59 yr old crossfit trying wholefood plant based eating

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stebolaz
stebolaz Posts: 4 Member
edited July 2018 in Health and Weight Loss
Good evening! I drank the crossfit koolaid diet: Lots of meat/chicken/fish and low carbs and at first I lost body fat and gained muscle, but now my body fat is going up. My clothes are tight and I'm not happy about it. After watching several documentaries about whole food plant based eating, it struck a cord with me and I thought it was a good idea, back by sound science, and worthy of trying. SO all you folks who do heavy/olympic lifting and who follow this way of eating, how do you set your macros? I know many weightlifters follow a vegan diet. Please advise and thank you!

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  • nowine4me
    nowine4me Posts: 3,985 Member
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    I’m WFPB and lift (and run and do Pilates). I don’t follow macros so much, but I’m set to 70/15/15. Some days are close, some are wildly off. I feel great.

    Look for a movie coming out shortly called The Game Changers. It’s a feature film on vegan athletes.
  • Lillymoo01
    Lillymoo01 Posts: 2,865 Member
    edited July 2018
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    Why not a balanced diet that has meat, chicken, fish and plenty of wholesome plant based stuff? It does not have to be restricted to one or the other to achieve weight loss.
  • TrishSeren
    TrishSeren Posts: 587 Member
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    "I know many weightlifters follow a vegan diet" what's this based on? Do you mean competitive weightlifters or people who lift weights in general?

  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
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    TrishSeren wrote: »
    "I know many weightlifters follow a vegan diet" what's this based on? Do you mean competitive weightlifters or people who lift weights in general?

    There is a relatively small, but enthusiastic, vegan power lifting community. This may be what OP is referring to.

  • Alan2159
    Alan2159 Posts: 3 Member
    edited April 2022
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    Is there anyone on this thread still active on mfp? I’m 62 and I lift weights and walk and I am eating mainly plant based with some baked fish and chicken. I don’t watch macro’s and all that crap, I just eat very sensible, meaning I avoid large amounts of sodium and sugar which are hidden in processed foods, I avoid processed foods pretty much , don’t eat at night, don’t drink soda or pre sweetened anything. I don’t avoid carbs as a rule but the carbs I consume are complex from fruit and vegetables. I just want friends who can provide input or just want to discus workouts and nutrition. We all have something to offer whether we realize it or not. I am recovering from cancer related surgery, knee and hernia surgery, since dec. I have lost 18 pounds just eating sensibly. Its not hard and I can share my diet. My goal is 170 I am at 202 now from 220. I have an extensive weight lifting background including competitive powerlifting but now I just use light weight and walking. I have been sedentary for quite a while and now I am due for more radiationand possibly chemo in a few weeks. My diet consist of foods that are alleged “cancer fighting” foods. Send me a friend request, I am having positive success . I’m not a fitness guru I’m just a 62 yr old trying to eat sensibly and survive long enough to see grandkids grow up, I want to learn what has helped others lose weight and share what has helped me.
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 32,433 Member
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    Alan2159 wrote: »
    Is there anyone on this thread still active on mfp? I’m 62 and I lift weights and walk and I am eating mainly plant based with some baked fish and chicken. I don’t watch macro’s and all that crap, I just eat very sensible, meaning I avoid large amounts of sodium and sugar which are hidden in processed foods, I avoid processed foods pretty much , don’t eat at night, don’t drink soda or pre sweetened anything. I don’t avoid carbs as a rule but the carbs I consume are complex from fruit and vegetables. I just want friends who can provide input or just want to discus workouts and nutrition. We all have something to offer whether we realize it or not. I am recovering from cancer related surgery, knee and hernia surgery, since dec. I have lost 18 pounds just eating sensibly. Its not hard and I can share my diet. My goal is 170 I am at 202 now from 220. I have an extensive weight lifting background including competitive powerlifting but now I just use light weight and walking. I have been sedentary for quite a while and now I am due for more radiationand possibly chemo in a few weeks. My diet consist of foods that are alleged “cancer fighting” foods. Send me a friend request, I am having positive success . I’m not a fitness guru I’m just a 62 yr old trying to eat sensibly and survive long enough to see grandkids grow up, I want to learn what has helped others lose weight and share what has helped me.

    We have some things in common, or close: I'm 66, vegetarian (for 47+ years now), I work out routinely (mix of strength (seasonally) and cardio, mostly rowing and some cycling). I'm a cancer survivor (stage III locally advanced cancer 22 years ago, surgery-chemo-radiation-meds); have a torn meniscus (deferring surgery as long as I can). In 2015-16, I lost 50+ pounds, weigh mid-120s pounds at 5'5" (I'm female). I'm not a fitness guru either, just opinionated (did have coaching certifications in my sport, but didn't do the continuing ed to keep them official.)

