Sab's thread
SabAteNine
Posts: 1,866 Member
Hi everyone, and happy Monday!
I’m entering maintenance now and would really use a few workout and dietary suggestions from you more experienced and knowledgeable people around here. I’ve been reading around, but nothing compares to contextualized advice
Basic stats:
Measurements:
Here's how that looks:
Started off way back from 155 lbs and only recently kept track again. Since beginning of January (oh, new years’ resolutions!) I have lost 11 lbs. What worked:
Online calcs out there put me at about 1850-ish calories per day for maintenance, but the actual loss of the last three months indicates more like 1750 (400 cals over BMR).
So the plan would be to increase intake to 1750, and increase weight training (every other day). It shouldn’t be too hard to get a positive outcome of the latter, seeing as how I’m basically at near-zero now and can’t overhead dumbbell press more than 5 kg, 2x10, for the life of me. Also, I'm right-handed and my left calls quits WAY before.
I have a set of dumbbells going up to 25 lbs at home and a barbell up to 50. I would like to continue to use these for the moment.
Question nr. 1: Does the 1750 cals sound like a good starting point to you guys? Should it be more right from the start if I weight train?
Question nr. 2: Could you recommend a weight training plan for beginners which uses bodyweight, dumbbels and barbell? I do not have a bench unfortunately but plan on getting one asap.
Question nr. 3: Should I increase carbohydrate intake in maintenance if I’m looking to recomp? I am asking because it feels much better staying at the lower end of the carb scale, but as far as I got to read, it’s a trade-off between efficiency / effectiveness of recomp (better with carbs) and my own personal preference (better without carbs). Ultimately I can change my preference if the advantages are worth it.
Thanks so much in advance!!!
Sabina
I’m entering maintenance now and would really use a few workout and dietary suggestions from you more experienced and knowledgeable people around here. I’ve been reading around, but nothing compares to contextualized advice
Basic stats:
- 29 and female
- 169 cm / 5’6-5’7-ish
- 57 kg / 125.5 lbs (GW)
Measurements:
- Waist: 66 cm / 26 in (went down from 31.5)
- Hips: 97 cm / 38 in (went down from 42.5)
- Bust: like a 12-year-old with extra padding, please don’t ask for specifics
- Thigh: 55 cm / 21.5 in, which is pretty thick but then again my legs seem like my only powerful bodyparts.
Here's how that looks:
Started off way back from 155 lbs and only recently kept track again. Since beginning of January (oh, new years’ resolutions!) I have lost 11 lbs. What worked:
- 1450 cal intake for feb-apr (my BMR’s about 1350 cals and I am routinely walking about 12-15k steps per day plus quite a bit of stairs). Wanted to go slow and steady.
- Staying at 20g carbs per day (C/P/F - 5/30/65) because I am turning into a monster if I get a taste of bread.
Online calcs out there put me at about 1850-ish calories per day for maintenance, but the actual loss of the last three months indicates more like 1750 (400 cals over BMR).
So the plan would be to increase intake to 1750, and increase weight training (every other day). It shouldn’t be too hard to get a positive outcome of the latter, seeing as how I’m basically at near-zero now and can’t overhead dumbbell press more than 5 kg, 2x10, for the life of me. Also, I'm right-handed and my left calls quits WAY before.
I have a set of dumbbells going up to 25 lbs at home and a barbell up to 50. I would like to continue to use these for the moment.
Question nr. 1: Does the 1750 cals sound like a good starting point to you guys? Should it be more right from the start if I weight train?
Question nr. 2: Could you recommend a weight training plan for beginners which uses bodyweight, dumbbels and barbell? I do not have a bench unfortunately but plan on getting one asap.
Question nr. 3: Should I increase carbohydrate intake in maintenance if I’m looking to recomp? I am asking because it feels much better staying at the lower end of the carb scale, but as far as I got to read, it’s a trade-off between efficiency / effectiveness of recomp (better with carbs) and my own personal preference (better without carbs). Ultimately I can change my preference if the advantages are worth it.
Thanks so much in advance!!!
Sabina
15
Replies
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Question nr. 1: Does the 1750 cals sound like a good starting point to you guys? Should it be more right from the start if I weight train?
Go by your own data - there's no point in going to a calculator. Makes adjustments based on trends not spikes or fluctuations.
