Lowering body fat = low carbs and exercise?

Options
Destiny424
Destiny424 Posts: 52 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
Can someone please tell me how they reached success in lowering their body fat..? I've heard that doing low carbs by 80g or under a day and high protein has helped others... and also exercising..

Replies

  • Sl1ghtly
    Sl1ghtly Posts: 855 Member
    Options
    17% BF is good.

    Anyway, http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/the-fundamentals-of-fat-loss-diets-part-1.html
  • taso42
    taso42 Posts: 8,980 Member
    Options
    I ate at a calorie deficit and exercised. I've been eating "high carb" all my life.
  • sportsforfun
    sportsforfun Posts: 353
    Options
    Weight training typically helps as well. You will retain more of your muscle as you lose fat thus decreasing body fat %.
  • lisakyle_11
    lisakyle_11 Posts: 420 Member
    Options
    yes, 17% bf for a woman is very good. also being 116# @ 5'6" is at the definite low end of the spectrum. you are still trying to lose weight? low carb can help with fat loss, but it's really a calorie in/calorie out equation. keeping nutrient-low carbs out of the diet is a good idea in general, imo. exercise is wonderful on many levels - one of them being for lowering body fat!
  • nutandbutter
    nutandbutter Posts: 447
    Options
    If you want to end up with a lower body fat (especially the weight you're at now), you're going to have to do some bulk/cut cycles.
  • MrsCon40
    MrsCon40 Posts: 2,351 Member
    Options
    Weight training and eating at a *small* deficit is burning through body fat for me.

    17% bf for a woman is already low unless you are planning on doing physique competition - and even they don't stay that low all the time (bulk/cut).
  • sweetNsassy2584
    sweetNsassy2584 Posts: 515 Member
    Options
    I'm at 16% body fat and I am healthy. I did it mostly with a calorie deficit and exercise. Lower carb and high protein.
  • LorinaLynn
    LorinaLynn Posts: 13,247 Member
    Options
    I only care that I'm getting enough protein (about 1g per lean body weight, in my case about 105g a day), and let the carbs fall where they will. I typically have at ~200g a day. Unless you're diabetic, PCOS, or have another metabolic problem processing carbs, there's no need to limit them.
  • kdiamond
    kdiamond Posts: 3,329 Member
    Options
    I'd venture to say "good" carbs not low carbs, i.e. it is preferable to eat an apple and almonds instead of say, a granola bar.

    When I was following Paleo to a T I was at my lowest body fat...108 pounds and 16%, now I'm 110 pounds and 18% and I'm still pretty lean but I have some womanly fat. I knew a runner who was 14% and she was gross.
  • Dtho5159
    Dtho5159 Posts: 1,054 Member
    Options
    I ate at a calorie deficit and exercised. I've been eating "high carb" all my life.

    Yeah what he said
  • Destiny424
    Destiny424 Posts: 52 Member
    Options
    I have a digital scale that shows how much I weigh, percentage of muscle mass and body fat %.. which I heard isn't accurate all the time but it does say 17.2%
  • Anayalata
    Anayalata Posts: 391 Member
    Options
    My scale tends to be off by a lot. But judging by your pic and weight, you really don't need to lose any more body fat.

    If you really want to, Muscle gain. Whichever diet you choose doesn't matter, just matters that you stick do it.

    I went from 25%~ BF (I'm a guy) to 14%~ (measured using a caliper) and I was high-carb initially and now I'm on the "Zone Diet" which I chose just because it makes the most sense to me. My scale told me I was 18% at first and now I'm apparently 6% (which is total BS).
  • CoryIda
    CoryIda Posts: 7,887 Member
    Options
    I love carbs.

    Since I started really working on strength training and gaining muscle, I have upped my protein and decreased my carbs, but not drastically.
    I still eat 150-200 carbs on average most days, sometimes more. I eat about 160-180 grams of protein a day when I do strength training and about 130-150 on other days.
    I eat about 50-60 grams of fat each day.

    That's what works for my body, which is not what works for everyone, but at my heaviest I had (a ridiculously high) 56% body fat and I now have around 23%, so I am pretty sure you don't have to eliminate carbs to lower your body fat (especially since, until the past couple of months, I typically got about 50% of my calories from carbs).
  • Goal_Seeker_1988
    Goal_Seeker_1988 Posts: 1,619 Member
    Options
    bump
  • JamesAnimalMcWilliams
    JamesAnimalMcWilliams Posts: 4
    Options
    Bulking/Cutting Cycles aren't really necessary at all in my opinion, unless you're bodybuilding. For you, stick to a healthy diet, watch your calories. For example, on days that you're training, you want to be doing cardio and some gym stuff. Your body will burn fat trying to fuel your muscles along with the calories you're taking in. Cardio will burn calories, and so will gym work. Your diet will affect your fat loss most of all though. On training days, try eating enough calories to support your exercise. On non-training days, try lower the calories, but still keep the amount of meals you're having at 5 or 6, and on 1 day a week, chow down on as much as you'd like, but keep it clean and lean, so no McDonald's haha :) It'll improve the speed of your metabolism.

Categories