Does too much high cardio cause you to eat too much back?

powered85
powered85 Posts: 297 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I'm trying to dial in and lose another 5-10lbs. Down to about 11%bf which I'm happy with but want to lean out a bit more. Running almost everyday and sometimes also doing a fairly long walk at night. Obviously get pretty hungry from all of this and I'm wondering if I'd be better served to cut back on the high Cardio exercise some days and focus more on the calories to cut? Wondering if all the Cardio is putting me in a bit of a high carb replenish mode all the time.

I don't have that much to lose so find it tough to do a big daily deficit especially with the amount exercise. Any tips for dialing in the last bit?

Thanks

Replies

  • arditarose
    arditarose Posts: 15,573 Member
    Yeah, that's a reasonable thought. I like to cut on the least amount of cardio possible. If it's making you so hungry you can't stay in a deficit, ease back on back a bit. That's how I originally was successful with weightloss.
  • Machka9
    Machka9 Posts: 25,643 Member
    edited August 2016
    When I do a lot of cardio, I tend to eat most of my exercise calories back.

    So I've also had to make a decision ... do I want to focus on weight loss or training? And right now, I've decided it's training. When things settle down a bit, the focus might be back onto weight loss for a little bit.

    You just have to decide which is more important to you right now ... but whatever you decide doesn't have to be forever. You may decide to focus on weight loss for the next couple months, and then you might want to return to focusing on training.
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 48,996 Member
    If you don't have that much to lose, then your deficit should be smaller (250 calories per day). Overdoing cardio makes that deficit larger and likely why you're really hungry.

    A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
    IDEA Fitness member
    Kickboxing Certified Instructor
    Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
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  • powered85
    powered85 Posts: 297 Member
    edited August 2016
    Machka9 wrote: »
    When I do a lot of cardio, I tend to eat most of my exercise calories back.

    So I've also had to make a decision ... do I want to focus on weight loss or training? And right now, I've decided it's training. When things settle down a bit, the focus might be back onto weight loss for a little bit.

    You just have to decide which is more important to you right now ... but whatever you decide doesn't have to be forever. You may decide to focus on weight loss for the next couple months, and then you might want to return to focusing on training.

    Good point. I've been wanting to improve my 5/10k times but really I'm just doing a lot of running lately and not training. Endurance is going up but speed is suffering. Need to pick my goals here.
    ninerbuff wrote: »
    If you don't have that much to lose, then your deficit should be smaller (250 calories per day). Overdoing cardio makes that deficit larger and likely why you're really hungry.

    A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
    IDEA Fitness member
    Kickboxing Certified Instructor
    Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
    9285851.png


    That seems to be about as deep of a deficit as I can go on cardio days. Basically end up with a tdee just over 3k and eat in the 2800-3000 range most days. Almost becomes a cycle that is tough to break as you get used to eating the same foods daily.
  • TnZMom
    TnZMom Posts: 222 Member
    When I was training for bike rides, it was really hard to lose weight. Not only was I feeling hungry, but my body performed less well athletically if I didn't eat enough to maintain body mass. I ate pretty much all my exercise calories back, and only lost about 4 pounds in 4 months.

    When I was done training for the long rides, I cut back on exercise to about 4 hours of cardio a week, cut back on calories by about 500 a day, and then lost 1.5-ish a week.

    So yes, if you want to lose some fat, probably faster to slow down on the cardio.
  • trigden1991
    trigden1991 Posts: 4,658 Member
    Hunger is just a feeling. If you don't actually eat then you should have no issues keeping your deficit.
  • sijomial
    sijomial Posts: 19,809 Member
    I find a big difference in terms of hunger between low intensity cardio (walking, gentle bike rides) and higher intensity exercise.
    Maybe because higher intensity exercise uses a higher proportion of glycogen? Maybe just the recovery required from more extreme exercise?

    Personally I don't find it an issue eating much more on big exercise days and less on lower exercise days - which is why the "eat back exercise calories method" works well for me.

    My tip for "dialling in the last bit" would be switching the focus from calorie burning to performance goals while having a very small deficit. Makes transition to a maintenance mind-set far easier.

  • powered85
    powered85 Posts: 297 Member
    sijomial wrote: »
    I find a big difference in terms of hunger between low intensity cardio (walking, gentle bike rides) and higher intensity exercise.
    Maybe because higher intensity exercise uses a higher proportion of glycogen? Maybe just the recovery required from more extreme exercise?

    Personally I don't find it an issue eating much more on big exercise days and less on lower exercise days - which is why the "eat back exercise calories method" works well for me.

    My tip for "dialling in the last bit" would be switching the focus from calorie burning to performance goals while having a very small deficit. Makes transition to a maintenance mind-set far easier.

    Thanks. I actually lots more weight over the winter by walking instead of the almost daily running. I too find walking has a much lower effect on post exercise hunger. Even 1hr brisk walks don't come close to a 30min fast run in terms of needing to eat back the calories.

    I'll try and keep a small deficit, log diligently and see how things go for a few weeks.

