Calories, Cardio vs Weight Training & clean diet?
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lozzieemayjenkins
Posts: 71 Member
Well its all in the subject really..
1. How many of you stick to the calorie allowance that MFP sets for you? Through years of crash diets, faddy starvation diets and yo yo dieting it seems my body is at a place where if I eat 1200 a day everyday my weight loss is very slow or non existent.. from experience it's only if I eat very low such as 700-900 calories a day with one high day that the weight comes off. I'm not sure how to fix this?
2. I've been given training plans by personal trainers in the past.. that mainly work around majority weight training focusing on different body parts on different days, followed by 20 minutes of HIIT cardio. I tried this on and off for a year and found myself looking bulkier and stocky. In the past I've been a bit of a cardio bunny and would perform 40 minutes of cardio either using a cross trainer or treadmill followed by some ab work and weights. Which is more beneficial if I'm hoping to lose body fat and weight but maintain muscle mass to avoid looking skinny fat?
3. Just how important is a clean diet.. I'm quite a fussy eater with the eating attitude of a child. I dislike most fruit and vegetables, and in the past my calories have been spent on things like cereal bars and low fat low calorie versions of foods.. does it really matter what you spend your calories on? If it really does take eating clean to get lean as a lot of people claim.. then I'm sure I can force myself to eat cleaner.
Any advice and comments are appreciated. There's so much conflicting information online it all gets a little confusing.
1. How many of you stick to the calorie allowance that MFP sets for you? Through years of crash diets, faddy starvation diets and yo yo dieting it seems my body is at a place where if I eat 1200 a day everyday my weight loss is very slow or non existent.. from experience it's only if I eat very low such as 700-900 calories a day with one high day that the weight comes off. I'm not sure how to fix this?
2. I've been given training plans by personal trainers in the past.. that mainly work around majority weight training focusing on different body parts on different days, followed by 20 minutes of HIIT cardio. I tried this on and off for a year and found myself looking bulkier and stocky. In the past I've been a bit of a cardio bunny and would perform 40 minutes of cardio either using a cross trainer or treadmill followed by some ab work and weights. Which is more beneficial if I'm hoping to lose body fat and weight but maintain muscle mass to avoid looking skinny fat?
3. Just how important is a clean diet.. I'm quite a fussy eater with the eating attitude of a child. I dislike most fruit and vegetables, and in the past my calories have been spent on things like cereal bars and low fat low calorie versions of foods.. does it really matter what you spend your calories on? If it really does take eating clean to get lean as a lot of people claim.. then I'm sure I can force myself to eat cleaner.
Any advice and comments are appreciated. There's so much conflicting information online it all gets a little confusing.
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1) How slow is "very slow" in your case?
2) If you want to keep muscle, there's only one way: using them. So lift weights. You won't get bulky if you're losing weight.
3) You don't have to eat clean. Calories are the important thing. But you should get certain amounts of the macronutrients. Protein for the muscles, and fats were important for something too, so better not go for low-fat.0 -
1. I stick to the goals I set. I use MFP as a tool and do my own research into how I want to use it.
2. The weights.
3. I don't like the whole concept of 'eating clean'. I DO like the concept of making sure you get enough micronutrients in your diet.
If you are eating a lot of calorie desnse food, you're probably not doing so well on that. How importanant it REALLY is, is another matter for debate. Regardless, make sure you take a vitamin pill regularly I'd say - but that won't cover everything, of course.0 -
I just had a look at the link you provided and it's so much information to take in its all a bit confusing.0 -
1) How slow is "very slow" in your case?
2) If you want to keep muscle, there's only one way: using them. So lift weights. You won't get bulky if you're losing weight.
3) You don't have to eat clean. Calories are the important thing. But you should get certain amounts of the macronutrients. Protein for the muscles, and fats were important for something too, so better not go for low-fat.
Very slow as in probably a pound every fortnight or longer than that.. I've been at the same weight the last 15 months and that's from eating 1200 a day as MFP recommends. It's only when my calories drop significantly low that the weight comes off and even then it's not extremely fast. I'm just worried that eating below 1200 will, over time, cause me to become skinny fat which isn't what I want.0 -
1. I stick to the goals I set. I use MFP as a tool and do my own research into how I want to use it.
2. The weights.
3. I don't like the whole concept of 'eating clean'. I DO like the concept of making sure you get enough micronutrients in your diet.
If you are eating a lot of calorie desnse food, you're probably not doing so well on that. How importanant it REALLY is, is another matter for debate. Regardless, make sure you take a vitamin pill regularly I'd say - but that won't cover everything, of course.
1. So in your opinion following the caloric goals MFP sets as well as the macro goals they set is okay?
2. I know weights play a huge part in weight loss and more importantly fat loss, and the more muscle you have the faster your metabolism burns etc. But from getting a bit bulky the last year when focusing mainly on weights it has worried me a bit.0 -
do you have pictures/measurements of how 'bulky' you got?0
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do you have pictures/measurements of how 'bulky' you got?
I don't have pictures. But I gained an inch on my arms, waist and thighs. From experience I look slimmer when doing more cardio than weights which I don't understand. My weight training programme was devised by Lydia Rees whose very good at what she does and looks amazing so I was very disheartened to find I stayed the same weight and looked stockier rather than smaller and leaner.0 -
you put on an inch of muscle round your waist??0
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If you are already at a low weight and don't have a lot of weight to lose then a pound a fortnight may be a good rate for you.
