Nutrition, rest days, giving it your 100% ... but how?

squashyhelen

Hi all, have you had days where you bounce off the walls in your workouts, then days where you're barely going through the motions? What typically causes the latter for you?

I'm trying to find out why my last two workouts have been just absolutely tired/lethargic. The muscles just didn't want to move at all. Given that yesterday I had a cheat night (two dinners, around 1200 calories for those two dinners), I expect ed my body to be fueled and ready to kick *kitten*. The last time I had a cheat day (no exercise, 1600 cals for the day), the next day was amazing and I was able to burn off 1000 cals in the workouts.

So .... logically to my mind, this makes so sense. Instead of my usual 172/min heart rate average, I came in at 150-162/min for the last two days. What is going on... ?

Share your story and your details! Did you find a solution to your feeling lethargic?

cyberiarob

I'm a believer in proper nutrition to energize your body. Specifically, I eat lots of protein and B vitamins. Just because you eat enough calories doesn't mean your body is properly fueled up for a workout.

wibutterflymagic

From what I understand there are many reasons why we may feel like that. Our bodies can just be plain tired, stress, maybe our body is fighting off an illness or maybe something we ate hasn't fueled us correctly. For me personally I just take it for what it is that day, do what I feel I can and move on. If I saw a complete change in how I was feeling consistently over a length of time then I'd be concerned but it's normal to have higher energy days and lower energy days.

squashyhelen

Thanks for your advice, guys. This is the first time I've felt so sluggish, which is why it's worrying. But you're right, people have off day and on days, so maybe my body will bounce back next week.

aj_20_04

Dont worry if you have a rubbish workout now and again, happens to everyone, atleast you have done something instead of using it as an excuse to be lazy! Sure it will go back to normal at some point.

Edit - How many times do you exercize a week? Do you have a job? and how much sleep do you get? Im at the gym 5 days a week and also working 5 long days a week, on my feet most of the day. If i dont get enough sleep it really effects my workout.

bearwith

Eat some of your exercise calories if you are not feeling too good.

I get tired when I work out in the morning before breakfast. NOt that I work out enough!

Best time is after some light snacky type food and a little bit of liquid. Not too much water or it will slosh around in your tummy and give you a stitch.

squashyhelen

I have been exercising about 5-6 times a week, which is much better than my 1 time a week (if being good) as of 2 months ago. I gradually increased it from 1 to 2 times, to 3 times, to maybe 4 times a week, but until two weeks ago have never made it to 5-6 times a week. Thanks for the encouragement - you're right, even a rubbish workout is one extra workout! I do have a job, and sometimes it requires me to work crazy hours (all nighters, getting home at 2am, etc...) but lately it's been amazing and wonderfully slow. For the first time in my adult life I'm eating non-microwavable foods (my own cooking is atrocious but at least healthy). Everything is in alignment ... only I still feel tired. Went to another two workout sessions today and really couldn't get my heart rate to where it used to be!

Dont worry if you have a rubbish workout now and again, happens to everyone, atleast you have done something instead of using it as an excuse to be lazy! Sure it will go back to normal at some point.

Edit - How many times do you exercize a week? Do you have a job? and how much sleep do you get? Im at the gym 5 days a week and also working 5 long days a week, on my feet most of the day. If i dont get enough sleep it really effects my workout.

squashyhelen

Thanks! I think I tend go eat back my previous day's exercise calories the next day ... that's probably going about it the wrong way? Chomping on Chipotle now. Maybe tomorrow will be better. What snacky foods do you tend to eat before a work out? I tried nonfat Greek yogurt once and it kind of drained me.

Eat some of your exercise calories if you are not feeling too good.

I get tired when I work out in the morning before breakfast. NOt that I work out enough!

Best time is after some light snacky type food and a little bit of liquid. Not too much water or it will slosh around in your tummy and give you a stitch.

Firefox7275

Hi all, have you had days where you bounce off the walls in your workouts, then days where you're barely going through the motions? What typically causes the latter for you?

