TL;DR I'm so determined to lose the extra fat in my mid-section and thighs and while I feel I'm eating healthy 80-90% of the time (Monday-Friday strict calorie counting, no alcohol consumption -- Sat&Sunday more lax, maybe 1-2 drinks the entire weekend but no mindless snacking!) and very diligent in my exercise paired with my personal-activity level. I'm not seeing as much progress as I'd like in my progress photos, even months apart :(
I don't mean to sound like I *think* I'm doing everything perfectly but I do feel like I'm applying every piece of advise I hear/read and giving my all yet my progress photos don't seem to reflect it. I feel good, way more confident, I feel like my clothes fit better and I like the way I look in the mirror (aside from my "problem" areas). I can see major definition in my shoulders, triceps, calves, quads, and I can see some definition in my upper ab area... but from my stomach to my thighs I feel I am seeing no loss. In the last 4 months I've lost 3 inches off my waist, half an inch off my biceps, half an inch off my bust, but no loss on my thighs or hips. I feel good about myself, then I look at the photos and think, "how do you feel good about yourself when your stomach and thighs aren't budging? What are you doing wrong?!" I'm trying not to beat myself up but I feel like I'm failing yet trying so hard.
I like to keep busy and I've been getting so frustrated as to why I have extra weight on me when I'm not one to sit around! I am incredibly dedicated to eating well and don't have a hard time turning down treats and sticking to healthier food.
I'm 33, F, 5'1, 158lb, work out 5x a week, consume 1600 calories. I do 3 days of training with weights, usually lower lb with higher reps, and 2x HIIT or intense cardio. I take my dog on runs at least 2x a week, either 2 miles around my neighborhood or through nature preserves (I really enjoy the change in scenery and the challenging run!) -- I ALWAYS break a major sweat, whether it's from running or weight training. If I'm not feeling up for a run then I'll at least walk 2 miles or 1 hour. I work in IT so I'm mostly stationary at work and I have a standing desk that I use about 50% of the time. I am constantly on my feet otherwise as I'm a busy body and don't have many hobbies where I sit. The most I'm not on my feet is my 8 hours at work and my 7-8 hours of sleep.
I've tried eating less than 1600 calories and I felt really miserable and fatigued.
I have a scale and weigh nearly all of my food. Cook with an air fryer a lot and use oil sprays, but I do try to calorie count even my oil consumption. Sometimes I'll forget to weigh things like my air-fried carrots or pickle spears, but never higher calorie foods.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
My diet pretty much is this:
Breakfast: 2 eggs, 2 pieces of toast (70 cal eachl), yogurt butter (20 cal) on one side and 25g avocado on the other side, side of fruit -- usually melon, strawberries, kiwi, or tangerine -- or oatmeal with protein powder and sliced fruit
Snack: yogurt with 1/2 serving of my homemade granola (calories are about 150 for granola so usually about a 300cal snack), or a tuna pack with a misc side like a slice of cheese, or nuts and cheese, or a fruit smoothie (80-100g banana, almond milk, 100-120 cal yogurt, 1/2 serving peanut butter)
Post work out protein powder w/almond milk
2nd snack if I'm low on protein: maybe egg whites with salsa and side of black beans or snack mentioned above if I didn't already eat that for the day
Dinner: lean protein like tilapia, chicken, pork tenderloin ~ sometimes a burger (no more than once a week) with homemade air-fryer fries and veggies, or healthy fat fish like salmon or cod, rice, and veggies.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Weekends I'm lax on counting my calories however I'm not going crazy--like eating doughnuts for breakfast, burgers and fries for lunch and pizza for dinner on both Sat and Sunday. I actually eat pretty much the same meals and I still weigh my food when I can however I will let myself have an enjoyable night at least one time on the weekend, and yes, probably eat over 2k for that day. Or heck, maybe I will have a doughnut in the morning and then I'll have some pizza and a beer or two! But it's usually a one night thing, not both Sat and Sunday. I don't feel that I'm binging because I'm not indulging on every meal or eating until I'm feeling physically ill, I rarely feel guilty for enjoying myself, and I'm most active on the weekends -- usually doing yard work as well as spending 3-5 hours of hiking with my dog. My weekends just differ in that I let myself enjoy fun food that I don't have time to make on the weekdays, like some pancakes (a 2-3 stack, about 5 inches in diameter) and bacon along with my usual eggs, lunch is usually something left over or meal prepped, like grilled chicken and veggies or just a snack like a pb&j and a pickle spear or PopChips, and then for dinner we might do pizza or chinese food, or we might grill burgers or make ribs with homemade air-fryer fries, or veggies. When Monday comes around I don't feel worse, guilty, or even bloated. This last weekend my hubby and I took a road trip to some cute old towns. We both unintentionally fasted that morning (woke up late) and ended up stopping at a small diner around 4pm, shared fried mushrooms and onion rings as an app, had sandwiches and fries (I could only eat half my sandwich and half my fries, husband didn't finish his fries), stopped at a brewery for a single beer, and got some ice cream for the drive home. We both threw away half our ice cream (sad face) because we were too full--that was our "cheat" day.
I'm sorry if this was too lengthy, I just didn't want to leave out any crucial details as to how I'm doing things. Thank you so so so much for any opinions or advice.
[link] [comments]
from loseit - Lose the Fat https://ift.tt/2DOSCVO
0 Comments