Running and losing weight

DaveAkeman wrote: »

On days when I don't want to run, this sometimes motivates me:

http://theoatmeal.com/comics/running

LOL: "Dude, get the cake!"

I've been running for about a month now. I am also trying to lose weight and would love friends for support. I haven't run for four days due to my knee being sore and now I am sick with some repertory thing and my body has made it clear it's not going to let me run. Anyway.... would love some support and to offer support.

I weigh about the same as you (currently 161 lbs, 44 yo) and I could not run AND eat 1200 calories. I need at least 1800 cal / day to support running. I also run 3 or 4 times a week, I actually eat about 2000 cal / day, I'm ravenous on run days, and yes I'm losing weight (slowly -- about 3 lbs a month right now).

If I'm not losing weight at my activity level it's because I'm eating too much. Period. Sometimes intense exercise can make you eat more, and sometimes you can't even tell it's happening. So if you're exercising more intensely and not losing weight, that's where I'd investigate first. (The second place I'd look into is whether your time horizon for estimating loss is too short. For many women -- myself included -- hormones and monthly cycles can "hide" weight loss on the scale for several weeks at a time. At my current rate of loss, I only "lose weight" on the scale a couple of days a month, and seem to be maintaining or "not losing" the rest of the month, if the scale alone were to be believed. So I have to be patient and look at a longer time horizon.).

Keys for me to avoid overeating for weight loss when I'm running are:
1. Tracking food honestly, accurately, and weighing my portions. In the past when I thought I was eating a very low calorie level below 1500 cal / day and not losing, I was estimating portion sizes using eyeball logic and it turns out I was VERY wrong. Lesson learned. A glass of milk is a LOT more than 8 ounces. A chicken breast is a LOT more than 3 ounces. An "average" sized apple or pear is more than 3 ounces and often way more than the 100 calorie rule of thumb I've often had in my head. Don't even get me started on peanut butter portions. Etc. etc. etc. Any single item might seem negligible but that stuff adds up fast.

2. Eating to a plan. I typically pre-plan my food day out and aim for about 150 cal below my actual target. As the day goes on and I actually weigh things that might vary (pieces of meat, fruit and veg) I've got those 150 calories to soak up any unexpected overage, and if I have an unexpected undercount of calories I get cookies or a bigger glass of wine at dinner or whatever. Some people prefer to be flexible and fly by the seat of their pants, I guess, and if that works for them, great. Me, I need to pre-plan a lot.

3. On running days or other heavy exertion days I make a special effort to eat regularly throughout the day (on lighter days I often like to "save" calories for the evening, eating a much lighter breakfast and lunch). I'm one of those weird people who gets hungry but can't actually tell that I'm hungry (i.e., being hungry doesn't make me consciously anxious or uncomfortable, I guess) until I'm around food and then unplanned things happen and I'll find myself putting unexpected food in my mouth. So on heavy exertion days I eat a bigger breakfast, I eat my lunch earlier, I eat my dinner a bit earlier in the day too. Also on those days I aim for a bit more protein than other days. All of that just helps make sure that my repressed hunger doesn't make me overeat. I'm still hungry probably but the zombie munchies don't necessarily take over.

4. Obviously at 2000 cal per day I fuel for exercise, but I don't specifically count calories "earned" from exercise in order to eat them back. Trying to estimate calories from specific workouts is a sucker's game, IMO. There are so many variables. Instead, since my exercise routine is very consistent I use a TDEE method: I have a top-line estimate of my total weekly (or even monthly) activity level and just use that to estimate my daily average daily calorie needs.

momasox wrote: »

I've been running for about a month now. I am also trying to lose weight and would love friends for support. I haven't run for four days due to my knee being sore and now I am sick with some repertory thing and my body has made it clear it's not going to let me run. Anyway.... would love some support and to offer support.

I'm sorry about your injury, but don't count yourself out. If you can ease back into your routine with some exercise that is less taxing on your knees (swimming is great if you have access to a pool; yoga; pilates, etc.), then you won't feel like you've lost progress toward your goal. Don't be too hard on yourself if you have to take an injury break, and be sure to have a plan for active recovery.

You can do this!!

momasox wrote: »

I haven't run for four days due to my knee being sore and now I am sick with some repertory thing ...

Sorry to hear you are suffering a respiratory ailment, get well soon.

Regarding your knee, have you determined what the issue is? There are some knee issues that are easily resolved by proper stretching, ITB is one very good example of this.