P90 and lack of energy - day 50

twosteps

Hi Everyone

I already posted this in the Fitness and Exercise forum, so apologies if you've already seen it. I only just found this group and thought it might be sensible to ask you guys too.

I'm a 28 year old female, 5ft 4in, 149lb and I've been at P90 for 50 days now. Although I'm still enjoying it, I'm really struggling with energy levels and drowsiness.

When I was doing level 1/2 I had tons more energy and felt great, but now I feel constantly exhausted. I want to keep going but I always feel stiff (not muscle sorness, just feel creaky when I stand up etc) and I am always very tired and want to sleep.

Did anyone else experience this? Does this sound normal?

I'm not actually following the food plan, because I had weight loss surgery two years ago and therefore can only eat small amounts at a time and need to graze to get enough in to sustain me. Do you think I need to start on some recovery drinks or something?

I'm taking a complete multivitamin/mineral daily and a typical day's food for me looks like this:

Breakfast: 1tbsp meusli, 1 tbsp greek yoghurt, 1/2 tbsp mixed seeds, handful blueberries, dash of milk and a coffee
Mid Morning: 10 almonds and 15 grapes and a coffee
Lunch: Thai tuna salad (approx 1.5 cups) OR 2 oat cakes and some cheese OR yesterday's lefover dinner
Afternoon Snack: Post workout diet protein shake blended with ice
Dinner: Chicken and vegetable stir fry with brown rice (approx 1.5 cups)
Other/treats: One treat daily such as bag of crisps, small bar chocolate, an ice cream, a glass of wine
Drinks: 5 pints water, maximum two caffeinated drinks per day, unlimited roibos tea

I try and aim for approx 1400 calories net.
ie) 1650 calories eaten on Sweat day, less P90 250 calories = net 1400
1550 calories eaten on Sculpt day, less P90 150 calories = net 1400

I did try calculating my TDEE as someone on here suggested, but it was telling me to eat 2250 calories, which I don't think sounds right?

I have booked to see a nutritionist on Wednesday so hopefully she can give me some feedback and suggestions to boost my energy levels. fingers crossed I can find the issue soon before I run out of steam entirely!

Any suggestions will be much appreciated. Thanks everyone.

*falls asleep at her ipad*


N.B. Edited as forgot to mention TDEE

rhondac46

Hi,
I have 2 weeks left and I can definatley relate to what you are saying. I am hoping someone comes through with some answers. I have been pushing harder the last month but I too am exhausted. I crash alot halfway through my workouts. I eat alot of protiens over 100 grams a day,drink a nutritional shake Shakeology. I need help too! What supplemnets are good for recovery? I basically eat the same amount of calories as you.

twosteps

Hi,
I have 2 weeks left and I can definatley relate to what you are saying. I am hoping someone comes through with some answers. I have been pushing harder the last month but I too am exhausted. I crash alot halfway through my workouts. I eat alot of protiens over 100 grams a day,drink a nutritional shake Shakeology. I need help too! What supplemnets are good for recovery? I basically eat the same amount of calories as you.

So glad I'm not the only one! x

jenneal89

I would definitely try eating a bit more and drinking more water and see if that helps.

Barberini

I think you need to eat more, at least for a week or so, and see if it helps your energy levels. Eating at TDEE (the number you got sounds right to me) you won't gain, so worst case scenario you don't lose weight for a week or so. Not a big deal in the grand scheme of things, and if it makes you feel better then you are definitely going to be thankful you did it. I eat 1700-1900/day doing p90x (Day 43, 5'3" and 115 pounds, but I am actually going to increase to 2100 on my strength days (TDEE 2100). I feel crappy if I am not eating enough for the amount of exercise I am doing. Eating at TDEE you don't eat back your exercise calories, so I suggest eating around 1800-1900 (which is a decent cut under your TDEE so you will still lose weight) and seeing how you feel. If you create too much of a calorie deficit you won't lose much weight and you will become exhausted and unable to workout at your maximum to get the results you want.

Edited to add: You might even benefit from eating 2200 for a couple of days to give your body the fuel it needs, then cutting.

twosteps

Thanks for the advice.

I guess I need to try and get over my fear of regaining the weight I've lost and at least try eating more for a couple of weeks and see how I go.

Just been drilled into my brain over the years to eat under 1500 calories , but I wasn't doing pretty intense exercise 6 days a week then so I need to account for that.

Fingers crossed!

rhondac46

Makes sense to me

twosteps

I've just today been diagnosed with PCOS so that could explain why I'm working out like a mofo and not losing lb. Hormonal imbalance could probably explain the fatigue too.

Topher1978

Start your day with a smoothie. Add in some greek yogurt and kefir. When I was working 12.5 hour days (or nights, really… 530 pm to 6am) I noticed that the days I had a smoothie, I would be energized until around 4 or 4:30, whereas when I did not have a smoothie, I would be puttering out around 11:30-12… At that time, I was not using kefir as the liquid, but Odwalla juice and sometimes V-8 splash. The kefir seems to add a lot more to my energy and feeling of wellbeing. I usually use blueberries, and recently started adding a banana most days again. The potassium used to give me indigestion, but that is no longer the case. The blueberries are high in B vitamins as is kefir and yogurt. Also, add a 100 B complex to your daily diet, or maybe 2 50 B-complex to split it up through the day. Make sure to get enough carbs. If you need more carbs, add them through fruit and veggies.