Discussion: Food Log

You are doing a food log too?

I've done it off and on for about 5 or 6 years... it's the only way to be accountable and prevent myself from eating all the junk I want. My clothes are getting tight and it's completely unacceptable.

Yeah weight and diet are so tricky. I feel like if I loose weight I start loosing my muscle but then the pant size goes down but then I am weak!! Weak enough as to where I can really notice it. I just dont know. I just had a physical last week and I weighed 150 on the dot and my body fat percentage was at 26%. MD said, technically by the BMI, I am considered overweight however when they took my body fat percentage I am not and considered in the ideal or normal category. Being an athlete I would like to get my body fat percentage down to around 20% though. Question is, how to do that!? Weight wise, I dont care but body fat percentage is important. Need to get leaner and keep up the muscle.

Any ideas!?

Work harder???

All summer I slacked and didnt really work out much. Not gonna lie! This winter I can certainly work harder. Problem is though, if I start working up my fitness will it carry over into race season without me burning out? When is the right time to start increasing the fitness so I dont get burned out once race time gets here in 2015 is my next question...... I need a coach!

I ask about the burning out because I have before about 4 years ago when I did a ton of running (before I got into the AR world). It was the best shape I was ever in (lower body fat then what I have now), but I totally burned out. I never saved time for recovery which was actually the real problem. I think since I started ARing my body fat has gone up.

If you're getting weaker when you lose weight, maybe you're not eating enough protein. I signed up for Eat to Perform because I have always had similar issues - go on a diet and feel terrible during workouts. In this plan, you only lower calories on non-workout and easy days, so it's a slow weight loss, but you keep and build muscle because you have the energy to do and recover from your workouts.

Here's my initial plan, subject to change:
150gP, 75gF and 275gC on training days.
On rest days, keep protein and fat consistent and drop carbs down to 125-150g

Start with loading 50gC/25gP pre and postWO.
Pre workout - slower digesting carb sources like sweet potatoes, oats, granola, etc
PostWO - faster digesting carb sources like white rice, very ripe bananas, dates, etc..
Avoid fats in your postWO meal as they slow down the absorption of carbs

Yeah I'm doing 125g protein low carb mod fat. I feel stronger. Oh, and I go through like 2 or 3 bags of spinach in a two week period. I eat tons of it.

Work harder???

Given that even Kyle at 20 hours per week has to tighten up his diet to cut weight...

That's why it kills me when people get on me about watching my diet with the old "as much as you work out, you should be able to eat anything you want." I think they have no idea how much I want to eat. I want all the candy, cookies, brownies... All of it.

Yeah, people really have no clue. Problem is, at least for me, I have been an "athlete" for about ten years now and I certainly cannot eat whatever I want just because I ran ten miles or whatever.... And that is because our bodies have gotten used to the fitness. I am on a normal healthy eating style just like anyone else who doesnt work out simply because my body is used to all the miles. Its all been a lifestyle for so long and the body gets used to it. I suppose I can occasionally ramp up my metabolism if I want by doing more sprint training but still, I cant be stuffing myself with cakes. Only on race weekends I can do that.

Only way to drop the lbs it to lower the calories. I am more concerned on dropping body fat percentage instead of muscle.