overtraining misery/ what to do?

[flex4life]

Many gals get hung up on the numbers- cal burned, ca; consumed, etc...I did in the beginning.
The machines do not take into account height, BMR, bf% to muscle ratio- numbers posted on machines are general. Like Sassy said- do not count these #s. Personally, I do not look at these- I only read time & knowing how hard I worked at it. Strength training= metabolically active tissue=long term calorie burning BODY. Intense squats & walking lunges will burn cal while building muscle- it's a bonus deal without going overboard w/ cardio. As mentioned, short rests between sets=calories burning too.
You said you are not weighing yourself everyday- I would like to ask you personally to stay off the scale for a month. When I see a gal I know & have talked with, is concentrating on numbers, doing too much cardio & little weight training (if any) head for our gym scale, I tell her 'it's not accurate'. Too many times seen them get bummed out & lose determination because the scale does not read as they had hoped.
Good luck to you Wavy- do not give up!
There has been so much useful info posted on this thread- got to hand it to all these knowlegable gals who have a passion for fitness & the smart way to attain it.

 

[wavywoman]

whoa, still tired today...

Well, yesterday I took a day off, and today I managed to force myself to keep my cardio down to 40 minutes. Of course, my body helped that, since I felt really sssslow this morning. My fogginess is a little better. I was going on for a while eating under my BMR and working out like a hamster on a wheel but I think it's finally kicked me in the @$$!
I'm trying to change my perspective here on cardio... Today I rationalized myself by telling myself those extra "400 I didn't burn" on the elliptical would go to more worthwhile endeavours-- like washing my car, cleaning my room, not feeling like a lump of jelly, etc.. I guess I burn off soo much in my workouts that I burn myself out, and have no energy for general life activities... Thanks so much for the great posts, everyone! I'll definitely print it out once it goes stale!

 

[dieslgrl]

overtraining

Well first off, I am right there with you letting the food consume you, instead of consuming the food.

I also prefer to train hard, and diet, but we always have to be realistic. If your body is telling you that you need to cut back, then cut back. If you aren't comfortable eating more, then stop killing yourself with the cardio, train with weights more often, and sleep eight hours every night. If you are too stubborn to cut anything, supplementation is the key. There are natural (legal) supplements if you are not looking to cross that line, that will help you. There are also really wonderful perscription drugs that wouldn't let the thought of overtraining cross your mind.

Instead of thinking about calories, think about a gram per gram basis.

What I do: I train with weights two days on (each weight training session is 1.5-2 hours hard), one day off... Cardio at least once a day.. If I do cardio only once, I do 25-35 minutes on a bike, or if its twice, its 20minutes am/pm. I only consume about 1200-1500calories a day (if you think calories). I try to keep my protein under 140-150g, carbs between 100-120g, and fat is between 20-35g. I am 5'4", 132lbs, vascular, six pack, and cut thighs... I understand that I am a bit excessive at this point, but its the summer, and hey, we all want to look good. (I also take a very mild steriod right now)
I plan on taking a few winter months to relax and gain a little more fat to heal myself so I can get ready for another show.

Understand that if you took the time to post that message, you are mearly having a mental battle with yourself about eating and exercise. Learn to relax. We all have to do that every so often... If your clothes fit a little tight, where them a little bigger... Look at yourself and know that you are relaxing now to look better and feel better later. Keep your head on straight. We all have times to train hard where some might call you obsessed, but to do it year round will become a problem. Try taking four to six weeks to slow down, don't stop completely... Do less cardio and maybe eat more... Your body will take its course and heal... then for another eight to twelve weeks, get back to your hard training.. You may find your body responding better to the rest and to the intense training...

Good luck and RELAX!!!!!

Dieslgrl

Ps. If you are worried about the people around you not feeling quite the same about you, you'll know if they are worth keeping if they do react differently to a softer you.

 

[wavywoman]

ahhhhh, feel much better today!

