Body Fat...Blah.

breyn2004
breyn2004 Posts: 162 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
HI! On September 1st, I will be 2 years into my journey into a new, healthy lifestyle. I'm 70 pounds down and I've been at my maintenance weight for a couple of months now. I started strength training in January of this year.... regrettably, I didn't do it from the beginning. Anyway, my body fat percentage is down to 26.8%, which I'm happy about. Especially considering where it was 2 years ago, but I want to work on getting it down even more. So......

I'm just curious what helps everyone the most when it comes to getting that percentage down?

I was riding my bike mostly, then took up C25K so that I could run my first 5k ever and then my husband started getting into exercising with me, but we were only walking (until he got a bike) and I think that's where my fat burning slowed down a bit.

Thanks in advance! :happy:

Replies

  • Smuterella
    Smuterella Posts: 1,623 Member
    more lifting, less cardio
  • Smuterella
    Smuterella Posts: 1,623 Member
    more lifting, less cardio :-)
  • Fabnover40Kat
    Fabnover40Kat Posts: 300 Member
    DIET!!!
  • jenniet04
    jenniet04 Posts: 1,054 Member
    lifting, lifting and lifting! Also diet is a huge part of fat loss.

    http://www.niashanks.com/2012/07/10-commandments-for-simple-fat-loss/
  • Colleen_G
    Colleen_G Posts: 57
    more lifting, less cardio

    ^^^^^^THIS!
  • poedunk65
    poedunk65 Posts: 1,336 Member
    more muscle bursn more calories. Strength training should be part of any lifestyle change. You don;t have to do heavy weights either, do more reps. Also change it up every 3 weeks to keep your body stoked.
  • DopeItUp
    DopeItUp Posts: 18,771 Member
    It's pretty much all diet. Use the exercise to get fit/stronger/better looking (especially weight training to maintain lean body mass) and use the diet to reduce body fat.
  • onikonor
    onikonor Posts: 473 Member
    Both are important. You need cardio to lower your body fat %. You need muscle to improve metabolism and improve body composition. You need to eat right in order to do both strength training and cardio!
  • ncates00
    ncates00 Posts: 51
    I do Strength Training on MWF and Cardio on TRS. Sundays are usually Yoga before or after church, or just rest. Cardio is usually Insanity, and the strength training has been P90X and related stuff. It has been a really good hybrid doing P90X/Insanity. After next month, I'll dive into P90X2 and/or Insanity Asylum. After that, probably will get into more strength training more intently with Olympic lifts and bigger functional strength training, since I'm very close to single digit BF% after a year of serious commitment. Also, I will throw in some Crossfit.

    I believe that a good mix of strength training AND cardio is important for not just losing fat, but for overall fitness and athleticism. It's not just about weight lifting or cardio. Furthermore, don't neglect the nutrition aspect of your well being. Nutrition is key to changing your overall lifestyle into that of a healthy one. It is also crucial to lock in your diet for long term goals and short term goals like visible abs. Abs are all kitchen! I like TOTAL fitness. Developing a healthy spirit, mind, and body is key to improving your life and the quality of your life. God bless!
  • breyn2004
    breyn2004 Posts: 162 Member
    more muscle bursn more calories. Strength training should be part of any lifestyle change. You don;t have to do heavy weights either, do more reps. Also change it up every 3 weeks to keep your body stoked.

    I enjoy lifting as heavy ....as much as I can at least. I have 2 workout plans and I alternate them every other week.
  • dad106
    dad106 Posts: 4,868 Member
    Reducing body fat is mainly diet... eat in a deficit to get the fat down.

    Lift to retain muscle mass/boost metabolism

    Do cardio to help make more of a deficit.
  • breyn2004
    breyn2004 Posts: 162 Member
    It's pretty much all diet. Use the exercise to get fit/stronger/better looking (especially weight training to maintain lean body mass) and use the diet to reduce body fat.

    Diet is definitely something I'm trying to improve. I've come a long way from the "as long as I'm within my calorie budget, who cares" attitude that I had in the beginning, but there's room for more improvement than I can imagine.
  • George1567
    George1567 Posts: 107
    If you enjoy Cardio, do what works for you....I would not purposefully do less. But if you have time restraints and have to pick, you might prioritize lifting for a while. Muscle recovery needs good blood flow, so having a healthy heart and cardiovascular system is very important. Even with a solid workout plan nutrition plays the biggest part. Keep exercise fun and a part of your life, but become a student of nutrition and you will go far.
  • dlaw216
    dlaw216 Posts: 14
    I will start up with ST once I lose the last pound (right now its being very stubborn). I still enjoy my 30 min/day with cardio though, good way to burn through stress from work too. Pay attention to portions and what you eat (along with how much) and continue moving, sitting and doing nothing does not really help (as we all know). :)
  • KarmaxKitty
    KarmaxKitty Posts: 901 Member
    More lifting, less cardio, focusing on nutrition...

    Or, if you'd like to have a lot of fun, look into circuit and tabata training.

    Have to mix up your routine with things that require your body to use a lot of power.

    It's always great to have a good MIX of cardio and strength.
  • KarmaxKitty
    KarmaxKitty Posts: 901 Member
    If you enjoy Cardio, do what works for you....I would not purposefully do less. But if you have time restraints and have to pick, you might prioritize lifting for a while. Muscle recovery needs good blood flow, so having a healthy heart and cardiovascular system is very important. Even with a solid workout plan nutrition plays the biggest part. Keep exercise fun and a part of your life, but become a student of nutrition and you will go far.

    :heart:
  • ZombieSlayer
    ZombieSlayer Posts: 369 Member
    more lifting, less cardio
  • Yanicka1
    Yanicka1 Posts: 4,564 Member
    more lifting, less cardio

    ^^^^^yep
  • DopeItUp
    DopeItUp Posts: 18,771 Member
    Both are important. You need cardio to lower your body fat %. You need muscle to improve metabolism and improve body composition. You need to eat right in order to do both strength training and cardio!

    Cardio is not needed to lower body fat. It can help create or increase a calorie deficit to lower body fat but is not necessary at all. It is, however, good for health reasons in general.
  • breyn2004
    breyn2004 Posts: 162 Member
    Thanks everyone!

    I won't be decreasing cardio (30-45 minutes/day on average, sometimes longer on the weekends) because a: I enjoy it and b: I want OVERALL health. However, I will continue to push myself harder in the weight room and work on my diet! :happy:
  • rybo
    rybo Posts: 5,424 Member
    IMO, diet trumps any exercise. I've gotten my BF% very low using various types of exercise (all strength, all cardio, mixes of the 2), but the common part was always my diet.
  • iWaffle
    iWaffle Posts: 2,208 Member
    I won't be decreasing cardio (30-45 minutes/day on average, sometimes longer on the weekends)
    30 - 45 minutes is good but after that point excessive cardio just makes your body more efficient and conditioned to burn less calories while doing cardio. You have to be more strict on your diet. If you're already somewhat lean more cardio isn't the answer because it deters muscle growth and recovery. The last thing you want is to lose the muscle tone and be skinny-fat. Strength training and a good level of protein intake helps your body hold on to the muscle while you trim away the fat you don't want.

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