Overweight then average.... but can't get to 'fit'?

eclare87

Those of you who have been overweight and have gone to average as far as weight, BMI, etc. goes, do you ever just feel like 'now what?!' haha I lost 25 pounds over course of 2.5 years and it's wonderful to not be overweight anymore but despite constant exercise and mostly good diet, I can't get to the 'fit' BMI/body fat area. Is my metabolism damaged from being overweight?

happypath101

The closer you are to goal, the harder it is. I think you also have to be really leery of those charts. They don't always take into account muscle mass and the right kind of curves. And, you have to kind of shift the focus from what the scale says to other things. We all know that muscle weighs more than fat. But, it's hard to watch the scale stand still as you add strength training to your routine. I think it's natural to feel like you can't get there. But, you can. You absolutely can. It's might just take a little longer than you were thinking.

BigDaddyBRC

All I can offer up....Build muscle. Lift....often...and heavy. By doing so, the muscle will help burn the fat off and tone your body.

mcarter99

No, your metabolism is fine.

All I see on my BMI charts is obese, overweight, normal and underweight. Is there a "fit"?

I can understand wanting a lower body fat %. That just takes more hard work.

Leiki

It took me about 2 months to lose the last percent of body fat to get into the fitness level. Don't worry, you can do it! It just takes time and work!

CoCoBean14

Also BMI is not a great indicator of fitness.

At the same height, a person who is 150 lbs with 30% body fat would have a lower BMI than a person who is 170 lbs with 20% body fat.

Does that mean the first person is more fit? That would be a great big Negative Ghostrider.

BMI is a very very general indicator. Body fat % is more helpful

Agito

I started out obese, worked really hard and got down to an average/healthy weight where I still looked very chubby. It's frustrating. I'm average height, average weight at 5'4", 145ish pounds and I hate it.

qtiekiki

I wouldn't be too concern with BMI. I am guessing that you are talking about being more physically fit. If that's the case, then it's about recompositioning your body, losing body fat. Not sure what you are doing in term of exercises, so my general suggestion would be to eat at a small caloric deficit, weight train and do HIIT.

DavPul

What gauge are you using to judge fitness? Some random BMI calculation or how you look in the mirror? If it's BMI, don't put too much stock into it. Those are incredibly off depending on body type. Even when I'm cut enough to see my ribs the standard BMI chart shows me as being 30+ lbs overweight.

If you're judging by the mirror, then the only advice I can give you is to step it up. It's relatively simple to get to "average", but damned hard to get to "awesome" or even "above average". Higher intensity lifting and cardio will have to work in conjunction with a fairly strict diet.

YoungerNextYear59937

Hey there. I don't put much stock in BMI. If you were to believe the BMI charts, Arnold Schwarzenegger would be unfit. I'm in the same boat as you are, but I'm still making progress. Now that I'm thin I have to work really hard to get more fit and it seems to take more time. I also notice that every time I start a different activity I notice a change. For cardio I went from elliptical to spinning to running. Now I do mainly spinning and running and am really starting to put on the muscle and lose the last bit of fat.

And listen to the others who advised strength training. It's a must. I do it at least twice a week. I've got muscles I didn't know I had. And I'm 53!

eclare87

I've done Crossfit and Muscle Pump for strength training. I also run several times a week, do spinning and yoga.... I just wonder why I have to try so hard. I work out at least an hour a day. Sometimes two.

I used to work out almost three hours each day but decided to stop doing it because I was constantly sore and seeing no results. Thanks for advice.

Just wondering if there are others who have gone from overweight to super fit and what they did to get there. I'd like to have smaller stomach I guess. That's the big thing!

wrecktechno

You need to do free weights. Get a personal trainer. Once you start, it's easy to build muscle (once you don't have to lose weight). I could almost guarantee that your technique is probably wrong in the pump classes-most people's is. Get a PT to show you a range of exercises, get them to write up a plan and start weight training a couple times a week.

eclare87

I do free weights already.

Tourney3p0

I started out obese, worked really hard and got down to an average/healthy weight where I still looked very chubby. It's frustrating. I'm average height, average weight at 5'4", 145ish pounds and I hate it.

For what it's worth, 5'4" 145 lbs puts you at 24.9 BMI. That's the very upper range of normal, with 25.0 being overweight. Mid-range normal would be closer to 21.5 BMI, which would be 125 lbs. 20 pounds off would almost definitely take care of that chubby look, if that is what is frustrating you.