Hey guys,
I've been a member of the site for a while now, but only now I'm actually using the forums...So I have a couple of questions I guess. weight as of now is 114-15 lbs, not that long ago tho I was in 118 lbs(2 weeks ago or a lil less) and I was liking it there. Body fat is 13.5-14%. I go to the gym 5 days a week, at 1pm and usually stay there for 1.5 hrs. routine is as follows...I do cardio for 30-40 mins, I try to change it up a bit, like treadmill starting slow for the first 3-5 mins and then going up to 6mph then the highest I go is 8mph sometimes 8.5 mph and keep the same pattern for 30 mins or so. next day I might do elliptical for 30-40mins as well then stair master and then again treadmill (not on the same day of course) and so on...I usually lift weight for 30-40mins after cardio session. Recently I just shifted routine to weight lifting first to burn glycogen (carbs) first then burn mostly fat as I start cardio session. The problem is I DONT KNOW WHY I HAVE LOST WEIGHT! I can see more muscle on arms and legs, I have a visible 6-pack. I LOVE doing cardio AND I dont think doing 30 mins a day would make me loose muscle mass. Maybe the weight lose could be bc Ive lost like 1 lbs of BF%? I think I was in 14.8-15% before. I am afraid that perhaps it could be nutrition. I count calories EVERYDAY, I dont usually go over 2000 calories...sometimes I just stay at 1500 a day bc I just dont know what to eat sometimes! I dont want to eat the WRONG foods/fatting foods. protein intake is 90-120g- carbs no more than 220g, fat no more than 45g and calories no more than 2000, but as I said sometimes I dont reach that number.
I would like to know how to go back to 118-120lbs w/o gaining fat? or maybe that weight is fine for me? OH I'm 5'6, 20 yrs old...
Any help would be really appreciated!
THanks!:)
- 14% is low for a chick...the scales are probably wrong i'd say but that's alright, go by how you look not a scale number
- 90mins is probably too long...your producing cortisol after 60mins which puts you in a catabolic state meaning your burning muscle over fat
- steady state cardio is another way to burn up precious muscle, use intervals for 1min hard/1min easy x 10mins
- wts first always
- you've lost wt basically from a lot of activity and as i suspect muscle brealdown, not actual fat loss (some though probably)
- duration dpesn't dictate what fuel you use for exercise, intensity/effort does
- 30mins a day can lose muscle mass as chicks are chrinis undereaters so without enough cal's to sustain muscle, you're breaking it down and thus getting fatter
- cal total seem alright but are they the right cal's at the right time? for your activity level now it's not enough but for what i'd rather you do it may be
- more protein/fats and less carbs
- what's wrong with your wt now? decrease not body wt
food - read the sticky "read before posting...' in this section
-You're right I dont go for body fat but how I look like, and I LIKE IT.
-WHAT I DONT LIKE THO is that ive lost weight, I was mantaning myself in 118lbs.
-Well, I usually do 30 min cardio and 30 min weights. Which I am shifting to weight first then cardio. I had a doubt tho, If I lift first(ive always heard that you need preotein and some carbs to replish ur muscles) should I have a shake b4 going to cardio ? or just proceed to cardio and have shake exactly after cardio??
-Yea, i was afraid the weight I lost was from muscle. What can I do to gain back 5-7lbs of muscle w/o gaining fat??
-I eat most meals with protein and carbs and I feel satisfied most of the times. HOWEVER I never starve myself bc I know its not good, and I guess 1500 usually satisfies me, if not i go up. Is 1500 too lil and could it be causing muscle loss??
-Theres nothing wrong with weight, just trying to go back to 118-120(of muscle tho).
-I was thinking of changing diet. What would you recommend protein/carb/fat intake be???
I WAS kind of thinkin of increasing protein and lowering carbs. but I am not sure exactly how much grams of each I should have :/
- like i said too much exercise, not enough calories and your muscle breaking everything down to make up the energy deficit
- well even better, do wts every 2nd day with cardio on the alternate days...you can pop some protein in btw wts and cardio if your stomach can take it but if you don't exceed 60mind which you shouldn't per session then you should be alright, just make sure your fuelled prior
- by doing a better wts program and intervals you're energy demand will increase, thus metabolic rate thus you'll need more cals to be satisfied
- read that food article i told you too, everything is in there
i don't think you really need now, you'd get results from simply adding in the food changes already suggested then when you stall on that plan, then add in the carb cycling
-Well, since I am in weight maintenance I am opting for not counting calories anymore (figured that at this point its a waste of time) that I should just keep protein,carbs,fats count...rite now I am trying 175g of protein...182highest carb110 lowest carb day and 46g of fat...I just figure that as long as I am eating every 3 hrs Protein rich foods like chicken/fish/shrimp etc and veggs I should do fine...with a good work out...I usually have 1 cheat day so system wont get used to a certain "diet"...
:)