Near Goal Weight but Not Near Goal Body

99% of people are going to say lift weights.

The reason is simple - while your bodyweight is the same, it appears as though your lean body mass is lower now than it was before.

Ergo, you have 2 solutions:

1. lose more weight

2. do a body recomposition by lifting weights and adding more lean body mass

Started at 230 back on March 20. As of today April 28, I'm stuck at 216. I am just DYING to break the barrier and reach 200 pounds. It's frustrating, mostly because I'm impatient. Hoping I'll be in the 100's by the time August 27th comes (my bday). Crossing fingers.

This is the foretold message telling you to lift weights. LOL

my go-to for awesome bodyweight training used to be bodyrock.tv BUT since ownership went from partner to one person, it has taken a turn to a different kind of exercising.

The gal who used to star on bodyrock is Zuzana Light. You can look for her on facebook or look around the internet for her 'warriorz' exercises. Sometimes she will use equipment, but there are tons of moves that you can do for free in small areas (made for people with low funding and just an apartment to work out in!)

but also you can google prison workouts (also created for small spaces, no equipment) and just push yourself to improve on speed and endurance as you proceed.

and if you want you can save up funds to get some weights at home or a fitness membership to lift heavier!

You could do a google search and see what kind of weight free things you could do that only use your body weight to strength your arms, core, legs & thighs. They are out there believe me. I can't afford a gym membership and being a single mom I don't have time to go to a gym. Also, to get my arms toned I use a (and I kid you not) one gallon milk carton.

So, the last time I was at my goal weight, i was a skinny little stick with a flat stomach and in size 5 pants. 15 years and a baby since then, I'm within 3 pounds of that same weight, but my body is nowhere near that same size.

I seem to wear most of my weight in my butt and thighs, making it so my waist could fit in a size 6 or size 8 pants, but my thighs feel a lot better in a size 10. In the 13 pounds I've lost, the inches seem to have come off my waist and chest.

I'm currently doing C25k and rollerblading for cardio and plan to start 30DS again, but after doing 22 days of that last round, I saw the big loss to my waist and chest and zero difference in my mammoth legs.

Soooooo, being that I don't have any desire to weigh 115 pounds, how on earth do I get my body where I want it without losing an unhealthy amount of weight? I know I will get a hundred responses saying "Lift heavy" but I can't afford a gym membership and I have no room in my house (nor money to purchase) a huge weight set.

Help!

I feel that same way that you do. Right now I'm less than 10 lbs from my goal weight, but...I guess I imagined myself looking more hot at this point. Like you, I'm pear-shaped. Most of my weight has come off from my chest and waist. (My boobs have completely shrunk now too.) But my butt and thighs are still big. I'm still not completely satisfied and I worry that I may not be when I reach my goal weight.

I did two things about it though: I started strength training and I also made sure to take regular measurements of my body (including especially my hips, butt, and thighs). I've only been weight training for about a month now, but I'm confident that that will greatly improve how my body looks. And as for the measurements, I often "feel" like I haven't lost much in my thighs and butt, but when I look at those numbers...it's proof that I definitely have. Sometimes our eyes deceive us with these things.

I'd suggest you do both of those things too. As far as the money, my gym's most basic membership plan is only $10/month. Is there a way you could squeeze a price like that in? Also, there are gyms that have "bring a friend for free" benefits for their members. (My gym does, for instance. I can bring a friend every single day with me for free to the gym, classes, etc. It can even be the same friend every day lol!) Ask your friends to see if any of them have a membership with that benefit and if so, ask if they'd be willing to let you tag along with them a couple times a week!

Good luck!

You are back at the same weight, but you are not back at the same body fat %. You need to get that body fat percentage down if you want to get back to where you were. If you don't want to loose more weight, you're going to need to increase your muscle mass to make up for the difference. And yes, the best way to do that is to lift heavy things.

"Lift heavy" doesn't mean you need an olympic set (which is neither very expensive or space consuming, but that's besides the point). There are plenty of heavy things you can lift, including just your own body.

Lifting heavy means doing resistance movements that are so heavy you couldn't do more than 10 reps. Depending on your level of fitness, this might mean simple push ups and bodyweight squats. Maybe you need to advance to things like handstands and pistol squats if you're already super strong.

I maxed out my strict press at 50lbs today. For me, that's lifting heavy. If I could do a hand stand push-up, I'd work the same muscles but with 120lbs of weight. Obviously, I can't do that yet, but the moral of the story is that lifting heavy doesn't need to be done with weights in a gym. Look into bodyweight exercises or gymnastics. They'll need no equipment and if done right will be effective enough for you to increase your muscle mass and decrease your BF%.

Building muscle is a great way to tighten up, but keep in mind that if the last time you were a size 5, you were a teenager, I don't think it's realistic to expect to look like that again. Even if you get back down to that size and really work at building muscle and reducing fat, you will still have gravity working against you.

I say learn to love your body as it is now. You can continue to workout and try to really get into shape, but don't expect the clock to turn back.

If you are short on funds and space, resistance bands are great.

For women that are thinking of lifting weights and worry that they will get 'bulky': http://www.aworkoutroutine.com/workout-routines-for-women/

You could do a good body weight strength training routine 3-4 times a week. Such as: You Are Your Own Gym. You can get a lot out of that, if you are new to strength training. Yoga or Pilates.

You could do a one time purchase of some adjustable dumbbells or some other type of equipment that would be helpful to you.

Did you check out all of your options for going to a weight room? Did you check the cost of all the gyms in your area that are near you, or your work (maybe even gyms you don't know about because they are tucked away on a side street). Or the YMCA. Or a Community Center? If you say to them, "No, I can't afford it", they sometimes start to make a deal with you (they are like car salesmen).

Do you have any outdoor, circuit training, exercise parks. They have all different types of equipment and bars that enable you to do and try all different options of strength training with your own body weight, using bars.

I'm sure there are lots of strength training options, if you explore all the options and find what works for you. It will involve exploring, researching, and trying some new things.

It's worth it!

I'm into this: http://bretcontreras.com/

SMASHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! you will not be sorry!

http://startingstrength.wikia.com/wiki/The_Starting_Strength_Novice/Beginner_Programs

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

Body weight exercises work - push ups (on toes), lunges and squats could do a lot for you. Also, resistance bands are very inexpensive. Also, for lower body plyometrics work great - jumping lunges, squat jumps, etc.

We also have a Planet Fitness in town that is $9.99 a month. Haven't been there but that is not a bad price.

Good luck!!

try resistance band training. You can get a set of bands from Target for $10. They are the elastic scarf looking things but they work as good as the ones with the handles. Plus the handle or over the door mount cant come back and hit you in the top of your head and give you a sever cut (it happened to me thought I was going to pass out after seeing all that blood).

There are tons of websites that can give you workouts to do using the bands and body weight exercises.

I love resistance band training to tone up what I have on the days I don't go see my personal trainer.

http://www.nerdfitness.com/blog/2009/12/09/beginner-body-weight-workout-burn-fat-build-muscle/

Here you go! No gear required, just your body