The weight game.

hi all , like to ask a question  i'm trying to lose some weight find it hard training and having the right amount of food to train and lose weight, do you eat the same every day, or do you find then you done say a long run you eat more, or is your diet the same most days, if your got time can you please let know what you eat on a avrage day, doing weights with  running does it help you, i,m worried of getting to big as was a body builder before, imput would be nice.

Comments

  • DonaldoDonaldo ✭✭✭

    Hello!  I'll be interested in the responses to your questions as this is something I have never gotten right yet.  Saying that, I have experience of losing a lot of weight but unfortunately, the experience of gaining it too!

    When I lose weight, like in the past 6 months, I have a very simple philosophy.  Because I'm running every day, I know I have to eat a lot of calories.  So I have a decent breakfast of cereal and toast, nothing till lunch, a medium/big lunch of beans and toast with cheese, for example.  Nothing more till dinner when I eat a large portion of whatever is on the menu that night!  When I gain weight, I have lots of additions to that, like crisps, booze, sweets, biscuits etc.  The key to losing weight is to avoid such things and have some fruit instead.  I still treat myself to one boozy/snack-filled night a week and have still knocked off 2 stones since January.  Rewards are good if you earn them!! image

    Sorry I can't help more, I've always just done what feels right with no special diet whatsoever.

  • hi donaldo how much a week was you losing, and was you hungry some times on your diet, and how much did your times go up buy losing that weight, what your height and weight, thanks for your reply.

  • Soulmate, I think that can be difficult to answer depending on what your goal is.  If your goal is purely to lose weight, and you're training as part of that goal then your calorie requirement will be different than if you're training for a specific sport, but also want to lose weight. 

    It is important to make sure you get enough nutrition in to cover the energy you'll expend when training, or at least so that you don't start to feel fatigued, and loose energy during your exercise.

    So for example, if you're training hard for something, you might want to be eating 4g-12g of carb per kg of lean body mass during training days, and anywhere from 30g-60g carb per hour of training.  If you're only doing light training though, you won't need to eat as many carbs during the day.  On days you're not training, you'll need to eat less than on a training day, otherwise you'll not burn off those carbs.  I'm certainly not an expert, as although i'm training for an Ironman, i'm still a few stone overweight!!!  The figures I quoted above are from a talk outr cycling club got from a nutritionist. 

    If you're marathon training, there is a good book called 'nutrition for Marathon Running' (or something similar) so it is worth a look. 

    Also, the obvious things to cut out are highly processed foods, refined sugars, too much alcohol etc.  I say that with authority, because I eat too many of these things and i'm still fat image

    Overall, i'd say define your main goal (sporting goal or weight lose) then that willhelp tailor your training and nutrition accordingly

  • you say you are trying to lose weight,.....................but the methods would be slightly different if you are obese, overweight, standard or underweight.............so how much do you want to lose and what is your starting weight.
  • hi lee thanks for your honest reply, what you said overall, define your main goal, in the past have lost weight but started racing but never got to the racing weight i wanted, so will take your avice, how much you want to lose mate, whats your weight and height.
  • DonaldoDonaldo ✭✭✭

    soulmate - I'm just a fraction over 6 feet, very broadly built and I was 15 and a half stone in January and could run 7 miles in an hour.  I'm now 13 and a half stones.

    I lost 7 pounds in the first week of "dieting" and then just a pound or two per week thereafter.  My 10K time at the weekend was 39:02 which shows the improvement - although there is also a significant improvement in my training and general fitness - I had heart issues that preventing me training properly before the new year.

    Problem with me is that as soon as stop training for any reason, the weight piles on.  I get bored doing nothing and just eat eat eat!!!

  • hi seren nors i,m 13st 12st want to be 11st 7lb, was 12st 7lb last year and did pb 10k 43,15sec, got injuryed put on 2st, thanks for your reply please join in.
  • i,m the same

    Problem with me is that as soon as stop training for any reason, the weight piles on.  I get bored doing nothing and just eat eat eat!!! .  but thats a great time thats my goal what training did you do to get the sub 40 thats my dream help me.

  • just thinking donaldo did you run then you was younger, if so what your pb, and what do you think you can do,whats  your goal
  • soulmate........I think it also depends on the length of your runs............unless you are doing a run of more than 13 miles I woukld not take anything more to compensate for the run.maybe a banana milkshake afterwards.............

    but its a balancing game and I for one can't get the balance right...........exercise always makes me feel hungry and if I cut out the crap I lose weight..............then I start eaqting the crap again and the weight goes on...........

    it not the meals that usually causes the weight..........its the crap inbetween the meals...........

