Still Wobbly.

PinkPixiexox

Hi all :]

I am 5ft2 and after around 5/6 months, I have gone from 157 lbs to 125 lbs. I achieved this through a calorie deficit and by working out four times a week (a mix of cardio and weight training).

Yesterday, I took my monthly measurements. I am losing on average around 5 inches per month. This month I lost 1 inch from my butt, 1 from my stomach, 1 from my waist and my arms around half an inch each. Thighs stayed the same this month.

My issue was with my progress photographs. I am technically a healthy weight but my photographs are still portraying a lot of flabbyness. I have developed 'crinkly' skin on my stomach. I still have wobbly under arms and some "back fat". I am aiming, weight-wise, to be around 119 lbs and then I will start maintaining whilst continuing my work-out's (with emphasis on 'firming up' but still doing my cardio as I love it and still want to be able to eat extra calories!).

I'm unsure as to whether my 'flabbyness' is loose skin or actual fat that I still need to lose. When I grab at my stomach, it does not pull away as loose skin would but rather feels 'thick' still. Do you suggest getting to my goal weight and re-assessing or maintain now and stick with the work-outs? Technically, I have 6lbs of potential fat to lose until I am at my desired 'goal' so perhaps I will see some difference in 'flab'?

I've read about recomp very briefly but unsure as to what exercises I will need to be doing and whether or not that's what I need to be aiming for now as opposed to continuing with my weight loss goals. I would like to see myself slightly lower on the BMI scale.

Currently my workout's are a little like this:

20 minutes Cardio (treadmill, crosstrainer, cycle)
Barbell deadlift
barbell push-press
Goblet Squat
Lunges with weight plates
Dunbell Lat Raises
Pull Ups
Dips
2 x 30 second Plank
Crunches

(3 x 10 reps for all) I change up the work-out every time incorporating different exercises but the above was just an example of my typical exercises. I push myself with the weights also.

Any help would be appreciated. I am a little stuck as to what to do!

dhimaan

You already know what to do you are a great poster here.

Since you are 5 or so pounds away I would eat a little below maintenance such as a 200 calorie deficit and lift heavy. 3-4 times a week cardio is great. Increase cardio from 20 mins to 40 mins with some HIIT mixed in. Whatever lifting you are doing just lift as heavy as you can.

I don't know if it will work for you but this strategy has enabled me to slowly lose my lower belly fat which is a very problematic area.

Don't worry about lifting heavy and becoming bulky because technically you will still be in a deficit and as a female do not have the male equivalent testosterone to gain new muscle. You however will lose the fat gradually.

You cannot rush this process without the aid of drugs (steriods) so have patience.

Protranser

I am intrigued by your post. I am curious what the gurus suggest for you, because someday I'll be wondering the same. Have you posted this in the fitness sub? I wonder if they'd have more to say. Great job on the weight loss, and thank you for being such a beacon of positivity and strength around here

middlehaitch

Hi pixie, your jiggly bits will probably (have to day that as I don't know your genetic makeup) tighten up in time. It could take over a year, so don't worry too much.

Moisturising, in and of itself will not help your skin shrink in, but I have found a decent body cream does improve the look of my skin.

Even mine shrank, not perfectly, but there again I am no spring chicken.

You are young, have lost your weight at a reasonable pace, and are doing a good mix of cardio and resistance work.

I would think recomp would be a good next step for you, but I will leave guidance for that to those more experienced.

Cheers, h.

Liftng4Lis

Have you looked into :http://stronglifts.com/5x5/

PinkPixiexox

Liftng4Lis wrote: »

Have you looked into :http://stronglifts.com/5x5/

Fantastic, thank you - I'll read up on this now.

PinkPixiexox

Thank you every one.

I'll give it some time and see what happens - i'll continue to strength train so fingers crossed I lose the wobble !!

suziecue20

Hi Pixie, I'll leave your questions to the experts but just want to say you've done and are doing great....I do understand how the last little bit is the hardest though....you'll do it and then you'll have the 'body to die for'

cafeaulait7

You might just need more progression in your lifts. Like the dips. If you haven't progressed those and keep the same sets and reps, you probably just haven't challenged the muscles enough recently. It's still good for exercise, but to get tight, definitely progress the lifts as much as you reasonably can

Crinkly skin sounds like from weight loss. That should tighten up, yeah.

