PJDolan

I'd start with old fashioned barbell squats. Start very light, focus on correct form, and slowly add weight over time.

FIrst, congratulations on your weight loss. 40 lbs in 6 months is great. My recommendation would be to increase your calories to just 500 below maintenance, eat more fruits and vegetables, and do more weight training and less running. Finally, I'd say be patient. 40 lbs in 6 months is already a great accomplishment.

I lost 50 lbs over the past year and made consistent muscle and strength gains over the entire period. Generally speaking, building muscle on a caloric deficit is difficult, especially if you are already relatively lean. However, it can be done in the following scenarios: 1) You are new to weight training; 2) You are…

I'm a vegetarian, but think eating meat is perfectly healthy as long as you're also eating plenty of fruits, vegetables, and nuts.

Well done! You look great.

There's no way to tell at any given weigh-in the exact source of your weight gain or weight loss. The important thing is to stay hydrated and look for a trend of weight loss over the course of weeks and months.