Not Losing Weight [Concerned]

codeinstitution

Hi,

I'm a bit concerned that I've been going to the gym and exercising for over 5 months now and still haven't lost much more than 7-8 pounds. I was wondering if someone can give some advice to how I can change my workout program to lose some more weight.

Gender: M
Height: 5'7
Weight: 175 lbs (~182 when I started)

Goal: Lose beer belly/belly fat and be able to run a 5K in a decent amount of time.

Diet: Yes, I know diet is very important and I've been trying to watch what I eat. I stopped drinking sugary drinks and fast food (didn't really consume much in the first place).

My workout routine:
- I try to go to the gym 3-5 times a week for about an hr. I'm very busy right now in my life and usually can't go for longer.

Cardio
- I start by doing 20-30 minutes of treadmill cardio (I generally try to run 1.5-2 miles). Sometimes, this is at a constant pace ~5mph with 1.5 incline, other times, I vary by running at 4mph for 2 minutes, 5 mph for 2 minutes, 6 mph for one minute, and back to to 4mph.
- By the time I'm done with 25 minutes, I'm usually very out of breath and can't continue for longer. As I mentioned, one of my goals is to get a 5K done at a decent pace (that's why I try to run more at a constant pace vs. interval training), however, my lungs give up after about 25-30 minutes.

Strength Training
- I do a 3 day split as follows (numbers/sets are from today):

- Day 1:

• Pec fly 75lbs 12, 12, 10
• Shoulder press 47.5 lbs 12, 12, 10
• Chest press 50 lbs 14, 12, 12
• Tricep press 85 lbs 12, 12, 10

- Day 2:

• Lat pull down 70 lbs 12; 85lbs 12, 10, 8
• Std cable row 55 lbs 12, 70 lbs 12, 12, 10
• Tricep pushdowns 40 lbs 12, 10, 8

- Day 3:

• Leg press 170 lbs 14 12, 12
• Calf ext 130 lbs 14, 12, 12, 12
• Leg ext 60 lbs 12; 65 lbs 12,12, 10
• Prone leg curl 60 lbs 12, 65 lbs 12, 10
• Assisted Chin dips 40 lbs 12, 12, 8

- Everyday at the gym:

• 1 minute planks
• 1 minute jumping jacks
• 3 sets of 10x pushups
• 3 sets of 10x squats (no weights)

Also, as you might have noticed, most of my excercise are machine or cable based. I haven't really used free weights b/c I don't have the proper techniques.

Thanks a lot. I really appreciate your advice here.

kshama2001

codeinstitution wrote: »

Hi,

I'm a bit concerned that I've been going to the gym and exercising for over 5 months now and still haven't lost much more than 7-8 pounds. I was wondering if someone can give some advice to how I can change my workout program to lose some more weight.

Gender: M
Height: 5'7
Weight: 175 lbs (~182 when I started)

Goal: Lose beer belly/belly fat and be able to run a 5K in a decent amount of time.

Diet: Yes, I know diet is very important and I've been trying to watch what I eat. I stopped drinking sugary drinks and fast food (didn't really consume much in the first place).
[snip]

I think it's great that you are working out, but to lose weight the important thing is to be in a calorie deficit. If on paper it looks like you have created a deficit, but are not losing weight, you are underestimating what you eat and/or overestimating what you burn.

There are mistakes that people commonly make that cause them to not lose weight that we might be able to spot if you change your Diary Sharing settings to Public: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/account/diary_settings

apullum

In order to lose weight, you don't need to change your exercise program; you need to make sure you're in a calorie deficit. Set MFP for 0.5 or 1 pound per week loss and use a food scale to make sure you're eating that number of calories. Assuming your exercise calories are calculated correctly, eat them back. If you're unsure whether your exercise calories are accurate, start with eating half of them and adjust as needed depending on what your weight does.

If you want to run a 5k for the first time, start with C25K. Run slower if you're struggling. If you've run 5k before, you can move to a different training program to develop endurance and speed. Hal Higdon has many popular, free training programs.

sijomial

Some very rough maths.....

8lbs lost @ 3500 cals/lb in 150 days would be 8 x 3500 / 150 to give an approximate calorie deficit of 187 cals a day.

