Need Help w/ Goals

apetty21

So I basically spent all of 2010 losing weight but not paying attention to inches or exercise. I wanted to reach my "goal weight" and then concentrate on fitness. "But, that doesn't make any sense," you say. "The two go hand in hand," you say. Yeah, I know. I know you are supposed to diet AND exercise. I didn't. I wanted to learn how to eat better first. Baby steps. Now that I can eat better, I need help in the exercise department. I can check my BMI (it is now 24.2) but I know I have more fat than muscle. I don't offically know my body fat % but this website: http://www.bmi-calculator.net/body-fat-calculator/ says it is 32.5%. My measurements are as follows:
Waist - 27
Hips - 36
Forearm - 11.5
Thigh - ...I hate to admit...21 (I don't know what's normal but that doesn't sound normal!) :noway:

I don't know really what my "inches lost" goal should be. My new goal weight was chosen because the BMI 22.5 is pretty much in the middle of the normal range. That's the only reason. I need help with some sort of plan.

I have added exercise goals along with my nutrition goals. I just started doing "workout" activity last week. I have purchased a HMR (cheap and not likely accurate but I honestly can't afford anything else), a 5lb kettle bell and 2 Jillian Michael dvds. School picks up this week so I will have access to a FREE (Thank goodness!) fitness center.

My food diary is open if you feel the need to take a peek. Well. It's missing a few days this weekend because I was out of town. I really started watching the sodium and upping my water (I don't track water...I fill up a 16 oz glass 4-5x daily). Any suggestions or help would be greatly appreciated. I need to lose these inches! Esp my booty and thighs. :laugh:

roylawrence87

Move to texas... Thats a goal. The greatest state in the Union... :laugh:

Debtappe

It's true that diet and exercise is the ideal way to go but your plan will work too and if it works for you that's great. I suggest a Couch to 5K fitness plan for aerobic exercise. It's gradual and is a very do-able plan. Just google C25K.

NoAdditives

Move to texas... Thats a goal. The greatest state in the Union... :laugh:

Um...Doubt it.

Pinoy_Pal

As long as you have set your goals, this site (http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/workout.htm) is a good place to get you started. You can design a workout program specifically for your goals. Hope it helps!

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cmriverside

Genetics is the biggest deciding factor in where the weight will come off first.

I wouldn't set a long-term goal for your measurements. Play around with it and monitor it to see how you like your progress with the tape measure, but you can't just decide to lose more in one part of your body than another. Spot reduction doesn't work. So if you tend to be a pear shape now, you will tend to be a pear shape after you lose 30 pounds, just smaller all over and more toned (maybe a little lifted here and there.) That is both good news and bad news, I know...:flowerforyou:

roylawrence87

Move to texas... Thats a goal. The greatest state in the Union... :laugh:

Um...Doubt it.

Yep.... Thats why I laughed.... But then again. I see people from everywhere here.

NoAdditives

So I basically spent all of 2010 losing weight but not paying attention to inches or exercise. I wanted to reach my "goal weight" and then concentrate on fitness. "But, that doesn't make any sense," you say. "The two go hand in hand," you say. Yeah, I know. I know you are supposed to diet AND exercise. I didn't. I wanted to learn how to eat better first. Baby steps. Now that I can eat better, I need help in the exercise department. I can check my BMI (it is now 24.2) but I know I have more fat than muscle. I don't offically know my body fat % but this website: http://www.bmi-calculator.net/body-fat-calculator/ says it is 32.5%. My measurements are as follows:
Waist - 27
Hips - 36
Forearm - 11.5
Thigh - ...I hate to admit...21 (I don't know what's normal but that doesn't sound normal!) :noway:

I don't know really what my "inches lost" goal should be. My new goal weight was chosen because the BMI 22.5 is pretty much in the middle of the normal range. That's the only reason. I need help with some sort of plan.

I have added exercise goals along with my nutrition goals. I just started doing "workout" activity last week. I have purchased a HMR (cheap and not likely accurate but I honestly can't afford anything else), a 5lb kettle bell and 2 Jillian Michael dvds. School picks up this week so I will have access to a FREE (Thank goodness!) fitness center.

My food diary is open if you feel the need to take a peek. Well. It's missing a few days this weekend because I was out of town. I really started watching the sodium and upping my water (I don't track water...I fill up a 16 oz glass 4-5x daily). Any suggestions or help would be greatly appreciated. I need to lose these inches! Esp my booty and thighs. :laugh:

The best thing you can do is cardio and some weight training. My current routine is as follows:

Mon: upper body weights, 45 min cardio,
Tue: lower body weights, 45 min cardio, abs
Wed: 60 min cardio
Thu: upper body weights, 45 min cardio
Fri: lower body weights, 45 min cardio abs

I'm going to be increasing the frequency of my ab workouts because they really need it! I use the various weight machines at the gym. If you want to message me I can give you a breakdown of exactly what I do, it's a little extensive to list here.

