Newbie with a question
Sojo15
Posts: 87 Member
HI everyone, very new at this, 2 weeks in! I am looking for people with similar goals, as people have been saying "you are barely even overweight" on the other areas of MFP. I understand this with the people who are courageously losing 100's of lbs. I am however very uncomfortable with my current body and very committed to becoming fit. I've been skinny-curvey my whole life but the kids and the stress... you know. Need motivation and success stories. Seems like some people here really lose weight fast, very impressed!
Age: 43 (feels like 32, WTH happened)
5'5"
HW:154 (ugh)
Goal: 125 lbs and strong
CW: 152.4
January goal is to get under 150 lbs. It is going very slow here for some reason.
I workout 40 min 6 days a week and try to eat under 1200 cal (very hard) I exclude gluten, processed sugar, dairy (most of the time) and anything white. I am cutting carbs whenever I can.
Now to my question: how do you calculate % bodyfat? I am very concerned I gained fat in the middle of my body, and yes, the boobs which I hate. The rest of my body is kind of skinny. Seemed to have happened after the pregnancy.
Thankful for advice!
Age: 43 (feels like 32, WTH happened)
5'5"
HW:154 (ugh)
Goal: 125 lbs and strong
CW: 152.4
January goal is to get under 150 lbs. It is going very slow here for some reason.
I workout 40 min 6 days a week and try to eat under 1200 cal (very hard) I exclude gluten, processed sugar, dairy (most of the time) and anything white. I am cutting carbs whenever I can.
Now to my question: how do you calculate % bodyfat? I am very concerned I gained fat in the middle of my body, and yes, the boobs which I hate. The rest of my body is kind of skinny. Seemed to have happened after the pregnancy.
Thankful for advice!
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Replies
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Find somewhere to do an InBody scan or get caliper tested by a trainer or doctor if you want an accurate reading. My gym offers it and I do it every six weeks for an accurate read. InBody tells you fat in each section of your body as well as overall fat muscle, bone and water. You can try and caliper test yourself (buy a body fat caliper from Amazon) but it's hard to do yourself if you don't know how. Good luck!0
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Is there a reason you are eating under 1200 cal? If you are working out 6 days a week, 1200 is likely not enough to fuel that. You don’t want to burn yourself out or end up binging.
Also, do you use a food scale and log EVERYTHING?3 -
All bodyfat measurement tools will be only an estimate and each will have their own margin of error. Some more than others. Is there any particular reason you need to measure your bodyfat%? If you aren't happy with your body composition, I would work on changing it and you will see you are going in the right direction by using the mirror and progress photos.
Eating the bare minimum, cutting out too many foods is going to make this process way more painful than it has to be. Especially when body composition comes into play, less calories and losing weight faster is not the way to go.
What I would recommend to lower your bodyfat%
-You want to eat a a slight calorie deficit (you can add some cardio but don't overdo it)
-Follow a progressive resistance program (for best results)
-Adequate protein (around 0.8-1g per lb lean body mass /goalweight minimum)
-Lots of patience and consistency.
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I'm 45 and my starting weight was 148.6 My goal weight is 132 and fit. My plan is to stick to the 1200 calories a day until lent and hopefully lose 10 pounds and then give up grains for 4 weeks.1
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brianneangell08 wrote: »Is there a reason you are eating under 1200 cal? If you are working out 6 days a week, 1200 is likely not enough to fuel that. You don’t want to burn yourself out or end up binging.
Also, do you use a food scale and log EVERYTHING?
I am losing 1 lbs per week it seems, and I am using a food scale. I am experimenting with foods that make me feel good but so I still end up in the 1200 range. My maintenance is 1650, so I feel that if I stay with 12-1300, at least I create a deficit. Am I overdoing it you think?? I eat back 50% of the exercise calories, after advice here. I do the low impact version of the exercise videos, not overdoing it.0 -
All bodyfat measurement tools will be only an estimate and each will have their own margin of error. Some more than others. Is there any particular reason you need to measure your bodyfat%? If you aren't happy with your body composition, I would work on changing it and you will see you are going in the right direction by using the mirror and progress photos.
