Clean eating and strength training but not seeing changes

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paige_moy
paige_moy Posts: 15
in Health and Weight Loss
I have been eating "clean" (85%- clean and 15% cheat meal that's not necessarily junk food but not the best, usually like a nice steak dinner) for months and working out 5x a week doing 15-30 mins of cardio and strength training but have not seen any improvement. I'm not trying to lose any more weight, just add muscle, my goal is to be lean and toned. I know they say that abs are made in the kitchen and I have been very good about my eating, do ab work 2-3x a week, and drink a little less than a gallon of water a day but I still look very bloated, almost like I'm pregnant. The rest of my body almost looks anorexic because of my weight loss but my stomach looks like I munch on pizza all day. I also feel like every time I do strength training I am actually becoming weaker. What am I doing wrong?

My details:
5'6"
114 lbs
I aim for about 1800 calories a day not including the calories I eat back from workouts (1200 BMR for weight loss plus 500-600 calories because I breastfeed)

workout schedule, I also stretch after every workout:
mon:
15-30 mins cardio
3x15 of
leg press
leg curl
hip abductor
adductor
calf extension
db lunges
squats
and one other that i forgot the name of (it's like the reverse of the leg curl)

tues:
15-30 min cardio
ab workout that consists of working transverse abdominals because I am prone to diastasis recti and can't do any crunches

wed
15-30 min cardio
3x15 of
chest press
fly
pushups
benchdips
tricep pushdown
tricep pulldown
db shoulder press
machine shoulder press

thurs
15-30 min coardio
ab workout

fri
15-30 min cardio
bicep and back

I usually eat something carb-y about 1 hour before and something protein-y 1 hour after
I haven't been logging my food because I've gotten the math down and usually eat the same things everyday,
eggs and oatmeal in the morning
some kind of white meat for lunch (usually shredded chicken or pulled pork on corn tortilla
some kind of chicken for dinner (baked or shredded chicken, clean chicken chili, chicken fajita on corn tortilla)
plus a serving of fruit and vegetables for lunch and dinner
and eggs or chicken after my workout
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Replies

  • acpgee
    acpgee Posts: 7,722 Member
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    I would re-arrange your strength workouts, if that's the order you lift in Move arms to one of your ab days, so that tired arms don't impede your shoulder routine. I prefer to hit major upper body muscle groups twice a week (chest, lats, delts). Do you train to failure, at least some of the time? If you train to failure regularly, you should be increasing weight used over time.
  • paige_moy
    paige_moy Posts: 15
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    I should also say that I rest about 20-30 seconds between sets and 2 minutes between different exercises

    But by the end of the second set I can really feel the struggle and the last 5 or so reps of the last set I have to pause between reps and kind of push a bunch of energy into those muscles just to do the reps. Sometimes I only make it to 12 or 13 on the last set before my muscles give out.

    I know alot of people say to cut back on cardio to 2-3x a week. Should I be doing that instead of everyday since I've already lost most of my weight? The problem I have with working out is my time frame, I have maybe 1.5 hours max and between the cardio and stretching I don't have enought time to do all the upper body or lower body exercises in one workout. If I cut my cardio to 2x a week, say on the ab days, that should probably give me enough time to do all the upper body/ lower body exercises in one workout
  • acpgee
    acpgee Posts: 7,722 Member
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    I still need to lose weight, so I do an hour of cardio daily and only have time for one major muscle group a day. If you are doing 12 or 13 reps, I would recommend going down to 8-10 in upper body and increasing weight accordingly. Standard wisdom is 8-12 reps for maximum hypertrophy, I believe.
  • martinel2099
    martinel2099 Posts: 899 Member
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    Ok you are over thinking this you need to simplify.

    1. Clearly, your goal is no longer to lose weight. You want to put on muscle and get some definition.

    2. Outside of noobie gains, To add muscle, you need to eat at a calorie surplus. You need to calculate your maintenance and create a small surplus.

    3. Heavy lifting- I highly recommend that you pick up a heavy lifting program like Strong Lifts. Don't worry, you will not over bulk and there are tons of women who are enjoying the results from heavy training. I prefer strong lifts as I myself am a beginner and with strong lifts it's 3 exercises 3 times per week. These are compound lifts which work multiple muscles in the body at once. Great time saver, very valuable exercise. You need to lift big to gain muscle.
  • AllOutof_Bubblegum
    AllOutof_Bubblegum Posts: 3,646 Member
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    At 5'6" there is NO WAY in hell that your BMR is 1200. I am 5'nothing and my BMR is 1280. Nope. Not buying it. Recalculate your BMR using a reputable calculator, like the scoobyworkshop of iifym.com one.

