NEEDING SOME GOOD ADVICE BECAUSE I AM WORKING OUT TOO MUCH

2

Replies

  • Liftng4Lis
    Liftng4Lis Posts: 15,151 Member
    I'd drop some of the cardio first and focus on the weights.
  • DoNotSpamMe73
    DoNotSpamMe73 Posts: 286 Member
    http://theoatmeal.com/comics/running This comic refers to excessive exercise for food. Which personally I think is fine provided you are careful to avoid injuries or being too hard on your joints.
  • lreintsma
    lreintsma Posts: 41 Member
    lreintsma wrote: »
    lreintsma wrote: »
    tavistocktoad - you are exactly right. it is what I am eating. I eat great 3/4 of the day and then I will eat something that isn't on my diet , and then its all out the door from then on for the day. one thing that really sucks is cooking for a family and not eating what I cook. I recently kicked a bad habit of what I call "night ravaging" where I would get up at like 2am and eat like 800+ cals. I feel a great sense of accomplishment for kicking that habit. I just need to figure out what is right for me. I am trying low carb right now and it seems to be good so far.

    I used to have problems with food choices later in the day and with what you describe as "night ravaging." I am on a moderate-carb diet--around 100G/day. Things that seem to have helped: a more substantial breakfast with significant carbs and protein; more vegetable intake (goal: 10 a day) and staying more hydrated throughout the day. Going to bed early helps too.

    I find that when I go beyond 2 hours of exercise in a day...particularly when I hit 1700+ calories burned...that is when exercise increases my hunger. Until that point, it doesn't make a difference. You might want to keep notes to see if you can figure out where the tipping point is for you.


    WOW, 1700 is a lot of calories I am 5'1" tall and 125lbs (id like to be 118 or less but I started this journey at 172 so I am still happy with my progress) and even when I work out 3 hours a day I usually only hit 1300 calories max. I wear a "polar" heart rate monitor and I track all my cals, my typical day burn is about 900-1000 with and hour of cardio and a 75 minute Vinyasa yoga class. Have you had success with the "moderate carb" diet?

    I sometimes burn as many as 2500, but of course the estimates are just guesses. I am nearly 6' tall and NOT doing yoga.

    Yes, moderate carb has worked for me for weight loss and maintenance. I feel like it is healthier than doing something Atkins and more sustainable over time. I'm not at all miserable.


    Awesome.. I do VInyasa Power Yoga.. I know its Yoga but its in 100 degree room and is not at all easy. I usually burn about 400+ calories per class and my heart rate is usually around 140 bpm. I'm just saying don't underestimate certain types of Yoga lol.
  • jpaulie
    jpaulie Posts: 917 Member
    OP I have worked with a sports Dietician and it makes a big difference. Many of them work with pro athletes and have a great understanding not only of nutrition but how it affects performance. My dietician convinced me to do less cardio based on short term goals (8-12 weeks). I worked with someone at Cleveland Clinic not sure if there is a branch out there or not.
  • stephxfit
    stephxfit Posts: 30 Member
    Have you considered just lowering your intensity for now? I would imagine if you work out that much and attempt to cut your workout time in, say, half, cold turkey you would struggle with that. Maybe go on hikes or strolls outside instead of higher intensity workouts. Maybe take up a sport purely for pleasure (and not competition) such as biking, longboarding, etc.
  • lreintsma
    lreintsma Posts: 41 Member
    stephxfit wrote: »
    Have you considered just lowering your intensity for now? I would imagine if you work out that much and attempt to cut your workout time in, say, half, cold turkey you would struggle with that. Maybe go on hikes or strolls outside instead of higher intensity workouts. Maybe take up a sport purely for pleasure (and not competition) such as biking, longboarding, etc.

    That's some great advice. Thank you.. I actually did pretty decent today and only did 40 minutes of cardio and too a Vinyasa class. Im supposed to go to the gym, spin and yoga tomorrow.. But I think I will just try to repeat what I did today. Maybe start with taking the weekends slow. Thanks for the reply :)
  • lreintsma
    lreintsma Posts: 41 Member
    Liftng4Lis wrote: »
    I'd drop some of the cardio first and focus on the weights.

