What am I doing wrong?!
meganwbell849
Posts: 26 Member
Hello everyone! I'm desperately needing your advice! I started working out with a personal trainer in Februrary, on average 4 days a week. I also started running for 30 minutes a day and try and do some weight training on the days I'm not with my PT.
I feel like I workout all the time. Eat, workout, walk my dogs, workout, take a shower, workout,etc. that not reality but it feels that way.
I am definitely more tone and can see definition, but I'm not losing any weight and still at 21% body fat but my goal 16-17.
What am I doing wrong? Is there a calorie goal I need to be aware of? What about how they are consumed (%of carbs/proteins/etc).
I trust my personal trainer to help with my workouts, however, I know nothing about nutrition and don't need know where to start. I would appreciate any advice you have! 30, 5'3", 120lb/F
I feel like I workout all the time. Eat, workout, walk my dogs, workout, take a shower, workout,etc. that not reality but it feels that way.
I am definitely more tone and can see definition, but I'm not losing any weight and still at 21% body fat but my goal 16-17.
What am I doing wrong? Is there a calorie goal I need to be aware of? What about how they are consumed (%of carbs/proteins/etc).
I trust my personal trainer to help with my workouts, however, I know nothing about nutrition and don't need know where to start. I would appreciate any advice you have! 30, 5'3", 120lb/F
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Replies
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You're 120, aiming for 100?0
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5'3 aiming for 110, in currently 1200
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OP, you said you need to lose 20 in your post, not 10. You are very fit at 120lbs - what more do you want?3
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Ahhh, ok. You just said you wanted to lose 20 pounds and that you were an inch taller. anyhoo...If you aren't losing any weight then you are eating the same amount of calories that you are burning. Lower your calories by 250 to lose half a pound a week without losing too much of that muscle you've been working so hard for. Good luck
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Thank you guys for letting me know about the typos!! Working from my phone, it's easy to do!0
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That's a great question, I don't really track right now. I would love to have goals to aim for but I don't know what they should be @Makaylacreason0
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meganwbell849 wrote: »That's a great question, I don't really track right now. I would love to have goals to aim for but I don't know what they should be @Makaylacreason
You have to remember muscle weighs more than fat, and it sounds like you are a tiny young lady that maybe you cant really afford to lose anymore...you prob need 1400-1500 calories a day because you are burning alot up with all those workouts...good luck1 -
I would use other measurements other than weight to track your progress with that much working out. Do some tape measurements and I'm sure those will be going down week after week. Scale goes up and down due to water retention and other hormonal factors that may have nothing to do with body fat.1
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That's really helpful, I had someone tell me last week I should be shooting for 2,200 calories daily and that just seemed like a ton for me0
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GitRDone57 wrote: »meganwbell849 wrote: »That's a great question, I don't really track right now. I would love to have goals to aim for but I don't know what they should be @Makaylacreason
You have to remember muscle weighs more than fat, and it sounds like you are a tiny young lady that maybe you cant really afford to lose anymore...you prob need 1400-1500 calories a day because you are burning alot up with all those workouts...good luck
a lb of muscle and a lb of fat weighs the same, the muscle just takes up less space. OP as for calories needed,go back to your profile and put in your weight, how much you want to lose(or gain), and what your activity is. then eat those calories. a lot of people use a food scale to be more accurate because not everyone can eyeball portions correctly.it will give you protein,carbs and fats to eat but you can tweak those if needed to suit you and your workouts. if you havent lost any weight since you started then it sounds like you are eating whats called maintenance calories(you eat the same amount as you burn).this is most likely the reason you arent losing any weight.1 -
Thank you so much! So, it doesn't matter as much S to how I get them (fat/protein/carbs) as it does total calories consumed? Is that correct?0
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meganwbell849 wrote: »Thank you so much! So, it doesn't matter as much S to how I get them (fat/protein/carbs) as it does total calories consumed? Is that correct?
