If you're referring to using those pink 3-5-8 pound weights and doing a kajillion reps, well, that's a myth.
If you want to make changes and burn fat, lifting heavy is the way to go. Sometimes I'll use lighter weights and throw in a high-rep set (for example - 95-pound squats for 15-20 reps or 50-pound leg extensions for 15 reps - going slow and pausing/squeezing at the top of the movement) but if you want to build muscle (which in turn BURNS FAT) you need to push your limits and train to failure. If you don't push yourself, you can't expect changes, right?
I went from a size 10 to a size 4 (don't ask me about scale weight - I don't know and I don't care!) lifting heavy weights...
Too often and much to my dismay, I hear women protest against using any appreciable weight in their weight training program. Moreover, many young women completely refrain from resistance training; instead spending countless hours on the cardio deck in a fruitless effort to attain an ideal physique. What is the ideal physique and why are women so afraid of lifting a dumbbell that isn’t pink or red? The answer to the first question lies in a complex paradox of social and cultural influences. In answer to the second question, many women believe lifting weights will make them explode with bulging muscles. Another reason is women believe they cannot lift anything heavier than their makeup case. These are unfortunate idiosyncratic fallacies amongst women. Generally speaking, women fear muscles...
Women who fear resembling the Hulk should immediately put that anxiety to rest. It just won’t happen. For a simple reason: hormones. Women are from the planet Estrogen; men are from Testosterone. Although both genders produce both hormones, the relative ratios are significantly different. Men normally produce higher levels (approximately 10 times that of women) of testosterone and lower levels of estrogen. Women produce the opposite.
Let’s talk about why women should partake in resistance training.
Life and weight loss: In our society, women are obsessed with weight control. Unfortunately, that obsession normally centers on the bathroom scale and does not consider changes in body composition (ratio of body fat to lean body mass). Most fad diets result in a loss of muscle tissue as well as body fat. A person can lose half of their body fat and remain alive; but if you lose half of your muscle mass, you will most likely die. Because muscle is denser than body fat, a person who is weight training may show slower changes on the scale but faster changes in body composition.
Muscles burn fuel: Muscle burns more calories than body fat. Muscle cells have organelles called mitochondria, often referred to by physiologists as a cell’s ‘power plant’. They provide the energy for nearly all of the metabolic processes that take place within the cell. Muscle cells are very busy and the mitochondria constantly transform chemical energy into mechanical energy. Reactions within the mitochondria break the bonds of fuel molecules and release energy for cells to use. During endurance exercise most of the energy for muscle activity is provided by mitochondria. This is used as the primary argument for the performance of copious amounts of endurance exercise. While it is true that calories are burned during endurance exercise, only resistance training can increase muscle mass. More muscle = more mitochondria = more fuel burned.
Weight training can increase basal metabolic rate: Basal metabolic rate refers to the number of calories used by the body at rest, and makes up 60-75% of the body’s total energy expenditure. While aerobic exercise burns calories during activity (and a small amount afterwards), it has minimal effect on basal metabolic rate. Additionally, extensive periods of aerobic activity can decrease basal metabolic rate by causing muscle loss. In contrast, a proper resistance-training program can increase muscle mass, and hence the metabolic rate. For general overall health and weight control, weight training is a necessary component of a woman’s exercise program.
Muscle inactivity leads to muscle weakness and wasting: Muscle fibers must be physically active if they are to remain in good health. Otherwise, they will degenerate and lose mass. We have all seen (or known) older individuals who lacked the strength to walk without aid, or get out of a chair under their own power. This represents an extreme of muscle and strength loss. Less muscle mass also means the body burns less fuel. Most importantly, less muscle mass means a decline in strength. Consequently, sedentary people have an increased need to incorporate exercise into their weekly activities to maintain muscle mass, strength and aid in weight control.
Muscles and mass give women power over their own lives: When was the last time you refused with a smile the bag boy’s offer to take out your groceries? When was the last time you changed the tire on your car by yourself? How soon did you huff and puff the last time you climbed those three flights of stairs? How young will you be when you are forced to enter a nursing home because your wasted muscle mass can no longer support your frail bones? Muscles are required in order for women to take charge of their own physical life. They are necessary to provide for a woman’s welfare and ability to fend for herself. As well, muscle mass contributes to weight control, especially in later life. Moreover, it makes women feel good about themselves.
Toning is not resistance training. Nor will it build muscle mass. Use the word ‘toning’ in a gym and watch the hardcore weightlifters cringe and sneer. The term ‘toning’ is erroneously applied to doing countless reps with small amounts of weight that don’t incrementally challenge the muscle. That muscle adapts quickly to moving a weight for a given number of reps and is no longer stimulated. The weight must be progressively increased in small increments for muscles to grow.