I'm trying to find out why my last two workouts have been just absolutely tired/lethargic. The muscles just didn't want to move at all. Given that yesterday I had a cheat night (two dinners, around 1200 calories for those two dinners), I expect ed my body to be fueled and ready to kick *kitten*. The last time I had a cheat day (no exercise, 1600 cals for the day), the next day was amazing and I was able to burn off 1000 cals in the workouts.

So .... logically to my mind, this makes so sense. Instead of my usual 172/min heart rate average, I came in at 150-162/min for the last two days. What is going on... ?

Share your story and your details! Did you find a solution to your feeling lethargic?

Not taking enough rest days, fighting off a bug you are unaware of, disturbed sleep, what you ate on the cheat day or the amount, mild dehydration, TOTM .... the solution is to rest, your body is telling you that loud and clear. Looking at your food diary IMO clean it up, you are not eating a balance of all the food groups and likely not a balance of all the nutrients your body needs, sometimes that can catch up with you. By the sound of it that has been going on a long time.

Remember even professional athletes cycle their training hard and easy days and weeks, I generally find people can't work out at the right intensity more often than about four times a week, a five or six times a week routine could double requirements of all the nutrients so make a clean nutritious balanced diet even more important. Exercise stresses the body out and breaks it down, nutrition and rest builds it back up again, don't underestimate the minerals you will sweat out in a good session.

You should be having: nine servings of *different* fruits and veggies in the full rainbow of colours, three servings of reduced fat dairy every day, protein little and often starting at breakfast including oily fish regularly (preferably daily), healthy fats little and often, plenty of mineral and fibre rich foods (nuts, seeds, beans, lentils), junky/ snacky/ sugary foods no more than 10% of daily calories, a wide range of different foods. TBH I don't see any of that, too much repetition, you are regularly under on your protein goal and sometimes under on fat.

mmapags

A question and an observation. What do your workouts consist of? The observation is 5 to 6 days per week is not enough recovery time depending on intensity. You mention burning 100 calories in a workout. If you are not eating back a significant amount of calories and/ or burning that much 6 to 6 days per week, you are not either fueling and/ or resting your body enough.

squashyhelen

You should be having: nine servings of *different* fruits and veggies in the full rainbow of colours, three servings of reduced fat dairy every day, protein little and often starting at breakfast including oily fish regularly (preferably daily), healthy fats little and often, plenty of mineral and fibre rich foods (nuts, seeds, beans, lentils), junky/ snacky/ sugary foods no more than 10% of daily calories, a wide range of different foods. TBH I don't see any of that, too much repetition, you are regularly under on your protein goal and sometimes under on fat.

So much? I get about four kinds of vegetables in my own concoctions (pumpkin, broccoli, celery and eggplant) but I find it really hard to get more than one kind of fruit in! Digging up my dried prune and dried apple stash now ... What do you mean by oily fish? My current diary is ... unfortunately ... already a major effort in cleaning up my past practices, but you're right, those junk foods still consist a very high percentage of my calories. :-/

squashyhelen

A question and an observation. What do your workouts consist of? The observation is 5 to 6 days per week is not enough recovery time depending on intensity. You mention burning 100 calories in a workout. If you are not eating back a significant amount of calories and/ or burning that much 6 to 6 days per week, you are not either fueling and/ or resting your body enough.

Well the typical workouts are 40 minute sessions - I used to burn 430 calories in that session (now 350 or so because I'm tired). They tend to be either Zumba or kickboxing (either with impact or without). Day 3 or 4 is a shorter workout, around 20 mins only. But I double up on Sundays with both Zumba and Kickboxing (and a relaxing stroll back home). I eat from around 1500-2000 calories... should be more than enough? Other than Sunday.

mmapags

A question and an observation. What do your workouts consist of? The observation is 5 to 6 days per week is not enough recovery time depending on intensity. You mention burning 100 calories in a workout. If you are not eating back a significant amount of calories and/ or burning that much 6 to 6 days per week, you are not either fueling and/ or resting your body enough.

Well the typical workouts are 40 minute sessions - I used to burn 430 calories in that session (now 350 or so because I'm tired). They tend to be either Zumba or kickboxing (either with impact or without). Day 3 or 4 is a shorter workout, around 20 mins only. But I double up on Sundays with both Zumba and Kickboxing (and a relaxing stroll back home). I eat from around 1500-2000 calories... should be more than enough? Other than Sunday.

