Eating enough food...

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How can you tell if you didn't eat enough food or if the workout just kicked your butt? I did my first Insanity workout and about fell over. Now I definitely did not eat very well that day, probably only had about 1,200 cals, but my question is how do you know whether or not it is the cal intake or the workout that is kicking your butt?

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  • missykaye1975
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    How can you tell if you didn't eat enough food or if the workout just kicked your butt? I did my first Insanity workout and about fell over. Now I definitely did not eat very well that day, probably only had about 1,200 cals, but my question is how do you know whether or not it is the cal intake or the workout that is kicking your butt?

    I can tell you that for ME personally, I would feel completely famished if I only ate 1200 cals/day, PLUS doing my weight training and cardio workouts. I do my workouts first thing in the morning on an empty stomach at 5 a.m., but then I definitely need to re-fuel my body after all that hard work (and fasting all night)! When I first started MFP I only ate 1200 cals a day, and I could not lose a pound because my body was holding on to everything it could get--it doesn't want to starve! So, I increased my cals to 1500, and now to 1700 because I've built up muscle mass, i.e., my metabolism, and I'm still losing weight/body fat. You are a man, so I'm assuming you're going to need substantially more than even 1700 cals/day just to keep your body going. Food is the fuel that fires up your metabolism--starve it, and the fire will go out. :wink:
  • jessmomof3
    jessmomof3 Posts: 4,590 Member
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    First of all, if you are doing Insanity, then 1,200 cals is NOT enough!! Read the nutrition guidelines that comes with it. And make sure to add in your exercise cals here! Feel free to ask if you have any questions, I did a round of Insanity and have done P90X plenty of times. :happy:
  • sandy429
    sandy429 Posts: 2,779 Member
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    [Food is the fuel that fires up your metabolism--starve it, and the fire will go out. :wink:

    Brilliant!
  • sandy429
    sandy429 Posts: 2,779 Member
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    I'm in total agreement with Jess & MissyKaye. Insanity is not a program on which to diet. Your body absolutely needs enough fuel to make it through the intense workouts. I eat A LOT, and my body burns through every bit of it. When I hit Month 2 of Insanity, I was hungry all the time.

    Follow the Elite Nutrition Plan. Eat clean & eat often!
  • mnixon13
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    Thank you ladies. Your wisdom is noted and appreciated.