NoAdditives

Move to texas... Thats a goal. The greatest state in the Union... :laugh:

Um...Doubt it.

Yep.... Thats why I laughed.... But then again. I see people from everywhere here.

I know. But as a Californian by birth and a recent New Mexican transplant, I like to give Texans crap.

apetty21

Spot reduction doesn't work. So if you tend to be a pear shape now, you will tend to be a pear shape after you lose 30 pounds, just smaller all over and more toned (maybe a little lifted here and there.) That is both good news and bad news, I know...:flowerforyou:

Yea, I know my booty and thighs is always be relatively larger than the rest of me. I just don't honestly know what *is* a good size. I don't want to be "ripped" (which I don't think is possible with my genes) but I don't want to be jiggly either. I mean, a lil jiggle in the right places is ok, but you know what I mean. :blushing:

Are there measurements that are more "healthy" than others? How do you know what to shoot for? I judged everything by BMI before but now I have to think about other things.

cmriverside

I guess it would also depend on how tall you are and your bone structure. And I know adipose fat is the most dangerous health-wise.
So you want to get rid of the belly fat. But cardio will do that.

I don't know if you could maybe google that one?

_______________________________________

apetty21

I guess it would also depend on how tall you are and your bone structure.

I'm 5'1 but I don't know what my bone structure is

apetty21

Move to texas... Thats a goal. The greatest state in the Union... :laugh:

Well, I've said before - Texas is waaaay better than Mississippi! But you already knew that.

TrainingWithTonya

It's great that you've been dedicated and have seen progress with just diet. I agree, baby steps are good. They tend to lead to more long term changes in habit then jumping in with both feet. As for how to set your goals, what body fat % do you want to be? I'd use that instead of inches for the simple fact that you can't pick and choose what spot you want to lose fat from. It doesn't matter if the number you are getting for your body fat % is 100% accurate as long as you keep comparing the same way. So, if you want to use that body fat calculator, just make sure in 3, 6, 9, 12 months, when you recheck you use the same method of determining it. Also, you can get a weight goal by knowing your current and goal body fat percentage. You take your total weight and multiply it by the current body fat % to get fat mass. Subtract fat mass from total body weight to get lean body mass. Divide your lean body mass by 1 minus the desired % fat and you have your "ideal weight" to maintain your current muscle mass.

Here's the math based on your post, current weight in your signature, and an arbitrary goal body fat of 25%. It's hard for me to explain math in words, so hopefully, this will make more sense.

127.6 x 0.325 = 41.47 pounds of fat
127.6 - 41.47 = 86.13 pounds of lean body mass

(86.13 / 1 - 0.25) = 86.13 / 0.75 = 114.84 pounds "ideal weight" maintaining current lean body mass.

Personally, I wouldn't recommend going that low though. I'd recommend staying at your current weight and adding muscle mass while losing fat. Low lean body mass is associated with an increased risk of osteoporosis later in life so I'd recommend adding 10-15 pounds of lean body mass and burning 10-15 pounds of fat.

Now, how to do that. You'll need to start incorporating the kettlebell and other weights into your routine. I'd recommend starting out with a total body weight training program like the Jillian workouts or a circuit at the fitness center on alternate days. Then do cardio on the days in between. Once you get use to that, then we can change it up so that you can keep seeing results.

TrainingWithTonya

So I basically spent all of 2010 losing weight but not paying attention to inches or exercise. I wanted to reach my "goal weight" and then concentrate on fitness. "But, that doesn't make any sense," you say. "The two go hand in hand," you say. Yeah, I know. I know you are supposed to diet AND exercise. I didn't. I wanted to learn how to eat better first. Baby steps. Now that I can eat better, I need help in the exercise department. I can check my BMI (it is now 24.2) but I know I have more fat than muscle. I don't offically know my body fat % but this website: http://www.bmi-calculator.net/body-fat-calculator/ says it is 32.5%. My measurements are as follows:
Waist - 27
Hips - 36
Forearm - 11.5
Thigh - ...I hate to admit...21 (I don't know what's normal but that doesn't sound normal!) :noway:

I don't know really what my "inches lost" goal should be. My new goal weight was chosen because the BMI 22.5 is pretty much in the middle of the normal range. That's the only reason. I need help with some sort of plan.

I have added exercise goals along with my nutrition goals. I just started doing "workout" activity last week. I have purchased a HMR (cheap and not likely accurate but I honestly can't afford anything else), a 5lb kettle bell and 2 Jillian Michael dvds. School picks up this week so I will have access to a FREE (Thank goodness!) fitness center.

