I have a quesiton

[wevie]

So here is the deal for the ones who had not read any of post. I wanted to stop being fat so I started eating a lot better and started jogging/running. I have been doing this for about five months. I also started weight training about two months ago.

I went from 225 to 190 no problem pretty easy. Size 38 to 32. Now I seem to be stuck at 187-190 and have been for about four weeks. I cleaned diet up a lot two weeks ago. Very low fat and low to medium carbs. I am a little relaxed on the weekends. I have something sweet one time sometime on the weekend. Most of the time it is fat free ice cream which doesn't seem to bad right???? Even if it is not the ice cream I eat, it still is not something that is over 200 or 300 calories most of the time. The other relaxed thing is I will eat one meal each day that may or may not be that healthy. Even with all that, I am still eating maybe 2500 to 3000 calories on Sat. and Sun. The rest of the week I eat around 2000 to 2200.

I weight train on Tues, Thur, and Sat. and run on Mon, Wen, and Sun. Sometimes I run on Friday but most of the time that is an off day.

By Friday or Saturday the scale will read 187lbs. On Monday, I will be back to 190-191.

This is question. Could weekend eating have me putting on three to four pounds every time? It has been like this for about three weeks. This coming weekend, I am gonna keep a clean diet and see what happens.

weight goal is 180.

[cassiegose]

Hello there,

Sounds to me like its water weight. Are you eating more sodium on the weekends? Are your fluids changing at all between the weekends and the weekdays? In order to actually GAIN 3-4 pounds of fat you would have to eat 10500-14000 MORE calories on the weekend. I highly highly highly doubt this is the case so its most likely water weight that is causing the fluctuations. If you are eating higher sodium foods and/or changing your water intake during the week you might try to keep it steady and see what happens with the scale.

advice for that last 10 pounds that you want to lose is to change up your routine and shock you system. What does your weight training routine look like? How far are you running? Also, what does your diet look like? Post an example of a typical day so possible suggestions can be made.

Hope this helps! I know how discouraging this can be. Hang in there and you'll reach your goals in no time.

Cassie

[thekid24]

There's alot of voice in this regarding weekend "cheat meals".

Some say it's fine to be more relaxed on the weekends because it's only 2 out of 7 days and the other 5, you're eating well.

But IMO, fat loss is a sprint not a marathon unlike alot of people suggest. If you really wanna get to your goal FASTER, you gotta go all out and be on it 24/7. If you do it in MODERATION, ie. having a cheat meal here and there or whatever, it's gonna be counter productive.

Bottom line, SPRINT to your goal and when you get there, you can RELAX a bit more.

[cassiegose]

Hmm.. I agree and disagree at the same time. I'm currently training for first figure competition and am pretty much doing the sprint technique as the diet is so intense that you really don't want to be on it for any longer than necessary.

HOWEVER for everyday fat loss I think the slower you lose the weight the more likely you will be to keep it off. Here is an example... I have a person in life whose weight is CONSTANTLY going up and down, down and up, up and down and has been for as long as I've known him. The reason that his weight goes up and down like it does is because he constantly goes on these crash diets where he decides that he wants to lose x amount of weight and then pretty much starves himself of all of his favorite foods until he gets the weight off. After a couple of months of starving himself he has lost the weight but has deprived himself of all of his favorite foods so he then binges and gains a few pounds back. After binging he'll starve himself for a week, then bing again, then starve himself for 6 days, then binge, then starve himself for 5 days, then binge... and pretty soon the binges are happening so often that the weight creeps back on and hes again unhappy with his body. Instead of sprinting to lose the weight so fast, it seems to me that he would have better luck eating a healthy diet while allowing himself treats every now and again to keep his cravings at bay.

I think the biggest thing that we so often lose sight of is that a diet should be a way of life and it should be something we can maintain for years and year. It should NOT be a temporary "sprint", because those who do the sprint technique often to so only to find that the weight creeps back on as soon as they stop sprinting and relax a bit. Because it is a way of life, a persons regular day-to-day diet should consist of fruits, veggies, lean proteins, nuts, complex carbs....and because we're all human here I'm a firm believer that every now and then we just need a damn cookie.


