VSG Maintenance Group
If you are in maintenance, how many calories do you eat?
I used to be 5' 7 " but lost an inch. :} So, 5 ' 6", weight fluctuates from 143 to 150, depending on cycle time, did I have a bag of bacon cheddar popcorn yesterday? (YES!!), is it cycle time (coming soon!), have I not pooped for days because I tried out those durn PPIs and get the cement gut? Oy!
Exercise - I have not lifted consistently in a month and a half ish, because I was getting frustrated with the lack of fill happening on my lower half, but have devised my bootyplan so that Monday it begins again. I also was bumming because my arms were not fitting in shirts that my torso fit nicely in, and did not want to only just wear sleveless shirts and cardigans all winter, or some such something.
So - exercise, zumba for an hour twice a week, hike the girls up some rugged terrain whose hills made me wanna cry when I was heavy - we go about 2 to 4 miles a day M-F depending on how crazy work is, if its a zumba day, et cetera. I still do sets of pushups, triceps dips and squats 3 to 4 times a day, but do not log them, I just consider them reguarly daily activity.
So - here is my dietpower initial page for today. I am feeling worn out and a bit overwhelmed and puny, so took the day off, and slept in, otherwise by now, I would have eaten a lot more by now! I do not do calculations, I let diet power do it for me. The more complicated I make a thing, the faster overwhelmed I get. This is a nice way of being accountable and not trying to make the numbers be something -or change them because I do not think its working.
With diet power - how I do maintenance is, I tell it I want to be 145 in 2 years from whatever today is - so it always feed me a little under maintenance. The day I did the tank dunk - what the tank readout told me my maintenance cals were, was exactly what diet power told me that day my maintenance cals were. So, that was cool.
So this is what the base looks like. This is what I can eat up to (without exercise - it adds in burnt exercise calories to the total for the day) without gaining. On the first day of your period (you check a place where you put your weight in) it adds like 200 calories for that day.
To manipulate the calories, I just add in higher calorie meats, healthy fats, and a few more chocolate peanutbutter cheese burritos!
The yellow lines are were I had changed my goal weight in the system - either up or down, or had pushed it further out so it could be calculating by the 2 years again.
Edit to add - the number it gives for budgeted and metabolic rate are not static - they change daily depending on what my activity for yesterday was or was not, and how I ate or did not eat.
I find when I eat way under budgeted, then my budgeted calories go way down (it stores them down in that "bank balance" thing, but I would rather keep my body on an evenish keel then up and down it. I am not trying to lose anything anymore, my 6/8 body in my 20/22 skin does not need to be any smaller :{ And the poochy patches are not going to be any different - they will still be where my body holds a little pooch, so the only realistic solution is building up, smoothing out and then the muscles can over time munch the pooch. (that was not a euphamism for anything, Frisco!! :})
When I come home from vacation (where I have not been logging, or the same kind of planned active) my cals are always back to 1600ish and then my regular activity builds them back up.
So, all of this has shown me, I could not ever maintain where I want to be, being only a 1600 or a 1200 static calorie gal all the time, with my activities. Maybe if I was differently active, but mostly what I do now is out of joy (zuma) and because its necessary (walking the wired for sound australian).
Exercise - I have not lifted consistently in a month and a half ish, because I was getting frustrated with the lack of fill happening on my lower half, but have devised my bootyplan so that Monday it begins again. I also was bumming because my arms were not fitting in shirts that my torso fit nicely in, and did not want to only just wear sleveless shirts and cardigans all winter, or some such something.
So - exercise, zumba for an hour twice a week, hike the girls up some rugged terrain whose hills made me wanna cry when I was heavy - we go about 2 to 4 miles a day M-F depending on how crazy work is, if its a zumba day, et cetera. I still do sets of pushups, triceps dips and squats 3 to 4 times a day, but do not log them, I just consider them reguarly daily activity.
So - here is my dietpower initial page for today. I am feeling worn out and a bit overwhelmed and puny, so took the day off, and slept in, otherwise by now, I would have eaten a lot more by now! I do not do calculations, I let diet power do it for me. The more complicated I make a thing, the faster overwhelmed I get. This is a nice way of being accountable and not trying to make the numbers be something -or change them because I do not think its working.
With diet power - how I do maintenance is, I tell it I want to be 145 in 2 years from whatever today is - so it always feed me a little under maintenance. The day I did the tank dunk - what the tank readout told me my maintenance cals were, was exactly what diet power told me that day my maintenance cals were. So, that was cool.
So this is what the base looks like. This is what I can eat up to (without exercise - it adds in burnt exercise calories to the total for the day) without gaining. On the first day of your period (you check a place where you put your weight in) it adds like 200 calories for that day.
To manipulate the calories, I just add in higher calorie meats, healthy fats, and a few more chocolate peanutbutter cheese burritos!
The yellow lines are were I had changed my goal weight in the system - either up or down, or had pushed it further out so it could be calculating by the 2 years again.
Edit to add - the number it gives for budgeted and metabolic rate are not static - they change daily depending on what my activity for yesterday was or was not, and how I ate or did not eat.
I find when I eat way under budgeted, then my budgeted calories go way down (it stores them down in that "bank balance" thing, but I would rather keep my body on an evenish keel then up and down it. I am not trying to lose anything anymore, my 6/8 body in my 20/22 skin does not need to be any smaller :{ And the poochy patches are not going to be any different - they will still be where my body holds a little pooch, so the only realistic solution is building up, smoothing out and then the muscles can over time munch the pooch. (that was not a euphamism for anything, Frisco!! :})
When I come home from vacation (where I have not been logging, or the same kind of planned active) my cals are always back to 1600ish and then my regular activity builds them back up.