When you weigh 175lbs you would burn about 110 net cals per mile run. You would have to significantly increase your mileage to make a difference. Some of that will happen naturally as your fitness improves and the distance you can run increases. As you say you are pushed for time it's not looking like you have the headroom to realistically increase your gym volume.
Alternatives would be to do an hour of strength training (maybe full body workouts) in the gym and run outside to gain more time for cardio.

On the other hand you could just cut out a daily snack or otherwise reduce your food portions.
Or make conscious effort to increase your daily activity by building more movement into your day.
Or a bit of everything.
Or accept a slow rate of loss.

purple4sure05

You've provided a lot of details about your workout routine but the bottom line is that unfortunately that information doesn't matter nearly as much as what you're eating. All you need to lose the weight is a caloric deficit. Use MFP to figure out a calorie goal for roughly a pound a week of weight loss. Start measuring and weighing all your food. As long as you log everything accurately the weight will start coming off.

Dove0804

codeinstitution wrote: »

Diet: Yes, I know diet is very important and I've been trying to watch what I eat. I stopped drinking sugary drinks and fast food (didn't really consume much in the first place).

To echo others here- diet is THE most important for weight loss. It's great you have health-based goals and exercise produces a whole host of benefits, but weight-loss is not really one of them on its own. People often WAY overestimate how many calories they are burning through exercise, and often overcompensate by eating a bit more later or unconsciously moving less when they are home to recuperate. Unless you're keeping track of what's going in and out, it's easy to wipe away any deficit you might have gained through exercising.

I don't want to discourage you from exercising and challenging yourself through your routine- as I said there are so many health benefits to exercising, but I don't want you to set yourself up for disappointment either.

MalkinMagic71

You aren't tracking that you eat. You are eating more than you think. That is why you aren't losing weight. Period.

dragon_girl26

Echoing the others here...its great that you are exercising and focused on your goals, but you didn't mention anything about how many calories you are eating. Are you tracking this info? Do you know what you should be eating? If not, this is why your weight loss has stalled. It isn't because of your exercise routine. Also, eating "healthy" isnt going to matter a lick if you aren't in a calorie deficit.

janejellyroll

Weight loss is created by a calorie deficit. Some people find that cutting out sugary foods and increasing activity is sufficient to create a deficit, but others find this isn't the case. It sounds like you're in this second group so I suggest tracking your calories instead of just "watching" what you eat.

mangofish44

90-95% diet rest workout. I’ve barely been working out and have lost nearly 30lbs in 65 days. 220-192. Granted, I way much more then you and still do, but your for sure over eating post workout that’s why scar not moving

Silentpadna

mangofish44 wrote: »

90-95% diet rest workout. I’ve barely been working out and have lost nearly 30lbs in 65 days. 220-192. Granted, I way much more then you and still do, but your for sure over eating post workout that’s why scar not moving

You're right, but based on your results, I'm betting you would be better slowing it down. Seems too aggressive to be healthy; chances are that you are burning through more muscle than you want, not just fat.

lorrpb

sijomial wrote: »

Some very rough maths.....

8lbs lost @ 3500 cals/lb in 150 days would be 8 x 3500 / 150 to give an approximate calorie deficit of 187 cals a day.

When you weigh 175lbs you would burn about 110 net cals per mile run. You would have to significantly increase your mileage to make a difference. Some of that will happen naturally as your fitness improves and the distance you can run increases. As you say you are pushed for time it's not looking like you have the headroom to realistically increase your gym volume.
Alternatives would be to do an hour of strength training (maybe full body workouts) in the gym and run outside to gain more time for cardio.

On the other hand you could just cut out a daily snack or otherwise reduce your food portions.
Or make conscious effort to increase your daily activity by building more movement into your day.
Or a bit of everything.
Or accept a slow rate of loss.

^^This. You are running an average deficit of 187 per day. To lose .5 per week, you can increase that to 250. I didn’t see how much you still want to lose, but given your stats, probably not more than 10-15 additional, maybe less. So .5 per week is perfect as it will help you retain muscle, especially with your workouts.