extremely slow and steady race!

[Katherineos123]

Hi everyone! I was just wondering if anyone had any suggestions for me:

 

I posted on her a couple months ago stating that I would like to know the best approach to losing about 10 lbs or so.

 

Well... that was MONTHS ago. And I have seen little to no progress.

 

Im a small woman, I fluctuate between 125-130 lbs, at 5'3" Now, Im not overweight by technicalities, but this is not my ideal and I would love to lose about 10-15 lbs.

 

So I go to the gym about 4-5 times a week, strength training and about 30 min cardio each session, and I eat very well. But I havent really seen ANY results, aside from an inch or so smaller here or there on my measurements, and Ive been doing this for months! Its quite frustrating.

 

Im not too fond of the counting calories idea because, well, that just seems like a pain, but Im guessing I eat around 1400-1500 calories a day. I eat about 6 small meals a day, with lots of fruits and veggies

 

I read somewhere that a persons body has a predertermined "natural" weight, and that your body will compensate to keep you at this weight. Ive been pretty much the same size since high school! Does this imply that Im stuck here! Hahah.

 

Do you think I really have to result to counting calories and dieting? I dont overeat, but I dont want to cut my calories down to "starvation" mode.

 

Or am I looking at the extremely slow and steady race?

[Jaytb]

Hi everyone! I was just wondering if anyone had any suggestions for me:

 

I posted on her a couple months ago stating that I would like to know the best approach to losing about 10 lbs or so.

 

Well... that was MONTHS ago. And I have seen little to no progress.

 

Im a small woman, I fluctuate between 125-130 lbs, at 5'3" Now, Im not overweight by technicalities, but this is not my ideal and I would love to lose about 10-15 lbs.

 

So I go to the gym about 4-5 times a week, strength training and about 30 min cardio each session, and I eat very well. But I havent really seen ANY results, aside from an inch or so smaller here or there on my measurements, and Ive been doing this for months! Its quite frustrating.

 

Im not too fond of the counting calories idea because, well, that just seems like a pain, but Im guessing I eat around 1400-1500 calories a day. I eat about 6 small meals a day, with lots of fruits and veggies

 

I read somewhere that a persons body has a predertermined "natural" weight, and that your body will compensate to keep you at this weight. Ive been pretty much the same size since high school! Does this imply that Im stuck here! Hahah.

 

Do you think I really have to result to counting calories and dieting? I dont overeat, but I dont want to cut my calories down to "starvation" mode.

 

Or am I looking at the extremely slow and steady race?

 

Strength training leads to increased muscle mass. Maybe some of the extra weight is just muscle? Anyways you sound just fine, I don't think you specifically need to lose weight, just to maintain your weight as is.

[Nebo74]

Hi! Wow, you don't sound like you need to lose weight at all In fact, I'm intrested in a date. J/K

 

I'm no personal trainer or what ever, but when I stopped drinking soda I dropped nearly 20 pounds off the bat. Have you done this?

 

I was also told 45 - 60 minutes of Cardio 4-5 times a week to lose weight.. Either running, walking, or swimming.

[Katherineos123]

Thanks for the responses guys!

 

Hi Nebo! I dont really drink too much soda to begin with, aside from the occasional Bacardi & Coke on the weekends But I have heard that soda is a big weight gain factor, Maybe Ill try cutting it out all together!

 

And Jay, Ive also read that muscle mass is denser than fat, so although the scale might not change, your actually becoming leaner. Now, I would LIKE to think that this is whats happening But Ive only seen about an inch difference in my measurements. Im not complaining, because trust me, Im happy with any results I get, but an inch doesnt seem like much to me.... Is it?

 

Oh well, I guess Ill just have to up the intensity or duration or something, but its so hard to find time to get to the gym everyday as it is! Ugh!

 

But has anyone else heard of this "predetermined/natural" weight theory?

[fral945]

But has anyone else heard of this "predetermined/natural" weight theory?

 

I buy that.

 

I was about 195 lbs at one time when I had poor diet but exercised. I changed my diet (started eating much more healthy) and didn’t exercise much and dropped to 155 lbs (obviously had a smaller appetite) and 2 pants sizes. Since I have started exercising more and continued my good eating habits I’ve gone back up to 175 lbs (without having to buy new pants). So my default weight (if I ate properly without much exercise) is 155 lbs. I was able to bulk up to 175 lbs from lifting weights.

 

If you’ve been that way since high school (and you say you eat healthy and exercise), then that is likely your default weight. You could probably drop 10 pounds with some more extreme measures (hours of exercise a day or severe dietary restrictions) but why would you do something you can’t maintain? Only advice I would give is to fine tune your diet more and see what happens. Eat as unprocessed foods as possible if you don’t already do so. Say, if you are eating whole wheat bread, switch to eating actual wheat berries. Or replace fruit juice with actual fruit. If nothing changes there probably isn't anything else you can do.

 

IMO, though, you shouldn't be worrying about anything.

[Katherineos123]

I guess youre right Fral, I dont supposed Id want to have to keep up with a diet, or exercise routine, that I didnt enjoy, let alone one that I couldnt maintain long term.

 

And I really do appreciate the fact that you say I should have nothing to worry about Thats sweet of you.

 

I mean, I enjoy exercise, its a huge stress reliver for me, and of course, there's the longterm cardoivascular benefits from regular exercise...

 

Its just frustrating because I feel like Im working so hard, and Im not seeing anything out of it. Arrrrgh!

[wookinpanub]

30 minutes cardio is not enough. depending on your level of fitness and general body make up, it can take up to 20 minutes of steady cardio to start burning calories. If your trying to burn calories your best bet for cardio is HIIT. Proven countless times to be the most effective fat burning cardio method.

 

You say you eat well, and I don't mean to sound rude, but are you sure? What one person considers eating well may not actually be. Just because you cut out carbs or sugars, etc, doesn't mean your doing right. You need a certain amount of everything, sugar included. How much fruit do you eat? That can be a cause of too much sugar, despite being the right kind of sugar.