HELP!! How much should I eat..!!

gemtayls
gemtayls Posts: 42 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Hey Everyone.... I'm after some help / advice..

I have got so much conflicting information in my head with regards to how much I should be eating, what my macros should be, whether I should be getting plenty carbs, whether I should be cutting carbs.. My head is spinning!!

I wondered if I gave you a bit background and explain my training etc. if anyone can point me in the right direction from experiences and knowing what they are talking about please before my brain pops lol...

Basically my main goal is fat loss... I train 4/5 times a week made up of a high intensity 45 min class which has 3 rounds of 1m exercises (similar to metafit but a bit more intense). An hour PT per week which is based around cardio, strength, core, exercises... and I was doing 2/3 bootcamp type classes aswell up until last week which have had to stop as I've had knee surgery so once I'm recovered those will be replaced with more controlled cardio / strength training in the gym.
So pretty intense training for the week..

My instructor has told me I should be eating around 2500 calories a day in order to maintain muscle an lose fat.. but this just goes against EVERYTHING I've ever known... he does know his stuff but I just can't get my head around that much food...

Calorie calculators on the web put me at around 1600... which seems more reasonable but he insists it's not enough.... I have dropped it currently to 1400 because I can't train.

Is he right, am I being counter productive?

My height is 5'3.5", current weight 11 stone - normally I'm about 10 and a half stone when maintaining but over the last six months it's crept up and now I can't seem to shift it.

My partner us currently cutting carbs but I just don't agree with cutting anything out, I want to find a balance that will allow me a good varied diet and allow me a bit of a treat on a weekend.

My weekday diet is currently pretty clean and healthy, i do need to reign my weekends in but that's more willpower than science lol..

Can anyone please point me in the right direction?

I have a holiday end of June and I really need to be about 2 sizes smaller than I am now to fit into my holiday clothes, i'm normally happy at about 10 stone when I go away so a stone off would be my target.

Thanks in advance guys!

Replies

  • gemtayls
    gemtayls Posts: 42 Member
    P.S. I'm 35 years old if that makes a diff.... with a sedentary job...
  • avadahm
    avadahm Posts: 111 Member
    So you're not listening to your instructor because you feel you know better? And you said you're working out hard and then that you're not right now? I'm a little confused on your activity level.

    What does your MFP say for you if you incorporate those intense workouts? It might start you at 1600 like you've read on the internet but after workouts you will need to eat some back. Like I will see folks have 1200 as their goal, do 1500 burns in their workout and eat closer to 2100 in actuality. They're losing weight on their check ins consistently.
  • gemtayls
    gemtayls Posts: 42 Member
    Hi thanks for the reply. It's not that I feel I know better, it's more past experience of eating less = losing weight and I just can't get my head around adding an extra 1000 cals to my day, I feel like I don't have the time to test the theory with having a holiday coming up.. When I train I don't tend to eat back the calories if I'm honest, he did say to keep it consistent every day but maybe incorporate a little extra carbs on training days?

    I'm just in a total plateau and finding all the different info you read a bit overwhelming....

    The training I mentioned was what I was doing up until Thursday when I had the knee surgery just as an example of how I normally would train, I am resting it for two weeks while the knee heals... but there's a possibility i may have to drop the bootcamp style classes and do some more controlled cardio / strength training in the gym. I was just trying to give a bit background info really.
  • Sunna_W
    Sunna_W Posts: 744 Member
    Your food diary isn't open. We have no idea what you are eating. Also, muscle weighs more than fat and if you have bulked up you may not lose clothing sizes unless you stop bulking.

    You can *also* just do Keto / Paleo for the time you are at home with your knee and until your holiday - the size / weight should be where you want.

  • gemtayls
    gemtayls Posts: 42 Member
    Hey I've unlocked it, thanks for your reply :)
  • CatherineC49
    CatherineC49 Posts: 1 Member
    Hi, I have always eaten low calorie to maintain my weight (usually between 8.5 and 9 stone)......but I have always been 'flabby'. I started with a PT and he nearly doubled my calories to around 1350. I could not get my head around eating that much food AT all, but I have followed his advice and lost weight, but more importantly I have lost some of the 'wobble'. I still have a long way to go as sometimes life gets in the way of my workouts, but honestly upping my calories is helping me shed fat.
    I didn't think all the exercise and extra food was having an effect until my PT showed me the 4 week before and after photos.... and I am not doing half as much exercise as you are. Listen to your PT, they know what they are doing xx
  • gemtayls
    gemtayls Posts: 42 Member
    Aw thank you Catherine I really appreciate your comment, and re-assurance!! Glad everything is going well for you!!
  • Sunna_W
    Sunna_W Posts: 744 Member
    Food-wise you look great. IMO I would not consume soy milk just because it's an endocrine disruptor (my preference is coconut milk). Maybe add some more fat / protein as I said previously and cut down on the carbs / sugar unless it's before exercise.
  • gemtayls
    gemtayls Posts: 42 Member
    Oh OK yes I have had coconut milk before I'll get some :)

    What are you thoughts on cheese / milk / butter..?

    Good or bad?
  • gemtayls
    gemtayls Posts: 42 Member
    I'll maybe switch the fruit and yoghurt (which usually has honey also but I've not brought it to work), to boiled eggs or cheese on none training days - should i be restricting the amount of eggs per day?

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