Getting leaner?

butt9182

I'm 5'4" and 122 pounds and 22 years old. People always tell me I'm skinny and don't need to loose weight but I want to get rid of my fat thighs and stomach. How do I go about doing that. I'm on a 1200 calorie diet and running everyday along with push-ups and sit-ups but not seeing a difference

Psychgrrl

Unfortunately, you can't spot reduce like that. Muscle tone in legs would be better achieved by weight-lifting as opposed to running, in my opinion. Instead of weight-loss, you might want to look at body recomposition as your goal, since you're already at a healthy weight.

Why are you at 1200 calories? Did you set your weight-loss to 2pounds per week? That's too aggressive considering your already healthy weight. If you have 25 pounds or less to lose, it's generally recommended to set the weight-loss for .5 pounds per week. And you could be setting yourself up for long term damage by not giving your body enough fuel. Your body will take what it needs from itself and you'll actually lose lean mass and not achieve the look you want.

Are you 1200 calories total or 1200 calories net (net meaning you eat more on the days you run)? It's not recommended women eat below 1200 because it's really hard to get all the nutrients we need. I think it's hard at 1500 to do that! Lack of nutrients can lead to hair falling out, brittle nails, dry skin, fatigue ...

Part of the puzzle is knowing the "calories in" part and the most accurate way to do that is to weigh all solid foods on a digital food scale and measure all liquids with cups and spoons. Most people don't eyeball portions correctly. It was really eye opening when I started doing it.

Slow and steady wins the race. You want sustainable habits you can live with and not a crash diet that'll have you yo-yo-ing back and forth.

Good luck--please take care of yourself!

cerise_noir

^This.

As you're already at a healthy weight, do consider doing a body recomposition which is basically doing a progressive heavy lifting program such as strong lifts 5x5 or similar and eating at or below maintenance to 'firm up'.