Hi everybody,

I am new to this forum. I really hope that somebody can help me with some problem. There is one question that has been constantly bugging me. How do I lose weight (in order to run better next year ) when I am already exercisizing a lot and used to it?
I have to explain a few things:
I have run my first marathon last year in June. It was my first race ever. Since then I have completed two half marathons this year and one full distance marathon in June 2006. The next full distance race is comming up on the 23rd of September 2006 and I am on training right now:
-3 times 5 miles per week (one day is five miles with sprint and slow jog in between)
-one long run on the weekend, 18 miles coming up this weekend.

I do additional weight-lifting for arms, chest, back /lower back and abdominal area three times a week. As long as I am on marathon-training, I try to avoid working my legs with weights, because
1) They are really muscular and strong anyhow and
2) I have tried lunges and sqats before and they give me muscle sore, which is a pain the in the butt (literally) during the long runs.
3) I will start working my legs with weights again, as soon as the next race is over.

Since May 2004 I have lost 35 pounds (I now weigh 165 lbs, height 5"8") and I want another 15 lbs to go to be able to run better next year and to avoid unneccessary stress on my joints. From my experience it is almost impossible to lose weight during marathon preparation, because I am not able to perform well (esp. during the long runs), when I am on a caloric deficit. It sucks to run long distances over 3 months without the calories needed to at least maintain the current body-weight. My diet is pretty healthy and got checked in March by a nutrinionist. So the question is:
How do I lose weight (after the race) being already pretty active (between one and two hours of exercise 5 to 6 times a week, even when I am not on training)?
I think my body is used to this amount of exercise now and does not want to get rid of more fat. However, I don't have time to exercise more.
Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you

What is your body fat percentage? I assume pretty low already considering the volume of running you are doing. Then the only way to loose more weight is to loose muscle, probably through caloric deficit. It is true you need lots of calories to fuel your high volume running regimen, but it also is true running long distances is much easier the lower your body weight is...