Sanity check please

antonygrosvenor
antonygrosvenor Posts: 9 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Hey all,

A quick sanity check for me here if you can. Im currently 241lbs and 6 foot male and soon to be 38. So far over the course of several months I've lost around 10lbs - portion control and resisting a bar (or 5) of chocolate :-)

Im now 2 weeks into cycling and 1 week into Insanity workout.

I've bought a HRM but its not arrived yet, so i check manually at water break and HR is between 160-230 (when 230 it does come down to around 140 after 10 minutes, so i don't think I'm going to die). Calories i enter on here are theoretical based on Strada (cycling) and Insanity calorie checker.

So the sanity check....... I need 2000 - 2200 calories to survive + calories from exercise 500 - 1000. So on a really hard day, i need to eat 3200? Or do i just eat 2200?

When I've read forums it says eat around 1700-1800, but that would be too low?

Thanks

Replies

  • _Zardoz_
    _Zardoz_ Posts: 3,987 Member
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1175494-a-guide-to-get-you-started-on-your-path-to-sexypants?hl=guide+to+sexypants&page=1#posts-18361594

    This link will help you
  • Liftng4Lis
    Liftng4Lis Posts: 15,151 Member
    Eating your allotted calories and half your exercise calories is generally a safe rule. This allows for miscalculations both on inputing calories and overcompensated exercise calories burned.
  • antonygrosvenor
    antonygrosvenor Posts: 9 Member
    Thanks for replies - read the post and it makes sense. What i didn't get from the post that i am trying to understand is what if i just eat my BMR. My goal is to get leaner, healthier. I have put a goal in MFP but if that is too low or too high i don't know until i get closer.

    BMI is: 33.6
    BMR is: 2035
    TDEE is: 3155 calories

    Allowing for some miscalculations in exercise of 20 - 30% means i "burn" 400 - 700 calories depending on day / workout. I need to lose 350 calories a day to lose 2lb a week. So if i just eat BMR that would give me between 2lb and 4lb a week? Or have i misunderstood?
  • psuLemon
    psuLemon Posts: 38,431 MFP Moderator
    Personally, I would start you at 2300 calories (about a 25% deficit) with macros around 40% carbs, 30% protein and fats. Considering the numbers you posted are rough estimates, you need to do some trial and error. The best thing you can do is use a food scale for all liquids, spoon and cups for liquids and log everyday.

    On a side note, I would either drop insanity or the cycling and replace it with some resistance training. RT with protein will help with much retention which will help you get lean.
  • antonygrosvenor
    antonygrosvenor Posts: 9 Member
    Thanks for the advise. I do weigh most things or check label and then enter on here (bread for example i don't weigh, just use the item and add serving).

    I'd like to keep the Insanity in, as it does have some resistance (body) work in and LOADS of cario :sick: and i like to cycling, is it too much cardio?

    Looking at what I've eaten this last week it tends to be 30-35% Carbs, 40% Fats, and 30-35% protein. So lose some of the fats and up the carbs.
  • 4legsRbetterthan2
    4legsRbetterthan2 Posts: 19,590 MFP Moderator
    Thanks for replies - read the post and it makes sense. What i didn't get from the post that i am trying to understand is what if i just eat my BMR. My goal is to get leaner, healthier. I have put a goal in MFP but if that is too low or too high i don't know until i get closer.

    BMI is: 33.6
    BMR is: 2035
    TDEE is: 3155 calories

    Allowing for some miscalculations in exercise of 20 - 30% means i "burn" 400 - 700 calories depending on day / workout. I need to lose 350 calories a day to lose 2lb a week. So if i just eat BMR that would give me between 2lb and 4lb a week? Or have i misunderstood?

    A deficit of 1000 calories a day will give you 2 lbs a week in weightloss. So if your TDEE is 3155 then 2155 would be your calorie goal for the day. However, make sure a 2lb/week loss rate is appropriate for your goals, the following is usually reccomended:

    If you have 75+ lbs to lose 2 lbs/week is ideal
    If you have 40-75 lbs to lose 1.5 lbs/week is ideal
    If you have 25-40 lbs to lose 1 lbs/week is ideal
    If you have 15 -25 lbs to lose 0.5 to 1.0 lbs/week is ideal
    If you have less than 15 lbs to lose 0.5 lbs/week is ideal

    Chose how many lbs a week you wish to lose and calculate your daily deficit as follows:
    lbs/week X 3500 (calories in a lb) / 7 (days in a week)

    subtract that from your TDEE to get your calorie goal

    Keep in mind that if you use the TDEE method then you exercise is alread calculated in so do not track it and eat back those calories. Also, if you are not super committed to your exercise schedule then the TDEE method might not be for you, since your exercise is already included you have to make sure you do that, no skipping the gym frequently, or else you will not see the results you want.
  • psuLemon
    psuLemon Posts: 38,431 MFP Moderator
    Thanks for the advise. I do weigh most things or check label and then enter on here (bread for example i don't weigh, just use the item and add serving).

    I'd like to keep the Insanity in, as it does have some resistance (body) work in and LOADS of cario :sick: and i like to cycling, is it too much cardio?

    Looking at what I've eaten this last week it tends to be 30-35% Carbs, 40% Fats, and 30-35% protein. So lose some of the fats and up the carbs.

    For macros, what you are doing is fine. Fats and proteins are minimums more than anything. If your workouts suffer, add more carbs. Insanity is body weight training, which will help, but you would make better progress with a P90X or body beast in terms of strength and potentially maintaining muscle more. The problem with a lot of cardio is it burns a ton of calories which is going to require you to eat more. Large deficits will lean to loss of lean body mass, which is something you want to minimize. Also, the issue with doing insanity and cycling, you are working the same muscles daily which can increase the chances of muscle fatigue and potential injury.
  • antonygrosvenor
    antonygrosvenor Posts: 9 Member
    Yesterday I did my bike ride a few hours after doing Insanity and can now see why you say don't do both. Calfs and thighs burned - which is good I guess, but prolonged "burning" is going to cause injury and then no exercise and weight gain.

    Could I use cycling in any other way? I was trying to get speed up and hill climbs - what if I went flat and slowed down?

    To add, I only cycle in the easier days of Insanity (but as I type that, I realise that they are easier for some recovery)
  • psuLemon
    psuLemon Posts: 38,431 MFP Moderator
    Yesterday I did my bike ride a few hours after doing Insanity and can now see why you say don't do both. Calfs and thighs burned - which is good I guess, but prolonged "burning" is going to cause injury and then no exercise and weight gain.

    Could I use cycling in any other way? I was trying to get speed up and hill climbs - what if I went flat and slowed down?

    To add, I only cycle in the easier days of Insanity (but as I type that, I realise that they are easier for some recovery)

    Yes, they are easier for some recovery. Personally, I would either drop the biking or insanity.

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