eating and lifting weights

Let us know how your weights taste

Don't let anyone's comments push you into something you're not ready for. It sounds like you are making healthy changes & continuing to progress. *Could* you lift a huge amount of weight right now...maybe. Could it also end up injuring you where you can't do any weights for weeks...yep. Better to start easy & work up to heavier weights very gradually. Just like you're talking about doing. Not everyone has to *start* w/heavier weights to get healthy, just like not everyone has to do CrossFit, or a Y class, or get a trainer to get healthy. As long as you're making progress, then you have found something that works for you. :-) Keep up the good work! :-)

As far as calories, the more muscle you have, the more calories you burn, even at rest. It doesn't sound like you'd be changing that much calorie-burn wise, so you might just want to leave your calories where they are & see if how you progress. Do you continue to improve, or start gaining. If you start gaining, then I'd just knock about 300 calories off your intake.

I think you should add 200-300 extra calories when you do a program like that.

And don't let these guys discourage you. It's a common opinion on here that if you do anything other than deadlift 3x your bodyweight, you're wasting your life. Just brush off the haters and keep going.

I'm doing a "Strength training for little old ladies" program at home (Strong Women Stay Young) and yeah, you start out with weenie weights, but she says to start lower to learn the moves and get yoru form down -- and then start cranking up the weights as quickly as you can continue to lift them in good form. It's perfectly possible to be starting out with smaller hand weights and be on the way to "Lifting heavy." But I have let myself lose a lot of upper body strength, and I'm starting with much smaller weights than I could have done a decade ago, with the plan to work up as quickly as I can do safely.

I think you should add 200-300 extra calories when you do a program like that.

And don't let these guys discourage you. It's a common opinion on here that if you do anything other than deadlift 3x your bodyweight, you're wasting your life. Just brush off the haters and keep going.

... Says a woman who engages in a real lifting routine, not some "cardio plus light dumbbells" routine.

That's true, but I don't like to discourage people who do things differently than I do. I have some friends who do nothing but home DVDs and they have rocking bodies. I just think there are many ways to be fit and healthy. I'd hate for someone like the OP to feel discouraged and give up just because she doesn't have access or desire to "lift heavy" as some people define it on MFP. ALL exercise is good. She may get different results than I do, and that's okay. She's happy with her program, so what's the point in telling her it's worthless when it isn't? It's not worthless, it's different. That's all.

When I started here last year, everyone told me I was doing this wrong. Everyone said I was wasting my time with a split routine, wasting my time with isolation movements. They said I shouldn't do anything but compounds (which I do of course) in small rep ranges. They said my 8-20 rep range was a waste of time. I didn't care what they said--I did my own thing. I'm happy I did.

Again, i'd point out that "heavy" is a relative term. If you are a 350lb man curling 50lbs completely untrained may be possible. But this is a for all intents and purposes an untrained female. I see women in the gym who are 100lbs TOPS trying to curl or press 10 or 15 pounds. They are only able to do about 8-10 until failure. For them, at this time, it is "heavy".

I'll admit the program isn't what i'd consider "weight lifting", but is she not "lifting weights" in the program? really?

Oh wow, be encouraging people! True, 15 won't make your veins pop out, but good for you on sticking with a program that's working for you. It might not be considered "lifting" like the meatheads who are scoffing apparently do, which makes me wonder what they're doing on a site for people of all fitness levels if they are obviously so far above the rest of us, but it is exercise, and seems to be effective. 200-300 sounds pretty safe as an adjustment for you.

I am also doing CLX. I have MS and lost a lot of muscle tone while I was very sick. So much so that lifting a gallon of milk was heavy for me. I realize that this is a starting weight training program for beginners. I had NEVER lifted a dumbbell in my life before this program and it has helped to show me that I am capable of doing so. Even though the weights I use are wimpy compared to most people it IS working. I am getting stronger and with each week I am able to lift more. Today I did 25 REAL push-ups. Not that impressive to most, but keep in mind that not too long ago I couldn't do any, not even one. We all start somewhere. The beauty of this is later this week I have an appointment with a personal trainer to help teach me how to lift heavier and keep good form. ANYTHING that teaches you and helps you to improve is not a waste of time. Keep going. Someday we will be at the gym and lifting the heavy weights like the big girls and boys!! Good luck my friend!! :-)

It may not be lifting to you, but its a good start for me. By the time I finish my reps I can't do any more. I will lift heavy like the bad boys and girls one day, but for now..that all I got. So far I have been logging it as cardio because I can't figure out another way.

In all seriousness, you will never "lift heavy like the bad boys and girls" if you're lifting 15 pounds.

I don't know what lifts you're doing, but 15 lbs is definitely insufficient for accomplishing anything worth your time, frankly.

Do you work out at home or at a gym?

That is so rude and a ridiculous comment to make. Everyone has to start somewhere. In the last 4 weeks since I joined the gym I've gone up 2.5kg to 15kg on all machines. In another 2-3 months I will have progressed further.

You don't step in to the gym and immediately lift 70kg. :noway:

He's not saying you do. He's saying most women can lift a lot more than they think they can - they've been told for so long to lift light that they don't realize how strong they actually are, so they start off below what they can handle. I'm betting you could have started heavier than 2.5kg if you had given it a try - I know I certainly could have started off with more than I did seeing how quickly I progressed initially.

"15lbs is where I am"

Goodness, people. 15 lbs is where she is, period. She didn't say "15 lbs is all I ever want to lift." Let us assume that she'll lift more when she can and that she'll push herself along as best she can.

Encourage her, but please -- do try and remember that every bad boy and girl was once a beginner.

She can lift a lot more than 15 pounds. I absolutely guarantee it.

An average baby weighs more than that at 6 months old. Do you think she was incapable of picking up her baby?

Yeah, but do you lift a baby with one arm and then press them up over your head??

I KNOW, right? Some people start ChaLean (slowwwwww lifting) at 5 POUNDS. Give this chick a break, you freakin TROLLS.

God, some people on MFP must be so bored that they have to pick on anyone and anything they can find.

Also, OP, I usually just use my average heart rate to calculate calories burned.

Bottom line is that the OP was asking for diet advice, NOT a critique of her workout routine... People just can't help but recite the "lift heavy or die" advice even when that's not the question..

She said she was lifting weights, and wanted to know how many calories she was burning.

It seemed natural to explore what kind of "weight lifting" she was doing.