Exhausted after work out, normal?

Only when you're doing it right.

After I have taken a break from exercising it usually takes me about 2 weeks to get my energy levels back up. During those two weeks I am extremely exhausted after a workout. Great for sleeping but bad for trying to maintain my diet when I get home and want to be lazy about making food. Try to get groceries for the week on a day you don't work out and have three or four quick and easy meals you can slam together in less than 5 minutes for when you're tired.

Try drinking a protein drink right after your workout, (within an hour minimum). I like Myoplex; it makes me feel 100% better after a tough workout.

Cardio tends to energize me. I can leave for a cardio workout feeling like I'm about to fall asleep and after the workout I feel wide awake.

After my long runs on Sundays (double digit days), I feel a bit body sore, but nothing to the point that you're describing.

I would suggest making sure that you have enough fuel (food) in your system before the workout since I tend to be a bit more tired if I waited too long between eating and working out. Or, if you absolutely can't eat before a workout (I normally plan for about an hour or two, depending on what I ate, between eating and cardio) then have something ready and waiting that you can eat easily after the workout. For cardio it doesn't have to be protein heavy like a shake or something. But try for something that has some complex carbs, a fair bit of protein and only a little fat. (fat + cardio can make for a quick "system cleanse" ;P ) That way you can get the fuel you need for energy started back into your system.

Not usually, Unless I didnt eat enough. Usually I am super energized. Like the Energizer Bunny!

Try drinking a protein drink right after your workout, (within an hour minimum). I like Myoplex; it makes me feel 100% better after a tough workout.

No, it doesn't.

I'm not the guy who posted this but It does for me. I don't think it's any voodoo magic from taking in protein within 30 minutes. Most of the recent research i've read is that intake of protien anytime within 24 hours is good. But I think it's just the rehydration and a little nutrition that makes the difference.

To the OP, I'm usually dragging right after but after I get a shower and get dressed and moving, my energy is increased for a few hours. Later I'm ready for a nap!

I would be careful with the cardio. You don't want all your running to be balls out hard core. IMHO, you should only have one true speed day a week and the rest should be good workouts, but not to leave you completely wiped out. If you push hard all the time you are asking for injury. Trust me, I've injured myself plenty.

Also, your optimal fat burning is when you are running slower pace. You burn more carbs when you are running faster.

I disagree that optimal fat burning is at the slower pace. Zone training for fat loss has pretty much been proven myth. I think low intensity is good as part of an overall program but when EPOC (excess post-exercise oxygen consumption) is factored in, high intensity and low intensity burn about the same. Higher intensity burns more glycogen during the workout and the EPOC from it contiues to burn fat for a couple of hours. Lower intensity uses primarily fat during but has little EPOC benefit. Good information on the different intensity workouts and thier effect on fat burning at www.bodyrecompostiion.com.

I totally agree that soem high intensity, some low intensity cardio is best and don't forget to throw in a little strength training!

When I started exercising again, I was very tired. Like, tired enough to take a nap mid-afternoon.
Personally, I don't think it had anything to do with diet--more to do with exerting my body so much more than it is used to.
It sounds like you're giving your body a challenge. You'll probably be fine relaxing if you need it and/or changing up your exercise routine from time to time. As you become more and more fit, the strain on your body will be much less.

Congratulations on being active!

ok so some great tips! Need to eat a little more before, and also maybe tone back the workout a little - I used to get awesome runners high when I was doing 2-2.5 mile runs but in the last two weeks I've upped that to 3m (5k) and have seen the drop in energy afterwards. I'm training for a 5K in May, so I feel like I should run 5k every time, but I think for now anyway I should do 5k once a week and shorter runs the other days. Thanks so much for the input!

A suggestion on what might help you train for the 5k is to do some HIIT once or twice per week (no more often as it's not recomended for various reasons). The HIIT increases your VO2 max which will help your wind and it trains you heart for higher intensities. I also run some 5Ks as the weather gets warm. Matter of fact I have one this Sunday for the first time this year. I do HIIT once a week, low intensity cardio once a week, strength training 2X per week and one distance run. This is similar to what some Olympic runnning coaches use as thier training method. Just running your race distance often is not really the best race training. When I do the low intensity cardio or HIIT I often do bike as it works muscles that are complimentary training for running. The HIIT program I use is called the Peak 8. Basically 3 minute warmup, all out for 30 seconds, 90 second recovery 8X with a 3 to 5 minute cool down. Hope this helps!