Is it the right direction?

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Cellby
Cellby Posts: 29 Member
in Getting Started
I'm 5ft waist is 33 inches and looks out of proportion with my body and friends and family have commented on it.

I have been meaning to do something about it for a while now.
I want to lose around 6 inches in that area. Not bothered about elsewhere like I say it's fine.

I have cut my calories down to 1200 but worried bow it's too low. Shall I try 1500 instead?

Exercise. Gym... cardio or weights or both?
Bike - I want to take up cycling in my free time as I do not enjoy running. Will this help massively?

Exercises at home? Is is things like planks and squats?

Any supplements or proteins I should be taking in addition to support this?

Thanks

Replies

  • Luna3386
    Luna3386 Posts: 888 Member
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    What is your weight?

    Start with the higher calories for at least a month, tracking accurately with a food scale.

    If your weight is fine, look into recomping.

    Definitely lift weights, for sure.
  • Cellby
    Cellby Posts: 29 Member
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    125 pounds is my weight.
  • Ready2Rock206
    Ready2Rock206 Posts: 9,488 Member
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    What does MFP tell you to eat? That's usually a good starting point. 1200 is generally too low for most people but it depends on your stats.
    Gym - both cardio and weights are good - exercise for health - calorie deficit for weight loss

    If you can't get enough protein from the foods you eat then you can consider a protein shake

    You can't target weight loss so even though you want to ONLY lose from your waist that might not happen.
  • Cellby
    Cellby Posts: 29 Member
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    MFP tells me 1200.
  • Ready2Rock206
    Ready2Rock206 Posts: 9,488 Member
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    Cellby wrote: »
    MFP tells me 1200.

    How much did you tell it you wanted to lose a week? At your size you shouldn't try for more than a half pound a week.
  • BrooklynBooty
    BrooklynBooty Posts: 39 Member
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    It's really hard to say with that limited amount of information. What is your calorie intake currently and what exercise do you currently do?

    You should try to aim for 6 smaller meals per day with protein at every meal. I also suggest weight training and then doing cardio post training. Try and do ab work at least 3x per week. You cannot spot train and the stomach and lower back areas are always the last to go.

    Good luck!
  • Xymheia
    Xymheia Posts: 65 Member
    edited May 2017
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    It depends on your TDEE. I think 6 inches may be a tad difficult to bodyrecomp so you probably need to lose some weight overall (at 5 ft even 95 to 115 lbs would be fine). To do this I suggest to calculate your TDEE with a calculator and subtract 15-20 % from that, which is something like 200-350 kcal. This kind of deficit will put you around 1-1.5 kg (2.2-3.3 lbs) weight loss per month. Just focusing on cooking with fresh foods, eating enough protein and tracking should work well. Make sure you get enough sleep as well.

    Cycling sounds great for cardio. If you do this 30-60 min 2-3 times a week and add in strength training 2-3 times a week either at a gym or home workout, you'll probably be set. Exercises in the gym are (if you have a trainer) for example bench press, squat, deadlift, lat pull down and row. At home you can do squats, table pull ups/inverted rows, (modified) pull ups, planks, (modified) push-ups, tricep dips, and lifting heavy everyday objects (e.g. jerry cans, milk cartons, or a kettlebell if you can get your hands on one) and so on. Yoga and mat Pilates are good options to increase your core strength.
  • brb_2013
    brb_2013 Posts: 1,197 Member
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    It is hard to give blanket advice when this journey can be very individual. Cardio will burn calories and improve your overall fitness, strength training will preserve muscle which in turn helps burn calories, then the food thing is personal. I found jumping right into the MFP recommendation wasn't working so I did it in stages. I am super heavy and can lose 2-3lbs a week healthfully still. But that was a cut down to 1400-1500 calories all at once and I couldn't do it. I went to 1800, then weeks later 1700 and so on. I'm just now eating what it says, because I had to see how I felt and maintain my energy level.

    You *can* lose weight with diet alone but for belly fat I'd say your best course of action is a good amount of HIIT cardio (which you can do on a cycle, just increase intensity for 30-45seconds then slow it down for a minute or two and repeat) maybe 3 days a week then do 2-3 days where you are lifting weights or doing a routine of home exercise where you can increasingly challenge yourself. I do squats, push-ups, lunges, and a few YouTube videos and have seen plenty of improvements, you don't have to do a huge strength training routine to be making progress (especially if you're like me and started out about as unfit as one can be).

    But I've done a lot of reading that suggest HIIT is what kicks visceral fats butt, and that's the fat you have between your organs. I can tell on my body that I have lost a lot of the subcutaneous fat on my middle but it's firm and not squishy anymore which is the fat that's stored inside- the worst for my health! So I'm dedicating more workouts to a HIIT type routine.
  • Rusty740
    Rusty740 Posts: 749 Member
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    Take it slow, the last thing you want is to create something unsustainable. I wouldn't bank on using exercise to make up the calories. What you need is a good, sustainable, calorie plan that you can stick with. Take the advice of those who've said to start with a small deficit and see how it goes for several weeks.

    Exercise is great, do it if you want, but it needs to be something you intend to keep up with for life, just like your new eating habits. Weight lifting is also great, but concentrate on the eating plan.

    Watch out for exercise, sometimes it makes you so hungry you come back after a run a drink all the calories (and more) back! lol
  • Cellby
    Cellby Posts: 29 Member
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    Thanks everyone for your great advice. For a few weeks I think it will be trial and error until I find what's right for me.

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