Apple Shaped Gal Needs Some Help Building Her Body & Workout Routine

squats_and_lipsticks

Hey everyone! I know I’m technically in the wrong forum and probably am better off in posting in the “fitness & exercise” one, but I’m sure - your bodybuilding knowledge could benefit me! And I’m literally here to BUILD my body

Ok so: I’m 5’6, today’s weight in was at 187lbs (I’m actually coming from 300, so yay for me I guess; although I was 170 last year, I gained some during this year due do eating crappy but I’m not complaining about it - it’s ok, I’m back on track again).
Anyways - I’m apple shaped - for those who don’t know what I’m talking about: I carry the most weight in my upper body. While I have slim legs and underarms, I have a lot from my collar bones down and especially a LOT of under belly (surely it’s normal to a certain degree after losing so much weight, but it’s still a lot of fat!) and of course I have absolutely NO butt.

I practically look like a guy and as a young woman I absolutely don’t like that I know, I know, genetics and all and I would never become a Kim K without having surgery. So I surely don’t have unrealistic expecations, but would love to change something still. Because I’m shaped like a guy, my body tends to acts like it (although my hormones are perfectly fine as per recent bloodwork, except for high prolactine). I quickly gain muscles in quads / biceps / chest (which makes me look even more like V-shaped) but it also makes my butt even smaller when I lose weight.

For you to be unbiased and neutral I’m not telling you my whole past fitness history, but want you to treat me like someone who goes to the gym for the first time in her life with a goal of losing volume in the upper / middle body and gain more in the lower body. How do I need to exercise / eat for that?

I appreciate any constructive help!! All the best

cupcakesandproteinshakes

It would help to know if you are a total newbie to lifting. I’m assuming you are.
Get on a lifting programme. Check the thread above where there is a list of programmes.
You need a calorie deficit to lose fat.
Keep protein high.

squats_and_lipsticks

cupcakesandproteinshakes wrote: »

It would help to know if you are a total newbie to lifting. I’m assuming you are.
Get on a lifting programme. Check the thread above where there is a list of programmes.
You need a calorie deficit to lose fat.
Keep protein high.

I’m not a complete newbie, nope, I got a variety of equipment at home (bench, long bar + various weights, dumbells) and a gym membership, where I’m currently doing cardio and yoga only to get some endurance back I lost). I’m in a ca. 500calories deficite daily and trying (but not constantly achieving) to eat my bodyweight in kg in protein at least. PS: I love how our nicknames are so similar

GaryRuns

squats_and_lipsticks wrote: »

For you to be unbiased and neutral I’m not telling you my whole past fitness history, but want you to treat me like someone who goes to the gym for the first time in her life with a goal of losing volume in the upper / middle body and gain more in the lower body. How do I need to exercise / eat for that?

I appreciate any constructive help!! All the best

Little bit of an odd way to word that, "lose volume". You can lose volume by losing muscle mass, and believe it or not I've known guys who were trying to do just that, lose muscle mass, so that they could be more competitive in an endurance sport. But, I'm assuming you specifically mean lose fat.

If you haven't heard it before I'll reiterate it here, you can't spot-reduce, at least if you're talking about losing fat. You have to go into a calorie deficit and your genetics will determine where your body takes fat from to make up for that deficit.

And actually your resistance training history can significantly impact what people might recommend. If you're new to progressive overload then you can do some pretty basic programs to see some significant gains. If you're intermediate, or advanced, you'll have to be a LOT more careful when choosing a program in order to make gains.

psuLemon

Sounds like you are fairly on track with diet. Have you been on a structured lifting routine before or just gone to a gym? Do you have goals outside of fat loss? Overall, diet will help fat loss, but the exercise program will provide shape. The sticky has a lot of good programs, which is where you should start.

How days you want to lift? Are you doing cardio?