How much exercise is too much?

FairadezRoyer40
FairadezRoyer40 Posts: 4 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
I am 41 years old and I weigh 215 pounds. My resting heart rate is 61. I am sick of this weight as it is a relatively new state for me, my body type is "sturdy " at 145 pounds and at 5'1 I am a lovely curvey size 8 or 9. Right now I am a size 14 or 16. I have started working out and I am wondering why I haven't seen any results yet.
I am usually several 100 calories under my dailie allowance and I try to keep my choices healthy with out going all OCD about my intake.
I spend 30 mins on the elyptical followed by 30-40 mins of spot training with light weights (leg day, abb day, arm day) then another 15 mins on the treadmill. I did this for three weeks at 5 days a week. This week I have also added an additional 30 mins on the elyptical in the evening 7 days a week but I keep it light and don't do the HIT cycle of my other workout. I do this with my husband so that I can keep him company and motivated.
So far I have not seen any weight loss and but I have noticed tiny changes in my face and I think some smaller changes in my stomach.
I want to shed this weight so badly, I am 1000% committed but at the start of the 4th week I was hoping to have seen something by now. Especially seeinglzyoxt4j4bhs.jpeg
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as I am working so hard.
Am I working too hard? Is that a thing? I do get sore but not what I would consider overly so.
Side note: I work till muscle fatigue with light weights, and on the elyptical I don't get myself to gasping for air, I work hard but smart.

Replies

  • caitlinrn83
    caitlinrn83 Posts: 178 Member
    1. Take measurements. I didn't see a pound fall off the scale for WEEKS, but the tape measure told a different story.
    2. Are you tracking everything you eat? You say you're not going OCD, but are you keeping track of how many calories you're eating?
  • sammyliftsandeats
    sammyliftsandeats Posts: 2,421 Member
    Weight loss happens with a calorie deficit.

    As for changing the shape of your body, you can look into a progressive weight lifting program. By working yourself to fatigue with light weights, you are doing more for endurance rather than strength or any kind of growth.
  • Sapphires4me
    Sapphires4me Posts: 93 Member
    If you've noticed changes in your face then you probably have other changes too. Get a good sewing tape measure and measure every where. Arms, thighs, hips, neck. Do this about once a month. If you are weighing and measuring your food, just give it time. Took me quite a while to notice a change, but it slowly started happening.
  • SonyaCele
    SonyaCele Posts: 2,841 Member
    i dont think that amout of exercise is too much, But if your goal is to shed the weight you need to put a lot of focus on your diet, you have to be in a calorie deficit. Exercise is for getting in shape, diet is for weight loss. You may have to go OCD with your calorie counting and diet, because if after 4 weeks you aren't losing weight at what you estimate is a several hundred calorie deficit, then you probably are estimated wrong.
  • sllm1
    sllm1 Posts: 2,130 Member
    You have to be religiously careful about your intake. Just healthy doesn't work. I would focus more on the intake than on the exercise. Just be sure to give you body a break from time to time.
  • tillerstouch
    tillerstouch Posts: 608 Member
    edited June 2016
    Diet for weight, exercise for health.

    Have you seen any loss in weight? If so how much? After 4 weeks you should probably see at least a small change on the scale. As for visual changes it might take awhile to really see huge changes.

    Like I said first though weight loss is all about calorie deficit. How accurate are you with your calorie tracking? Do you weight everything you eat? How many calories do you have set for each day/pounds are you trying to lose each week?

    (Also as a side note I would recommend heavy weight lift for muscle rention instead of light weight high reps. Some might disagree but that's my opinion.)
  • dewd2
    dewd2 Posts: 2,445 Member
    First thing you should understand is weight loss is a result of your diet, not exercise. If you are not losing, you are eating more calories than you are burning. Adjust your diet until you see the results you want.

    Also, while exercising can add some weight at first (water), it will eventually level out. Three weeks may not be long enough for this to happen (since you are seeing changes in your face).

    I suggest you take another look at your food logging and make sure it is as accurate as possible. Keep in mind that calorie counts on MFP are crowd sourced and are not always accurate. Also, MFP overestimates the number of calories you burn with exercise. Most folks only eat about half the burned calories back.

    Finally, give it some time. Losing 1-2 pounds per week is about as aggressive as you should get. Plus, going all out trying to lose by adding more and more exercises is a recipe for burnout.

    Good luck.
  • FairadezRoyer40
    FairadezRoyer40 Posts: 4 Member
    Thank you everyone for your input. I really appreciate the comments and suggestions.
    I will step up the weight and focus on the shape of my body more as well as start tracking my inches.
    I am doing pretty good with the food logging and while I admit I am not perfect with my caloric count I will strive to be better in my accounting. And make sure I have a deficit everyday.
  • MelaniaTrump
    MelaniaTrump Posts: 2,694 Member
    edited June 2016
    Opinion: Weight loss is 90% eating right and 10% exercise.
    Get a food scale at walmart, target or bbbeyond.
    Tracking every calorie will have amazing results.
  • lorrpb
    lorrpb Posts: 11,463 Member
    You are exercising too hard when you are tired or fatigued all the time, too sore, can't do as much in workouts, cramping, injuries, etc. It's different for everyone. Listen to your body.
  • FairadezRoyer40
    FairadezRoyer40 Posts: 4 Member
    Ok, I looked into my food, and I was doing it wrong. Just because I have an extra 500 does not mean I can eat it. So yesterday I was under 699 total after my exercise but over by 32. So my new goal is to stay under or close to 1650.
    As for my workouts, I am not so sore I can't go about my day. A little Tylenol once in a while does help on the days I feel really stiff. But if I don't feel sore and a little tired I feel like it wasn't worth the effort to workout.
  • Robertus
    Robertus Posts: 558 Member
    How quickly do you want to lose? If you want to lose 2 lbs per week (which is the maximum recommended here), you will need to have a calorie deficit of approximately 7,000 calories each week or 500 per day. If after 4 weeks, you have not seen any loss, you need to eat fewer calories. It really is that simple for most people.

