Over-training and calorie burn Question

CakePlate

I am morbidly obsese, needing to lose over 150 lbs, and am over 40. I started this fitness journey on January 6th and have lost around 30 lbs. but I've had to work really hard for it. I measure all my food and found that if I didn't exercise my weight didn't go down. I am generally in the 1200-1500 range for calories (MFP has me at around 1670). According to the gym equipment I am buring around 900+ calories per workout. Here is the issue, I have been exercising like a maniac. I have been exercising at least 4 times a week, sometimes up to 6, and at least an hour - sometimes close to two hours. This is just cardio, treadmill and eliptical. What I noticed is that the more I was exercising, the worst I felt. My energy has just kept going down - none of these endorphins I hear about. I read online about overtraining and wondered if this was my issue, maybe more isn't more. I decided to take a few days off from the gym to "reset". I skipped Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday. I have lost 4 lbs since I stopped going to the gym! I don't believe that I lost muscle in three days. Was I burning too many calories so my body was storing? Why would I be losing more since I stopped working out? Thoughts?

lotusspark

Bump

scottb81

You were at the beginning of overtraining which means your body was overstressed and the the hormonal system became unbalanced. This can cause weight to be retained.

My guess is that you dropped the weight because since you were not into full blown overtraining syndrome you recovered quickly and things reset back to normal. "Full blown" overtraining takes a long time to develop and even longer to recover from (a year or more in extreme cases).

Now that you know what it feels like, next time take a break when you feel the symptoms coming on. Don't stop going to the gym though. If you go back today monitor how you feel. if you still feel really tired then keep the session short and easy. Keep doing that until you feel good again. It shouldn't take long.

ChrisLindsay9

I don't know about calorie-burning and exercise frequency that relates to your specific question. So I'm replying to this, as a means to bump it and see if anyone else can provide some information?

I know that a couple of counter-intuitive things tend to be true.

1) You need to eat to lose weight. So calorie-restricting diets tend to not work (and can make it harder for weight loss down the road). It's about what you eat, shifting more calorie consumption to protein and fats (preferably good fats) and less carbs could help with some weight loss. I want to emphasize, not "low carb" necessarily, but just re-allocating some calories away from carbs. Low carb diets have a place, but I don't think you need to be concerned with it. So I would probably stick with 1670 calorie budget - if that's manageable for you (still seems low to me). I would bet my house that 1200 calories is much too low.

2) And resting is very important for weight loss. Resting at least one or two days a week, so as to let the body recover. And resting as in "sleep" is also very important for overall fitness as well. If you can get 6-7 hours minimal a night (8 is the sweet spot), that would be of benefit.

I wish you continued success in your weight loss goals. I'm rooting for you!

dsjohndrow

The body is pretty good at adjusting to anticipated needs. That is why it is good to mix it up.

First, cardio means that the hear rate is over 120-130 depending on who you talk to. Lower heart rates will help build endurance, but don't really seem to knock off the weight. Some of the better mixes include cardio and strength training. HIT is a good one, and so are intervals for running. To kill the weight loss, I would suggest not getting into too much of a routine. Try different things for 30 days and switch to something else.

Here are a few things I learned.:
- The more you have to lose the faster you seem to be able to lose it. I lost an average of 4 pounds a week.
- There is a lot of talk about water weight, getting into strength training (and body building) tends to store up water to help repair muscles.
- Lower carbs (lower than MFP recommends) seem to work for older folks like me.
- Food and exercise calories are estimates, just be sure to use the same measuring device and that included the bathroom scale.
- Log it, measure, keep at it.
- I hate them, but I try to take a break every 6 weeks.

Something I am trying is carb cycling. I will let you know.

BTW - I run 100 miles a month, weight train 2 days a week and a cross-train the other.

CakePlate

Thank you, excellent feedback

j_courter

also, hours of cardio isn't necessarily better. if you mix in some higher intensity and get some weight training going on as well, you'll be more balanced overall. mfp doesn't do a great job of encouraging strength training, but it DOES help and you WILL burn more calories in a resting state as you gain muscle mass.

best wishes on your journey. you can do this! :drinker: