strong lifts 5x5

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clyn27
clyn27 Posts: 102 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
Ok so I am a 25 year female. I am 5'7'' and weigh 143. I currently am eating at 1200 calories a day ( I work a desk job) I want to start this program but I do not know what my calorie goals should be? I thought I wanted to lose weight but realized I am actually not really that over weight. Now my new goal is to lose fat and look more toned instead worrying about what the scale says. So should I move closer to maintenance or still be in a deficit?
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  • jemhh
    jemhh Posts: 14,261 Member
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    I think that you are right in realizing that you are not overweight. If I were you, I would try eating at maintenance for now. Commit to it for a couple of months and see how you feel about it. You might end up wanting to up your calories in order to add more muscle.

    But definitely eat more than 1200 calories. I really like using the TDEE method, which gives you the total calories you need for the day, rather than the MFP method of a base number and then adding back exercise calories. I just checked the iifym.com calculator and based on the stats you listed plus 3 workouts a week, it says that 1963 is your TDEE. That's just a best guess though so you may find it differs from reality so you can tweak that as you go along.
  • hill8570
    hill8570 Posts: 1,466 Member
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    With your stats, if you want to get the most benefit out of SL 5x5, I'd recommend maintenance or a slight (5% max) surplus, with about 115 grams of protein a day.
  • clyn27
    clyn27 Posts: 102 Member
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    thank you!
  • zipa78
    zipa78 Posts: 354 Member
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    hill8570 wrote: »
    With your stats, if you want to get the most benefit out of SL 5x5, I'd recommend maintenance or a slight (5% max) surplus, with about 115 grams of protein a day.

    This is what I'd recommend as well. Eating at maintenance or just a smidge over will make your recovery much easier, which in turn will make the whole experience that much more enjoyable. You will still notice that after some weeks you have become tighter round the waist while getting some definition and roundness in your shoulder and butt.

    Do the first 12 weeks of SL5x5 eating like suggested and then evaluate your situation and your goals.
  • Sam_I_Am77
    Sam_I_Am77 Posts: 2,093 Member
    edited January 2015
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    Based on your stats above your approximate maintenance calories are 1,700. Start slowly, perhaps 1625 (5% deficit) and progress from there. If you can lose weight on 1600 calories then that's where you should be, it's better to start slow and progress slowly than to start extreme.

    edit: This is TDEE not MFP, so not eating-back exercise calorie nonsense.
  • clyn27
    clyn27 Posts: 102 Member
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    Yeah I just bumped it up to 1500 today since I was eating 1200 I didn't want to go up to quick. I'll go up another hundred next week
  • Sam_I_Am77
    Sam_I_Am77 Posts: 2,093 Member
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    clyn27 wrote: »
    Yeah I just bumped it up to 1500 today since I was eating 1200 I didn't want to go up to quick. I'll go up another hundred next week

    Nothing wrong with that approach. If you're interested Sohee Lee and Layne Norton wrote a book called "Reverse Dieting" that basically discusses what you do when you're done dieting to be successful and managing you weight.

  • jemhh
    jemhh Posts: 14,261 Member
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    Sam_I_Am77 wrote: »
    Based on your stats above your approximate maintenance calories are 1,700. Start slowly, perhaps 1625 (5% deficit) and progress from there. If you can lose weight on 1600 calories then that's where you should be, it's better to start slow and progress slowly than to start extreme.

    edit: This is TDEE not MFP, so not eating-back exercise calorie nonsense.

    What calculator did you use for this?
  • Sam_I_Am77
    Sam_I_Am77 Posts: 2,093 Member
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    Mifflin St-Jeor equation

    Women
    10 X (Weight in kg) + 6.25 X (Height in cm) – 5 X (Age in years) – 161
  • clyn27
    clyn27 Posts: 102 Member
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    Holy *kitten* I'm out of shape. I did every thing with just the bar today and it's not even an Olympic bar, and I'm sore!
  • zette73
    zette73 Posts: 4 Member
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    If you are going to lift, eat, eat, eat.
  • auddii
    auddii Posts: 15,357 Member
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    clyn27 wrote: »
    Holy *kitten* I'm out of shape. I did every thing with just the bar today and it's not even an Olympic bar, and I'm sore!
    It's awesome, and it gets better. You will have sore days, but it does get better the more you lift. And feeling strong is amazing.
  • clyn27
    clyn27 Posts: 102 Member
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    zette73 wrote: »
    If you are going to lift, eat, eat, eat.

    I plan to but I don't want to jump too fast. I ended up eating 1600 today after my snack. I'll go up some more over the next few weeks
  • piperdown44
    piperdown44 Posts: 958 Member
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    I've run multiple cycles of 5x5 and will never ever, ever run it on a deficit. I might possibly, consider, maybe, if I'm feeling lucky run it on maintenance but usually a slight surplus. It IS taxing on the body and you require calories to make progress.
  • hill8570
    hill8570 Posts: 1,466 Member
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    clyn27 wrote: »
    Holy *kitten* I'm out of shape. I did every thing with just the bar today and it's not even an Olympic bar, and I'm sore!

    Heck, I did nothing but bodyweight practice (mostly on squats) before I even went near a bar, so you're doing good. Get your form right now - it makes everything else a lot safer.
  • sexynessa77
    sexynessa77 Posts: 9 Member
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    I'm doing the 5x5 I just need to get my eating straight on counting macros
  • clyn27
    clyn27 Posts: 102 Member
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    I need to go out and find a good protein powder because I am struggling to get enough.
  • hill8570
    hill8570 Posts: 1,466 Member
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    clyn27 wrote: »
    I need to go out and find a good protein powder because I am struggling to get enough.

    My target is 160g/day (in 1900 calories). You're welcome to take a look at my diary (it's always public) for ideas. Although my technique is a bit strange -- I allocate around 500 calories to a "snack" (half morning, half afternoon) that has a very high protein / calorie ratio (such as nonfat greek yogurt, canned salmon, or lowfat string cheese), and then let my normal food pick up the rest. On average, it works out well for me. Other foods in the same vein would be nonfat cottage cheese or tuna, but I'm not a fan of either.
  • clyn27
    clyn27 Posts: 102 Member
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    if I can actually eat everything I put in my diary today I will hit 100g for the day!!! Ok another question. For the barbell row and the dead lifts. I started out with just the bar and will be using small weights in the next few weeks which = short weights that do not elevate the bar very high. It just feels wrong and like my form is becoming a little iffy when I set the bar all the way down to the floor. Is it ok to just let it hover until I move up to weights that will elevate the bar off the ground a little more. Also I am doing this at home and do not have a rack, are there any variations to the squat once I move up to heavier weights like a kettle bell or something? I am worried getting it up on my shoulders will become difficult.
  • Sam_I_Am77
    Sam_I_Am77 Posts: 2,093 Member
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    clyn27 wrote: »
    if I can actually eat everything I put in my diary today I will hit 100g for the day!!! Ok another question. For the barbell row and the dead lifts. I started out with just the bar and will be using small weights in the next few weeks which = short weights that do not elevate the bar very high. It just feels wrong and like my form is becoming a little iffy when I set the bar all the way down to the floor. Is it ok to just let it hover until I move up to weights that will elevate the bar off the ground a little more. Also I am doing this at home and do not have a rack, are there any variations to the squat once I move up to heavier weights like a kettle bell or something? I am worried getting it up on my shoulders will become difficult.

    Try to elevate the bar using other plates, box, something.., that will get the bar to roughly mid-shin. At first you can squat by lifting the bar onto your back but you won't get very far as you said. You can try doing Goblet Squats for now with a DB or KB.

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