Over doing it.

Mikesixx94 · December 2013

Hello.

I would like to give a little background story, I've been going to the gym on and off, mainly in the summer; for the past 5 years, but I have finally settled down ( No more high-school, or traveling) and now I am fully committed to losing weight, I just can't stand being overweight anymore, and I want to finally wear a freaking one of them sexy black shirts.

So, a little info about myself: I'm 19 years old male, I'm about 5f.t and 10/11in, and weight around 260 pounds. I've been doing aerobics and weight lifting for few years, so I happen to have some muscles, and would estimate that around 70-80% of it is fat.

Anyways, I work out everyday for 3 hours a day, (I might sometimes skip a day, due to stuff coming up) my workout consists of exactly 2 hours straight on the Stair master, burning around 900-950 calories. I then divide the last hour on weight stuff, starting with the sit ups machine, doing many sets, each consisting of around 30 times @ 75lbs. I then head to weight rooms, each day is different, One day focused on Biceps/fore arms, lifting 35lbs dumbells, another day would be focused on the pectoralis and all its regions/tricpes, and the third day would be the rest of the upper limb ( lats/delts/etc..) and that would conclude my training for the day.

Now here is my problem, I'm perfectly fine with that training program, I do feel like I want to sleep after the training, but I think its because of my calorie intake, which is the problem.

I feel like I'm eating low amount of calories. I start the day with a bowl of kellogs/nestle cereal with half/full fat milk, and a cup of coffee, after a while I might eat an apple, and a banana, maybe some green tea throughout the day, and finally for dinner I always eat a salad with lettuce, cucumber, tomato, onions and some garlic in it, plus a can of tuna, sometimes chicken; or whatever my mom cooked, some of it, I might also take a some yogurt. So, I basically consume around 800-1200 calorie a day, and I have no idea how to increase that, and I honestly don't even feel like eating, and I'm never hungry this way.

My goal is to lose about 2 pounds a week, I've been back to the gym for a month now ( minus a total of 10 days of skipping due to first week sore muscle and college exams

So, umm, any advice or tips ? Should I keep going the way I am ? Should I try to force more calories ?

Thank you for reading

MysteriousMerlin · December 2013

I would suggest more calorie dense foods, like nuts, cheese, full-fat yogurt, peanut butter, raisins. You don't need to eat many of these types of food for the calories to add up.

2013sk · December 2013

Considering the amount of exercising your doing you need to eat more food!! food id fuel

protein shakes before and after workout
protein bars as snacks
lots of protein, eggs, cottage cheese, greek yoghurt, nuts, fish, chicken, turkey, veggies, fruit

drink tons of water and eat good carbs to give you the energy you need

also workout your bmr and tdee your know then how many calories you need at rest, and what to eat to lose weight

Mikesixx94 · December 2013

Thank you both for the reply, I guess I should try to get more food.

Also, I've been thinking of getting one of them protein shakes, but I not pretty sure if I should ? Considering that I'm both trying to lose weight and same time get some muscles ? Should I go for it or should I just wait until my main goal is to gain muscle weight ? Also, I once heard at my gym that people that take protein shakes don't get that natural, shredded shape of muscles such as the delts/biceps and tricpes, I always believed that they were wrong, and mistaken for those that take pills and injections.

Thanks.

eldamiano · December 2013

Have a burger. Would do you some good

stt43 · December 2013

I don't know how you are still alive.

huv123 · December 2013

Why are you doing 2 hours of stair master a day? You will not be able to sustain that level of exercise. Cut it down to an hour and use the other time to learn a new skill or short course. It will improve your social life and well-being immeasurably - better than an extra hour of stair master ever could. You might also put more effort into the hour that you are doing.

colortheworld · December 2013

Eat peanut butter and icecream. :drinker:

sarahrbraun · December 2013

Thank you both for the reply, I guess I should try to get more food.

