folks who workout a lot..heavy weightlifting, crossfit, triathlons etc...
so its basic knowledge that 600-800 calories a day is NOT enough to sustain basic functions when you are exerting that much energy...
I started StrongLifts a couple of weeks ago... Im NOT increasing weights after every workout as instructed though, only increasing once a week....so for now Im OK and should be OK for a few weeks... HOWEVER, by the end of February I dont know what Im going to do...
Im obviously going to need more than 800 calories a day to be able to fuel my everyday life plus workouts HOWEVER at this point I still have 70 pounds to lose... my ultimate goal is do to 2 triathlons in late Spring...
I dont get into all of that TDEE, BMR stuff.... but I am concerned that my weightloss ( my paramount concern) will me hampered by my secondary yet equally important concern of building muscle mass & strength
Advice??
I am probably not the person you are looking for for a good answer to this question but I wanted to back up what you are saying a little bit. I have been working out 5 to 6 days a week for about 2 months or so no. I was doing arms and chest every other day and I have now gone to a two day rest between. I was able to get my workout weight up in the first couple of weeks but since then my workout weight has declined. I cannot finish my sets at the weight I started at. My muscle recovery time is either longer than I am giving it but my muscles just do not want to push the weight. I am experimenting now with a little carb/protein boost before I go to the gym to see if maybe just haven't had the readily available energy at the time of work out. I had moderate success last night but still could not complete my workout at the weight I started at. We are not talking about that much weight either. Physically I can feel my muscles changing but I am not seeing the results on the bench. I am wondering if it can be done within the 600-800 if you eat at strategic times like before and after. In watching the workout and body building videos you are right those guys are getting a lot of calories. I am curious as to the answers you get here, but my guess is you will have to go to a body building site or the fitness and exercise section on MFP to get some real feedback. But I think you are going to have a tough time finding someone who had WLS and is any kind of body builder now.
I am probably not the person you are looking for for a good answer to this question but I wanted to back up what you are saying a little bit. I have been working out 5 to 6 days a week for about 2 months or so no. I was doing arms and chest every other day and I have now gone to a two day rest between. I was able to get my workout weight up in the first couple of weeks but since then my workout weight has declined. I cannot finish my sets at the weight I started at. My muscle recovery time is either longer than I am giving it but my muscles just do not want to push the weight. I am experimenting now with a little carb/protein boost before I go to the gym to see if maybe just haven't had the readily available energy at the time of work out. I had moderate success last night but still could not complete my workout at the weight I started at. We are not talking about that much weight either. Physically I can feel my muscles changing but I am not seeing the results on the bench. I am wondering if it can be done within the 600-800 if you eat at strategic times like before and after. In watching the workout and body building videos you are right those guys are getting a lot of calories. I am curious as to the answers you get here, but my guess is you will have to go to a body building site or the fitness and exercise section on MFP to get some real feedback. But I think you are going to have a tough time finding someone who had WLS and is any kind of body builder now.
this is the answer I got elsewhere and I gotta say I get it & agree with the sentiment:
Don't worry about the weight loss. If you are committed to your exercise routine, the weight loss will be secondary and will happen. I pretty much choose the alternate route you seem to be embarking on. I became a runner and did heavy cross-training on non-running days. Got pretty good, too, as I was actually able to win my division in several 5K/8K/10K races.
Check out my blog, http://vsgrunner.wordpress.com/.
I haven't updated it in quite awhile as I have been dealing with a ruptured disc in my back and just had my second surgery 2 weeks ago, but I think the information is relevant.
Bottom line, feed your body. Carbs are your source of energy, so don't do a low carb routine. It just doesn't work for serious exercisers. If you don't believe me, look at my signature. All my weight loss recordings are there. When I was thick in my training, I was eating no less than 1,800 calories a day, 180 grams of protein and no less than 130 grams of carbs. And I lost weight like crazy.