Just thoughts.

Cassie

[fitoverforty]

The other relaxed thing is I will eat one meal each day that may or may not be that healthy

Maybe you could change that to one unhealthy meal during the work week. Or eat as healthy as possible during the week, and choose one of the weekend days to have a "cheat" meal and sweet or two. Maybe it is time to add a little more intensity to your runs, or add some speedwork one or two days a week, make your "long" run a little longer. Like Cassie said you may need to shake things up a bit, shock your system.

every now and then we just need a damn cookie.

Amen, sister! LOL!

[wevie]

Hello there,

Sounds to me like its water weight. Are you eating more sodium on the weekends? Are your fluids changing at all between the weekends and the weekdays? In order to actually GAIN 3-4 pounds of fat you would have to eat 10500-14000 MORE calories on the weekend. I highly highly highly doubt this is the case so its most likely water weight that is causing the fluctuations. If you are eating higher sodium foods and/or changing your water intake during the week you might try to keep it steady and see what happens with the scale.

advice for that last 10 pounds that you want to lose is to change up your routine and shock you system. What does your weight training routine look like? How far are you running? Also, what does your diet look like? Post an example of a typical day so possible suggestions can be made.

Hope this helps! I know how discouraging this can be. Hang in there and you'll reach your goals in no time.

Cassie

This is what I have been eating for the last three weeks. The same thing every day with one exception. Sometimes instead of the chicken breast, mashed potatoes, and broccoli I eat a footlong subway sub which is oven roasted chicken on the oat bread with no cheese. In three weeks I have eaten the sub maybe six times so say twice a week.


Breakfast: banana and whey protein shake mixed with milk. (I have another shake on weight training days. So that is one before and one after.)
Lunch: Chicken breast with BBQ sauce, mashed potatoes, and steamed broccoli
Mid day meal: 110 calorie turkey fillet mignon with steamed broccoli
Other small meal: Turkey breast sandwich on whole wheat. (Lettuce, mustard, no cheese)
Snacks: Two or three protein bars (20 grams protein, 4.5 grams fat, 180 calories)
one apple and one banana

Best I can figure, I am eating about 1800 calories a day. The BBQ sauce and the potatoes are the worst things I am eating. Most protein bars are pretty bad but these that I eat seem to be pretty healthy IMO. Here is a link to the nut. info.
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When I run, I run the first 2 to 2.5 miles at 9mph. Then I will walk for 3 to 4 minutes and then run to finish out the mile or maybe longer. I typically run 4 to 5 miles. Last time I ran, I ran 5 miles in 40 minutes. With warm up and cool down walking not included in that, which was another half a mile. I do this three or four days a week.

Weight Training:

I do all these lifts for four set of 12,10,8,6 reps

Monday:

Dumb bell curls
ez bar curls
ez bar upward rows for shoulders
military press
decline bench
tricep extension with ez curl bar

Wednesday:

Flat bench
flies
close grip bench press
tricep extensions
ez bar upward rows
lat pulldown

Friday or Saturday:

dumb bell curls
ez bar curls
lat pulldown
bent rows
decline bench press
ez bar upward rows

I also added legs on saturday two weeks ago. I worked them the last two saturdays.

four sets of 12

squats and deadlifts.

[wevie]

The other relaxed thing is I will eat one meal each day that may or may not be that healthy

Maybe you could change that to one unhealthy meal during the work week. Or eat as healthy as possible during the week, and choose one of the weekend days to have a "cheat" meal and sweet or two. Maybe it is time to add a little more intensity to your runs, or add some speedwork one or two days a week, make your "long" run a little longer. Like Cassie said you may need to shake things up a bit, shock your system.

every now and then we just need a damn cookie.

Amen, sister! LOL!

I don't think i can eat much healthier during the week. Maybe a little but not much.

