Anyone else exhausted on 6-mo rotation?

[Melclear]

Hi everyone -

I did the 3-month rotation over the winter and loved it, but was definitely feeling like I needed my recovery week after 4 weeks. Now I am halfway through M2 on a 6-month rotation and I am totally beat (same thing happened in M1 but not quite as bad). I am desperately trying to keep up with the rotation and not add in extra rest days, but I know I am fighting my body on this one. I just feel exhausted. I think I am eating right (eating clean is super-easy this time of year with the farmer's markets and relying on my grill to cook lean protein) and I don't set an alarm so I sleep as much as I need to (that will change when school starts again).

Any suggestions for keeping my energy up to finish the rotation on time? Or should I just add in the extra rest days as needed and not worry about it? Thanks for any advice anyone can offer.

Mel

 

[marnold]

Mel,

My only suggestion would be to eat more. DH and I are on our second round of STS 3.5 month. We, like you, did the first rotation in the winter. We then did a month of a Cathe Monthly Rotation, and then we started this latest 3.5 rotation on June 15th. We will start Meso 3 next week. Any who...we discovered that our exhaustion was due to not eating enough. HTH!

 

[Melclear]

You are probably right. That's how I have managed to lose so much weight while still building muscle (or at least the muscles are becoming more visible and defined). OK, time for an early lunch!

 

[lightening16]

I really noticed being exhausted during Meso 2 doing it in the 6 month cycle. In the end I only did Meso 3 once.

Heather

 

[kathryn]

I am desperately trying to keep up with the rotation and not add in extra rest days, but I know I am fighting my body on this one. I just feel exhausted.

I'd add in an extra rest day during the week.
Also, what kind of other activities are you doing (cardio, daily activities). You may be risking overtraining by pushing yourself past the point of your body being able to cope with it.

 

[Melclear]

Also, what kind of other activities are you doing (cardio, daily activities). You may be risking overtraining by pushing yourself past the point of your body being able to cope with it.

My non-STS days are all Cathe cardio workouts, 2 or 3 each week. So far, all of them have been at least 50 minute long, no real easy days. I am squishing the 8-week rotation into 7 weeks by eliminating a cardio here and there. Other than my workouts, my days are pretty sedentary (college prof), so I try to give my all to my workouts. I am going to start adding in some shorter cardio when I feel I need it (like doing one cardio from 4DS as my workout for the day), and I'll definitely try to add in some extra rest days. Thanks!

 

[TpaGirl]

I did the 3 month rotation the first time, and it seemed much easier. Switching the 6 month has been really wearing me down, but I think my results have been better as well. I have 3 more weeks left in Meso 2, and I can't wait for my recovery week. During the 3 month rotation, I skipped my recovery weeks twice and did not even notice.

 

[thebrain]

I also first did the 3-month, and now am halfway through M2 on a 6-month rotation. I posted toward the end of M1 this time around about how beat I was feeling, which was very much un-like how a felt with M1 the first time around.

The 8-week stretch of M1 was killer! I think part of the exhaustion comes from not having a moment to rest during the workouts, as you only have 30 seconds to prepare for the next exercise.

I am not feeling quite so worn-out during these 8 weeks of M2, although as I mentioned, I'm only halfway done. I also primarily run for my cardio, especially during the warmer months. We've also been going away on little trips here and there this summer, so I have been doing 3 STS workouts in a row and then going away and running while on vacations. Maybe that's why I'm not feeling as tired? Of course, I eat more on vacation, so that may be why I'm not feeling so run-down!

Anyway, I can totally sympathize with how you are feeling. I figure this is all a learning process. If I can make it through M2 for 8 weeks feeling strong, then the next time I do STS, I'll do M1 for only one month and M2 for two months. I am already pretty sure I will be doing M3 for one month this time around regardless.

Good luck!

Aimee

 

[Shadowpup]

For me, Meso 1 was fine as a 'double', but I hit overtraining four weeks into doubling Meso 2. I took a two-ish week active rest break, restarted on the 'single' rotation, took two weeks of active rest before starting Meso 3, and that seemed to do the trick.

It may not have been the workouts for me as much as the very intense work schedule, including lack of sleep, time zone changes, and high stress. But whatever it was, the extra rest breaks were a huge help.

 

[Melclear]

thanks!

Thanks everyone. I have been eating a little more, which has helped. I also added in a few more rest days for the remaining 3 weeks of M2, and will definitely do M3 only one time through. I really appreciate all your input!