What Would Happen if Weight Training with a Calorie Deficit?

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Replies

  • Rae6503
    Rae6503 Posts: 6,294 Member
    OP: you seem to be really worried about getting bigger. What happens if you get "bigger" but look and feel better?
  • albayin
    albayin Posts: 2,524 Member
    OP: you seem to be really worried about getting bigger. What happens if you get "bigger" but look and feel better?

    :blushing: yeah you are so right. The reason I started weight loss process was because I was big. So getting bigger than I am already am doesn't thrill me much hence I am not feeling any better. Guess I am all for vanity but everyone has touchy spots. :)
  • albayin
    albayin Posts: 2,524 Member
    This is just my personal experience, and I am presenting it as such.

    Lifting makes me hungry. Very hungry. I can't imagine lifting and eating only 1200 calories, but I don't think it will "hurt" you.

    I don't lift as well when I'm hungry so that may impair your progress.

    The first 4 - 6 weeks I started lifting, I thought I was getting bigger. I think it was retained water and glycogen for muscle repair. I kept at it though, and now I'm getting sleek and lean and the cellulite is disappearing.

    I waited 3 months before I gave it up...Guess I should have waited even longer.
  • albayin
    albayin Posts: 2,524 Member
    I've heard some people say that you'll die if you lift weights while on a calorie deficit. Pretty sure it's not true though.

    ??? I would love to hear the reasoning behind this theory.

    I'm pretty sure 'reason' was absent.

    Hoh hoh....I will check in in a few weeks and let you know if I am still alive. :)
  • Rae6503
    Rae6503 Posts: 6,294 Member
    OP: you seem to be really worried about getting bigger. What happens if you get "bigger" but look and feel better?

    :blushing: yeah you are so right. The reason I started weight loss process was because I was big. So getting bigger than I am already am doesn't thrill me much hence I am not feeling any better. Guess I am all for vanity but everyone has touchy spots. :)

    Some people new to lifting can gain a small amount of muscle while on a deficit (called newbie gains). And of course there's the swelling that everyone mentioned too. BUT, muscle looks better than no muscle.

    I went on a "bulk" on purpose. I ate 3000 calories a day and weight lifted 4-5 days a week for four months. I gained 10lbs. My thighs grew 1.25 inches each. I still fit in most of the same clothes but not all. BUT I look better. In clothes, in swim suits, naked. Isn't that the goal? My thigh muscles got bigger, the fat over them stayed the same but they now look better, and feel better. There's muscle under the fat. You can feel it. You can see it when I walk. I wear short shorts now. Eventually I hope to get my eating in line to go back to losing some of the fat, and then they'll really look good. There are pictures in my profile.

    So I guess the moral of the story is sometimes "bigger" is "better".
  • Hendrix7
    Hendrix7 Posts: 1,903 Member
    Most people think they have gained muscle mass when they are cutting but in reality, this is the extra muscle definition from being leaner that just makes you appear bigger.
  • cobaltis
    cobaltis Posts: 191 Member
    That is exactly what I am doing, strength is still increasing and im shedding the fat quickly :) Eventually strength will plataeu but I only want to drop 9.5 pounds more and I will transition to maintenance and eventually a bulk anyway!
  • albayin
    albayin Posts: 2,524 Member
    Most people think they have gained muscle mass when they are cutting but in reality, this is the extra muscle definition from being leaner that just makes you appear bigger.

    I never thought I gained all that muscle and that's why it frustrated and confused me. :)
  • albayin
    albayin Posts: 2,524 Member
    OP: you seem to be really worried about getting bigger. What happens if you get "bigger" but look and feel better?

    :blushing: yeah you are so right. The reason I started weight loss process was because I was big. So getting bigger than I am already am doesn't thrill me much hence I am not feeling any better. Guess I am all for vanity but everyone has touchy spots. :)

    Some people new to lifting can gain a small amount of muscle while on a deficit (called newbie gains). And of course there's the swelling that everyone mentioned too. BUT, muscle looks better than no muscle.

    I went on a "bulk" on purpose. I ate 3000 calories a day and weight lifted 4-5 days a week for four months. I gained 10lbs. My thighs grew 1.25 inches each. I still fit in most of the same clothes but not all. BUT I look better. In clothes, in swim suits, naked. Isn't that the goal? My thigh muscles got bigger, the fat over them stayed the same but they now look better, and feel better. There's muscle under the fat. You can feel it. You can see it when I walk. I wear short shorts now. Eventually I hope to get my eating in line to go back to losing some of the fat, and then they'll really look good. There are pictures in my profile.

    So I guess the moral of the story is sometimes "bigger" is "better".

