Looking for advice following lengthy weight maintenance.
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kanerz14
Posts: 85 Member
Hi All,
In a bit of a quandary. I've been in weight maintenance for around two years. weigh around 56 kilo's and have been running around 30 miles weekly on average. Of late my enjoyment has reduced and I've been tending to run to eat back calories alone.
I've also been getting pretty sick of logging foods and often feeling restricted. (1800 calories a day sedentry setting) I have a fit bit and Garmin and would continue to walk/run.
Anyhoo. I was thinking about gaining some weight, both to reduce feelings of hunger and hopefully bring hormones back up (reduced SD).
I've no real interest in bulking or lifting for muscle gains but fear losing my prized six-pack:) I do some ab work and lift dumbells intermittently.
My question, I suppose would be I have a target weight of 65 kilos, in order to gradually gain would I put my weight at 65 kilos on MFP, set for maintenance and keep sedentary? With that thinking I would gradually gain weight and come upto 65kilos? Does this seem correct/doable?
I would intend to continue logging though fear a reduction in running performance and loss of definition (I'll deal with this though) Just feel sick of living like a monk:)
Thanks in advance:)
In a bit of a quandary. I've been in weight maintenance for around two years. weigh around 56 kilo's and have been running around 30 miles weekly on average. Of late my enjoyment has reduced and I've been tending to run to eat back calories alone.
I've also been getting pretty sick of logging foods and often feeling restricted. (1800 calories a day sedentry setting) I have a fit bit and Garmin and would continue to walk/run.
Anyhoo. I was thinking about gaining some weight, both to reduce feelings of hunger and hopefully bring hormones back up (reduced SD).
I've no real interest in bulking or lifting for muscle gains but fear losing my prized six-pack:) I do some ab work and lift dumbells intermittently.
My question, I suppose would be I have a target weight of 65 kilos, in order to gradually gain would I put my weight at 65 kilos on MFP, set for maintenance and keep sedentary? With that thinking I would gradually gain weight and come upto 65kilos? Does this seem correct/doable?
I would intend to continue logging though fear a reduction in running performance and loss of definition (I'll deal with this though) Just feel sick of living like a monk:)
Thanks in advance:)
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Replies
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I have had similar feelings, although it was more my joints (knees/hips) that were protesting when I was consistently clocking up over 20k steps in a day, half those from running. My TDEE of course is lower when I'm not being as active.
In my case I was worried about gaining because I enjoyed eating around 2200 calories a day. But needs must and we must do what's right for us and our bodies. I cut back on the activity, going from around 2 hrs each day to 1 hr.. and I was pleasantly surprised! When I was less active, I was less hungry! and automatically I was happier with lowering my intake - cut 200 cals a day and it felt easy. I am still maintaining my goal range easily and this is my third month of being less active, and my joints are not giving me any issues either
In your case you would be happy to gain so you can set MFP to gain say 0.25kg a week. Gain slowly and that way you will minimise the amount of fat you gain. Keep up the weight lifting you currently do, its great for overall fitness and not just for aesthetic reasons
Its about finding our happy place
All the best.1 -
Thank you run, I would assume however setting MFP to gain would mean a larger increase for me to reduce again at maintenance??0
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well yes, if you have been using MFP for tracking your food and you eat more then when you gain and get to a weight you are happy with then you would set it to maintenance once more.0
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That's quite a lot of weight to gain?
When was the last time you had a week off running and logging?0 -
Wouldn't it be easier just to dial in my weight at 65 and set to maintain rather than eating more to gain, Enjoying it, (maybe a bit much) and then having to reign it it when hit desired weight?
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TavistockToad wrote: »That's quite a lot of weight to gain?
When was the last time you had a week off running and logging?
A full week???
Not since before I started using MFP:) Have been running an average of 4-5 days a week and strength training in between. I worry if I were to have a week off all together all the old habits would resume....0 -
OMG... you know how many times I've taken a week off??? At least 3 times a year. Take a week off and then see how you feel!!! Eat and enjoy for a week.
I took 2 weeks off in August to look after my kids in the summer and I didn't turn into a pumpkin.1 -
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Hi All,
In a bit of a quandary. I've been in weight maintenance for around two years. weigh around 56 kilo's and have been running around 30 miles weekly on average. Of late my enjoyment has reduced and I've been tending to run to eat back calories alone.
I've also been getting pretty sick of logging foods and often feeling restricted. (1800 calories a day sedentry setting) I have a fit bit and Garmin and would continue to walk/run.
Anyhoo. I was thinking about gaining some weight, both to reduce feelings of hunger and hopefully bring hormones back up (reduced SD).
I've no real interest in bulking or lifting for muscle gains but fear losing my prized six-pack:) I do some ab work and lift dumbells intermittently.
My question, I suppose would be I have a target weight of 65 kilos, in order to gradually gain would I put my weight at 65 kilos on MFP, set for maintenance and keep sedentary? With that thinking I would gradually gain weight and come upto 65kilos? Does this seem correct/doable?
I would intend to continue logging though fear a reduction in running performance and loss of definition (I'll deal with this though) Just feel sick of living like a monk:)
Thanks in advance:)
Hello. When I started on MFP I was 55kg and over the course of a year and a half, I gained 15kg to 70kg. I set MFP to gain to 60kg, initially and once I hit that, to 70kg. I was and still am sedentary due to work. You want to increase from 56kg to 65kg but you dont want to bulk nor do you want to lose your prized six pack. If you were to do a slow bulk, you would get to 65kg but you will gain some fat along the way and you may end up losing some if not all of the six pack which will still be there but hidden. Are you mentally ready for that? You will either have to reduce the running to help the weight to go up or else eat back the calories that you have burned. I'm open to correction here because I do not claim to know all.1 -
You could also try bumping up your calories by 100 and see what happens for a month.
We maintain within a calorie range, not so much a specific number so you may be pleasantly surprised and your weight won't change. If that's the case, increase by another 100, repeat above until weight begins to move. Then you could choose to stay there if you still want to gain or drop back down to the last calorie setting you had.
Personally, when I'm running a lot managing calories makes a big impact. It sounds ridiculous, and I wouldn't have believed it except I've done a couple of cut/bulk cycles, but even as little as an extra 100 cals can change my energy levels from 'meh' to 'good' and from 'good' to 'great'.
BTW, I'm also on team take-a-break. Have a vacation from running. Try a different exercise while you do, if you want, just to keep in the habit of exercising. I think that will do a lot to rejuvenate your interest in running if you haven't completely worn it down.0 -
TavistockToad wrote: »That's quite a lot of weight to gain?
When was the last time you had a week off running and logging?
A full week???
Not since before I started using MFP:) Have been running an average of 4-5 days a week and strength training in between. I worry if I were to have a week off all together all the old habits would resume....
I usually take a week off every 6-8 weeks or so...not that I don't do anything...I do some yoga, go for walks, etc...but I give myself a bit of time to just deload everything...I usually hit PRs the next week.2 -
Thanks for all the replies food for thought:) after a couple of days of increased calories; kinda feel generally happier:)0
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