Losing weight but not flab.. maybe getting flabbier?

dearfitdiary

I think you understand the working out part. The thing you need to work on is your diet. I checked a few days and I didn't see a single veggie in your diet. I am not trying to be rude, but your diet is quite horrible. You are eating too little and too many not so healthy foods. You should really cut your carbs and up your healthy fats and protein.
Some things you should consider adding to your diet:
LOTS Veggies (especially the super green ones)
Fruits
Greek yogurt
almond milk
lean meat like turkey chicken and even beef
Fish
hummus
lentils
low sodium soups
oatmeal

Check how many calories you should be eating:

655 + (4.35 x Weight in pounds)+(4.7 x Height in inches) - (4.7x Age)= BMR The amount of calories your body burns just from being alive

Step 2: Take that number and multiply by your activity level:

1.2 Sedentary (little to no exercise)
1.375 Lightly Active (1-3 days a week)
1.55 Moderately Active (3-5 days a week)
1.7 Very Active (6-7 days a week)

Step 3:

LOSE weight: Subtract 500
MAINTAIN weight: keep the number the same
GAIN weight: Add 500

I found this on a fitness blog and I found it very helpful. Don't starve your body because you will just be skinny fat no matter how much exercise you do. Trust me, I have a friend that eats like crap but very little and works out 2 hours a day and weighs 177lbs at 5'3. She is skinny fat and it frustrates her yet will not change her habits.

h9dlb

As for your training forget all the isolation exercises for the time being as they burn few calories and wont help your muscle on that diet, you're wasting your time doing them.

As I said above do strong lifts 5x5 for a couple of months until you get yourself sorted out, using very heavy weights. For each exercise find which weight you can only lift once, then do 5 sets of 5 reps at 80% of that weight. So for example if you can only do 1 squat at 50kg you do your sets using 40kg (80% of 50kg).

Stronglifts are hard work but should take less than 30 mins and you'll be jiggered after.

There are varied approaches as to what strong lifts are, but essentially its:
Barbell bench press
barbell bent over row
barbell dead lift
military press
barbell squats

http://stronglifts.com/stronglifts-5x5-beginner-strength-training-program/

The lifts should be done with bar bells. You can use dumb bells but it won't be as effective.

Heavy weights being in the men's section at your gym sounds like a lame excuse for not doing any heavy lifting. Loads of women in the heavy weights section of my gym mixing it up with men (Virgin Active). If you don't like the atmosphere change gyms. Alternatively buy yourself a barbell and some weights and work out at home.

Another poster recommended kettle bells - these also provide a very good work out to supplement your strong lifts.

lozzieemayjenkins

As for your training forget all the isolation exercises for the time being as they burn few calories and wont help your muscle on that diet, you're wasting your time doing them.

As I said above do strong lifts 5x5 for a couple of months until you get yourself sorted out, using very heavy weights. For each exercise find which weight you can only lift once, then do 5 sets of 5 reps at 80% of that weight. So for example if you can only do 1 squat at 50kg you do your sets using 40kg (80% of 50kg).

Stronglifts are hard work but should take less than 30 mins and you'll be jiggered after.

There are varied approaches as to what strong lifts are, but essentially its:
Barbell bench press
barbell bent over row
barbell dead lift
military press
barbell squats

http://stronglifts.com/stronglifts-5x5-beginner-strength-training-program/

The lifts should be done with bar bells. You can use dumb bells but it won't be as effective.

Heavy weights being in the men's section at your gym sounds like a lame excuse for not doing any heavy lifting. Loads of women in the heavy weights section of my gym mixing it up with men (Virgin Active). If you don't like the atmosphere change gyms. Alternatively buy yourself a barbell and some weights and work out at home.

Another poster recommended kettle bells - these also provide a very good work out to supplement your strong lifts.

I genuinely do not have the confidence to step into the men's section of the gym at the moment.. and due to funds I am unable to buy my own barbell.

To be honest I struggle with the weight I'm doing now, so I know I don't have the strength to lift heavier just yet..

12HardRock

Your diet is terrible - you generally have everyday 1 meat based meal, with the rest made up of cheese sticks, fridge raiders and high carb snacks such as bananas and yoghurts etc.

