How long did it take you
beacrys
Posts: 72 Member
to start losing weight and inches? I am feeling low. I was yesterday too. Just started my third week of 5X5, but I had upped my cardio and took a 300 cal. deficit 6 weeks ago. My weight has stayed exactly the same for four weeks now. I lost and inch on my waist and hips. three weeks ago.
I eat clean. My diary is open if anyone has any suggestions.
I eat clean. My diary is open if anyone has any suggestions.
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Replies
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I think the changes with Strength Training are subtle and they come S-L-O-W-L-Y.
I would say to track your measurements much more than looking at the Scale, and pay attention to "Small" Changes like how your Clothes Fit and your Strength when doing Daily Activitys like carrying Grocerys or Laundry.0 -
I've been losing weight all along, I have been lifting weights since before I started eating at a deficit. It can be done, but I am learning that it is tricky.
I'd say give it a month and see what your results are for that month before you change anything. Then if you decide to make changes make them very gradually. I mess myself up when I try to make drastic changes. I've found that changing my goal by more than 100 calories at a time is very hard on my body.
From your ticker it looks like you don't have a lot to lose, so you won't be looking for fast weight loss. Maybe a half pound per week, or a 10% deficit from your TDEE. Were you hoping to lose faster than that?
It looks like you are following MFP's suggestion and eating back exercise calories. One idea might be to find your TDEE and take a reasonable cut from it. I suggest that because I just find it easier to eat the same amount each day. If having a low daily calorie goal and eating exercise calories works better for you, then stick with that!
Having a smaller deficit allows me to keep progressing in Stronglifts. If I'm eating too little, my workouts feel a lot harder than they should, and it's easy to get frustrated with the program. Slow and steady will mean consistent results in both my strength gains and my fat loss. :drinker:0 -
You're calories seem to be all over the place ranging from 1100 to 1500 ish. I'd say with increasing cardio and lifting you aren't eating enough. When I cut, I eat 1800 calories, and lately I've been really hungry lately. And I went on a "diet break" for a week two separate times, and both times I lost weight while "over eating". My guess, I'm underestimating my burn and I can lose at higher calories. I'm going to give eating a little higher and see how it goes.
Granted, you aren't me, but I'd still say that anyone doing stronglifts is going to need more than 1100 calories a day. You also appear to be logging your cardio burn but not eating the calories back.
Personally, I've been using heybale's spreadsheet to determine my calories, and I like it because there isn't a ton of math involved (it looks a little confusing, but it's pretty simple once you read the instructions).
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/717858-spreadsheet-bmr-tdee-and-deficit-calcs-macros-hrm0 -
I'd say you need to be eating more calories. I have been doing stronglifts for a few weeks and initially I was maintaining my weight (which was my goal) for months eating higher calories (around 1800). Then I decided to decrease my calories some to lose a few more lbs. I decreased my calories based on MFP 1-2 a week goal settings (around 1300 calories) which was significantly lower than I had been eating. For a week, I just maintained my weight. Then the next week or two I noticed that I ended up gaining like 2-3 lbs. Normally I would fluctuate during the week, but by the end of each week I still couldn't shake those pounds. Finally, I calculated the calories I should be eating in order to maintain my weight (TDEE) and calories to accomplish my goal from the Scooby Workshop site (http://scoobysworkshop.com/calorie-calculator/) . Turns out, I was seriously eating at a deficit which was hurting my goal, not helping it. I should've known this but I didn't know what to do because I was going according to the MFP diary plan. So I customized my MFP diary settings based on those calculations, and have upped my calories. It's only been a week, but I plan to shed those lbs and get back on track. Since we're doing such an intense lifting program + added cardio for some, we should definitely not be eating at such low levels. I hope this helped.0
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I would agree with the others --
You can take a 300 calorie deficit, or you can do cardio and not eat your calories back, but you probably shouldn't do both. Try switching it up so you do one or theo ther - I would recommend eating your normal calories but using your exercise as your deficit (so dn't eat exercise calories back)0 -
Thx all. I reread the "road map" thread last night and I think you are all right, so I am now using my TDEE minus 20% which is 1500 calories. I am 54, 5'2" and weight 157 lbs.
