I'm so confused and conflicted!

carini_wini

I've been trying to trim myself down a bit for ages now. I've asked those around me for help, but everybody keeps giving me conflicting advice!

Eat more protein, eat less protein. Eat meats, don't eat meat as you'll get all your protein from your general diet. Do cardio, do weight training, do both, don't do cardio because the amount you have to do to burn anything off is insignificant compared to the amount muscles burn. I've been told to eat as much fruit as I can hold in the morning because it'll fill me up, then I was told don't eat fruit as it's all sugars... then that it's okay to have them because fibers counteract sugars? Eat as little calories as possible around 1,800 was good. Then I heard eat more, exercise more, boost your metabolism.

I have no idea what to listen to, where to start.. I'm not sure of anything really! I feel like I've lost quite a bit of weight on the scale.. but not so much on my body. I mostly want to trim my fat, I've got it all in the wrong places, but I like the number I see on my scale.

I eat fairly poorly, but I've been remedying that as much as possible (no more sodas, no coffee, dates instead of chocolates, little things like that). I've been walking at least 30 minutes a day, and lifting what little weight my body can hold up yet I still feel like I've got love handles and a belly. The more I ask the more confused I get (yet here I am asking again xD in hopes that maybe a website dedicated to fitness might have more valid information).

I've been on this site for quite a while but a bit too embarrassed to say anything on the forums, so here's my big debut!

So basically (TL;DR version) I'm at about 124 at 5'6" and I just wanna try and trim up a bit.. where should I start? What should I do? What should I not be doing?

as543

seems like you are at a decent weight so maybe your body doesnt want to lose weight.

carini_wini

Unfortunately it seems so :c! Like I said, I'm at a good weight, but I've got a tummy and love handles that just don't want to go away. I'm probably only light because it's all fat, I've got little to no muscle mass. I can barely do a bicep curl with 10 pound dumbbells.

Red15010

Im not for sure, but if I would guess, you are slim, but not as firm as you would like to be? I'm not an expert, but I would start with cardio and light weight training, like the 2-5lbs range to start. If you have never done weight training, you should see results within a month. Your body will benefit from cardio for up to 4 hours after you finish and up to 9 hours for weight training. If you start this, you can probably keep your diet the same for awhile. If you really get into it, you may want to add a little more protein. You can't cut the carbs to much because your body will need them to burn. Like I said im not an expert, but my history is NASA powerlifting, U.S. Marine Corps and my roomate for a few years was a personal trainer, picked up a lot from him.

micky554

The important thing is to be healthy. If you exercise more - you'll be fit and also you'll get more calories for food. (on this site)
Do you want to eat empty calories or food that your body needs? Fruits have vitamins, candies are just junk food.
Your body needs a lot of protein, as I'm a vegetarian - I recommend tofu and non meat proteins. This site gives you
the percentage of protein that you need...
Also look at the labels, you don't want to eat lots of processed food with chemicals, its better to eat
fresh vegetables and organic food.
I hope this helps.

SixtyFine

Bottom line is, take in less than your body spends. When we eat less than we spend our body has to rely on the fat which is stored in fat-cells.
It is true we burn some foods differently than others.
If you want to have lean muscle that burns more calories while just sitting then you have to do weight training that builds the lean muscle.
If you want to burn more calories you need to do cardio exercises which also boosts the metabolism.
Try not to eat too much at any one sitting, eat until you aren't hungry anymore and push yourself away. Eating too much in one sitting will cause a boost in the level of blood sugar. The body will allow only so much blood sugar. When the blood sugar goes too high the body instantly goes into Fat-Storage-Mode instead of Fat-Spending-Mode.
Eat healthy foods that will help your body operate properly.
Drink water, your body needs the water so it can burn the fat stored in fat-cells.
Lean meats, lots of green vegetables, some colored vegetables and some fruit.

carini_wini

Im not for sure, but if I would guess, you are slim, but not as firm as you would like to be?