You are probably losing muscle rather than fat hence the flabbiness.

Your protein intake is good but your fat intake is too low and carbs too high (some days you have over 170g carbs). For example on 18th May your calorie intake was only 1224 cals but you had 179g of carbs - that's 64% of your total intake in carb! Read up on macro splits.

As another snapshot on Thursday 23rd May all you ate was cheddar sticks, activia yoghurt, dairy milk chocolate caramel bar, protein shake, chocolate twirl bar, Banana shake and a can of red bull for a total of 1081 calories. Looks like every day is a cheat day for you!

Try eating 3 proper meals per day, stop snacking, up your calories, eat more fresh vegetables and salads, meat and fish, cut the carbs, cut all the saturated fat (cheese and fridge raiders!), and eat more mono-unsaturated fat.

As for exercise forget the cardio and concentrate on heavy weights (strong lifts 5x5) four times per week, to preserve what muscle you have.

Hope this helps

I admit that recently my diet has been lazy and rubbish.. how many grams.of carbs, fat and protein do you recommend I aim for? Or do I just SIM for high protein and low carbs?

I agree with this although im no expert i know a few people who lost weight too fast and others that lost it steady and both gained flabby skin and the major reason for it was diet and water consumption, You need to be getting you fluids up drinking water is extremely important, it not only aids weight loss but is also an appetite suppressor, I would suggest eating more fresh foods and good proteins and drinking 2ltrs a day minimum. Hope this helps. Keep up the good work

KandieLantz

As for your training forget all the isolation exercises for the time being as they burn few calories and wont help your muscle on that diet, you're wasting your time doing them.

As I said above do strong lifts 5x5 for a couple of months until you get yourself sorted out, using very heavy weights. For each exercise find which weight you can only lift once, then do 5 sets of 5 reps at 80% of that weight. So for example if you can only do 1 squat at 50kg you do your sets using 40kg (80% of 50kg).

Stronglifts are hard work but should take less than 30 mins and you'll be jiggered after.

There are varied approaches as to what strong lifts are, but essentially its:
Barbell bench press
barbell bent over row
barbell dead lift
military press
barbell squats

http://stronglifts.com/stronglifts-5x5-beginner-strength-training-program/

The lifts should be done with bar bells. You can use dumb bells but it won't be as effective.

Heavy weights being in the men's section at your gym sounds like a lame excuse for not doing any heavy lifting. Loads of women in the heavy weights section of my gym mixing it up with men (Virgin Active). If you don't like the atmosphere change gyms. Alternatively buy yourself a barbell and some weights and work out at home.

Another poster recommended kettle bells - these also provide a very good work out to supplement your strong lifts.

I genuinely do not have the confidence to step into the men's section of the gym at the moment.. and due to funds I am unable to buy my own barbell.

To be honest I struggle with the weight I'm doing now, so I know I don't have the strength to lift heavier just yet..

The FIRST thing you need to do is stop referring to it as the MEN'S section of the gym... you automatically tell yourself you don't belong there and you DO! Until you go there... you aren't really lifting HEAVY as you say you are... EAT... feed your body and then go lift weights as heavy as your body will allow.... on the... oh, I'm building some lean and sexy muscle... side of the gym!

lozzieemayjenkins

As for your training forget all the isolation exercises for the time being as they burn few calories and wont help your muscle on that diet, you're wasting your time doing them.

As I said above do strong lifts 5x5 for a couple of months until you get yourself sorted out, using very heavy weights. For each exercise find which weight you can only lift once, then do 5 sets of 5 reps at 80% of that weight. So for example if you can only do 1 squat at 50kg you do your sets using 40kg (80% of 50kg).

Stronglifts are hard work but should take less than 30 mins and you'll be jiggered after.

There are varied approaches as to what strong lifts are, but essentially its:
Barbell bench press
barbell bent over row
barbell dead lift
military press
barbell squats

http://stronglifts.com/stronglifts-5x5-beginner-strength-training-program/

The lifts should be done with bar bells. You can use dumb bells but it won't be as effective.

