Maintenance and fat loss?

You can do either. The latter will probably take longer, but might also give better results in the end.

I vote for eat at maintenance and lift. This thread might interest you:

http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10177803/recomposition-maintaining-weight-while-losing-fat/p1

Yup, incorporate lifting. At the point you're at (so close to goal weight), you're not going to change your shape too much (if you want to build a bit more muscle and decrease a little fat) unless you lift. If you DO decide to look into weightlifting, get on the Eat, Train, Progress and the Stronglifts 5x5 for Women groups here, research some good programs (Starting Strength, Stronglifts, New Rules of Lifting for Women), and just know that you probably shouldn't put a lot of weight (no pun intended) into the number on the scale--weightlifting shakes things up, so don't get all freaked out by scale ups and downs, because no matter what, weight lifting will do your body good.

I say increase your calories to maintenance or a slight deficit (10% or something), lift, and ditch the scale for at least a month. Then, you can start weighing in as you normally do, if you wish, and make sure you take measurements and progress photos monthly. In a few months, look at where you are and make changes if necessary.

The others are right in saying that recomp is a very slow process that takes patience, which I don't have, so it's a learning process. I still find it hard not to be disappointed when I don't see a loss on the scale even though I'm no longer eating at a deficit or trying to lose weight. Wanting to drop pounds has always been my goal, so now I have to retrain myself into recomp-mode. I imagine it'll be even more difficult to get used to seeing higher numbers during a bulk, especially if you've never actually tried to gain weight on purpose before.

My original goal was 125, but once I reached that I dropped it to 120. I got to 121ish, did a recomp for a few months, then cut again for 2 months in attempt to get down to 115 because I still had some fat around my midsection. I dropped to 116, then transitioned back to maintenance. A month or two later, the scale shot up 3-4 lbs and never went back down even though I hadn't eaten enough to gain weight. I'm back to my pre-cut 121 lbs and I'll be damned if I'm cutting again. It's like my body refuses to be under 120 lbs unless I eat under 2000 calories to maintain it. No thanks. I'd rather eat 2150 calories/day, lift, and be somewhere between 120 and 125, even if that means my midsection isn't as firm as I'd like it to be. My point is that goals change, and it's good to experiment with different things.

auntstephie321 wrote: »

@strong_curves thanks, I've followed that thread, there is so much info in there that it seems overwhelming, and a little scary.

@arditarose yes I've changed to the .5 lbs per week for about a month now. I'm still losing so I know I'm still at a deficit. it's just really getting boring, it was exciting to step on the scale and lose a lb or 2, now .4 here, .2 there, not as exciting.

should I maybe stay at this deficit and start lifting? I read that you can't build muscle in a deficit so I don't want to put added strain on my body by not fueling properly.

I feel like I've perfected the deficit part, was fairly easy. Now the next phase is all new uncharted territory.

You can get a few newbie gains by being in a deficit, but they'll taper off eventually. But recomp is really easy once you start. Find a progressive lifting program you can commit to and begin to bump up your calories to at or just a little below maintenance, making sure you have enough protein. The only thing I found hard at first was learning to not trust the scale and use my tape measure for progress. Not as instantly gratifying, but the results are amazing. Best of luck!

auntstephie321 wrote: »

Thank you all for your input. I was naturally leaning towards eating at maintenance already, just for a change if nothing else. So I have updated my goals, which is kinda scary seeing it tell me I will 0 lbs by august, but I will adjust to that mindset eventually.

A couple of months ago I tried to start lifting to keep lbm but ended up getting spasms in my neck and shoulder, so I clearly over did something.

This may sound bad, or lazy, but is there something that is simple to understand that would be effective and not require a lot of research?

There are some great lifting programs out there that use free weights. You might do a Google search on Strong Lifts 5x5 and New Rules of Lifting for Women to get an idea of the programs available. I actually still use the machines at my company gym because I'm a bit intimidated to get into the "big boys" room where the free weights are. I work with some of these guys so it's a bit different than going to the corner gym with a bunch of strangers. I'm seeing good results, in any event and I've more than doubled the amount of weight I can lift on each of the machines I use. My point is, if you just want to start out on the machines to get comfortable and build a base there's absolutely nothing wrong with it. My understanding is that compound moves with free weights will give faster results but I'm happy doing what I'm doing for now. I don't have any time-based goals.

Leka1000 wrote: »

Congrats on your success! I also am curious about eating maintenance or deficit and lifting...one thing in particular is this: lifters who posted here - do you guys do any cardio to reach your goals? If so, please give details. Thanks

I run on the days I don't lift. I've been running for 4.5 years now and only started lifting a little over a year ago. My lifting complements my running, not the other way around. In the off-season (now) I run 5K two or three mornings before work and up to 5 miles or so one weekend day. During the lead up to race season in the winter I will gradually run farther as I build back up to 13.1 miles and switch to running after work once the weather cools enough. Running does allow me to eat a bit more but some days I don't eat most of those calories to help create more of a deficit if I'm trying to drop a few pounds.