I am worried about the fat being centered in my body, which I read is dangerous. I do care how I look but am happily married and do not care much if people judge me on my body. It just feels like the fat has established itself on the chest and stomach, and it feels physically uncomfortable, unhealthy. That is why I am doing it.0 -
Well if the fat is around your middle you don't really need a bodyfat test to tell you where it is, you know what I mean? Online tests that use measurements arent very accurate but you can give them a go, or use a scale or handheld device (also not super accurate). You can also use photos of women with different bodyfat levels to compare and give you a bit of a rough idea where you are (I think you can find charts online). You can definitely do a more advanced test if you want to of course, and use it to compare in a few months to track your progress (using the same method). I know it's not about people judging you.. it is about health and how you feel, I get it.1
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All bodyfat measurement tools will be only an estimate and each will have their own margin of error. Some more than others. Is there any particular reason you need to measure your bodyfat%? If you aren't happy with your body composition, I would work on changing it and you will see you are going in the right direction by using the mirror and progress photos.
I am worried about the fat being centered in my body, which I read is dangerous. I do care how I look but am happily married and do not care much if people judge me on my body. It just feels like the fat has established itself on the chest and stomach, and it feels physically uncomfortable, unhealthy. That is why I am doing it.
If you are worried that the fat on your waist is at dangerous levels a good rule of thumb is that your waist should be less than half of your height.
For example I am 63 inches tall (5 ft 3) so my waist circumference should not be more than 31.5 inches. Aesthetically I would like it to be smaller than that but I can fairly safely say that it is no longer at a dangerous level.
You could also use waist to hip ratio but as someone with quite narrow hips I find that methid overestimates my belly fat.2 -
Thanks everyone!0
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@sardelsa and @jesspen91 have given great advice. I will also say as we are close in age, that I've been struggling with perimenopausal symptoms and from the reading I've been doing, it's during this time that fat storage begins to migrate to the waist in women. Fun! Totally not saying there is nothing you can do about it. A moderate deficit and progressive strength training as suggested WILL work. AND it will help preserve bone density.
Edit - the online body fat pictures are actually pretty darn accurate, but may have to average two together to get something relative to you. For example I can look at those pictures and my upper body is 15-18% while my lower body is closer to 30%. Average that and you get 22-23% BF, which is probably a pretty good estimate.0 -
@brianneangell08 had good advice. Our stats are very similar. I'm 5'5", weigh 151 pounds and have 10 years on you. I lost 90 pounds two years about but have put 15 back on in the last year and working to take it off. I track my macros which puts my calorie count in the 1,300-1,400 range. I too was trying to stay under 1,200 but found it didn't give me enough energy to get through my workouts and I was constantly hungry. Just an increase of 100 calories has made a big difference in my energy and my workouts. I workout 6 days a week for no more than an hour, weights and cardio (interval training). I've also found that white carbs like, bread, crackers, rice, and pasta feel like boulders in my stomach after I eat them so I concentrate on the 2 Ps...protein and produce and whole grains like quinoa instead of rice or pasta. I've noticed when I'm below 1,200 calories for any length of time the scale doesn't move, my workouts suffer, and I'm low on energy. Try increasing your calories a bit and add strength training if you don't already. It's made a difference in reducing my overall body fat with the added bonus of flatter and tighter abs. Good luck.1
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Thanks for the feedback everyone! I logged 3 weeks and lost almost 4 lbs, so I guess it's OK. About to have my period and hope the scale will change after that. Cravings are really hard around this time in my cycle. I also noticed that staying away from "white" carbs really helps. I am thinking of upping calorie intake to 1300, since I am so darn hungry at night.0
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I'm in a similar boat. I'm 39 and looking to contour my body. I've been curvy-athletic most of my life and recently discovered that I am a little fatter than I'm used to. I feel most comfortable when my BFP is in the 18-21% range, but I think I'm at 26% right now. I care more about BFP than weight, but it would be nice to lose 20 lbs by my birthday (June).
I am also an ovarian cancer survivor and had to have my ovaries removed a few years ago (so technically I am post menopausal). I don't know what I'm supposed to be eating because all the info out there seems contradictory. I don't want to lose too much too quickly because I'm afraid of loose skin in my current fatty areas.0 -
I'm in a similar boat. I'm 39 and looking to contour my body. I've been curvy-athletic most of my life and recently discovered that I am a little fatter than I'm used to. I feel most comfortable when my BFP is in the 18-21% range, but I think I'm at 26% right now. I care more about BFP than weight, but it would be nice to lose 20 lbs by my birthday (June).
