Pushing too hard?

I have been operating at a 2000 calorie deficit daily.

circuit train(bowflex) 4 times a week 45mins, also run 3 miles a day 2 days a week, and do interval training (60 yard wind sprints) 1 set of ten once a week.

I am on a reduced calorie diet as well. i am taking a good multi-vitamin daily.       I continue to read that i should lose 0.5 -2.0 lbs weekly.  I am averaging much higher than that. 12lbs in ten days, 2 inches in my waiste and have added an inch to my chest.   Should I be taking in more than 1200 calories a day or am I on the right track?  could use a little feedback.

Check the advice section, "Ask Mary". There is some good content there.  The link provided is some insight to your question.

http://caloriecount.about.com/minimum-number- calories-man-q13

thank you, I thought i may need to up my caloric intake  some.

I want to lose weight, but I want to do it right.

To lose 2 pounds per week, you need to average a deficit of 1000 calories.  That deficit would include keeping track of the energy you burn exercising.

Clint

I did the same thing. I became scared of calories and carbs. I'll bet I took in less than 1000 cals and 100 (or less) carbs for a couple months. I have read the same thing you have; you have to eat to lose weight. But, I wanted results and my problem was not over eating, it was eating the wrong things at the wrong time along with laying around all the time.

I'm working out now and hard, so I have picked up more calories, but I'm doing it so that I don't shock my body into gaining anything back. With doing 20 mile bike rides and resistance training I guess I could eat anything I wanted, but I don't want to. We burn 80 calories and hour doing absolutely nothing. So, I advise to do the BMI formula that tells how many calories you need, then you can subract from there. If you don't know the equation, let me know and I'll send it to you.

I don't know what ideal would be, but I'm at about 1200 right now. I think I should be a little more for muscle growth, but I only have 5 pounds to go anyway. Then I'll probalby bump that up to 1500 or so.

Let me know how it goes. Good luck!

Jon

thanks for the feedback.  Been working hard and very happy with the results so far.  still losing inches in my waistline and since my original post added another half inch to my chest and an inch to my biceps. workrd with free weights in my youth and never got the results im getting from my bowflex!

only lost another 3lbs, however ive put on some muscle and dropped 2 more inches in my waist. I guess every thing im doing is correct(even if by accident)

Ive used the bmi formula, but not sure if im doing the math correctly?

anyhow I will keep you posted.  thanks again

You don't really need a bmi formula... Just use the BMI Tool under the CC Tools menu.  However, I don't hold much faith in the whole BMI calculation... It's good for statistics and stuff like that, but for individuals?  Not so much.

If you can, get your body fat % analyzed, or calculate it yourself using one of the many calculators on the net (google for "body fat calculator").  The simplest ones require a waist, neck, height, and weight measurement.  More complex ones needs multiple pinch measurements in just the right spots, so they're difficult for regular people to do.  I'm down from close to 25% to approximately 14%, and shooting for closer to 10.  I expect my weight will be close to 165 by then, and it will be time to try to more aggressively add muscle.

You should be trying (in my humble opinion) to get back to closer to a 2 pound per week loss.  Too quick, and you can mess up your body's metabolism, making it difficult to maintain your weight loss later.  Plus you risk losing muscle mass as well as fat, which means you'll end up skinny and needing to bulk up later.  Notice I said "risk", not that you will.  By doing strength training while losing weight, you might be able to avoid it.  But it's not worth the risk to me.

The problem with a 1200 calorie a day diet is that it will be very difficult for you to get in all your nutritional needs in 1200 calories.  If you're trying to build muscle in particular, you need lots of protein.  At 175 pounds (just as a number), you should be taking in at LEAST 120g of protein per day.  That's almost 500 calories just in protein.   1200 calories is the minimum recommended for sedentary women... Not active men.  I think the minimum recommended for men is about 1500.  It's not a sprint, it's a marathon.  Sustainable is better than quick.

Clint

thanks clint,

i have upped my intake to 1500 calories a day, and i am still happy with my results.  Not getting as much protein as i would like (approx 300 cals) but I am working with a nutrionist now, so i am excited and motivated to continue working hard. Am still losing around 2.5-3.3 weekly and im cool with that, im in it for the long haul. I really appreciate all the advice. I will keep everyone posted on my progress.........on a another note I finally broke 200lb barrier and for the first time in 5 years I my weight number starts with a one!

Congrats on getting under 200!  That was my first goal when I started, and it felt GOOOD when I did! :)  And now about 3 months later, I've found that my suit from 1993 (don't ask why I still have it) fits me again.  I'm vintage!

Working with a nutritionist, especially if they know how much exercise you're honestly doing, should reduce a lot of your risks.  I think the slow and steady is more important if you don't have really good guidance, and it sounds like you're getting that.  

Good luck, and keep posting!

Clint