hi,
im a female sprinter (age 22), ran 4 yrs of college track and now i am training on my own. This past summer and first semester I wasnt running and I put on about 10 lbs.when I started to train again it was obviously very difficult… I assumed it was cause of the weight gain and made a effort to loose the weight by cutting calories. The problem is now, 3 months later, I have lost 22 lbs and now again I am still running just as poorly. This time it is probably cause of lack of calories. I have no energy or motivation once im at the track. I really want to maintain my new weight, yet I know I MUST eat more then I am now…I know if I dont I will continue to lose wieght (im eating about 1000 cals a day)… but i am worried that if I eat more I will go back to where I was… i could really use some insight about what to eat, how i should go about adding in the extra calories to maintain the weight, and how often to eat… i want to continue to train, but as i said it is soo hard now because its so much effort to even do the warmup… someone please help… 
I would also have posted the link to johnberardi site but since this is charliefrancis.com lets try and help her on this site a bit first 
no disrespect speedkills.
Track365,
I know it isnt going to look pretty but post what your are currently eating and post what your current workout week is like.
Maybee members as well as myself could help you out to add good calories and clean up what you are eating now.
1,000 cals a day is not enough for even a sedentary person to maintain weight. If you have lost 22 lbs then you are actually 12 lbs below where your competition weight has been in the past unless im misnderstanding you… so no wonder training isn’t going well!
during long periods of calorie deprivation your metabolism will actually slow down to conserve what you ARE taking in, so adding too many calories too quickly can actually cause you to gain back quickly, so i understand your concern.
but i second quik- it would be easier if we can see what you are eating!
Definitely list your food like quick said. You have to be careful. If you keep trying to train with those low calories, it might lead to overtraining and possibly injuries.
Where in NY are you? One of the parents on my kids track team is a nutritional biochemist he might be able to help you.
The likely reason you can’t perform is because you have no energy becasue your muscles are too depleted. Prolonged dieting causes this You can store 300-500 grams of muscle glycogen (muscle carbohydrate stores). Each gram is 4 calories…that’s about 1500-2000 calories worth of carbs that you need to eat right now just to “refill” your glycogen stores. Carbohydrate stores and consumption correlate well with sympathetic nervous system activity (mental acuity) and metabolism. Right now your metabolism is probably running 30% below normal at least. Go ahead and carb up for a few days and see how you feel and how your body responds. In order to gain all that weight back you’d have to eat about an extra 100,000 calories in days so don’t worry about it :).
thanks everyone for responding,
speedkills- i took a look at that site… its really informative and i like his sense of humor… i only read a couple articles, so i am going to keep reading…and learning…
Quik- as far as what I eat it varies day to day, like i mentioned earlier i roughly take in about 1000-1500 calories…i know this is not the best idea and i know its effecting my training, but as i said i was really tryin to loose weight…
my workout week last week looked like:
mon- 3x3x30 2 mins rest after each rep, 5 mins in between sets
Lifting (cleans, bench, rdls,lateral raises, abs)
Tues- tempo 1-2-3-4-3-2-1
Wed-2x3x200 (at 80%) 2 mins rest after each rep. 5 mins in between sets
Lifting:total body circuit: 8 exercises 3 times through including lunges, pushups, dips, stepups, leg raises, pull ups,squats, pulldowns, abs.
Thurs: tempo 10x150 at 75% with 90 seconds rest. 100 abs
Fri- 3x20-30-40, rest 2 min, 3 min, 5 mins rest
lifting- abs, 3x8 pulldowns, 4x6 incline bench, push jerks 4x6, 2x8 glute hamstring raises
kras- yes, ur right i am 12 lbs below my training weight last yr…i didnt mention before, but the weight i was at last yr was heavier for me then the years before. and i didnt have the best season last yr. so my goal was not to get back down to that weight, but rather alittle lighter than that… and also u mentioned about adding the cals to quick and gaining back the weight… that is my major concern…cause i dont want to continue to lose anymore weight… i would like to maintain this weight… but im scared of increasing the calories and puttin on too much…
nycjay- where is the nutritionist located? i was thinking of making an appointment to speak with one… i figured i would try to find as much info first on my own…
kellyb- thanks for the information… i know that i would have to eat a real lot to gain it back. but i am just concerned cause after losing it all i would hate to gain in all back… i know u mentioned loading on carbs for a few days to see how i feel… then would u suggest slowly adding the calories back into my diet…
when i checked out the john berardi site, i figured out using the formulas, how many calories i should be taking in… it said around 2700 calories on an active day… i am skeptical of this number, it seems really high to me…i dont think i have ever took in that many calories in my life… and i didnt loose weight cause of it… has anyone else used these formulas and calcuated their calorie intake??