I am also an ovarian cancer survivor and had to have my ovaries removed a few years ago (so technically I am post menopausal). I don't know what I'm supposed to be eating because all the info out there seems contradictory. I don't want to lose too much too quickly because I'm afraid of loose skin in my current fatty areas.
Focuse on food quality. Today it is very different to know what healthy food is, considering there are so many vegans, vegetarians, paleos, some crazy other people etc. A lot of cancer survivors for example may choose to eat no meat. This is a matter of your choice.
But the staple of your diet should be what most people consider healthy: fruit, vegs, healthy fats like olive oil, nuts, avocados. Whole grains if you tolerate them and youre not paleo. Meats, eggs, fish. Dark chocolate at least 70-85%. This is a good place to start.
Cut calories at least 250/day from TDEE.
Keep cheat meals like cake or pizzas rare.
Do some strength training (with or without extra weights, but if you have 26% BF, I would add weights) and some cardio.
If you do all that things, you will really cover the basics of weight loss and health* and no need to be confused by contradictory information. Just stick to what everyone or the majority of people agree on.
*weight loss has nothing to do with healthy food, it is just easier to lose weight with healthy food. Smart choices are more a matter of satiety, desease prevention, beauty(skin, hair etc), energy. Even weight loss has not everything to do with fat loss.5 -
Thanks @Havanaohlala for the advice! My primary diet concern is knowing which nutrients I need. Since my diagnosis, I've been pretty obsessive about eating around my nutritional needs. If I'm being honest, I've been that way my whole life. But with the early menopause, its so confusing! There are so many "verified" suggestions on what I need the most. For example, one MD says I need more calcium then another says that I'm getting too much. Or one suggests that I take prenatal vitamins and another says "No way!" Then I have some other medical issues with their own nutritional needs that I have to consider...
I didn't realize how overwhelmed I was until I wrote this. Now I need a spa.
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@ssurvivor, I understand! Stress is a big factor and it is normal that you experience it after all you have been through. I dont know you, but from the above what you wrote I think you tend to get lost in details.
What is more important than vitamin supps is your nutrition. By that I mean
1) enough calories to ensure you eat enough micros
2) as clean as possible: veggies, fruits, antioxidant rich foods and spices and teas, less or no coffee, NO deli, NO smoked meats, only pasture raised meat, rarely, only BIO or pastured animal products. Less dairy if any (IGH-1). ONly whole grains, no sugar. I mean really, no white sugar. A better salt-sea salt or himalayan pink salt. A lot of water. Lemon water.
3)Daily movement, 8hs of sleep, anti stress and enough time in the light. Circadian rythm.
4)when you get better at the above and believe me, it is difficult and rewarding enough, do some light supplements. Dont overdo vitamins! They can hurt your liver. Focuse on cleansing herbs, hormone regulating herbs, anything gentle.
Gentle. Consistent. Gentle. Consistent! Basic! No details before the basics.
It is the universal recipe for success at anything. Master the basics, be gentle at your approach and treat details as the crown of your masterpeace. Believe in yourself. Even if you dont believe now, just believe, just do it. And be honest to yourself.
Everything will be alright!
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And also: priorities.
You have 2 goals: weight loss and health. What is more important? Health, of course. So, I would put my energy "no matter what" in eating the cleanest I can and practicing the lifestyle basics I talked about. I would never sacrifice sleep for cardio, I would never sacrifice a healthy positive mind (it takes a while) for the stress of weight loss. I will treat weight loss as sth that will naturally GENTLY happen on the way to balancing the body.
I will never eat crappy pizzas in order to feel satisfied on 1200 cals diet, I would better eat 2000 calories of the cleanest food possible and burn a bit with cardio and exercise happiness.
Realising priorities is 50% of success. Because success happens in the mind at first.
Wish you all the best!!2 -
I do tend to get lost in the details, but my health is my top priority and I'm terrified of going back to the hospital. A month without a hospital visit (including the ER) is a good month. Before the surgery, I found that when I stayed on top of my nutrients, I stayed out of the hospital. Now, I have this new complication and it's stressing me out cause I feel like I've lost the little control I had over my health.
But this thread isn't about me. It's about helping the OP. So I'll save the rest of this conversation for another thread on another day.
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