Now I see a lot of people in general on FP eat back only their hard workouts. I have been logging my dog walks which are usually around and hour on the trails at a moderate pace, but I am a writer and sit for long periods of the day. Does it sound right to eat back only my Stronglifts workouts and or say yoga class or zumba or a fast cardio on the treadmill? Would the TDEE minus twenty set at a light activity level take care of the dog walks or should I eat those calories too?0 -
Thx all. I reread the "road map" thread last night and I think you are all right, so I am now using my TDEE minus 20% which is 1500 calories. I am 54, 5'2" and weight 157 lbs.
Now I see a lot of people in general on FP eat back only their hard workouts. I have been logging my dog walks which are usually around and hour on the trails at a moderate pace, but I am a writer and sit for long periods of the day. Does it sound right to eat back only my Stronglifts workouts and or say yoga class or zumba or a fast cardio on the treadmill? Would the TDEE minus twenty set at a light activity level take care of the dog walks or should I eat those calories too?
thats why I suggest you eat your TDEE (1800 ish?) and not eat back any exercise calories. I would just do that for a month and see what kind of results you get, then adjust accordingly.
Losing weight is easy - anyone can starve themselves. They won't look very good at the end of it but they'll be lighter. Getting into great shape is harder and it just takes time
ETA: and by "thats" i mean - becuase its complicate to figure out what does and doens't count, just pick a number, don't vary it for a month, see what happens.0 -
I am 5'3 and 144-145 pounds. I am SUPPOSED to eat around1500 cals a day for TDEE-20%. Since I started lifting my logging and diet in general have been horrible.
But, I have, at worst, maintained pretty well. When I started strong lifts, I had a little puffiness and initial gain in weight and inches (rather, fractions of inches). I knew that could happen from initial muscle training/water retention, but I was worried I was really gaining (size) since I had 1) not done any cardio until about a week ago 2) underestimated my intake by quite a bit and was eating a lot and indulging in alcohol- drink or two a few times a week or daily wine or beer at home- at social events 3) convinced myself if I wasn't suffering, I would gain weight (old diet mentality).
Now that I think about it, I'm THRILLED I didn't gain with all that. I consider it amazing, actually. I should have gained. Yay, lifting!
I *think* things are turning around now and I feel that losses are coming- just feels like the trend is that way. I'm starting to log/eat better and do at least 2 days of cardio per week so that should help.
So.... to answer the first question, I started stronglifts on April 17- about a month ago and have felt stronger, but now am noticing (I'm pretty sure) changes in my body with very little effort other than lifting! Amazing. I've only done 9 sessions in that time as I allowed more than 2 days rest in between when I started and sometimes still do depending on my schedule.0 -
Thx all. I reread the "road map" thread last night and I think you are all right, so I am now using my TDEE minus 20% which is 1500 calories. I am 54, 5'2" and weight 157 lbs.
Now I see a lot of people in general on FP eat back only their hard workouts. I have been logging my dog walks which are usually around and hour on the trails at a moderate pace, but I am a writer and sit for long periods of the day. Does it sound right to eat back only my Stronglifts workouts and or say yoga class or zumba or a fast cardio on the treadmill? Would the TDEE minus twenty set at a light activity level take care of the dog walks or should I eat those calories too?
thats why I suggest you eat your TDEE (1800 ish?) and not eat back any exercise calories. I would just do that for a month and see what kind of results you get, then adjust accordingly.
Losing weight is easy - anyone can starve themselves. They won't look very good at the end of it but they'll be lighter. Getting into great shape is harder and it just takes time
ETA: and by "thats" i mean - becuase its complicate to figure out what does and doens't count, just pick a number, don't vary it for a month, see what happens.
Ah. Okay. Yes, 1830 something is my TDEE. "Losing weight is easy - anyone can starve themselves. They won't look very good at the end of it but they'll be lighter. Getting into great shape is harder and it just takes time" Thank you so much for saying that. Health, strength and fitness is what I want. I needed the reminder. My goodness this is counter intuitive, but I have read the science.. so...0 -
I upped my cals to 1700 a week from around 1500. i have done this for the past 2 weeks. I have gained a bit of weight but have now stalled. However, since starting lifting - about 2 months ago, I have dropped a dress size and am thrilled about this. It is very frustrating not seeing the scales go down but I am going to stick with it another month and see how it goes.
