Sumiblue Member

OP, I see quite a bit of progress in your photos. You’ve slimmed a lot in your midsection. Go forward with the food scale and better strength program and you are going to amaze yourself.

Not going to be building much muscle eating at a deficit. Might preserve muscle if maintenance calories and doing progressive lifting.

Ok, it’s good that you change up your weights. But if you want to get the most benefit for strength training follow an established program. There are so many. They make it easier for you because the programming has been done for you. StrongLifts, Strong Curves, New Rules Of Lifting for Women are all good starting places.…

I don’t know if you do this but If you weigh yourself every day I’d stop doing that. Monthly weigh in and measurements are a better indication of progress. Fluctuations in weight are normal. I gained 4 lbs of water after Thanksgiving (more carbs) and it took a week to come off. I just went back to my normal diet & workouts…

Then stick with strength training. It can reshape your body. Cardio burns calories and can help you meet your deficit (but be careful you don’t overestimate the burn). Scales only tell you one side of the story. Since muscle is more dense than fat a person can gain weight but be smaller if they gain muscle and lose fat.…

OP, don’t get depressed. It’s not starting over. Feel good about being armed with better information. Your food choices are fine. Just weigh them and see what you are actually eating. Most important thing: what are YOUR goals. Do you just want to fit into a smaller size? Do you feel like you need to lose fat. Do you want…

An established lifting program designed to have you gain strength through lifting heavier and or increase reps. I don’t know what you are doing, specifically. If you are using free weights, DBs or machines. If you are going to the gym and doing the same routine over and over that isn’t an effective workout. StrongLifts 5x5…

As already stated, logging inaccuracies can account for hundreds of calories. Especially when you are eating a higher fat diet. 2 months is very new at lifting and you could be holding onto water. The fat loss comes from diet. You aren’t obese so a 2lb deficit isn’t sustainable for you. Do the math. If you are exhausted…

No need for 2lbs a week deficit. Get a cheap scale-you are definitely eating more than you think. Follow a progressive lifting program.

Scales are pretty cheap. It will be eye opening. I weigh my sliced bread and it rarely is what it’s supposed to be. Weight gain from eating more carbs after restricting is water weight and glycogen replenishment. It doesn’t keep going up and up. Also, if new to weight training, you will gain water weight due to muscle…

You need a good scale to be accurate. Cups don’t work. I weigh my egg whites so I know it’s accurate. I’d say logging inaccuracy is largely to blame, plus deficit is too large to stick with. Do exercise you enjoy.

I lift weights as my primary exercise. I make sure I eat enough protein-I shoot for 1g protein per lb of lean body mass. That’s 90-92g, for me. My deficit is .5/lb per week, when I’m cutting. What do you have your deficit set to to have such a low calorie goal? What are you doing as far as weight training?

Weightlifting is done for improving body composition-not weight loss. You want to lose fat, right? Not just “weight”. So, following a progressive lifting program + a reasonable deficit for your goals will help you have better body comp while you lose fat. It sounds like you are in a big hurry. Was low carb/Keto something…

Um, it’s fairly well known that hormones play a big role in hunger and strength & energy depending on where a woman is in her cycle. Guess your trainer hasn’t read anything Lyle McDonald has been saying in regards to women and training. Measuring every week seems a little excessive, to me. I’ve heard that if a woman really…

Fast weight loss is undesirable as it usually results in too much muscle loss. Subsequent weight gain (if not a controlled bulk) is going to be mostly fat. In other words, worse body composition & lowered metabolism. The less lean body mass you have the lower your BMR. Take a reasonable deficit, follow a progressive…

You know, I didn’t actually end up following the Leangains cut protocol when I wrote that. I lost weight with a cut and got down to 114. Then, gained some back over Summer. I’m now doing calorie cycling at a small deficit and it’s going well.

There is a 10-12 lb difference in my photos. I did not intend to gain that weight but Summer parties & holidays, vacation got the better of me. I looked a bit fluffier after Summer because I wasn’t able to workout for the entire month of August. In Fall, I started back with a 3 day lifting program. I like how I look with…

Congratulations on your healthy choices and weight loss. It sounds like you are motivated to get healthy and your husband isn’t. He has to want it for himself but he does not have the right to derail your progress. You’ve even inspired your daughter, which is wonderful. It sounds like he feels threatened by your lifestyle…

I shred them in a food processor to make the pieces cook more uniformly. Then, toss with some oil to just coat, not too much. Salt & pepper. Roast in an oven until caramelized. Roasting them with some bacon, drizzle of real maple syrup & pecans is delicious!

I started at PF a few years ago. It had plenty of DBs , even heavy DBs. My location had one squat rack, several flat benches and quite a few preloaded bars. I couldn’t OHP the 45# bar so used a 20, then 30# bar. PF gyms can vary a lot. I guess I got lucky.

Do your own research and/or talk to your doctor about melatonin. It is a hormone not a drug. It can be very helpful if used appropriately.

My sleep has been pretty awful for a while now. I have trouble falling asleep and then wake up a lot when I do sleep. I never felt good when I wake in the morning. I’ve been taking sleep aids, Benadryl to fall asleep but that makes me very groggy in the AM. I just started taking melatonin-what a difference! I’m sleeping…

I don’t think there is anything wrong with creatine, btw. I do think low body fat has a lot to do with seeing that separation from delts to bicep. The above photo was me at my very leanest. My abs felt like just skin over muscle-so weird! I lost my bust at that BF%. I’ve since gained 9 lbs and have my bust back. My arms…

I don’t know if I have juicy delts but I’ve had boulder shoulders & biceps for most of my adult life. I was a decorative painter for 24 yrs & hand painted walls & ceilings. That is an arm & shoulder workout. Last year I got very lean and looked like rhis *Edited to say I don’t take creatine, just food, whey protein and I…

Holy crap, I’m having the worst cramps ever! I can barely stand up. I’m supposed to take my daughter to an indoor play place in 20 minutes. We are meeting daughter’s friend and dad there. Sure will be embarrassing to have to say I’m having horrible cramps and that’s why I’m moving like I’m 90yrs old.

I’ve been skipping periods for months. This month I got some spotting. That seems to be over but my breasts are really tender like they usually are pre-period.

Some men like long hair, some like short. What do YOU like? It's your hair. Hair length has nothing to do with sexual orientation. If people are really questioning yours then they have too much time on their hands and it's none of their business. It sounds like you feel insecure about it. I don't spend too much energy…

I lift at home and have a power cage. It's a used Proviction (SP?) cage. Not fancy but does what I want. I bench inside it so I can set the safeties where I need them. I can set the rack pins at just the right distance for me. I have a pull up bar on top. I'd say think about any extras you may want--like pulley systems.…

I’m not sure I’m understanding your question. If you want to see the macro % throughout the day then click on Macros under nutrition in your diary. It’s not a premium function. Under Goals you can reconfigure the %-also free. Is that what you are looking for?

Carb & protein are 4 cal/g and fat is 9 cal/g