For generations women have been perceived as being the weaker sex. Not true. Strength and speed are not a monopoly of the male gender. Women and men have the same capability to develop strength and speed. Relative to fat free body mass, women have nearly the same strength as men. If one were to take the same muscle unit from a woman and a man and put it in an identical artificial environment with the same growth media and the same stimulation, the muscles would grow at the same rate. However, in the body’s environment, the hormonal and metabolic environment varies between men and women. Women have smaller muscle fibers and ordinarily have less muscle mass. Nevertheless, women are gaining in rate of competitive performance on a par with men in both speed and strength. Women are realizing they can perform daily activities that require strength that they previously thought they could not do. Physical strength will increase a woman’s independence in everyday life.
A sensible program of combining resistance and aerobic exercise will increase strength and stamina. Resistance training will stimulate the muscles to remain strong and robust. A moderate amount of aerobic activity will contribute to greater endurance and overall increases in efficient body metabolism.
Sadly, women generally don’t realize how strong they are or how strong they can be. Many women don’t know their own power and feel safe within their imposed boundaries. They are afraid to exert themselves. It is time to break that mold. Use as much weight as you can and move that weight with intensity. Challenge yourself. Set goals and work hard to achieve them. Be strong and feel strong. When you can curl that 10-pound dumbbell for 12 reps, grab the next heavier dumbbell and do it again. Go for that extra rep. Embrace the feeling of contracting muscle. Push yourself and rejoice in your accomplishments.
For more info, I invite you and EVERYONE to visit our "Body for Life/Bodybuilding" forum here on Diet Plans! See ya there!
I am so glad there are people like Mrs. Jim and Krista the Weightlifting Goddess out there to dispel the myths of female weightlifting. Weightlifting (slow and heavy) is what got me to goal, in addition to turning into a compulsive runner, that is. You will look ten, twenty, thirty times more fabulous than you currently look (and I am sure you already look fabulous) if you start lifting slow and heavy with a good, regular program of basic exercises. Read Krista's website from top to bottom! I used to go there and revisit my favorite pages, just as inspiration when I was feeling a long way from goal. Like Krista, my most triumphant moment came when I could do my first unassisted chinup!
I also find lifting mentally relaxing. The hard effort causes my entire body AND mind to relax after the workout. It feels like narcotics, girls. For stress-busting, you can't beat it. You will get NO such benefits from hefting little old dumbbells around a few times. In my humble opinion (or not so humble, since I did lose 135 lbs doing this .... hee hee), you have got to exhaust each muscle before moving on. Lift heavy enough that you cannot do another rep with good form, then you'll know you're done!
And back to the original topic of loose skin ... I am so glad I had the arm surgery. Not to throw a wrench into the works, because I HEARTILY endorse weight training as an alternative to surgery if it works for you, but my arms were a mess. I had skin hanging down over my elbow in the back, and the entire upper arm was crepey and full of stretch marks. I was miserable every time I looked at it. All my hard work did not alter what looked like "shredded skin" to me. Surgery did NOT get rid of the stretch marks, which will be my lifetime reminder of spending most of my life obese ... but it DID pull them tight and make them much less visible and it lopped off the excess skin. I am pleased with the arms but recognize the futility of ever achieving "perfection." Oh, well!
Bottom line -- pump iron! I never knew what my body was born to look like until I reduced my bodyfat to about 15% and developed my musculature. I look pretty damn good for an FMO (formerly morbidly obese)!
I am also very interested in getting surgery both arms and stomach after about a 80 pound loss. I have been doing a lot of research and attended a consultation. So far the amounts I hear are so high. Evethough they offer financing it is very hard without the help of your health insurance contributing.
Isn't it sad that after all the reports that america waists so much on medical care yearly because of various illnesses, many times caused obesety. Still insurances do not find it in there best interest to help us achieve an ideal weight in order to prevent these illness from ever starting. For those of us whom have shown a true interest in being healthy members of society there shoud be some kind of help with plastic surgery. Those are my thoughts.
PS: Very inspired by all of you ladies. There are
some strong persevering women in this site and together
we will overcome. Lots of continued success to all..
Hi-this is my first reply to this thread-It is pretty long, so I have skimmed over most of it.
I myself do not think plastic surgery is necessary to remove excess skin is necessary unless you have lost over 100 pounds-and it should definietly not be done unless you are done having children, or do not plan to.
Tummy tucks, arms, and breast lifts leave exstensive scarring, which I think is more unattractive than the skin, especially in the breast lifts. It is not to be taken lightly. You can hide the tummy tuck and breast scars obviously under clothing, but the arms scars are long and go almost to your elbow area. if I were to consider this type of surgery, I would be just as unhappy and self consieous about the scars as I am the skin-so it is not even a consideration when I get to my goal weight. I'll just stick on a good bra to hold up my breasts, and tone up my arms and abs as much as possible with resistance training.
