Ruminations on Weight (Fat) Loss, Muscle Gain, Fitness, Recovery
As the season has progressed, I’ve ramped up my average daily ascent and my energy expenditure in the hopes of dropping a few more pounds of fat.
But at least for me, 171 pounds seems now to be a hard “floor” on what my physiology wants, with my appetite showing an uncanny ability to make me eat exactly what I used up! Or a little more.
But I’ve observed a few things which are positive nonetheless:
- Losing weight (fat) can be at odds with gaining strength, because the body just cannot make forward progress under a heavy workload and calorie deficit.
- Even though weight doesn’t change, body composition might indeed be changing.
- The days that I overeat tend to be followed by stronger performance, suggesting that no brute force calories-in-out approach can really be successful.
- A few extra hours of sleep, backing off a little for a day, and a few hundred extra calories can result in a blow-out performance a day or two later, as I found out today by obliterating all my fastest mountain bike ascents in one day— and without even trying very hard or feeling tired afterwards.