  • Hi Guys, I've been on the injury bench for the past 6 weeks and have managed to put on 2lbs  per week through not running but still eating the same amount!

    It is a fact (an average fact) that to burn 2lb of fat per week would take a calorie deficit of 2500 - 3000 cals per week. So, if you are running and eating but not losing weight it just means you need to cut your calorie intake by about 500 cals per day.  The simplest way (for me) is to write down what you eat each day and tot up the calories per day - there are plenty of websites to give you the calories in food types.  It can be surprising how much we eat without realising how many calories we are consuming.  And I realise I'm generalising - I don't mean it's easy!  And for me, it is the crap between meals that is the culprit! image  However, now I've stopped sulking about my injury I will take myself in hand! image I won't be running for at least another 6 weeks so I need to sort it out.

    As seren says long slow runs are one of the best fat burning methods.  By long, I'm used to doing a LSR of between 10 - 16 miles per week.  I don't need to eat anymore than normal to sustain this mileage.  My normal weekly mileage is between 30 - 40 miles per week.  And generally, when I'm running I tend to eat healthily and like Donaldo have one day off a week when I eat what ever I feel like - though through habit I don't go overboard.  You cannot think of healthy eating as a "diet" - immediately you feel deprived and punished.  Healthy eating is for life, not just for when you want to lose weight!

  • I lost 4.5 stone 12 years ago and have kind of kept it off since. Took up running and thought it was the magic answer to weight control - HA!

    Anyways - lots of doing the same thing and getting the same result in the way that we all do - i.e. running gizzilions of miles, lots of very hard training - result: appetite through the roof. Managed to keep weight pretty stable then had a year of illness and boom, half a stone magically appears.

    So, got cajoled back to weight watchers with all their lovely tv ads and have found that more than half a stone has disappeared without much effort on the food front. I started it to get back into good habits as when doing miles and miles I could get away with murder but when training is reduced - as you guys say - you keep eating like normal. So, weight watchers has got me back into eating a ton of fruit and veg, reducing the crap and boosting the quality of the food I eat (i.e. less processed rubbish).

    I know not everyone likes the idea of a commercial diet but something like WW does give you structure and makes you write everything down (which all diet gurus insist makes a big difference).

  • Anyways, within the WW structure - what I do is eat moderately during the week but I always ensure I take into account the exercise I have done that day - i.e. eat more if I have done a big session,eat less if I am having a lazy day. I then make sure i eat plenty the day before a long run or cycle and then eat more the same day as that big session. Then back to moderate for normal training days.

    WW lets you allocate 'points' for the exercise you do and so I always eat those extra calories on the same day as the training session. Similarly it gives you a weekly bank of extra points - those I use around the bigger training days which essentially means that I eat quite a lot on long run/cycle days.
  • DonaldoDonaldo ✭✭✭

    soulmate - always ran since I was 13 but seem to have long breaks for no real reason at times.  pb for 10K is 33:09 when I was 27, 14 years ago.  My goal is to get 37:30 and we'll take it from there.

    Training consists of a long run (10 or more), a few steady runs (between 4 and 7 miles) and up to two speed sessions a week - preferably one on a track and the other a time trial.

  • donaldo 33:09 thats somethink else, what weight was you at that time and your training then, for your steady runs what min miles do you do, and what speed work do you do, and what threads do you hang out at.
  • DonaldoDonaldo ✭✭✭

    lol questions questions!! image

    I was under 12 stone in weight when I did 33:09.  I'll never be that light again, I accept that and in fact, dont want to be that thin.

    Training runs are now just under 7 mins a mile for up to 6 miles.  7:30 a mile for up to 10 miles.  As fast as I can for a 4 mile time trial (maybe about 6:10-6:20 pace)

    Speedwork consists of something like 12 x 300m in less than a minute with a minute recovery.  Or perhaps 5-6 x 800m in about 2:50, something like that.  I like to vary it if I can and sometimes do 200s - I know I need to do some mile reps but need to be fitter first I think.

    I only hang out in the daily training thread and answer an occasional question like your one!  I hope you reach your goal, soulmate, it's worth going for it!! image

  • hope you reach your goal, soulmate, it's worth going for it   thanks donaldo
  • No takers for weight watchers then - I am not on commission you know!
  • hi donaldo how far your time trial and what time.
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