My routine and schedule

[nneehhaa]

Hello,I was weight training with a little bit of cardio all of last year and saw no results at all...I have now changed my routine..Please let me know your feedback.My Hight - 5 feet 8 inchesWeight - 197 LbsTarget - 160 LbsSetbacks - Pain in knee if I crosstrain (elleptical)Diet - Morning...oat cereal with low fat milk1 cup Tea with Sugar Lunch - Veggies and whole wheat Pita bread and lentil soup1 cup Tea with Sugar Evening - A vegetable sandwich or egg whiteDinner - Soup and salad(I am a eggiterian at home, though I eat meat when I eat out)Lots of water!Water with Lemon and sugarfree sometimesCardio- Spinning - 5-6 times a week for about 50 mins and 5 mins. stretchesStrength Training/Weight TrainingOnce/Twice a weekI had overactive hormones which are getting back to normal. Lbs lost in last month...maybe 1-0. Everytime I get my period I weight a lot more which is normal for most people.Please comment and give feedback.Am I doing enough Cardio? Or do I need to add some other form of cardio?I cannot increase my food intake anymore.

[minime]

hello there, welcome to discussfitness

From what i can see you are probably undereating: however, to better judge this it would be nice to know your calories/breakdown. If you dont know you could try using FitDay - Free Weight Loss and Diet Journal to calculate them.

You are doing a lot of cardio. It may be better for you to try a 3x a week cardio, 3x a week weights approach.

What does your weight training currently look like?

[minime]

oh, also your diet looks to be quite low on protein & fats: it would be better to add protein to each meal, so:

I would base each meal around a lean protein source, add veggies/fruits, a starchy carb perhaps (like your oats), good fat sources like nuts, or olive oil.

so add some eggs to that breakfast, some protein to your lunch, and have small balanced snacks too: maybe a yogurt and some nuts, or a boiled egg and a fruit.

[sooner_ed]

Originally Posted by nneehhaa

Diet - Morning...oat cereal with low fat milk1 cup Tea with Sugar Lunch - Veggies and whole wheat Pita bread and lentil soup1 cup Tea with Sugar Evening - A vegetable sandwich or egg whiteDinner - Soup and salad(I am a eggiterian at home, though I eat meat when I eat out)

Why?

Read this post.

http://www.discussfitness.com/forums...?highlight=eat

[nneehhaa]

hmm...ok...i will try to add more...but usually when I eat more I put on...

I tried the 3 day cardio and 3 day weight training and it did not help me. I gained a few pounds instead of losing...My guess is because I was not doing as much cardio as need be.

[sooner_ed]

Originally Posted by nneehhaa

hmm...ok...

...but usually when I eat more I put on...

Don't try. You need to eat more. To lose weight, you have to eat!

Originally Posted by nneehhaa

I tried the 3 day cardio and 3 day weight training and it did not help me.

...My guess is because I was not doing as much cardio as need be.

And how do you know it wasn't muscle?

If you want to lose weight and if time permits, you should lift (or cardio) in the mornings and cardio (or lift) in the evenings. The more activity you do in one day, the more calories you burn.

Many people here are big fans of splitting lifting and cardio to different days. For maximum calorie burn, do both the same day, six days a week. Rest on the seventh.

[Lady C]

Originally Posted by nneehhaa

hmm...ok...i will try to add more...but usually when I eat more I put on...

I tried the 3 day cardio and 3 day weight training and it did not help me. I gained a few pounds instead of losing...My guess is because I was not doing as much cardio as need be.

The scale should not be your measurement tool. Use the mirror, how your clothes fit, pictures or even a tape measure. The scale does not care if it is weighing fat, muscle or water.

[nneehhaa]

While doing wieghts not only did my body fat increase from 34 - 38% and I increased about 8 lbs. I measure more too. It was wierd!

[sooner_ed]

Originally Posted by nneehhaa

While doing wieghts not only did my body fat increase from 34 - 38% and I increased about 8 lbs. I measure more too. It was wierd!

In my opinion, the only way your body fat was increasing was because you were not eating enough.

Originally Posted by nneehhaa

Diet - Morning...oat cereal with low fat milk1 cup Tea with Sugar Lunch - Veggies and whole wheat Pita bread and lentil soup1 cup Tea with Sugar Evening - A vegetable sandwich or egg whiteDinner - Soup and salad(I am a eggiterian at home, though I eat meat when I eat out)

You need a MINIMUM of around 1200 calories per day. Anything less makes your body go into starvation mode. When this happens, your body stores ALL food you eat as fat and your body will slow it's metabolism rate so it will have energy to live on.

As I said in my post I referenced in my first response to you, you need to EAT to lose weight. Keep the fire (your metabolism) stoked by putting wood (food) on it during the day. This keeps your metabolism running at it's set point.

Your body needs so many calories each day just to live, not including all the calories you expend during the day doing other things, in particular, exercising.

I know it sounds weird, but you do have to EAT to lose weight. Let me rephrase: You have to EAT in order to lose body fat.

[minime]

Yes indeed: in order to even function your body generally needs 1200 calories a day, and that would be if you were bedbound.

You will never correct a sluggish metabolism by continually starving your body! Increase your calories slowly, and if you gain a few lbs now, so be it, it is the long run you should think about. Otherwise where will it all end, if you don't do anything about it now.. next thing youll be eating 800calories a day and you'll still not be happy with your body.

EAT!!

[LiftGirl]

So far, I agree with everyone's advice to eat.

Also, you should be weight training a minimum of twice a week.

You posted your cardio routine, but did not go into detail on your weightlifting routine. We can help you tweak it if you'll post up exactly what exercises and how many sets and reps you're doing.

[CF-OC_gal]

No one has asked you about your training program. I find it surprising that someone can workout and find absolutely no progress. Diet is important but IMHO it is more important to get your training/ workouts right than to get your diet right. Hopefully you can find an equilibrium for both.

So... what does your week's worth of workouts look like?

[LiftGirl]

Originally Posted by Brat

No one has asked you about your training program. I find it surprising that someone can workout and find absolutely no progress. Diet is important but IMHO it is more important to get your training/ workouts right than to get your diet right. Hopefully you can find an equilibrium for both.

So... what does your week's worth of workouts look like?

I asked about it! See two posts above I agree with Brat. It's most likely your training that needs tweaking.

[Debs1965]

Maybe you should try doing a class like Spinning or Body pump,both of these are to music and these really helped me lose weight an tone up.and they were fun.You need to eat more,im still losing weight and i eat loads more!! i go to the Gym 3 or 4 times a week.

[CF-OC_gal]

Originally Posted by LiftGirl

I asked about it! See two posts above I agree with Brat. It's most likely your training that needs tweaking.

I meant the details of what it consists of as I see now that you did too.