Heavy weights being in the men's section at your gym sounds like a lame excuse for not doing any heavy lifting. Loads of women in the heavy weights section of my gym mixing it up with men (Virgin Active). If you don't like the atmosphere change gyms. Alternatively buy yourself a barbell and some weights and work out at home.

Another poster recommended kettle bells - these also provide a very good work out to supplement your strong lifts.

I genuinely do not have the confidence to step into the men's section of the gym at the moment.. and due to funds I am unable to buy my own barbell.

To be honest I struggle with the weight I'm doing now, so I know I don't have the strength to lift heavier just yet..

The FIRST thing you need to do is stop referring to it as the MEN'S section of the gym... you automatically tell yourself you don't belong there and you DO! Until you go there... you aren't really lifting HEAVY as you say you are... EAT... feed your body and then go lift weights as heavy as your body will allow.... on the... oh, I'm building some lean and sexy muscle... side of the gym!

I'm just really concerned about how many calories I should be eating.. the training part is straight forward and just takes me gaining enough confidence to go into the gym and lift heavier.. but as for calories, I'm just lost.

My body fat is currently 37% so using the Katch Mcardle BMR equation which I'm told is more accurate when you know your body fat, that would mean my BMR is 1479.. my activity level is moderately active so multiply my BMR by 1.5 and my TDEE is estimated at 2218.. so a 20% cut is 1774 calories..

I'm worried about eating that many calories.. I can't justify how I can lose weight on that. I have 42lbs to lose until I'm at a healthy weight and my goal weight.

For the last 6-8 weeks I've eaten 1600 calories daily and my weight stayed the same, I also lost zero inches and zero body fat.

j6o4

As for your training forget all the isolation exercises for the time being as they burn few calories and wont help your muscle on that diet, you're wasting your time doing them.

As I said above do strong lifts 5x5 for a couple of months until you get yourself sorted out, using very heavy weights. For each exercise find which weight you can only lift once, then do 5 sets of 5 reps at 80% of that weight. So for example if you can only do 1 squat at 50kg you do your sets using 40kg (80% of 50kg).

Stronglifts are hard work but should take less than 30 mins and you'll be jiggered after.

There are varied approaches as to what strong lifts are, but essentially its:
Barbell bench press
barbell bent over row
barbell dead lift
military press
barbell squats

http://stronglifts.com/stronglifts-5x5-beginner-strength-training-program/

The lifts should be done with bar bells. You can use dumb bells but it won't be as effective.

Heavy weights being in the men's section at your gym sounds like a lame excuse for not doing any heavy lifting. Loads of women in the heavy weights section of my gym mixing it up with men (Virgin Active). If you don't like the atmosphere change gyms. Alternatively buy yourself a barbell and some weights and work out at home.

Another poster recommended kettle bells - these also provide a very good work out to supplement your strong lifts.

I genuinely do not have the confidence to step into the men's section of the gym at the moment.. and due to funds I am unable to buy my own barbell.

To be honest I struggle with the weight I'm doing now, so I know I don't have the strength to lift heavier just yet..

The FIRST thing you need to do is stop referring to it as the MEN'S section of the gym... you automatically tell yourself you don't belong there and you DO! Until you go there... you aren't really lifting HEAVY as you say you are... EAT... feed your body and then go lift weights as heavy as your body will allow.... on the... oh, I'm building some lean and sexy muscle... side of the gym!

i agree with this ^^ dont doubt yourself, you should go to the gym ready to dominate those big compound movements. those isolations if you have time can be fit in the end of the workout

h9dlb

I genuinely do not have the confidence to step into the men's section of the gym at the moment.. and due to funds I am unable to buy my own barbell.

To be honest I struggle with the weight I'm doing now, so I know I don't have the strength to lift heavier just yet..

Sorry but you are just making excuses now. Barbell set Argos £27.99 http://www.argos.co.uk/static/Product/partNumber/3028292.htm. Stop eating fridge raiders for a month and buy a barbell with the money you save.

You have not properly read my post - lifting heavy means lifting at 80% of your one rep max (i.e heavy compared to your capabilities). What is heavy for you may not be heavy to other women. Beginning to wonder if this is a Troll Thread.

wswilliams67

Lift more heavy stuff + bit less cardio + much better diet = tight a** body.