Does this make sense. Weight & Mileage

soda, McDonald's and pizza is fairly healthy?

your weight is constantly so high because of the way you eat precisely. although better than the average american, it is far from ideal. yes, losing weight would help your times drop substantially determining how much weight exactly you dropped.

wait a second... wrote:

soda, McDonald's and pizza is fairly healthy?

I would say junk food only 2-3 times per week is still fairly healthy.

What's your percent bodyfat? Height and weight don't tell the whole story. You could just have a larger than average (for top runners) frame or more than average (for top runners) muscle.

5.9 % bodyfat hydrostatically tested this year.

I said I eat fast food 2-3 times per week mainly to point out that there is room for improvement in my diet.

On a normal day, this would be my diet;

6 a.m. glass of chocolate milk, lowfat, english muffin with jelly

11 a.m. PBJ, banana or an orange, bottle of water, possibly a 12 oz soda.

6 p.m. Dinner, occassionally a few DBL Cheeseburgers or McChickens from McDonalds. No more than once a week. Mostly pasta, chicken wraps, possibly a coldcut sub from subway, mac n cheese. Those are just examples.

around 9 p.m. occasionally i'll have a small snack. Sometimes a late nite bowl of coco pebbles or something close to that.

I don't eat tons and tons of calories though. I am not saying the ones that I do eat are overly healthy, but 80 MPW isn't enough to burn those off and then some?

Apparently you're eating as many calories as you're burning. Surely a 170 pound dude running 80-100+ miles every week burns a lot, but you must be replacing every last one of 'em.

If you wanted to cut down:

- You don't need soda, period.

- "A lot" of milk? Is it whole, or skim, or in between?

- Nothing wrong with PBJ but it *is* fairly calorific. PB is loaded with fat - not that fat's so horrific in my book, but it's a lotta calories. The jelly's probably loaded with sugar. Even bread (and pasta and other carby stuff) is more calories than you'd think. Hey, sounds like a great way for a hundred mile a week runner to replenish a shitload of calories without filling up too much - but of course that's the exact opposite of what's good for weight loss.

- No veggies? Vegetables give you a lot of nutrients and very few calories, even an enormous plate or salad full of 'em.

Or, are you just meant to be 170? Are you lean and cut like a serious distance runner, but the weight comes from being big framed and muscular?

reduce caloric intake or increase mileage to 100-120 mpw.

its that easy.

I'm amazed at the quick replies on this site!

OK after this im going to bed.

Milk? Lowfat Skim milk. Maybe 3 glasses throughout the entire day. I dunno exactly how much sometimes I just lift the gallon to my head. Everybody knows how that goes!

PBJ- I eat Jif Lowfat PBJ. Choosy runners choose Jif.

I guess I could give up the soda, but it may be tough. I don't drink coffee or anything, so its nice to have the caffeine in there somewhere. Besides, 24 oz of soda is roughly 300 calories. Does that make that much of a difference?

Am I lean and cut and just meant to be 170 lbs. There isn't much fat on my body. I realize that if I were to lose weight, it would be muscle weight.

***FYI here is a little interesting scenario,

This year my running was going great, but for one particular month, my diet wasn't. I was eating horribly. Fastfood 4 + per week, a good amt. of beer (college days). I saw no drop in performance in my running, and stayed at a steady 170 lbs.

The next THREE months, I decided that I had to make a big lifestyle change. I was overly healthy. I drank tons of water, no soda, very little beer, lots of fruits, veggies, chicken and other lean meats. NO food after 7 p.m. I saw little or no INCREASE in performance and stayed at a 170 lbs. I felt just as good running and looked just as good the entire time that I was eating like a human pig.

my 5K PR actually came during the month where I experienced the diet from hell.

here's what i think:

stop drinking soda!

also, i think you should try eating small snacks too. nothing high in fat of course, but just to keep your metabolism up. maybe 170 lbs is just your weight set point. if your running is going well and you have such a low fat %, that's good, right?

6% body fat is pretty low, right? If you really wanted to drop weight, I guess you'd be looking at a little muscle.

FWIW at 5'9" and pushing 40, I eat more than you (though probably a bit "healthier"), ran less in 2006 (~3000) though I'm now doing 90-100, and weigh about 30 pounds less. But I doubt my body fat's as low or lower than yours.

Maybe you'd be better off eating more frequently, as someone else suggested. Like have at least a snack every 3 hours. Supposedly helps keep metabolism up. Just don't snack often and also gorge yourself at meals. All snacks and meals should have some reasonable balance of carbs, protein, and fat - not just one or two. Though you don't need to obsess over the exact ratio per the Zone diet.

And for the gods' sake, eat some freaking vegetables. And the soda probably isn't too bad, but iced tea would be healthier (less sugar - almost no matter how sweet you made it - and real sugar not high fructose corn syrup) and cheaper (make your own, a couple quarts at a time).

FYI - 300 "empty calories" from soda in a day = 2100 "empty calories" from soda in a week = 6/10th of a pound from soda each week. Replace with water. You don't need soda, as others have said. You're body will adjust to the loss of caffeine.

damn straight...2 cokes a day is a lot, in my book, probably not to the average person mind you, but the extra 24oz of water would be much better

justwearthem wrote:

FYI - 300 "empty calories" from soda in a day = 2100 "empty calories" from soda in a week = 6/10th of a pound from soda each week. Replace with water. You don't need soda, as others have said. You're body will adjust to the loss of caffeine.