My food diary is open if you feel the need to take a peek. Well. It's missing a few days this weekend because I was out of town. I really started watching the sodium and upping my water (I don't track water...I fill up a 16 oz glass 4-5x daily). Any suggestions or help would be greatly appreciated. I need to lose these inches! Esp my booty and thighs. :laugh:

The best thing you can do is cardio and some weight training. My current routine is as follows:

Mon: upper body weights, 45 min cardio,
Tue: lower body weights, 45 min cardio, abs
Wed: 60 min cardio
Thu: upper body weights, 45 min cardio
Fri: lower body weights, 45 min cardio abs

I'm going to be increasing the frequency of my ab workouts because they really need it! I use the various weight machines at the gym. If you want to message me I can give you a breakdown of exactly what I do, it's a little extensive to list here.

This is a great split if you are doing all your workouts at the gym or without videos. Unfortunately, Jillian Michaels videos tend to be total body, so if the OP wants to use them, then she will need to modify the video routine to do this split. But honestly, this is the split I would recommend after getting use to the workouts and learning how to separate out the muscle groups.

roylawrence87

Move to texas... Thats a goal. The greatest state in the Union... :laugh:

Well, I've said before - Texas is waaaay better than Mississippi! But you already knew that.

Yep, knew that.

apetty21

Here's the math based on your post, current weight in your signature, and an arbitrary goal body fat of 25%. It's hard for me to explain math in words, so hopefully, this will make more sense.

127.6 x 0.325 = 41.47 pounds of fat
127.6 - 41.47 = 86.13 pounds of lean body mass

(86.13 / 1 - 0.25) = 86.13 / 0.75 = 114.84 pounds "ideal weight" maintaining current lean body mass.

Personally, I wouldn't recommend going that low though. I'd recommend staying at your current weight and adding muscle mass while losing fat. Low lean body mass is associated with an increased risk of osteoporosis later in life so I'd recommend adding 10-15 pounds of lean body mass and burning 10-15 pounds of fat.

Now, how to do that. You'll need to start incorporating the kettlebell and other weights into your routine. I'd recommend starting out with a total body weight training program like the Jillian workouts or a circuit at the fitness center on alternate days. Then do cardio on the days in between. Once you get use to that, then we can change it up so that you can keep seeing results.

Ok, ok. So does that mean 25% is too low? Body fat percentage is so foreign to me. If I'm understanding, for my current "goal weight" of 119 I should aim for 28% body fat?

(86.13/1)-.28 = 85.85 and 85.85/.72 = 119.23

I think 28% is still in the "acceptable" range. If I'm not following your math, I'm sorry. Like I said, this is a totally new way for me to look at my goals. It's now more fitness than scale-ness.

TrainingWithTonya

Here's the math based on your post, current weight in your signature, and an arbitrary goal body fat of 25%. It's hard for me to explain math in words, so hopefully, this will make more sense.

127.6 x 0.325 = 41.47 pounds of fat
127.6 - 41.47 = 86.13 pounds of lean body mass

(86.13 / 1 - 0.25) = 86.13 / 0.75 = 114.84 pounds "ideal weight" maintaining current lean body mass.

Personally, I wouldn't recommend going that low though. I'd recommend staying at your current weight and adding muscle mass while losing fat. Low lean body mass is associated with an increased risk of osteoporosis later in life so I'd recommend adding 10-15 pounds of lean body mass and burning 10-15 pounds of fat.

Now, how to do that. You'll need to start incorporating the kettlebell and other weights into your routine. I'd recommend starting out with a total body weight training program like the Jillian workouts or a circuit at the fitness center on alternate days. Then do cardio on the days in between. Once you get use to that, then we can change it up so that you can keep seeing results.

Ok, ok. So does that mean 25% is too low? Body fat percentage is so foreign to me. If I'm understanding, for my current "goal weight" of 119 I should aim for 28% body fat?

(86.13/1)-.28 = 85.85 and 85.85/.72 = 119.23

I think 28% is still in the "acceptable" range. If I'm not following your math, I'm sorry. Like I said, this is a totally new way for me to look at my goals. It's now more fitness than scale-ness.

Yes, you got the math right. But like I said in my post that is if you keep the same lean body mass you have now and don't add any muscle. I'd recommend adding muscle because A) in burns calories at rest so it raises your maintenance level of calories consumed, takes up less space then fat so even with the same amount of weight in muscle that you lose in fat you will be a smaller size measurements wise, C) looks firm and toned instead of soft and flabby, and D) decreases your risk of osteoporosis as you age. As for the percentage, it depends on what method you use to determine body fat to know the range you want to be in. Because there are different margins of error for each formula and piece of equipment for measuring body fat, the charts change. So, I'd recommend going by the chart on whatever site you used to determine your body fat. That being said, a lot of websites don't have specific recommendations, so you may not have one available on their site. The American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) says anything between 20% and 32% is satisfactory for health in women. The American Council on Exercise (ACE) gives a breakdown for women of 10-13% as essential fat, 14-20% as athletes, 21-24% as Fitness, 25-31% as Average, and 32% or higher as obese. My professors use the term overfat for 32-40% and obese for over 40%, but there's just not a definable standard yet because of the variability in types of estimation.

javamom

The good news is when you add exercise, you'll get to eat more! :flowerforyou: