Could someone please give me some advice?

E

evie0688

New member
I'm not a big girl by any means. I am 5'5 and weight 130 and i am 20 years old. the problem is i have no muscle tone. my question is, how do i lose my fat, get the muscle tone i want, without losing to much weight? 5-10 lb's would be okay but i just dont want to look like i dont eat. I'm tired of looking like the "fat skinny girl". It's really taking a tole on me and my confidence level has gone so far down that i don't even like to wear form fitted clothing anymore. i know i'm not fat but i feel like it because of the way my body looks. Any advice?
 
I forgot a few things earlier....My calorie intake daily is anywhere between 1500 to 2000 depending on how much i snack and also my scedule at work, which i dont think my intake is bad. And i am military but i work on 12 hour shift at work but it's a desk job. When i'm on night shifts I am all by myself so i'll do a little bit of exercising that doesn't involve using machines and we keep 5 and 10 pound weights in my office. I exercise about 3 times a week at work but then I only work out about 1 day extra outside of work.I dont understand why my body looks the way it is because i dont gain weight but i dont tone up either and its just really frustrating me. Is there something else i need to be doing? When I went to basic training and tech school I lost 10 pounds but i didnt tone up any. Since being at my duty station, i have gained that 10 pounds back putting me at 130 which isnt overweight and i am satisfied with my weight. But with the 10 pounds i lost, i somehow lost about 3 inches which may or may not have been muscle underneath the fat, but like i said before, with my wieght going back up, the inches are coming back.....my waistline is at between 28 and 30 inches, but it was down to about 26 1/2. Even when it is that small, though, I still can't seem to get the toning that I want. I just dont know what i am doing wrong and how to fix this. I dont mind weighing a little extra if it is muscle but im scared that the weight im putting on is just fat because thats what it looks like....please help me with any advice!!!
 
A few ideas:
-Take your intake down to about 1400kcal? -kinda depends on how much working out you're going to do.
-Try to get regular cardio for weight loss
-As for toning, I'm really no expert... what exactly do you want to tone? I wouldn't have thought free weights would be all that good for overall general body toning. I've always been quite toned because I used to do alot of gymnastics and they made us do hoouurs of conditioning exercises like press ups, sit ups, leg lifts, heel dips etc etc. Maybe you could devise yourself a plan of those kind of exercises? Or join a gym and use resistance weight machines -might see results quicker.
 
what kind of exercise are you doing at work? are you really challenging yourself with the weights? are you using a variety of different exercises for your muscles? if you want to gain muscle, you need to eat to gain muscle. 1500 calories a day is not going to work. you have to eat more to gain muscle.
 
Focus on exactly what you want to tone first

I had the same problem, it was irritating me so bad, wondering what do i do. So someone in another weight loss forum gave me a website for an online personal trainer, And wow with in no time (after all of my wasted time) I found myself toning up. My trainer had me focus on toning one part of my body at a time. Well good luck on toning up. the website is And thank you for serving our beautiful country!
 
Firstly, don't talk down about yourself. The fact you are willing to improve your health is a motivating tool you should use to stay positive.

With out going in really long details, the best prescription for what you are trying to achieve would be:

1. Get plenty of sleep. 8-9 hours per day
2. Drink plenty of water.
3. Eat several small meals a day instead of the usual 3. (This will boost your metabolism.)
4. Do weight training. Building muscle will burn fat off and boost your metabolism.
5. After doing weight training, make sure to rest. You need to allow time for your muscles to recuperate and grow. Do not over-train...you will not see the results you are looking for.
6. Do some form of cardio, but not for long periods...you can end up burning off not just fat but also muscle.
6. Increase your protein & fiber intake.

That's pretty much all I can think of at the moment. Be patient and don't give up. Good Luck! :seeya:
 
Thank you all for the advice, i will take what everone has said to me and put in onto use. I will try to keep everyone updated on how everything is going!
 
Also, "toning" is a bit of a myth. When you see people with really "toned" looking muscles, you're actually seeing their muscles, not their fat. In other words, really "toned" looking muscles just look toned because there is little fat surrounding the muscle. I'd read some of the stickies, especially those in the "Weight Loss Through Exercise" section. In order to achieve that look, you are going to have to focus on losing fat. A combination of cardio and resistance training should be your best bet. And, if I were you, I wouldn't start consuming an excess of calories so you can "put on muscle." You have muscles; you just need to train the ones you have. I'd say get into a calorie deficit on a diet high-ish in protein. That abundance of protein (lean) should help you retain muscle while you lose the fat.

-Tamara
 
Ajbarnes is spot on,

I'll add in that you should be challenging yourself with the weights - I dont know how heavy you are lifting but maybe its too easy, remember the body adapts quickly so you should consider going heavier. And don't worry about bulking up! You won't!

Dan
 
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