Frustrated - poor recovery, illness, and injury

[Nik Nichols]

I'm 45years old have a BW of 170ish depending on the time of day. Have arthritus oin my back and had cronic back issues befor crossfit 5 years ago that is all but gone.

I think my numbers are good for strength, and metcon fair to good. I have my goats.

I eat alot, ALOT, and I'm palieo.

I was on the 3on 1 off mainpage plus extras. I do alot, come real close to over training. I have had injurys form bad form , to many reps ectra. All my fault. I have even done alot more days in a row too. I am pretty much the pic of over doing it shamfully said.

I am not you, but the times I have really struggled is when I ''though'' I was eating to much and cut a little back. Load up. Eat more, see what happens in a week.

[Blair Robert Lowe]

I know 10 year old girls who eat more than that, are leaner than you, weigh have as much and trained 4-5 days a week in the gym. One of our 10 yo consumed about 2500-3000 calories a day. Mom noted that she ate more than dad did. Yes, she was just a mid level gymnast doing 15-20hrs/week (never was that consistent on Wed/Sa) but still. She was under 5 feet and 90lbs at the time.

While protein intake is ample, your caloric intake is roughly at maintenance for your body.

My friend who is a CF gym owner pushing 40 weighs 170ish near 6 foot and I think he intakes around 3000. Workout programming is basically whatever is being programmed in the gym besides coaching classes. Maybe he sneaks in a bit of gymnastics in there but I think it's pretty much gym programming and he doesn't play any recreational sports anymore (besides CF).

[Jeffrey A. Weiss]

Originally Posted by Dan Titus

Average daily intake:
Calories - 1,774
Protein - 121g (this might be a bit higher now, but I remember struggling to get to this average back then)
Carb - 162 (my carbs are considerable lower now - which of course would lower my overall caloric intake, too.)
Fat - 70g - this is probably about the same, or a bit higher - coconut, olive oil, olives, avocado, nuts, etc.)

My bodyweight is 175, probably between 12 and 15% bodyfat. Am I eating way too little?

I didn't see your height, but if you were 6' and doing 5 days a week of intense exercise, assuming 15% body fat, your maintenance calories would be 2837/day. This might help:

http://www.freedieting.com/tools/calorie_calculator.htm

You mentioned very slow recovery after workouts - have you had your hormone levels checked in the last couple of years?

[Dan Titus]

Jeffrey, I'm 5'10" and around 174. I'm having my testosterone checked next week.

I've increased my calories since my post and track my intake on http://www.myfitnesspal.com/ (wfs) online and on my smartphone. My goal is 2700 calories per day (I know, this is probably still a little low - I plan to increase it incrementally) and about 235 grams of protein. I've seen a significant difference in my recovery since doing so.

I'm still struggling with getting enough protein down and usually resort to whey protein shakes, which I don't care for. I feel "crappy" afterward and don't care for liquid calories (except for beer), but haven't been able to get enough protein down otherwise.

Any tips on getting more calories/protein down without reducing the quality of my food?

Thanks for your thoughts and post.

[Jeffrey A. Weiss]

Hi Dan - good to hear that you are getting your hormone levels checked.

Calorie target looks good for you for maintenance. Glad to hear that the increased calories have helped your recovery. I use myfitnesspal regularly - great site and great Android app too.

235 grams of protein seems a little high but it may fit your goals. For strength training, I have been told to shoot for 1 gram of protein per pound of body weight. ACSM recommends 0.8 g per pound of body weight for athletes. So, perhaps the easiest thing to do is to eat a bit less protein

Whey shakes - yeah, they aren't that great with just water, but there are some that are better than others, and there are some great recipes if you poke around. Mix a little in oatmeal. I like Top Secret (vanilla) and Gold Standard brands. If you need more protein and calories, make them with whole milk. I eat a lot of tuna (solid white), chicken, pork, relatively lean beef (top round, top sirloin, etc.) and sashimi. For cooked meats, prepare more than you need and eat it for a few days.

Cheers,

Jeff

[Eric Montgomery]

Originally Posted by Dan Titus

Jeffrey, I'm 5'10" and around 174. I'm having my testosterone checked next week.

I've increased my calories since my post and track my intake on http://www.myfitnesspal.com/ (wfs) online and on my smartphone. My goal is 2700 calories per day (I know, this is probably still a little low - I plan to increase it incrementally) and about 235 grams of protein. I've seen a significant difference in my recovery since doing so.

I'm still struggling with getting enough protein down and usually resort to whey protein shakes, which I don't care for. I feel "crappy" afterward and don't care for liquid calories (except for beer), but haven't been able to get enough protein down otherwise.

Any tips on getting more calories/protein down without reducing the quality of my food?

Thanks for your thoughts and post.

2700 calories is not much for an active man, unless you're trying to stay below a certain weight.

You're getting plenty of protein. Your body also needs fat and carbs for recovery and health in general. Plus they give you dense calorie sources if you go with stuff like olive oil, coconut milk/oil, or avocados for fat, or things like sweet potatoes, squash, or plain oats for carbs.