Looking For Some Guidance

[CindyNotSindy Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close CindyNotSindy]

Hi All,

Brand new here, so I will apologize in advance if I don't do things exactly as they should be.

I just turned 40 (horror or horrors) and I am struggling to perform in Crossfit. I tore my ACL playing soccer a year and a half ago, and then it ruptured early on due to poor placement, so I had to have revision surgery about 12 weeks ago. I am back in Crossfit and am just modifying it, and playing it very safe. I wont risk another injury.

The knee feels good and stable, BUT, my body is just not bouncing back. Everything I do seems so difficult and I feel so heavy (have gained some weight from not being able to work out for several months because of the torn ACL. I also fatigue so quickly now.

I realize some of this is age, but I also think I am fighting a battle of atrophy and weight gain. I am 5" 9' and weigh 170. Typical for me is about 160lbs, I have a large frame and carry tons of muscle.

I am not looking to be super skinny, I just want to be able to keep up in class, and I want to get stronger. I have been following the paleo diet now for about 10 days and have not lost a single pound. I do crossfit usually 3-4 times a week (Im a single mommy, so its a challenge to do it all sometimes). I take multi-vitamins, fish oil, probiotics, B-complex, and I use Assault before a workout.

I was wondering if you all knew of something that would just help me get back to normal. A little assist in this time that I am functioning sub-par. It is so frustrating when your brain knows you can do something, but you body will not comply. And the overall feeling of fatigue is a bummer. I have been reading about VAR and it sounds relatively mild, but also for people who are in better shape than I am now.

I realize that age will catch up to us all, but Im not quite ready for that!!!

Anyway, would so appreciate some advice

PS. I would post a picture, but some of you are so freaking mean to others!!

Thank you!

[MrBig Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close MrBig]

CNS, You say you've gain some weight, but didn't specify weather it was fat or muscle. I'm assuming it's fat? If your fightin weight is 160lbs. then you should try and get back to that first, that a lone will help. Then if you want to add some strength you can try the Var.

And about posting a pic, the members here would never do that, we're to help, not criticize. If some one does, I'll ban them. lol
Feel free to post your pic or pic's, you just might want to block your face out.

[CindyNotSindy Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close CindyNotSindy]

Thank you for the reply! I think my problem really is having the strength, energy and endurance to get back to where I was. I just don't feel the same after these surgeries. I find it very difficult to recover from my workouts, so it is usually difficult to go two days in a row. I was hoping to find something that will help me push through this phase, and give me a boost. I just want to get over this hump. My eating is clean and I work out hard, but again, I am pretty beat up after.

Maybe I am barking up the wrong tree, and rather should look at something for recovery. But, in my research, I think that is part of what the var does.

Turing 40.... I dont recommend it!!

Thoughts?

Oh and here is a pic - be nice!

[MrBig Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close MrBig]

Have you thought about HGH???

Oh and the pic doesn't work, I can't see it anyway?

[CindyNotSindy Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close CindyNotSindy]

I have not considered HGH and I don't know much about it. So I will do some digging. Ok to PM you with questions? Thank you

- - - Updated - - -

Let me know if that pic works. It keeps coming up as a link rather than an imbedded image.

[CindyNotSindy Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close CindyNotSindy]

Looking For Some Guidance

Pic removed

[F.I.S.T. Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close F.I.S.T.]

CnS,always remember that after any time off from the gym and the lifestyle its going to take time to get it back,but even more so after and injury and surgery.Theres no rush darlin,start back slowly and work your way back into it.Just keep a log to gauge your progress.A few more reps or sets each workout,a little quicker recovery time with each workout,a little more weight on some exercises,not all at once,only look to add on one at a time if thats all thats possible,is all you really need to keep focused on,not how fast you can get there.

Also,how is your diet now? More times than not,many fixes can be made via tweaking ones diet.Are you keeping track of your caloric & macro intake daily? If not,start doing so.I recently posted a great article on doing this.This will help tell you where you need to be and where you're at and you can make adjustments from there.Many times lack of energy is related to too low a caloric intake and workout energy can be attributed to pre & post meal choices.

Before anything else,I would look to these things and seeing how you can fine tune those to achieve what you're after.Ive helped more people blast through their ruts and plateaus with as a simple thing as fixing their dietary habits than I can count.LOL

Good luck with it sweety.I look forward to hearing from you on your progress.Lots of great people here to help guide and motivate you.

Oh and im anxiously awaiting that pic.Link still not working.If you still have problems,im sure the staff can help you get it posted.

