How's my plan?

TiffCK728

I haven't been on My Fitness Pal since mid 2013. I was 160lbs and got down to 125. Then I stopped tracking. Tracking is a lot of work IMO to do all the time! Anyway, my mom got me some jeans and they are a bit too tight. Since I'm 5'1" people seem to think I'm smaller than I actually am when they get me clothes sometimes. Anyway, I want to fit into them! I still have some flab, and I haven't had a scale for at least a year, so I may have gained about 5lbs in the last year and a half. I'm not really worried about what I weigh, I just want to lift my booty, loose some fat, and get a flat belly again. I need to work on my love handles. My bf surprised me with a gym membership. I have been doing some zumba, insanity and cycling sometimes, but not daily. Now I'm going to the gym and I got in this routine and I want to know if you all think it will work. I get to the gym, stretch, do the elliptical for about 10-15mins, then use exercise machines for about an hour. Then elliptical again for 10-15 mins, stretch, go home. I always do the hip and glutes machines, ab machines, plus I add some planks (running and some other kinds of planks). Also, I switch up arms and legs days. I noticed most women tend to just do cardio, and I haven't been there too much, but rarely have seen women doing arms. Should I just stick to cardio? I figured lifting and using the other machines would help me tone better. Anyone have suggestions on what my routine should be?
2014.

TiffCK728

Also, am I doing everything right so I don't get as sore and therefore can exercise more?

malibu927

Look into a progressive lifting program like Stronglifts or New Rules of Lifting for Women

rosebette

I'm about your size, and I do both cardio and strength. The cardio burns more calories and fat, but the strength training will change your body, giving you muscle. If you lose weight without doing strength training, you also lose muscle mass, so you can be what's called "skinny fat." You also still need to track calories. Weight loss is built on deficit -- eating fewer calories than you use. If you're only 5 lbs. over your goal, you might set MFP to lose .5 a week so your calories aren't so low that you can't support your activity level.

ILiftHeavyAcrylics

malibu927 wrote: »

Look into a progressive lifting program like Stronglifts or New Rules of Lifting for Women

This, or Starting Strength.

odddrums

rosebette wrote: »

I'm about your size, and I do both cardio and strength. The cardio burns more calories and fat, but the strength training will change your body, giving you muscle. If you lose weight without doing strength training, you also lose muscle mass, so you can be what's called "skinny fat." You also still need to track calories. Weight loss is built on deficit -- eating fewer calories than you use. If you're only 5 lbs. over your goal, you might set MFP to lose .5 a week so your calories aren't so low that you can't support your activity level.

Well said! Do exactly this.

If you want to add strength training try doing the machines at your gym for a month and have a trainer, friend, or random person at the gym show you how to use them. You can find lots of workouts online. Getting strong on the machines is a good place to start, then you can move to a freeweights program if you want to keep building muscle and "toning" as you mentioned.

Or, if you're feeling especially baddass look into The New Rules of Lifting for Women or Starting Strength, 2 books that have great workout programs and explain everything going on very well. I'd agree with Rosebette and say strength training will help you change your body, and maybe get a flat stomach faster.

Liftng4Lis

Lift Lift Lift

TiffCK728

Thanks everyone! Since I don't know what I weigh, I don't really know what I want to lose. I guess I should eat around 1500 calories or so, though. I'll look into those books. I guess I'll keep going about how I am now. I guess now I could be considered "skinny fat" since I'm at a healthy range, but am very soft around the middle. (I can feel some tight abs hiding under that layer of fat, though! That's the mom belly, but I am dedicated to getting rid of it!

Kalikel

I think your plan is great. I do not think you shouldn't "do arms" because nobody else is! If you want to do it, do it!!

ana3067

TiffCK728 wrote: »

Thanks everyone! Since I don't know what I weigh, I don't really know what I want to lose. I guess I should eat around 1500 calories or so, though. I'll look into those books. I guess I'll keep going about how I am now. I guess now I could be considered "skinny fat" since I'm at a healthy range, but am very soft around the middle. (I can feel some tight abs hiding under that layer of fat, though! That's the mom belly, but I am dedicated to getting rid of it!

If you want to accurately estimate how much you should be eating, you need to know your weight. I have links on my profile to help you estimate your caloric needs - subtract 10% if you don't have much to lose, up to 20% if you have a fair bit to lose. And if you include exercise, then you dont' log and eat back exercise cals. If you don't include exercise though into the calculations, then DO log and eat back exercise cals. You can reduce how much of them you eat after a few months, initially I'd suggest eating them all so you can see how off they are for you. 20% deficit is ~1lb/week so if you are not losing 3-4lbs a month then you can reduce exercise cals to 75%, if that doesn't help then reduce to 50% and if that still doesn't help then I'd say go back up to 100% and take off 100 cals from your net, evaluate your monthly losses, repeat cycle.

Graelwyn75

Liftng4Lis wrote: »

Lift Lift Lift

^^ This... is the key to what you are wanting to accomplish. Look into lifting. Plenty of material online and you can always join the Eat, Train, Progress group here for additional help.