    I like muscles on women and I agree those Victoria Secret's Models look much better than all bone runway models. However, I can't accept I was bigger and I can't feel any better if my old pants no longer fit. :(
  • dlwyatt82
    dlwyatt82 Posts: 1,077 Member
    She would get strong and hungry. At least, that's what happens to me (though I eat a lot more than 1200 calories per day).
  • Rae6503
    Rae6503 Posts: 6,294 Member
    And these models look even better than VS. At least to me.

    http://athleta.gap.com/


    It is hard to get bigger! But you'll get smaller again, and look better. The "bigger" thing is temporary (unless you plan to become a body builder).
  • albayin
    albayin Posts: 2,524 Member
    And these models look even better than VS. At least to me.

    http://athleta.gap.com/


    It is hard to get bigger! But you'll get smaller again, and look better. The "bigger" thing is temporary (unless you plan to become a body builder).

    Agreed. But again it's all in the eyes of the beholder. VS models are my dream goal. :)
  • kajpen
    kajpen Posts: 120 Member
    I am seriously curious. Say what would happen to a person if she's eating 1200 calories and doing weight training 2-3 times a week?

    Thanks,

    I lift really heavy 3 x a week. I have lost almost 10 pounds (136 down to 126.6) and my body fat has dropped from 26.6% to 23% (and still dropping). I have not only maintained lifting the same weights as when I started, but have made gains in the amount of weight I can lift. I also do some form of cardio 6 days per week. But I mix up my cardio constantly with varying methods... High Intensity Cardio, Steady State Cardio, and HIIT Intervals.

    I have lost inches all over my body and feel healthier than ever. One big caveat to this is that I eat as clean as possible 90% or more of the time. I allow myself one "free" meal per week that is usally something with sugar. Otherwise I am sugar free, other than natural sugar from fruits and vegetables. I am also celiac so can't eat gluten (bread, pasta, etc), but made the choice to avoid even the gluten free varieties of those foods. I try to eat as much natural based foods as possible and treat processed foods like the plague :-).
  • strikerjb007
    strikerjb007 Posts: 443 Member
    Good things will happen.

    If you are new to weight training you will still be able to increase strength quite dramatically and you will retain your current muscle mass, giving you that toned look as opposed to skinny-fat.

    Start tomorrow.

    Depending on your yor current weight anD what you intend on doing, 1200 cals may not be right for you, work out your calorie requirements for yourself. If you gonna start lifting eat more protein than mfp tells you.

    THIS!
  • albayin
    albayin Posts: 2,524 Member
    I am seriously curious. Say what would happen to a person if she's eating 1200 calories and doing weight training 2-3 times a week?

    Thanks,

    I lift really heavy 3 x a week. I have lost almost 10 pounds (136 down to 126.6) and my body fat has dropped from 26.6% to 23% (and still dropping). I have not only maintained lifting the same weights as when I started, but have made gains in the amount of weight I can lift. I also do some form of cardio 6 days per week. But I mix up my cardio constantly with varying methods... High Intensity Cardio, Steady State Cardio, and HIIT Intervals.

    I have lost inches all over my body and feel healthier than ever. One big caveat to this is that I eat as clean as possible 90% or more of the time. I allow myself one "free" meal per week that is usally something with sugar. Otherwise I am sugar free, other than natural sugar from fruits and vegetables. I am also celiac so can't eat gluten (bread, pasta, etc), but made the choice to avoid even the gluten free varieties of those foods. I try to eat as much natural based foods as possible and treat processed foods like the plague :-).

    Hey, thank you for the details. Mind sharing how much you eat? and do you feel hungry?
  • SPNLuver83
    SPNLuver83 Posts: 2,050 Member
    what will happen?

    Me.

    That's what I did and got great results!
  • jenkinsjerry
    jenkinsjerry Posts: 99 Member
    I did about 30 minutes of fairly intense, not crazy intense weight training today and burned close to 80 calories -- and know this because I was wearing my polar with heart rate strap. To make the best use of and get the most of MFP, the 80 calories are added to my (or your) daily amount and need to be consumed.

    ExCals enable you to eat more, be more happy and maintain a decent amount of energy to do just about everything. Moving below your daily + ExCals will lead to bonking and will take a mean toll on your internal organs. Add to this a minimum of 8 cups of water each day too, as water helps with exhaust -- another critical component of calorie deficit mode.
  • Goal_Seeker_1988
    Goal_Seeker_1988 Posts: 1,619 Member
    bump
  • Lovely135
    Lovely135 Posts: 161
    I am seriously curious. Say what would happen to a person if she's eating 1200 calories and doing weight training 2-3 times a week?

    Thanks,
    You would look hotter than ever. That's what would happen.
  • amyoliver85
    amyoliver85 Posts: 353 Member
    The only serious complication I see to this possible plan is the caloric burn. So if you're at 1200 calories and then you lift for an hour every other day, an individual doing this plan should consider upping their caloric intake on either lift days or free days, but not both. The benefit to adding on lift days is that you don't scare your body into thinking you're starving. The benefit to adding calories on free days where you don't exercise is that you metabolize the energy slower and have more energy to start with on the lift the following day.