    Also, if you are not trying to lose weight, you need to eat more.
  • WickedPineapple
    WickedPineapple Posts: 698 Member
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    You're 5'6" and 114 lbs. Based on BMI you are underweight. Why are you trying to loose?
  • WickedPineapple
    WickedPineapple Posts: 698 Member
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    Oh I see, you're not trying to lose. If you're trying to gain muscle you should eat a bit of a surplus. Are you eating back your exercise calories?
  • IamOnMywayNow
    IamOnMywayNow Posts: 470 Member
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    If you are breastfeeding and want to continue to do so you need to eat more. Also, how old is your baby? Sometimes it takes longer for a woman's body, specifically her stomach to go back to the way it was before pregnancy.
  • Sabine_Stroehm
    Sabine_Stroehm Posts: 19,263 Member
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    At 5'6" there is NO WAY in hell that your BMR is 1200. I am 5'nothing and my BMR is 1280. Nope. Not buying it. Recalculate your BMR using a reputable calculator, like the scoobyworkshop of iifym.com one.

    Also, if you are not trying to lose weight, you need to eat more.
    at HER age. No. It's not. Even at that (too) low of a weight it's probably not.

    I'm just saying that because I'm 5'6" and mine is pretty close to that. I'm 135 but I'm much older. At her TINY weight my calculator gave me 1309 (assuming she really is 20).
  • SueInAz
    SueInAz Posts: 6,592 Member
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    I should also say that I rest about 20-30 seconds between sets and 2 minutes between different exercises

    But by the end of the second set I can really feel the struggle and the last 5 or so reps of the last set I have to pause between reps and kind of push a bunch of energy into those muscles just to do the reps. Sometimes I only make it to 12 or 13 on the last set before my muscles give out.

    I know alot of people say to cut back on cardio to 2-3x a week. Should I be doing that instead of everyday since I've already lost most of my weight? The problem I have with working out is my time frame, I have maybe 1.5 hours max and between the cardio and stretching I don't have enought time to do all the upper body or lower body exercises in one workout. If I cut my cardio to 2x a week, say on the ab days, that should probably give me enough time to do all the upper body/ lower body exercises in one workout
    Focus less on "clean" eating (whatever that is, everyone's definition is different) and more on getting enough protein to help you build muscle. The number I keep seeing is .5 to 1 gram of protein per pound of body weight. I know that I try to eat around 90-100 grams per day.

    I say cut back on the cardio and use that extra time to lift. You should be hitting each major muscle group 2-3 times per week. I AM still trying to lose some weight but it's not my major focus. I want to gain muscle so I lift heavy and run on alternating days with one day of rest each week.

    You don't say how much you're actually lifting, but I guess that would have made the post really long. I'd suggest that you lift heavy for less reps. There are some great programs out there that will help you figure out how much and for how many reps. I personally started with a weight I could lift for 4 reps and would fail on the 5th. I don't ever lift to failure on purpose. I lift that weight until I can do it with perfect form for 4 sets of 8 reps. Once I can do that I increase weight the next session to the point I can only do 4 for each set. It's been working for me but I know there are other systems out there. I'm now seeing definition in my shoulders, back and and arms. I need to drop more weight before my thighs get more definition but they're getting there.
  • lindsey1979
    lindsey1979 Posts: 2,395 Member
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    I second the advice about heavy lifting with a progressive overload program with compound lifts. I prefer Starting Strength myself (the book is especially great for form advice), but Stronglifts is great (appears to be a rip off of Starting Strength), New Rules of Lifting for Women.

    If your stomach is appearing bloated, that would seem to indicate to me that you're eating something that you have some sort of intolerance for. Two of the biggest culprits are grains (for gluten) and dairy (for lactose and casein). You may try an elimination diet for a 30 days or so and see if there is a change. Whole 30, strict Paleo, etc. are good starting places. A lot of people have such intolerances but don't realize it until they cut out the food that is causing the issue.

