Am I Overtraining?

I always seem to have this tired feeling during the day.  In general I just seem to have less energy than I used to have when I weighed more (I've gone from 210 to 148 pounds and my goal is to see my abs).  I'm 5'6".  It's weird though because once I start exercising for 5-10 minutes I seem to get all my energy back, and my "tiredness" definitely doesn't effect my ability to perform while at the gym.  But, it does get annoying when I have to walk more slowly up the steps or don't jump at the chance to sprint and get the mail or walk a few blocks in the city at a decent clip.  BTW I have been keeping track of my weight and diet ever since I started switching from a simple eat less methodology (which got me down to around 160) to a real lifestyle change.  My fitday log can be seen here: http://www.fitday.com/WebFit/PublicJournals.html?Owner=mcFreid.

If your not interested in browsing through my journal here's a quick summary of my weekly routine.

I eat 1750 calories a day split between 5 meals.  I eat 50% protein, 30% fat, and 20% carbs.

I lift on Mondays and Thursdays, I do a 1-mile run with cardio on Tuesdays and Fridays, I do a 20min eliptical HIIT with cardio on wed.

The details of my gym routine are as follows:

Mon/Thurs:
Squats (recently started doing 70lb from 60lb)
Deadlifts (recently started doing 70lb from 60lb)
Bench Press (55lb)
Dumbbell Bicep Curls (20lb)
Tricep Rope Extensions (55lb)
Standing Dumbbell Military/Shoulder Press (recently started doing 20lb from 15lb)
Dumbbell Bent-Over Rows (20lb)
Ab Exercises

Tues/Fri:
1mile run (8mph)
20 minute elliptical (70rpm)
10 minute "Alpine Pass" walk (level 5 max incline, 4 mph max speed)
5 minute elliptical HIIT (rest @ 70rpm for 1min sprint @ 90rpm for 1.25min)

Wed:
20 minute elliptical HIIT (rest @ 70rpm for 1min sprint @ 90rpm for 1.25min)
10 minute "Alpine Pass" walk (level 5 max incline, 4 mph max speed)
Sometimes I do a quick run at 8mph for 5 minutes here, but not always

Hopefully that's enough info.  If I left anything out or you need to know something just let me know and I'll fill in any gaps.

No i highly doubt that you are overtraining, BUT if you are feeling tired, have you ever looked at your sleeping schedule? I would highly reccommend getting 7-8 hours of sleep a day otherwise you won't feel your best and your lifting and running won't be either. 

No. Reduce your cardio and leave it only at HIIT. Replace the rest of the cardio days with training. And eat more. Stick to foods that control your insulin level and don't spike it unless you need to i.e. after a workout.

I sleep on average 7.5 hours per night.  I've tried to sleep more because I suspected it as the culprit as well, but my body seems incapable of staying asleep much longer than that.

SouLja are you sure its the cardio?  I used to do just HIIT for awhile but started adding the cardio because I wasn't seeing the weight loss results I wanted.  Doing a combination of both seems to be working best for me.  Also I tried the eating more thing as well.  I did a 2000-2100 calorie diet for around 1-2 weeks before cutting down to 1750.  The problem, even though the calculators recommended a that 2000-2100 calorie diet for a 500 calorie cut for my daily routine, was that I was at best maintaing and at worst gaining some weight on that diet.  Since then a cut of 1750 has been more reliable, though still fairly slow at around .25 pounds per week, in losing weight.

more cals bro you should b getting 2000 minimum

ORIGINAL: mee4414

more cals bro you should b getting 2000 minimum

I don't agree.
 
His main concern is to lose fat, not to build muscle. So, 1750 could be a fair number, depending on his activity level.

5'8.1"
Age = 19
started in February 16th 2007: 58kg (127.6lbs)
current : around 78-79kg (171.6lb-173.8lb)

I don't train body parts these days... I train basic compound exercises...

ORIGINAL: trubeginner

ORIGINAL: mee4414

more cals bro you should b getting 2000 minimum

I don't agree.

His main concern is to lose fat, not to build muscle. So, 1750 could be a fair number, depending on his activity level.

 
he needs to calculate his dialy caloric needs to find out how much he needs to eat.

I've tried the calculators to estimate how much calories I should eat and they all recommended like mee4414 said around 2000-2200 calories (which is after cutting 500 from maintance).  I tried that for my first two weeks (you can actually see this on my Fitday profile) and gained weight.  Now, I have heard that it takes your body time to adapt to an increase in calories... But, after 2 weeks I was still gaining weight and the idea of continually gaining weight truly scared me after I spent so much time losing it.

here:
 
daily caloric needs calculation. 
 
66.5 + (13.75 x W) + (5.003 x H) - (6.775 x A)
 
W = Actual weight in kg ( weight in lb / 2.2 = weight in kg)
H = height in cm (height in inches x 2.54 cm = height in cm)
A = age in years
 
that's the most accurate.  let me know why your number is after that calculation.
 
something you could do is just drop the amount of carbs you eat to a lower number

Weight (in lb): ~149
H (in inches): 60
A: 18

I converted it to the correct units and got this:
66.5 + (931.25) + (762.46) - (121.95) = 1,638.26

that's the minimal amount of calories you need a day.  so if you're interested in losing fat, you need to eat alittle less cals per day than that (even though thats not alot) 
 
eating small meals every 2,3, or 4 hours will keep you from feeling hungry

Your program looks fine to me bro. I went from just under 210 to about 165 (where I've kinda been maintaining) in about 4 1/2 months. My energy levels definately dropped from being on a caloric deficit. It just goes with the territory. As long as you are still hitting it hard during your workouts I wouldn't worry about it too much. Once you are done losing the weight you feel like you need to lose then you can up the calories to your maintance point and your energy levels should come back. For the time being caffeine is your friend (unless you don't react well to stimulents or feel like you can do w/o it).

One suggestion I would make is that if you are down to 148 and still can't see your abs you might want to think about adding some lean body mass for a little while and then cutting again. Will make it easier and I think you'd look better as well. I think trying to maintain under 140lbs. would just be hell as far as how little you'd have to take in.

Age: 26 Height: 5'10
Weight as of 8/31/08: 160lbs.
Current weight: 172lbs.
Semi-Clean Bulkin!
Current Maxes as of 6/4/08:
Squat: 250lbs.
Deadlift: 255lbs.
Bench: 285lbs.

boomersooner1331:  isn't that my BMR?  So shouldn't it multiplied by my activity factor (which I believe is around 1.5) before getting a defect.  The reason I'm saying this is basically your suggesting I eat less than what I'm currently eating which seems contradictory to what everyone else says.

you;re right. now you need to find your TEE and add them together for a final number. 

Yeah I've done the calculator thing many times.  They all basically say the same thing that I should be eating 2000-2100 calories to get a 500 calorie cut.  Problem is I've tried that for 2 weeks, gained weight, posted it on the forums and was told simply that if I'm gaining weight it means I'm eating above maintenance.  So, I cut down to 1750.