Should I still be losing weight?

cmonskinnylovee

I'm 5'7, 18 years old, and 120 lbs, which puts me on the low end of healthy and underweight, but the thing is I am still unhappy with the way my body looks. Yes, I am small but I still have fat in places that I would rather not. I think what I am looking to do is just tighten up in general, but I have no idea how to go about that.

Do I still make a calorie deficit? Do I still do cardio? What kind of exercises should I do? I am so lost, I don't know what to do!

It was so much more simple when I was actually overweight, haha.

hush7hush

Lift weights!

Personally I would eat at maintenance level, strength train, and then I guess eating exercise calories back is up to you.

joseph9

^ What she said ^

IMHO, your best plan is to increase the number of healthy calories you're getting and tone a little bit. You can't get to 0% fat and live, so you are always going to have some, but you can definitely get healthier.

jp09m

Lift weights!

Personally I would eat at maintenance level, strength train, and then I guess eating exercise calories back is up to you.

nailed it head on. this is exactly what you should be doing.

simplysara9

I would work on toning and eat at maintenance. Also, eat back your exercise calories so you do not have a deficit. You can still look look good without losing any more weight. You just need to strength train and tone areas.

beef29

Yoga!

melizerd

Everyone hit the nail on the head, you need to lift weights, reduce fat and build muscle. You may actually gain weight but look and feel smaller.

Meet Staci-
http://nerdfitness.com/blog/2011/07/21/meet-staci-your-new-powerlifting-super-hero/

She actually weighs more at the end than in the middle and yet she looks thinner and more fit. The scale is NOT the end all be all, so step away from it and start lifting and toning your body to sculpt it. Women will NOT bulk up like those scary bodybuilder models because we don't have enough testosterone to do that without out doing steroids. We smooth out and look lean and sexy when we are strong.

fatgirlslove

you're the perfect weight. Just maintain.

Ruchell

Ditto to everything everyone has already said, and although I'm not there yet, this might be the place where you want to get more of your calories from protien instead of carbs and (I haven't looked for your diary so I'm not sure if you're already doing this) to build a leaner muscle mass.

bayles1

Your fine as you are now. You dont need any further deficit. Just eat at maintenance level and use resistance training to tone.

Good Luck and Best Wishes going forward.....

Ps...Have a great life....enjoy.

cmonskinnylovee

I would work on toning and eat at maintenance. Also, eat back your exercise calories so you do not have a deficit. You can still look look good without losing any more weight. You just need to strength train and tone areas.

I'm not gonna lie, I'm really afraid of eating at maintenance. Because when I have a deficit I know that if I mess up, I will not gain anything (unless it was a huge mistake) but at maintenance if I mess up I run the risk of gaining weight.

I'm terrified of ending up back where I was over a year ago. Absolutely terrified, haha.

cmonskinnylovee

Lift weights!

Personally I would eat at maintenance level, strength train, and then I guess eating exercise calories back is up to you.

Is there anyway to do affective strength training without weights? I don't have any, and I don't have the money to join a gym right now

evelyngrice

if you dont have weights, then use tins. it's better than nothing

NotGoddess

Just do a search on 'strength training without weights' in Google or your engine of choice and you'll find lots!
My personal favorites are chair dips, push-ups, and planks.

cmonskinnylovee

if you dont have weights, then use tins. it's better than nothing

But can body-weight training be just as effective? Like if I do different forms of squats, leg lifts, calf raises, sit ups, pushups and what not can't that be just as good? I'll obviously have to do A LOT more, but I'm not opposed to that

JennLifts

Lift weights!

Personally I would eat at maintenance level, strength train, and then I guess eating exercise calories back is up to you.

Is there anyway to do affective strength training without weights? I don't have any, and I don't have the money to join a gym right now

of course. search "body weight routine" add some weight via muscles and youll like your body much more. maint wont make you gain, but anything else will make you have to gain.

mmstgr

You shouldn't try to weigh any less, but there's no problem with toning.

Maybe try something different so that you work out different muscle groups, and you won't get bored too.

Take a kickboxing class, or try rock/wall-climbling.

Edit: just read your post about not affording a gym

Maybe some outdoor hiking?

bry_all01

I would say eat clean(er) and maintain. Do cardio and weights. The eating is what is going to help you get your body to a place that makes you happy.

