Should I exercise *less*?

Voca_Star

Right now I'm trying to lose about 15 - 20 pounds. I'm about 5'3" and I weigh 143 so my goal is between 117 - 123 pounds. It's not a lot, and if I don't get that light because I build muscle and lose fat, that's alright too. My measurements right now are 38C-29-42. I may be short (at least compared to the rest of my family) but I wouldn't call myself "petite". I have a pretty wide frame. Wide hips, somewhat wide rib cage. I have a medium bone frame.

Currently, I count my exercise as 20 minutes of pilates, 30 minutes of weights and 30 - 45 minutes of walking 3.0 mph 3x a week, and then on the days I don't do pilates and weights, I just walk for about 75 minutes. Outside of "exercise" though, I usually walk another hour or two. And I do chores around the house and play my WII sports a bit.

I've been eating between 1500 - 1800 calories while exercising and walking like that and I haven't lost weight in two months. Should I cut back on the walking/exercise a bit? I know I don't have a lot to lose so it's going to take a long time, but two months without a change, even in inches is ridiculous! I dunno if I was putting too much work on my body for having so little to lose.

chunchiaw

You probably should get a heart rate monitor to calculate calories that you burn during your workout.

I am 5'2", now is about 129 lb. I start to lose weight when everyday I eat morn than 1200 or 1300 calories, but still have 250 calories remaining to eat in my daily summary. I use HRM, and that's really useful and accurate.

SandraJByrne

Well I'm certainly no expert but it 1500-1800 cals seems a bit much for your frame. Since you are exercising and staying the same I would say that a good amount of cals for maintenance not rather than weight loss.
Drop your cals to 1200-1300 and keep walking and you should see something happen.

skinnyjean4me

Hii'm 5'2' 158lbs with a medium to large bone structure. i want to get to 125lbs give or take. I do jillian michael 30ds, swimming about 30 min a few times a week, Zumba for 20-45 min ( depending on what kind of day it is) a few times a week and walking about 3-4 miles a few times a week. i dont want to get into a plateau or have my muscles get memory so thats why i switch it alot. I eat about 1200 and dont eat back my calories, most of the time lol my protein is 35% carbs35% and fat 30%. hope this helps! good luck

xcarbonix

I'm 5'0, 38-26-40 and 135, so we're around the same!
For me, I personally see results each week with Cardio 6x a week at ranging intervals of 30-60 minutes, pilates at 60 mins 1x a week, weights 2xs. I also have a very very physical job. Everyone's body and plateaus are a little different.

I would encourage you to try different things with your work outs, up weights, up cardio, change routines, and keep your body guessing with what you're going to do!

*I also ( like the other girls) only eat about 1300 net a day.

Voca_Star

I'm 5'0, 38-26-40 and 135, so we're around the same!
For me, I personally see results each week with Cardio 6x a week at ranging intervals of 30-60 minutes, pilates at 60 mins 1x a week, weights 2xs. I also have a very very physical job. Everyone's body and plateaus are a little different.

I would encourage you to try different things with your work outs, up weights, up cardio, change routines, and keep your body guessing with what you're going to do!

*I also ( like the other girls) only eat about 1300 net a day.

When you say net, does that mean you eat your exercise calories back??

Voca_Star

Bumppppp

xcarbonix

When you say net, does that mean you eat your exercise calories back??

Yes, for example, today I ate 1475 with a 1200 net.
I usually eat a little more than that, but I worked 12p-10p with limited food breaks and missed one of my snacks.
Like I stated before I have a pretty physical job, so while most people in a light active or sed lifestyle may not eat back calories, I personally feel better when eating a bit more on days that I work out.

Voca_Star

When you say net, does that mean you eat your exercise calories back??

Yes, for example, today I ate 1475 with a 1200 net.
I usually eat a little more than that, but I worked 12p-10p with limited food breaks and missed one of my snacks.
Like I stated before I have a pretty physical job, so while most people in a light active or sed lifestyle may not eat back calories, I personally feel better when eating a bit more on days that I work out.

Well how many calories do you think I should eat? I mean, I do about 90 minutes of exercise a day, plus an additional 1 - 2 hours of walking that I don't track on MFP. Maybe I should cut that walking out?

xcarbonix

Well how many calories do you think I should eat? I mean, I do about 90 minutes of exercise a day, plus an additional 1 - 2 hours of walking that I don't track on MFP. Maybe I should cut that walking out?

I'd say try to stay between 1200 and 1500. Trade your walking for heavier weights and I think you'll see a change in your body. Cardio 5-6x a week is great, but muscle burns fat much faster and upping weights/strength will help you burn fat more efficiently. That is what personally works for me.

purple_tux1

I got some info in a Primal newsletter today that said you shouldn't exercsie more than 4000 calories worth per week.

http://www.marksdailyapple.com/why-you-shouldnt-burn-more-than-4000-calories-a-week-through-exercise/

xcarbonix

I got some info in a Primal newsletter today that said you shouldn't exercsie more than 4000 calories worth per week.

http://www.marksdailyapple.com/why-you-shouldnt-burn-more-than-4000-calories-a-week-through-exercise/

Everything she listed would never top more than 4000/w

Lleldiranne

I would actually bump up your exercise, especially your cardio. 3.0 mph isn't very fast for getting your heart up and burning the fat (calories, really ) Increase your speed, you should feel like you are pushing it. If you can carry on a nice conversation, you probably aren't going fast enough (if you can't get out more than a couple of words between breaths, then it might be a bit too intense). Or do some biking or try some circuit training in place of some of your weights & cardio (since it blends both). Check with your local library, that's how I try all my DVDs, then I buy what I really love.

