New to strength training - Calories???

kirstyfairhead
kirstyfairhead Posts: 220 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
I have lost 33lbs over the last year but still think I need to take off another 14lbs or so.

I have just started strength training having only done cardio up to now and am doing full body training 3x pw with a rest day in between each session.

I still do cardio 5 x pw so it looks like this:

Cardio 45-60mins + Strength
Cardio 45-60mins
Cardio 45-60mins + Strength
Cardio 45-60mins
Cardio 45-60 mins + Strength
Rest
Rest

I know that this may seem like too much Cardio but I am working out with my sister (who does not/will not do strength training) and I want to keep supporting her.

My query is about calorie count:

On Cardio only I would now look to do TDEE less 20% and this number is not too hard to figure because you can get cardio calorie burns fairly easily (including the MFP calculator). Strength training doesn't show a calorie burn so do I adjust my TDEE and if so, how??

Also, I know that to build muscle you need calories but I still have a good chunk of fat to get rid of so do I stay at a 20% deficit?

Bear in mind that I am not looking to add significant muscle mass just to achieve a more sculpted and leaner look!!

All advice appreciated!! :smile:

Replies

  • sarahjay1
    sarahjay1 Posts: 175 Member
    Bump...I'm curious about this as well...
  • Showcase_Brodown
    Showcase_Brodown Posts: 919 Member
    I think it would be difficult to estimate how many calories you've burnt with strength training, but they are most likely less than the cardio you are doing. It seems reasonable that you would want to eat some more calories on the days you are also doing strength, both to make up for what you used in the gym and to fuel whatever muscle repair and growth is happening. I don't know exactly where the intake should be... that might take a little experimentation. But I would think you'd want to let yourself eat more after strength training.

    If you are trying to build/keep muscle while you are losing weight overall, make sure you are getting lots of protein, too.
  • ElizabethKalmbach
    ElizabethKalmbach Posts: 1,416 Member
    If, under cardio, you use the "circuit training" item, it will give you a calorie estimate. Keep in mind that this is not what you actually burn in the gym. This is what you burn in the gym and as your afterburn. But that should give you a starting point for increasing your calories. YMMV, but it's something to look at. Much of the caloric loss through strength training seriously comes from rebuilding your muscles to fix the micro damage you did during your lifts - thus after burn... And that's what makes your rest days so VERY important. Do not interrupt the afterburn.
  • flumi_f
    flumi_f Posts: 1,888 Member
    The runtastic app can calculate the calories for strength training. This can be directly imported to MFP if you link the two. Although I have the feeling, the calculated calories are a bit high for the strength training. I'm not sure if I should count the whole time or deduct the time between sets.
  • PriceK01
    PriceK01 Posts: 834 Member
    I used heybales' spreadsheet to calculate my intake. After entering all of my info, I ended up needing an extra 420 calories on lifting days, so that's what I've been doing (but I also don't do a bunch of cardio on my rest days).
  • kirstyfairhead
    kirstyfairhead Posts: 220 Member
    If, under cardio, you use the "circuit training" item, it will give you a calorie estimate. Keep in mind that this is not what you actually burn in the gym. This is what you burn in the gym and as your afterburn. But that should give you a starting point for increasing your calories. YMMV, but it's something to look at. Much of the caloric loss through strength training seriously comes from rebuilding your muscles to fix the micro damage you did during your lifts - thus after burn... And that's what makes your rest days so VERY important. Do not interrupt the afterburn.

    Thanks for that..... so is is still ok to do the cardio on my ' strength rest days' (I mostly do Zumba)??
  • JLHNU212
    JLHNU212 Posts: 169 Member
    This is a great bump and I am new to this and looking for help! :) Thanks for asking this wonderful question!
  • acullen31
    acullen31 Posts: 87 Member
    I have a heartrate/calorie watch. It has a band that you wear right under chest so it's pretty accurate. I wear it while doing cardio and my calories on the watch as well as MFP match up perfectly. When I wear it while I lift ( which I lift pretty vigorous, with my weight lifter boyfriend ) I dont burn enough calories to adjust how I eat. So I just add them in under strength and don't worry about adjusting the calories.
  • Ainar
    Ainar Posts: 858 Member
    Since you are a newbie when it comes to lifting you may still add some strength and muscle mass when in caloric deficit, for like first couple of months. Not the most optimal gains and certainly not that much but most likely you will add some. After that, when your newbie phase is over, if you will want to gain muscle, you will need to go in caloric surplus.

    Well, general strength training burns like 100 - 300 cals per hour, depending how intense it is. So I would just add some 200 cals to your meals at days you strength train. And I think that you should be on deficit still for first few months of lifting. You will still add a little of muscle, most likely, so make a use of that. But then again, it depends how much body fat you have. If its a lot obviously you don't wanna go on surplus. But if it's like 20% then I think it would be better to go on like 10% over TDEE, if you train hard you probably won't add any noticeable amount of fat, cos you are newbie, and gaining some muscle may make you actually look more fit.
  • kirstyfairhead
    kirstyfairhead Posts: 220 Member
    Since you are a newbie when it comes to lifting you may still add some strength and muscle mass when in caloric deficit, for like first couple of months. Not the most optimal gains and certainly not that much but most likely you will add some. After that, when your newbie phase is over, if you will want to gain muscle, you will need to go in caloric surplus.

    Well, general strength training burns like 100 - 300 cals per hour, depending how intense it is. So I would just add some 200 cals to your meals at days you strength train. And I think that you should be on deficit still for first few months of lifting. You will still add a little of muscle, most likely, so make a use of that. But then again, it depends how much body fat you have. If its a lot obviously you don't wanna go on surplus. But if it's like 20% then I think it would be better to go on like 10% over TDEE, if you train hard you probably won't add any noticeable amount of fat, cos you are newbie, and gaining some muscle may make you actually look more fit.

    I'm at about 28% body fat at the moment so it sounds like a couple more months at deficit might be the best way forward. Thanks
  • flumi_f
    flumi_f Posts: 1,888 Member
    Well, general strength training burns like 100 - 300 cals per hour, depending how intense it is. So I would just add some 200 cals to your meals at days you strength train.

    That sounds about right. I do 15-25 min of cardio at the gym and then 45 min of strength and 10 min stretching. The calculated cals for the 45min were always aroung 400+. Just seemed very high to me. I'm doing 3 sets of each excercise with about a minute inbetween. So I deducted the 20min rest time just to see and runtastic calculated about 200 cals. I calculated the cardio seperately.

    Rahel

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