I'm a 19 year old male college student who over the last year has lost about 75lb. I look miraculously different in clothes and have never been happier, but without clothes I still look so flabby. I'm 5ft 8, and weigh about 145lb, which is actually under the norm for my height. I don't feel like I should have as much fat in the places that I do (or could it be skin? I really have no idea, but I imagine it would be gone by now if it was skin).
BIG areas of importance: Stomach flab, there's still a ton of fat sitting on my stomach. If I stand up it's completely unnoticeable, but once I sit down (without clothes), BAM, it looks like I gained 30 pounds. My thighs are still a little flabby but I don't care about them so much...I have a ring of fat around my midsection and hips that is also very annoying. Last, and probably my least favorite, is the man-boobs. I always had them when I was fat, and now they're so much better than back then, but they're still noticeable when I'm not wearing clothes, and I hate them so much.
Now I thought I'd solve this problem by working out more. I've started a routine that definitely feels like it should be working (and to be fair I've been at it for only a week), but now (unless my scale is wrong) I'm GAINING weight. Now I know when you gain muscle you gain weight, but 1.) This was like 4 days after I started doing like 20-30 min of exercising a day, so I shouldn't have seen any changes really. 2.) There wasn't any more noticeable muscle mass on my body. 3.) IT WAS LIKE 5 POUNDS. HOLY CRAP.
In addition to this workout routine, I also walk for 1-1.5 hours a day, play some sort of racquet sport often, and eat (I think) very well.
The only difference I've made to my diet was a protein bar OR drink after my workout (because I didn't think I got much protein in my diet).
For example, here's what I may eat in a day:
Breakfast: 90 Cal-1g fat breakfast bar, OR small fruit, OR nothing...
Lunch: 1.)Small bowl of fat free soup(OR piece of grilled chicken breast, OR tuna sandwich, OR some sort of chicken related low fat meal in the healthy section of the dining hall).
2.) Some sort of steamed vegetable and some fruit, OR two different fruits.
3.)Coke Zero (only 1 a day!), and sometimes a small cone of fat-free frozen yogurt.
Snack in between: Sometimes an orange or an apple OR a few pretzels.
Dinner: Same as lunch but with a small salad (romaine lettuce/carrots/cucumber/fat-free ranch dressing), and water instead of coke zero.
***About once or twice a week I eat 1-2 small pieces of cheese pizza for dinner. I pad the grease up with a napkin and remove any excess cheese to eliminate unnecessary fat***
After dinner and before going to sleep: If I'm going to sleep by midnight, maybe just an orange or some grapes. If I'm staying up later, I may have a few pretzels/fat-free saltines/fat-free popcorn/or some other salty food.
*I would honestly eat healthier if I wasn't at college, but I just don't have as many food choices as I do at home. Now my college has an INCREDIBLE dining program, and there are tons of choices and the food is wonderful quality, but there's still some limitations.
**I take
**I take "Alli" to limit my fat intake when I'm eating foods that have more than...oh...let's say 5 grams of fat. Pizza, chicken, etc.
Now I'm all for gaining muscle, but I'm TERRIFIED of gaining fat again. I just can't go back to how I was. The though of going backwards is just horrible. Is adding the protein messing up my diet? Is is fat I'm gaining, or could I actually just be gaining muscle mass (that I can't see yet because of the excess fat/skin?) this early into my routine? I do feel like my biceps are "slightly" larger, but not 5-6lb larger. I'm trying to focus on my abs when I workout because I'd love to have a well developed stomach. Am I on the right track?
let me jus say i can relate im 18 and about 5'8"...my heavist was about 160 and i decided to take control..i am now down to 130...that may seem a little low but u have to understand that i have maybe 2-4 percent body fat and am basically cut everywhere on my body...what im saying is im not to skinny im actually in peek physical condition. now when i was in ure position i did some research ..i totally abandoned saturated fat. i mean i had almost none of it ..this is a drastic measurment but desperate times call for deperate measures. now saturated fat is found in all meats and dairy products...what i did was i substituted meat for poultry and fish which packs a ton of protein and is not even close to beef in fat content...for dairy i used only skim...this meant giving up cheese for the most part but i substituted with fat free cottage cheese...that was just the beginning i was on a very strict workout regimen working 5-6 days a week weightlifting..here is the key weightlifting...when u use weights u rip ure muscles which your body must repair...this repair occurs 24-48 hrs after a workout and burns calories when ure not even moving...while running is good if your not eating enough ure body jus burns the muscle for energy...and there u go u have more fat...u shud run doing interval training...this means u warm up for 3-5 min then go full speed 30 sec..the 1 min low intensity then 45 full speed...(u follow the same pattern..u go to 60 then 90 full speed..then back down to 60 , 45, 30 and then 3-5 of cooldown)...this takes about 18-22 min..to put into persepctive i burn about 450 calories in those 18 min...inteVral triaing burns fat alot more than walking for an hour bec when u do anything at a steady pace ure bdy gets used to it and conserved as much calories as possible while still doing the activity...doing this plus lifting weights will speed metabolism intensely...u shud aslo eat certain foods to speed ure metabolism like beans, and jus A LOT OF FIBER, i cant stress that enough...by fiber one cereal...protein after a workout is also very importnat to put on as much muscle as possible...if u can get ure hand on whey protein and make a shake for aftr your workouts..o absolutely NEVER SKIP BREAKFAST...you skip it and ure body gets tricked into thinking its in starvation so it stores as much fat as possible just in case it encounters another starvation.....THIS CAN BE DONE...I AM LIVING PROOF IF U WANT IT BADLY ENOUGH U WILL GET IT!!! GOOD LUCK!!
Well I've certainly been hearing more about this interval training. If it helps at all, my hour and a half of walking is to and back from classes, and they're in 20 minute intervals rather than all at once...so although it's not ideal, it's still better than nothing.
I already practically completely avoid saturated fats. I never eat any meat other than poultry and fish, and I'm VERY careful about eating fats in other foods; like anything cooked in or with oil.
Does just eating "anything" for breakfast matter, or does it need to be a hearty breakfast? I happen to really like high fiber cereals, but I don't wake up early enough to go to a dining hall before class...hence the breakfast bar (I did buy some low fat blueberry muffins as a treat though...I haven't had a muffin in so long )
But anyway, from your experience, it sounds like I should be losing even more weight. I have been eating just as healthy as ever, and exercising more than before. What on earth explains why I magically gained 5 pounds in the last 2 weeks?
I already practically completely avoid saturated fats. I never eat any meat other than poultry and fish, and I'm VERY careful about eating fats in other foods; like anything cooked in or with oil.
Unsaturated fats are generally fine if they are within your calorie budget, and they are not hydrogenated to create trans-fats. Hydrogenated fats are commonly found in processed foods and fast food restaurants.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Shadnic
Does just eating "anything" for breakfast matter, or does it need to be a hearty breakfast? I happen to really like high fiber cereals, but I don't wake up early enough to go to a dining hall before class...hence the breakfast bar (I did buy some low fat blueberry muffins as a treat though...I haven't had a muffin in so long )
Breakfast is often described as the most important meal of the day; if you skip it or eat very little, your lunch becomes your breakfast.
Muffins are usually made of refined grains and sugars and are therefore less desirable than whole grain high fiber foods.
5 pounds is easily within the range of water weight. Your water content is affected by carbohydrate and salt intake. Additionally, the weight scale does not distinguish between fat, water, and muscle, so it may not give the true picture of your body composition.
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