Recommended Calorie intake?

[lauramarie]

Hi, I recently began weight training- alternating lower body one day and upper body the next. I also do about 30 to 45 min. of caridio on the elipitcal with intervals..

I am 122 pds and 5'5. I would like to loose about 4 or 5 pounds, but would also like to gain lean muscle.

Can someone recommend to me what my daily calorie intake should be in order to loose body fat while gaining muscle?

Thanks so much for any help.

[dianas05]

Originally Posted by lauramarie

Hi, I recently began weight training- alternating lower body one day and upper body the next. I also do about 30 to 45 min. of caridio on the elipitcal with intervals..

I am 122 pds and 5'5. I would like to loose about 4 or 5 pounds, but would also like to gain lean muscle.

Can someone recommend to me what my daily calorie intake should be in order to loose body fat while gaining muscle?

Thanks so much for any help.

I would suggest around 1500-1700 calories. You need to have more calories on weight training days than cardio days. Also, on rest days you need to decrease even more. But, I wouldn't recommend eating less than 1,400 for your stats.

[lauramarie]

wow 1500 to 1700?

That seems like alot to/for me...

Currently I do cardio every day- should I not do it on days I weight train??

[lauramarie]

Is it even possible to do this at the same time? (loose weight, gain muscle)?

Should I concentrate first on loosing the few pounds and THEN on gaining muscle?

[Lady C]

Originally Posted by lauramarie

Is it even possible to do this at the same time? (loose weight, gain muscle)?

Yes, it is possible - I did it. My scale weight never changed and I am half the bodyfat I was before.

Originally Posted by lauramarie

Should I concentrate first on loosing the few pounds and THEN on gaining muscle?

No, gain muscle, it will burn more calories than the fat

[dianas05]

Originally Posted by lauramarie

wow 1500 to 1700?

That seems like alot to/for me...

Currently I do cardio every day- should I not do it on days I weight train??

Really? You need to feed the muscle so around that many calories is good for you. I suggest doing cardio on separate days for example:

Monday - Legs
Tuesday - Cardio
Wednesday - Chest & Shoulders
Thursday - Cardio
Friday - Back, Biceps, & Triceps
Saturday - Cardio
Sunday - OFF

[styxfan]

I read that you should never just have an "arm day." Arms should always be worked after legs, because when you work your legs first, it pumps your body full of testosterone, and that will help your arms get more muscular. Has anyone else ever heard this? (or the contrary?)

[lauramarie]

I am on a program with my gym. They have what is called a "virtual trainer"
I sat down with a trainer in the very beginning and told him my goals, he took my measurment, bf %, and had me do some "tests" to see where I was at.
Then they designed a workout for me, I complete it at my own pace, just pick it up when I come in- it tells me what machine to go how many reps to do and at what weight. I right in everything I do and it updates/adjusts accordingly for me, for the next workout.
It alternates me on the upper and lowe body...

Anyways, I wanted to add to my earlier question that the reason I ask is because when I first began my new routine (adding weights) I was at 124, bf % 24, 1 week later I had lost 2 pounds (on 1200 cal) 2 weeks later I had lost another pound, and my bf% went down to 17%. I then "upped" my calories to about 1400 a day. Well when I weighed in for the week, I had gained a pound. It really discouraged me.

And so yeah Im confused now since "upping" apparently didnt work well for me, so thats why I wanted some suggestions, based on my workouts- how many cal's I should be eating.
Today I went to 1250 of clean foods....guess Ill see at the end of the week what it does for me ???

[dianas05]

Originally Posted by lauramarie

I am on a program with my gym. They have what is called a "virtual trainer"
I sat down with a trainer in the very beginning and told him my goals, he took my measurment, bf %, and had me do some "tests" to see where I was at.
Then they designed a workout for me, I complete it at my own pace, just pick it up when I come in- it tells me what machine to go how many reps to do and at what weight. I right in everything I do and it updates/adjusts accordingly for me, for the next workout.
It alternates me on the upper and lowe body...

Anyways, I wanted to add to my earlier question that the reason I ask is because when I first began my new routine (adding weights) I was at 124, bf % 24, 1 week later I had lost 2 pounds (on 1200 cal) 2 weeks later I had lost another pound, and my bf% went down to 17%. I then "upped" my calories to about 1400 a day. Well when I weighed in for the week, I had gained a pound. It really discouraged me.