53
5'8"
Weight 220 pounds, down 20 pounds since I started but stalled.
Good luck everyone!0 -
I upped my cals to 1700 a week from around 1500. i have done this for the past 2 weeks. I have gained a bit of weight but have now stalled. However, since starting lifting - about 2 months ago, I have dropped a dress size and am thrilled about this. It is very frustrating not seeing the scales go down but I am going to stick with it another month and see how it goes.
53
5'8"
Weight 220 pounds, down 20 pounds since I started but stalled.
Good luck everyone!
This is definitely encouraging. I am noticing a difference in how my clothes fit. I am not going to weight myself for a few weeks while I try the TDEE and no eating back cals.0 -
Losing weight is easy - anyone can starve themselves. They won't look very good at the end of it but they'll be lighter. Getting into great shape is harder and it just takes time
^^ Truth right here !!!!
I'm starting to think of myself as "fit person in training" rather than letting a scale number dictate how I feel about myself. It's really more about weight ranges than a goal number anyway. Focus on fitness and aim to get to a healthy weight range for you, and eat accordingly. I wasn't really losing or gaining with just weight training, and since I've stuck with not smoking AND weight training for about 5 months now, I've decided to add cardio into the mix, to a) add endurance to strength and b) see if the scale will budge just a little. I've been okay just maintaining after initially dropping about 5 pounds, because finding maintenance was important to me, since I'm hoping to spend the rest of my years here maintaining a certain fitness and weight level rather than keep bouncing around.
Hopefully things will move downward again before long, since my eating habits haven't changed since I started walking 3x/weekly. We shall see.
You really have to experiment and see what works for you and what doesn't.0 -
^^ Yes, experimenting is key, I see.
I put on a spaghetti strap shirt today, which I usually only wear around the house and garden because of my flabby upper arms and loose skin to the sides of my breasts. Well, I did a double take in the the mirror, because though my arms are still pudgy that loose skin in the lat place is gone. It's only been four weeks of lifting and I m going slowly with weight additions, but I would wear this shirt outside today. Woo too!0 -
I am 26, 5'6.5" and fluctuate right now at around 145. I have been doing stronglifts for about 2 months now and am really noticing a difference in how clothes fit and how I feel in general. I have even had several compliments from people telling me that I have lots a ton of weight when in fact I have maybe dropped about 2 pounds. I wasn't taking measurements in the beginning but I noticed that I lost about an inch from my hips and maybe a quarter inch from my waist.
I have been eating around an average of 2000 calories a day, which is TDEE -15% for me. I tend to eat a bit less during the week because I have hard time on the weekends with keeping in these goals. Although I haven't seen big differences in the scale and measurements, I think that I definitely feel better and stronger. I tried on a dress I recently wore in the fall and noticed it was too loose around my chest area, so I know I am making progress! I think it just takes time, I read that it takes about 3-4 months before you really see major changes with strength training. So just keep up the good work and have patience!0 -
I am 26, 5'6.5" and fluctuate right now at around 145. I have been doing stronglifts for about 2 months now and am really noticing a difference in how clothes fit and how I feel in general. I have even had several compliments from people telling me that I have lots a ton of weight when in fact I have maybe dropped about 2 pounds. I wasn't taking measurements in the beginning but I noticed that I lost about an inch from my hips and maybe a quarter inch from my waist.
I have been eating around an average of 2000 calories a day, which is TDEE -15% for me. I tend to eat a bit less during the week because I have hard time on the weekends with keeping in these goals. Although I haven't seen big differences in the scale and measurements, I think that I definitely feel better and stronger. I tried on a dress I recently wore in the fall and noticed it was too loose around my chest area, so I know I am making progress! I think it just takes time, I read that it takes about 3-4 months before you really see major changes with strength training. So just keep up the good work and have patience!
Like you I don't seem to be able to eat all my cals some days, but I am working at it. Good to hear about your body changes!0
