Decreasing Body Fat

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jojomul
jojomul Posts: 7 Member
Hello,

I am hoping that someone here may be able to advise me. I have been working on loosing fat and building muscle for the last 14 months. During this time I have lost almost 50 lbs. But for the last two months I have not noticed any changes, weight wise or in body shape. I recently had my body fat measures by bio metric impedance which gave the figure of 24%. I want to get this down to between 16 - 20%. The lady who tested my body fat said that I should keep my calorie intake to between 1000 - 1200 calories per day. I personally think this is too low. I have also been told that I should be having about 1600 calories per day. So I am really confused. I want to continue to build muscle while at the same time build as much muscle as possible. I really don't know where to go from here. I dont want to start into the higher calorie intake if i'm going to start piling on the fat again !

Personal info:
I am 30 yrs old, 5ft 2", I currently weigh 129 lbs, I work out 6 days a week. Monday: Upper body + cardio, Tuesday: Lower body + cardio, Wednesday: Cardio only, Thursday: Upper body + Cardio, Friday: Lower Body + Cardio, Saturday: Cardio only. My cardio is usually HIIT sprints or moderate interval training on the elliptical and / or the stationary bike. I lift as heavy as I can in my weight training.

Any advise would be great. Thanks!

Replies

  • Erod1972
    Erod1972 Posts: 34 Member
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    For whats its worth, Scoobysworkshop.com accurate calorie counter has you with your current 5-6 days of week of strenuous exercise at 2175 calories. Your BMR is 1261 (Calories needed for proper bodily function if you were basically a couch potato) That would be body re-comp (gain muscle/lose fat) If you want to lose fat at a 10% deficit you would consume 1957 cals. a 20% deficit would be 1740. The "lady" who tested your body fat suggested you eat a dangerously low amount of calories, causing you to slow down your metabolism and never reach you fitness goals. These numbers of course are estimates because we are all different but I think both moderators would agree that 1000 to 1200 calories is very low, even 1600 is pretty low if your working out so much.
  • Sarauk2sf
    Sarauk2sf Posts: 28,072 Member
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    Are you looking for specific intake advice from us? If so, please complete the questions from here onto this thread: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/910257-the-new-and-improved-asking-questions-about-your-intake
  • jojomul
    jojomul Posts: 7 Member
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    Yeah i'm looking for specific intake advise please:

    Age 30
    Height: 5ft 2"
    Weight: 129 lbs
    BF%: 24.2%
    Average Calorie Intake: 1305 kcal / day
    Average Macro Intake: Cabs 80.3g, Fats 29g, Protein 136g

    I don't measure everything. I measure my porridge in the morning and any berries i eat, but thats all.
    Yes I track all my intake per day.

    Since May 2012 I have just reached the 50 lbs mark in weight loss.

    I dont have cheat days or days off, but i do have small treats at the weekend. For example a small chocolate bar. But I still try to fit it into the calorie intake for that day.

    Gym Activity: Monday & Thurdays: Upper body weights and cardio, Tuesday and Friday: Lower body weights and cardio, Wednesday and Saturday: Cardio only (cardio session vary in length from 20 - 25 min if i am doing HIIT, to 35 - 40 if I do moderate intensity intervals). My routine has changed slightly over the past few weeks. I have started doing my cardio in the afternoons rather then directly after weight training. i have also started doing some classes such as kettlebells / body sculpt / core conditioning. I though these might help with making progress again, but I have yet to see any changes.
    Non-gym activity: sittinng at a desk for 7 hrs per day mon - fri.


    Plateau: My fat loss has been at a standstill for over two months now.

    I am not breast feeding and I do not have any thyroid issues or PCOS.
  • SideSteel
    SideSteel Posts: 11,068 Member
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    You need to open your diary per the instructions in the thread we linked. Please reply here to confirm.
  • jojomul
    jojomul Posts: 7 Member
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    Sorry, I thought I had it open. I've changed the settings, so you should be able to see everything now!
  • ThisCanadian
    ThisCanadian Posts: 1,086 Member
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    Bump for later
  • SideSteel
    SideSteel Posts: 11,068 Member
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    Your averages are as follows after we exclude days that you didn't log and days that were clearly partially logged and incomplete:

    1290 cals
    90 carb
    25 fat
    135 protein

    I have a few concerns, the first being your fat intake and the second being your logging inconsistencies/inaccuracies.

    The complication here is that if you log 1290 but don't use a food scale or if you take days off of tracking, your actual average intake, for both calories and macronutrients, could be significantly higher than this. This is especially true if you're eyeballing things and not trying to measure in any capacity.

    Your intake is on the low end as well, however you only weigh 129 so while it's still low considering your activity, I would hesitate to increase it without first seeing what actually happens when you use a food scale and get meticulous with your intake tracking.

    The first thing I'd like you to do is get a food scale, and take 2 weeks to literally track EVERYTHING that goes into your mouth. No sneaking bites of this or that, no eyeballing the portions anymore/etc.

    The purpose of this is twofold:

    1) To verify to us how much you are really consuming.
    2) To get comfortable with proper portion sizes so that at some point you may not have to rely as heavily on the food scale.

    I'd set your intake as follows:

    100 carbs
    40 fat
    135 protein

    And report back to us in 1 week with an update.


    Now there's a chance you may need a diet break, you may need additional calories due to your activity, but the first piece of the puzzle that needs to be resolved is to get your intake levels accurately reported so we (you and us) know exactly what you're eating in terms of energy and nutrient intake. A food scale and more accurate logging is the way to do this.
  • Sarauk2sf
    Sarauk2sf Posts: 28,072 Member
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    Locking so we can track active threads better. If you wish to update us, please PM one of us, including a link to this thread, and we will open so you can do so.
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