New and advice needed

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  • YoYodejavu
    YoYodejavu Posts: 51 Member
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    Just something that happened to me, when I increased intensity of cardio and or strength training I usually see a gain on the scale. It seems to settle after a week or 2....remember it's not all about the scale, you can lose inches and the scale stay the same or go up. Best of luck to you
  • MDL1418
    MDL1418 Posts: 50 Member
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    Thank you very much. I appreciate that. I am trying to remind myself of those things as well. I am just frustrated because it’s been a long stretch with good diet and exercise with no movement. But you are right in what you are saying.
  • nutmegoreo
    nutmegoreo Posts: 15,532 Member
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    AnvilHead wrote: »
    MDL1418 wrote: »
    ...I recently started strength training 3 days a week doing about 9 excercises at 12 reps/3 sets each workout and about 10-30 minutes of cardio those days. On the alternate days I try to do about 30 minutes of cardio...

    If you recently started your workout routine, there's a good chance that some of that weight gain is water/glycogen retention in your muscles - very common when starting a workout routine, especially a strenuous one.

    Then again, depending upon how accurately you're measuring your intake, it's also possible that you're taking in more calories than you think. You may want to try using a food scale for all solid foods and measuring cups/spoons for all liquids for a while, to make sure your logging is on point. Eating "healthy" doesn't make you lose weight - eating less calories than you expend does.

    You may also want to look into using a weight trend app such as Happy Scale (iOS), Libra (Android) or trendweight.com (web) to track your overall trend rather than looking at the (perfectly normal) daily scale fluctuations in isolation.

    Yes! I had a 4 week stall when I started strength training, then whoosh, big drop.

    In the meantime, tighten up your logging. It's eye opening. People can overeat while eating healthy.
  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 34,015 Member
    edited September 2018
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    I'm on the side of, "Log your food. Eat what you like within calories. Adjust if results don't match goals."

    It's about calories, Full Stop. If I were you I would use the GOAL wizard as designed, i.e. set it to lose 1 pound per week (as suggested, and it's a good moderate goal while you are just starting to log.) Be realistic/reasonable on your "Activity Level," AND the Activity Level is only concerned about your daily work/school/house routine - NOT any added exercise. On days you do exercise, enter that exercise into the Exercise tab, and eat the additional calories you are given. Do that as accurately and consistently as possible for 4-6 weeks.

    Then run your experiment. Log food like it's your job. That's the most important part.

    That's how this site works best. Good data, over time, small infrequent tweaks.

    Here: (from the help desk and from the Sticky Posts.)

    https://myfitnesspal.desk.com/customer/en/portal/articles/410332-how-does-myfitnesspal-calculate-my-initial-goals-

    and

    https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/1080242/a-guide-to-get-you-started-on-your-path-to-sexypants/p1

    https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10503681/exercise-calories-do-i-eat-these-a-video-explanation/p1
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 27,966 Member
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    My scale went up seven pounds when I started lifting weights again, and it did take a few weeks for that water weight to come back off.
  • DancingMoosie
    DancingMoosie Posts: 8,613 Member
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    It's all CICO. If you eat more calories than you need, you gain weight. Less calories than you need, lose weight. It sounds like you are in maintenance, so you need less calories. And yes, adding exercise can show an increase on the scale at first because of muscle recovery.
  • MDL1418
    MDL1418 Posts: 50 Member
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    mmapags wrote: »
    MDL1418 wrote: »
    Thank you very much. I appreciate that. I am trying to remind myself of those things as well. I am just frustrated because it’s been a long stretch with good diet and exercise with no movement. But you are right in what you are saying.

    Sounds like you diet is good from a nutrient point of view for health but just too many calories. You are in calorie balance and you need to be in calorie deficit to lose no matter how healthy the food is. I gained 35 lbs eating mostly healthy food.

    It takes some experimentation to get your own numbers correct. Start with a 1 lb goal on MFP (or whatever you choose) and do that for eight weeks and see what your actual results are. Then adjust accordingly. The stats here are averages and each of us has to dial it in for ourselves. But to be only set up for .5 lbs is only a 250 calorie per day margin and it is easy to have a margin of error that takes you out of calorie deficit.

