Diet and fatigue
piddings1951
Posts: 27 Member
Ive been restricting calories for about two months and I noticed that my normal will to work out is going away. I usually work out about 4 times a week twice at the gym and twice at home. Lately Im lucky to force myself to do twice a week . I feel like Im hurting myself nutritionally. Ive lost 8 lbs. Any suggestions? This week I threw away the calorie counter and just worked on my nutrution. I ordered liquid vitamins.
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Replies
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Are you eating your exercise calories?0
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Sometimes. My exercise calories always seem inflated. Since I am not exercising as much some days there aren’t any.0
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How tall are you? How much weight are you trying to lose? How many calories are you eating? And as the previous poster asked, does that include eating exercise calories?
Most likely, you're restricting your calorie intake too much and aren't giving your body the fuel it needs. It's less likely that vitamins are the problem.8 -
How much do you want to lose? 2lbs/week might be too quick for you. How much protein, fat, and carbs are you getting? Look for imbalances and consider increasing your calorie goal to slow down the weight loss. Are there other factors? Unhappy at work, not getting enough sleep, strained relationships, etc.1
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Thanks for yor reply. Im ok with 1/2 to 1 lb a week. Right now I am concentrating on nutrition rather than calories. Whats the use of losing weight if you get sick. I seem to be low on protein potassium and iron so I am looking at that. Thats a lot of potassium!0
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If you're concerned about deficiencies get a full blood test from your doctor. Some things you don't want to accidentally overdo it on. Perhaps all the working out was a little too much, was it a new routine?4
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piddings1951 wrote: »Thanks for yor reply. Im ok with 1/2 to 1 lb a week. Right now I am concentrating on nutrition rather than calories. Whats the use of losing weight if you get sick. I seem to be low on protein potassium and iron so I am looking at that. Thats a lot of potassium!
It's important to remember that calories are part of nutrition too, and getting a proper amount is important for the health of your body. How many calories have you been eating in an average day? My guess is that you should increase that some, and that will help.0 -
piddings1951 wrote: »Thanks for yor reply. Im ok with 1/2 to 1 lb a week. Right now I am concentrating on nutrition rather than calories. Whats the use of losing weight if you get sick. I seem to be low on protein potassium and iron so I am looking at that. Thats a lot of potassium!
Did your doctor test you for potassium and iron deficiencies? Or are you saying that your potassium and iron are low because your food log says you aren't eating much of those things? Remember that not all database entries have potassium and iron entered correctly, so your MFP log is a poor way to determine how much of these you're getting unless you have double checked every single database entry you use.
Also remember that just because your MFP log says you're eating a certain amount of a nutrient, that doesn't mean you have a deficiency and that doesn't mean you're going to get sick. Only your doctor can tell you if you are actually deficient in a certain nutrient. See your doctor if you think you have a deficiency, rather than guessing at whether you have one.
Again, unless you have a diagnosed deficiency, it sounds far more likely that your problem is undereating.1 -
Your diary is set to private, which is fair enough, but it means we can only guess with the information you've provided. I know when I wasn't eating my exercise calories and was purposefully netting about 800 calories/day, I couldn't get through half of my workouts. It's probably worth eating a larger percentage of your exercise calories and adding more than just the one rest day/week. If it's really bad, you might even consider taking a diet break for a week and eat up to maintenance just to give your body a break.1
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OP said they've lost 8 lbs in 2 months, so it's doubtful they're drastically undereating.
OP, how is your sleep? Is trying to lose weight stressing you out? Have you drastically changed your carb consumption while cutting calories?
I don't know where in the world you are, but I often find myself a little extra fatigued in January & February as winter wears on and I desperately wait for warm sunny days to unthaw me. This is when I tend to lose some of my exercise motivation as well!
A physical and blood test couldn't hurt to rule out nutritional deficiencies. Vit D can become deficient in winter months and B vitamins could be an issue if you've eliminated most animal products as a means to lower cals. Just some ideas to consider!2 -
piddings1951 wrote: »Thanks for yor reply. Im ok with 1/2 to 1 lb a week. Right now I am concentrating on nutrition rather than calories. Whats the use of losing weight if you get sick. I seem to be low on protein potassium and iron so I am looking at that. Thats a lot of potassium!
I do have to put effort into getting enough protein and iron and occasionally have to supplement with protein powder. Potassium isn't required on nutrition labels, so if you are basing this off your food diary, it is very likely an incorrect number. Blood work for these would be a good idea.
I also agree with Dianne on the idea of possibly taking a diet break to try and rebalance. This is a fantastic look at diet breaks and how they can actually help us along the way:
https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10604863/of-refeeds-and-diet-breaks/p12 -
OP said they've lost 8 lbs in 2 months, so it's doubtful they're drastically undereating.
