How to lose the last 10-20 lbs of stubborn fat?
altairego21
Posts: 52 Member
Hello. I am 5'2 and weigh about 140 and my goal weight is to be 120. I eat 1200 calories a day and try to walk 10,000 steps a day. How come I can't seem to lose the final 15lbs of stubborn fat?
Am I eating too many calories or not working out enough?
Most of my fat clings to my stomach and arms.
Any tips to lose 10-20 lbs would be greatly appreciated.
Am I eating too many calories or not working out enough?
Most of my fat clings to my stomach and arms.
Any tips to lose 10-20 lbs would be greatly appreciated.
0
Replies
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I think people will probably ask to see your diary.3
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Get accurate with calorie counting. Do you use a food scale to weigh everything?5
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You've picked all the low hanging fruit. It's time to buckle down and get serious (meticulous) with your calorie counting and physical activity.9
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Tiny_Dancer_in_Pink wrote: »Get accurate with calorie counting. Do you use a food scale to weigh everything?
Yes I do.0 -
Tiny_Dancer_in_Pink wrote: »Get accurate with calorie counting. Do you use a food scale to weigh everything?
Yes I do.
How long have you been at this?1 -
Op I'm in the same boat as you. I'm 5'2"( 5'1.5") currently 139lb. My weight stalled during the holiday season ( I did indulge) at 143lb but by end of January I had dropped to 140 and now 139lb. My first goal is to be 135lb by June and second goal is 130-125 by December. If I reach my goals before the target dates then great. If not, I still have time. I'm eating on average 1500 ish calories and walk on average 13/14,000k everyday. I have my Garmin watch set to minimum 12,000k steps. I'm giving myself the entire year to lose the weight since the last 10-15 pounds will be slow to come off. Also, 1200 calories is too low for me. A lesson I've learned so far, as long as you are honest with your logging and maintain a deficit you'll lose. Weight loss is not linear. Lots of patience is needed, so hang in there. We can do this!7
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Hello. I am 5'2 and weigh about 140 and my goal weight is to be 120. I eat 1200 calories a day and try to walk 10,000 steps a day. How come I can't seem to lose the final 15lbs of stubborn fat?
Am I eating too many calories or not working out enough?
Most of my fat clings to my stomach and arms.
Any tips to lose 10-20 lbs would be greatly appreciated.
How long has it been since you've lost weight? For the last 10 or so lbs, you will prob have to settle for losing half-a-lb per week, which can easily hide behind normal water weight fluctuations for weeks at a time. When I was there, I would sometimes see nothing on the scale for 3 weeks, then a lb would drop off.
Use a scale for absolutely everything possible - whole food, packaged food, PB, snacks. Double check that the entries you are using in the database are correct - many are user entered and quite wrong. Do a gut check to make sure you are being honest and logging everything.
And then be patient and hang in there, you don't have a lot of wiggle room and it will be slow. Good luck!0 -
S l o w l y
I’m at 124 now and still losing, but I’ve had to stop weighing as often because the results just don’t come as quick. I’d estimate a loss of 1lb a week on my current diet though it has slowed somewhat by eating out at the weekends.1 -
Im not eating exercise calories back I started off at 129lbs currently at 125lbs. I aim to be 112lbs. I have set my diary at 1400 calories a day. I eat protein at every meal to keep me full.1
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If you're not losing then it means you're in equilibrium.
First check that you are not actually losing, it's going to slow down as you approach your goal, you weigh less so will have a lower BMR. Look at the 4-6 week trend not the week to week variation so that you have a chance to see that 3-6lbs loss above the natural fluctuation.
Next check your energy balance - are you recording accurately? What about oils when cooking, or other small add ins to meals. It's easy to have an extra couple of hundred Kcal creep in if we don't include them in the tracking. When you say you "try" to walk 10,000 are you monitoring that as well? Are you making sure that you "do" hit your activity goal for the day/week?
If that's all as it should be your choice at 1200Kcal would be to increase your activity as going below this would probably trigger metabolic adaptation, that is slowing down your system. Maybe add in some resistance training to boost lean tissue. Try jogging or running instead of walking. The thing is it's going to take months not weeks so compliance with the eating and exercise will be key to get to that goal.4 -
The problem is most likely to be found in your diary - which only you can see.3
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Are you sticking to your calorie allowance, too, or do you sometimes cheat, forget or leave out something, or give up becauce it "isn't working"?Tiny_Dancer_in_Pink wrote: »Get accurate with calorie counting. Do you use a food scale to weigh everything?
Yes I do.
This is important.Tiny_Dancer_in_Pink wrote: »
Yes I do.Tiny_Dancer_in_Pink wrote: »Get accurate with calorie counting. Do you use a food scale to weigh everything?
How long have you been at this?
And this is true.S l o w l y
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I'm 5ft and 115 down from 143, aiming for 105 (ish). The last few pounds are tough! Our deficit is much smaller as we can't cut as many calories so we have to get really strict.
Really basic rules-Having cheat meals (or days?). Don't. Eating exercise calories? Cut it to 20-50%. Weigh EVERYTHING and always double check packaging in case the info has changed.
If it's only been a couple of weeks it may just be that any loss is masked by water weight, if it's been longer than 6 then it's a logging issue. 1200 is enough of a deficit for your stats. If you're struggling to stick to it try 1300/1400 as that should still create a loss with your activity and you'll be less likely to snap and binge, which is so much easier to justify to yourself when you're nearly there.
It's going to be slow. That's the worst about the last few pounds. Marathon not a sprint and all that-good luck!3 -
I'll bet most people here will disagree with me, but I'd say lower your carbohydrate intake, stop snacking (allows your insulin level to fall off) and eat a few more calories. Your body may be used to what you're eating, so shake it up a bit. When I worked at Weight Watchers, many years ago, that's what I would tell my clients. In most cases, not all I admit, it worked very well. Good luck.10
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I can tell you what worked for me, but may not be popular advice. I went fully plant-based to drop the last 10. It might not have mattered if it was low carb or low fat or whatever. It forced me to refocus my attention not only on what I was eating, but how much. It takes meticulous planning to get the right macros eating this way. It also so happens that I love it and plan to continue.7
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Op—I started about your stats and have almost reached my goal weight of 120 (at my original goal of 125 but would like to drop a few more). I reLly had to up the exercise to lose anything. I ran about 20 miles per week, did 1-2 body weight videos per week, and on weekends did a very strenuous mountain bike ride or two. All the while I ate 1500-1800 Cals. I didn’t weigh my food but measured some—so maybe I was eating more. It was really hard and I was very hangry! It still took me a year!0
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As soon as I started doing minimal cardio and started lifting weights, the weight came off easily and quickly-1
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