    As for the cardio, what sort of cardio is it? If it's high intensity like running, you may want to back it down to something lower intensity like walking/hiking. My friend (a guy) had this very issue -- very ectomorph, long distance runner-like body type. So long as he was running, he couldn't put on any muscle with his program. He dropped the running, and put on a good 15-20 lbs of upper body muscle with the exact same work out in 6-12 months -- he was lifting very heavy. Perhaps if he ate more, he wouldn't have had to drop the running but he was just eating a ton already, so dropping the running made more sense for what he was looking to accomplish.
  • _Zardoz_
    _Zardoz_ Posts: 3,987 Member
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    Eat some food your verging on underweight and need to put some weight on! Also you won't build any muscle eating that low calories considering the exercise you do and with breastfeeding. Keep this up long term and your likely to do your body some damage
  • Sabine_Stroehm
    Sabine_Stroehm Posts: 19,263 Member
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    Eat some food your verging on underweight and need to put some weight on! Also you won't build any muscle eating that low calories considering the exercise you do and with breastfeeding. Keep this up long term and your likely to do your body some damage
    She IS underweight.
  • BusyRaeNOTBusty
    BusyRaeNOTBusty Posts: 7,166 Member
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    Ok you are over thinking this you need to simplify.

    1. Clearly, your goal is no longer to lose weight. You want to put on muscle and get some definition.

    2. Outside of noobie gains, To add muscle, you need to eat at a calorie surplus. You need to calculate your maintenance and create a small surplus.

    3. Heavy lifting- I highly recommend that you pick up a heavy lifting program like Strong Lifts. Don't worry, you will not over bulk and there are tons of women who are enjoying the results from heavy training. I prefer strong lifts as I myself am a beginner and with strong lifts it's 3 exercises 3 times per week. These are compound lifts which work multiple muscles in the body at once. Great time saver, very valuable exercise. You need to lift big to gain muscle.

    This. Eat more. Get a better lifting program.
  • 52cardpickup
    52cardpickup Posts: 379 Member
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    How long ago did you have your child (you said you're breast feeding)? Are you sure you don't have diastasis recti? If you're having problems with your stomach looking bloated still, I would get checked by a doctor to rule out diastasis recti (separation of abdominal muscles).
  • Sabine_Stroehm
    Sabine_Stroehm Posts: 19,263 Member
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    How long ago did you have your child (you said you're breast feeding)? Are you sure you don't have diastasis recti? If you're having problems with your stomach looking bloated still, I would get checked by a doctor to rule out diastasis recti (separation of abdominal muscles).
    I was just going to post this. Thanks.
  • asterhana
    asterhana Posts: 4 Member
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    I would up your protein intake. Right after a strength training session drink a protein shake with at least 30 grams of protein. Make sure you're getting around 100 grams of protein a day. The only way to do that is to start tracking again. I always find it difficult to hit my protein goals but when I do consistently for a few weeks the results are immediately apparent.

    Also, listen to your body. If your workouts are leaving you weak and you have no strength or motivation during them, that's your body telling you you probably aren't eating enough or sleeping enough, or are otherwise stressed.

    Lastly, to get rid of gut bloat try cutting out sugar, dairy, wheat, and/or eggs. Those are common culprits of bloating, though some may not have reactions to these things.
  • WhitneyAnnabelle
    WhitneyAnnabelle Posts: 724 Member
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    I find it very difficult to lose weight when thin, and you seem very thin (I'm 5'1'' and currently a few pounds heavier than you are. I'm normally 100-105). If you're strength training, you're going to notice gains in muscle, which will increase your weight or at least keep it where it is. For me, I look for changes in my body composition more than weight. I know none of this is comforting, but it's my experience, especially as a now-smaller person (losing 85 pounds was a hell of a lot easier than getting back to the size where I now feel 'normal').
  • paige_moy
    paige_moy Posts: 15
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    Sorry, I should have clarified more, my BMR is around 1310 but to lose weight MFP sets it to 1200, everythiing that I've read said to lose belly fat I need to lose fat all around so that's why I've set it to lose weight
  • kgeyser
    kgeyser Posts: 22,505 Member
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    Sorry, I should have clarified more, my BMR is around 1310 but to lose weight MFP sets it to 1200, everythiing that I've read said to lose belly fat I need to lose fat all around so that's why I've set it to lose weight

    How much did you tell MFP you want to lose per week? I have a hard time believing a 20 year old working out that much has a TDEE that is lower than mine.

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