When to increase calories & Heavy lifting question

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cjl2535
cjl2535 Posts: 89
in Health and Weight Loss
Hi, I'm currently eating on average 1800cals/day (1625cals on weekdays and 2250 on weekends)

I do heavy lifting 4x a week and high intensity cardio (BodyCombat classes) 3x a week (each 60minutes long) and get 8 hours of sleep everyday

On the weekdays I SOMETIMES feel a bit lethargic and tired. I think I've been losing about a pound or so a week as well. But other days I feel full of energy and really healthy.

However, I feel like I'm not gaining as much strength in lifting as I should/could be...Is it generally harder to gain strength while cutting?

How can you tell if you need to eat more or not?

I still want to lose about 10 - 15 pounds :/

Replies

  • vismal
    vismal Posts: 2,463 Member
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    You will reach a point in your training where strength gain isn't just hard in a deficit but it's virtually impossible. At my current level of training, a successful fat loss phase is one where strength doesn't DECREASE. How long have you been lifting for? What is your current height weight and gender, what are you lifts like (what lifts are you doing and how heavy)?
  • stephanielynn76
    stephanielynn76 Posts: 709 Member
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    You will reach a point in your training where strength gain isn't just hard in a deficit but it's virtually impossible. At my current level of training, a successful fat loss phase is one where strength doesn't DECREASE. How long have you been lifting for? What is your current height weight and gender, what are you lifts like (what lifts are you doing and how heavy)?

    ^^that.

    When cutting I just focus on maintaining strength. Any strength gains made during a cut can more than likely be attributed to neural adaptation and not muscle hypertrophy.

    What is your goal at this time? If it is to lose fat then you should continue doing what you are doing and accept that you would be fortunate to hold on to strength and muscle while cutting. If your goal is to gain both strength and mass then you need to be in a calorie surplus.
  • cjl2535
    cjl2535 Posts: 89
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    I am currently 5'4.5 and weigh roughly 150 pounds.
    Hmm I've only been lifting for about 7 weeks so I guess it's still a bit early for me ?
    I do a bunch of exercises but main ones are 5x5
    squats 130lbs
    deadlifts 135lbs
    overhead press 50lbs (just started)
    bench press 75lbs (just started)

    @stephanielynn
    Thanks!!! So I should worry about gaining strength and increasing calories after I reach my goal weight?
  • stephanielynn76
    stephanielynn76 Posts: 709 Member
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    I am currently 5'4.5 and weigh roughly 150 pounds.
    Hmm I've only been lifting for about 7 weeks so I guess it's still a bit early for me ?
    I do a bunch of exercises but main ones are 5x5
    squats 130lbs
    deadlifts 135lbs
    overhead press 50lbs (just started)
    bench press 75lbs (just started)

    @stephanielynn
    Thanks!!! So I should worry about gaining strength and increasing calories after I reach my goal weight?

    Yes, that's what I would do. Once you reach your goal, begin increasing your calories. You will want the scale to start going back up. It's common to gain an initial 4-5lbs right off the bat due to an increase in glycogen stores and fluid retention. After that you should aim to gain about 2 lbs/month. You only need a surplus of about 300calories/day. This will give you the extra nutrition needed to gain more mass!
  • cjl2535
    cjl2535 Posts: 89
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    Yes, that's what I would do. Once you reach your goal, begin increasing your calories. You will want the scale to start going back up. It's common to gain an initial 4-5lbs right off the bat due to an increase in glycogen stores and fluid retention. After that you should aim to gain about 2 lbs/month. You only need a surplus of about 300calories/day. This will give you the extra nutrition needed to gain more mass!

    Hmm..but I'm not looking to gain back the weight I lose =/ maybe just maintain?

    Did you ever feel lethargic when you were cutting?
  • stephanielynn76
    stephanielynn76 Posts: 709 Member
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    Hmm..but I'm not looking to gain back the weight I lose =/ maybe just maintain?

    Did you ever feel lethargic when you were cutting?

    Do you want to gain muscle? if you do, you need to be in a calorie surplus. Yes you'll gain a bit of fat with it but it's par for the course.

    Yes, less calories = less energy.
  • cdahl383
    cdahl383 Posts: 726 Member
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    I am currently 5'4.5 and weigh roughly 150 pounds.
    Hmm I've only been lifting for about 7 weeks so I guess it's still a bit early for me ?
    I do a bunch of exercises but main ones are 5x5
    squats 130lbs
    deadlifts 135lbs
    overhead press 50lbs (just started)
    bench press 75lbs (just started)

    @stephanielynn
    Thanks!!! So I should worry about gaining strength and increasing calories after I reach my goal weight?

