12mos, 46 Pounds Lost, Heavy Lifting Mom (5'8")

I started lifting heavy weight and eating 2,000 a day is my sweet spot for fat loss. Yes, I eat a minumum of 2,000 calories a day, usually 2,200.

Personally, I find it so hard to reach the minimum of 1200kcal every day. How do you manage to consume 2,000 - 2,200 on a daily basis? Are you going for full fat options? ..I know that I'm not consuming enough calories, and based on my TDEE /BMR, I'm supposed to be eating ~2,100kcal. I just don't understand! If I start eating that many more calories, aren't I going to GAIN weight?

Also, at the gym, I only do cardio. I get on the treadmill for 30-45 minutes, and thats it... But I want to start incorporating weights. However... I thought that you can't target fat loss? ..Thats why cardio is the only way to burn overall fat, throughout the body?? IDK.

Your success is making me question everything I know about losing weight!

I commend your enthusiasm and hunger for knowledge!! It is sooooo easy to reach 2000 a day. Seriously, I just ate 1,000 for lunch. Yep, I got home from the gym and made greek yogurt whole wheat pancakes and turkey sausage. Easy 1,000 calories. Start adding calorie dense foods like peanut butter, pasta, meats (steak, yum), oils (sautee veggies in oil), cheese, nuts, eggs, beans. There's no reason, unless you have specific medical conditions, to cut any of these things out of your diet (not using "diet" in terms of calorie restriction, just the foods you eat). Tonight, I will have my weekly pizza from Papa Murphys and easily consume 2,200 by the end of the day. Stop thinking restriction. I don't know what you are eating, but if you are only eating leafy greens and egg beaters (exaggeration here), then it will be hard to reach 1,200...much less the 2,200 I'm eating. I need to note that in addition to the above things I mention, I eat ALOT of leafy greens: salads, broccoli, cabbage, brussel sprouts and also carrots, celery, cucumbers. Lots of veggies in addition to calorie dense and yummy foods.

To address your other question, read the roadmap link I posted originally. You cannot spot reduce fat from your body, regardless of the type of exercise you do. Cardio does not make you lose fat, but it can help to create a calorie deficit resulting in weight loss. You can be eating 6,000 calories a day and sweating it out with some crazy cardio and still not have a calorie deficit. It comes down to consuming less than you burn. This can be done with or without cardio. There are many health benefits of cardio, but it is not an essential ingredient in fat loss. Lifting weights will help maintain your muscle mass (and burn more calories in the long run), which your body catabolize when eating at a deficit with no strength training. There are lots of great resources out there on this topic, and I'm by no means an expert. Hope this info helps.