Doesn't sound bad. How much sleep do you usually get?

Firefox7275

So much? I get about four kinds of vegetables in my own concoctions (pumpkin, broccoli, celery and eggplant) but I find it really hard to get more than one kind of fruit in! Digging up my dried prune and dried apple stash now ... What do you mean by oily fish? My current diary is ... unfortunately ... already a major effort in cleaning up my past practices, but you're right, those junk foods still consist a very high percentage of my calories. :-/

The research supports the equivalent of about nine servings, I think your US guidelines are seven to nine but bear in mind you are exercising regularly so need more of all nutrients. The antioxidants in some produce may help you recover from exercise faster as well as being generally healthy. You can eat eight veggies and one fruit if you prefer, that's fine as long as you are getting the full rainbow (blue/ purple, red, green, orange/ yellow) and a good variety.

Start with two at breakfast then spread them out through the day, certain meals make it easier such as smoothies, soups, stir fries and curries, salads are just hard work!! By all means bulk cook but maybe make two things and eat them over two or three days or freeze so you are not having the same meal twice a day. Oily fish: mackerel, salmon, sardines, herring, fresh tuna, trout. The first three can be fresh or canned whichever suits you better. Have frozen fruit or frozen veggies if they are easier.

TBH the mineral and fatty acid intake is more of a red flag than the vitamins. It's great you have cleaned up your act a lot you should be proud of yourself, I just suspect you haven't done quite enough because you've ramped up your exercise so much. It's not unusual to overdo it and have to back off, everything is a learning experience hopefully these are changes you make for life so you don't have to get it perfect from day one.

squashyhelen

A question and an observation. What do your workouts consist of? The observation is 5 to 6 days per week is not enough recovery time depending on intensity. You mention burning 100 calories in a workout. If you are not eating back a significant amount of calories and/ or burning that much 6 to 6 days per week, you are not either fueling and/ or resting your body enough.

Well the typical workouts are 40 minute sessions - I used to burn 430 calories in that session (now 350 or so because I'm tired). They tend to be either Zumba or kickboxing (either with impact or without). Day 3 or 4 is a shorter workout, around 20 mins only. But I double up on Sundays with both Zumba and Kickboxing (and a relaxing stroll back home). I eat from around 1500-2000 calories... should be more than enough? Other than Sunday.

Doesn't sound bad. How much sleep do you usually get?

Urk ... 6.5 hours? Probably not the best, but it didn't seem to have impacted before?

squashyhelen

So much? I get about four kinds of vegetables in my own concoctions (pumpkin, broccoli, celery and eggplant) but I find it really hard to get more than one kind of fruit in! Digging up my dried prune and dried apple stash now ... What do you mean by oily fish? My current diary is ... unfortunately ... already a major effort in cleaning up my past practices, but you're right, those junk foods still consist a very high percentage of my calories. :-/

The research supports the equivalent of about nine servings, I think your US guidelines are seven to nine but bear in mind you are exercising regularly so need more of all nutrients. The antioxidants in some produce may help you recover from exercise faster as well as being generally healthy. You can eat eight veggies and one fruit if you prefer, that's fine as long as you are getting the full rainbow (blue/ purple, red, green, orange/ yellow) and a good variety.

Start with two at breakfast then spread them out through the day, certain meals make it easier such as smoothies, soups, stir fries and curries, salads are just hard work!! By all means bulk cook but maybe make two things and eat them over two or three days or freeze so you are not having the same meal twice a day. Oily fish: mackerel, salmon, sardines, herring, fresh tuna, trout. The first three can be fresh or canned whichever suits you better. Have frozen fruit or frozen veggies if they are easier.

TBH the mineral and fatty acid intake is more of a red flag than the vitamins. It's great you have cleaned up your act a lot you should be proud of yourself, I just suspect you haven't done quite enough because you've ramped up your exercise so much. It's not unusual to overdo it and have to back off, everything is a learning experience hopefully these are changes you make for life so you don't have to get it perfect from day one.

