How much weight could I loose by early February?
Alright.....My names Daria. I'm 5,7 around 210....(my scale sucks so I rounded up) I'm 20(21 in November) I work out every day for 1 hour, half hour on the tread mill half hour strength training floor exercises etc....I cut my food intake in like half over the past two weeks this is a guess because I'm not 100 percent sure yet but I'm guessing I eat around 1000-1500 calories a day I can already see changes mostly in my legs and waist. Anyways, I have a few questions how much weight could I loose in 5 months? How hard is it to make the flabby belly go away and what do you suggest for the lower abdomen? Because *sigh* I hate my belly, my upper arms, and my inner thighs, oh and the back fat LOL what things do you suggest to rid yourself of those problem areas? Any advice would be greatly appreciated Thank You
I suggest ditching the idea of deadlines and "diets" for making sustainable changes in your lifestyle. Sounds as if you are doing well on adding movement into your life, which is great, and will really help with maintenance once you are at your goal.
Have you used the tools here to calculate your calorie needs at "moderate activity"? I suspect that you could easily bump your calories up to 1800 and still lose about 5 pounds a month, which is a nice, sustainable loss that will help prevent yo-yo-ing back up once you get to goal. At your age, you shouldn't drop below 1500 calories regardless of how fast you want to lose weight. Do it slowly, and you have lots of years to enjoy your new body and health.
dkenworthy hit the nail on the head. Like my kid's book says, "slow and steady wins the race!" After trying unsuccessfully for almost 2 decades, I stumbled across this site and it has been the only thing to work. Don't quit eating the things that you love, just eat the correct portions and try to move to more healthy alternatives as much as you want to ... and exercise. It appears that you are already in a work out regime, which is great! Just make sure that your calorie deficit is around 750 per day and you will lose 1.5 lbs. per week!
Good luck!
I would suggest you check out the book The New Rules of Weight Lifting for Women. There is a group here on cc. It gives you a great program that really works. The author talks about nutrition too! I find myself, and many others, workout without a plan. We run, walk, spin, and get on the treadmill. We randomly use the weight machines. If you follow his easy to follow workouts, you WILL build muscle and get rid of the fat. You may not lose "weight" as fast, but you will be losing fat and building muscle. It is efficient and effective! Then, but a postal scale and weigh, measure and record everything you eat and drink. You can't figure out a plan if you don't know where you are starting from! failing to plan is planning to fail. Take your measurements so that when the scale isn't moving downward, your measurements will keep you motivated. Good luck.
If you are only eating 1000-1500 calories while exercising, you will lose muscle mass then eventually plateau and gain the weight back. You are on a starvation diet, you need to be eating above 1500 calories a day.
I started out at 225 (5'6") and lost about 35 pounds in the first 5 months. I ate about 1600 a day, walked for an hour 3 times a week and did an hour on the elliptical 3 times a week. It's been about 11 months now and I have lost 60 pounds. I work outdoors as a gardener and landscaper so I get exercise most days and have greatly increased my muscle mass these past 6 months. I eat between 1600 and 1800 a day now and lose about a pound a week.
Everything is smaller now - 8.5" off my hips, 8.25" from my waist, 4.75" off my arms, 4.5" from my thighs, only one chin! Of course, the belly and thighs are still jelly-like, but they are smaller.
Throughout my journey I have learned that you can not make one area smaller unless your entire body gets smaller. I resigned myself to the fact that I would first have to take off the extra fat from all over and then see how I looked...and now I know that I need to start weight training (especially over the winter when I am out of work) to tone my muscles and continue to lose the fat so that I can finally see them.
My advice is to understand how weight loss works and that you need to get smaller all over, before you will know where your mucles are. You might be one of the lucky ones who loses from her waistline first! You won't know until you get there. Make sure you take measurements every month so you know things are getting smaller - I've had months where I only lost 1 pound, but still lost half an inch all over!
Good luck!
You aren't on a starvation diet. You and I are about the same height. I've lost about 20lbs in the last 2 months. If you're just starting out, you'll probably notice larger numbers the first few weeks. You're losing water weight. It is very important to drink lots of water each day, it's even better to get your water from raw foods. Try to do both. :) First of all, it's important to build lean muscle mass, this helps your body burn more fat, as you burn muscle you won't be losing pounds, but you will be getting smaller and more toned. It's a medically supported fact that starvation diets are anything lower than 900 calories, you body may go into what's called ketoacidosis. It's really bad for your organs, and stresses out your kidneys. People who are of a healthy weight are at a greater risk with starvation diets. A healthier person's body will catabolize(breakdown) muscle mass, an overweight person's body will catabolize fat before muscle. Your body is smart, it will take from it's stores before it breaks apart necessary muscle. I don't suggest you starve yourself, but 1200 calories are what Mayo clinic suggests diabetics consume daily. I do recommend varying your caloric intake by a hundred or so each day. It helps keep your metabolism up. I think you can safely lose 2 pounds of body fat a week. I would suggest 3 pounds every 2 weeks, as it is a more gradual loss, and easier to sustain. Again, you'll burn more fat as you build muscle. You won't bulk up necessarily, you should google the difference between slow twitch and fast twitch muscle fibers. You could probably lose about 30lbs by February. You should vary your calories and your workouts to avoid a plateau. Be sure to take at least 1 day of rest each week to let your body recover. Hope this helps. :)
Em, if she's working out and eating only 1000 calories, that means she is essentially eating less than 1000 calories since she is burning more during exercise.
I'm sorry I thought I read 1200 calories as her lowest. You could get away with a low of 1100 some days, but you really need to vary your intake on a daily basis. I aim for 1350 and try to stay within a 150 calories higher or lower. The more you exercise the more calories you need. It is important to eat a breakfast high in protein, it will keep you from feeling like you're starving until later in the day. A larger breakfast with less protein won't. To keep your metabolism active it is important to feed it small meals throughout the day. If you eat smaller snacks/meals 100-200 calories a piece you body burns the calories faster, and will switch to stored fat when your snack is gone. You should also have a snack with protein after a workout, as it will help your body repair muscles. You should shoot for a ratio of 40% carbs, 35% protein, 25% fat. Aim for monounsaturated fats like avocados, olives, nuts and seeds. And for goodness sake stay away from "protein" bars and such. Most Americans meet their protein requirements just fine without resorting to protein supplements. Too much protein is hard on your kidneys as well, unless you're drinking enough water. Water with electrolytes (sodium, potassium,etc...) Like Smart water by Glaceau will help your kidneys function. Regular water and foods like celery and bananas will ensure you receive electrolytes.
@jackattack, I'm confused about what you're saying about burning more than she's eating? In order to burn fat you need to consume fewer calories than you burn per day (daily activities like breathing, sleeping, and exercise included.) You have to find your BMR, Mayo clinic has a good calculator.