as long as you are meeting your calorie goal here you should lose weight. macros are important but not really for weight loss. if you weight lift you want to make sure you get enough protein though to preserve any lean muscle mass.if you havent lost weight in a few weeks,lower it(unless it gives you 1200 which is the lowest it will give you). not knowing your height and weight and activity level I cant say what it will give you. but also know that since you only want to lose 10 lbs it will take a lot longer to lose it and you should set it to lose no more than 1/2lb a week. anything higher than that will be too aggressive.0 -
@CharlieBeansmomTracey thank you! In 5'3 and 1200
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meganwbell849 wrote: »That's a great question, I don't really track right now. I would love to have goals to aim for but I don't know what they should be @Makaylacreason
That's what you're doing wrong. Start tracking your intake.5 -
meganwbell849 wrote: »@CharlieBeansmomTracey thank you! In 5'3 and 120
yeah the last 10 lbs is always the hardest. the macros are good for things like satiety(and to make you get enough nutrition) and so on. but yes its all about calories in vs calories out. so 10 lbs can take awhile to lose since youre at a lower weight you may have to work harder to burn calories as well.if you eat 1200 and say burn 300 then eat 1500 and when you burn the 300 you will be netting 1200.. you dont want to net under 1200 calories. but give it time and use a tape measure as sometimes you will lose inches before it shows a lower number on the scale.0 -
That's so helpful to know, never met less than 1,200!0
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meganwbell849 wrote: »Hello everyone! I'm desperately needing your advice! I started working out with a personal trainer in Februrary, on average 4 days a week. I also started running for 30 minutes a day and try and do some weight training on the days I'm not with my PT.
I feel like I workout all the time. Eat, workout, walk my dogs, workout, take a shower, workout,etc. that not reality but it feels that way.
I am definitely more tone and can see definition, but I'm not losing any weight and still at 21% body fat but my goal 16-17.
What am I doing wrong? Is there a calorie goal I need to be aware of? What about how they are consumed (%of carbs/proteins/etc).
I trust my personal trainer to help with my workouts, however, I know nothing about nutrition and don't need know where to start. I would appreciate any advice you have! 30, 5'3", 120lb/F
You honestly are about perfect weight right now. It will be very difficult to sustain a very low calorie diet and will backfire. You likely already have a healthy, strong, solid body at that height and weight. Professionals consider 18% body fat for women to be underweight.2 -
16%-17% body fat is very hard to get too. This takes perfection and if and when you ever get there, maintaining that will be the devil. This body fat range is around competition level.
Good luck with this..2 -
meganwbell849 wrote: »That's really helpful, I had someone tell me last week I should be shooting for 2,200 calories daily and that just seemed like a ton for me
My wife is 32, 5'3" and 110lbs, and eats around 2,100 calories a day, so that number doesn't see off.
Below is from fat2fittools.com, and this will let you know around how much you should be eating at your goal weight
depending on your activity level.
Activity Level
Daily Calories
Sedentary (little or no exercise, desk job) 1547
Lightly Active (light exercise/sports 1-3 days/wk) 1772
Moderately Active (moderate exercise/sports 3-5 days/wk) 1998
Very Active (hard exercise/sports 6-7 days/wk) 2224
Extremely Active (hard daily exercise/sports & physical job or 2X day training, i.e marathon, contest etc.) 2449
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Thank you guys! I really appreciate all the feedback!0
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I trust my personal trainer to help with my workouts, however, I know nothing about nutrition and don't need know where to start. I would appreciate any advice you have! 30, 5'3", 120lb/F
Diet is key to weight loss - I'm gonna guess about 75-80% of the answer lies in diet. When you get down to it, diet is all about three things: what, how much and when you eat. As active as you are, you still need to run a calorie deficit to lose weight. However, here's where timing is key - you need to refuel following a workout, preferably with high protein.
That all said, try three smaller meals at breakfast, lunch and dinner, with two snacks in between (one in the morning, the other in the afternoon). Also, refuel after your workout - a couple hardboiled eggs will do. Lastly - remember the 3 hour rule. That is, don't go to bed until at least 3 hours after your last meal.
See if that works - should take a couple weeks to see results.0 -
This is the first mention of timing, so helpful!! Thank you!0
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meganwbell849 wrote: »This is the first mention of timing, so helpful!! Thank you!
When, what, and how many times you eat does not matter. It's eating at your recommended deficit, that's it. MFP gives you your calorie range and suggested macros if you want to follow that.
I do intermittent fasting or IF, and also exercise while fasted. Find what method and foods you enjoy to create a diet lifestyle that you can be consistent with, and you'll be successful.
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meganwbell849 wrote: »This is the first mention of timing, so helpful!! Thank you!
