Approaching Goal Weight - Need a plan...

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jasondinger
jasondinger Posts: 32 Member
in Goal: Maintaining Weight
Hey everyone,

I am within seven or eight pounds of my goal weight and I am starting a new sport soon. I am thinking about dividing my workouts and training days into five days per week, with no like days back to back. This is what I had in mind:

Monday: Gym
Tuesday: Practice
Wednesday:Gym
Thursday: Practice
Friday: Gym
Sat/Sun: Off

I also seem to hold my weight steady at around 2300 calories per day, if I am careful to watch my diet - so I will make sure to adjust that intake so that I don't continue to drop pounds.

Bear in mind, I was a competitive volleyball player twenty years ago, and this was the sort of schedule I was on then. Of course, I could also go out with my buddies and drink til 1 a.m. then be back at work by 7 and be just fine. So things are different now.
I have two jobs, three kids and I take classes Saturday evenings and Sunday mornings. I have been burning the candle at both ends for a long time now, so that's not the worry. I want to keep the weight off, stay in shape, and compete athletically - maybe in an "old timers" league :)

Is this a serviceable plan in anyone's experience? Am I being too ambitious? Not ambitious enough? Has anyone done something similar and know what pitfalls I should be aware of?

Any help would be appreciated!

Replies

  • RaspberryTickleChicken
    RaspberryTickleChicken Posts: 629 Member
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    First of all congrats on being within an arm's reach of your goal! :)

    If the above listed routine is what you have been doing then carry on - maybe tweak it towards new fitness goals like building endurance for a 5K etc.

    If the above listed routine is radically different to what you have been doing then I have to wonder why the drastic change.

    My activity / exercise has evolved greatly from when I was losing because my goals are different. Generally I have reduced cardio & increased strength training. Strength training has been more of a focus for me because it is an unfortunate a fact that as we get older we lose muscle. And since muscle burns more calories than fat my goal is to increase muscle to fend off the natural body aging process.

    Whatever you decide, keep it realistic & consider if it is sustainable over a long period of time with minimum effort. Because the stark truth is that there's no end to maint ... it is for the rest of our lives.

    Best of luck to you!
  • Kenda2427
    Kenda2427 Posts: 1,592 Member
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    Maintenance is the worst for me. I lose my weight but then I never maintain and ended up gaining thus resulting in the gain/loss cycle. I set a range but as the weight increases so does my range until its way past and then the lose cycle starts again. I would say monitor your calorie intake carefully it is so easy to get carried away when you are not focused on the losing piece. Stay active and watch those calories. I wish you the best of luck!! And congratulations :)
  • loulamb7
    loulamb7 Posts: 801 Member
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    Is this plan adding to your already busy schedule? If so, I would reconsider, unless you're getting up earlier in the day to fit it in.
  • nxd10
    nxd10 Posts: 4,570 Member
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    I couldn't' maintain that schedule, but it may be something you love. Perhaps you might think of an alternative for days when you can't practice or go to the gym? Like a long walk at lunch to busy days?

    But congratulations! Maintenance is just continuing the new lifestyle you've built for yourself with a few more calories.
  • jasondinger
    jasondinger Posts: 32 Member
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    This is very close to my schedule now. I'm normally in the gym for about an hour to an hour and a half 5 days per week. I have been very lucky buying used equipment and having friends give me their old gear, so my gym is in the spare bedroom, and that eliminates traveling to and from a commercial gym. I am replacing two of my workout days with practice days.

    I am pretty sure my practice days wont burn as many calories and my normal workout routine does (typically target 1000 calories per workout).

    Its usually 11:00 PM before I finish up after feeding the kiddos, cleaning up from dinner, kids lessons, shopping etc... normal family stuff.

    My goal in all of this is to "lead by example" for my kids, and I love competing in sports, so I would be lying if I said I wanted to play for fun.

    Thanks, everyone who responded!
  • LivingtheLeanDream
    LivingtheLeanDream Posts: 13,345 Member
    edited August 2015
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    What you're aiming for is similar to what I currently do, although I'm still active on my rest days, I choose to walk alot even on those days... except I don't work TWO jobs!
    Everyone has different ideas of how much activity they can or want to do or if its feasible - we all need to have some fun too :smiley: .
    For me its easy to work into my day and it keeps me maintaining my weight nicely along with feeling strong and fit :smile:

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