Hello everyone,
This is just a little background before I ask some questions to get some opinions and formulate a different training plan.
24 yr. old full-time working 225 lb. 5'7" young man. In high school I ran cross-country, track and field, soccer, football, and etc. Needless to say, college hit, and I got a little off track.
7 weeks ago, I weighed 253 lb and I began to hit elliptical machines and began running 1 - 1.5 miles (running is a bit of an exaggeration - more of a painful slogging through the streets
) I limited my diet to three meals a day, which I'm comfortable with (despite the ever-present 5-6 small meals a day rule), and my totally calories per day adds up to 1200. That's an average - usually every four or five days, I go up to 1500-1600 or so because I tend to feel as though I need it at that time. Weight melted off at first (5 lbs / week), and now I'm slowly plateauing (2-3 lbs / week). I take vitamin supplements for iron intake, I eat well rounded meals, though small, and I feel good.
I do want to start hitting the gym again and lifting weights to gain lean muscle tone (muscle endurance - a leaner muscle shape - I used to be quite bulky and muscular and I don't really want to be quite like that again). Should I take up the calories to higher protein to get me to 1600 or so a day? Even with this restricted loss combined with running, I'm wondering if any progress would be made. I'm not going to stop the cardio of running and the elliptical because I ultimately believe that's what is causing the weight to fall off so fast. So I suppose that's the bottom line - is it worth trying to gain a bit of lean muscle shape in my present condition, or should I just go for my goal of 165 lbs. and build from scratch up to 175-180 lbs.? Thanks for any help that can be given.
This is just a little background before I ask some questions to get some opinions and formulate a different training plan.
24 yr. old full-time working 225 lb. 5'7" young man. In high school I ran cross-country, track and field, soccer, football, and etc. Needless to say, college hit, and I got a little off track.
7 weeks ago, I weighed 253 lb and I began to hit elliptical machines and began running 1 - 1.5 miles (running is a bit of an exaggeration - more of a painful slogging through the streets
) I limited my diet to three meals a day, which I'm comfortable with (despite the ever-present 5-6 small meals a day rule), and my totally calories per day adds up to 1200. That's an average - usually every four or five days, I go up to 1500-1600 or so because I tend to feel as though I need it at that time. Weight melted off at first (5 lbs / week), and now I'm slowly plateauing (2-3 lbs / week). I take vitamin supplements for iron intake, I eat well rounded meals, though small, and I feel good. I do want to start hitting the gym again and lifting weights to gain lean muscle tone (muscle endurance - a leaner muscle shape - I used to be quite bulky and muscular and I don't really want to be quite like that again). Should I take up the calories to higher protein to get me to 1600 or so a day? Even with this restricted loss combined with running, I'm wondering if any progress would be made. I'm not going to stop the cardio of running and the elliptical because I ultimately believe that's what is causing the weight to fall off so fast. So I suppose that's the bottom line - is it worth trying to gain a bit of lean muscle shape in my present condition, or should I just go for my goal of 165 lbs. and build from scratch up to 175-180 lbs.? Thanks for any help that can be given.