That's exactly it! I can definitely "pinch more than an inch" on all sides, but my scale weight looks fine on paper. I'm just a little softer than I would have liked.

So far I do anywhere between 30-60 minutes of cardio a day (unfortunately, I can't do anything more than speed walk without murdering my knees). I've been doing bicep curls with a 3 pound weight until my arms fall off, then switch to 10 reps of a 10 pound weight. Then I try to do a few russian twists until I can't handle it. I'm a sales associate, so I'm on my feet all day when I do work.

I don't eat chocolates or sweets (except for my dates mm yummy!) No sodas either. I drink a lot of naked juice (red machine) and unsweetened cranberry juice. MFP has me at 1200 calories a day and I usually eat around there at most 100-200 calories above on my worst days. Often I'll eat less if I'm feeling not hungry, I usually don't stress that much over how much or how little I eat.

I don't have a lot of time to cook, so pastas are my best friend.. but are they okay? I keep hearing conflicting information about this as well.

crisanderson27

I will give you advice, but it's just going to go against most of the above. Search 'skinny fat' on these forums.

If you'd like my specific recommendation, and trust me...this is working for more than one person I've been helping out around here...the answer is cut back cardio to once or twice a week, pick up New Rules of Lifting for Women (this is NOT my favorite resource, but it's comprehensive, and will do wonders to start with), and start lifting 3x a week.

I promise you, if you keep your diet in check via the calorie counter, and get in enough protein (100g+ for your weight), you'll see real differences in just a couple weeks.

ellie319

Weight lifting! Heavy but don't count out cardio just yet! I firmed up by doing muay Thai & kickboxing.so lift first then do cardio.

carini_wini

I've heard that before as well. To do less exercise? What exactly is the reasoning behind it? I mean logically you'd think the more you do the more you lose. I'm not trying to say you're wrong, not in the least. Just that I'm actually very interested and would like to know more. The internet makes curiosity sound like sarcasm and venom at times xD

Red15010

Chris has some good info on the post. If you are already doing cardio, maybe you can switch up what you do. Your body can get used to a workout after awhile. I started doing yoga awhile back to change some things up. As much as I have jogged and lifted weights, it was a completely new experience. I couldnt do 10 mins when I started. It forces the muscels (at least mine anyways) to work in new ways using body weight. Be sure to focus on the whole body when weight training to get the most out of it. As far as pasta, im not sure, if I new that answer I might not of gained so much weight in the last 5 years!

OrthoGirl64

How about starting with 1 or 2 visits with a personal trainer at your local park district.

superrican01

thats great

1dce

I agree with doing less cardio, more weights, less pasta more protien. You need to build your muscle to get rid of the flab that you don't like. If you don't eat enough calories or protien your body will burn your muscle for energy. So you will continue to lose muscle and gain flab if you under eat and over exercise. Hope that makes sense.

crisanderson27

Chris has some good info on the post. If you are already doing cardio, maybe you can switch up what you do. Your body can get used to a workout after awhile. I started doing yoga awhile back to change some things up. As much as I have jogged and lifted weights, it was a completely new experience. I couldnt do 10 mins when I started. It forces the muscels (at least mine anyways) to work in new ways using body weight. Be sure to focus on the whole body when weight training to get the most out of it. As far as pasta, im not sure, if I new that answer I might not of gained so much weight in the last 5 years!

Thanks!

Yoga's pretty cool...I've been wanting to start...just never get around to it lol.

On the pasta, it's like anything else, don't go nuts. If all you eat is pasta, obviously that's a problem. You've got to get some meat and other proteins in there also (this is not a function of weight loss, but rather overall body composition). Take 5 minutes and fry yourself up a hamburger (or George Foreman it if you're fat phobic). My go-to lately have been Carne Asada (steak) burritos from the corner Mexican joint lol. Good protein, good fats, and while they are a little high in carbs (MONSTER tortilla!), as long as I'm slightly under my calorie goal, and get my protein in...I don't really care.

