I'm 15lbs over racing weight and relatively lean... should I quit lifting?

take advantage and become a sprinter. 800 or less.

In the same position. I'm not fast enough to become a sprinter either :(

Have you tried to run?

What if your performance improves?

Lifting has nothing to do with gaining weight.

Eat less.

Not a Coach wrote:

Lifting has nothing to do with gaining weight.

Eat less.

What a load of bullshit

LOLZz wrote:

Not a Coach wrote:

Lifting has nothing to do with gaining weight.

Eat less.

What a load of bullshit

No, it's not. It's absolute fact. Weight gain happens when you eat more calories than you burn. Weight loss happens when you burn more calories than you eat.

It really is as simple as that. Anyone who says it's more complicated is selling something.

Where's XFIT_GUY_REAL_THE_ONE_1 when you need him?

OP:

What is your goal? If your goal is to get back into running shape and go after some PRs, the advice is going to be quite different than if your goal is to just stay in shape for health.

You Are What You Is wrote:

Weight gain happens when you eat more calories than you burn. Weight loss happens when you burn more calories than you eat.

Absolutely correct. Pubescent teenagers and pregnant women gain weight when they eat excess calories. There is nothing else going on. Bodybuilders too. All you need to gain mass is calories. It's got absolutely nothing to do with the endocrine system at all.

Do you think living cells are biochemical reaction engines or something? Nonsense. Living cells are simple combustion chambers.

If you put on 15 pounds in a few months, the vast majority of it is fat.

Next time you go to the grocery store, go put 15 pounds of ground beef in your cart and ask yourself if you built that much muscle in a few months.

Unless you have been hitting the roids, no way.

I'm not far from ya bud. Same thing, I had a long lay off, got into lifting and put on weight. Now I'm still doing 3 days of lifting and 6 days of running. I was hoping I'd tone up more, but I've got too much bulk for a distance runner (and by bulk I mean fat around the middle)

It's HARRRRD to lose it. Especially when you're used to being able to eat whatever you want.

i was looking at MFitgerald's site that lets you plug in your info it said I was 15 lbs from ideal racing weight, however when i used his calculations I was only 6 lbs.

"I started lifting weights a few months ago. I was unable to run a lot during this time and gained significant weight"

A) What kind of weight lifting we are talking about? Once a week? Three times a week? 5 times a week? 7 times a week? Heavy? Crosshit?

B) How long were you NOT running? What was your running training before you stopped? What was your running training while you were lifting? What are you doing now?

If you've never lifted before it is very easy to gain 10-20lbs within 3-4 months of starting lifting, even if you are still running IF you are lifting heavy and often.

What is your goal? If you want to run and become a better runner then:

A) Run a lot. Run long runs. Long runs are very catabolic. The best way to lose excess muscle is through long runs.

B) Keep some lifting. By some I mean 1-2 days a week. Heavy. Low reps. Big lifts: Squat, Hang Clean, Push Press, Pullup. Do Plyos: Box Jumps. Lateral Jumps. If you're in the gym for more than 20-30 minutes then you're in there too long. Keep it simple and hard.

Alan

Runningart2004 wrote:

Crosshit?

How clever.

Moron.

The best way to lose excess muscle is through long runs.

[/quote]

Not just excess muscle. Long distance running will DESTORY any muscle mass you have. It's the biggest mistake MEN make in these day and times.

LOLZz wrote:

Not a Coach wrote:

Lifting has nothing to do with gaining weight.

Eat less.

What a load of bullshit

I lost 50 pounds doing nothing but lifting and eating healthily.

In the same situation right now- various injuries have left me not running so I am biking and swimming. I'm sitting 15 pounds over racing weight from XC season last fall.

I too enjoy lifting, lift big and in low reps. so 3 sets 5 reps etc. By doing so you you will build power but are not doing enough reps to hypertrophy.

That's because you were fat. The OP is already lean.

Don't forget the long recovery between sets to minimize hormonal response! And personally, I'll stick to two sets for things like Squat/Dead Lift in the 4-6 rep range and only do three sets for Olympic stuff. Maybe because I'm paranoid about having always been team fat kid anyway.

I found that with enough mileage and very limited candy calories, I can run just about my PRs at somewhere between 7 and 12 pounds over real college "racing weight", three years after setting them.

I ran in college and was extremely strong for my weight through out my experience. I entered college @ 155 pounds and left @ 160 pounds 6'0"and was always under 7.5% body fat on the pinch test. In high school my focus was on football with track to stay in shape. That being said, when I focused on track after my junior year (because at my weight I would have been limited to D2 or D3 football programs), I excelled. I was a state champ at 800 and regional champ at 1600 in high school and went to state in the 200, 400, 800 and 1600.

I ran 4 years at a competitive division 1 program and ran decent, although not national caliber times (unless I would have gone to a D2 or D3 school), and progressed fairly well over the years. There are pluses and minuses that come with the added muscle weight. The main benefit is you attract more girls (I dated a lot of the skinny runners "friends" that they never had the balls to ask out). And I think you tend to be a little bit tougher at the end of a race. The drawback is you have more weight to carry around the track.

Don't listen to the garbage about doing low reps (6 reps or less) as it tends to kill your joints in the long term and doesn't build strength as quickly as a little bit higher reps. I always did moderate reps (warm ups with 20 reps, and added weight to no less than 8 reps) and I saw my greatest progress strength wise and toning wise using that tactic. I never put on much weight due to the fact I was running 70-90 miles a week on average.

It is best to do super sets using complementary muscle groups (this was a tactic used by Michael Johnson that you can read about in his book and will shorten the amount of time you spend in the gym while still getting a good workout, which becomes invaluable when you are older) and allow 2 days of rest between muscle groups (you should hit each muscle group about 6 times a week doing this).

Looking back, I probably could have run a little faster had I limited the weight work and probably could have qualified for a NCAA regional championship (this did not exist in my day). I don't think I would have ever been a top national athlete (as I did not have the perfect physique and stride length), but I think that is probably a good thing, as I don't think I would have been as focused on my future career (it is a hell of a lot easier to make a living as a doctor or an engineer than it is as an aspiring professional runner working in a shoe store).

Whatever path you choose, the best of luck to you.

Thanks for the info and personal story. 7.5% is very lean. I had mine measured recently at 12.0%, so I guess I could lose some fat, but not 10-15lbs worth.

Because I never lifted before, I made massive strength gains in the weight room each week even just with 3 sets of 10 type stuff. I have been running more lately and lifting less and have already lost about 6lbs, but I'd still like to lose another 6-8 or so. I've definitely noticed a change in my physique beyond simply being heavier. My chest and arms just look way better. I am hoping to continue lifting to maintain muscle tone and strength but try to run a lot to get into good running shape and lose some weight (hopefully some fat along with a little muscle). I have also noticed I've gotten probably 3X as much attention from ladies as I used to. It's been nothing short of remarkable.

My ultimate goal would be to get in great running shape again and PR at a few distances, but I figure I can worry about that later as right now I'm just trying to run consistently and get in some solid mileage and lose a little bit of weight. If it turns out I can't lose any more weight while still lifting, I'll just cut the weights for a month or more until I get into solid running form. I kind of look at my time in the weightroom now as a "strength base" if that makes sense.

I will look into your claim lifting heavy is bad for the joints. I was planning to drop my reps down to the 4-6 range, but I might reconsider. I've still been getting good strength gains from the 8-12 range, but we'll see how long that lasts.