Help Required - Personal Trainer/Nutrition

Hi All,

Well this is my first ever post here, so I better introduce myself, My name is Lisa and i am on a weightloss journey! I have lost a fair amount of weight in the last year, probably about 2 stone but probably not by healthy eating so to speak as I drastically reduced my protein intake and became quite obsessive about it all i lived quite alot on fruit & veg ..., I joined MYP because im currently trying to lose roughly 6lbs, my stats are

Female
22 years only
currently weigh: 130lbs
my target is: 123lbs
height: 5ft 7"

work out on average 4 times a week (twice with my trainer)

I recently got a personal trainer as I feel i needed that extra bit of motivation and trying something different to what I usually do workout wise! I also want to get some definition in my stomach arms & legs. He suggested an eating plan which im finding very hard here is what he suggest, im a bit concerned as its a drastic increase in protein (which makes me think will that much actually put on weight?!) secondly it seems im eating more which i cant get my head around as i wouldn't normally have as much protein as this and finding the carbs quite restrictive as I love my fruit & veg so much lol!

Do you guys have any info/tips/ suggestions? I feel quite overwhelmed with it all and cant seem to get my head round it.

His suggested dietry requirements:

Cals per day 1600
Protein: 207g
Fats: 55g
Carbs: 83g

Many thanks guys!

Lisa :)

Replies

  • lisaloo103
    lisaloo103 Posts: 11 Member
    bump :) x
  • Sidesteal
    Sidesteal Posts: 5,510 Member
    The fat suggestion is very reasonable.
    The calorie suggestion seems reasonable
    The protein and carb distribution is subject to personal preference. I would have recommended around 110-120g protein and the remainder in carbs. This doesn't make me right and him wrong, but you may wish to ask him why he has your protein set that high and your carbs set that low.
  • sarahharrison77
    sarahharrison77 Posts: 24 Member
    I'm interested in replies to this so BUMP for later.
  • toshie333
    toshie333 Posts: 295 Member
    Hi I'm
    Female, 22 and 123lb, 5.3". Obviously everyone is different but I agree with the guy who posted saying 130g protein, fat seems right, rest fill with carbs.
    Think my macros are set to 130g protein and 180 g carbs. I lift heavy weights so I need carbs to give me energy. Try and eat wholemeal carbs. I'm
    Not losing weight but losing body fat by lifting heavy. If you want to add me as a friend feel free.
    Oh I also eat 1700 cals a day as I have a desk job but gym 4 times a week. I burn on average 2000 cals a day so I subtracted 15% which if I wasn't lifting heavy I should be losing on. What is your daily activity like? Standing? Sitting etc?
  • We have exactly the same stats and I'm currently at the weight you'd like, and dropping more.
    Disclaimer: Not to say we are exactly the same metabolically speaking, this is just my story.

    Getting my correct (DEXA scan, AKA, an x-ray of my body density) body fat percentage REALLY helped. I realized that half of my battle with weight was focused on starvation and lowering calories without paying attention to the amount of carbs, protein, and fats I was taking in. This is critical to weight loss and even disease prevention. You can lose 8 pounds and gain osteoporosis (my story), or lose 3 pounds and gain a metabolically active life even into your 60's and 70's.
    I found out I have 23% body fat, which is athletic. I still wasn't happy with my body composition, so I knew fat burning was my only option at this point.

    The main deal is, try things on for size.

    Low carb? OK, give it a go. See what your body does. Are you utilizing resistance training? This was one step, extremely difficult, that ultimately gave me muscle structure and tone and fat loss. If you lower your daily intake of calories, you will begin to burn muscle for fuel (if you'd like more literature on that process I can point you in the right direction). Fat is stubborn, you gotta ease it out with long distance/duration cardio. You also have to build up your muscle stores so that it doesn't widdle away.
    Personally, I had a lot of bloat and weight retention due to grain and fruit consumption so I keep them VERY minimal.

    High carb? Calorie cycling? Raw vegan? Whatever diet YOU feel is best for you, give it a try. Exercise can only tone and shape what you've already got. Your fuel, your diet, is what gives way for your desired changes to the body composition.

    The amount of calories varies from person to person-- eat what makes you feel satisfied and log it. See where you end up.

    The three best tips I can give for the weight and body composition changes I experienced are:
    1. Do NOT consume sugar, added sugar, refined, sugar. Fruit and starchy tubers, duh. But candy, cookies, lollipops, whatever is not a nutritious food that fuels your system to burning fat. If you really want sweet treats, ask me about my sugar free cookies and muffins.
    2. Drink more water. Seriously. A cup every 1 1/2-2 hours. You know this is smart.
    3. Always remember that exercise is for recreation and fun. Do what gets your heart pumping and makes you excited. If you look forward to it, then you're golden. You'll work out more, sweat harder, and become faster.
  • P.S. Protein is nothing to be afraid of. Since I've upped protein intake, my appetite has changed and I eat a lot better.
  • RuthieCass
    RuthieCass Posts: 247 Member
    First, I am wondering why you feel the need to get down to 123? How did you come to concluding that that is how much you should weight? If I were you, I would try to get a reasonable estimate of my body fat and make my goals from there. Here's a calculator for that: http://www.cordianet.com/calculator.htm

    At your weight, and from the description of how you lost weight, I'd worry more about building strength than losing weight. Hopefully, your trainer has incorporated challenging weight training routines into your regiment.

    As for your trainer's nutrition recommendations, I have not idea why he thinks you should eat that much protein and that little carbs. If you are on a diet to lose weight, the general recommendation for protein intake for women to avoid muscle loss is 1.1-1.2 grams per lb of lean body mass (your total weight minus pounds of fat). You can generally eat less protein if you are maintaining. So I don't think you'd likely need to eat more than ~120 grams of protein. As for carbs, you'd need to eat above 100 grams if you want to avoid ketosis (I have no idea if you want to induce ketosis on your diet). If you're doing a good amount of cardio, I don't know if it's such a good idea to consume so few carbs.

    Honestly, I'd recommend that you ask your trainer a lot of questions about the above issues. And where he comes up with the diet plan he formed for you. A lot of trainers really have no idea what they are talking about.

    Here's where I got most of my info, if you want to learn more: http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/nutrition
  • lisaloo103
    lisaloo103 Posts: 11 Member
    bump xx