Eating and the gym

Ashleyx61987
Ashleyx61987 Posts: 6 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I work out for 2 hrs lifting weights M-F. And now I started walking/jogging for an hr also. I am wanting to lose 20 lbs of fat. I started tracking my food, which I already know I have really bad eating habits. I skip breakfast, most days lunch too and eat dinner. I started trying to make sure that I eat at least lunch but when I track my food Im eating still only eating about 800 to 1000 cals a day and losing over 400 cals in cardio alone not including weights. How many calories should I be eating for the amount of time I workout? I lost 5 lbs this week alone but I start bruising and my nails start peeling as soon as I start my fym routine regularly.

Replies

  • Sued0nim
    Sued0nim Posts: 17,456 Member
    2 hours? seriously? wha' why?

    and now adding an hour of cardio

    and at 800-1000 calories a day

    WTF?

    errr... lost for words
  • Sued0nim
    Sued0nim Posts: 17,456 Member
    OK, less knee-jerk reaction ... so you're 27, female and have 16lbs to lose?

    What's your height, current weight, goal weight loss per week, what is your current activity level outside of your purposeful exercise?

    What programme are you following with progressive weight training? how much hanging around texting, talking and resting are you doing in that 2 hours?
  • Ashleyx61987
    Ashleyx61987 Posts: 6 Member
    2 hrs because thats the max amount of time I can have my kids in the daycare there. Id workout longer if I could. I just really enjoy it. Cardio because my cardio sucks and I wanna lose fat faster. I was at my goal weight before I broke my ankle. My calories suck. I have NO clue how to lose weight without not eating alot. I typically just dont feel hungry but I know I need to figure out what I should be eating to be healthy.
  • Ashleyx61987
    Ashleyx61987 Posts: 6 Member
    rabbitjb wrote: »
    OK, less knee-jerk reaction ... so you're 27, female and have 16lbs to lose?

    What's your height, current weight, goal weight loss per week, what is your current activity level outside of your purposeful exercise?

    What programme are you following with progressive weight training? how much hanging around texting, talking and resting are you doing in that 2 hours?

    I am 5'5. I weigh 156.2 my goal is 135 so maybe 1.5 to 2 lbs a week. I stay at home with my kids so just normal household stuff during the days. As far as the gym goes I do chest and tris one day, back and bis the next, legs the next. Abs are mixed in there. I rotate in that order so each week 2 different groups are worked. My husband and I go set for set so maybe 1 min between if even. No talking, no texting, etc
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  • ainov90
    ainov90 Posts: 4 Member
    You don't need to do it for 2h. That is excessive. I do 45mins at a time, 3-5 times per week. Running 2-4 times per week (5k-10k depending on how I feel) and HIIT every time I'm at the gym (10mins of hill sprints). I eat around 1500kcal/day and I'm 168cm(5'6) and weigh 62kg (9st 12). I've lost 4kg slowly over the past couple of months but I am strong, fit and lean. If you do the same you will get much better results than with your current regime.

    Your body will not be able to handle the strain of too little food and too much exercise in the long run, which will result in poor performance, wasted effort and your body holding on to the fat even tighter. Also, your hair, nails, complexion and energy levels will seriously suffer. Why make this so painful when it can be so easy? Pick a good starter routine for gym (strongly recommend starting strength, strong lifts or Arnold's golden six), do cardio a couple of times per week and eat real, healthy, clean food. That's how you get lasting results.
  • Sued0nim
    Sued0nim Posts: 17,456 Member
    edited March 2015
    at that level of exercise, even cutting it in half (which I would really, really strongly advise you did) you are looking at consuming 2000-2200 calories to drop around a lb a week

    Honestly though - I'd refeed for a good 2 weeks to a month first ... get your nutritional balance up, concentrate on your protein and fat macros .. your body is starving hence the bruising and nail splitting
  • Ashleyx61987
    Ashleyx61987 Posts: 6 Member
    Thank you everyone for the responses :). I will try to workout a little less. Ive started taking Sat and Sun off even though Id rather not. I crave the workouts but I know I need to change my eating for sure. Is there a post or site that might be able to tell me how much of each food type I should be eating? I dont know what fat macros are. I honestly dont eat much of anything good. I dont really eat alot of protein, dairy. I can tell that as Im getting older I need to make some changes. I dont take any vitamins or anything and I had 4 kids so I know I need to replace calcium per my doctor.
    On a side note, does anyone know how to avoid or get rid of shin splints? I always get them when I start jogging which eventually leads me to stop all cardio routines. Thanks again for all the advice and help!!!
  • sijomial
    sijomial Posts: 19,809 Member
    edited March 2015
    Stop. Your routine and calorie intake is ridiculous and harmful.