    What makes it more complicated is that most people underestimate the amount of calories they are eating. This can be addressed by religiously weighing your food and realizing that over time the weight scale is the final authority.

    Also, many people, machines, Fitbit trackers, MyFitnessPal and other apps, etc, way overemphasize the number of calories they are burning during exercise. This can be addressed by not eating back your exercise calories.

    Finally, half of our weight is water, which fluctuates quite a bit so daily differences in weight are relatively unimportant. During a very heavy workout, I can lose 6-7 lbs, but almost all of it is dehydration and not fat. Eat a lot of sodium (processed foods contain a lot), and you will retain water weight. Fluctuations in water weight is more of an issue for women.

    Sounds like you are doing a good amount of exercise, but calorie intake is much, much more important for weight loss, especially in the beginning. Exercise and, even better, training and sports that you truly enjoy, are much, much more important for improving your health and fitness, which is a much, much more important goal than weight loss.

    Good luck!
  • whmscll
    whmscll Posts: 2,254 Member
    I'm losing weight without much exercise. Tracking what you eat and making sure you're eating at a deficit is much more important to losing weight than exercise. That said, exercise helps you retain lean muscle mass, which is also important. You'll also be much healthier overall. But as others have said, you have to be religious about calorie intake.
  • Bob314159
    Bob314159 Posts: 1,178 Member
    For most people ....The more you exercise, the more hungry you become. The more hungry you become, the more likely you are to go over intake calorie goals e.g. subconsious cheating. Add to that overestimation of calories burnt and reliance on inaccurate trackers and you are on a slippery slope. I don't log any exercise.

    Exercise is for health, not weight loss.
  • Hornsby
    Hornsby Posts: 10,322 Member
    1. Get a scale and weigh your food.
    2. New workout routines can make a person hold water for a few weeks as the fluid helps repair the muscles.
    3. Up your weights on strength training. Focus on 8-12 reps where your last rep leaves maybe 1 in the tank.
    4. Focus on compound movements (Bench Press, Shoulder Press, Bent Over Row, Squat, Deadlifts)
    5. Profit
  • sanfromny
    sanfromny Posts: 770 Member
    Is there any particular reason you are working with light weights instead of heavy? Like most people said, it really has very little to do with exercise and mostly with how much you are consuming. However, I've been at your stats..My heaviest at 5'2" was 220lbs and I'm now at 157lbs. Aesthetically I'm getting better results with lifting heavy. Just a thought.
  • FairadezRoyer40
    FairadezRoyer40 Posts: 4 Member
    sanfromny wrote: »
    Is there any particular reason you are working with light weights instead of heavy? Like most people said, it really has very little to do with exercise and mostly with how much you are consuming. However, I've been at your stats..My heaviest at 5'2" was 220lbs and I'm now at 157lbs. Aesthetically I'm getting better results with lifting heavy. Just a thought.

    I had an idea going into this that I didn't want to bulk up at all. I am already a large boned heavy trunk body type. Any amount of muscles only adds to that. I am not overly concerned about getting my weight into an "acceptable" range. I know my ideal weight is 145 at a size 7-8. Anything less than that is sickly looking on my frame. Overly large shoulders, too wide hips, even a large looking head lol. I have pictures of me at 126, and a do not look healthy at all. So to get to my perfect body type I need to focus on slimming my muscles. I had thought light weights high reps would be the best way to do that.
  • sammyliftsandeats
    sammyliftsandeats Posts: 2,421 Member
    FairadezRoyer40 wrote: »
    sanfromny wrote: »
    Is there any particular reason you are working with light weights instead of heavy? Like most people said, it really has very little to do with exercise and mostly with how much you are consuming. However, I've been at your stats..My heaviest at 5'2" was 220lbs and I'm now at 157lbs. Aesthetically I'm getting better results with lifting heavy. Just a thought.

    I had an idea going into this that I didn't want to bulk up at all. I am already a large boned heavy trunk body type. Any amount of muscles only adds to that. I am not overly concerned about getting my weight into an "acceptable" range. I know my ideal weight is 145 at a size 7-8. Anything less than that is sickly looking on my frame. Overly large shoulders, too wide hips, even a large looking head lol. I have pictures of me at 126, and a do not look healthy at all. So to get to my perfect body type I need to focus on slimming my muscles. I had thought light weights high reps would be the best way to do that.

    I believe this is a popular misconception still prevalent today. We do not have the hormones in our body to get 'bulky'.

    Definitely focus on your eating, which will help you lose body fat and lift weights to retain muscle mass, which can happen while on a deficit.

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