[Sheila53]

Hope this is okay to do. I posted a question in this thread:

http://www.3fatchicks.com/forum/show...7&postcount=10

and I wasn't sure if you'd seen it so I wanted to make sure you saw it. Not too pushy, am I?

Thanks!

[Mel]

Mel, could you elaborate on what you did to lose 7% bodyfat in three months? How heavy is HEAVY?

I've been a bit disappointed with my body fat reduction since I started working seriously on weight lifting (only a bit over 1% in over 6 months). Should one get to goal weight (I've got 6 lbs. to make my "high" weight goal, but 14 for my desired goal of 100 lbs. lost) before worrying about body fat reduction? I work with a trainer, and since my principal goals were to lose the weight and get stronger, maybe it's time to re-evaluate where I want to be. When I discovered how much my trainer weighs, I was pretty floored. She looks so tiny in her clothes, and she said most people think she weighs about 110 lbs., but she weighs 136.

Sheila, I have the same reactions from people. Most people guess my weight at about 115, but it is between 125-127. Yay muscle!!!

Here's the short version of what I did and continue to do:
We don't mention it as much here as we used to, but I firmly believe in the 3-legged stool analogy for nutrition, weights and cardio.

Food: about 1400 calories per day broken in 5 meals, protein/carb/fat ratios approximately 45/35/20 of CLEAN food. Nothing processed, no added sugars, no "white stuff". As little wheat as possible. Everything counts.

Cardio: 4-5 days per week of mixed cardio: elliptical, treadmill runs and climbs, cross trainer, recumbent bike, spinning. 35-60 minutes.

Weights: 5 day split 45 minutes-1 hour or more. My usual split is legs, chest, shoulders, back, bis and tris. I work abs in (unweighted) a few sets a couple of times a week. I usually do 4 sets per exercise, lots of supersets, and mix up how many reps I do based on body part and how I feel. Arms and shoulders I never do more than 10 reps per set. Legs- sometimes I'll do sets of 15 or 20 squats or presses, then the next week I'll do decreasing pyramid sets down to 6. I always adjust the weight to end in total fatigue, but not failure since at this point my joints are failing before my muscles. I do lots of plyometrics for legs as part of my supersets. Lots of pushups as part of supersets for chest.

Basically, I train like a bodybuilder. I'm not sure this is really practical unless you have a LOT of time to spend at a gym or really enjoy it.

Hope that helps,

Mel

[sportmom]

Thanks Mel, I enjoyed reading that.

[Sheila53]

Thanks for your reply, Mel. I think I'll talk to my trainer about adjusting my goals.