It spring and I am in my second month of cutting down and every year the same I get to a point when I lose about 12- 15 LB I start to get weaker and weaker every week. I still have 10 to 15 to more go but I hate when I start looking really good but I feel weak!I have cut my weight training down to 2 day a week with less set and exercises, just the basics but added 2 days of GPP I mix it up sprinting, wood chopping for time, sand bag walking, burpees, high rep dumb bell snatches. my bench, squat and deadlift keep going down. if I don’t to any conditioning work I don’t lose any weight and still get weaker just by dieting alone .What am I missing any thoughts.
Beast, do some research into Leptin, you may find it interesting.
Check it out and then post again, your body is just fighting you from doing something that it is genetically programed against for the last couple 100,000 years.
beast, do you cycle your workouts, or do you go “balls out” all the time? You should be taking a lower intensity (less %of 1RM/perception of effort) at least 1 time every 4 weeks. For example, when I cycle my big lifts, it is as follows:
week 1 5 sets of 5
week 2 3 sets of 3
week 3 5,4,3,2,1
week 4 3 sets of 10
repeat cycle again
every 8 to 12 weeks I take a complete week of rest.
you can’t go balls out all the time, especially if you are dieting because it will eat into your recovery. I don’t ever cut down however due to my work schedule (I am a night owl that gets up at 5 a.m. five days a week) I have to cycle my workouts as such for the very same reason-sub optimal recovery. for me it is lack of sleep, for you it is calorie depravation.
hope that gives you something to think about.
One other trick I use is the concept of strength reserve. this may make the westside wannabe’s turn over in their graves, but I never, ever, apply maximal effort in my workouts. I simply lack the recovery to do so. So I always stop my sets with a rep or two in the hole. This allows me to work with my less than optimal situation while also still getting stronger via the fact that I can apply more force towards a lighter resistance using similar volume because I never come close to a maximal effort.
You really need to post you ACTUAL diet. Do you know how many grams of P, C and F? Just take the time to post it or PM me.
I eat about 5 to 6 times a day with a more or less 2000 to 2500 calorie a day. with one or two small snacks . I cut out all processes starches and starchy carbs .I try to eat at least 3 to 5 ounces of protein at each meal. and a cup or two of veggies of each of five meals . protein is mostly chicken, tuna , eggs,low fat cottage’s cheese and low fat cheeses and beef, in that order. my fat in my diet is mostly Olive oil and natural peanut butter .my one to two snacks are fresh fruit, peanuts or peanut butter.
[quote]beast 455 wrote:
I eat about 5 to 6 times a day with a more or less 2000 to 2500 calorie a day. with one or two small snacks . I cut out all processes starches and starchy carbs .I try to eat at least 3 to 5 ounces of protein at each meal. and a cup or two of veggies of each of five meals . protein is mostly chicken, tuna , eggs,low fat cottage’s cheese and low fat cheeses and beef, in that order. my fat in my diet is mostly Olive oil and natural peanut butter .my one to two snacks are fresh fruit, peanuts or peanut butter. [/quote]
I don’t mean to sound harsh but 2000-2500 cal. is a HUGE (500 calorie) gap! And you are not even sure whether it’s 2000 or 2500. You need to take the time to calculate your current calorie levels accuratley and perhaps use John Berardi’s “Don’t Diet” diet plan. (do a search). I have a feeling your calories are too LOW. It sounds like you are really working you ass off and I hate to see you be frustrated. What is your current bodyweight?
Do you really cycle your weight that severely every year?
My thoughts (for what they’re worth) I’ll bet if you took some time to lose 30lbs instead of, I assume practically starving it off, you would not lose as much strength. I bet you lose a lot of lean mass dieting down so quickly. I would highly encourage you to take a more gradual approach. I believe that the first 10-15 lbs or so you lose “quickly” are water, fat as well as bulk in your digestive tract. The next 10-15 are likely to be muscle and fat in that order.