    Read the stickies in the Getting Started forum.
  • Ashleyx61987
    Ashleyx61987 Posts: 6 Member
    emily_stew wrote: »
    Ashleyx61987 wrote: »
    I work out for 2 hrs lifting weights M-F. And now I started walking/jogging for an hr also. I am wanting to lose 20 lbs of fat. I started tracking my food, which I already know I have really bad eating habits. I skip breakfast, most days lunch too and eat dinner. I started trying to make sure that I eat at least lunch but when I track my food Im eating still only eating about 800 to 1000 cals a day and losing over 400 cals in cardio alone not including weights. How many calories should I be eating for the amount of time I workout? I lost 5 lbs this week alone but I start bruising and my nails start peeling as soon as I start my fym routine regularly.

    That's what happens when you eat so little, you damage your body. Especially with the insane amount of exercise you're doing. You need to eat more than 800-1000 calories/day. Like, a lot more. Sure you'll lose weight eating so little but it will be at the expense of muscle tissue-not fat.

    This post is recommended all the time and has helped tons of people get set up towards healthy sustainable weight loss. I encourage you to read it: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1080242-a-guide-to-get-you-started-on-your-path-to-sexypants

    Thank you for the link, it was very informative! ☺
  • kindrabbit
    kindrabbit Posts: 837 Member
    edited March 2015
    Op, you don't need to stop the workout, just work out more efficiently.

    I am no expert and the guys that have already replied are much more knowledgeable and experienced than me. I am just starting to learn this stuff. The important thing I am learning is that food is your fuel. If you don't fuel your body correctly then your workout is for nothing. The way you're doing it now, you may of lost weight but you are just loosing muscle or water, probably not fat. It seems to be a very fine balance to actually loose just fat and retain muscle.

    I think you need to totally re vamp your diet. Firstly enter all your stats into MFP and see how many calories you should be eating for your age, sex, height, and weight loss goals. Then make sure you eat that much + 50% of whatever you burn during exercise (that's your fuel, you need it).

    you need to look at what your putting into your body. From what I read on these boards it is totally possible to loose weight no matter what you eat, as long as it fits into your calorie limit (ie you can eat 1500 of mcd's or salad and you'd loose the same) BUT if you are working out hard and sculpting your body in a certain way, then you have to look at your macros (fat, carb, protein balance) for reference, I set mine to 40% carb, 40% protein and 20% fat. note: I am a newb so I'm just writing what I have understood so far.

    The last thing is your workout. It sound like you are fit and can workout really hard but 2 hours plus cardio is a long long time and probably unnecessary. I'm not good with the science but I know you can do just as well with a more efficient workout. It's taken me a couple of years of being very nosey and listening to a lot of what other people are doing, and picking the bits I like the look/sound of and stealing ideas, to find the routine I am happy with. My advice is find someone who looks how you want to look and ask them how they did it!

    The more people you ask, the more conflicting advice you will get. I do the same as I have done throughout my life and if you've had 4 kids you'll of done the same!

    Take the advice that suits and ignore the rest!

    Good luck :)

  • MelodyandBarbells
    MelodyandBarbells Posts: 7,724 Member
    I workout for 2+ hours some days, but if you're doing it to lose weight very very rapidly, all I can say is be patient. 1.5-2 lbs per week is fairly excessive for someone as small as you. Do 0.5 or 1 lb per week instead. If you still want to work out, do it but incorporate resting, and appropriate levels of food

    As far as eating better, the main thing is to try to get more protein (do a search, but you can try for around 80 to 100g of protein per day to start with). That and try to incorporate a lot of fruit and vegetables. Searching for information on macro and micro nutrients will get you some more information on these
  • Alluminati
    Alluminati Posts: 6,208 Member
    edited March 2015
    Ashleyx61987 wrote: »
    Thank you everyone for the responses :). I will try to workout a little less. Ive started taking Sat and Sun off even though Id rather not. I crave the workouts but I know I need to change my eating for sure. Is there a post or site that might be able to tell me how much of each food type I should be eating? I dont know what fat macros are. I honestly dont eat much of anything good. I dont really eat alot of protein, dairy. I can tell that as Im getting older I need to make some changes. I dont take any vitamins or anything and I had 4 kids so I know I need to replace calcium per my doctor.
    On a side note, does anyone know how to avoid or get rid of shin splints? I always get them when I start jogging which eventually leads me to stop all cardio routines. Thanks again for all the advice and help!!!

    Get more calories in first, worry about fine tuning the macros later. The bruising and nail peeling is alarming, tbh.

    Eta: shin splints went away for me when I made sure I corrected my form and got the correct shoes for my gait.
  • saruuhm
    saruuhm Posts: 71 Member
    Don't worry you're not alone, I was in the same mind set. I wanted weight to come off so bad so I would push myself to hard and into unhealthy habits. Increase your calories and make sure you're hitting your protein goal! I went from 1200 calories to 1697 and I have never felt better in the gym/in general! Goodluck, stay motivated! :)
  • giusa
    giusa Posts: 577 Member
    This post will give you the basics without the fluff/trend. Read it carefully and it will answer all your questions. There are many MYTHS out there that will lead people to make some horrible mistakes. Wish I had read this at the start, it would have saved me a lot of anx!

    http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/1161603/so-you-want-a-nice-stomach/p1

    The women who wrote the post is wonderful, and will answer any questions.

    Wish I knew than what I know now!

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