Low carb equates to low energy. Try exercising like that ...
http://vsgrunner.wordpress.com/
you may need to deload for a day or 2 then bring yourself back up....
how soon before workout are you giving yourself the boost?? Is your metabolism working that fast? 600-800 is definitely not enough for heavy lifting... and I NEED the strength but Im scared/apprehensive... for February Im going to try 800-1000 calories and see how it goes... Im not measuring weight or inches again until March 1... I just hope 800-1000 cals is enough to keep my energy up
my husband and sister think that the reason I got sick ( terrible common cold) is because my resistance was down after a few weeks of heavy workouts without increasing my calories.... they may be right because unlike other times, none of my kids are sick
Works out to be about a half hour before my work out and it is usually something with higher carbs, a little bit of sugar and some protein. Not sure how fast my metabolism is, probably not that great. I could not eat 1800 calories in a day unless I started eating high carbs and I am not prepared to do that just yet.
Hi! Have you spoke to your NUT about this? When I started working out a lot, my NUT and I put together a plan to help me get the nutrition/energy that I needed.
Some of the stuff I did:
- Added a QUEST bar to my workout. I would have half a bar before, and half after. It was a could source of carbs for energy, and protein for building muscle. My NUT suggested that another option was a handful of grapes before a workout, and some peanut butter after a workout.
- Increased my water. And, even though we are generally not supposed to drink within 30 minutes of eating, I can (and will) do so after having a QUEST bar.
- Upped my calorie intake by up to half of what I burned while working out. Now that I'm in more of a maintenance mode, I let myself eat up to 100% of what I burned while working out.
Prior to adjusting to the plan above, I was almost passing out on my long runs. After adopting the plan above, I felt MUCH better.
CW: 130ish HW: 264 SW:254 Hgt: 5'2
Goals-Dr:159-MET Mine:140-MET!!! Final Goal: 135-MET!!!!!
W4:-22 W8:-11 W12:-10.5 W16:-12 W20:-11.5 W24:-9.5 W28:-8 W32:-7.5 W36:-8 W40:-7.5 W44:-5 W48: -4.5 1Yr/W52: -7
Sorry...that was a rather "rambling" post...but hope it helps! Good luck!!!!
Sorry...that was a rather "rambling" post...but hope it helps! Good luck!!!!
nope, I dont mind the shakes... I have 1 everyday for breakfast and then Isopure RTD (carb free) during the day... though my wallet may not like it, Im thinking as my weightlifting amounts increase, I may add a 2nd Isopure RTD ( the carb plus version) drinking half before workout and half after....
Since I have been since since last week, I didnt workout earlier in the week... yesterday I was able to complete my workout and wasnt totally wiped out as I expected....
First things first - I am no doctor but this is what has worked for me... I know that this is hard to take - but eating more is actually going to help you. I work out like crazy - I do a circuit training class 8 times a week (www.fns360.com) Cardio/Weight lifting. I swim at least once a week (1 hour), ride my bike at least once a week (15-30miles) and run at least once a week (5-8 miles).
I am training for wildflower tri - Olympic Distance http://www.tricalifornia.com/index.cfm/WildFlower2013-main.h tm
and them the Big Kahuna Tri - Half Iron Man: http://www.firstwave-events.com/races/Big-Kahuna-Triathlon-2 013-Santa-Cruz.aspx
@ 3 months I was training hard - not this hard but I upped my calories to 1200-1300
@ 6 months I upped my calories to 1500-1600
I am getting close to 8 months out and at now eating 1600-1700 calories a day.
HOWEVER :
I eat alot of very low carb protiens and high veggie intake. My carbs that I intake come primary through raw nuts & avocados and I have to admit - I still use croutons on my salad.... 60-80 calories worth. I also juice at least once a day to make sure that i am getting enough veggie intake...
I have 36 pounds left to loose to hit my goal of 225 pounds - right now I am still loosing 2.5-3 pounds a week. This is what has worked for me... I wish you the best of luck!!!!
What Tri are you doing - Iron Man - ? I am planning on doing Iron Man AZ in 2014 and Half Iron Man Vine Man Napa 2013
100 LBS gone in 3 Months! - 150 LBS gone in just over 5 Months!
200 LBS gone in just under 9 Months!
Please Check out my blog:
www.sheddingounces.net
Im a BEGINNER MAN!!!!!!! Ironman is so out of my scope for now... though Im told I will be "drinking the Kool-Aid" soon enough...
Im just doing beginner stuff... Swim 546.81 yards Bike 12 miles Run 3.1 miles
http://trirock.competitor.com/annapolis/
YOU, Sir, ARE MY HERO & IDOL!!!
so for February Im going to play around with upping calories/carbs... this is going to be a REAL challenge for me...
thanks so much for the advice