Absolute beginner here! I need help!

ainokea8

Okay guys, I'm an absolute beginner when it comes to weight loss and exercise so please no mean comments. The things which may be obvious to you, isn't obvious to me.

That said, I weigh 115 pounds at 5'5 and a half. With a BF % of 25% I would like to lose anywhere from 5-10 pounds but general weight loss isn't my main objective. My main goal is to cut fat. I want to lower my BF% to 18% so I can tone up my flabby belly and be able to see abs.

What would you most recommend for this goal? What kind of diet and exercise? MFP recommends a calorie intake of 1200 but I always see people on here saying how eating too little can prevent muscle growth and remember the point is that I want to be able to see my abs and get a toned stomach.

ainokea8

Anyone??

SezxyStef

well....Body fat is determined by diet. EAting 1200 calories is not a good idea...I suspect you set your goals to 2lbs a week?

Since you only have 5-10lbs to lose try 1/2lb a week..but that being said you are on the low end of normal now...for weight.

Your goal puts you "under weight" for your height. and when I plug your stats into scooby and say 5% loss it has a pop up that says....you are already underweight...consult a doctor.

If all you really want to do is get a look...then my suggestion is this (based on the scooby calculator) eat at Maintenance (based on stats and sedentary) that is 1623 calories a day and start some heavy lifting..you are after a body recomp...

JenMc14

You are at the low end of a healthy weight range for your height. I'd suggest eating just below maintenance and lifting weights. Find a good beginner program. Doing this will help you maintain your muscle while losing fat. You may not see the scale loss you want, but you're body fat will (should) go down.

DamePiglet

I suggest that you pick up a book called "New Rules of Lifting for Women"

I'm not trying to sell you a gimmick; many women on MFP have had great results with it.

mumblemagic

Ok, so I've just done a quick BMI calculation and you're currently at 18.8. Bearing in mind a healthy body weight is from 18.5 - 25, losing even 5 lbs would put you underweight.

You definitely don't want a calorie deficit. I would say that an exercise regime and a diet to help tone would be best for you, although what that would be I don't know as personally I still have plenty of flab


Edit:
The other poster is right, you're at 19.1. The BMI calc I used doesn't like 5.5 inches! You would still be underweight if you lost 5 lbs though so I think my point still stands.

http://www.bmi-calculator.net/

errorist

Those figures you give compute to a BMI of 19.1 - this is at the bottom end of 'healthy weight', teetering towards underweight, at 18.5. Certainly a long way off a BMI of 25.

For what it's worth, your Basal Metabolic Rate for those figures is 1353 kcal (the calories you would consume if you were in a coma) and your Total Daily Energy Expenditure is around 1860, assuming 1-3 hours of light exercise in a week.

My recommendation, if those really are your figures, is that the last thing you want to do is to start cutting calories. You need to go above your TDEE and start some muscle-building exercise.

What makes you think you have a BMI of 25?
EDIT - sorry misunderstood body fat as BMI, durr. The point still stands - dropping weight is not a good idea.

ainokea8

Okay so now I'm in a conundrum since losing any weight is going to drop me into an unhealthy BMI. But on the other hand, not losing weight means I'm still gonna have flab everywhere and not be able to see abs since I still have a high fat percentage.
You guys are recommending weight lifting but I don't have easy access to a gym right now, so am I a completely lost cause at this point?

I'm feeling pretty hopeless :frown:

ainokea8

Those figures you give compute to a BMI of 19.1 - this is at the bottom end of 'healthy weight', teetering towards underweight, at 18.5. Certainly a long way off a BMI of 25.

For what it's worth, your Basal Metabolic Rate for those figures is 1353 kcal (the calories you would consume if you were in a coma) and your Total Daily Energy Expenditure is around 1860, assuming 1-3 hours of light exercise in a week.

My recommendation, if those really are your figures, is that the last thing you want to do is to start cutting calories. You need to go above your TDEE and start some muscle-building exercise.