So, all of this has shown me, I could not ever maintain where I want to be, being only a 1600 or a 1200 static calorie gal all the time, with my activities. Maybe if I was differently active, but mostly what I do now is out of joy (zuma) and because its necessary (walking the wired for sound australian).
That is interesting. One of the things mentioned in New Rules of Lifting is to eat more calories on work out days than non-workout days. He recommends a post-lift protein shake which takes care of the extra calories. But since I drink 2 shakes a day anyway, this would mean a third shake. sigh
You are a lot more active than me. I mostly sit on my behind except for when I get up to do cardio or lift weights at the gym. :p You walkin those dogs in this cold weather? brrrr!
I'm home with my 4 year old all day, then pick up my 5 year old from school in the afternoon. They are too little to do anything very active (my son can't even handle walking around the mall for very long but he's too big for a stroller).
I was thinking of getting a bike and riding with my kids when the weather permits. Not as main exercise, but just to be more active and help boost my metabolism.
You are a lot more active than me. I mostly sit on my behind except for when I get up to do cardio or lift weights at the gym. :p You walkin those dogs in this cold weather? brrrr!
I'm home with my 4 year old all day, then pick up my 5 year old from school in the afternoon. They are too little to do anything very active (my son can't even handle walking around the mall for very long but he's too big for a stroller).
I was thinking of getting a bike and riding with my kids when the weather permits. Not as main exercise, but just to be more active and help boost my metabolism.
5'8" - 40 years old
You are also chasing babies though when they are home. For work I sit at this computer for hours and hours until its time to eat or go to the bathroom, or walk beasts!
If I did not walk the dogs, I would have to strangle Mae. Yea. Not. Kidding. On the weekends I put the walking off on fella, but end up walking them on Saturday because having Mae stalk me and try and herd me to the car so we can walk is wearying on a person's bucket of patience!!
I am thankful she has toned it down a bit, but still. Having an aussie has taught me one thing.
I am a hound dog girl. :}
The biking will be good when its warmer! Lucky for us, winter does not last 8 months like it does some places!
Too with all the rules of stuff? I mostly only follow the 65/30/5 close as I can and make sure I get at least lean weight of protein - but for the rest of it? I figure, my goal is not competition, so as amusing as it sounds for someone who does keep bizarre tabs on nutrition macros, ummm.. "I do not worry about it much." :}
And too, all of that really does allow me to eat whatever I care to on the times we go out (which is not often, really,) or when its cycle time coming (which i also keep tabs on, so I can KNOW why dog food commmercials are making me cry and I am hungry like a beast) so I can just go ahead and get me some bacony popcorn!
Course, I buy the 3 bag box, and before I leave the store, I take 1 bag out and either throw the box with the 2 in it away, or leave it on the table where people eat, with the receipt.
Because if its in the house? Its in my bellah!
If I did not walk the dogs, I would have to strangle Mae. Yea. Not. Kidding. On the weekends I put the walking off on fella, but end up walking them on Saturday because having Mae stalk me and try and herd me to the car so we can walk is wearying on a person's bucket of patience!!
I am thankful she has toned it down a bit, but still. Having an aussie has taught me one thing.
I am a hound dog girl. :}
The biking will be good when its warmer! Lucky for us, winter does not last 8 months like it does some places!
Too with all the rules of stuff? I mostly only follow the 65/30/5 close as I can and make sure I get at least lean weight of protein - but for the rest of it? I figure, my goal is not competition, so as amusing as it sounds for someone who does keep bizarre tabs on nutrition macros, ummm.. "I do not worry about it much." :}
And too, all of that really does allow me to eat whatever I care to on the times we go out (which is not often, really,) or when its cycle time coming (which i also keep tabs on, so I can KNOW why dog food commmercials are making me cry and I am hungry like a beast) so I can just go ahead and get me some bacony popcorn!
Course, I buy the 3 bag box, and before I leave the store, I take 1 bag out and either throw the box with the 2 in it away, or leave it on the table where people eat, with the receipt.
Because if its in the house? Its in my bellah!
Mandy, I noticed you are in Atlanta, GA so I did a quick google of your area. Check this out: http://www.newedgefitness.com/ They offer a VO2 max test, which will tell you where your personal target heart rate zones are, which would be good for you to know so that when you do do cardio you make sure you are in YOUR fat burning zones and not in YOUR muscle burning zones. They also have the Resting metabolic rate (RMR) test so you know how many calories YOU burn at rest. The charts and formulas out there are all averages. Some people are higher and some are lower! You have a lot of muscle, so yours is probably higher, but then again you may have killed your metabolism with the VSG. I did both of these tests at the gym I go to. I found out I'm very fit, but I have a crappy metabolism. I only need 915 calories plus about 200 for normal daily activities to maintain. I think having the tests would answer your questions and put your mind at ease!
No, the VSG does not ruin metabolism, being on a very low calorie diet for long periods of time will cause the body to adapt and only need very low calories to maintain. It happens with any weight loss surgery and it happens with normies who crank calories way down for long periods of time too.
Yes, increased exercise and weightlifting definitely change the metabolic situation!
Yes, increased exercise and weightlifting definitely change the metabolic situation!