ETA: For comparison, I am 5'0" and 126 lbs, 34B-26-38, and eating 1800 calories a day total (I upped overall calories and don't eat back my exercise calories right now). If I weren't breastfeeding a 1 year old, I would be at 1600 total. I have done that before, working out about 1.5 - 2 hours (half cardio, half weights) 5 times a week, and was losing about 1.5 lbs per week, even when I was near my goal (this was about 8 years ago, it's a bit harder now that I'm mid-30s). You really don't need to cut your calories super low to lose weight.

Voca_Star

I'm not trying to cut my calories super low. I'm just trying to figure out why I haven't lost any weight. I've been eating 1500 and just walking and doing weights like a lot of people do and it's doing me nothing. I tried 1800 calories with 30 minutes of intense cardio and intense weights and didn't lose. I don't know what to do anymore. I think right now, if I want to eat 1500 calories, walking for the extra two hours that I am is creating too much exercise for me.

geekyjock76

Exercising 7 days a week and engaging in 75-95 minutes of activity each day is an awful lot of activity to be honest. Additional exercise should only be a fraction of your deficit - most should come from a reduction in calories eaten. And since you only wish to lose between 15-20 lbs at your present weight, applying a smaller deficit is what's needed - not a large one. In fact, excessive exercise can do more harm than good. Too much exercise places a great stress on your body along with chronic calorie restriction - this stress can cause changes in cortisol levels if maintained for too long. With that said, please take a few minutes to read this article by Lyle Mcdonald:

http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/why-big-caloric-deficits-and-lots-of-activity-can-hurt-fat-loss.html

I would first cut back exercise to 5 days per week and eat 1625 calories for at least a month and see what happens.

Voca_Star

Exercising 7 days a week and engaging in 75-95 minutes of activity each day is an awful lot of activity to be honest. Additional exercise should only be a fraction of your deficit - most should come from a reduction in calories eaten. And since you only wish to lose between 15-20 lbs at your present weight, applying a smaller deficit is what's needed - not a large one. In fact, excessive exercise can do more harm than good. With that said, please take a few minutes to read this article by Lyle Mcdonald:

http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/why-big-caloric-deficits-and-lots-of-activity-can-hurt-fat-loss.html

I would first cut back exercise to 5 days per week and eat 1625 calories for at least a month and see what happens.

And what should my exercise be? Just the walking, pilates and weights?

melonclarinet

This is only my opinion based on what I've gone through, but I think you should up the intensity of your workouts. Part of what you're considering workout is just walking around, and for most of us, that's just part of our day. On a normal day, I walk around about 4 miles a day not including any work out. You should really be getting your heart rate up for cardio and I doubt you're able to do that at your weight and that speed. My warm up (only gets my heart rate to 115 and I'm much more overweight) is to go at 3.4 miles an hour on an incline of 7.5 or higher. In order to get my pulse up to 158 (my goal) I have to push much harder...I usually switch over to an arch trainer.

Again, this is just based on what's worked for me and what my trainer suggested. I think this may be an answer since you''ve said you already raised your calories to 1800 (which is a lot for someone our height).

LaNena01

bump

geekyjock76

Yes, do weights three days a week and walk/pilates the remaining two exercise days. If the excessive stress from too much exercise is taking a toll on your body and endocrine system, reducing exercise activity alone can help even if you eat the same amount of calories. The only question is what your actual "maintenance range" is.

Exercising 7 days a week and engaging in 75-95 minutes of activity each day is an awful lot of activity to be honest. Additional exercise should only be a fraction of your deficit - most should come from a reduction in calories eaten. And since you only wish to lose between 15-20 lbs at your present weight, applying a smaller deficit is what's needed - not a large one. In fact, excessive exercise can do more harm than good. With that said, please take a few minutes to read this article by Lyle Mcdonald:

http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/why-big-caloric-deficits-and-lots-of-activity-can-hurt-fat-loss.html

I would first cut back exercise to 5 days per week and eat 1625 calories for at least a month and see what happens.

And what should my exercise be? Just the walking, pilates and weights?

Voca_Star

Yes, do weights three days a week and walk/pilates the remaining two exercise days. If the excessive stress from too much exercise is taking a toll on your body and endocrine system, reducing exercise activity alone can help even if you eat the same amount of calories. The only question is what your actual "maintenance range" is.

Exercising 7 days a week and engaging in 75-95 minutes of activity each day is an awful lot of activity to be honest. Additional exercise should only be a fraction of your deficit - most should come from a reduction in calories eaten. And since you only wish to lose between 15-20 lbs at your present weight, applying a smaller deficit is what's needed - not a large one. In fact, excessive exercise can do more harm than good. With that said, please take a few minutes to read this article by Lyle Mcdonald:

http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/why-big-caloric-deficits-and-lots-of-activity-can-hurt-fat-loss.html

I would first cut back exercise to 5 days per week and eat 1625 calories for at least a month and see what happens.

And what should my exercise be? Just the walking, pilates and weights?

Thank you. I figured that if I use lightly active as my activity level, my TDEE is roughly 2000 - 2100 calories so I'll eat between 1600 - 1700? Does that sound good?