Help me lose body fat?

I am 20% body fat, and I want 14%-16% body fat. I want abs. So how many calories should I eat, and how much should I work out, and what exercises should I do?

18 yrsold. 5'5, 122.6 - 20% body fat.

A lot of ab exercises like crunches, and "bicycle". Low body fat helps, but it also genetics.

On a side note, not sure why you want to loose more weight. You look great in the pictures. *shrug I don't think it even recommended for women to have such a low bf%.

Well because rolls on my stomach are icky! lol. I dont want to be to skinny, and the lowest I will go is 115. I just want about 15% body fat. I was 16% 115 pounds about two months ago, and i moved and gained some. I need some ideas, and motivation basically.

I heard that I should eat certain foods, and then workout after I lose the body fat is this true?

youll get abs around 17 or 18 percent. if you want to be that low dont stay that way. i stay at a lower bf in the summer and let it gain a bit in the winter, it is very unhealthy to stay that low. if you want some real abs, do crunches with resistance. i dont know if you go to a gym, but i like to do crunches on a decline bench with a 25 or 35 lb plate held to my chest. i also like hanging crunches- hang from a pull up bar and raise your legs. i also do sidebends holding a 35 or 45 lb plate in each hand. these are moves for some serious abs though- alot of women dont want the chuncky brick abs i like. for tonage and the more feminine slender ab look, do those with less or no resistance and do alot of regular crunches. high weight resistance builds bricks, high reps will make you look feminine and toned. oh, and cut sodium- thats the only way i can really get my abs to show- though temporary- its a huge factor, say if i am goingt o a pool party or something.

eat cranberries and drink tea. also, multiple recent studies show taht including whole grains in a reduced cal diet spot-reduces stomach fat. eat plain oats and whole wheat things. to loose body fat but not muscle, have a steady cal intake- around 2200 at your age, and do alot of cardio. cutting calories doesnt ensure you are losing fat, just lbs, cardio burns fat. do you eata high protien diet? i'd recommend for the time being, until you can see a faint definition of abs you eat about 120 grams of protien a day and try to cut carbs a bit. when you eat carbs make it only whole grains and some fruit

hey i'm 110 5'4 so i'm about the same as you....i used to do millions of  situps ...core workouts....pilates and i just couldn't get a defined stomach..if you want a flat stomach you need CARDDDIOOO!!! what works for me is running everyday for an hour followed by 10 minutes of core (like situps or pilates).

It is not just about calories but about a clean, balanced diet and choosing the right kinds of food. Lookup clean eating. Try to eat lean meats and proteins, complex carbs as opposed to simple, fresh whole food, not processed. Good fats. Stay away from artificial sweeteners and sugary drinks. Eat fresh fruit and veggies and whole grains. You can loose weight just watching calories but for toning and fat loss, overall health you have to eat properly. HIIT training is the best thing I have found for fat loss, sprinting and strength training.

Original Post by heatherx33:

I am 20% body fat, and I want 14%-16% body fat. I want abs. So how many calories should I eat, and how much should I work out, and what exercises should I do?

18 yrsold. 5'5, 122.6 - 20% body fat.

The most important factor is your diet, clean it up, lots of lean protein and lots of good fats.

On the exercise front, your first order of business should be to read the heirarchy of fatloss.

A couple of good workouts to check out after you've read the heirarchy would be real fast fatloss and get metabolic.

In terms of fatloss, steady state cardio is any better than sitting on the couch, see the final nail in the cardio coffin and step away from the treadmill

Just wanted to reiterate that doing lots of crunches and bicycles will not give you abs. You can't spot-reduce through exercise. You want to be doing total-body workouts that will help you build muscle and lose fat.

I haven't read the whole-grain studies, so I can't comment on whether you can spot reduce through diet, but it seems pretty unlikely to me. Citations would be helpful there.

emilyd and sully are completely right.  About the whole-grain idea, I doubt you can spot reduce, but some people do find that certain foods do make them more bloated, and so by avoiding things like over-processed white flour, you can make your stomach smaller - but that has nothing to do with actual fat loss.