What makes you think you have a BMI of 25?

I don't think I have a BMI of 25, I have a Body fat percentage of 25

errorist

Have a look over at reddit - bodyweight fitness. They have a very useful FAQ over there, and some home routines for people with very limited experience linked from here - http://www.reddit.com/r/bodyweightfitness/comments/1lhaos/routine_selection_guide/

errorist

I just found the page where some of the bodyweight exercises are described: http://www.reddit.com/r/bodyweightfitness/wiki/basic_exercises

Gaining muscle without entering a gym is certainly possible - you will need to learn to use your own body weight. Research and trial and error are the names of the game (name of the games?).

Presumably there are people on the forum who do this (I go to a gym) who can give you better information than me.

_Terrapin_

Okay so now I'm in a conundrum since losing any weight is going to drop me into an unhealthy BMI. But on the other hand, not losing weight means I'm still gonna have flab everywhere and not be able to see abs since I still have a high fat percentage.
You guys are recommending weight lifting but I don't have easy access to a gym right now, so am I a completely lost cause at this point?

I'm feeling pretty hopeless :frown:

You are not in a conundrum, you just have a few things twisted. If you lift weights, and maintain your caloric needs(i.e. someone provided numbers for you above with respect to TDEE) your body will firm as you retain and strengthen your existing muscles. Women carry 12% essential body fat, so seeing your abs may or may not occur since most of a woman's body fat(essential) is near their waist, hips, and upper thighs(think child rearing). As for the gym and lifting, you can search workouts at home or in home with household items from water jugs to paint cans. You do not need a great deal of weight but you'll need to be creative. Best of luck, stay committed to lifting and you'll drop body fat.

KarenJanine

read this for inspiration: http://www.nerdfitness.com/blog/2011/07/21/meet-staci-your-new-powerlifting-super-hero/

Sounds like you wish to 're-comp' ie change your fat/muscle composition. There are two options:

1. Lift weights and eat at or near maintenance (TDEE). Draw back is it's a very slow process.
2. Lift weights and eat above TDEE to gain muscle. Draw back = some fat gain is inevitable so you'll need to cut later to trim this down. Cycle between bulk and cut until you reach a composition you're happy with.

ainokea8

So there's no other way than to do a body recomp?

_Terrapin_

read this for inspiration: http://www.nerdfitness.com/blog/2011/07/21/meet-staci-your-new-powerlifting-super-hero/

Sounds like you wish to 're-comp' ie change your fat/muscle composition. There are two options:

1. Lift weights and eat at or near maintenance (TDEE). Draw back is it's a very slow process.
2. Lift weights and eat above TDEE to gain muscle. Draw back = some fat gain is inevitable so you'll need to cut later to trim this down. Cycle between bulk and cut until you reach a composition you're happy with.

Interesting, and very difficult to do. I ate at a deficit (TDEE less 15-20% weekly)from roughly Feb '13 to 9/27/13 dropped a 1/3 of my body fat and lost zero LBM. While attempting to cycle you can read and learn about the difficulties in doing both over a prolonged period of time. Best of luck.

errorist

Interesting, and very difficult to do. I ate at a deficit (TDEE less 15-20% weekly)from roughly Feb '13 to 9/27/13 dropped a 1/3 of my body fat and lost zero LBM. While attempting to cycle you can read and learn about the difficulties in doing both over a prolonged period of time. Best of luck.

Yes but did you have a BMI of 19?

MinnieInMaine

Yes, pretty much the only way to get what you're looking for is to follow the advice given so far. Eat at maintenance and start lifting weights. Losing weight isn't going to make you less flabby, that's just not how the body works. The only way to get less flabby is to make those muscles stronger. Don't worry about getting all bulky either - as a woman, you just don't have the right hormones for that. All those fitness models you see eat very specific diets and have very rigorous workout routines - that doesn't happen to just anyone.

