Need to lose body fat, not weight, stuck at 15.5%

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Steve said:
How are you measuring body fat? I'm sure you told me above someplace but I don't have the time to read through all that again.
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I have a hand held device. Omron HBF-306. I got it after reading another thread awhile back that said it wasn't too bad.

Steve said:
Do you know how much protein you are getting in?
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No, I don't. I do try to include protein with each meal, but I've been thinking its probably time to start counting my calories again.
 
Well considering you're recently started lifting appropriately, I highly doubt you're losing mass amounts of muscle, if any at all.

Maybe... maybe if you're calories were retardedly low and you were not eating near enough protein... but that's a long shot.

Those bf% measuring devices are okay for tracking trends, but that's about it. Things like hydration levels can really throw the readings out of whack.
 
Ok, I'll just keep tracking it, and not think about the number so much, as long as its going down. I really love the feeling I get after doing weight training at the gym, how much stronger and harder I feel, and overall happy with how I'm going about weight/fat loss now, so I'm not too concerned about the numbers right now anyway. I would happily take this feeling over some lower number any day, but knowing I can feel like this, and still lose weight is amazing!
 
This morning I was the same weight, 131, but down .6% body fat, to 20.2%. Obviously I can't lose that much in a day, so it must be the machine. I like today's numbers much better.
 
Try this rule

Hi I will try to be very brief.

I think the answer is contained in your question, actually in your food suggestions.
You ask what is better 1, 2 or 3 variant. Have you ever tried to combine these three variants.

I am sure this is the answer of your question. If you follow a normal diet - low carbos and high protein or other type of diet, you will lose weight, but after a time your progress will stop.

I suggest you to do that:
1) Keep your protein high (I mean choose protein sources like white of eggs and chicken chest);

2) Reduce your carbohydrate intake to 2 gr for 3 or 4 days. This will help you to exhaust carbohydrates in the liver. On the fifth day increase your carbohydrates to 4 gr per body kg. This will fill the liver with carbos for the next cycle.

3) After this day repeat the cycle.

During the day when you have to take 4 gr per kg of carbos you won't store them as fats, because your body needs them to fill the liver, so don't worry.

This is proven system used by many fitness and bodybuilding athlete. You can apply the same scheme if you want to gain weight.

About training:
My personal opinion is that veloergometer is the perfect variant if you want to lose fats and even build muscles on your legs during weight loss period.
Actually it was proven that it can even build muscles during fat loss.

My suggestion is to separate your cardio and weight training (morning - cardio, evening - weight training) and be careful to not overtraining.
If you keep yourself of overtraining I am sure you will lose fats.

This subject is very big and what I am telling you is not the whole picture, but a part of it. You can start with this scheme as a beginning.

Hope this will help:)
 
All About Health

Hellow to all! It's hard to loose our weight particularly to people who can't stop eating to much food like me. On last 2 years I have 70 kilos and it's not good weight to my height because I am 5ft and 1 inch only. It's hard to move fast and not easy to choose the dress I want suit because of my heavy weight.

Fat Is Cute But Not Good to Our Healt.
 
How is that post at all relevant to the information being discussed in this thread? I swear, people are becoming more and more afraid of words.
 
Just wanted to say that this thread has a lot of great information, and I appreciate the time you've taken answer all of the relevant questions. This is my first day on the board, and I've already learned a lot. Steve, your bodyimprovements website is also a good read. Just though I'd mention it.
 
Hey Tony, thanks very much for the kind words and welcome to the community. Let me know if there's anything I can do.

Best to ya!
 
In order to decrease body fat, you need to ensure you are getting enough fibre. Fibre pulls out fat from the body. You can increase fibre in your diet by eating fruits with skin on such as apples, plums, pears etc, also vegetables (raw) are high in fibre. There are also dietary tablets which are fibre based, having one to two a day at least 30 minutes before having a meal which includes fat will help to ensure the fat is not held or kept in the body and that it breaks down and passes through instead.

