noticed recently is if I add a little flax meal (not a lot, it's high fat/calorie) to my morning oats, it fills me up for longer. I think any healthy fat would have the same effect.

Thank you for being appreciative! I was just thinking this morning how annoying it is when you take the time to look into someone's issue and type up an answer and their response is "bump". LOL

Hmm, I hadn't thought of that but it may be good for me anyway... I don't get a lot of fibre from grains due to gluten intolerance and ibs.

I agree, as useful as "bump" can be I think the person asking the question should take some time to read and respond. Thanks again for all your help.

mcarter99

Do you buy gluten-free oats? If oats bug you, I bet you could get the same fiber+fat punch from like an apple with almond butter or something. Eggs are a good, filling fat+protein source.

It's got to be hard with GI and IBS. I guess the upside is you have a lot of incentive to really watch how food affects you over the course of the day. It's so easy for most of us to just tune out the needs of the 'neck down' if we can, and just listen to our head and mouth and our apps. "It's 6pm, better eat dinner, MFP says I need 500 calories and 15g protein, guess I'll have that chicken..." :laugh:

rlmadrid

Well put, to say the least. Keeps me off the sweets for the most part. I actually buy Quaker Oats as I have seen in forums that they are safe for GF diets and are about 1/4 of the price of the overly sugared GF pouches I've seen. I guess as a student, I'll cut corners anywhere and everywhere.

I'm going to take a few of these tips... No eating "just because" like at 6am. Cut down on sugars. Portion lighter. Flax (and maybe chia seeds as an alternative).

Thanks!