I have found that the calorie numbers from JB a bit high too. Is this info aimed at the bodybuilding crowd or adjusted for all athletes?
Whichever way, 1000 calories a day is way too l-o-w…
Track365
He is located in NYC. I think he has offices in all Brooklyn Manhattan and Queens. If you are serious about a screening PM me and I will talk to him for you.
Until then, have an icecream sundae 
At 1000 cal. your body thinks there is a famine.
It’s been through this type of thing many times over the last 5 million years but it knows how to survive a famine. It will simply store as much fat as possible from what you give it and it will not build any new muscle as a matter of fact it will chow down on your existing uscle supply for its energy needs. What you’re doing to your body makes Hannibal Letcher look like a boy scout. EAT!!! 2700 cal might even be on the low side.If you post your food log (be specific)
it’ll be a lot easier. Eat first.
Berardi is good.
TNT
You are eating WAY TOO LITTLE.
I know anorexic girls who are eating more than 1000 calories a day.
Sorry for my outburst
I would reccomend that you increase your calorie intake by about 100 calories every other day for a month or until you are starting to consitently eat abut 2500 calories a day. Then at 2500 calories, for a track athlete, you want to consume alot of carbs and protein and vitamins for your body to function at high performance with little food.
Trust me, even though I’m a guy, I’ve been in the same situation as yourself. If you mix proper eating(2200 calories MINIMUM) with training you won’t have to worry abou gaining weight. I used to have a beerbelly but now I’m starting to see my six-pack. I’m experienced in thsi field Lol.
Also, how much were you eating BEFORE you got into your diet? Becuase if it is what I’m thinking(likely 3000-35+ range) than eating 2000-2400 calories a day would probably give you the same results but with better side-effects(more energy, less muscle loss, etc). eating at your rate, you haven’t exactly improved AT ALL. Sorry ta sink your boat but it had to come out. Youre probably unhealthier than when you said you were 10 pounds heavier than normal.
Track,
You may not have to eat a lot to gain some weight back. It all depends on how far along in “starvation mode” your body is. It may hang on to every calorie it can but getting thru this part is very important.
When I went thru a period like you, it took some time before I leveled out my metabolism. BUT… you need to eat more. Hang in there thru any time that you gain some weight back. Stay away from the scale, wear baggier clothes, whatever you have to do to not go back to 1000 cals, do it. Your body will level itself out & normalize… fear not.
As for formulas for caloric intake… every body is different & a cut & dry number doesn’t mean much other than a guide. It takes trial & error to find what is the right # for you. Even a nutritionist will have to work thru a few weeks of different combos to get it right. And then, it will change over the years as you become more “efficient” (read: metabolism slows down regardless of activity level as you age especially as a woman)
I hope this helps.
I would start by adding in about 500-750 more calories a day. It takes about 3500 extra calories to put on a pound of bodyweight and the same for losing. I would add 500 a day this week see how your weight is and then add another 500 next week. see how you feel if you put on more than 2 pounds maybe level it off for 2 weeks and see if you start to feel better. Then if you feel good try adding in another 250 calories until you are at a comfortable weight and feel like you have enough energy. Also watch what you eat on what days. make sure you eat more on your harder training days and a little less on the days where you do less. And your most important meal will be postworkout. This will help your body recover faster and get it the nutrients it needs.
Don’t worry about counting calories and don’t worry about your weight. Your eyes will tell you all you need to know about your body composition and your performance will tell you all you need to know about your running. Adjust your diet according to these last 2 factors.
I’ve heard that anything below 1200 calories isn’t to great for losing fat because your body switches its mode to survival and attemps to keep on whatever it has to stay stable, so try and keep calories around 1500. To lose the weight, spread your meals out, eat the biggest meal in the morning, notice the contents of your food and get in some good workouts.
You do realize that any and all numbers are completely based on an individual’s size, and no blanket statement of that sort can be made, right?
That being said, obviously there is a point for everyone at which calorie restriction becomes counter productive as the body begins to “hold onto” as much fat as it can to survive.
But please don’t throw around random numbers like that that clearly will vary from person to person.