    But we differ dramatically in our views on nutrition: I do watch "macros and all that crap", have goals, meet them, think that's useful and possibly even quite important - at worst, a good bet-hedge in the health and fitness realm, not that complicated, not time-consuming. Not essential, either, I'm sure.

    I don't really worry about sugar, sodium, processed foods - as long as I'm getting good overall nutrition, on average, at an appropriate calorie level to stay at my healthy weight. Btw, fruit is mostly simply carbs (sugars), starches (including white flour) are primarily complex carbs, by technical nutritional definitions.

    I'm also a sub-par MFP friend (more of a Community forum gal, I guess). I do accept friend requests, but don't usually send them, because I know I underperform in that realm.

    Does your cancer center have a registered dietitian (RD) on staff? I was able to consult with one at my cancer center during treatment, get a wealth of information. She even did some research for me, in response to my questions about some issues around soy and dairy foods, gave me quite a stack of good articles to read as well as some good general guidance on nutrition, plus issues specific to my cancer type. If that's an option for you, I highly recommend it. If they don't have that where you are, maybe ask your oncology team for a referral to an RD with relevant experience.
  • claireychn074
    claireychn074 Posts: 1,387 Member
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    Cancer survivor, Oly weightlifting 47 yr old with a book full of injuries (torn rotator cuff, overused QL, weak ankle following bad injury). But I do track my macros in detail, I eat a wide variety of food which includes fish and meat, I eat sugar, salt and fat and drink gin. Losing weight is not my focus, rather fuelling my training so that I can smash my goals 😀 and I’m quite happy with eating sugar.

    As an aside, I was vegetarian for 15 years and teetotal and I still got cancer. So I figure life is for living and enjoying.
  • sijomial
    sijomial Posts: 19,811 Member
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    Alan2159 wrote: »
    Is there anyone on this thread still active on mfp? I’m 62 and I lift weights and walk and I am eating mainly plant based with some baked fish and chicken. I don’t watch macro’s and all that crap, I just eat very sensible, meaning I avoid large amounts of sodium and sugar which are hidden in processed foods, I avoid processed foods pretty much , don’t eat at night, don’t drink soda or pre sweetened anything. I don’t avoid carbs as a rule but the carbs I consume are complex from fruit and vegetables. I just want friends who can provide input or just want to discus workouts and nutrition. We all have something to offer whether we realize it or not. I am recovering from cancer related surgery, knee and hernia surgery, since dec. I have lost 18 pounds just eating sensibly. Its not hard and I can share my diet. My goal is 170 I am at 202 now from 220. I have an extensive weight lifting background including competitive powerlifting but now I just use light weight and walking. I have been sedentary for quite a while and now I am due for more radiationand possibly chemo in a few weeks. My diet consist of foods that are alleged “cancer fighting” foods. Send me a friend request, I am having positive success . I’m not a fitness guru I’m just a 62 yr old trying to eat sensibly and survive long enough to see grandkids grow up, I want to learn what has helped others lose weight and share what has helped me.

    @Alan2159

    Hi Alan - we have a few similarities.

    Also 62, I cycle a lot and lift weights.
    Weight range is 168 - 175lbs and currently at bottom of my range as I'm training for a big event in May.
    Just making yet another comeback to strength training after mashing a wrist (again!) and having to take an extended break to let it heal. Injuries do seem to require more care and recovery these days.
    I don't need to log food to maintain weight but definitely do keep "macros and all that crap" in mind. High protein level due to my training load, high carb intake to fuel my cycling (and enjoyment of veg, grains and fruit). Hard to talk about nutrition without mentioning macronutrients TBH.
    I don't avoid processed foods but being retired most of my food is home cooked. Don't eat much early in the day but tend to eat all evening! Cycling gives me a huge calorie allowance so my jaw muscles get a good workout.
    I do drink diet soda in moderation.
    Most of my carb intake is complex carbs (starches) but also need to top up simple carbs (sugars) on long rides. Bit of a chore at times as I much prefer savoury to sweet.
    I've got a gorgeous 20 month old granddaughter who I definitely want to see grow up - bought her a first bike which might be just a little early!

    Best of luck with your forthcoming treatments, tough time for you but you clearly have a positive mental attitude. Will send you a FR.

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