NOTE: After review it is obvious that my original calorie intake estimate was wrong. I've edited this post to revise it to 2,000 calories. I originally said that it was 1000, which makes no sense.
I am looking for dietary advice in order to maximize my results. Prior to getting into swimming I was consuming about 2,000 calories per day and trying to favor protein. Considering that I was sitting in front of a computer most of the day even 1,000 calories may have been too much. My weight pretty much stayed around the same 220lbs (lean weight target being somewhere around 185lbs).
Now that I am swimming I probably need to change my dietary intake. I do want to get rid of the extra pounds as soon as possible. However, with these 1 1/2 hour workouts and only 2000 calories I felt out of energy for the first couple of days. My lack of conditioning probably had a lot to do with it.
Some of the questions I have are:
Should I try to remain close to 2000 calories in order to expedite weight loss and then stabilize at a higher caloric intake?
My workouts are at 5:30AM. I can't have breakfast prior to the workout. This means that I am working off of energy from dinner and stored fat. Should I favor certain foods for dinner?
Also, what would be the best distribution of caloric intake throughout the day? Should I front load (heavy breakfast) or have a larger dinner to put some energy away for the morning workout?
Any other thoughts/advice would be appreciated.
Thanks.
Parents
Former Member
I weigh myself regularly. If I am 2 pounds over my ideal weight, I count calories. (The LiveStrong app is great.) If my weight is within range, I don't even think about it. That's been working for me for a very long time.
When I first started swimming I felt ravenous all the time. That made it hard if I ever needed to restrict my calorie intake. There were three things I did to fix this:
1.) Never swim on an empty stomach, unless it's first thing in the morning. Have a snack or a regular meal shortly before swimming.
2.) Drink something with electrolytes while I'm swimming. I like an 8:1 mixture of water and juice. Diluted Gatorade or PowerAid would be fine too.
3.) Have a recovery snack right after swimming. Ideally, that should be about 75% carbs, 25% protein. I keep a thermos of chocolate milk in my swim bag and drink it in the locker room.
Since doing those three things, I have a perfectly normal appetite.
I weigh myself regularly. If I am 2 pounds over my ideal weight, I count calories. (The LiveStrong app is great.) If my weight is within range, I don't even think about it. That's been working for me for a very long time.
When I first started swimming I felt ravenous all the time. That made it hard if I ever needed to restrict my calorie intake. There were three things I did to fix this:
1.) Never swim on an empty stomach, unless it's first thing in the morning. Have a snack or a regular meal shortly before swimming.
2.) Drink something with electrolytes while I'm swimming. I like an 8:1 mixture of water and juice. Diluted Gatorade or PowerAid would be fine too.
3.) Have a recovery snack right after swimming. Ideally, that should be about 75% carbs, 25% protein. I keep a thermos of chocolate milk in my swim bag and drink it in the locker room.
Since doing those three things, I have a perfectly normal appetite.
