Calorie intake for an active triathlete

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2009-09-25 3:37 PM

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Subject: Calorie intake for an active triathlete
Hello all,

I want to have an idea of how many calories I should be taking daily. I know this depends on a lot of factors, such as the level of activity, age, weight, etc, so here are some of my metrics:
- 27 Years old
- 1.72 m
- 70 Kg
- Activity: well, I train every single day in the mornings for about 1 Hr, I alternate between Swim-Bike-Run. I also do strength training twice a week. Sometimes on weekends I do long trainings, like swimming 1.5Km then biking 60Km. In average I train around 11Hrs/week. I do my training sessions at a relatively high intensity, for example, when I run my average heart rate is 83% and my POLAR says I burned around 800 calories.

I would like to know an estimate of my caloric intake, I am shooting for something around the 2700-3000 calories. Also, I would like to know what recommendations you guys have about the %s Carb-Prot-Fat.

Thanks to all!

2009-09-25 6:02 PM
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Subject: RE: Calorie intake for an active triathlete
Everyone's metabolism is different, so there is no "pat" answer. Nonetheless, typical "steady state" caloric intake for someone your age/weight would be ~2,400. In other words, if you neither exercise beyond "normal" nor eat more than ~2400 calories, you weight will remain stable. Given your "typical" 1.5 hours/day (11 hours/week), with your level of effort, you likely burn another 1000 to 1200 calories/day, which means in order to maintain a steady weight you would need to take in ~3500 calories/day. There are lots of web sites that will give you more detailed information. You could also keep a detailed record of what you eat, and add up the calories. If you neither gain nor loose weight you will have you answer.

Edited by johnrsims 2009-09-25 6:02 PM
2009-09-26 9:54 AM
in reply to: #2426769

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Subject: RE: Calorie intake for an active triathlete
At fifty years old, I do not focus on managing my calorie intake.  I train about five or six hours per week and can consume anywhere between 4500/6000 calories per day and hold steady at 161 lbs.  If I reduce my food intake, I quickly drop below 160 lbs and feel weak.

Anyway, thats me.  I base my intake of food on how much I weigh and how good I feel.
2009-09-26 11:14 PM
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Subject: RE: Calorie intake for an active triathlete
Thanks to both for your input. I will establish my plan at about 3200 - 3400 calories, but as you sadi, I will keep monitoring my weight to make sure it stays where I want it (70 Kg) and the most important thing, that I feel good!

Thanks again.

Edited by esanchi 2009-09-26 11:14 PM
2009-09-27 1:17 PM
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Subject: RE: Calorie intake for an active triathlete
I am and always have been an intuitive eater.......when I am hungry I eat more. Sounds ridiculously obvious I know but its what works for me. I cannot imagine keeping track of the calories, I just  eat. When I was in the thick of HIM training I did have a hard time keeping weight on though.........no matter how much stuff I plowed in.
2009-09-27 2:53 PM
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Subject: RE: Calorie intake for an active triathlete

Last summer when I was in weight loss mode, I used fitday.com to monitor my calories.

You enter what you eat and yoru activity.  I'm sure fitday might ot be th emost accurate, but it was a good starting point for me.  It also opened my eyes to how much I was eating and what category of foods I was eating.

2009-09-27 3:12 PM
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Subject: RE: Calorie intake for an active triathlete
I just spent some time looking at the nutrtional guidlines for P90X, sounds like it makes sense.  Take your weight in pounds X 10 for the number of calories it takes to breath.  Take 20% of that number for the calories burned in daily activity such as walking or work.  Add 600 calories for a one hour workout such as P90X or the things that triathletes do.  This number is the amount of calories that you would need to maintain your weight...if you wanted to lose weight then you need a calorie deficit.  My equation works as follows...

175lbs X 10 = 1750.

20% of 1750 is 350 + 1750 = 2100

2100 + 600 = 2700 calories

I need to lose at least 10lbs which is at least 35,000 calories.  I plan to reduce my calorie intake just a bit to accomplish this over a period of about 2 months while maintaining fitness.
2009-09-27 8:14 PM
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Subject: RE: Calorie intake for an active triathlete

While my opinion may be contrary to most, I think that if you don't have a weight problem (your height/weight ratio is fairly normal) there's not a lot of reason to count calories.  Eat health meals, eat when you're hungry, exercise a lot, and only start counting calories if your weight starts going up.

Brian 

2009-09-29 10:40 AM
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Subject: RE: Calorie intake for an active triathlete

Excellent advices guys. I really appreciate it.

Hey krisko, If I apply that math, I get an intake of about 2860 calories, which matches pretty much my overall estimate.

From what I have heard, the best is to eat healthy and monitor your weight from time to time, make sure it stays where u want it. I do like to pay attention to how much carbs/prots/fats I am eating to make sure I am fueling myself with the correct proportions for endurance training. I have heard that 70-15-15 is OK. Does anyone have any ideas about it?

Thanks,

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