Also, 25% body fat is NOT high. That's the low end of average. 18% is in the athlete range. You might want to shoot for more like 22% at best, maybe slightly lower if you get serious about training.

source: http://www.builtlean.com/2010/08/03/ideal-body-fat-percentage-chart/

ainokea8

read this for inspiration: http://www.nerdfitness.com/blog/2011/07/21/meet-staci-your-new-powerlifting-super-hero/

Sounds like you wish to 're-comp' ie change your fat/muscle composition. There are two options:

1. Lift weights and eat at or near maintenance (TDEE). Draw back is it's a very slow process.
2. Lift weights and eat above TDEE to gain muscle. Draw back = some fat gain is inevitable so you'll need to cut later to trim this down. Cycle between bulk and cut until you reach a composition you're happy with.

This is really amazing! I would like to do weight training but I don't have access to weights at the moment so I searched up some home exercises I could do to build strength w/o equipment and most of it seem to be some variation of a plank or a squat. And I'm wondering, aren't these exercises mostly used to target the arms and legs?

Most of my fat distribution goes to my stomach and thighs. So I know my legs could definitely use some work. But when I'm building muscle in my legs by doing these squats w/o dieting, wouldn't that just cause muscle build up under a layer of fat? So my legs would actually bulk up instead of slimming. And most of all neither of these exercise target core, so how would this lead to fat reduction in my stomach area?

ainokea8

Would this be something I could do in place of weight training?


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9iwl0TGfmDg

stephinator92

I think the main goal here is to cut fat and gain muscle, so realistically you may GAIN weight if you start lifting and put on some muscle, but that wouldn't be the worst thing in the world if you could begin to see some abs.

lizlucas1

Eating too little is harmful to the body because depending on the exercise routine that you do, you may be starving your body and you could possibly plummet your weight further than necessary. Some minor weight lifting will help you increase the muscle in your body, which also boosts your metabolism, and helps you burn fat faster. I would recommend consuming actually 1400 calories at least with a weight loss goal of 1/2 to 1 lb. loss a week. Keep a regular exercise routine, some cardio for the weight loss but weight training to build the muscle tone, and you should be good. But if you're 5'5 at 115 lbs, you're actually aiming to be underweight for your height. Then again, if you're just looking to tone versus actual weight loss, you may want to just stick to resistance and weight training. Just a suggestion.

errorist

Would this be something I could do in place of weight training?


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9iwl0TGfmDg

That's exactly the sort of thing I meant (although he does say 'intermediate to advanced'). Is there a Yoga or Pilates group you could attend as well to practice some of these positions. You also might want to think about getting a pullup bar.

mumblemagic

Okay so now I'm in a conundrum since losing any weight is going to drop me into an unhealthy BMI. But on the other hand, not losing weight means I'm still gonna have flab everywhere and not be able to see abs since I still have a high fat percentage.
You guys are recommending weight lifting but I don't have easy access to a gym right now, so am I a completely lost cause at this point?

I'm feeling pretty hopeless :frown:

Someone else has suggested pilates. You can get a cheap DVD on the internet. I find it really helps to tone, without bulking.

Swimming is also good.

And I find running uses my stomach muscles as well as legs and arms.

Basically, I think any exercise that uses lots of muscles would be helpful, just make sure you eat enough.

And don't forget that food cans can be used as handy weights, sofas can be used to make sit-ups and press-ups harder, and children's parks often have bars and climbing things you could use (plus swings, for your inner child )

Have a look at this:
http://www.nhs.uk/Livewell/fitness/Pages/12-week-fitness-plan.aspx

DeeVanderbles

Going off the pilates suggestions - check out http://www.blogilates.com/ - Cassey has a ton of videos on her website, including those geared toward beginners. I've done the POP Pilates for Beginners - Total Body Workout, that is about half an hour, a few times and always feel it in my core for days. The only reason I don't do her videos more often is because my computer at home sucks and buffers almost constantly making it pointless to attempt.