[CindyNotSindy Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close CindyNotSindy]

Thank you for the reply. Good stuff in there. So, *more info than you need alert* .... in between my first and second surgeries, I broke up with my fiancé who I was supposed to marry in November. Sad sad sucky blah blah.... I got kinda depressed and (close your ears if you are sensitive) started waking up at like midnight and eating Cookie Crisp or whatever carby sugary thing I could get my hands on. So, I blame my ex for all of this naturally [emoji12]

However, for the past two weeks I have been 99% paleo. Ok maybe more like 97%. But really very different than before. As I write this, I realize I am wanting instant results and am probably being unrealistic. I can, and will, stick with this diet, BUT I need the energy to workout a little harder. And the recovery is so hard.

Just so you know where I am at, today at CrossFit, I did a max back squat of 100#. I really don't press the squats too hard because I am only 10 weeks out from my ACL reconstruction.

I'm finally bouncing back from the break up and I am happy being single and my life is awesome. I just want my body to reflect that, and to keep up!

So, probably I'm just being a big baby and need to reevaluate my expectations.

I actually called a local doc about HGH and they launched into all this stuff about hormone replacement and wanted to do saliva test to determine which hormones I would need. Just to get started was about $500, and then obviously the ongoing cost of the hormones. So, I need to research a little further into that and figure out if it's worth it or not. It seems like something that would never end.

Any of you done the hormone thing?

Enough out of me.... Thanks again.

[F.I.S.T. Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close F.I.S.T.]

CnS,sorry to hear about the break up.Dont sweat it sweety.If you broke up it wasnt meant to be in the first place so you're better off waiting for your true MR RIGHT.He'll come.

Its perfectly normal for one to be anxious to get back to the shape they were once in before an unexpected,but unpreventable layoff from an athletic lifestyle.So don't think that you're alone in that regard.Just don't let your enthusiasm get the better of you and cloud your better judgement.Know that you have to take things slow and steady to prevent another injury,which could end up even worse than the first one.

As for the eating that you've described,I figured as much.LOL.This is a common thing for many people out there.I know you said you're eating Paleo now but have you decreased the amount of food you eat overall? Maybe you're not getting enough fuel.As I suggested,try finding out what your BMR is and what your maintenance caloric intake is at this time and adjust from there.

You may need to modify your ratios as well. How you look/feel/performance is going to be your guide on what ratios work best for you. You might need more protein (don't count protein from nuts, beans, etc-it doesn't hit the pancrease quick enough to release the glucose).

Also,what do you eat pre-workout & post workout? (Within an hour before & after) These are very crucial times in relation to energy levels.

I would increase fat intake-I have added more avacados, olive oil, etc to my diet. If you're looking to lose weight, be careful how many nuts you eat (recommended no more than 4 oz day if you are trying to lose weight).

If you don't eat peanuts (or peanut butter) anymore (legumes, not on Paleo list), you can switch to almond butter.

As far as the HRT,I would seriously consider holding off on that unless all other avenues fail.It may take a little longer to achieve your goals,but its a lot healthier and better for the long term.You cant rely on HGH forever but you can with a dialed in diet.

[CindyNotSindy Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close CindyNotSindy]

I feel like I just got Dr. Phil'd .... lol. That is very kind, sound and smart advice, and I really appreciate it.

I have been doing a paleo delivery service for the last two weeks, but it is crazy expensive so I only did those two weeks and will be on my own starting this weekend. I have been logging my food, but the service does not offer the cal/fat/protein counts, so I really have no idea, although I imagine it is pretty balanced. HOWEVER, when I first started, I was convinced I was starving to death, so I ate some extra things to fill me up - like almonds. And I am sure I blew past 4 oz by about 10am.

Ive always played soccer multiple times a week and have never had to be super strict on my diet. So, the transition is difficult. I miss banana cream pie!!! I will start to not only log the food, but also try to get a fairly accurate count of portion size and caloric and nutritional content. Does anyone on this forum post food logs? I would love to see what everyone else is eating.

My BMR is 1530. Im not sure what that means as far as how many calories to take in, but I think I am probably just eating too much and I need to watch the calories. My blood sugar is kinda weird, I wont feel hungry AT ALL and then ten minutes later I am starving. So I really should just plan out my food for each day and stick to that. Once Im over-hungry, its lights out!

I think part of the fatigue may just be related to detoxing from the sugar and wheat too.

In terms of the HGH, do you think that could help at this point? And, is that something you could get from a doctor or via *alternative* means.

Thanks again!