I run about as intense as I can. When I started, I was only able to run at 5mph. Now I am running at 9 and 10. 10 is all tread mill goes.

[fitoverforty]

Are all your runs done on a treadmill right now? Intensity can mean more than just speed. Running outside, hill sprints, trail runs, track work, intervals - things like that can add diversity and intensity to your running program. You mentioned 5 miles in 40 minutes (8 min. mile average) that is awesome considering you started out at 5mph (12 minute mile). You have really improved on your speed in a short amount of time...I think you have a natural running ability. Keep up with your weekly mileage - from what you have said it looks like you are averaging around 15 - 18 miles a week. You can safely increase your weeks total by 10% each week (although I don't always go by that, but that is what the experts recommend). So maybe add a long run of 6 to 7 miles once a week (not a "fast" run, keep it slow and steady, 2 minutes slower per mile pace than your fastest running - say around a 10 minute mile average) and increase it a little more each week or every other week? Hopefully that and your continued healthy eating and weight workouts will help you over this plateau. Best of luck to ya!

[swanso5]

i've read that it can take 3 - 4 days to off set a single cheat meal which i have come to belive is about right...there's no point doing 5 good days and 2 bad one's...that's 28% of the time you're eating wrong...if you get 78% in a test it's generally a fail...also if your eating a bad meal everyday then you're glycogen stores will never be low enough for the body to have to draw from it's fat reserves

http://www.uponlinetraining.com" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[wevie]

Are all your runs done on a treadmill right now? Intensity can mean more than just speed. Running outside, hill sprints, trail runs, track work, intervals - things like that can add diversity and intensity to your running program. You mentioned 5 miles in 40 minutes (8 min. mile average) that is awesome considering you started out at 5mph (12 minute mile). You have really improved on your speed in a short amount of time...I think you have a natural running ability. Keep up with your weekly mileage - from what you have said it looks like you are averaging around 15 - 18 miles a week. You can safely increase your weeks total by 10% each week (although I don't always go by that, but that is what the experts recommend). So maybe add a long run of 6 to 7 miles once a week (not a "fast" run, keep it slow and steady, 2 minutes slower per mile pace than your fastest running - say around a 10 minute mile average) and increase it a little more each week or every other week? Hopefully that and your continued healthy eating and weight workouts will help you over this plateau. Best of luck to ya!

I used to run 5 to 6 miles five or six days a week but I stopped running so much for three reasons. I started weight training, and I thought since I am running so much faster, then the shorter distance would be about the same. The other reason is I was moved to second shift at work and do not have the time to run as much anymore without having to really rush to be able to eat and make it to work on time.

Something I forgot to mention is that I have a very physical, demanding job. I work on a drill rig. I don't know if that matters or not. I just know that I more than likely burn more calories at work than most people do.

[wevie]

Hello there,

Sounds to me like its water weight. Are you eating more sodium on the weekends? Are your fluids changing at all between the weekends and the weekdays? In order to actually GAIN 3-4 pounds of fat you would have to eat 10500-14000 MORE calories on the weekend. I highly highly highly doubt this is the case so its most likely water weight that is causing the fluctuations. If you are eating higher sodium foods and/or changing your water intake during the week you might try to keep it steady and see what happens with the scale.

advice for that last 10 pounds that you want to lose is to change up your routine and shock you system. What does your weight training routine look like? How far are you running? Also, what does your diet look like? Post an example of a typical day so possible suggestions can be made.

Hope this helps! I know how discouraging this can be. Hang in there and you'll reach your goals in no time.

Cassie

I may be eating higher sodium on the weekends. That could be possible. I know I drink a few more diet sodas. Could the sodas be doing it?

[swanso5]

not by themselves but they aren't helping

[fitoverforty]

I've read that diet sodas can cause water retention because of the carbonation and the sodium content.

[wevie]

Well, it's Monday and the scale said 187.8. that is good. Hopefully by next monday I will have lost a few more pounds.

[wevie]

Now the scale says 186.2 this morning. I hope I have started to lose again.