Wow, I have no fatty fish at all in my diet then. Oops. I do have canned sardines lying around somewhere ... must dig them up. Wonder if it would be too strange to carry some sardine cans in one's bag for a snack ...

I like that idea about freezing food, can't imagine why I didn't think of it before. I forgot all about the minerals too. Probably also what's causing this stupid cramp like feeling in my right calf. Thanks so much for the advice!

squashyhelen

Oily fish: mackerel, salmon, sardines, herring, fresh tuna, trout. The first three can be fresh or canned whichever suits you better. Have frozen fruit or frozen veggies if they are easier.

Just found those sardines ... they really make meeting that protein intake goal so much more manageable! I'm going to try replacing my godiva snacks with these.

Firefox7275

Wow, I have no fatty fish at all in my diet then. Oops. I do have canned sardines lying around somewhere ... must dig them up. Wonder if it would be too strange to carry some sardine cans in one's bag for a snack ...

I like that idea about freezing food, can't imagine why I didn't think of it before. I forgot all about the minerals too. Probably also what's causing this stupid cramp like feeling in my right calf. Thanks so much for the advice!

Yes cramp could well be magnesium but possibly potassium, you sweat these out not just sodium as most think. Seeds tend to be good sources of both - pumpkin, ground flax, chia - also cocoa powder. Fruit and veggies in general for potassium, leafy green veggies like spinach for magnesium but you need a lot so I would not rely on that. Magnesium and long chain omega-3s can also be beneficial for stress and sleep disorders.

fiberartist219

Yes, I have workout days that are not as good as other days.

I don't think I have to give it 100% everyday. I think I just have to do *something* every day, and give it 100% most of the time. If I show up and half *kitten* it once in awhile, that's still better than sitting on the couch.

Don't be so hard on yourself. Also, if you find your performance improves when you eat more, then maybe you should just eat more every day. Your weight loss might be slower, but you will have more energy, build stronger muscles and your metabolism might improve. I say eat a bit more for a week or two and see what happens.

mmapags

A question and an observation. What do your workouts consist of? The observation is 5 to 6 days per week is not enough recovery time depending on intensity. You mention burning 100 calories in a workout. If you are not eating back a significant amount of calories and/ or burning that much 6 to 6 days per week, you are not either fueling and/ or resting your body enough.

Well the typical workouts are 40 minute sessions - I used to burn 430 calories in that session (now 350 or so because I'm tired). They tend to be either Zumba or kickboxing (either with impact or without). Day 3 or 4 is a shorter workout, around 20 mins only. But I double up on Sundays with both Zumba and Kickboxing (and a relaxing stroll back home). I eat from around 1500-2000 calories... should be more than enough? Other than Sunday.

Doesn't sound bad. How much sleep do you usually get?

Urk ... 6.5 hours? Probably not the best, but it didn't seem to have impacted before?

That could be your answer. Try a week at 8 hours and see if it helps.

alexbusnello

I just had one of these days....I feel like crap now...

squashyhelen

Thanks, fiberartist21 and mmapags! Unfortunately didn't get too much sleep yesterday but it was a day off for the muscles. Workout day today ... we'll see if the day off helped at all today - if so, maybe it's really that the muscles needed a nice little break. If not, time to try sleeping more!!

squashyhelen

I just had one of these days....I feel like crap now...

Looks like you're working out hard and not eating that much back? I've really increased my caloric intake since December 19 ... and I think it's actually helping with the weight loss/fat loss process! Try eating a little more and seeing if your body feels better?

lenniebus

I struggled last week b/c I was fighting a cold. It was amazing what a difference it made. I wasn't full blown sick, but my body was definitely using some energy/nutrients to battle a bug. Good news--it never amounted to a full blown sickness. Bad news--I felt like even lifting a five pound weight was hard. This week, back to normal...I like it much better!!

cococa

This may sound a bit counterintuitive, but as much as slow work weeks are amazing - they totally mess with my energy and motivation. You may be different, but I know that for me I actually start feeling almost icky and lethargic when there's not much going on. Being busy and productive (whether at work or home) tends to fuel my fire. I haven't quite come up with a killer solution for it, but knowing that helps me stop myself from over-thinking it. Good luck!