OP, how is your sleep? Is trying to lose weight stressing you out? Have you drastically changed your carb consumption while cutting calories?
I don't know where in the world you are, but I often find myself a little extra fatigued in January & February as winter wears on and I desperately wait for warm sunny days to unthaw me. This is when I tend to lose some of my exercise motivation as well!
A physical and blood test couldn't hurt to rule out nutritional deficiencies. Vit D can become deficient in winter months and B vitamins could be an issue if you've eliminated most animal products as a means to lower cals. Just some ideas to consider!
I was half asleep when I read this the first time and for some reason read it as 8lb over 4 weeks.1 -
Thanks for all if your feedback. I’m working on about 1300 calories. My base is 1206 and at my current calorie with activity is a debatable 1675 depending on how much exercise is involved. Thats right for twice a week workout. Ive never eaten better. I guess I just need to eat more so I can exercise more.
I was working out 4-5 a week.0 -
piddings1951 wrote: »Thanks for all if your feedback. I’m working on about 1300 calories. My base is 1206 and at my current calorie with activity is a debatable 1675 depending on how much exercise is involved. Thats right for twice a week workout. Ive never eaten better. I guess I just need to eat more so I can exercise more.
I was working out 4-5 a week.
I thought MFP wouldn't set a goal less than 1500 calories/day for a guy. I'm not surprised you're feeling fatigued on 1300 calories.2 -
Most people here seem to eat back about half their exercise calories, because the exercise calories “earned” often seem inflated. I do the same, but if late in the day I’m STILL hungry, I will eat a small high protein snack 50-100 calories.
Working out is crucial (in my opinion☺️) to getting into the shape you want while losing weight, but you’re sabotaging yourself if you don’t back at least some of those exercise calories.
Also read the link above about refeeds and diet breaks!0 -
I’m 5’2” and 127 so my highest calorie maintenance was 1825. I’ll probably raise my goal from 1300 to 1400 and add protein. Can’t be tired all the time. I’m also going to refeed. Hopefully i wont gain too much. Thanks for all the help.0
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piddings1951 wrote: »I’m 5’2” and 127 so my highest calorie maintenance was 1825. I’ll probably raise my goal from 1300 to 1400 and add protein. Can’t be tired all the time. I’m also going to refeed. Hopefully i wont gain too much. Thanks for all the help.
Refeeding is eating at maintenance, so you shouldn’t gain. Good luck!0 -
piddings1951 wrote: »I’m 5’2” and 127 so my highest calorie maintenance was 1825. I’ll probably raise my goal from 1300 to 1400 and add protein. Can’t be tired all the time. I’m also going to refeed. Hopefully i wont gain too much. Thanks for all the help.
The recommended minimum calorie intake for a male is 1500 not counting exercise.0 -
piddings1951 wrote: »I’m 5’2” and 127 so my highest calorie maintenance was 1825. I’ll probably raise my goal from 1300 to 1400 and add protein. Can’t be tired all the time. I’m also going to refeed. Hopefully i wont gain too much. Thanks for all the help.
The recommended minimum calorie intake for a male is 1500 not counting exercise.
Has OP specified their gender? I couldn’t find it in the thread.
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piddings1951 wrote: »I’m 5’2” and 127 so my highest calorie maintenance was 1825. I’ll probably raise my goal from 1300 to 1400 and add protein. Can’t be tired all the time. I’m also going to refeed. Hopefully i wont gain too much. Thanks for all the help.
The recommended minimum calorie intake for a male is 1500 not counting exercise.
Has OP specified their gender? I couldn’t find it in the thread.
Says on their profile.0 -
At your height and weight 1300 is pretty low for working out, that is likely why you are tired. I'm 5 foot nothing and I have been maintaining about 8 years now pretty much not going lower than 1400-1500 and even that feels low when I'm doing hard workouts. It's really tricky at your weight, I call it a calorie tightrope. Exercise calorie estimates are usually too high, but you do need a little more. Your body can handle the deeper deficits when you have more body fat, which you are not in that category. Just keep experimenting and trust that you can't gain weight at your 1800 (TDEE) maintenance number. You only gain when you go over. And if you want to slowly drop body fat you can do it at 1500-1700, and even at 1800 your workout will create a slight deficit especially if it's cardio or HIIT. And you don't have to have a deficit every day of the week.0
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Thanks for your help. I guess I’m increasing my calories. It doesn’t take much to gain weight. Its a definite tight rope. Its frustrating when you can’t meet you fitness goals. Thanks again.2
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