Helloitsdan

I will give you advice, but it's just going to go against most of the above. Search 'skinny fat' on these forums.

If you'd like my specific recommendation, and trust me...this is working for more than one person I've been helping out around here...the answer is cut back cardio to once or twice a week, pick up New Rules of Lifting for Women (this is NOT my favorite resource, but it's comprehensive, and will do wonders to start with), and start lifting 3x a week.

I promise you, if you keep your diet in check via the calorie counter, and get in enough protein (100g+ for your weight), you'll see real differences in just a couple weeks.

I was about to push the "Skinny-fat" button.

Lift heavy and ignore cardio....kinda....

Red15010

*knew

PhilyPhresh

35/35/30 p/f/c on the macros. Much weight lifting as you are probably at a low % of BF but don't have the muscle mass to make yourself look more toned. Cardio will still be important, but the weight lifting is where you need to be working at.

512cheangela

I will give you advice, but it's just going to go against most of the above. Search 'skinny fat' on these forums.

If you'd like my specific recommendation, and trust me...this is working for more than one person I've been helping out around here...the answer is cut back cardio to once or twice a week, pick up New Rules of Lifting for Women (this is NOT my favorite resource, but it's comprehensive, and will do wonders to start with), and start lifting 3x a week.

I promise you, if you keep your diet in check via the calorie counter, and get in enough protein (100g+ for your weight), you'll see real differences in just a couple weeks.

New Rules of Lifting for Women is an ahhhhmazing book. I do also recommend another Rachel Cosgrove book, The Female Body Breakthrough. I think Female body Breakthrough is a little better as the plans are meant to grow with you further than I remember the New Rules of Lifting describing.

RuthSweetTooth

2 fruits, 3 vegetables a day (of which at least one veg is a salad). These protect against cancer and contain fiber.
Exercise (at least walking) for 30 minutes five days a week or some form of cardio, it doesn't need to be killer.
Weight training too for the saggy stuff. Do not do just weight training and skip the walking.
Follow the MFP recommendations. You need to eat a wide variety of foods to be healthy. You can enjoy pasta and bread too. Your body requires carbs, fats, and proteins. Don't go too low carb!. Try to stay near the range MFP recommendations. Our bodies are not all that different from each other.
Be sure your meet your calcium needs as they are vital for bones and for muscles. Try to get at least two servings of dairy a day if not three.
Scan your calories and log them.
Weigh yourself once a week.

And if you are still confused, seeing a nutritionist can be very helpful and a good investment of your time in yourself for your long and hopefully healthy life ahead of you.

thenicksters

I know you mentioned your knees, but; I say you should try Jillian Michaels 30 day shred. (there's 3 levels on the dvd) Watch it on Youtube and try it. You can start with 3 lb weights and move up as you feel like you need to. If you stick to it, you will notice definition, more so if you use at least a 5lb weight. Be sure to net at least 1300 calories, I would say no more than 1700. Eat lean meats;Turkey/ Chicken to boost your protein.
All of the conflicting information is because everyone weighs differently, or ate differently, so there's different changes that each person should do to lose.

adbohls

It definitely sounds like you need to tone and gain muscle. Instead of weights, you can start with resitance bands. I just learned today that the red ones are the weakest. You can find some free workouts online. What's nice about the bands is they are inexpensive and as you gain muscles, you change to the next color up. You can also start ou with only a few reps each day and then increase the number of reps before going to the next stronger band.

As far as diet, this site is really good about helping you learn what to eat because it gives you guidelines to follow besides calories. I incorporates fat, carbohydrates, and protein and sets daily goals for each nutritionl component. What's best is a balanced diet and this site helps you attain that. Too much of anything is not good for you.

It can be very confusing to know what works and what doesn't. Ultimately, it's what works for you, but take some time to research some reputable sources about weight loss. Try to choose sources from people who have an education in weight loss and nutrition and have made a living out of training people in proper techniques and diet. They know best.