  • LivingtheLeanDream
    LivingtheLeanDream Posts: 13,342 Member
    High cardio days make me feel super hungry, I will eat back most if not all of those exercise calories - I'm in maintenance but I did the same whilst losing.
  • _piaffe
    _piaffe Posts: 163 Member
    On my big and intense cardio days (a.m. HIIT followed by killer steady steady e.g. big incline powerwalking), I feel like my appetite it killed off for several hours. I am hungrier much later in the day or the next day, and usually end up having a much larger dinner - twice my "normal" amount. I eat back at least 50% of calories burned to avoid creating a subsequent binge.
  • RoxieDawn
    RoxieDawn Posts: 15,488 Member
    First, I would not stop doing cardio or change it unless you are purely doing this for loosing weight and planning to stop. Personally my cardio of choice (which is running too) is for cardiovascular health and I sort of really do enjoy it for fun (i do a lot of charity runs and fundraising).

    Second, I sort of adapt cardio wise as far as hunger goes. It tapers off after adding mileage or volume/intensity after few runs. The other part of the equation here is to keep running so I also have to eat in order to run the next day or next scheduled training. So leaning down when trying to loose 5 - 7 pounds is a lot slower in order to to achieve "dual goals"..

    You may need to decide how you want to approach eating and running as dual goals if you plan to keep running even into maintenance.
  • Budjola
    Budjola Posts: 148 Member
    what happens to me is every day i do around 80 mins cardio and i burn around 1000 kcal, and always by the end of the day i have 1000 kcal extra to eat but i never eat them, but somehow i manage to keep same weight. well mostly because i eat huge amounts of food like 4-5 lbs of vegetables a day (lettuce, cucumbers, mushrooms, broccoli) so there is always some food in me lol
  • powered85
    powered85 Posts: 297 Member
    Budjola wrote: »
    what happens to me is every day i do around 80 mins cardio and i burn around 1000 kcal, and always by the end of the day i have 1000 kcal extra to eat but i never eat them, but somehow i manage to keep same weight. well mostly because i eat huge amounts of food like 4-5 lbs of vegetables a day (lettuce, cucumbers, mushrooms, broccoli) so there is always some food in me lol

    I eat a ton of veggies and frozen fruit that throw off weigh-ins! Its quite a bit of water/bulk in them.

    No way I could run a 1000kcal deficit at my weight. 250 seems to be the lowest especially on cardio days otherwise get pretty lethargic.
  • nowine4me
    nowine4me Posts: 3,985 Member
    If I walk 60 mins in the morning, my hunger is normal for the day. If I run for 30 minutes in the morning, I'm starving all day. I have no idea why, but I hear you!
  • shanebcoleman
    shanebcoleman Posts: 1 Member
    Weight or Strength training increases leptin in the body and suppresses hunger pangs. You can lose weight by doing weights and stay in a small calorie deficit 200-400 range. Spirulina also suppresses appetite and keeps up your thirst for water which is a good thing.
    Don't be afraid of weights, muscle burns fat better than cardio. You cannot spot reduce fat either. You must watch what you eat and be in a calorie deficit with the right macronutrients. You need more protein and fat as they build muscle and satiate your hunger- consider the quality of these proteins and fats.
    I don't have all the equipment for strength training so I do my Body Beast workouts at the gym. Short bursts of HIIT or sprinting is the only cardio recommend unless your planning to be a long distance runner or do better at sports. It's good to do cardio once a week when doing weights.
    Ask your self this question, do you want to look good or get fit? Running will get you fit but you'll eat the calories back as quick. Ideal for those trying to maintain weight and compete at sports. Weights will tone your body and you'll look good with one day of cardio per week to cut into your bulk muscle.
    Walking is a great starting point for those who hardly or never exercise.
  • powered85
    powered85 Posts: 297 Member
    edited August 2016
    nowine4me wrote: »
    If I walk 60 mins in the morning, my hunger is normal for the day. If I run for 30 minutes in the morning, I'm starving all day. I have no idea why, but I hear you!

    Same here. Insanity seems to bring on the most hunger afterwards. Then running, then walking.

    Wonder if its due to the afterburn effect? 60min of brisk walking or 30min of fast running doesn't burn that much of a difference in calories.

    I use a HRM on runs to calculate that info, and use corrected METs for brisk walking calories so figure its pretty close
  • dragon_girl26
    dragon_girl26 Posts: 2,187 Member
    edited August 2016
    I found that for me, this is true. Cardio can burn a higher calorie amount. The more calories you burn, the more energy (food) your body needs to refuel itself. When I was doing lots of cardio (1 1/2 - 2 hrs a day sometimes - I was really into dancing and cycling for awhile), my appetite was hard to control and my carb cravings were more intense. Now that I've calmed down on the exercise, I have less cravings and tend to not be as hungry.
  • CrabNebula
    CrabNebula Posts: 1,119 Member
    I dunno. Heavy cardio seems to depress my appetite.
  • SCoil123
    SCoil123 Posts: 2,111 Member
    I'm actually opposite, on the days I do Insanity my hunger is more manageable than when i don't so I assume what I experience as "hungry" when I don't work out is actually just boredom.

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