Hard work, blood, sweat & tears .... for what!??

jacksonpt

Again... it's only effort or work or whatever negative word you want to associate with it if you make it so. Find things you enjoy eating, exercises you enjoy doing, and go on with your life. Once you get things in balance and are doing what is easy and enjoyable, it only takes a little bit of awareness.

Maybe that's semantics (awareness vs effort vs work), but I think it matters here.

chivalryder

The difference between the two options you put up would not really be aesthetically noticeable, however, if you took option two, you will be able to push harder, further, and longer than if you chose option 1.

So I ask you: What are your goals?

iAMsmiling

It's like paying rent.
At the end of the year, all the money is gone, but you had the benefit of a nice place to live.

itgeekwoman

Because you still view it all as work.

^^^This... Your view makes it seem alot like work..
Additional benefits: You maybe less stressed, you get to zone out and do your own thing while at the gym or exercising.. Look around at the different people at the gym and see what they are doing, maybe even talk to some people if you don't.

Sounds like you dislike sacrificing good food for nutritious food, why don't you eat some of the things you miss? Think your going to go to the Dr and he is going to say "You ate a rack of ribs, you now have cancer"

People seem to be missing the crux of my question (my fault!)

1) I eat sensibly and work out moderatly. Play some sport I enjoy and eat some foods I like. Maintaining my current weight

2) I eat VERY sensibly and work out very INTENSELY. Really lifting as heavy as possible. Maintaining my current weight

Now the question is this. If I follow the second option then you would think that my body would look better (stronger and fitter looking) than if I follow the first. Would this be the case? I don't think so, so why not?

You're speaking in pretty relative terms, but taken at face value... If you're at maintenance cals, you'll continue to see changes over time, just not as significant or as quickly as you would if you were at a surplus or a deficit.

After all of that.. I believe that you will be much leaner IF you are watching your food intake as you say you are and increasing your lean proteins. You will lean down. It's the working out intensely and eating sensibly.. and finding that balance that will maintain your weight but allow you to bulk up. You might actually gain weight and slim down.
Good luck. Be positive and enjoy the process.

MariaLivingFit

think of your excellent health and all of the future medical bills you are avoiding. just today I had another reminder of why our future health is so important - my mother lost her balance walking from the living room to the kitchen, could not grab anything to keep her from falling because of the lack of strength in her hands, and she fell. She only has a bruised hip and arm, but it could have been so much worse. maybe avoiding situations like this could be a good motivator?

anemoneprose

Again... it's only effort or work or whatever negative word you want to associate with it if you make it so. Find things you enjoy eating, exercises you enjoy doing, and go on with your life. Once you get things in balance and are doing what is easy and enjoyable, it only takes a little bit of awareness.

Maybe that's semantics (awareness vs effort vs work), but I think it matters here.

I have no doubt you're right Attitude can make it hell or heaven.

But I think there might be some more or less objective changes that have to be made, in order to optimize aesthetic advancements once a person's reached something like the pretty end of their natural 'set point'. (I assume OP's talking about looking ripped.)

Obviously the subjective experience of time at the gym & in the kitchen or what have you matters, but however it's appreciated, it probably still takes x hours and x grams of x to push it to the next level, which is why bodybuilders have to resort to caffeine, IF, etc.

(bulking and cutting, etc etc. It's all fine if a person enjoys that, but I think - coming to deal with this myself - one has to accept limits in improvements if not willing to go there)

jcgbell

The difference is when you don't push that hard you WILL see a deterioration. That is what I have noticed. You think now there was no difference but there is and unfortunately it is hard to see until you go the other direction and it gets harder or the weight sticks on more. The muscle slowly turns to fat etc. I have been at both and I know what you are talking about. Just easier to keep going strong than to slack up and have to pick it up again.

heidiberr

Because you still view it all as work.

^^^This... Your view makes it seem alot like work..
Additional benefits: You maybe less stressed, you get to zone out and do your own thing while at the gym or exercising.. Look around at the different people at the gym and see what they are doing, maybe even talk to some people if you don't.

Sounds like you dislike sacrificing good food for nutritious food, why don't you eat some of the things you miss? Think your going to go to the Dr and he is going to say "You ate a rack of ribs, you now have cancer"

People seem to be missing the crux of my question (my fault!)