How are you accounting for your exercise calorie burns now? (MFP or TDEE methods)
And how do you plan on accounting for your exercise in the future?
Question nr. 2: Could you recommend a weight training plan for beginners which uses bodyweight, dumbbels and barbell? I do not have a bench unfortunately but plan on getting one asap.
Have a look through this - https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10332083/which-lifting-program-is-the-best-for-you/p1
Question nr. 3: Should I increase carbohydrate intake in maintenance if I’m looking to recomp? I am asking because it feels much better staying at the lower end of the carb scale, but as far as I got to read, it’s a trade-off between efficiency / effectiveness of recomp (better with carbs) and my own personal preference (better without carbs). Ultimately I can change my preference if the advantages are worth it.
Low carb is sub-optimal but that's a personal compromise that only you can answer - experiment. Maintenance is long term so don't be afraid to try different approaches. Some will work, some won't, some you may learn something from.
18 -
Hi @sijomial and thank you for this!
1. Good point. I'll track my first month closely and carry on / adjust from there.
I have a desk job and a general approach to counting exercise calories: count runing outputs, halve walking outputs. Don't see a point at the moment tracking lifting calories, I think they're fairly negligible at this point.
Example 1: ran 5k yesterday, watch said 258 cals, I'm counting 260.
Example 2: commute-walked this morning, 50 mins @ 8 mins per km or 7.5 kmph (4.65 mph... gah conversions), MFP says 300, I'll count 150.
I've been walking a long time now and it certainly pushes me less than someone else with my exact measurements who is just starting out. It's a vital part of my day - being chained to a desk most times does that.
Think I'll stick with this approach for the next months as well, if I don't see an obvious mistake somewhere when weighing.
2. Oh... I'm probably an idiot for not properly reading through the stickies here.
I have been doing this for the last month but Strong Curves and even Strong Lifts 5x5 sound great.
3. Starting off with C/P/F -10/25/65, we'll see where that takes me... so far the fact that I COULD fit a beer on this makes me feel like butterflies in my stomach. Summer's coming and out of everything, a beer's what I've been craving. In a shaded garden bar. After a good run.
Will keep this thread updated if it's to anyone's interest.
Thanks again!
S8 -
Sensible to stay consistent as that way just one variable changes - your calorie balance.
It's ok and very normal to feel a bit nervous. Trust the process that brought you to this point - it still works at maintenance.11 -
1750 is fine to start, just keep in mind that you may actually find your maintenance calories are higher. I was losing pretty slowly towards the end and thought my maintenance calories would be around 2400 or something given the math. As I increased calories I kept losing weight and was actually losing faster again. I finally topped out around 2800-3000.
I believe this was likely do to a few things...for one, I had been dieting for 7-8 months without any kind of break...so when I upped my calories, my hormonal levels went back to normal. I also noticed a considerable boost in energy and more fidgeting, and my workouts were a lot better.
6 -
Thanks for the insight, @cwolfman13! Glad to hear things improved with upping intake!
I haven't been in a deficit for that long this round (maybe around 4 months) and my logging was crappy-to-none before that for about a year - so there's obviously a lot of trial and adjustment to be done, but I too am hoping my maintenance cals will be higher.
Ironically, these first days I find it difficult to increase. Not that it would be a question of lack of hunger, but it calls for a mental re-framing. I'm a creature of habit and my diary is almost the same for the most days, so I figured the easiest way to transition is to just increase quantities of what I had eaten before, until expanding the menu doesn't make me nervous.3 -
My tips...
Don't overthink it and don't get paranoid with every fluctuation. I am a subject matter expert on both topics.20 -
Male but height and weight is about the same as yours. MFP has me at 1770 calories to maintain a mostly sedentary lifestyle - and I've been maintaining for 1.5 years with that. So calorie count in your stated range should be kinda/ mostly ok I'd think.
I track diligently and don't really exercise. If I exercise, I eat back the calories.
Tracking calories and weight trends will let you know what your personal TDEE should settle at..
Also I concur on the low carb being sub optimal. Eat what you want within your calorie allowance. As others and I have done, it works..4 -
You look amazing! I'm 5'7" too and hovering around 140lbs, I'd love to get down to 125!