I found the Herbalife Fibrebond tablets really good for increasing fibre in my diet, and it was so easy using their shakes as part of my gym routine when I trained for the London Triathalon.
Also keep a food diary, body fat can change from day to day depending on what you ate the evening before. i.e. greasy foods, or foods that are fried, or high in saturated fats will show a high body fat reading the next day.
Drinking water also helps to lower your body fat, so make sure you are drinking the right amount of water per day and even more if you are training as you lose water during heavy training or exercise.

To build muscle you do need protein, but you can get this from vegetables such as dark green ones, broccoli, spinach and in the form of a smoothie will make it easier for your body to digest.

When working out, are you having a carbohydrate meal 2/4 hours before? to help with your energy and blood sugar levels.
and after working out, you should have a protien based shake to ensure your body has the right 'foods' to continue burning fat otherwise it will take this from the muscle glycogen you just spent time building up. Also protein helps repair and grow the muscle.

Hope this helps
 
Steve...new member here...

Man, this is some great information..

Might I ask, is there anyway you would consider outlining a workout as far as weightlifting/cardio for an individual?

I'm looking to focus in on one goal as per your suggestion...which is to cut fat...but preserve as much muscle as I can.

I realize you would need more info about me, but before wasting your time and mine but listing measurables, I thought I'd ask first.

Thanks, SOJ
 
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Steve....just a note...any suggestions you might want to add I would gladly accept..

However, I just spent about two hours perusing the entire weightloss forum and its multiple boards....and I've read several things from you and others who are knowledgeable...

I've been a weightlifter for a long time...so I'm not ignorant on exercise. I think I have a solid handle on what I need to do.

Would this framework of a workout program sound solid to you?

MWF

Full body workout like you mentioned. Upper and lower...

Cardio "steady" workout for approximately 30-40 minutes..

On Wednesday it would be only the full body workout, as I have severe time limitations.

TuThSa

Some type of HIIT workout..

Sunday

Rest Day

And obviously eating right, with enough protein to help maintain as much muscle as I can (worked hard through the years for what I have, but I'd like to drop body fat from 25% to 15% or so. Later, I might try to go lower)

Thanks, SOJ
 
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SOJ,

First, I must thank you for spending the time to read through threads here on the forum to better educate yourself. It's something many refuse to do.

What are your stats if you don't mind me asking?

Your routine should work fine. I would, however, drop all the HIIT. HIIT is as intense systemically on the body as weight training. You're barely getting any rest from said intensity with your layout, which isn't recommended while dieting.

Reduced calories = reduced recoverability.
 
Well, luckily we teachers don't have to work on MLK Jr. Day so I had the time to read!!

Anyway, I'm 5' 10' and about 240 lbs. My body fat % is about 25-28% I'd guess, but as I mentioned, I've always been a weightlifter so there is lean muscle to factor into my weight.

I'd like to get to about 15% body fat, keeping as much muscle as possible.

So you really think I should drop the HIIT stuff? As per your suggestion I will do that, you obviously have a wealth of knowledge.

Let me ask you this...as mentioned previously, I plan on doing the full-body workout on MWF as you suggested, using one of the ABA then BAB programs I read from you on another board.

So, as far as cardio...I can do this on Monday, Tuesday, Friday, and Saturday. I will also have cardio figured in for Thursday because I play in a men's basketball league.

So, two questions on cardio.

1. Given the days I listed above, and given that on Thursdays I will play basketball (and I go "all out" for hoops because I have no talent, just hustle and attitude :smilielol5: so I'm definitely getting a good cardio workout)..

What other days of those listed above would you put cardio in given I'm lifting on MWF? On Mondays and Fridays I could do cardio after lifting. However, on Tuesday and Saturday it would just be cardio? Do you suggest doubling up weight-training and cardio on M and F and taking Tuesday and Saturday off (as well as Sunday) or doing something like this:

MWF - weight-training
TuThSa - cardio

Just curious for suggestions..