    If energy level is a problem in a larger deficit, dial back the exercise. Don't eliminate it. Just dial it back. BTW, my warm up for strength sessions is 10 minutes, not 30. Just enough to get a little warm and get blood flowing. Some folks warm up with doing warm up sets with an empty bar before each exercise just to activate those muscles.

    Thank you very much. I only do cardio for 10 min prior to my strength training. The 30 min. are on the opposite days. I see what you are saying about even eating healthy can cause weight gain. That makes sense. I will up my goal to at least 1 lb and try to stay in that window. I will also begin following everything strictly on the calorie count. I am determined to figure this out one way or another and I appreciate any/all the advice I can get.
  • MDL1418
    MDL1418 Posts: 50 Member
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    kshama2001 wrote: »
    My scale went up seven pounds when I started lifting weights again, and it did take a few weeks for that water weight to come back off.

    that is interesting to know. I didn't realize it could actually do that. My mom had mentioned this weekend that my overall appearance looked better- so something is changing. I will monitor this as well. Thank you.
  • MDL1418
    MDL1418 Posts: 50 Member
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    cmriverside wrote: »
    I'm on the side of, "Log your food. Eat what you like within calories. Adjust if results don't match goals."

    It's about calories, Full Stop. If I were you I would use the GOAL wizard as designed, i.e. set it to lose 1 pound per week (as suggested, and it's a good moderate goal while you are just starting to log.) Be realistic/reasonable on your "Activity Level," AND the Activity Level is only concerned about your daily work/school/house routine - NOT any added exercise. On days you do exercise, enter that exercise into the Exercise tab, and eat the additional calories you are given. Do that as accurately and consistently as possible for 4-6 weeks.

    Then run your experiment. Log food like it's your job. That's the most important part.

    That's how this site works best. Good data, over time, small infrequent tweaks.

    Here: (from the help desk and from the Sticky Posts.)

    https://myfitnesspal.desk.com/customer/en/portal/articles/410332-how-does-myfitnesspal-calculate-my-initial-goals-

    and

    https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/1080242/a-guide-to-get-you-started-on-your-path-to-sexypants/p1

    https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10503681/exercise-calories-do-i-eat-these-a-video-explanation/p1

    I will do that. Follow it to a T. And we will see how it goes. I think the only thing is beating the fatigue and eating what it suggests. That is going to be the hardest part. But I will figure this out one way or the other. Thank you.
  • colors_fade
    colors_fade Posts: 464 Member
    edited September 2018
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    I put your stats into a TDEE calculator at Sedentary (because that's the only way to get a truly accurate number since activity levels translated to calories are flawed) and your maintenance calories at your age, weight and height would be 2140. If you're eating 2300 calories per day then that is why you're gaining weight back.

    I'm 46, 6'0". As we get older our TDEE drops. It just takes less calories to operate. I lift hard 5-6 times per week with a specific training split. In order to actually LOSE weight, I have to eat less than 1800 calories per day.

    A lot of the advice in this thread is spot-on. You have to first establish what your real TDEE is, then what you're goal calories for the day are, and then be UNDER that. Consistently.

    You said you were tired a lot - you need carbs. I read your brief description of the kinds of food you ate, and I didn't see a lot of carbohydrates. You need those if you're going to exercise! They are the fuel for your body. Brown Rice is a nice (and popular among lifters) carbohydrate. Without fuel, especially us guys in our 40's, yes, we're going to be freaking tired. That sucks; it's demotivating and it hurts your workout. So eat some carbs! At a minimum, eat them an hour or so prior to your workout so you have some fuel to work with.

    Also, on your lifting days, do your 10-15 minutes of cardio AFTER you lift. You want to use your stored glycogen for lifting power. And the end of your lifting session, burn off the rest with the cardio.

    Caloric consistency is the key. It really doesn't matter what you eat for weight loss; just be under the calorie goal. But for lifting and performance you have to have your protein and carb macros on, or else your performance and musle growth/maintenance will suffer.