Your plan sounds good to me. The key is obviously staying accountable. If you don't have a weight-trending app already, check them out. Libra for Android or Happy Scale for iOS.
When I reach maintenance I plan to continue weighing in daily/weekly and recording it in the app. Then at the end of each month, I'll have a very good idea if I've been maintaining/losing/gaining with my current strategies.6 -
cwolfman13 wrote: »1750 is fine to start, just keep in mind that you may actually find your maintenance calories are higher. I was losing pretty slowly towards the end and thought my maintenance calories would be around 2400 or something given the math. As I increased calories I kept losing weight and was actually losing faster again. I finally topped out around 2800-3000.
I believe this was likely do to a few things...for one, I had been dieting for 7-8 months without any kind of break...so when I upped my calories, my hormonal levels went back to normal. I also noticed a considerable boost in energy and more fidgeting, and my workouts were a lot better.
I second this. I believe my caloric needs are increasing as my hormones return. Using this hopeful chance to push exercise slightly back as far as steady state cardio and more emphasis on weight training. I hope this is true. People are telling me I am looking a lot leaner at the gym. Only time will tell. I hope the best for your maintenance!4 -
Thank you, all, for your input - It's super appreciated!
Overthinking is my mantra unfortunately.
@rimir74: Congratulations on maintaining for so long! Seems like you found the key to your good health. If you're usually sedentary, logging the exercises when they happen and adjusting intake makes perfect sense to me. I factored in my own calculation my daily walking, which last week has been anywhere between 15k and 22k steps, most of it purposeful.
@toxikon Thank you! I was more or less at 140 this Christmas and managed to get it down to here, but I did have a 1200 cal per day January. During which the scale almost didn't budge. I'll never understand completely how these things work, but I do know that consistency is the only good key on the keychain.
Best of luck in losing! I've been tracking weight in MPF, I usually weigh in daily and average it out for the week. There is too much variability in the day by day weighing and for the most part it just tells me about salt, water retention or the once-every-two-days bathroom moment (I know, TMI).
Update of the day: Hangry and fatigued. I have increased carb intake from 20-ish net grams to 40-50g and I THINK because of that I managed to put myself in the „neither here nor there” state between ketosis and a normal carb-based diet. Which basically translates to me trying to nap in the office and looking at stairs in despair.
Giving it until the end of the week and taking another 1-2 days of rest... and if nothing changes I'm thinking of switching to 40/30/30. It will bloat me right up and make me a bit miserable, at least in the beginning, but... I really want to be able to train.6 -
If you are feeling 'hangry and fatigued' change up those macros - you have been doing 1200 cals for months and its not been adequate to fuel your body so its telling you to feed it some more
Carbs are not the enemy. They will give you a boost of energy (as well as being delicious )4 -
@LivingtheLeanDream Thanks! It was the macros, and you're right.
One cup of lentils at lunch went straight to my enthusiasm and will to lift. It also made someone offer me their seat in the subway, but that's another story...
I spent just one month at the minimum (2000 cals) and the rest (feb-apr) on 1450. I am on 1750 now and testing it out.2 -
SabAteNine wrote: »@LivingtheLeanDream Thanks! It was the macros, and you're right.
One cup of lentils at lunch went straight to my enthusiasm and will to lift. It also made someone offer me their seat in the subway, but that's another story...
I spent just one month at the minimum (2000 cals) and the rest (feb-apr) on 1450. I am on 1750 now and testing it out.
That's great and now I wanna hear the subway story
1 -
Yeah waaaah? Nobody gives up a subway seat in China lol1
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LivingtheLeanDream wrote: »SabAteNine wrote: »@LivingtheLeanDream Thanks! It was the macros, and you're right.
One cup of lentils at lunch went straight to my enthusiasm and will to lift. It also made someone offer me their seat in the subway, but that's another story...
I spent just one month at the minimum (2000 cals) and the rest (feb-apr) on 1450. I am on 1750 now and testing it out.
That's great and now I wanna hear the subway story
Well there's only so much you can say about the balloon effect which carbs in general tend to have on me, at least in the first stage. I'm right there with Jupiter and Saturn in the hall of fame of gas giants. If this carries on I'm thinking of carrying around the good old „What to expect when you're expecting”... for sh*ts and giggles and a place in the subway.7 -
SabAteNine wrote: »LivingtheLeanDream wrote: »SabAteNine wrote: »@LivingtheLeanDream Thanks! It was the macros, and you're right.
