body fat in all the wrong places

Athena125

So according to most sites' calculators, I am officially overweight and some sites say obese! But look at my pics...

Most of my weight is in my tummy and butt, and the rest of me is fairly normal or even thin. I have LONG thin legs (they are literally 3/4 of my body height) and a super short torso which holds all my chub :-(

What should I be doing to change my body fat percentage? I currently do 2-3 hours of intense cardio (like Zumba), 1-2 hours of moderate cardio (walking, aqua aerobics) and 1.5 - 2 hours of strength training. I am netting around 1200-1500 calories a day. In the last six weeks i've lost maybe one inch and about 4-5 pounds.

I have been working out for about a year, and it has taken that long to lose 12 pounds. What can I be doing better to lose the weight in the bad places.

Sarauk2sf

Simply, you need to eat at a caloric deficit. Strength train also to ensure you maintain LBM while doing so. Body fat is very fickle and comes off where it is genetically predisposed to come off.

If you want us to look at your caloric intake, please answer the questions here:

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/817167-asking-questions-about-your-intake-providing-info

Athena125

Here's my eating and training situation:

1600-1800 calories a day.
Protein 60 Carbs 200 Fat 65 (average in last month)
I measure most things with a scale. I get confused when eating out, so I try not to eat out.
I do track everything
I don't take days off but log everything. Only exception is if I'm out of town like last weekend. It just got very confusing for me eating at hotels, etc.
Last 6 weeks I have lost 4 pounds
I have a desk job so not a lot of movement, but I also workout 6 -7 hours a week (2 Zumba hours, 1 aqua fit hour, 2 strength training hours and 1-2 hours of either more Zumba, yoga or aqua).
Before January, I was eating MORE (maybe 2,200 calories a day) and working out less (3 hours a week versus 6-7 and NO strength training). I was SLOWLY - like .75 pounds a month - losing weight
I am 5'5", small boned (tiny wrists, etc), weight 149.5 pounds and body fat is somewhere btwn 30-32% depending on method used. I have PCOS which means my tummy is always big...sometimes it's bloated due to female issues so it's hard to get an accurate measurement there.
Last two weeks I have lost nothing but I think I have been eating too much fat.

Sarauk2sf

Will look at your numbers in more detail, however, fat does not make people fat, a caloric surplus, irrespective of the type of macronutrient, does. Fats are a good thing for hormones however and are good to keep high, especially if derived from a good mix of sources.

Sarauk2sf

What type of strength training do you do?

Athena125

My strength training is a mix of isometric exercises (like ballet bar) and circuit training with hand weights (dead lifts, push ups, etc.).

Sarauk2sf

Firstly, the BMI really should only be used for populations and not individuals as it does not take into account muscle mass or other factors that will impact weight but not 'being overweight'. A much better tool is to look at body fat %, plus just look in a mirror - assuming no body dysmorphia, that will tell you how much weight you can/should lose. Example: I am on the cusp of over-weight per the BMI yet I am not 'over-weight' from a BF%.

So, to change your body fat percentage, you just need to keep eating at a caloric deficit. You should also be doing strength training to make sure weight loss = fat loss.

You have lost 4lb in 6 weeks - that's a reasonable clip so I would not look to change your intake at the moment. I know you mentioned that you have not lost anything in 2 weeks - but give it a few more weeks as water weight and our cycles can mask 'true' weight loss and we can re-assess from there.

You should however set your macros at

Protein: 105g
Fat: 53g
Balance, wherever, but due to your PCOS I would try to limit your carbs.


I would recommend that you do less of a circuit style lifting routine and more of a traditional progressive loading routine that has compound lifts as its foundation such as StrongLifts 5 x 5. I would also get in 3 days of strength training so would swap out at least one cardio session.

Here is a good resource for it: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/groups/home/4601-stronglifts-5x5-for-women

Athena125

Thanks for the advice! I am going to really work on upping my protein. I will probably have to have 2 scoops of protein powder a day b/c I can only eat so much fish/meat before I just get sick of eating it.

Will work harder at the strength training and change to lifting weights 2x a week. I will probably still do the ballet bar class 1x a week as it is very difficult and I like the flexibility I get from it. I randomly lost a couple pounds since this post, so maybe I just got stalled with water weight gain.

Thanks again!

Sarauk2sf

Definitely keep the things you like doing and find benefit from.

Re protein: I find greek yogurt and milk to really help keep my protein up.