It's because timing is largely irrelevant. It may be worth watching to see if more snacks or fewer leave you hungry and more likely to not follow your plan. You can eat right before bed without any problems, unless you have GERD or other issues that will interfere with your sleep. I used to have a hard time falling asleep on an empty, growling stomach, so I would save a few cals for evening snacks. No effect. If you are an elite athlete, then this may be more important.1 -
I'm 5'3", 31 years old, and I fluctuate between 108 and 109 pounds, so we're pretty similar except I'm at the area you're aiming for. I'll tell you right now it has zero to do with meal timing and everything to do with calories. Track your food and invest in a food scale because at this stage of the game it will be a necessity for you to see progress without trial, error, and guesswork on calories.1
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meganwbell849 wrote: »Hello everyone! I'm desperately needing your advice! I started working out with a personal trainer in Februrary, on average 4 days a week. I also started running for 30 minutes a day and try and do some weight training on the days I'm not with my PT.
I feel like I workout all the time. Eat, workout, walk my dogs, workout, take a shower, workout,etc. that not reality but it feels that way.
I am definitely more tone and can see definition, but I'm not losing any weight and still at 21% body fat but my goal 16-17.
What am I doing wrong? Is there a calorie goal I need to be aware of? What about how they are consumed (%of carbs/proteins/etc).
I trust my personal trainer to help with my workouts, however, I know nothing about nutrition and don't need know where to start. I would appreciate any advice you have! 30, 5'3", 120lb/F
Do you ever relax?
Do you ever take a couple days off? Get some rest? Yoga? Something to release your stress and let your body Truly recover?
Do you ever have a cheat day? (high calorie, not necessarily junk food)
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meganwbell849 wrote: »This is the first mention of timing, so helpful!! Thank you!
I would say you can definitely try this if you want, but timing is really only a personal preference thing, and has nothing to do with weight loss. You clearly are doing just fine the way you are because you are maintaining at a very healthy weight, which is hard for people in the first place, and why they try different things.
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Raptor2763 wrote: »I trust my personal trainer to help with my workouts, however, I know nothing about nutrition and don't need know where to start. I would appreciate any advice you have! 30, 5'3", 120lb/F
Diet is key to weight loss - I'm gonna guess about 75-80% of the answer lies in diet. When you get down to it, diet is all about three things: what, how much and when you eat. As active as you are, you still need to run a calorie deficit to lose weight. However, here's where timing is key - you need to refuel following a workout, preferably with high protein.
That all said, try three smaller meals at breakfast, lunch and dinner, with two snacks in between (one in the morning, the other in the afternoon). Also, refuel after your workout - a couple hardboiled eggs will do. Lastly - remember the 3 hour rule. That is, don't go to bed until at least 3 hours after your last meal.
See if that works - should take a couple weeks to see results.
again, these aren't real rules, just somebodies personal preference that has been passed around as rules. Just do you, not what it is good for somebody else.
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Raptor2763 wrote: »I trust my personal trainer to help with my workouts, however, I know nothing about nutrition and don't need know where to start. I would appreciate any advice you have! 30, 5'3", 120lb/F
Diet is key to weight loss - I'm gonna guess about 75-80% of the answer lies in diet. When you get down to it, diet is all about three things: what, how much and when you eat. As active as you are, you still need to run a calorie deficit to lose weight. However, here's where timing is key - you need to refuel following a workout, preferably with high protein.
That all said, try three smaller meals at breakfast, lunch and dinner, with two snacks in between (one in the morning, the other in the afternoon). Also, refuel after your workout - a couple hardboiled eggs will do. Lastly - remember the 3 hour rule. That is, don't go to bed until at least 3 hours after your last meal.
See if that works - should take a couple weeks to see results.
OP you do not have to follow this advice. Timing of when you eat has nothing to do with anything.. This 3 hour rule, ummm no.. this is all bro science..
There is no refuel window to hit after working out, there is no requirement for eating breakfast, you can eat breakfast (if you do), lunch and dinner anytime you feel like it. And if you do not like hard boiled eggs, certainly do not eat that. If you like to eat something before bed time, you certainly can very well eat something right before bed!1 -
"5'3", 120lb/F "
Pardon me while I contemplate.
You're doing nothing wrong.
If you want to lose another 10 pounds, keep yourself in a calorie deficit. Be patient. You'll get there.0
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