Tori_356

do some toning exercises

JennsLosing

I would work on toning and eat at maintenance. Also, eat back your exercise calories so you do not have a deficit. You can still look look good without losing any more weight. You just need to strength train and tone areas.

this is what i would try too

evelyngrice

if you dont have weights, then use tins. it's better than nothing

But can body-weight training be just as effective? Like if I do different forms of squats, leg lifts, calf raises, sit ups, pushups and what not can't that be just as good? I'll obviously have to do A LOT more, but I'm not opposed to that

oh yes definitely! squats are really good, especially if you hold them for a good 10 seconds.

smokesone

Lift weights!

Personally I would eat at maintenance level, strength train, and then I guess eating exercise calories back is up to you.


nailed it head on. this is exactly what you should be doing.


I Agree

6heatherb6

Your quote....


"I'm not gonna lie, I'm really afraid of eating at maintenance. Because when I have a deficit I know that if I mess up, I will not gain anything (unless it was a huge mistake) but at maintenance if I mess up I run the risk of gaining weight.

I'm terrified of ending up back where I was over a year ago. Absolutely terrified, haha."
[/quote]

me too!!!

All the very best...
:flowerforyou:

SeanMurphy

if you dont have weights, then use tins. it's better than nothing

But can body-weight training be just as effective? Like if I do different forms of squats, leg lifts, calf raises, sit ups, pushups and what not can't that be just as good? I'll obviously have to do A LOT more, but I'm not opposed to that

You nailed it. Body weight exercises are just as effective, you just maybe can't isolate particular muscles as precisely, but you want overall training, not muscle isolation like a pro body builder would want.

Pushups, pull ups and crunches and you've got a complete upper body workout.

MzBug

Check out the videos on You-Tube! Pilates, Yoga and calisthenics can be done with little or no equipment in your own home. You can get some inexpensive hand weights at Wal Mart, or sets of resistance bands are not that costly either. You can also use cans of vegies, water bottles, or tube socks filled with dry beans or rice. Google different exercises to target the areas you want to tone up. You can also borrow exercise videos from the public library!

If you are happy with your weight you can slowly bump your calories up by 100 every 2-3 weeks until you get to a point you are no longer losing. You would also want to be using your exercise calories too. If you find that you are gaining more than a pound or two you can always lower the calories for a couple weeks. It will take some time to figure out your balance, so don't freak out if the scale bounces around a little.

Good Luck!

yvonnej1

I would work on toning and eat at maintenance. Also, eat back your exercise calories so you do not have a deficit. You can still look look good without losing any more weight. You just need to strength train and tone areas.

I'm not gonna lie, I'm really afraid of eating at maintenance. Because when I have a deficit I know that if I mess up, I will not gain anything (unless it was a huge mistake) but at maintenance if I mess up I run the risk of gaining weight.

I'm terrified of ending up back where I was over a year ago. Absolutely terrified, haha.

I've been there and I know the transition to maintenance calories is difficult. Plus I found getting on the scales and not seeing a loss weird, it's kind of addictive seeing your weight creep down.

My advice is ease up to maintenance calories slowly, it takes a while to learn how many calories are right for you. Most importantly don't panic if your weight goes up at a weigh in, it naturally fluctuates anyway. Obviously if it keeps creeping up over a couple of weeks then you need to re-evaluate and lower your goal slightly. I have had a couple of times when I've lowered my calories for a few weeks to stay maintaining. If you stay vigilant you will be fine, you have managed to lose the weight so you can keep it off. If you put a few pounds back on, so what! you can easily lose it again, you have to eat at maintenance calories some time.

I definitely agree with the other advice about strength training, it's made a huge difference to me, also lately I've stepped it up a gear and I'm eating higher protein, lower carb which is really helping me to get lean.

btw press ups are great bodyweight exercise

and feel free to add me as a friend if you like, I will be happy to cheer you on.

TK421NotAtPost

Make sure you are also getting enough protein. As you get thinner, your bodyfat will get more and more stubborn. Lots of clean, lean protein, lots of leafy green veggies, resistance training, and moderate cardio are all prerequisites to turning a skinny-fat bod into a slim, hard one.

duckpond11

You can buy some resistance bands as well as do body weight exercises. The bands are cheap, and you can use them in your home. Good luck, I can only imagine that being at maintainance is scary - but you can do it!