    /Cheers

  • MDL1418
    MDL1418 Posts: 50 Member
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    Thank you for the awesome feedback. For the research and taking the time to respond. I have been studying since the post and did read a lot about the carbs/lifting/energy piece. I have rearranged some things and found that my ideal caloric intake is about the same is yours. I have now readjusted and am trying to stay beneath 1800 as well. Brown rice is a great option. Would you recommend any other (good) carbs? I read something on a body building site that suggested (if you needed something quick) Gatorade - not sure how I feel about that... but.. I was wondering what your thoughts might be. I will also try the cardio AFTER the lifts. That makes perfect sense. I was also playing around with my previous meals to get an idea of things I was doing prior and I notice a lot of days I really wasn't eating enough, period, and some days (though healthy) too many calories. My goal is to get situated here and gain knowledge so that I can improve. I am definitely going to start with the consistency and switching my routines. Thanks!!!!!
  • colors_fade
    colors_fade Posts: 464 Member
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    MDL1418 wrote: »
    Thank you for the awesome feedback. For the research and taking the time to respond. I have been studying since the post and did read a lot about the carbs/lifting/energy piece. I have rearranged some things and found that my ideal caloric intake is about the same is yours. I have now readjusted and am trying to stay beneath 1800 as well. Brown rice is a great option. Would you recommend any other (good) carbs? I read something on a body building site that suggested (if you needed something quick) Gatorade - not sure how I feel about that... but.. I was wondering what your thoughts might be. I will also try the cardio AFTER the lifts. That makes perfect sense. I was also playing around with my previous meals to get an idea of things I was doing prior and I notice a lot of days I really wasn't eating enough, period, and some days (though healthy) too many calories. My goal is to get situated here and gain knowledge so that I can improve. I am definitely going to start with the consistency and switching my routines. Thanks!!!!!

    1) Gatoraid: There is some research to suggest that eating/drinking some carbs during a workout is beneficial to performance. That said, when you're trying to stay below 1800 calories (which is not much) you have to weigh the caloric intake vs. the performance boost (if you feel any). If I were eating at maintenance I'd probably drink a low-cal drink during a workout. But when I'm cutting, I prefer my calories as food for satiety .

    2) Carb choices: Brown rice is my go-to because it pairs nicely with veggies and chicken breast (I love making some Kung Pau Chicken). Really, you can throw anything into a bowl with some brown rice and it works. I usually make a couple cups of the stuff and it lasts me all week.

    Potatoes (white or sweet) are good too (but I tend to only eat them during winter months; it's a seasonal thing).

    And there is nothing wrong with tortillas or bread.

    I get a fair bit of carbs every morning from the breakfast burrito I eat, and from the bun when I have Bison Burgers (which is often). My wife owns a restaurant and makes her bread from scratch, so sometimes I have one of those sandwiches (they are to die for, but high calorie, so I have to save calories for them).

    I don't ever feel carb deprived, but I'm rarely getting more than 150 carbs per day, even on a carb-heavy day. Yet it's a enough that I never feel like my workouts suffer because I'm short on energy from food.

    Keep working at it. You'll get there.

    Be consistent. That's the main thing I've found. One bad meal can set you back several days. But if you're consistent, after your body really acclimates to the deficit, the pounds roll off pretty darn consistently from week to week.

  • MDL1418
    MDL1418 Posts: 50 Member
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    Thank you. I cannot tell you enough how much it means that you just take the time to respond. I understand your stance on Gatoraid* and I don't like it anyway, I was just considering it as a carb booster. However, I think after discussing with you, I too may stick to food for this need. I would love to know your Kung Pau Chicken recipe. I will try brown rice and add in the potatoes. With your bread choices, I assume they are organic whole grain breads, or do you eat pretty much any bread source and watch the intake? I will certainly keep working at it and keep updates coming. I also assure you that I will be consistent. I hope my body acclimates and produces a deficit. I am only in need of losing about 30 pounds. What are your workouts like? Do you alternate lift and cardio days? How many days a week and for how long do you work?
  • MDL1418
    MDL1418 Posts: 50 Member
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    I appreciate this. You are right. I have been told by doctors, etc. watch the sugar, etc. Calories are not really that important it's the "type" of calories you are eating... yeah.. that's not been working for me. So I get you. That makes perfect sense. I am starting to get the hang of it and like many things, changing my thoughts on it all. I am going to start tracking my weight daily so I can see the roller coaster and watch things more closely. You made some strong and valid points. Thank you. Best to you as well.
  • colors_fade
    colors_fade Posts: 464 Member
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    wmd1979 wrote: »

    I appreciate that you are trying to make healthy food choices, but ultimately it comes down to calories. Purely from a weight loss standpoint, a bread with lower calories is a better choice than an organic whole grain bread. Organic vs non-organic is a whole other topic completely, but that has been debated in the forums endlessly as well.