Also, I've been thinking of getting one of them protein shakes, but I not pretty sure if I should ? Considering that I'm both trying to lose weight and same time get some muscles ? Should I go for it or should I just wait until my main goal is to gain muscle weight ? Also, I once heard at my gym that people that take protein shakes don't get that natural, shredded shape of muscles such as the delts/biceps and tricpes, I always believed that they were wrong, and mistaken for those that take pills and injections.

Thanks.

Dude!! i don't know how you get out of bed in the morning on that little food. I am 5'2" tall and about 190lbs, I exercise about 90 minutes 4-5x a week, and eat MINIMUM of 1600-1800 calories a day. I have been known to eat 2400 calories or more!

Eating at a deficit the way you are, you most likely are NOT building muscle, you'll be lucky to preserve what you already have. You don't need all kinds of fancy supplements to get that shredded look. I know several guys who do it with just clean eating and hard work. Most of them have body fat in the 5-10% range.

stt43 · December 2013

Have a least one day off a week, if not two or three.
Cut down your cardio to 20-30mins.
Do your weight lifting first, and follow a good quality routine.
Don't start with your ab muscles, and you don't need to use such high reps if you want them to get bigger and stronger.
You don't need to spend a whole day doing just your arms, which are pretty small muscles which don't do much, especially when you spend another whole day doing your entire back and shoulders. Put more time and effort into big, important muscles, and less on the others, and don't balance your time so unevenly as you will end up with inbalances. Basically, as I said before, follow a good routine.
You aren't eating enough calories for someone sitting around all day doing nothing, let alone with such a heavy workout.
You are basically breaking down your muscles through exercise, and then not giving them anything to let themselves build back up again.
You won't be able to get all the vitamins and minerals you need with such low calories either.
You aren't getting enough fat, and probably not enough protein either.

tigersword · December 2013

This can't be real... Can it?

Mikesixx94 · December 2013

This can't be real... Can it?

Umm, it is real, and I do have some proof >.<

Thank you all for your replies.

Wow, I knew that I'm doing something wrong, but I never thought that I'm screwing myself this bad >.<

Well, I don't know how either, but I've been doing this for a total of a month now, and, honestly, I don't feel that much tired or lacking strength, except after workout, in which I just want to sleep. I sleep about 6-8 hours a day, and I used to do an hour stair master, and an hour of weights but now that I have a long vacation, I said why not take it a step further. I guess its just that I have been struggling my whole life with overweight, and I finally have the will and someone to look better for.

I'm not willing to stop my routine, to be honest. I mean, I'm really comfortable with it, and I've been thinking of adding a swimming session along with some hot tub after the workout. I really want to push it to a 2-4 pounds a week of weight loss, I guess I should look into more ways of adding calories ? Or just get some protein shake ?

Thank you.

RllyGudTweetr · December 2013

Considering the amount of exercising your doing you need to eat more food!! food id fuel

protein shakes before and after workout
protein bars as snacks
lots of protein, eggs, cottage cheese, greek yoghurt, nuts, fish, chicken, turkey, veggies, fruit

drink tons of water and eat good carbs to give you the energy you need

also workout your bmr and tdee your know then how many calories you need at rest, and what to eat to lose weight

Why is meal timing important?

Why does he need to drink "tons of water?"

nomeejerome · December 2013

You are doing it wrong.

Set reasonable goals.
Educate yourself on proper nutrition. (Not fad diets)
Be patient.
Be willing to change your routine.

tigersword · December 2013

You are doing it wrong.

Set reasonable goals.
Educate yourself on proper nutrition. (Not fad diets)
Be patient.
Be willing to change your routine.

This, the routine described sounds ridiculously inefficient, counter-productive, and nonsensical. It's the definition of what Martin Berkhan calls "****arounditis." http://www.leangains.com/2011/09/****arounditis.html

tracieangeletti · December 2013

Have a least one day off a week, if not two or three.
Cut down your cardio to 20-30mins.
Do your weight lifting first, and follow a good quality routine.
Don't start with your ab muscles, and you don't need to use such high reps if you want them to get bigger and stronger.
You don't need to spend a whole day doing just your arms, which are pretty small muscles which don't do much, especially when you spend another whole day doing your entire back and shoulders. Put more time and effort into big, important muscles, and less on the others, and don't balance your time so unevenly as you will end up with inbalances. Basically, as I said before, follow a good routine.
You aren't eating enough calories for someone sitting around all day doing nothing, let alone with such a heavy workout.
You are basically breaking down your muscles through exercise, and then not giving them anything to let themselves build back up again.
You won't be able to get all the vitamins and minerals you need with such low calories either.
You aren't getting enough fat, and probably not enough protein either.

