Running and losing weight

Hey Guys, is there anyone here who is doing the calorie count AND running successfully?
The only way I ever lost weight was with counting calories. 1200 cal a week and it was working. But when I started running, 1.5 years ago, it was not working any more. Maybe the 1200 calories was not enough, or I just concentrated too much on achieving my goals in running, and was not able to watch my food, I don´t know, but I always gave up.
I do not want to stop running, but I want to lose weight.
I will start tracking food today again, with 1500 per day, but I need some buddies

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Anybody want to join so we can support each other?

Replies

Yep, I started running using C25k at 300lbs in May-13, and weekend before last ran the London Marathon weighing 163lbs. I didn't lose any weight during marathon training (or gain any) as the mileage made me hungry! Prior to the London training (and back on it today) I eat 1900 cals a day and was losing around 0.5lbs a week (I'm 5'6" and 42y-o)

I got to my goal weight of 160 Lbs through running but I would do things differently in the way I went about it. I ate at about 1600 calories, lost about 1-2 lbs a week. Other weeks I wouldn't lose anything. I think you should follow a plan where you do running and strength training. You'll make a lot more progress that way. Strength training can help you in your runs. I should also add I don't run as much as I did when I started losing weight mainly because I'm more focused on strength training now and too much cardio will ruin muscle gain but I'm still able to run 3-5 miles without a problem and strength training definitely plays a role in that.

Thanks for the comments and congrats to you!
I am 40 years old and 74 kg (163 lbs), 162 cm (5´3´´), running 3-4 times a week, however the last few weeks were hectic and I skipped some trainings.
Also I have not watched my food and was eating everything. I have to say I eat a lot of bread and this is clearly one bad habit I need to change.
I am just about to start BodyRock training on the days I do not run.

afromagyar wrote: »

Thanks for the comments and congrats to you!
I am 40 years old and 74 kg (163 lbs), 162 cm (5´3´´), running 3-4 times a week, however the last few weeks were hectic and I skipped some trainings.
Also I have not watched my food and was eating everything. I have to say I eat a lot of bread and this is clearly one bad habit I need to change.
I am just about to start BodyRock training on the days I do not run.

You will not lose the weight by exercising, unless the plan is to run for several hours daily. You will have to focus on calories.

I have lost lots of weight by running. C25K, specifically. In early 2014 I did the C25K, and did not count calories at all, although I think I did try to eat a bit healthier. I lost about 20 pounds in about 3-4 months. I wasn't trying to lose weight, but I did realize that I couldn't keep running at the weight I was.

When I achieved my goal (running 5k), I ran out of motivation and stopped running. Guess what? The weight came back.

About 6 months later, I started C25K again. This time I have ALSO diligently counted calories. I have lost more than 55 pounds in 3 1/2 months. I do not limit my calories - I eat when I am hungry, but ONLY enough to satisfy me, and only healthy foods. I find that I am eating 1200-1400 calories. I am now running 5k about 3 times a week. I weigh myself daily, and I find that I typically only lose weight on the days that I run.

I know I may be doing a couple things wrong. I am losing weight at a very quick rate. And I am weighing daily. I don't suggest everybody does it this way. In fact, my wife is also exercising and losing weight, but she is going about it slightly differently, with different (but still positive) results.

Here is how I motivate myself on the days (sometimes multiple days) that I do not lose anything: I do not know ANYBODY who runs regularly, eats healthy, and is still fat. If you do these two things, your body WILL eventually conform. I am also convinced that the only thing that matters is a simple math formula: calories IN (consumed) minus calories OUT (burned). If, over time, this is a negative number (meaning you burn more calories than you eat), your body has no choice but to lose weight.

By the way, you should also periodically check your body fat percent, or at least take circumference measurements at various locations (neck, waist, hips, thigh, calf, etc). It is possible that you ARE burning fat, but also adding muscle.

Dave, thanks for the very useful comment and congrats to you for the running and weight loss.

I run, lift, and lose weight. The calorie deficiet is how the weight comes off. The running and lifting just add to the size of the calorie deficiet I choose to have each day and keep me toned and fit. Running is definately my go-to exercise of choice but if you are not watching what you are eating it is most certainly possible to run and gain weight. I am fully in agreeement with Dave's math.

I started running a couple years ago and didn't lose a single pound. But I wasn't tracking my intake, and in hindsight I was probably eating back all my running calories, which created a maintenance for years ( I wanted to lose). Then I started tracking my intake, and the weight started to come off. This was IN ADDITION to running and lifting weights. I never stopped, and actually continued to increase my exercise while eating less calories. It was painfully slow and steady, but I lost and kept off 20 lbs over about 2 years. Then after the holidays last year I regained a couple lbs and decided to try MFP, and am now seeking much better results now that I have a more formal and accurate way to track my calories. The combination of running and counting calories has been a success for me.