And so yeah Im confused now since "upping" apparently didnt work well for me, so thats why I wanted some suggestions, based on my workouts- how many cal's I should be eating.
Today I went to 1250 of clean foods....guess Ill see at the end of the week what it does for me ???

You see, everyone is different. What works for one person doesn't work for the other. Try experimenting and see what gets YOU the results. By the way, congratulations on the lose of bodyfat! :

[tyel]

Originally Posted by lauramarie

Anyways, I wanted to add to my earlier question that the reason I ask is because when I first began my new routine (adding weights) I was at 124, bf % 24, 1 week later I had lost 2 pounds (on 1200 cal) 2 weeks later I had lost another pound, and my bf% went down to 17%.

I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but it is highly improbably that you reduced your bodyfat by 7% in three weeks. This is likely due to inaccuracies in whatever method is being used to measure your bf. Even the best methods can have a variance of +/- 2-3%. Add in changes for how hydrated you were, when you last ate, where you are in your monthly cycle, etc., etc., and I bet you'll find that much of that loss doesn't really exist. :-(

If you really want to track your bodyfat, take pictures and buy some calipers. While you may make errors that result in a less-than-accurate reading, as long as your errors are consistent you will be able to trend your results. Also, rely on the mirror: any significant reduction in bodyfat or increase in muscle will be apparent in how you look.

[lauramarie]

Yes I figured as much and to tell you the truth, I wasnt really counting on that..Since I agree- the method couldnt exactly be correct.
I am more concerned with how my clothes are fitting---not so good, in fact tighter this week than the week I cut to 1200. Should I not up? I only did because I thought I was "supposed" for how much w/o I do...

I've been sticking to 1200 this week (as opposed to last week on 1400, where I gained)
That is really my question...not really concerned with the bf at the moment...
I need the right info. i.e correct cal intake. so I can make sure I am doing this all the "right" way. THEN I can really count on bf, and doing it correctly.

[tyel]

Unfortunately, it's not so easy to predict the exact number of calories you need. I've gotten ranges as wide as from 1550-2200 calories for my height and weight, depending on whose calculations I use. here are some sites where you can get an estimate you can use as a starting point:

www.fitday.com
http://caloriesperhour.com/index_burn.html
www.bodyforlife.com

The key thing to remember -- and this is tough for anyone who wants to lose weight -- is that undereating can be as detrimental to weight loss as overeating. When you consume too few calories, your body goes into starvation mode. quite literally, it thinks that there's a shortage of food and therefore slows its metablosim in order to preserve as many calories (energy) as possible. Eating 6 smaller meals rather than 3 larger ones helps to offset this. You might also want to look at some of the journals to see what others are eating and/or post your diet here, so that you can receive more targeted advice. At first blush, I am inclined to think that you need 1400-1500 calories at a minimum and possibly more.

[lauramarie]

Well you might be right. I guess I just might have to tough out the initial (if thats what it is) weight gain that comes with "upping".
I do think I need to up though, as today I am feeling pretty "fuzzy"
What do you think?

Here is what my menu may consist of on a typical day:
Breakfast (7:30a) english muffin with sf strawberry preserves, 1 apple with 1 tbs of peanut butter. OR 1 cup of Total cereal, with 1/2 cup of fiber one and 1 cup of ff milk.

11:00am-workout cardio for about 45 min.

12:30 Snack--apple with peanut butter (depending on what I have for breakfast)
2:30 Lunch-- 3 oz of chicken breast with 1 tbs of light mayo. Celery and lf ranch, ff mozza cheese stick. OR turkey sandwhich on WW bread w/ slice of lf swiss.

6:00 ish- lean cuisine (cause its easy) or a turkey sandwhich or chicken sandwhich.

W/O- lower or upper body weight, depending on day

Snack- strawberries and cool whip or Blue Bunny fudgsicle.

--usually about 1200 cal.
I know my times are a little out of whack, but those are the times I can fit in between class and work.

[lauramarie]

Oh and I only drink water--and alot of it.

Also I give myself one day off-usually Saturday, where I eat what I want (not overboard though)

[lauramarie]

Oh and usually, I stop eating past about 7. Around that time is when I go workout with weights, and then I usually dont get to bed till about 11.

I guess I am still under the belief that you dont eat 3 hrs before bed. So for me, I eat dinner, then go work out then by the time I get home it is too late for anything (even though I am usually hungry) maybe someone could recommend a decent snack for me for after my workouts that I can still have even when I am just going to bed ????