Did I mess up my metabolism with long cardio?

Y

yellowcoco

0
I have been trying to lose the weight I gained, which started as 10 extra pounds, since approx 1 year ago. Right now, I am 20lbs away from my "normal" weight. I have been eating approximately 1600-1800 cal/day, exercising 90-120min/day on the elliptical (low resistance but very fast). The elliptical has become very NOT challenging (have been doing it regularly for 5+years), and 1 hr on it doesn't make me feel like i have done anything (although it does make me sweat). I have tried to add running and HIIT, but no loss.

Well, it's my fault that I became afraid of the scale after hitting my ultimate high, and did not weigh myself since end of December 2010. I am afraid I messed up my metabolism from doing so much elliptical and eating 1600-1800 cal/day. I want to reduce my cal intake to 1200 and run for 60min and do HIIT and elliptical (approx 90min) on alternating days.

Any input? Could I have really messed up my metabolism? With 90-120min of cardio, I have rather gained 10 more lbs recently. I am feeling very discouraged and I am not sure what to do. Don't athletes endure more training than 2 hrs?
 
I don't think you messed up your metabolism, I think you've just hit a plateau. If the elliptical is very easy for you, I think you should increase the resistence of it. Make it more difficult. Does your machine have a hill setting where it will gradually increase and decrease the resistance through the workout?

I'd suggest adding some weights to build some muscle which can help in burning calories. Also try out some different form of exercise like swimming, cycling, or some kind of sports.
 
FleurDeLis said:
I don't think you messed up your metabolism, I think you've just hit a plateau. If the elliptical is very easy for you, I think you should increase the resistence of it. Make it more difficult. Does your machine have a hill setting where it will gradually increase and decrease the resistance through the workout?

I'd suggest adding some weights to build some muscle which can help in burning calories. Also try out some different form of exercise like swimming, cycling, or some kind of sports.
Click to expand...

Thanks.

So what exactly causes a plateau with exercise?? Because in exactly 1 year, I have gained 10lbs, all the while trying to lose. What is going on? I exercise so much and watch what I am eating. I am afraid I will gain even more.
 
In my opinion, you need to change your workout every 4 weeks. Over time your body will to used to what your putting it through. Once that happens...I won't burn NEAR as many calories as you would doing something that your body has a hard time doing. Changing up your workouts will keep your body in check so it does not become complacent.
 
A plateau is caused by your body adapting to the exercise. Therefore you don't work as hard and then don't burn as many calories. As RadioActive mentioned, changing your exercise up will help you avoid this problem.

Perhaps you should also re-evalulate your bmr and then reduce it to make sure your falling into a caloric deficit. Doing this paired with your workouts should help you lose that 10lbs.
 
I used to change my cardio up every week, now I change it everyday just so my body doesnt get used to the workout. Ive lost 20lbs in the last month and a half and cardio and calorie counting is the key. I cant do weights right now, but cardio only is working great. I do anywhere from 45-60min a day...7 days a week. I make it hard. My speed is anywhere from 3.5 to 3.9mph and my inclines are from 4% to 12% for 2 minutes each. I change it up everyday. I do my inclines up, up, then down, or up, down, up, up, or any variation I feel like for 2 minutes per incline, or decline. I keep the speed up at around 3.5 mostly, but i do increase it, and nothing under 3.5 except for the 30 second warm up at the start. I dont keep the routine the same. Also, weigh yourself every week. Its important to see your progress. Dont get discouraged if you dont lose anything when you think you should. Keep at it, and you will!
 
You should be monitoring your heart rate while exercising, that is the only way one can truly tell how hard they are actually working. Try upping the resistance and going very hard for 5 minutes, break for a minute then hard for another 5 minutes. Repeat this for about 25 minutes. You need to peak your heart rate, that's how you'll burn the most amount of calories and get the best results. If you still find the elliptical too easy, find something else you can do. You need to challenge yourself physically if you want results. I hope this helped, good luck and all the best.
 
I agree with what others have already said about changing your workouts. Try alternating your normal elliptical workout with a more challenging one. So one day, you will do your normal 90-120 min steady-paced workout, then the next day, do an interval-type workout. This is just an example:

5-10 min easy-moderate warm-up

repeat 4-6 times: 30-60 sec - bump up the resistance (a lot) and go as hard as you can. 2 mins - take the resistance back down (a lot) and let your heart rate and breathing recover.

5-10 min easy cool down

Just remember, if you do a high intensity workout, the length of the workout should be shorter than a low-intensity workout.
 
What is your calorie intake to maintain your weight without exercise? As long as you dont go over that, or burn atleast what you go over through any type of exercise you should not gain any weight.

I jog almost everyday. I would say atleast 5-6 days a week. I jog the same 6 mile trail. It takes me anywhere from 80-90 minutes. Sometimes I walk for 30 seconds every mile or so to mix things up and to sip my water bottle. I have never hit a plateau. In fact im finding it hard to maintain my weight because just when i think I messed up my calorie counting and think im going to gain, I end up losing weight.

Personally I would not change my exercise routine. Just change your calorie intake. If your daily calorie intake is 1600, try eating 1200 one day, then 2000 the next day.Just make sure you dont go over 3200 in a two day span.
 
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