I NEED HELP FROM ANYONE WHO HAS LOST THE LAST TEN!!!

feelinghappy1

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DaddyMantz

I agree with with Chrisdavey and Psulemon about body re-composition.

I think your scale weight should be of secondary importance to bodyfat. A big part of losing bodyfat is lifting weights . There's a great e-book called "Burn the Fat Feed the Muscle" that outlines everything you need to do. (goal setting, diet, cardio, weights).

DizzieLittleLifter

I didn't read a singly response (sorry, long day too tired) but I read a great article recently on bodybuilder.com
http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/bbinfo.php?page=FatLossGuides

mmnichol

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missmomma77

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Abigailblue39

I would like to know how to lose the last 5 pounds - less weight on my knees (after surgery). I can't seem to get anywhere at all. I'm also interested in figure competition but think I am too lean and/or tall for it.

heatherfrancis

interesting

gnutrifitness

Bump it!

EpiGaiaRepens

wow! again! Thanks everyone!
I wanna thank those who talked about "body composition" instead of weight loss... I think I need this shift in mental focus.

Also, I think cals in/cals out worked great when I was "overweight" but now that I'm in a normal BMI range, I think I do need to switch gears.

I have to admit- I misunderstood what people meant when they said to increase my work out "intensity"... I thought going from running 8 miles a week to running 16 miles was an increase in intensity! But now I see that "intensity" isn't about the amount of hours you put in, rather how hard you push it. I just did my very first High Intensity Interval Run... I ran 5 minutes at my usual pace, 1 minute at not quite full speed, 4 mins normal pace, 1 min fast...you get the point...for 25 minutes. I didn't really run much farther than I normally do, but a good fair amount of it was uphill (I normally run relatively level terrain).... My arms were sweaty when i was done! I can tell it's a lot more work than what I was doing before! I'm going to plan on contiuing on this path with the HIIT, continuing with my weight training (which is chin ups, bench presses, suicide presses, and some stomache exercises that I have no idea what they are called)....

I also am going to try to paying attention to new aspects of my diet- am i getting enough protein? Am i cutting back on white breads (I have a freezer full of bread right now which I'll probably slowly plug away at still for financial reasons, but try to do it more slowly ?

also- i changed my profile pic to one of my "before" pics to help remind me that I've come a long way and to promote a positive mental attitude!!!!

FTW!!

chrisdavey

Sounds like a solid plan

Another great interval workout is tabata thrusters. Only 4mins for a workout and as long you push as hard as possible, you will definitely feel it!

Happyoceangirl

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hpsnickers1

I also wanted to respond to the "primal diet" suggestion... I'm not gonna argue that it would work. I used to be a raw foodist- nothing more primal than that! If I couldn't eat it raw, I didn't eat it at all. I was 135 lbs (five less than I am now), had TONS of energy, and felt like a ROCKSTAR. I *believe* in raw foods as a path to health. If I were diagnosed with a debilitating disease, the first thing I'd do is go raw (I'd still go to a doctor mind you!).

BUT I'm not gonna do that now just to lose 10 lbs...because for me it became a bit like an eating disorder where anything that wasn't raw that passed my lips made me fall into this self-loathing pit of despair (yep. this is why i avoid extremely restrictive diets). I also had to be like a raw food evangelist everywhere I went to keep up with it (annoying!). AND many people don't get it, don't wanna get it, and it really puts a damper on one's social life- it's hard enough being vegetarian! In the end, it's hard for me to maintain a raw foods diet without it becoming the end all be all of my life. I don't want to live and breathe a diet, I want a healthy diet to live my life! And when I stop being a raw foodist, all the weight that came off comes right back. I think the same sort of problem would happen with the primal diet.

To be honest, MFP is the first time in my life that I have weighed less than 145 without feeling like I'm on a diet. I don't feel like I'm on a diet. I'm making better choices, have a better lifestyle, and I really really truly love that about MFP.

Please don't think that I'm dissing your suggestion though- What I'm saying is that given my personal psychological make up and relationship to food, I don't think that kind of diet would work well for me (I'd lose weight, yes, but my mental health would suffer). I support and encourage people who can to try things like that- especially raw foods. If you wanna feel amazing, eat nothing but raw foods for three months! (Do a youtube search for "raw foods" and "Shazzie"...she's an Ecstatic Being who Loves Raw Foods! She really captures it

Paleo is strict. Primal is not. It's about 80/20 - it's been modernized - and if you can afford organic you can make do with what you can afford - this is my biggest issue - $$; As long as you eat natural 80% of the time then the other 20% won't be as bad for your body. The main thing I did was cut out grains, sugars and dairy. Basically all things that cause an insulin response which makes your body store fat and makes you hungry again after a couple of hours. The eating plan in the book isn't raw at all - just low carb. But I know not everyone is ready to make a change like that. As a vegetarian it would be even harder - there's a lot of meat involved.