One cup of lentils at lunch went straight to my enthusiasm and will to lift. It also made someone offer me their seat in the subway, but that's another story...
I spent just one month at the minimum (2000 cals) and the rest (feb-apr) on 1450. I am on 1750 now and testing it out.
That's great and now I wanna hear the subway story
Well there's only so much you can say about the balloon effect which carbs in general tend to have on me, at least in the first stage. I'm right there with Jupiter and Saturn in the hall of fame of gas giants. If this carries on I'm thinking of carrying around the good old „What to expect when you're expecting”... for sh*ts and giggles and a place in the subway.
oh dear! you just need to look for someone else close by that you can give dirty looks in the direction of to throw the blame on
I don't have that problem with carbs but then I've never ate low carb so maybe its just your body adjusting.2 -
So I'm coming back with an update, two weeks later.
Adaptation to a higher-carb, higher-protein diet was not without bumps, but apart from the Bloaty mcBloatface problem, a bit of water retention and (I suppose?) renewed glycogen deposits, things have hovered around GW, GW+4.5lbs, then back again.
Weight training does feel better now after switching. I am seeing the slightest bit of progress in strength and it is very encouraging.
HOWEVER - and this is my coming clean moment. I am technically NOT in maintenance but still in a deficit. I've been keeping as accurate as possible of a journal, which you may find here. I use a food scale ever since 2014 and mostly dig into pre-packaged, pre-weighed food with nutritional information on the wrapping - the MFP diary log should be accurate. Incompetent Google Fit readings are being recalculated as 2/3 of the output. Before anyone asks, GFit is the only app that will sync MFP with my watch.
The net numbers in the sheet are WAY LOWER than they are supposed to be, but it has been hard to eat more. I'm not hungry. I feel full all the time. Scale's letting me know that it can „maintain” on this much of a deficit. It's frustrating.
If anyone remembers Dexter's Laboratory and „Omelette du Fromage”, I need the same thing but with „Trust the Process”. Trust the process. Trust the process...
I'd like to know from anyone who entered maintenance and would be kind enough to share their insights, how long it took their bodies (and minds) to adapt. And whether there was a bump in the numbers on the scale. I'm not even that focused on the scale, I'm just thrown off because of the readings in the above-shared excel. It's never as simple as pure CICO, but I can't shake the feeling that I am making a big mistake somewhere. Or am I being too impatient?5 -
Based on the chart/spreadsheet, it looks like you're pretty on-point. I've seen the similar pattern in scale weight... slight increase then leveling off, but still within what most consider normal range/fluctuations, though my fluctuations tend to be greater than what I see in your chart/numbers.
When you say that you're "technically" still in a deficit, what does that mean? The chart/numbers suggest otherwise...1 -
Thanks for the update OP I've only glanced at your spreadsheet, I'm having one of those busy busy days.
You seem to be doing just fine, give it time and and do trust the process. Goodness even I doubt myself and I've been at maintenance for years (5). but the majority of the time I KNOW I'm doing just fine
Give yourself a +/-5lb weight range, or a little bit less. And go by your month on month figures. You will start to relax over time. But while you have the data, you really can trust the process. Keep going with that mantra
Ruth5 -
Based on the chart/spreadsheet, it looks like you're pretty on-point. I've seen the similar pattern in scale weight... slight increase then leveling off, but still within what most consider normal range/fluctuations, though my fluctuations tend to be greater than what I see in your chart/numbers.
When you say that you're "technically" still in a deficit, what does that mean? The chart/numbers suggest otherwise...
Thank you for taking your time and checking the numbers!
My net average is on point (1350 would be my BMR), in the following circumstances:- I am not counting strength training calories. Those would amount to about 150-200 every two days (approx. one hour). It's a minimal deficit of about 500-700 cals per week.
- The exercise calories, where running isn't mentioned, are mostly from walking about 8-10k per day, at around 3.7 mph. Comparing with other calculator readings, I am strongly on the „safe side” of adjusted calories. If I am correct in this assumption, on the medium term (ca. 2 months) this should also result in a loss.
Time will tell4
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