DopeItUp

Biggest factors for me that I've noticed are:

1) Diet. If I ate like crap, didn't eat enough or didn't get enough carbs then I find my performance in the gym suffers. When I eat consistently I tend to perform consistently (this should be a no-brainer)
2) Sleep. This one is huge. If I only got 4 hours of sleep my workout blows. I can't move any weight, I hit a wall while doing cardio (not literally), etc...
3) Recovery. Not taking enough time to recover sucks. If I pushed myself extra hard one day, the next day I try to take a little easier because I know I won't be able to do what I normally do. Ideally you'd take full rest days between each workout, I think. But I like to alternate cardio/strength training on consecutive days which I'm sure hurts my performance sometimes too.
4) Randomly I find my workout sucks for no apparent reason. Probably some combination of the above I assume.

taso42

First and foremost, make sure you're getting adequate nutrition. 1200 calories a day is not going to cut it, and you will burn out, and fast. Also, adequate sleep/rest (I bet most of us could stand to sleep longer)

geekyjock76

Just an observation from last week:

Sunday 13th:
Exercise time: 142 minutes
Exercise calories: 1000
Ate: 1566

Thursday 17th:
Exercise time: 180 minutes
Exercise calories: 1010
Ate: 1750

Sunday 20th:
Exercise time: 160 minutes
Exercise calories: 1000
Ate: 1480

Why are you doing such excessive exercise? During these days, you are netting between 500 to 700 calories. You are likely putting your body through tremendous stress by doing this. Take more rest days and chill on the excessive exercise.

mmapags

Just an observation from last week:

Sunday 13th:
Exercise time: 142 minutes
Exercise calories: 1000
Ate: 1566

Thursday 17th:
Exercise time: 180 minutes
Exercise calories: 1010
Ate: 1750

Sunday 20th:
Exercise time: 160 minutes
Exercise calories: 1000
Ate: 1480

Why are you doing such excessive exercise? During these days, you are netting between 500 to 700 calories. You are likely putting your body through tremendous stress by doing this. Take more rest days and chill on the excessive exercise.

Excellent points!! I had checked the food diary but not the exercise. This would lead to fatigue among other less desireable things.

squashyhelen

Just an observation from last week:

Sunday 13th:
Exercise time: 142 minutes
Exercise calories: 1000
Ate: 1566

Thursday 17th:
Exercise time: 180 minutes
Exercise calories: 1010
Ate: 1750

Sunday 20th:
Exercise time: 160 minutes
Exercise calories: 1000
Ate: 1480

Why are you doing such excessive exercise? During these days, you are netting between 500 to 700 calories. You are likely putting your body through tremendous stress by doing this. Take more rest days and chill on the excessive exercise.

Excellent points!! I had checked the food diary but not the exercise. This would lead to fatigue among other less desireable things.

Ah, Sundays are my "clean up" days - it makes up for all the days of the week where I went over my calorie budget. Also because I love the classes offered on Sundays (both Zumba and kickboxing) and my innate little budget monster wants to get the most bang out of my buck from the gym. Since I tend to walk immediately from class 1 to class 2 (in another location), I therefore end up logging extra minutes walked too. And ironically ... my appetite really experiences a decrease when I exercise, so all those factors combined makes Sundays one big calorie deficit day. I tend to eat back my exercise calories over the next day or so.

But perhaps those poor little muscles really are getting fatigued and I just didn't realize it. Yesterday I took a rest day (declined a friend's offer to go skating in favor of watching Survivor!). Maybe Mondays should always be a rest day from now on...

squashyhelen

I struggled last week b/c I was fighting a cold. It was amazing what a difference it made. I wasn't full blown sick, but my body was definitely using some energy/nutrients to battle a bug. Good news--it never amounted to a full blown sickness. Bad news--I felt like even lifting a five pound weight was hard. This week, back to normal...I like it much better!!

You might have a point there ... I was (think I still am) intermittently sneezing last week. I keep thinking that when work gets busy, I won't have time to go to all these amazing classes (they're usually from 5:30~8ish) so pushed myself to go even when I wasn't feeling tip top. It's hard to distinguish between feeling lazy and pig-like and actually feeling sluggish for legitimate reasons!