    I'm actually very interested in adding lifting to my regimen. Haven't really been able to do that yet for personal health reasons (Lupus is a big fat b****) but I eat between 1200 and 1300 per day right now. More comfortable at 1300. And the last time I went to lifting, I was really impressed with the results. I upped to about 1500-1700 per day when I was doing that. My arms never looked better.
  • albayin
    albayin Posts: 2,524 Member
    I am seriously curious. Say what would happen to a person if she's eating 1200 calories and doing weight training 2-3 times a week?

    Thanks,
    You would look hotter than ever. That's what would happen.

    LOL, as long as I am not gaining inches..I am ok with being hot or not hot.
  • amyoliver85
    amyoliver85 Posts: 353 Member
    I saw another person say they eat mostly clean...about 90%. I strive to do that as well.

    I eat a lot of carrots and peppers. Florina peppers are my favorite food. I stuff them with chicken and homemade tomato brushetta and grill them. They're quite tasty. Sometimes I throw in a little feta cheese, but not much. Just enough to hold it together.

    There's about 8 million ways to cook a carrot. My favorite is to saute in a little water in a pan, then add a little olive oil to coat (and we're talking less than a tablespoon to coat the whole pan of sliced carrots). Oh yeah, I slice them longways. Then I add a little Garam Masala.

    I also love mashed potatoes but don't eat them a lot. When I do, I trade 3/4 quarters of the potatoes for parsnips. Then I add a little bit of fat free milk (about 1/4 cup to roughly 3 lbs of vegetables) and a little fresh parsley or basil. Yummy!
  • Bobby_Clerici
    Bobby_Clerici Posts: 1,828 Member
    You'd work your muscles and minimize the loss of lean body mass which increases metabolism at rest.
    Simple...
    DO IT!
  • kajpen
    kajpen Posts: 120 Member
    I am seriously curious. Say what would happen to a person if she's eating 1200 calories and doing weight training 2-3 times a week?

    Thanks,

    I lift really heavy 3 x a week. I have lost almost 10 pounds (136 down to 126.6) and my body fat has dropped from 26.6% to 23% (and still dropping). I have not only maintained lifting the same weights as when I started, but have made gains in the amount of weight I can lift. I also do some form of cardio 6 days per week. But I mix up my cardio constantly with varying methods... High Intensity Cardio, Steady State Cardio, and HIIT Intervals.

    I have lost inches all over my body and feel healthier than ever. One big caveat to this is that I eat as clean as possible 90% or more of the time. I allow myself one "free" meal per week that is usally something with sugar. Otherwise I am sugar free, other than natural sugar from fruits and vegetables. I am also celiac so can't eat gluten (bread, pasta, etc), but made the choice to avoid even the gluten free varieties of those foods. I try to eat as much natural based foods as possible and treat processed foods like the plague :-).

    Hey, thank you for the details. Mind sharing how much you eat? and do you feel hungry?

    If you add me as a friend you can see my diary log which shows everything I eat. I actually have a hard time getting in enough calories because I don't have any added "fillers" (breads, sweets, cereals, candy, etc). I'm still working on my macros, and the first thing I did was to change the defaults that MFP has on the macros.

    It's hard to get a lot of calories from fresh vegetables, lean meats, and fruits.

    Although, it takes a while to detox from all the processed foods when you stop eating them. The first two weeks were brutal. I was a cranky, tired, detoxing person who had to live with headaches and cravings. But I held firm and drank a ton of water with squeezed lemons (to help clean out my system). Once I got past that stage it got a LOT easier!! Now, even when I have my "free" meal each week, my tummy doesn't like me if I eat something with too much sugar.

    To me, the eating is the hardest part to get right. And I see a lot of people say that there has to be a balance so that you can still enjoy the foods you love. BUT, what I've found is that the longer I eat clean, the more the foods I enjoy have changed from sugary, processed foods, to healthy, clean foods. :-) So I don't feel deprived at all. And the change in my overall fitness, health, mentality, clarity, etc is the perfect balance.

    But, I will also say that this is an individual journey for each and every one of us. What works for me, won't work for someone else. But this definitely works for me! And I'm enjoying the heck out of my journey! lol
  • meshashesha2012
    meshashesha2012 Posts: 8,329 Member
    i lift on a deficit. i lift heavy 75-90% of my 1 RM, so 1200 calories isnt near enough to help my muscles recover. i tried it and i had DOMS far longer than needed. longer DOMS -= more time to recover = less time i'd get to spend lifting heavy = sad meshashesha. if i lifted further away from my 1 RM, i could get away with only 1200 calories a day.

    right now what works best for me to lose fat and properly heal from my lifting session is to eat at like 10% below my TDEE. for me that's 1900-2100 calories
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