please advise-- i am so frustrated!! for the past 18 months i have done group pilates classes on the reformer three to four times a week. also have done atkins during this time and lost 30lbs.i have plateaued for 7 months at this weight. this spring i have started riding my horse 3times a week and two weeks ago i added 30-45 minutes of cardio 3-4 times a week. my questions are:when should i eat carbs?? should i have carbs for breakfast and then again after my workout? lately i have been eating a slice of dry ezekial bread with my mornig eggs,spinach and ham. i feel like i should have some carbs after my workout,too,,but what and how soon after? normally i eat a salad and piece of chicken at lunch,then meat and veggies again at dinner.
i know i should i have piece of fruit with peanut butter or cheese,, but when??how many pieces of fruit and how often and with what?? if so,should i eliminate my bread at breakfast?
i do drink a couple of glasses of red wine and have a restaurant dessert on the weekends,i find that those satisfy me for the rest of the week.
my weight is still mostly carried in my upper abdomen,,which is where all the weight gain went to after full body lipo six years ago. isn't sbd supposed to work on belly fat?
i really hope someone here can help me,,i was ready to cry this morning when i saw the scale still hadn't moved. i'm not really obsessed by the numbers,,i just want my size 12 jeans to fit me loosely again!
tia,,suz.
You are right, your body needs carbs when working out at that intensity and frequency.
Eat 30 min-1 hour prior to exercise. Have the toast with breakfast and the fruit and PB (example) after the exercise (anytime from right after to 30 minutes after.) If you are working out for an hour or more, eat and drink during your exercise, too. Or have some Powerade. Your body will thank you.
I eat low carb too... But when I do eat carbs I eat low glycemic carbs, like frozen strawberries, oatmeal, brown rice... As UNPROCESSED as possible... your "dry ezekial bread" doesn't sound very filling at all... I eat 5-6 meals/day, and usually eat my carbs for the first 3 meals only, and always with a good source of lean protein...
It almost sounds like you're not eating enough calories, and your body has gone into starvation mode and therefore has plateaued(sp?)...
You don't mention anykind of weight training at all... If you build muscle you will burn more fat....Try weight training 3 times/week to start... and dont' be scared you won't bulk up, that's only a myth!
Your cardio altho it is long... do you do it with intensity?... I do HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training) For examble I run... I do a 5-10 minute warm up...then I up my intensity by .1 MPH for one minute for 10 minutes, then work myself down by the same for 10 minutes... OR I sprint 7.0 MPH for a minute, go down to 5.0 MPH for a minute and repeat this 6-10 times... This, in my opinion revs your metabolism much more than just plain walking... If you don't like running try putting the incline up a notch every minute for 10 minutes, then go back down for 10 minutes... then cool down and voila! Done for the day!
You may be also doing the same exercises, eating the same foods, and you're body is so used to it that it has stopped trying... hence again the dreaded plateau...
I eat a couple of hours before the gym and as soon as I get home from the gym to replenish my muscles... I do a lot weight training... But I still think you need something after a work out...
On Powerade, I have read that they are only good if you have been training for several hours and need to replenish missing nutrients on very long stints without food... If it's only an hour or two, water and real food are your best bet... Oh and DRINK you're WATER at least a 3-4 liters per day...
OMG this post has gone on way too long... I appologize... but I hope this helps....
thank you both for your replies. i will continue to post my questions here,if that's ok. it sounds like i should have my breakfast with carbs and protein,and then a piece of fruit and cheese or protein after my workout. i really like the idea of carbs earlier in the day,seems like it will make it easier to learn this woe. anyway,here is more on what i've been doing.
my usual breakfast: 2 eggs and a piece of ham or turkey sausage,and a cup of spinach cooked with the eggs.i also have decaf with 1/2 &1/2,no sweetener. is a piece of dry ezekial toast appropriate here? will that provide the proper carb,and should it replace something?
i then go to the gym and do a 30-40 minute cardio on the elliptical. i raise the incline quite high and do a hill program. i am averaging abut 140 steps per minute. don't know my heart rate(gotta get a moniter). i then do an hour long group pilates class.
i always drink plenty of water.
i then have lunch. mostly i get it from a local high end deli. usually i get an order of roasted veggies or a broccoli salad,a piece of chicken breast,or crabcake or meatloaf. once a week i get the chile instead of the meat.these things i eat while driving around doing errands,so it can take me an hour or so somedays. other days i practically inhale it!
then it's off to the barn to ride for an hour.more exercise for my mare than for me!
i snack on almonds or pistachios. is this where i should have an apple or grapes with cheese or pnut butter? what else could i keep in my truck for a snack?
for dinner i always have chicken or pork(we grow our own,so it's healthy stuff) with a salad and/or hot veggie( i always order a 1/3 lb portion of the veggies). about the only thing i cook is the meat and an occasional sweet potato or can of green beans.
still with me? i so appreciate your patience! and hopefully someone here can help me figure this out,so i'll discuss dessert and be gone.
i must have chocolate,,so i have a2-3gram bar at bedtime.
after reading this over, it sure seems like i don't eat too much! maybe it's my portions. i can really eat! also,,i think you are right about my body just being used to the routine. i know the cardio will really help, but i know figuring out this carb thing is key.anyway,,thanks again for any advice,susan.
sbd & excercise-eating to beat the plateau?
