Ask me anything about fat/weight loss....

One more question actually - what is "base" weight?

Base to me means as low as 85% of the the population would take their dieting efforts. The individual would be at a good weight for their respective height.....and at a healthy weight....but now it's time for them to separate themselves from the pack. And to do this, you've gotta show your body that you're willing to fight harder and longer. At your height, anything under 125 I would call rockstar status...ESPECIALLY if you're maintaining good muscle mass at that weight.

Just curious....what would you consider to be a "rockstar weight" for a 26 year old female who is 5'9??? I know it depends on the person's build and body fat, but just curious

My old lady is 5'10 and 130 pounds. Her goal weight is 120. She looks and feels great, and is looking forward to adding about 5 pounds of muscle back to her frame once she hits 120 to bring her up to 125. You'd basically be around the same area give or take 10 pounds depending on leaness and how much muscle mass you're wanting to carry. She's not going after the fitness look though, she's going for a nice in between of the runway look and the fitness look. Hope this helps

If it jiggles it's fat. Lose some more of it. Most people are usually shocked how low they can go with their bodyweight and still feel great. You can always add muscle mass back later on to make up for the fat though if you like.

I'm gonna ask this here too for more ideas...

My stats:
5'7
138lb (gained 3-4lb since started doing bodyweight exercises)
average around 1400cal per day / week

Ok so I have been doing bodyweight exercises for about 2,5 months now. My body has responded really well, flat stomach, visible abs, banging bum and sculpted back yadda yadda. I look great naked.
The problem is that even though my stomach is getting flatter, my waist is expanding and getting wider! I've gained a whole inch on my waist and it doesn't seem to be going away. This combined with my hips getting more narrow I'm scared that I'll lose my hourglass shape completely.

I'm happy with how my body has tightened up really quickly and nothing wiggles.... but my waist needs to go back down!

Should I stop doing all exercises that target obligues? Or lower my calories and try to lose more fat...(scared that this will make my hips shrink even more!)

You had me a 'banging bum.'

Seriously though, it is most likely the exercises you do yeh. In the physique world, it is all about the illusion. Smaller the waist, the wider the back will look. Wider the shoulders the smaller the waist looks. Most of the top level bikini competitors are always putting most focus on glutes, hams, and shoulders in order to produce the "effect." Lots of the chappies(AND chippies) think that doing a lot of ab and oblique work is good when to produce the overall effect, it could be THE WORSE thing for you. I use to hammer abs and obliques super hard, but they just spoiled my shape because I was building these big lego-block abs and a thick waist. I don't train abs whatsoever any more because of that. Intense deadlifting and back squatting session can sometimes make this happen also.

Yup, it's me again. I had asked a similar question on the prior thread. I get that if you want to keep a narrow waist, you gotta NOT bulk up on ab and oblique exercises, but that does that mean not training them *at all*? I intend to incorporate more exercises into my routine like lunges and such to help work the shape I want, but I do have some ab work in there, too -- will some light work on abs through crunches and leg lifts cause that waist thickness, if I'm not doing it a lot? My internet research on the topic is incredibly contradictory.

And a secondary question... when deciding on goals for weight loss, it seems like it's better to focus on body fat % rather than pounds lost, yeah? In which case... if 1-2 pounds per week is a good loss goal on the scale, what is a good rate of body fat % loss to shoot for?

Thanks lots!

If you have a flat stomach with abs, is it normal for your belly to get a little bigger after you eat meals? I have abs, my stomach is flat..until I eat a larger meal I almost wonder if it has something to do with air moving into your gut while you eat, but I could be totally wrong.

Hi there! Okay, I have a question. I've lost all the weight I wanted to lose, but now I'm trying to tone up. I want that flat stomach, you know? I'm pretty close to it, but there's still some fat in the way. I lift weights 3x a week and do cardio most of the other days. I have recently started eating "clean" and plan to stick to it. However, I am eating at maintenance level, not a deficit since I'm not really trying to lose any more weight. Will I need to go back to eating at a deficit to tone up, or will eating clean, lifting heavy, and cardio be enough? I've heard evidence from both sides.

Stats:

5'4"
130 lbs
About 23% body fat
I want to be about 20% body fat

Thanks!

Most likely you're going to have to lose more body fat. That's all "tone up" really means. You can't TONE body fat, you have to burn it off. Try losing another 5 and then reevalutaing. At 5'4, I would shoot for at LEAST 18% body fat to really start seeing that toned look. Most pro level bikini competitors are around 12%, so 18% for you would definitely be doable.

So the above stats are me, except I'm a quarter inch shorter. I'm aiming for 115 ish (pre-pregnancy weight). In your opinion what's the BEST way to burn fat? I'm eating TDEE minus 15% and doing Jillian's 30 DS. I'm not quite ready to start lifting heavy yet but will probably get there at some point. Thanks in advance :flowerforyou:

Best way to burn fat?....Simple consistently burning more energy than you consume. Weights aren't necessary, treadmill isn't necessary, low carb isn't necessary....a deficit IS necessary though.

THANK YOU FOR DOING THIS!!! I have learned more reading this thread then I have in the last few years of MFP, personal trainer, DVD's and basic advice from my hubby/athlete combined! THANK YOU IMMENSLY!