Hi everyone!

I've been dieting and exercising for 45 mins-1hr every day for about a month now--and my number hasn't changed. By diet, I don't mean I'm on a strict plan, but I've passed up dessert altogether (except fruit and 99% cocoa chocolate squares) and creamy/fried/saucy foods and red meat are out the window. My workout is stretching + 100 squats + 60 mountain climbers + power walking.

What's the problem here?? I lost 3 pounds at some point, only to find this morning that I was back where I started. I'm really frustrated and even thought of skipping meals, but I'm scared of the yo-yo effect. The only effect my diet seems to be having is that I'm missing my periods...

I know I may be gaining muscle and it weighs more than fat, but does that stage really last a month? I really want to lose 15 pounds by June. What can I do? I would really appreciate your advice on anything!! Thank you!

At 5'6 and 132 you are already at a normal healthy weight so if you want to be 115 (which is only 0.1 point above underweight BMI) then it's not exercise, it's a very strict meal plan that will get you there. It's very very hard to take the body down to that level because it's fighting it's natural weight.

Since you are already thinking of skipping meals and have lost your period, are you sure that is a place you want to go (mentally)? Remember it takes many months/years to see changes from exercise (and lifting very heavy/doing HIIT would get you better results than your current plan) so it sounds like you might just be going about it in a less than efficient way.

132 and 5'6 with one or two years of very heaving lifting & HIIT will look even more lean than 115 at 5'6 without lifting.

JMO, as someone who has been into bodybuilding for a few years

I agree, 115 does seem like a low number to aim for at your height. If you're dead set on getting their, at least do it the healthy way......honestly, I'd step up your workout and eat VERY clean. If you're doing this same workout over and over your body has probably become used to it, so try changing it up. Skipping meals is not a path you want to go down,! Do it the right way, nourish your body, give it the fuel it needs and deserves. The fact that you're missing periods doesn't seem healthy to me at all, however I'm not a medical expert so that's something I'd speak to your Doctor about. Best wishes to you.

i think you need to count calories just to make sure you're being fully accountable with yourself. and like others have said, you will probably have to cut back more to get down that low...and see if it's something you really want to do. it sounds like your body is comfortable at 130...

OK, I'll get to monitoring myself really closely...i don't think lifting is really for me though, i'm already suffering from bulky muscular thighs

i don't know how concerned i should be about my period, i'm actually not regular yet and didn't get a single one throughout junior year (last year).

i really really REALLY want to shed all this off. how many calories should i be eating a day?

I agree with the others that skipping meals is not a good solution. When you get down to your goal weight you're either going to maintain there by continuing to skip meals, or your going to risk gaining the weight back because adding those meals back to your diet might increase your calories by too much.

If you don't want to count calories, maybe you should try changing the structures of your meals in a way that's sustainable. One way to lower calories of meals is to add a larger percentage of raw vegetables to all of your meals. If you don't like the idea of eating vegetables with breakfast, add some more raw fruits to it and reduce the quantity of the rest. I did this for nutrition a few years ago and my set weight of 125 at 5'4 dropped to around 115 without any extra effort as long as I continue eating this way. The only times I go up in weight now are those where raw produce start becoming a smaller percentage of what I eat.

it depends on your weight, height, how active you are. you can use online calculators to find out your bmr- basal metabolic rate. you can also find body fat calculators using your measurements with measuring tape. plug the numbers in a few different ones, kinda get an average.

the basal metalbolic rate just means how many calories (an estimate) you burn just laying around sleeping. from there it depends how much activity you do.

don't freak, out guidelines for a healthy woman can be 15-20% body fat, i think. but even if it says you're at 30% it's not really terrible, that's about where i am. we can always improve.

[QUOTE=kooo;3731226]OK, I'll get to monitoring myself really closely...i don't think lifting is really for me though, i'm already suffering from bulky muscular thighs

i don't think you should just stop ALL lifting. weight training is great! having lots of muscle is great! revs up your metabolism, burning more calories all the time even when you're watching TV, lol.

can you see the muscle on your thighs?



i think instead of stopping all weight training, focus on doing less weight, more reps. or if you're not using weight- in the case of the squats, do less of these, more of the barr, yoga, or other type of lenthening exercises to try to get the look you're talking about.

Women hold more fat in their thighs/hips, so it's not muscle (sorry) it is body fat distribution. The kind of exercise you are doing doesn't build muscle that much. I can squat 150lbs and don't have any 'bulk', it's body fat %.

You really need to get your period checked. It may or may not be weight/diet related (many women are irregular for other reasons) but overall it's a health concern (in general)

At 5'6 and 132, you would probably have to be at 1300-1400 calories (no going over - your deficit is too small to not be accurate) for quite a long time. I honestly wouldn't recommend it due to the amount of muscle loss you would experience. You would become, IMO, "skinny fat" (your body would be smaller but not fit looking). Different strokes for different folks - you would still be in the healthy BMI range.

But if you are wanting to skip meals etc. that's really a bad sign that this arbitrary number might be messing with your mind too much. Good luck

@katy trail: i'm no body builder, but my legs to have a shape to them--i wouldn't say i'm not fit, i've always exercised regularly and have been doing taekwondo for 12 years now. i think it's just that my fast-twitch muscles are more expansive than i'd like...

@sacha: really? i mean if so, i guess it's alright as in i have more exercise options, but i've done a lot of exercise over the years that use thigh muscles. (my hips ARE chubby because of fat though, for sure) when i tense up my leg, there doesn't seem to be extra flab, it's just that my leg in itself is so huge!!
i've had my period for 4 years...are most people regular by then? Thanks for your help!!

I am 5'4 and my ideal weight is around 125 but you are two inches taller than me so I think 115 is just too low for you.

This is a nice article to read about this subject

http://www.stumptuous.com/honesty-is-the-best-policy

Sacha that is a GREAT article. It inspired me to actually measure out a cup of milk for my Slim Fast this morning for the first time in the 10 years I have consumed that drink. Thanks for sharing!

Holy moly I love that article!! Bookmarking it.

Great article.