1) I eat sensibly and work out moderatly. Play some sport I enjoy and eat some foods I like. Maintaining my current weight

2) I eat VERY sensibly and work out very INTENSELY. Really lifting as heavy as possible. Maintaining my current weight

Now the question is this. If I follow the second option then you would think that my body would look better (stronger and fitter looking) than if I follow the first. Would this be the case? I don't think so, so why not?

Your body should look better because you are feeding it more and therefore it can build muscle more easily.

I've been maintaining since April and my body keeps look better and better with more food + lifting.

postrockandcats

If you're building strength and endurance by running, biking and lifting then you will be healthier and leaner as you'll have built muscle. If you're already lean, you'll look more toned.

You'll also be able to walk further, run further, have stronger bones, have stronger muscles and be a healthier adult. This isn't "nothing."

Wen37

My husband goes through this too. To change his body. He will start eating more. And I mean a lot more, mostly meat and carbs and then continues with the heavy lifting. It makes him bigger. (muscle wise) It works for him.

Wonderob

My husband goes through this too. To change his body. He will start eating more. And I mean a lot more, mostly meat and carbs and then continues with the heavy lifting. It makes him bigger. (muscle wise) It works for him.

I'm not eating more though - calorie neutral

LadyIntrepid

If nothing else (and this is no small nothing), you *stay* fit. It's hard work to maintain, especially as we get older. If you stop doing what you're doing, you will likely gain some weight and backslide some. Maintaining is exactly that - maintaining.

Also, if you're doing the exact same workouts all the time for year, it may be that your body is simply conditioned to it and not generating more obvious results. That's the thing with conditioning -- the more conditioned and fit we are, the harder we have to work (even though we're already working hard!) to see more results. Maybe change things up a bit and see what happens.

LadyIntrepid

P.S. If you do want to build more muscle, you might want to consider bulking and cutting rather than staying consistently calorie neutral.

GrammaBonnie

You keep working so you don't end up like me.

Someone who WANTS -- quite desperately -- to be able to work out. But my body won't let me.

Since March, I've had a stress fracture, a DVT (deep vein thrombosis/blood clot) in my leg, IT Band Syndrome and pinched nerves in my back, which causes shooting pain down the same leg that has had all of the other other issues.

It hurts to walk. It hurts to move my arms. It hurts to get out of bed.

I'll take the hard work, blood, and sweat in trade for what I have ... just the tears.

Sorry, I just came back from a very discouraging Physical Therapy session, and I'm feeling sorry for myself. At least we have that in common.

Wonderob

You keep working so you don't end up like

Whether I work out is never the issue. It's whether I workout till I drop!

Wonderob

hmmm.. you have your health, you are fit, your body didnt gain in a year....you have beautiful children...a beautiful wife n are happy.....hmmm yet your fed up... look at the good my dear...i am sure it outweighs everything.
life does sucks and I know...getting to a place where a person is maintaining healthy and happy can be trying... am there and know all too well.
Take a look at what you have... be thankful...evaluate your goals...redefine and if you want them...sorry to tell you...it will be hard work...
I guess looking from where i am at...your sweat and hard work... even though you remained the same, I feel is a BIG achievement and id be smiling and so happy to have my spouse and family to enjoy it with....but I guess I am looking at my own wl journey.

No not fed up, I'm happy

My point was really that I don't quite understand how this works. If I eat quite well and go through the motions at the gym I would expect to be ABOUT the same after a year. SO what are the tangible benefits of giving it my all?

benefits are you dont' gain weight. you stay healthy.

No the benefits of staying at maintenance calories is that I don't gain weight. The benefits of lifting weights and doing cardio is that I stay healthy. I want to know the ADDTIONAL benefits of going the extra mile when lifting

missym357

The whole point of your question has crossed my mind multiple times. It is what kept me from giving my all and working hard at my fitness in the past. I've always been thin, I've always had low body fat, so what is the point of workng hard???

I can tell you as a lean, thin person that has gotten past that mindset and found motivation from other places aside from vanity, that I have gotten even leaner in the course of a year and more muscular. I have, for the most part, eaten at maintenence- not going out of my way to eat past or under my hunger level. I get a great deal of satisfaction from meeting my performance goals, having visible muscles, feeling strong and healthy, and being able to do physical things at a level that I would not be able to do otherwise. I set a great example for my kids, my husband and my extended family and friends. I enjoy food without any thought about it being 'bad'. Those are all things that are worthwhile.