    This.

    And to answer your question directly MDL1418, I do not differentiate between Organic vs. Non-Organic food. I stick to the science. Bread is bread. I just watch the calories and go for taste/satiety.
    wmd1979 wrote: »
    You said earlier that as a dressing on your salads you used oil and vinegar but that it was sugar free. If you are looking to lose weight, it is the calories in the salad dressing that matters and not the overall sugar content. I'm not at all saying you should ignore your macros, or nutrition, but again, it isn't the sugar content that is going to make you gain or lose weight, it is the calorie content. It doesn't make sense to have a daily calorie goal if you aren't accurate with your caloric intake.

    Again, spot-on advice. Listen to this guy.

    Calories are what matter. Beyond that, it's just getting enough protein to repair & grow muscle and enough carbs to fuel workouts. Everything else is unimportant in the grand scheme of fat loss.

    Final word: there are no "bad" foods (IMO, but you'll see zealots everywhere). Moderation in everything is how I approach it. I still drink beer on occasion; I still have a whiskey here or there; I still eat pizza with my kids or go out for Mexican or Sushi with my wife. I still enjoy food and life. But I moderate and watch calories. Down 25 lbs. in a year, with muscle growth as well (harder to measure accurately, but my chest and arms are bigger while my waste is smaller). So you can achieve change without cutting out whole food groups.

    People have lost weight eating nothing but McDonald's (not great for blood pressure, but it's been done). It's the calories that matter for weight loss.

  • MDL1418
    MDL1418 Posts: 50 Member
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    colors_fade wrote: »
    wmd1979 wrote: »

    I appreciate that you are trying to make healthy food choices, but ultimately it comes down to calories. Purely from a weight loss standpoint, a bread with lower calories is a better choice than an organic whole grain bread. Organic vs non-organic is a whole other topic completely, but that has been debated in the forums endlessly as well.

    This.

    And to answer your question directly MDL1418, I do not differentiate between Organic vs. Non-Organic food. I stick to the science. Bread is bread. I just watch the calories and go for taste/satiety.
    wmd1979 wrote: »
    You said earlier that as a dressing on your salads you used oil and vinegar but that it was sugar free. If you are looking to lose weight, it is the calories in the salad dressing that matters and not the overall sugar content. I'm not at all saying you should ignore your macros, or nutrition, but again, it isn't the sugar content that is going to make you gain or lose weight, it is the calorie content. It doesn't make sense to have a daily calorie goal if you aren't accurate with your caloric intake.

    Again, spot-on advice. Listen to this guy.

    Calories are what matter. Beyond that, it's just getting enough protein to repair & grow muscle and enough carbs to fuel workouts. Everything else is unimportant in the grand scheme of fat loss.

    Final word: there are no "bad" foods (IMO, but you'll see zealots everywhere). Moderation in everything is how I approach it. I still drink beer on occasion; I still have a whiskey here or there; I still eat pizza with my kids or go out for Mexican or Sushi with my wife. I still enjoy food and life. But I moderate and watch calories. Down 25 lbs. in a year, with muscle growth as well (harder to measure accurately, but my chest and arms are bigger while my waste is smaller). So you can achieve change without cutting out whole food groups.

    People have lost weight eating nothing but McDonald's (not great for blood pressure, but it's been done). It's the calories that matter for weight loss.

    You are right and I’m beginning to see that. Better word “accept” that. I think for me the organic vs non is I went clean about two years ago without eating processed foods and cut sugars, etc. that alone produced a 18 pound weight loss. I have since come off of all medications and I am no longer prediabetic - I had seen a nutritionist who put me in contact with local farmers whom are great for my meat and poultry. I have developed a palette for veggies, some fruits, etc. and I do believe there is a difference. This was the purpose of my question. That being said, this is a new way of thinking to incorporate in my food choices. I was eating healthy, but my weight loss stopped because I some days had too much “healthy” and many days not enough. I have already learned so much with this group and the calories. So much so that I e already lost 2 pounds. I do appreciate what you’re saying though. BECAUSE it does help me on those days I just want to eat something bad. So, thank you. The support is appreciated a lot. I take any and all advice as long as folks are willing to give it. And sometimes it does help just to think differently- thank you.

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