Say your body only needs 1400 kcal a day to fuel itself, do everything you ask of it and keep you healthy if you only give it 1200kcal then you have a calorie deficit of 200kcal a day. With a pound of fat needing about a 3500 kcal deficit then just on maths you would be looking to lose a pound every 17.5 days. That's not factoring in inaccurate logging which most people are guilty of and will skew the results.
Work out what you TDEE (total daily energy expenditure) is and your BMR (basal metabolic rate or what you would burn if you did nothing but exist) and then you will start to see what is happening. The sexy pants post that people have linked to is great but just work through it in chunks as there is a huge amount of info to take in.0 -
1) How slow is "very slow" in your case?
2) If you want to keep muscle, there's only one way: using them. So lift weights. You won't get bulky if you're losing weight.
3) You don't have to eat clean. Calories are the important thing. But you should get certain amounts of the macronutrients. Protein for the muscles, and fats were important for something too, so better not go for low-fat.
Very slow as in probably a pound every fortnight or longer than that.. I've been at the same weight the last 15 months and that's from eating 1200 a day as MFP recommends. It's only when my calories drop significantly low that the weight comes off and even then it's not extremely fast. I'm just worried that eating below 1200 will, over time, cause me to become skinny fat which isn't what I want.
Are you weighing your food on a digital scale, and measuring your liquids?0 -
1) I don't eat what MFP tell me to because I follow the TDEE method and just eat less than that. You can see that I set my caloric intake to my TDEE in my diary and what ever is green at the end of the day is my deficit. Also, I use a scale to weigh my food so that I can be more accurate in my logging.
2) I never really had to do cardio during my cut, just lifted weights to maintain my lean body mass. As long as you're eating at a deficit you will get smaller.
3) I just try to hit my proteins, minimum fats and fiber and fill the rest of my calories with whatever while being in a deficit. At the end of the day it's calories in vs calories out.0 -
1. Not particularly.1. So in your opinion following the caloric goals MFP sets as well as the macro goals they set is okay?
2. I know weights play a huge part in weight loss and more importantly fat loss, and the more muscle you have the faster your metabolism burns etc. But from getting a bit bulky the last year when focusing mainly on weights it has worried me a bit.
I think their protein target is way to low. Plenty of research shows more protein is beneficial for retaining muscle during weight loss. Try going for .8g/lb of target weight.
The other two macros I don't worry about unless I'm trying to put weight on.
Calories - 1200 isn't hard and fast, but especially if you don't get loads of micronutrients in the first place, may not be a bad place to be.1/2lb a week does seem slow, but I wouldn't knock it too much.
2. Weights don't play a bit part in weight loss - they play a good part in making sure it IS fat that is lost rather than muscle.
The difference in metabolic rate for muscle is small - if you were a bloke that lost a load of weight then put loads of muscle on using steroids, you'd be talking an extra biscuit a day.
If you're losing weight, you won't be able to put on significant muscle - the fact you weren't before was probably part of it. However, it's quite likely some of the issue was also having too much fat on top.0 -
I can't say. Your doctor and a trial/error process will probably help you most. That sucks about the yo-yo diets messing you up. I hope you can even that out.
Calories only vs. Healthy eating? That's up to you. If you want to have healthy habits, you should. If you don't, you shouldn't, and any mix in the middle that works for you is good, too.
Personal trainers are not for me. I need to follow my bliss. I do what I'm supposed to do, but strict rules aren't for me. They work for some people, though! Give it a shot. You might like it! If not, you can always quit that.
I don't understand skinny fat and I don't want to! If that's what I'm going for, I'd rather just be it and not know that's the word, since it's kind of depressing. If it means "not toned", that would be okay with me, someday. Right now, under the fat, I'm a little more toned than I'd like.
You need to do what works for you!
Best of luck!0 -
Best way to lose weight and be healthy is a combination. Running burns calories, lifting increases metabolism and calorie burning throughout the day and a healthy diet makes sure you have the energy needed for the day. So the more you run the better your heart is and more calories burned a day and the more muscle you have means a higher metabolism both allowing you to eat more which is somethng we all love or we wouldnt be here
i see it as a win:win situation 0 -
I'm no expert in any of this but these are my general observations based upon my personal experience.
I do stick to it. I've lost just short of 20lbs since January, though I haven't been strict with myself at times I've always stuck to it, slow progress is better than none at all. I do tend to eat below my allowance though by say 100 cals per day, just to give leeway for overeating or my estimates being off slightly. If you're genuinely being honest about yourself, your logging and your activity level then go to a doctor because that's not a normal intake for weight loss. You might have a thyroid problem or something.
You don't need to weight train if you don't want to. Yoga, pilates, body strength weight training etc. are all good options for toning up. I try to do a mixture daily for 20 minutes at the moment and I started to notice the difference in a couple weeks. I do believe that this sort of exercise (working lots of different muscles on a regular basis) is 100% necessary for creating a leaner physique and preserving current muscle, whereas cardio is not. Cardio is good if you want to increase your calorie burn each day and general fitness, but not necessary for fat loss. I've never been a fan personally and generally disregard it (a likely reason as to why my loss was very gradual).
Clean diet - abs are made in the kitchen. Up your protein and get your five a day. I'm not suggesting you suddenly take up protein powder and kale shakes, but you need to eat well. It's so much more vital than people realise, it's something I had no idea about in the past and explains why I ended up feeling flabby even when my BMI was in the high teens/low twenties.0
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