A whole lot of this!!! Cut back on the cardio. When I first started out I was the cardio queen which was totally the wrong thing to do. More lifting and less cardio is the way to go. Fuel your body properly and eat more!! I also saw a whole bunch of upper body work but no mention of leg work. Squats, deadlifts, ohp, bench, rows... these lifts will change your body more than all the cardio in the world will ever do.

stt43 · December 2013

This can't be real... Can it?

Umm, it is real, and I do have some proof >.<

Thank you all for your replies.

Wow, I knew that I'm doing something wrong, but I never thought that I'm screwing myself this bad >.<

Well, I don't know how either, but I've been doing this for a total of a month now, and, honestly, I don't feel that much tired or lacking strength, except after workout, in which I just want to sleep. I sleep about 6-8 hours a day, and I used to do an hour stair master, and an hour of weights but now that I have a long vacation, I said why not take it a step further. I guess its just that I have been struggling my whole life with overweight, and I finally have the will and someone to look better for.

I'm not willing to stop my routine, to be honest. I mean, I'm really comfortable with it, and I've been thinking of adding a swimming session along with some hot tub after the workout. I really want to push it to a 2-4 pounds a week of weight loss, I guess I should look into more ways of adding calories ? Or just get some protein shake ?

Thank you.

Yeah, you're right, it's probably best if you just ignore everything everyone has said and just increase what you are doing.
A protein shake won't really do much considering what you are doing, so it'd be a waste of money.
I just realised you aren't doing legs in your lifting routine either.

SezxyStef · December 2013

Umm, it is real, and I do have some proof >.<

Thank you all for your replies.

Wow, I knew that I'm doing something wrong, but I never thought that I'm screwing myself this bad >.<

Well, I don't know how either, but I've been doing this for a total of a month now, and, honestly, I don't feel that much tired or lacking strength, except after workout, in which I just want to sleep. I sleep about 6-8 hours a day, and I used to do an hour stair master, and an hour of weights but now that I have a long vacation, I said why not take it a step further. I guess its just that I have been struggling my whole life with overweight, and I finally have the will and someone to look better for.

I'm not willing to stop my routine, to be honest. I mean, I'm really comfortable with it, and I've been thinking of adding a swimming session along with some hot tub after the workout. I really want to push it to a 2-4 pounds a week of weight loss, I guess I should look into more ways of adding calories ? Or just get some protein shake ?

Thank you.

Then why ask the question...

You don't eat enough to sustain the activity and to be frank if you just want to lose weight you just need to eat at a reasonable deficet.

Pushing 2-4lbs weight loss is too fast, you have what 60-70lbs to lose?

doing less cardio and more weights help maintain your LBM but as you are going now you are losing muscle and fat...

and not doing any legs...nice...you will be walking around with skinny legs and big arms just what we all want.

As for the protien shakes yah don't bother...

RGv2 · December 2013

This can't be real... Can it?

Umm, it is real, and I do have some proof >.<

Thank you all for your replies.

Wow, I knew that I'm doing something wrong, but I never thought that I'm screwing myself this bad >.<

Well, I don't know how either, but I've been doing this for a total of a month now, and, honestly, I don't feel that much tired or lacking strength, except after workout, in which I just want to sleep. I sleep about 6-8 hours a day, and I used to do an hour stair master, and an hour of weights but now that I have a long vacation, I said why not take it a step further. I guess its just that I have been struggling my whole life with overweight, and I finally have the will and someone to look better for.