OK I'm like you. Im 22 years old. My first 3 yrs of college xc/track I weighed 165-168lbs. I ran 28:45 pr for 8k (which sucks i know), about 1:54 flat 800m. I lost 15 lbs (by working outside/running, sweating a lot in a humid place during summer). I moved back home, realized I was 15 lbs lighter. I was running better on distance runs. So, I used to eat tons! Now, nearly only H2O for drinks, and Ive cut my calories back a lot in order to maintain my weight at 154 or under. At this weight, I then ran 26:30 8k this xcseason (2:17 pr from when I weighed more). Now its track. I used to lift a lot upper body, and felt strong. Now knowing the 800m is diff. than 8k, do I gain it back to feel stronger, or will the lightness help in the 800m too? We will see in my first race. But Ive decided to try the light way.

oh yea, eating at night b4 sleep is one reason youre keeping the weight on I bet.

One must rememeber, each person is different and has a most efficient weight. WE ALL ARE DIFFERENT. Too light= too weak for some, for others it helps.

Id appreciate any feedback too. Thanks.

An opposing anecdote, I gained 20 lbs over the course of a year and a half and am posting huge pr's in every event(so far from mile to half marathon, soon 800m). This gain was all functional muscle opposed to useless fat or bulk, which would account for increased performance from strength gains that resulted in a higher power/weight ratio. I personally will vary my eating regimen week by week through monitoring of how my body feels in reaction to differing stimuli. There are most likely instances where I overeat, since I will feel stuffed, but there are other times that my brain sends signals that I should stop eating well before satiety. Your body will find its natural weight and maintain it unless you make a drastic, usually harmful, reduction in caloric intake. 5.9% body fat is a strong indicator that you're eating and workout regimen is perfectly normal and doesn't require any changes.

Genetically it seems like this is just the way you're built to be. If you're racing at NCAAs, then I wouldn't worry too much. Like other posters have said, add some veggies. If you feel like being a bit healthier, drop or reduce the sodas.

But don't go become draconian about your diet. Objectively it doesn't sound like you eat all that much, so I can't imagine how much it would suck to take measures simply to drop a few pounds.

as a former fat boy (ok not fat but plump) turned lean runner there are many things i have found over the years

1) junk food is ok sometimes certainly, but in all honesty NO MCDONALD's ever... that stuff is beyond junk food; do pizza from somewhere not to greasy instead or something along those lines

2) do you guys do any periodization? honestly this is huge... i struggled with weight for the first 22 years of my life and i would never miss a lifting workout and for a while when i started running would never miss a run, never slack off...

what i have definitely found is you lose more weight when you slack off every once in a great while... through your body for a loop... don't do abs every damn day, take a day off once in a while.... do you reduce your mileage for a week or two 2x a year

rest is part of increasing fitness... i know you guys won't believe what i am saying but i found know that i am more relax about eating and missing a workout once in a while (note not frequenly at all i am still for the most part obsessive compulsive about it) i have actually lost more weight

people now refer to as very skinny, never thought that would happen to me

I wouldnt suggest cutting calories if youve been steady at that weight. If you eat less your bodys metabolism is just going to go into survival mode and slow down. You will feel sluggish and it will probably effect your training. And when you go back to eating normal your body will try to store as much fat as possible to protect itself. Try snacking more and avoid binge eating. Dont eat a big meal before you go to bed and try to add vegetables, fruits, beans, and whole grain stuff. Avoid processed foods because the carbs in them probably have a high index and will burn faster more like sugar. that goes for pasta and bread. The fiber in your diet from vegetables, beans, etc. . will slow down how fast everything is being processed so it is less likely to end up as fat. If you have no choice but to eat something unhealthy after you finish a run just eat it because you will be replenished even though it isnt optimal it is better than waiting too long.

i think a lot of guy runners are in this state and aren't aware of it

runrun2 wrote:

If you eat less your bodys metabolism is just going to go into survival mode and slow down.

I am the same height and same weight as you and have a body fat % of 4.5 according to dexascan.

I have been this weight since my junior year of high school, 10 + years.

I have ate completely healthy, no ice cream/cake/chips, for 2 years and I have ate more relaxed and the weight has never changed by more than 2 - 4 pounds. In addition I have weight trained for 4 of those years, 2 times a week - every week, and haven't worked out in 6 years, weight hasn't changed.

My weight stayed the same from when I was running 25 miles in high school to the 120 miles I have been running for marathons this past year or two. (Well actually my weight did drop 6 pounds the summer before last because I was doing landscaping and weed wacking for 7 hours a day and running 120 miles a week in 90+ temps and high humidity. Weight went right back after that stopped though and I actually raced like crap that segment.)

I placed several times in the top 5 at nationals in college and have since moved up to longer races and was lucky enough to be part of a world team.

Don't sweat your weight. I did for some time and it didn't want to go anywhere. Sometimes you are what you are. The people that I know worry about their weight never seem to be as happy and as healthy as though I know that don't put too much thought into it.