Kalikel

When the skin is loose, you'll know it's skin. Maybe at first, you wouldn't be sure, but as time went on, you'd know. It does pull away and when it's bad enough, it hangs down. It feels a lot like chicken skin, but thicker. IMO, it looks worse than fat. It's unmistakably excess skin. (And very gross. Looks worse than fat, IMO.)

The wrinklies were how mine started. If you only have a handful of pounds left to lose, it is unlikely that you'd end up with skin hanging down, so won't get too gross!

You can build muscle, if you want. Probably not a lot while you're losing, but eventually, you can, if you want. Personally, I couldn't build enough muscle to fill all the loose skin. Even if I wanted to bulk up like that, I couldn't. But if you only had a little, it's theoretically possible to fill the room with muscle. I guess.

Moisturizers and special creams won't change anything. Brushes won't change it. Really, nothing but surgery. People say that theirs has shrunk as time goes on, so maybe. I hold out little hope on that, but maybe. You're young and young skin is much better better at bouncing back than old skin, so much better shot at it.

Lift the weights and you may end the flab.

michelle7673

I'm going to second the posts that recommend moving to a designed progressive strength routine -- stronglifts is a good one, especially since you have a base. Is your 20 min of cardio a warmup? That's a good idea, but 'conventional wisdom' is to do cardio after lifting -- so that you can push your hardest and progress with the lifts without being as fatigued. (but mind you, I think the 20 min warmup is a great thing)
Based on reading a lot of your posts, I think that moving to a progressive strength routine is a great next step. It will allow you to focus on that progress while the scale movement is not galloping along like you're used to. And it will change your shape, your body comp, and your metabolism. All good
I actually do think that supporting skin health with topicals is beneficial. It's also, I find, a good way of checking in with your body in a positive, affirming way. Supporting skin health is also a matter of dietary support. (I swear skin is the forgotten organ ) But the skin thing will adjust over time and changing your shape via lifting will help.

yogacat13

As you are still losing, the "crinkliness" (which sounds like "squishy fat", a highly technical term:) ) is expected and should go away once you start maintaining.

loulamb7

Congratulations on your achievements. Sounds like you're dealing with that last bit of fat that seems to like to settle and cling to the lower abdominal area. You're probably at the stage where you should start focusing more on BF% than scale weight. By all means still lose that last 6 lbs, but start hitting the weights harder.

A good weight program should be structured and progressive, so I would suggest you stop changing up the workout. Pick one of the progressive weight program, such as Stronglifts, suggested by @Liftng4Lis. I'm a fan of the AllPro program on bodybuilding.com. Whichever program you pick will guide you through number of sets and reps. Best of luck.

yogacat13

See reference here: http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/of-whooshes-and-squishy-fat.html/
Last paragraph

PinkPixiexox

Update: Thank you all for your perfect advice!

I've actually considered entering into maintenance from tomorrow and starting recomping.
This weight loss journey has been so emotional but i'm ready to change my body in positive ways - time to get lifting!

PinkPixiexox

yogacat13 wrote: »

See reference here: http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/of-whooshes-and-squishy-fat.html/
Last paragraph

YOU'VE MADE MY DAY! Thank you for this.

yogacat13

PinkPixiexox wrote: »

yogacat13 wrote: »

See reference here: http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/of-whooshes-and-squishy-fat.html/
Last paragraph

YOU'VE MADE MY DAY! Thank you for this.

!

cafeaulait7

Woo hoo for more eating! Recomping is exciting

But I got freaked out by the wee bit of weight gain I got recently from it. I'm eating at a bit over maintenance at least every other day, so one way or another, that'll happen if you do that. I knew this, of course. I call it a mini bulk, lol.

Still, freaked me out! And my thigh measurement went up a bit after several weeks. Duh, I'm actively trying to grow my inner thigh muscles with extra lifting there. They now feel grown and solid (like they used to be) instead of all squishy and obnoxious Actually growing muscle can take up more space, depending on how your body starts. It looks and feels much better, so I don't mind the extra nearly-an-inch! Or the extra few pounds if things look better

happygalah

Glad you asked this as I'm experiencing the same thing.

Christine_72

I've got around 5kgs left to lose. And I too have the crinkly crepe paper look on my tummy. I have no idea if it's fat, loose skin or both..