Expert Input?

awbower76

I am hoping to find out that I'm on the right path, but was wondering if there's something I should add to my diet/workouts to help. I'm gearing up for my 10-year anniversary in which I intend to prance around in a bikini for a week.

My goal is to lose fat- I'd like to get to 19%. Right now I'm at about 22-23% (according to my body fat scale, which I know is not a very accurate measurement, but I use it as a guide). I weigh between 140 and 145 and am 5'8.5". I carry a lot of weight in my butt/saddlebags and despise that part of my body.

I've set my goal to lose 3/4 pound a week.

My workout schedule looks like this: M, W, F- run/walk 60 minutes, additional ab work. T, Th, Sa- 45 minute Y-Pump class (weights, resistance), 20 minutes cardio.

I am pescetarian and gluten-free, so protein has always been a bit of a sore spot. I eat clean the majority of the time and am very aware of healthy eating.

So...is there anything else I should be doing? Specific exercises? More weights? Less cardio?

Thank you for any input you can give!

SHBoss1673

your exercise routine looks acceptable to me, I'd probably say 3 days of resisitance, and 3 of cardio, or maybe 3 cardio, 2 resistance and 1 HIIT trainining but that's just my preference.

I DO think that 3/4 lb a week for someone with 22 to 23% body fat is relatively aggressive though, I'd shoot more for 1/2 lb per week as you don't have a bunch to lose and it would be difficult to lose that much per week.

That's my thoughts.

Get that protein in though, you want between 20 and 30% of your macronutrients to be proteins. And as a pescetarian, you need to make sure that your vegetable proteins are completed (I.E. make sure you pair the correct foods so that all the essential amino acids are delivered every day).

gcineas

I am in the same boat of trying to lose body fat. I would recommend that instead of doing 60 minutes of steady state cardio that you add in days where you do HIIT cardio. This has really helped me drop my body fat percentage from 24% to 21% in the last week.

Right now I do 1 minute at 7.0; 45 seconds at 7.7 and 15 seconds at 8.3. I do that cycle anywhere between 6-20 minutes 4 times a week. I also lift HEAVY on my weight days. This means lower reps but higher weights. It has helped me.

AZKristi

I'm not sure about your age, but I'm guessing if you are celebrating a 10 year anniversary you aren't a teeny bopper! 19% body fat is pretty low for a woman, maybe check with a doctor before dropping below 20%.

If you want to measure your body fat percentage and compare to what your scale is telling you, try calculating your Body Adipocity Index (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Body_Adiposity_Index). The home body fat scales are not very accurate, so this might give you additional info. Results of the BAI have a high correlation to body fat measured using displacement techniques, although they have only been confirmed so far in African-American and Hispanic populations.

If you really want to drop below 20%, I would suspect you would have to significantly lengthen your workouts and maintain high intensity for long durations. Short duration cardio may not be enough. The people I see that are super lean typically engage in endurance events (marathon/triathalon training, long distance cycling, etc).

awbower76

Grumble grumble...I am no spring chicken and I kinda thought you would say that 19% may not be a great goal and I was being aggressive. I know in my head you're right...but prancing around in a bikini made me want you to be wrong.

I will definitely incorporate the HIIT. I've been shying away from maintaining a higher heart rate because I was thinking that maintaining a lower heart rate for longer periods would burn fat at a higher percentage. But I am willing to change it up! Come to think of it, it's not like my thinking was getting me anywhere, anyway.

AZKristi- Thanks for that link! Very interesting. The calculation was actually right on with my scale. I'll keep that tucked away for future reference!

SHBoss- Do you have any good reference tools for complete vegetable protein combinations?

gcineas- You're going to kill me with those numbers! Running is NOT my strong suit. I am amazed by people who are fast.

I really appreciate all your input! Thanks again!

SHBoss1673

Grumble grumble...I am no spring chicken and I kinda thought you would say that 19% may not be a great goal and I was being aggressive. I know in my head you're right...but prancing around in a bikini made me want you to be wrong.

I will definitely incorporate the HIIT. I've been shying away from maintaining a higher heart rate because I was thinking that maintaining a lower heart rate for longer periods would burn fat at a higher percentage. But I am willing to change it up! Come to think of it, it's not like my thinking was getting me anywhere, anyway.

AZKristi- Thanks for that link! Very interesting. The calculation was actually right on with my scale. I'll keep that tucked away for future reference!

SHBoss- Do you have any good reference tools for complete vegetable protein combinations?

gcineas- You're going to kill me with those numbers! Running is NOT my strong suit. I am amazed by people who are fast.

I really appreciate all your input! Thanks again!

it's all over the web, if you google protein pairing you'll find tons, let me find one for you...(this is my looking ellipses)...
this one looked pretty good but I didn't read that deep.

http://www.suite101.com/content/complementing-protein-sources-a67429