    Ive heard that from a few people .. But Im bulky enough.. I am super strong .. I actually want to cut back on my muscle mass a little.
  • azulvioleta6
    azulvioleta6 Posts: 4,195 Member
    lreintsma wrote: »
    lreintsma wrote: »
    lreintsma wrote: »
    tavistocktoad - you are exactly right. it is what I am eating. I eat great 3/4 of the day and then I will eat something that isn't on my diet , and then its all out the door from then on for the day. one thing that really sucks is cooking for a family and not eating what I cook. I recently kicked a bad habit of what I call "night ravaging" where I would get up at like 2am and eat like 800+ cals. I feel a great sense of accomplishment for kicking that habit. I just need to figure out what is right for me. I am trying low carb right now and it seems to be good so far.

    I used to have problems with food choices later in the day and with what you describe as "night ravaging." I am on a moderate-carb diet--around 100G/day. Things that seem to have helped: a more substantial breakfast with significant carbs and protein; more vegetable intake (goal: 10 a day) and staying more hydrated throughout the day. Going to bed early helps too.

    I find that when I go beyond 2 hours of exercise in a day...particularly when I hit 1700+ calories burned...that is when exercise increases my hunger. Until that point, it doesn't make a difference. You might want to keep notes to see if you can figure out where the tipping point is for you.


    WOW, 1700 is a lot of calories I am 5'1" tall and 125lbs (id like to be 118 or less but I started this journey at 172 so I am still happy with my progress) and even when I work out 3 hours a day I usually only hit 1300 calories max. I wear a "polar" heart rate monitor and I track all my cals, my typical day burn is about 900-1000 with and hour of cardio and a 75 minute Vinyasa yoga class. Have you had success with the "moderate carb" diet?

    I sometimes burn as many as 2500, but of course the estimates are just guesses. I am nearly 6' tall and NOT doing yoga.

    Yes, moderate carb has worked for me for weight loss and maintenance. I feel like it is healthier than doing something Atkins and more sustainable over time. I'm not at all miserable.


    Awesome.. I do VInyasa Power Yoga.. I know its Yoga but its in 100 degree room and is not at all easy. I usually burn about 400+ calories per class and my heart rate is usually around 140 bpm. I'm just saying don't underestimate certain types of Yoga lol.

    Yoga is awesome...but it doesn't burn many calories.

    Is Vinyasa similar to the yoga formerly know as Bikram?
  • lreintsma
    lreintsma Posts: 41 Member
    lreintsma wrote: »
    lreintsma wrote: »
    lreintsma wrote: »
    tavistocktoad - you are exactly right. it is what I am eating. I eat great 3/4 of the day and then I will eat something that isn't on my diet , and then its all out the door from then on for the day. one thing that really sucks is cooking for a family and not eating what I cook. I recently kicked a bad habit of what I call "night ravaging" where I would get up at like 2am and eat like 800+ cals. I feel a great sense of accomplishment for kicking that habit. I just need to figure out what is right for me. I am trying low carb right now and it seems to be good so far.

    I used to have problems with food choices later in the day and with what you describe as "night ravaging." I am on a moderate-carb diet--around 100G/day. Things that seem to have helped: a more substantial breakfast with significant carbs and protein; more vegetable intake (goal: 10 a day) and staying more hydrated throughout the day. Going to bed early helps too.

    I find that when I go beyond 2 hours of exercise in a day...particularly when I hit 1700+ calories burned...that is when exercise increases my hunger. Until that point, it doesn't make a difference. You might want to keep notes to see if you can figure out where the tipping point is for you.


    WOW, 1700 is a lot of calories I am 5'1" tall and 125lbs (id like to be 118 or less but I started this journey at 172 so I am still happy with my progress) and even when I work out 3 hours a day I usually only hit 1300 calories max. I wear a "polar" heart rate monitor and I track all my cals, my typical day burn is about 900-1000 with and hour of cardio and a 75 minute Vinyasa yoga class. Have you had success with the "moderate carb" diet?

    I sometimes burn as many as 2500, but of course the estimates are just guesses. I am nearly 6' tall and NOT doing yoga.

    Yes, moderate carb has worked for me for weight loss and maintenance. I feel like it is healthier than doing something Atkins and more sustainable over time. I'm not at all miserable.


    Awesome.. I do VInyasa Power Yoga.. I know its Yoga but its in 100 degree room and is not at all easy. I usually burn about 400+ calories per class and my heart rate is usually around 140 bpm. I'm just saying don't underestimate certain types of Yoga lol.

    Yoga is awesome...but it doesn't burn many calories.

    Is Vinyasa similar to the yoga formerly know as Bikram?

    Its a lot like bikram as far as the heat but its a face paced cardio "flow" version. There are many more poses also and its constant movement. I thought the same thing about yoga until I took a vinyasa class. its really no joke.
  • Robertus
    Robertus Posts: 558 Member
    lreintsma wrote: »
    Robertus I have talked to someone about OCD tendencies and they have ruled them out. I've been told by professionals that I'm just really head strong about everything I do be it good or bad. I am definitely not offended and I have actually tried that myself.
    OK, but let your brain learn about the great importance of diet to losing weight and the dangers and ineffectiveness of over training then be headstrong. If you over train and then binge on food, you're not doing it right. Balance and moderation will be more successful. But, then again, I am being rather hypocritical because I also tend toward extremes, but let the extremes at least be based on pragmatic principles that actually work.
  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member
    lreintsma wrote: »
    tavistocktoad - you are exactly right. it is what I am eating. I eat great 3/4 of the day and then I will eat something that isn't on my diet , and then its all out the door from then on for the day. one thing that really sucks is cooking for a family and not eating what I cook. I recently kicked a bad habit of what I call "night ravaging" where I would get up at like 2am and eat like 800+ cals. I feel a great sense of accomplishment for kicking that habit. I just need to figure out what is right for me. I am trying low carb right now and it seems to be good so far.

    You've missed the point of what I was saying... You ARE under eating for the amount of training you do, that's what's causing the 'night ravaging', it's your body's way of not starving!
  • Ellaskat
    Ellaskat Posts: 386 Member
    Robertus wrote: »
    Has anyone ever mentioned anything about the possibility that you might have an OCD (obsessive compulsive disorder)? Eating compulsively and/or working out compulsively? You may want to give it some thought or speak to some people about it. I hope this does not offend you or anything, but plenty of people do suffer from this. There's no shame involved and there is help available for this.

    This! No shame- wel all have our own battles, but it sounds like this might really help you.
  • rosebette
    rosebette Posts: 1,659 Member
    lreintsma wrote: »
    tavistocktoad - you are exactly right. it is what I am eating. I eat great 3/4 of the day and then I will eat something that isn't on my diet , and then its all out the door from then on for the day. one thing that really sucks is cooking for a family and not eating what I cook. I recently kicked a bad habit of what I call "night ravaging" where I would get up at like 2am and eat like 800+ cals. I feel a great sense of accomplishment for kicking that habit. I just need to figure out what is right for me. I am trying low carb right now and it seems to be good so far.

    You've missed the point of what I was saying... You ARE under eating for the amount of training you do, that's what's causing the 'night ravaging', it's your body's way of not starving!

    I would agree here. The reason OP is overeating at night is that she isn't eating enough during the day to fuel her workouts. As far as her calorie estimates being high, when I had a a heart rate monitor for a short time and did a vigorous yoga class, it was burning around 300 calories for an hour (I'm older than OP, so my burn would be lower). If she's doing an hour of cardio and an hour of yoga, she probably is burning at least 800 calories. If she's going out in the afternoon and walking for 30 minutes with her baby in the stroller, that's another 100 calories. She's a young mom, so even away from the gym, she's not exactly sedentary. I don't think her exercise needs to be "tweaked" other than to incorporate some rest, but she definitely needs to reexamine her eating during the day. I have an open diary (skip Sat. because I didn't log Chinese dinner, my "cheat day"), but I'm eating around 1200-1400, and I eat pretty much all day long. She's younger and more active and probably needs to eat more overall.
  • MelodyandBarbells
    MelodyandBarbells Posts: 7,724 Member
    rosebette wrote: »
    lreintsma wrote: »
    tavistocktoad - you are exactly right. it is what I am eating. I eat great 3/4 of the day and then I will eat something that isn't on my diet , and then its all out the door from then on for the day. one thing that really sucks is cooking for a family and not eating what I cook. I recently kicked a bad habit of what I call "night ravaging" where I would get up at like 2am and eat like 800+ cals. I feel a great sense of accomplishment for kicking that habit. I just need to figure out what is right for me. I am trying low carb right now and it seems to be good so far.

    You've missed the point of what I was saying... You ARE under eating for the amount of training you do, that's what's causing the 'night ravaging', it's your body's way of not starving!

    I would agree here. The reason OP is overeating at night is that she isn't eating enough during the day to fuel her workouts. As far as her calorie estimates being high, when I had a a heart rate monitor for a short time and did a vigorous yoga class, it was burning around 300 calories for an hour (I'm older than OP, so my burn would be lower). If she's doing an hour of cardio and an hour of yoga, she probably is burning at least 800 calories. If she's going out in the afternoon and walking for 30 minutes with her baby in the stroller, that's another 100 calories. She's a young mom, so even away from the gym, she's not exactly sedentary. I don't think her exercise needs to be "tweaked" other than to incorporate some rest, but she definitely needs to reexamine her eating during the day. I have an open diary (skip Sat. because I didn't log Chinese dinner, my "cheat day"), but I'm eating around 1200-1400, and I eat pretty much all day long. She's younger and more active and probably needs to eat more overall.

    The heat inflates your heart rate in (hot) yoga which wouldn't necessarily correlate to how hard you're working. To burn 100 calories walking at her size she would need to be walking at a 5+ mph pace.... Unless I suppose if there's a stroller it would help burn more calories
  • hollyrayburn
    hollyrayburn Posts: 905 Member
    Excessive exercise can lead to rhabdomyolysis, which I've seen in patients before.

    More info: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/000473.htm
  • lreintsma
    lreintsma Posts: 41 Member
    Thank you everyone for all of your comments and help. I decided to email my doctor and consult with her about B.E.D or Compulsive Over eating. I am eating way more calories then I need. I think I subconsciously rationalize over eating because I work out so much. I do work out a lot nearly everyday and that may be what is increasing my appetite but I need to learn how to manage my appetite with proper nutrition and healthy eating habits. When I am binge eating I totally feel out of control and I eat way more then I need to .. Then I feel guilty afterwards. I am just over working out so much with no results. I lost nearly 50 lbs over the last two years and I started losing with just yoga alone. I don't know where I went wrong and started over eating like this. Regardless I see there is an issue and I would like to deal with it head on. I want a healthy relationship with food. Bottom line is that I need to find balance. Hopefully with the help of an awesome community like this and some help from a doctor I can overcome this unhealthy relationship with food that I have developed.
  • lreintsma
    lreintsma Posts: 41 Member
    I started this discussion with the topic "I am exercising too much" and the topic should have been I over eat and blame it on over exercise. My conclusion is to find balance with it all. This is something that Yoga has taught me that I need in my life.
  • lreintsma
    lreintsma Posts: 41 Member
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    Super funny lol
  • dbmata
    dbmata Posts: 12,950 Member
    Are you working out too much?
  • lreintsma
    lreintsma Posts: 41 Member
    dbmata wrote: »
    Are you working out too much?
    Possibly .. Itching I can benefit from doing a little less cardio to try and control my appetite
  • mymodernbabylon
    mymodernbabylon Posts: 1,038 Member
    You sound more like someone who has exercised bulimia. You exercise while trying to have a large deficit. This makes you very hungry (normal and the body's way of dealing with too big a deficit), then you binge. Because you binged, you then over-exercise and trying to cut down on calories even more...cycle continues. I would be VERY honest with your doctor about your exercise, how you eat (both deficit attempts and night time binges) and see if there is something you can do with this - may need psychological help or may need to NOT diet for a while.
  • cheshirecatastrophe
    cheshirecatastrophe Posts: 1,395 Member
    edited February 2015
    You sound more like someone who has exercised bulimia. You exercise while trying to have a large deficit. This makes you very hungry (normal and the body's way of dealing with too big a deficit), then you binge. Because you binged, you then over-exercise and trying to cut down on calories even more...cycle continues. I would be VERY honest with your doctor about your exercise, how you eat (both deficit attempts and night time binges) and see if there is something you can do with this - may need psychological help or may need to NOT diet for a while.

    +1000.

    I would love to see OP address this issue in this thread (which has been brought up by several posters and completely ignored). Since the compulsion or addiction is exercise is, after all, the reason she started it. The mental patterns she describes in the first post, the sitting in the sauna to shed sweat/water weight...