    Yes, that's what I would do. Once you reach your goal, begin increasing your calories. You will want the scale to start going back up. It's common to gain an initial 4-5lbs right off the bat due to an increase in glycogen stores and fluid retention. After that you should aim to gain about 2 lbs/month. You only need a surplus of about 300calories/day. This will give you the extra nutrition needed to gain more mass!

    ^ Right on, well said!
  • meshashesha2012
    meshashesha2012 Posts: 8,326 Member
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    You will reach a point in your training where strength gain isn't just hard in a deficit but it's virtually impossible. At my current level of training, a successful fat loss phase is one where strength doesn't DECREASE. How long have you been lifting for? What is your current height weight and gender, what are you lifts like (what lifts are you doing and how heavy)?

    agreed. at a certain point you will need to choose between increasing strength or eating at a deficit more than something like 10% less than your TDEE

    i did try an experiment (with just myself) to see if i could get away with calorie cycling. so overall being in a deficit but some days i'd eat close to maintenance other days i'd eat very little. that got old really quick eating wise but i think it did help me get a few more plates on the bar. not sure if it was worth it though
  • cjl2535
    cjl2535 Posts: 89
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    Ooohh thanks so much everyone ! Should I be doing TDEE - 10% as I get closer to my goal ? or just jump back to my TDEE calories once I reach my goal? =/
  • cjl2535
    cjl2535 Posts: 89
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    I guess I'm just afraid of not eating enough calories because I don't want to deprive my body of anything =/
    When can you guys tell it's time to up them?
    I really don't want to mess up my metabolism ><
  • Chevy_Quest
    Chevy_Quest Posts: 2,012 Member
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    bump to learn
  • mymodernbabylon
    mymodernbabylon Posts: 1,038 Member
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    Like me, you have less than 20 lb to lose and so should set your TDEE loss to 1/2 lb a week...which for me is between TDEE-15% &-10%. I'm 5'6" tall, 45 yr old and I'm not working out even close to as much as you are and I'm eating a lot more plus losing...and when I was lifting (before breaking a rib) I was able to gain a bit of strength but definitely maintain my strength and lose some fat. I'm going to try lifting again tomorrow as I've healed quite a bit and my food intake will go up again (yay!). Test it out, try it and see if you feel better!
  • levitateme
    levitateme Posts: 999 Member
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    I am 31, F 5'4" 162.2 lbs.

    I have decided to not worry about creating a deficit to increase my strength and "bulk" I suppose, and I am nowhere near what I'd consider a goal weight. I have gained about 5 lbs since the beginning of lifting (well I guess 12 lbs) but reduced my waist size by 4 inches (as well as various other measurement decreases) and am slowly reducing my body fat percentage. I slowly increased my calories over some months. I was eating like 1600-1800 back in march, eventually got to 1900, then 2100, then 2300, and so on and so on. I started lifting at 157, went down to 150 and now back up to 162.

    If you care about scale weight, this isn't for you, but if you want to be strong and look good, this is what I recommend for most people who are 10-15 lbs from goal. According to scooby's I should be able to eat 2700 calories to build muscle/lose fat at the same time and I am eating between 2500-3200 daily (it varies a lot) and seeing slow results that are all aesthetic. I am "heavier" on the scale, but my lean body mass is what is increasing and the fat is dropping. I never thought I would like the way my arms looked. They looked terrible at 151. Now they are tight, getting tighter. I give this advice to people all the time and seemingly no one pays attention. I lift heavy, I eat all the food and I am looking better and better.

    Lifts started at : 75 lbs squat 5x5
    95 lbs deadlift 1x5
    55 lbs bench 5x5
    30 lbs OHP 5x5
    40 lbs row 5x5

    Now lifting: 145 lbs squat 5x5
    175 lbs deadlift 1x5
    85 lbs bench (3 reps, 5 sets)
    70 lbs OHP (3 reps, 5 sets)
    80 lbs rows 5x5

    ETA: words, weights, stuff
  • oOTeresaOo
    oOTeresaOo Posts: 39 Member
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    Following...Lots on info.
  • mymodernbabylon
    mymodernbabylon Posts: 1,038 Member
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    I have decided to not worry about creating a deficit to increase my strength and "bulk" I suppose, and I am nowhere near what I'd consider a goal weight.
    If you care about scale weight, this isn't for you, but if you want to be strong and look good, this is what I recommend for most people who are 10-15 lbs from goal.

    You rock! As I'm very close to my 'goal' and quite happy with my weight anyway, I think I'm going to start upping my calories to do this and see what happens.

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