Been on a diet but need advice about some things please

[MCS]

I know there are some peeps here that know their stuff when it comes to diets/nutrition - have read plenty of posts here before

I have been on a diet and it has gone extremely well. I look better and feel better than I have done in YEARS. I am around 5'10" and used to weigh 215lbs, I am currently 155lbs (ish). Big difference! I acheived this by simply reducing my calorie intake to 1200-1300 a day (I have an inactive desk job). I also made sure to change to a healthy balanced diet too, so as to have a better life style as well as just shedding some weight. The pounds fell off nicely (about 2lb a week), and I couldn't be happier! However - people always talk about how to start dieting, but what about post-diet? I am so used to eating my set amount of calories that it is hard to think of ways to increase my food without eating junk. And I do need to eat more, because I am still losing weight and I don't want to! On top of this, while I feel much much fitter in terms of walking, running, flexibility etc I do feel "weaker". Take the example of carrying a heavy object like a TV up a few flights of stairs. At 215lbs (me, not the TV!), I would be KNACKERED. Out of breath, sweating etc. Now, I am neither out of breath OR sweating after the same activity (well obviously I am a bit but not anywhere near as much!) but instead my muscles seem to ache. I don't remember them aching before. Is it possible that I have gone too far and "burned away" some muscle? Do I need to start working out more? I wouldn't mind a little advice, especially to hear from people that have lost a large amount of weight and how you maintained it, how you feel etc.

Thanks!

 

[StageLeft]

<< Is it possible that I have gone too far and "burned away" some muscle? Do I need to start working out more? >>



Not only is it possible but it's almost entirely likely. A 5'10 guy your previous weight who loses 70 lbs...did you do any weight training during this time? 1200-1300 calories is pretty low so unless you were doing weight training and consuming a good bit of protein you definitely lose muscle mass.

However, now you can start gaining it back without getting fat! Since you don't want to lose weight anymore just up your calorie content. You don't have to include junk - just more of what you're eating now. You should really do weight training both for looks and health (it will help a lot with weight control). Your metabolism is probably a bit slower than it could be so don't go wild but try upping your calorie content to about 2000/day and do some weight training and see where you go from there.

EDIT: Start weight training and a great way to include some healthy calories would be with a sports drink like myoplex from EAS (but it from GNC) or something similar.

 

[SubZeroX]

MCS, may I ask how long did it take for you to lose 60 lbs? I would like to lose 20-30 lbs in about 3-4 months. And I'll try your method. Thanks.

 

[MCS]

I do have a set of weights at home which I used for a time, but it kind of phased out. The diet was going so well with JUST a lowered calorie intake it was hard to find the motivation to excercise During the summer I did a lot of walking, long walks at a fast pace, which I think helped a lot to kick-start the diet. So it appears I might be slimmer but I am now weaker. From the information I have given - would you say Skoorb I am in an unhealthy situation, or just undesirable? If its just simply a case that I have lost muscle mass then I can live with that until I can fix it

SubZeroX - I did about 6 months of "cutting down" and went from 215 to 203lbs. That is to say I was not controlling my calories but just cutting back on fatty foods. That was from about November to May. I then started the diet properly and reduced my calorie intake to a specific amount. The average male apparantly needs 2500 calories per day. I reckoned that I am an under-active person (typical day is drive to work, sit at desk, drive home, sit on sofa/at computer/in pub - you see the point!), so 2000 is probably a max for me. I tried to work out a meal plan that was less than this and it just so happened that most of them came out at 1200-1300 calories (I was aiming for less than 1500). Cutting by 500 a day is 3500 a week = 1lb lost per week, and without excercise. You also need to eat the right things - cereal, breads, dairy, fresh fruit veg, rice, pasta, tuna, chicken etc - things that fill you up too. I am in no way an expert in all this but it worked for me.

 

[MCS]

Bumpage

 

[rahvin]

I believe that the average male of your size would burn 1200 cal's just existing. You start moving around, thinking doing other stuff and you will burn more calories. You should move your cal intake up to at least 2000 cals, and junk food doesn't hurt you, just remember the amount of cals in it. The calories are what matter more than anything, you just get more food per calorie with healthy food. Along with that 2000 cals diet get a good amount of protien and start excersizing, in particual weights. You can put the muscle back but it's gonna hurt.

 

[MCS]

According to various sources I should have an intake of 2400 calories per day, 1700 of which are necessary just to live if all I did was lay in bed all day long. No wonder I am wasting away, and no wonder the diet worked so well. It's still hard to break the pattern I have gotten into though, without getting the feeling I am eating "too much".

 

[pillage2001]

<< According to various sources I should have an intake of 2400 calories per day, 1700 of which are necessary just to live if all I did was lay in bed all day long. No wonder I am wasting away, and no wonder the diet worked so well. It's still hard to break the pattern I have gotten into though, without getting the feeling I am eating "too much". >>



What about a protein diet??? I'm sure that will solve your problem.

 

[MCS]

<< What about a protein diet??? I'm sure that will solve your problem. >>



I wouldn't know where to start! Lots of eggs and meat is all I know...