Well, I took a day off Saturday, did 40 minutes on the elliptical Sunday, and today I did 45 minutes on the elliptical with 1/2 hour or so of weight training! Well, I have done weight training before, but more haphazardly-- for example, in the past few weeks I've been only training upper body upper body upper body every other day or every two days (ignoring my legs for the most part because they were sore-- hmm, wonder why .) Today I hit every major muscle group for 3 sets at 15 reps at relatively low weights because my muscle has atrophied so much from overdoing cardio and undereating . I figure I'll follow the basic 3-day weight training plan in Sculpting Her Body. Then after a few months or so I'll do more targeted stuff if I can!
Wow, I feel SO MUCH BETTER TODAY ! With the help of all your great posts, common sense finally won out! I'm not foggy or voracious, I don't feel depressed or apathetic, and I'm not on the brink of ripping anyone's face off with my teeth . I'm crossing my fingers hoping I won't bloat up like a baloon, but hopefully if I keep my training up and keep my diet relatively clean I'll be all right. Then again, I over-cardioed/underate so much that I'm sure my metabolism was crawling like a snail from lethargy and sitting on my @$$ like a lump. Thank you guys so much! Any more advice is appreciated!

 

[wavywoman]

thanks for the concern

Did good mornings and leg presses today, intend to do squats on Wed.!

 

[fiatconspiracy]

at the risk of ticking a few people off , "There are no dangerous side effects of not having your period." There I said it. Talk to your gyno about this....most of the information about this has been misunderstood. but again talk to your doctor. As long as your mineral levels are stable and blood chemistry and pH normal, it is not a situation to worry about.
Being underweight is healthy. Do some research you will be surprised.

 

[dieslgrl]

frankly...

Another thing about not having your period, is well IT KICKS ASS!! No need for feminine products and that annoying week every month... I wasn't aware that it "wasn't" unhealthy, but now that I do, I won't sweat it ever again!

Thanks!
Dieslgrl

 

[wavywoman]

blood chemistry?

Although I've read a lot of conflicting information about amenorrhea... some people say it matters while other's done... Personally, I've had my blood hormone levels tested to find out the cause of this, and apparently I have low estrogen for my age. Medical experts "think" low estrogen and osteoperosis are linked, so I'm still kind of worried about it. Also, my sex drive has gone totally south from low estrogen, I think. When I had my period last January, I had a really bad body image problem (felt like a bloated cow) but I was 10x hornier! It depends on the person, I guess. Some super-hard weight training women in here probably gain more bone mass from lifting than they lose from not having their periods. On the other hand, I've read that having TOO many periods might be why women get more weird cancers... I dunno, just wish they created a pill we could pop and never have to think about periods again-- and just stop taking them when we want kids!

 

[Dingo12]

I was borderline underweight and lost my periods for 5 years. I had a bone scan and discovered that due to lack of estrogen my bones were aged at that of a 55 year old woman - I was half way towards osteoporosis. So don't tell me that not having periods is not harmful.

I now HAVE to take the pill just to get enough estrogen to prevent more bone loss - this means I find it difficult to remove fat from my body.

Also, stop measuring your cardio in terms of kcals. Relax and measure it in time, it is just as obssesive as watching the lbs all the time.

 

[wavywoman]

that's exactly what i worry about...

What you're talking about is precisely what I'm worried about, Dingo12!
I started facing my amenorrhea after I watched a program on PBS called "dying to be thin". It was about people with eating disorders-- full fledged eating disorders-- and they illustrated the differences between bone scans of an anorexic woman who had amenorrhea for ten years and a normal woman-- the amenorrheic woman had the bones of a 70 year old! It was a dramatization, but it still scared me. From the info I've read, women who don't have amenorrhea, even if they're really lean, don't have bone loss.
Like you were, I think I'm borderline underweight-- but very very borderline. I think that due to age I'm still technically "healthy".
WOW! I cut back my cardio to 45/50 minutes and feel GREAT! After reading Warlobo's thread about 60min cardio I'm sure that sounds odd to everyone, but I think I was going at a really hard fast pace... I feel so much sharper, less foggy, less depressed. I have the energy to WEIGHT TRAIN now and my muscle is sore but I feel GOOD. I don't get the shakes if I don't eat every 2 hrs.
Now it's been almost two weeks since I stopped progesterone after a three week estrogen/one week progesterone cycle... :sad: don't know what's going to happen now.