I went from morbidly obese to 6 pack abs! Ask me Anything

ashleydv70 wrote: »

Hey I had a question because I tend to get a little OCD trying to figure things out.

Currently I'm 300 pounds. I'm a 24 year old female and I'm 5'8"
MFP put my calories at about 1710 per day for 2 lbs a week. However, my TDEE is 3100 or so. My BMR is 2100 about. Should I be eating my BMR amount or lower than that- like 1710 as MFP suggests?? Also, if I eat the amount (1710) that MFP suggests, on days I work out should I eat back my exercised calories?? Or just eat 1710 or 2100 consistently? I usually workout for an hour 4-5 days per week.

Thanks for the help! And you look awesome. Super sexy!

When you have a lot of weight to lose, you actually can eat below your BMR without the negative side effects that usually occur from doing that. I usually recommend people with lots to lose to simply pick a nice round number, eat that many calories for a few weeks, see how they do with it, then adjust based on results. For you, anywhere from the 1700 MFP suggests to the 2100 bmr would be fine. Maybe just start at 2000 and see how that goes.

staticsplit wrote: »

As everyone has said, what a fantastic transformation and you're sharing great information.

I've got a question!

I'm already in OK shape, but would like to get stronger and lose a wee bit of fat. I eat pretty healthily and within my range most of the time, but I'm never too stringent with calorie counting as I had an eating disorder in the past. I can run 5-10k, do some fitness classes like Cx, pilates, and yoga, and also did some pole fitness before a shoulder injury caused me to give it up. The shoulder is much better, but if I try to do stuff with my entire body weight, like shimmy up a pole, it acts up again (shame, as I found the classes really fun). It means I think I'd have to start carefully with lifting as I don't want to irritate/re-injure.

I'm 6 feet tall and around 150-155 pounds. Would I be better to bulk and build some muscle or cut fat first? I figure it's probably better to bulk first?

Here is a recentish photo of me dressed as Princess Leia:

You are actually in perfect condition to do a recomp. Normally I am against recomping for most people but your situation would be the exception. You are a novice to heavy weight training, already a good height for weight, and seem to have a good control over nutrition. I would say for the first 6 months simply eat at maintenance, get in adequate protein (maybe 0.8 grams per lb), start a beginners lifting program like the Ice Cream Fitness 5x5 or stronglifts 5x5, and see what happens. You'll enjoy a good few months where you can lose a little fat and gain a little muscle at the same time. After the initial 6 months go by, you can reevaluate whether a cut or bulk will do you best, as this is usually the period of time that the benefit of being relatively untrained wears off and you must focus on a single goal at a time.

ashleyletten1 wrote: »

Can you tell me what I need to be doing at the gym to start with I don't want to go in and kill myself

I always recommend simple, compound, lifts. Bench, squat, deadlift, rows, etc. A 5x5 beginners program is a good place to start. I like the ICF 5x5 the best. You can google it

adamwsmith1981 wrote: »

What was your daily calorie intake during your inital weight loss? I started at 291 and set a 1 year goal to hit 220. I am currently eating 2000 calories a day with a breakdown of 45% carbs, 30% protein, and 25% fat.

When I first started I didn't track calories, I simply ate less then I used to eat. That worked fine for a few months but once I did finally start counting, I was logging 2000 calories but probably eating 2500 or more simply because I didn't weigh food and had cheat days regularly. After time went on and I got leaner, the cheats became fewer and more far between, and the logging became much more accurate.

Nightfly01 wrote: »

vismal wrote: »

I was still pretty heavy when I began lifting. I don't know what my body fat was but I probably weighed around 240ish. BF was likely > 25-30. Again, I wish I would have started lifting from day 1.

How much was your success due to running? I am big and lift with very high reps and barely any rest. I cant run now but I do find cardio so boring.

Running jump started my initial weight loss and allowed me to see quick results. This probably did lots to keep me motivated. I no longer do any running and my cardio is usually non-formal (hiking, walking, etc). There is no need to do cardio if you do not enjoy it but you will have to take that into consideration when planning your diet. Cardio can allow you to lose weight quicker, or eat more while still losing.