Cindy

[MrBig Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close MrBig]

Hey CNS,
You did pretty much get the Dr. Phil of food. F.I.S.T. is one of our best here when it comes to diet and even recipes. I would listen to what F.I.S.T. has to say first and then if you're still interested in the HGH, you can see how that goes,

[CindyNotSindy Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close CindyNotSindy]

You guys would make terrible salesmen for the steroid industry! [emoji12]. I have to say - this advice is much much more responsible than I expected, so thank you!!

I did some calculations and it looks like I would need the following:

2330 calories to maintain weight
1864 calories to lose
1398 calories to lose fast

And, in terms of balance, I am finding recommendations via zone diet at:

Protein - 30%
Carb - 40%
Fat - 30%

I have an app that calculates that easily, so it shouldn't be too hard to track.

So I'm thinking about doing 1400 cal when I do not work out and 1600 when I do.

I'm wondering where I'm going to get all the carbs from on the paleo diet, so will have to look into that.

FIST, you mentioned eating before and after workouts. Is there a method that would be beneficial?

How does this sound?

[F.I.S.T. Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close F.I.S.T.]

Thank you very much MrBig.Im honored.

I pride myself on trying to learn something new each day.Thats what its all about.

[F.I.S.T. Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close F.I.S.T.]

You guys would make terrible salesmen for the steroid industry! . I have to say - this advice is much much more responsible than I expected, so thank you!!

I did some calculations and it looks like I would need the following:

2330 calories to maintain weight
1864 calories to lose
1398 calories to lose fast

And, in terms of balance, I am finding recommendations via zone diet at:

Protein - 30%
Carb - 40%
Fat - 30%

I have an app that calculates that easily, so it shouldn't be too hard to track.

So I'm thinking about doing 1400 cal when I do not work out and 1600 when I do.

I'm wondering where I'm going to get all the carbs from on the paleo diet, so will have to look into that.

FIST, you mentioned eating before and after workouts. Is there a method that would be beneficial?

How does this sound?


LMAO.As for the AAS salesmen darlin,I would definitely make a poor choice because I always push the simplest "NATURAL" solutions first BEFORE going to gear for "the fix".

Now as far as your caloric intake,if you've calculated that you need over 1800 to lose weight and you're considering only consuming 1400-1600 this is too low and will of course affect your energy level.Its not about losing wt "FAST", its about losing it and keeping it.You see that why crash diets never work long term.Sure you'll drop wt quickly due to the lack of food consumption,but your body goes into a panic state where it starts to store fat since its not getting in enough of it and burning protein,)i.e. muscle) as energy,which is exactly what you don't want.So when you do start eating normally again,your body will shoot up in weight dramatically due to this new "panic state" its in.

Your body has a set "NORMAL" point for everything.What is considers to be normal weight,strength lever.fat burning ability,etc,so the only way you can "RESET" this normal point is to do it gradually over time.You have to train your body to learn what its "NEW" normal point is.This happens by allowing your body to adapt to this over time.Once this new point is now the "NORMAL" set point for your body,it will do everything it can to maintain this point.Then you wont have to "WORK" to achieve that level,your body will do it by itself,with the correct choices made by you of course.

As for the pre & post workout meals,theres not a method per se,its only about choosing the right foods to eat during those periods.I always recommend a combination of protein and fast and slow digesting cards before a work and after a workout.This way you get the quick release carbs to help fuel your workout immediately and the slow release carbs to carry you throughout your workout.The same applies after your workout,you want the immediate replenishment to your muscles from what you lost during your workout(thats why a post workout shake is great) but then about an 45 minutes to an hr after you want the slow digesting carbs as well as protein to feed and rebuild the muscles you've just broken down.

Pre workout can of course be a protein shake or foods such as whole wheat toast with sliced bananas,greek yogurt,trial mix,oatmeal with fresh fruit,etc.

Post workout can be another protein shake,whey and casein together is great,whole wheat bread with tuna,salmon,sweet potatoes,veggie omelet with avocado,grilled chicken with veggies,etc.

Lots of choice for you depending on your personal preferences sweety.The important thing is to get in enough calories with the correct macros and the right choices in timing of certain meals.Ive posted plenty of whole day menus for you to check out to give you some additional ideas.

[CindyNotSindy Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close CindyNotSindy]

So what I hear you say is that if I can slowly (boring) and methodically (even more boring) and naturally (the worst kind of boring) bring my weight down, it will become my body's new normal and I can go back to Cookie Crisp and banana cream pie?? Lol!!

Ok, for real, I didn't know about the reset and that makes this all make a lot more sense. I shall stick to making good food choices, logging my calories/protein/fat, continue to work hard in CrossFit, and be PATIENT.

Thanks again for the guidance. I will check back in here in a couple weeks and hopefully post a picture that shows the result of the discipline and work.

Thanks again guys!

C