Again..thanks for the info!! SOJ


EDIT: Also, the second question....do you suggest doing just "steady cardio" or mix in some interval training as well? Interval training not reaching near the levels of HIIT.
 
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Ordinary old cardio can pretty much fall wherever you see fit. It's not going to make a hair's worth of difference. It's when you start upping the intensity where you have to be careful where you place your cardio sessions.

You can still keep one of those sessions as HIIT. I'd do them on one of your weight training days. Consolidating high intensity events is optimal, since it leaves the most amount of time between sessions for recovery.

Make sense?

If you train MWF with weights, you could do something like:

M - weights and HIIT
Tuesday - steady state cardio
Wed - weights
thursday basketball
Friday - weights and steady state
Saturday -steady state

In truth, you really don't need all that cardio. If you enjoy it though, I see nothing wrong with a split like this. To note, when I cut down, I've done so with no cardio, I've done so with lot's of cardio similar or more to what you're suggesting, and I've done so with everything in between. They all came to the same results as long as my nutrition was accounted for.

If you feel the need to do more cardio than what you're outlining here, something is off with your nutrition.

As for interval training, you can certainly work in some interval training. Is it necessary? Most certainly not? Will it help? Maybe. Will it hurt? Most likely not assuming intensity is controlled. Interval training allows you to work in some higher intensity work than you would otherwise not be able to do for the entire session, since you're getting breaks with the lower intensity intervals thrown into the mix. I don't find magic in intervals, but I'm not against them either.

Haha, as with most of my answers, it depends.
 
OK..that sounds good.

To be honest, from one weightlifter to another I am relieved that I'm still incorporating that much lifting with free weights into my total workout. I'm sure you understand that I'd probably go a bit bonkers without being able to lift. :smash:

So...this is what I'm envisioning..

M: full-body weightlifting (A) combined with HIIT (15-20 minute session sound good?)

Tu: steady-state cardio.

W: full-body weightlifting (B)

Th: basketball (2-2 1/2 hours in case you were wondering, rotating in and out depending on number of people who show)

F: full-body weightlifting (A) note* I'll throwout the cardio session here as per your suggestion...unless for whatever reason the basketball session from the night before was too light or if I know I won't be able to workout on Saturday.

Sat: "Interval training"- tennis with my daughter who's on the HS Varsity team as a sophomore for an hour, this is a good workout as she has gotten much better as she's gotten older. If that doesn't work, a simply steady-state cardio session.

I really like how that breaks down.

Now...if you could, I'd like you to explain what you mean by "steady-state" cardio. I know you don't like talking about "zones". But as far as my heart rate. My normal resting heart rate is about 50 bpm. So, in your opinion a good "steady-rate" cardio would be an exercise where my heart rate is somewhere between where? I know that for a MAXIMUM effort exercise like sprints it would be somewhere around 170-190...in that ballpark.

For my heart-rate measurements I know what my resting rate is because I physically measured it with my fingers on my neck artery...as for my maximum effort heartrate that figure of 170-190 is only accurate of the monitor on the stairstepper machine is correct (admittedly who knows if it is, I know that I've done interval training on the stepper and measured immediately after doing a high intensity phase).

Thanks, SOJ

EDIT: BTW...I am 36 in case you wondered.
 
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Steve...never mind on the cardio question...I'm now reading on your site..

What a wealth of knowledge....well done!!
 
That all sounds good.

Steady state cardio varies from individual to individual. Instead of putting metrics on it, I tend to like the idea of sticking with a set period of time and working to an intensity that allows you to speak to your neighbor coherently if you needed or wanted to without gasping.... but still enough to get the old ticker going.

There's no magic to heart rates in relation to fat loss.

60-80% if you like numerical metrics.

Or maybe 120-150 beats per minute.
 
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