And how many calorie is yr daily intake? 1200 cal is not enough for me, I am trying 1500 now (on the days when I run, I eat a bit more).

I'm an avid runner and count calories. Honestly when I stop running I gain 5-8 lbs seemingly overnight. I also weight train and cross train. The more I work out the better I eat so it does more than just burn calories for me. If I'm working out I can drop the calorie counting for a bit but if I drop the exercise I gain.

Hi Andrea, the body has a tendency to stall with weight loss when you do the same thing (just running) I know this from years of experience, you have to up your regime by adding something different as well. I added personal aerobics and this worked for me. I just created a simple 4 step exercise program/regime that was vigorous for 60 minutes 5 times per week and this helped me to break the stalling barrier.

I started my current weight reduction journey in Oct 2011 at 260 pounds (I'm 5'10"). I decided to go low carb (because it had worked for me in the past) and run (because I hadn't exercised previously while trying to keep my weight down). I tracked my calories with MFP, and followed a C25k like running program, with the goal of running a marathon within a year. As my endurance increased, I was able to eat more, but I usually only ate back about 75% of my exercise calories. Three and a half years later I'm 180 pounds and have run 5 marathons and 14 halves, and have been maintaining my weight for about 6 months.

Guys, you are very inspiring, thanks a lot for sharing!

mikey_gee wrote: »

Hi Andrea, the body has a tendency to stall with weight loss when you do the same thing (just running) I know this from years of experience, you have to up your regime by adding something different as well. I added personal aerobics and this worked for me. I just created a simple 4 step exercise program/regime that was vigorous for 60 minutes 5 times per week and this helped me to break the stalling barrier.

Not fact.

Exercise can help create a deficit but it is your food and being in a deficit that helps you lose weight.

Your body doesn't "get used to" exercise and hold onto fat.

I started running at ~255lbs last September; I'm 196 now. Until near the start of April this year I was not counting calories, just running and more or less eating as usual, although as I felt progress I know I probably optimized things as I noticed I stopped having certain treats. I feel strongly that I'd have progressed even farther had I been calorie counting from the start, but my overarching goal in the beginning was to improve fitness not just lose weight. As a former distance runner I'm glad to be back on track.

I don't run due to a bad knee, but I use an elliptical trainer, hopefully to similar effect, pretty much daily. I also lift three times a week (just started a heavy weights program) and have a regular yoga practice, about 4 times a week. With all that activity, I couldn't possibly eat at 1200 calories. MFP gives me 1340 cals to lose. I eat back 50-75% of the calories I burn by exercising as a rule, or I wouldn't have the energy to work out, which generally puts me at 1600 cals. On days that I lift weights I probably eat 100% of the calories I gain through exercise, because I'm hungry and I want to gain lean body mass if possible, so 1800.

I switch it up because I love all three exercises and they benefit me in totally different ways, plus I like diversity in my fitness programs. Yesterday I threw in a dance class to try something fun. It keeps me from getting bored!

mikey_gee wrote: »

Hi Andrea, the body has a tendency to stall with weight loss when you do the same thing (just running)

No, no, no.

While I'm all for mixing things up and not becoming lopsided - one should work on other parts of their body to strengthen everywhere, it'll help make a runner more resilient overall - weight loss has absolutely nothing to do with running. Loss has everything to do with calorie deficit. If running helps you create a deficit consider that a win-win.

Any stall an individual experiences has to do with not adapting to changing circumstances as the individual drops weight.

Case in point, when I started running again last September I was 58 pounds heavier than I am today. For a given level of activity I most definitely consumed more calories then than now. It simply takes more energy (calories) for old-me to move that all that bulk N kilometers than it does to move new-me the same distance.

If you continue to consume the same number of calories that old-fatter-you required for daily use + running N kilometers than current-thinner-fitter you requires for the same activity then a "stall", or worse if you are on the borderline for CICO balance, is absolutely to be expected.

AndreaTrombitas wrote: »

And how many calorie is yr daily intake? 1200 cal is not enough for me, I am trying 1500 now (on the days when I run, I eat a bit more).

My daily intake is set by MFP at 1250 for a 1/2 lb weekly loss. But I eat more most days depending on how much I exercise. So usually closer to 1400-1500, but it varies.

I do. On days that I run, I eat back about 80% of the calories, otherwise I get too hungry or I get too tired to keep running. Been loosing 1.5-2lbs per week. I sign up for some sort of organized run at least once a month and celebrated finishing with a huge post race meal.

yes you can! But you r3eally need to ask yourself a few things... How many miles a week do you run? I would suggest you have a long run included on a weekend with runs during the week that are shorter and faster. You need to change your pace up get your heart rate going.... on the longer run slow and steady. So perhaps during the week run 3 to 4 miles at a time. Do that a few times during the week. On one of those days run it faster walk catch your breath or jog slow then repeat. If you can get a heart rate monitor to see how hard you are working.

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