But good luck anyway!

psuLemon

I wish I could give you thr answers...:)
I am now 2 pounds below my original goal (am 123)and the lower I get
the worse by belly fat looks!
I am not sure I can do much about loose skin that only gets looser!
I wish I could exercise like a fool and eat no carbs..
lol..
but there is always spanx!
I never have eaten back exercise calories.

Good luck with your final 10!

If you really think the extra weight loss has made your stomach look worse, it's probably because you loss muscle. At this point, I would recommend really decreasing the cardio and really concentrating on the weight lifting. If you do cardio, make it interval training instead of long distance running (I don't know your routine so it's hard to say exactly how to correct it). And if you don't know how to plan out this method, I would highly suggest looking into a program like p90x, chalean extreme, turbo fire, etc.. or another beachbody product. They are really designed to adjust your body composition as opposed to concentrating on weight loss. I have said it before, I keep losing body fat (started at 22%, now I am at 12%) but have only lost 20 lbs and more in the last 90 days, I only lost 5 lbs but 6" and 3% body fat. Make it about composition instead of weight and you will see things improve. Weight loss at this point should be secondary. Those programs I speak of has worked for thousands of people, many of them having multiple children. Remember, skin is elastic and can shrink/expand.

I would like to know how to lose the last 5 pounds - less weight on my knees (after surgery). I can't seem to get anywhere at all. I'm also interested in figure competition but think I am too lean and/or tall for it.

The best thing for you is develop muscle. If you have strong leg muscles (quads/hamstrings/calves) it will help reduce the need for the ligments to do the work. Also, might not be a bad thing to look into suppliments. I tore my MCL and I take glusemine condroitened and it works well for me.

EpiGaiaRepens

UPDATE: Ok ! So two days i did HIIT running and (1) it kicked my butt, and (2) this morning i weighed 138, a number heretofore UNSEEN (in the last ten years at least!)....so I believe!!! I also am going to up my weight lifting to three times a week (I was doing it but not consistently)....

Thanks everyone! I feel like I understand where I need to go with this now!!!

lil_pulp

I want to read this when I have more time, as I've been struggling with my last 10-15 pounds for at least 2 years now.

Abigailblue39

I would like to know how to lose the last 5 pounds - less weight on my knees (after surgery). I can't seem to get anywhere at all. I'm also interested in figure competition but think I am too lean and/or tall for it.

The best thing for you is develop muscle. If you have strong leg muscles (quads/hamstrings/calves) it will help reduce the need for the ligments to do the work. Also, might not be a bad thing to look into suppliments. I tore my MCL and I take glusemine condroitened and it works well for me.
[/quote]
Thank you. It was meniscus surgery, ACL is ok, thank god!! I take glucosamine every day and my knees are real good now. I can't squat well or do lunges - result is: my legs are not as cut and my butt starts to pancake on me (I have naturally strong quads). Bummer is, I had to give up running, booohoo. Now, I have a SLAP tear in my left shoulder, and can only do limited weight work. I'm getting old....

Weird enough, I did lose 2 pounds since I wrote my first message. So I didn't do anything different only complained more in posts and to my friends, this may have pushed me over the hill, hehe..

chrisdavey

UPDATE: Ok ! So two days i did HIIT running and (1) it kicked my butt, and (2) this morning i weighed 138, a number heretofore UNSEEN (in the last ten years at least!)....so I believe!!! I also am going to up my weight lifting to three times a week (I was doing it but not consistently)....

Thanks everyone! I feel like I understand where I need to go with this now!!!

Good stuff! One thing to note is that HIIT will take it out of your recovery capacity more than a steady state jog so it's something that you could do every second day for example. Really depends on intensity. Could do something like:
MON: weights, finish with HIIT
TUE: jogging
WED: weights, finish with HIIT
THU: jogging
FRI:weights, finish with HIIT
SAT: active recovery (pilates, foam rolling etc)
SUN: rest

LisaKyle11

:blushing:

I lost the last ten and then some!!!

What I did was stick to the plan!!! I only eat the following items and nothing more.