I'm not willing to stop my routine, to be honest. I mean, I'm really comfortable with it, and I've been thinking of adding a swimming session along with some hot tub after the workout. I really want to push it to a 2-4 pounds a week of weight loss, I guess I should look into more ways of adding calories ? Or just get some protein shake ?

Thank you.

So you're comfortable with ignoring all of this great advice, sacrificing LBM and possibly your health in order to see a weight loss up to 4 lbs per week?

Edit: Your TDEE-20% is 3700 calories if you do workout 3 hrs a day 7 days a week. That means you could drop 2 lbs a week eating 3700 calories a day. I call BS that your intake is under 1200. You're netting -2500 calories a day.

Either A) Your logging is completely off or

Your logging is spot on and you're doing some serious damage to yourself or C) This isn't real.

2013sk · December 2013

Considering the amount of exercising your doing you need to eat more food!! food id fuel

protein shakes before and after workout
protein bars as snacks
lots of protein, eggs, cottage cheese, greek yoghurt, nuts, fish, chicken, turkey, veggies, fruit

drink tons of water and eat good carbs to give you the energy you need

also workout your bmr and tdee your know then how many calories you need at rest, and what to eat to lose weight

Why is meal timing important?

Why does he need to drink "tons of water?"

Where have I said about meal timing??

water is fantastic and helps flush everything out, when training you lose water so need to put it back, good skin, hydration etc

Mikesixx94 · December 2013

Once again, thank you for the replies.

I do play legs, but not everyday, otherwise I would even be able to do cardio. I usually do quadriceps, adductors and calves by the end of the week, or the day before I take a rest.

And, yes, I am eating less than 1200, I'm doing almost accurate count, to the point where I might just add another 30-50 calories just because I'm not sure.

Also, I mean no disrespect in ignoring all of the advice that has been given to me. So, I either increase my calorie intake by A LOT so that I could continue working out at this rate, or just cut down my training to an hour cardio, then weights, and at the same time increase my calorie intake, but not as much as the first option ?

http://i.imgur.com/l8lUpsX.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/fGwp0kf.jpg

SLLRunner · December 2013

Mike,

If you are truly eating 800-1,000 calories, you are eating a very low calorie diet (VLCD). This is not good. If you have plugged your stats in MFP and want to lose, say, 2 pounds per week, you would know that you must eat a certain amount of calories, which, I guarantee, are way higher than you are eating.

If you are truly eating 800-1,000 calories, you must be feeling like crap-sluggish, blah, and have much difficulty doing all that cardio. Why? Because you are not eating enough to fuel your body.

I want you to make a visit to your doctor and ask for a referral to a nutritionist who can help you create a better dietary plan for you, which will be more than 800-1,000 calories a day.

In the meantime, plug your numbers in here: http://scoobysworkshop.com/calorie-calculator/, and it will give you the calorie estimations you need to lose 2 pounds a week, 1 pound a week, and a half pound a week. At your weight, I would start at 2 pounds a week. Based on the stats you provided, and just putting in moderate exercise at three days a week (for example purposes only), I calculated the following:

Basic Metabolic Rate (what you need to survive): 2642
Total Daily Energy Expenditure (to maintain weight) 4095
Calorie Intake to lose 2 pounds a week: 3276
Calorie intake to lose 1.5 pounds a week: 3480
Calorie intake to lose 1 pound a week: 3685
Calorie intake to lose .5 pounds a week: 3890

Do you see the difference in your calorie intake and those numbers? Please go and do your own calculations too. There are also other calculators online if you don't want to use the MFP method. The only difference is with the MFP method you eat your exercise calories back and with the TDEE method you do not.

Oh, and cut down on the cario too. You don't need two hours per day.

SLLRunner · December 2013

Thank you both for the reply, I guess I should try to get more food.

Also, I've been thinking of getting one of them protein shakes, but I not pretty sure if I should ? Considering that I'm both trying to lose weight and same time get some muscles ? Should I go for it or should I just wait until my main goal is to gain muscle weight ? Also, I once heard at my gym that people that take protein shakes don't get that natural, shredded shape of muscles such as the delts/biceps and tricpes, I always believed that they were wrong, and mistaken for those that take pills and injections.

Thanks.

Just so you know, you can't build muscle at a calorie deficit, and it takes a long time to build muscle anyway.

Skarlet13 · December 2013

Just curious as to how much weight you're losing. I went on a crazy diet once eating very low cal and exercising 2.5 hours per day and lost weight really fast. Problem was I was tired all the time, lost a lot of hair and ended up gaining it all back. It just wasn't sustainable. I've learned my lesson.

SLLRunner · December 2013

Once again, thank you for the replies.

I do play legs, but not everyday, otherwise I would even be able to do cardio. I usually do quadriceps, adductors and calves by the end of the week, or the day before I take a rest.

And, yes, I am eating less than 1200, I'm doing almost accurate count, to the point where I might just add another 30-50 calories just because I'm not sure.

Also, I mean no disrespect in ignoring all of the advice that has been given to me. So, I either increase my calorie intake by A LOT so that I could continue working out at this rate, or just cut down my training to an hour cardio, then weights, and at the same time increase my calorie intake, but not as much as the first option ?

http://i.imgur.com/l8lUpsX.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/fGwp0kf.jpg

Mike, no disrespect intended to you, but you have to wrap your head around this whole thing. You cannot even eat 1,200 calories a day. You must up your calories significantly even if you decrease your exercise.. If you've been doing this whole thing a month, I'm surprised that you haven't ended up in the hospital, but sleeping, or even wanting to sleep, after your workouts should be a good indication that something is not right.

jminette · December 2013

If you calculate it, your going on a few hundred calories a day. Not enough. You may not be hungry because your body is hanging on to those calories for dear life. Try eating more, and go slow if you have to. I can promise you'll start to feel hungrier again as your metabolism gets going. Best of luck.

Mikesixx94 · December 2013

Umm, Thank you all very very much. I really appreciate all of your replies.

I did some thinking, and, yeah. this really does sound stupid and wrong of me... 4 pounds a week is going to make me sick, and I won't gain any muscles.

So, I will cut down to 90-120mins at the gym split between an hour cardio, and rest focused on weights. I will start eating more calories, and just take it slow, and focus on 1-2lbs a week. Because, it's true, as soon as I get back home; I feel like crap and want to fall down and just sleep, and noticed that this never happened to me before.

Once again, thank you all, and good luck on your goals

RGv2 · December 2013

Mike....

You're not going to gain any muscles (outside of some potential noob gains) while eating at a deficit.

SLLRunner · December 2013

Mike....

You're not going to gain any muscles (outside of some potential noob gains) while eating at a deficit.

Mike, this is true. If I were you, I'd cut the weight and the cardio just a bit more. What's the purpose of exercising 1 1/2 hours to 2 hours a day?

Weight loss starts in the kitchen with a deficit only. You can add exercise, but you need to be sure to eat a portion of those exercise calories back. If you are truly eating 800-1000 calories per day, how do you suppose you will "allow" (quotes for emphasis only) yourself to eat the calories you need to fuel your body so you can continue your workouts and your lifestyle?

From your replies here, I believe you might have some disordered thinking about food and exercise and weight loss. I encourage you to talk to your doctor about this.

I encourage you to enter your height and weight into MFP, to eat the amount of calories alloted to you (which will be a whole lot more than you say you are eating now), and to eat a portion of your exercise calories back. I also challenge you to cut that exercise down somewhat-maybe a half hour of weight lifting and a half hour or forty five minutes of cardio each day. Work on different parts of your body each day.

I also move almost every single day so that I'm not sore and achey from age, but 70 minutes tops on the days when I weight lift and run and 60 minutes tops when I do other types of exercise. Some days I choose just to take a leisurely walk.

Just so you know, exercise is NOT required to lose weight. All you have to do is to eat less calories than you burn. If you choose to exercise, great, but stop overdoing it because it's not going to do you any good in the long run.

The best of luck to you!

Over doing it.

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