    But I'm guessing OP freaked out at the thought of real recovery (which is understandable; it's scary) and just wants to eat less and lose weight.
    I totally understand this is excessive and I try to take Saturdays off but I end up working out at least an hour on my elliptical at home.

    ...just gonna leave that here. OP, if you do decide to talk to your doctor, I hope you show him or her your first post in this thread.
  • MelodyandBarbells
    MelodyandBarbells Posts: 7,724 Member
    I dunno. The woman weighs 125 lbs. At that stage don't you have to eat like a bird or exercise quite a bit to eat decent amounts of food? Also the word binge is thrown around so casually anymore, sometimes it could just mean going 400 calories over target or maybe even eating three pieces of candy because they've decided they "shouldn't" have anything "bad" otherwise they feel "guilty". She's said she will review with at least one doctor/counselor, I think that should cover her bases nicely?
  • evileen99
    evileen99 Posts: 1,564 Member
    You need to seek out a therapist to help you with this one. It sounds a little like OCD to me.
  • evileen99
    evileen99 Posts: 1,564 Member
    There was a guy on "My Strange Addiction" who was addicted to cycling. He had destroyed both of his hips (needed them replaced) from his excessive exercise. Please see a professional before you do something like this to yourself.
  • WalkingAlong
    WalkingAlong Posts: 4,926 Member
    I think talking to your doctor is a good idea. In the meantime, can you at least pick ONE gym class a day (yoga or spin, not both), drop the 20 min. cardio machine warm-up before spin, don't lift heavy for 2 hours at a time (overkill, read New Rules of Lifting) and force yourself to take one actual rest day a week from the gym?

    Less can be more. And if you mediate the over-exercising, the eating might fall into place automatically.

    Good luck!
  • lreintsma
    lreintsma Posts: 41 Member
    You sound more like someone who has exercised bulimia. You exercise while trying to have a large deficit. This makes you very hungry (normal and the body's way of dealing with too big a deficit), then you binge. Because you binged, you then over-exercise and trying to cut down on calories even more...cycle continues. I would be VERY honest with your doctor about your exercise, how you eat (both deficit attempts and night time binges) and see if there is something you can do with this - may need psychological help or may need to NOT diet for a while.

    Ive had pretty much the same exercise routine for about a year and I don't track all he cals I eat usually. No matter what I eat I have the same weekly routine. And Im not tracking my cals enough to even know if I am working them all off. But I will be honest with my Dr.

  • lreintsma
    lreintsma Posts: 41 Member
    You sound more like someone who has exercised bulimia. You exercise while trying to have a large deficit. This makes you very hungry (normal and the body's way of dealing with too big a deficit), then you binge. Because you binged, you then over-exercise and trying to cut down on calories even more...cycle continues. I would be VERY honest with your doctor about your exercise, how you eat (both deficit attempts and night time binges) and see if there is something you can do with this - may need psychological help or may need to NOT diet for a while.

    +1000.

    I would love to see OP address this issue in this thread (which has been brought up by several posters and completely ignored). Since the compulsion or addiction is exercise is, after all, the reason she started it. The mental patterns she describes in the first post, the sitting in the sauna to shed sweat/water weight...

    But I'm guessing OP freaked out at the thought of real recovery (which is understandable; it's scary) and just wants to eat less and lose weight.
    I totally understand this is excessive and I try to take Saturdays off but I end up working out at least an hour on my elliptical at home.

    ...just gonna leave that here. OP, if you do decide to talk to your doctor, I hope you show him or her your first post in this thread.

    Thanks. Ps.. I don't sit in the sauna to lose water weight.. I do it because its relaxing and helps my muscles relax after a hard work out.. But regardless I will try and post my progress.. Thanks for the support.

  • lreintsma
    lreintsma Posts: 41 Member
    evileen99 wrote: »
    You need to seek out a therapist to help you with this one. It sounds a little like OCD to me.
    I think talking to your doctor is a good idea. In the meantime, can you at least pick ONE gym class a day (yoga or spin, not both), drop the 20 min. cardio machine warm-up before spin, don't lift heavy for 2 hours at a time (overkill, read New Rules of Lifting) and force yourself to take one actual rest day a week from the gym?

    Less can be more. And if you mediate the over-exercising, the eating might fall into place automatically.

    Good luck!


    This is exactly how I feel about the situation. I actually did pretty good this weekend on cutting out my sunday spin class. Thank you for the support!
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