Hello, I'm 1 mo. into my diet/fittness and suddenly feel tired...

Hi everyone,

I'm pretty new here and I have a question, I'm hoping someone can help.

I started a vigorous diet/fitness routine one month ago. I have an office job so I have been "sedentary" for a few years. I turned 40 this year. I need to lose 30-40 lbs.

I was feeling great for the first few weeks with endless energy. Every workout was invigorating. Suddenly, the last 2 or three days I am very fatigued.  My diet has been the same for the past month..low cal, low carb, low fat. I've been staying at 1600 calories a day, and burning about 400 calories at the gym 4-5 days a week.

Why am I suddenly fatigued? I believe I am getting enough protein. Last night I had steak just be sure. Still today I am so tired I don't even feel like working out.

Anyone know what could be going on?

Thanks for any advice, It's nice to be here.

I think you are bored of your gym routine. When I first started I used to walk the exact same 5 mile route every single day. It got boring I got tired of it and it was like a chore to even go walking anymore.

I changed up my routes to the point where I hardly ever take the same route twice a month and I also added cycling and running into my workout routine. Next I will add some HIIT work outs in there.

Maybe you need to do something like that so you can have something fun to look forward to instead of doing the same thing over and over again.

If you have 30-40lbs to lose and you're 'very active' then 1600 cals might well be too little energy.  Worth checking through the CC calculator that's available on here.  If you're also going low-carb and low-fat then you've removed the main source of energy for stamina ie. carbohydrates.... and that will cause fatigue.  You may also be short of important nutrients that carbohydrates and fats provide.... even mild nutritional deficiencies can make someone feel washed out.   I would therefore recommend that you look at rebalancing your diet to something like ... 40-65% of the calories from carbohydrates, 15-25% from protein and 25-30% from fats. 

You mention 'low-cal' as well.. If you're eating a lot of 'diet foods' to achieve this objective (?) then that's another way in which you can become malnourished and tired.  Wholefoods are a better choice.

Iron deficiency can lead to fatigue and is quite common in women who are on reduced calorie diets.  You're probably eating a lot of meat but you need plenty of Vitamin-C rich foods... fruit, vegetables, potatoes etc.... for your body to be able to absorb the iron.

Best of luck

Thank you very much for this info. I've been "carbo-phobic" but I realize now that I need to incorporate more- maybe a bit of whole wheat with breakfast or lunches, etc.

I stay away from the"diet foods, instead I eat lean meats and vegatables, nuts, and some oils, sort of a mediteranian style diet. Thanks for advice on balancing things out more. I had not even considered iron deficiency but that could be an issue as well.

Thanks, again.. I think a little re-working of my diet/intake is in order :o)

Thanks for your suggestion!

Funny thing, is that I actually enjoy my gym routine.. but have been too tired to enjoy it.

I'm also lucky my gym has lots of different cardio things to do. I've started water aerobics also-- fun!

thanks again :-)

Original Post by pacifica422:

maybe a bit of whole wheat with breakfast or lunches, etc.

 You could choose any number of the whole, unprocessed types of complex carbohydrates to augment your diet.   Wholewheat foods contain some important nutrients and so do things like brown rice, new potatoes, sweet potatoes, lentils, beans, chickpeas...  They also contain useful fibre which will mean you're more satisfied  with your diet.  A small portion at each meal is all you need.

As mentioned, you could not be eating enough. You could also be working out too much.

If you've been sedentary before this month, it's probably safe to say that working out 4-5 days a week is a huge change for your body. Many muscle recovers largely within 48 hours of a workout, connective tissue takes a bit longer. Try scaling back your workout to 3 days a week (possibly making each session longer if need be) so that your body has full recovery days. If part of your workout involves strength training, you may want to take a week off, so you can recover fully.

Maybe it's just me, but sometimes my body needs 3-7 days off from the workout to get back to normal.

Thanks...this is all good advice! This is new to me, so some adjusting is good- I just need to find the right balance in diet and workouts.

Of note I feel fantastic today! It could be that I had a wheat bagel with my eggs this morning, and I took it easy yesterday afternoon. I had a nice non-strenuous walk and went to bed early. :o)

Thanks everyone!

Also, make sure you alternate muscle groups when you workout to give different groups a chance to repair.  My first month I went through the same thing, and was swimming and walking only, then crashed.  I started to alternate my workouts, incorporated some weights, and it got much better.

Also, all those things said about nutrition are totally true.  In the beginning I was too strict with myself about low carb low fat.  I found I felt a lot better when I started paying closer attention to my daily analysis.  If you're not sure about getting enough protein, just check your analysis every day.  As GI Jane said, 15-25% protein is a good aim.  I try to go more for 25% if I've worked out hard. 

Finally, many people advocate a "rest week" every once in awhile (usually at 3-4 months I think).  But, your body is going through lots of changes (good on you!) so, your body might need some rest sooner. 

Thank you for your encouragement and help, Aislign. It makes sense to change the muscle groups being worked. I can easily do that with some thinking ahead. Like alternating my cardio/elliptic days with swimming.

Thank again, I really appreciate all the help I am getting here!