Carbs:
- Oatmeal
- Brown Rice
- Cottage Cheese

Proteins:
-Chicken
-Fish
-Greek Yogurt

Fats:
-Olive Oil
-Flax Oil

And Veggies I wonder??

yes, NO veggies at all? or occasional fresh fruit/berries?

curleesam

Wow! Thanks folks for your input! To respond to some of the comments:

Yes, I eat my exercise calories...unless I'm really not feeling hungry. I never force feed myself.
Yes, I have tried zig zagging my calories. It worked for me when I had more than ten pounds to lose- though I might try to do it again and see if it helps (if you look at my diary you'll see I've had days where I was under my calorie goal by 900 and other days where I was over by 50... I'm doing it even unintentionally but maybe it needs to be a weekly regular event??)
Damon- I couldn't do that. I'm a vegetarian. But I do agree with eating more simply....I'm still eating breads and veggie burgers when I should be doing brown rice and steamed veggies with tempeh on the side....One of the things I love about MFP is that it's not a "diet" it's "lifestyle changes." Eating like you (Damon) suggested would be an extremely restrictive diet...Is that what one needs to kick the last ten???? And, if so, that begs the question of what happens when you end the diet??? For personal reasons I put in an effort to not go down the path of extreme dieting- so I'm hoping there is some other way!

On the matter of running: Some people swear by it, some say it will do nothing. What I have heard from professionals is that you can't target your belly for weight loss- so doing crunches might strengthen the stomache muscles (which like all muscles will grow and increase your metabolism), but it doesn't neccessarily target belly fat. It's my understanding that the only way I'm gonna rid my body of belly fat is to keep plugging away at my overall body fat percentage until my body targets the belly itself (and I tell you my body fat is probably the lowest it's ever been judging by my cup A breasts that have NEVER been less than a B! Or my booty that is no longer a booty...or my thighs that no longer rub together.....). So based on that, any sort of cardio/fat burning is good- be it 30 DS or running a marathon. I think I said I'm upping the anty because I know I'm getting better at running and so 2 miles 4 x's a week isn't the work out it used to be- I'm running up to 4 miles, and adding in stair reps. I would like to add 30DS on top of my running...if I can find the time to do so!

For those who said I already look good- Thank You!!!!! Thank you thank you! I'm the thinnest I've ever been without going on some crazy restrictive diet (I have a history with those!) and I've been more consistent with my exercise than I ever have outside of high school! That being said...darn it! This belly wants to be flat! I shall make it happen one way or another!!!!!

Try six week six pack. I just completed the six weeks yesterday and got fab results (see profile pics for pictures of previous weeks) since you're already lean you should try it. I still lost 1lb a week whilst on it.

EpiGaiaRepens

UPDATE: Ok ! So two days i did HIIT running and (1) it kicked my butt, and (2) this morning i weighed 138, a number heretofore UNSEEN (in the last ten years at least!)....so I believe!!! I also am going to up my weight lifting to three times a week (I was doing it but not consistently)....

Thanks everyone! I feel like I understand where I need to go with this now!!!

Good stuff! One thing to note is that HIIT will take it out of your recovery capacity more than a steady state jog so it's something that you could do every second day for example. Really depends on intensity. Could do something like:
MON: weights, finish with HIIT
TUE: jogging
WED: weights, finish with HIIT
THU: jogging
FRI:weights, finish with HIIT
SAT: active recovery (pilates, foam rolling etc)
SUN: rest

Chris- I totally agree. I did it two days in a row because I have to work out when I can. I did a rest day yesterday (didn't even jog!). Here's one thing, though, I do HIIT by running, so is "jogging" my usual 20-40 mins at a steady pace still an ok in-between-day activity? Just curious on your thoughts on this.

also, I'm SO EXHAUSTED!!! This HIIT is seriously a whole new level I can feel it! I'm stoked to finally "get" what I'm supposed to do!

psuLemon

Chris- I totally agree. I did it two days in a row because I have to work out when I can. I did a rest day yesterday (didn't even jog!). Here's one thing, though, I do HIIT by running, so is "jogging" my usual 20-40 mins at a steady pace still an ok in-between-day activity? Just curious on your thoughts on this.

also, I'm SO EXHAUSTED!!! This HIIT is seriously a whole new level I can feel it! I'm stoked to finally "get" what I'm supposed to do!

That is so awesome to have that feeling again isn't it? Just be careful to not over train with the HIIT and make sure you can get weights in there. Keep in mind, you can make weight training anaerobic if you do multiple moves at a time (lunges with bicep curls for example). This way you are gaining muscle and keeping the heart rate fairly high.

claire_b79

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claire_b79

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