If any of you are considering it, take a look at the plastic surgeon websites and look at the scarring to see if it is something you can live with.
As far as the weightlifting issue-it is really about how much tone and definition you want. My stepfather is a bodybuilder, and my mother and I also weight train. You CAN get tone from smaller weights-5-10 pounds, especially beginners who have never weight trained. If you are not strong enough to keep proper form during the exercise, then you are doing too much weight and need to use less until you are stronger. What Mrs.J is doing is GREAT, but you can't just walk into the gym and start using the heavies-work up to it. I am only saying this to help beginners avoid injury or feel disappointed if they cannot do heavy weight right away.
You will also find that you can do more weight with some exercises, and others you have to be careful. Triceps, for example, is one you have to really watch your form on-and if you cannot do it with correct form, than you are better of doing light weight and doing it RIGHT.
Small boned ladies-if you have small wrists, it helps to wear wrist braces/weightlifting gloves to relieve the stress on them during some exercises, such as bicep curls. This can also keep you from getting any callouses if you tend to squeeze your weights too much.
Aphil
Many women I know start with the 5-8-10 pound weights - because that's as much as they can lift. In fact, when I started doing this in April 2001, my triceps were my weakest muscle group - I would use the 7.5 pound weights to do lying dumbbell extensions and just BARELY be able to finish 8 reps.
However - once you're able to do, say, 12 reps in a set at one weight level - it's time to MOVE UP to a higher weight. Muscles won't develop (sorry, can't stand that word "tone" - that's a knob on my stereo!) unless you CHALLENGE them. I do emphatically agree that FORM is most important. Let's say you're doing dumbbell kickbacks using 10 pound weights, using perfect form (see Krista's website - she has an EXCELLENT page on form called "from Dork to Diva") and you can do 12 reps easily - well, pardner, it's time to move up to the 12- or 15-pound weights.
When I'm moving to a higher weight, sometimes I'll do a 'drop set' when I can't finish all my reps at that higher weight. What that means, is when I positively can't do another rep at, say, 20 pounds, but I still have a few reps to go, I'll drop down to the 17.5 pound dumbbells and finish my set.
Again - form is MOST important - but once the weight you're lifting becomes easy - it's time to move up - otherwise you're just wasting your time. You have to keep challenging your muscles for them to grow (and again, don't worry - you WON'T end up looking like Ms. Steroid Freak - muscle is SEXY and it BURNS FAT like you wouldn't believe - plus you can eat more than if you were just doing cardio or nothing at all - gotta feed those muscles!).
PS - as far as my triceps - they've defnitely gotten stronger (and my upper arms MUCH less jiggly) - I can now do 10 reps of skullcrushers @60 pounds!!! Woo hoo!
Personally I prefer a gym - but I do know some folks who work out at home. I've been a member of 24 Hour Fitness since 1994 - the one I belong to is two floors, has a WEALTH of free weights, machines and cardio equipment - and only costs me $24 a month!
"Body for Life" is a GREAT program for getting your feet wet in strength training. You should be able to find the book at any library or purchase it for less than $20. The reason I recommend BFL is that it is a COMPLETE program - nutrition and training. Bill Phillips (the author) does recommend his Myoplex shakes, but you can get great results with just real food.
This was mentioned earlier in the thread but DO check out Mistress Krista's website at http://www.stumptuous.com/weights.html - I'm pretty sure it's the only weight training website around specifically geared towards women (AND it's a fun read to boot!).
Oh, one more thing - we do have a BFL/Bodybuilding forum right here under Diet Plans - feel free to check it out - we're a happening group!
Hi,
I was the original starter of the Doin' it the Old Fashioned Way thread on diet plans. Feel free to join us also. We are all women who are losing through a balanced diet and exercise.
I am one of those who prefers to work out at home. You CAN get gym results with some basic equipment-If you can get a simple weight bench that can be flat or inclined, and have a sturdy chair-like from your kitchen table, and some weights you will be fine. I also do MANY exercise that do not require weights at all, but utilize your own body weight as resistance. You do not have to have a ton of dumbells, just start with a couple pairs and buy more or add weight to yours (depending on what you are using) as you progress.
I like to do my training alone rather in the gym.-it is my time. I do it when my husband leaves for work before my kids get up. It relaxes me and frees me of stress.
I also have some basic cardio eqipment at home-just a bike, and some dance supplies-I bellydance and do yoga also.
When you look at my signature-do not let my 200 pound weight fool you-I had lost and gotten to goal and was VERY firm and fit, and had baby#2-I am a gestational diabetic which causes the mom and baby to gain excess during pregnancy-so I am slowly going down the scales again!
I also wanted to say that on the DITOFW thread-we are not all on the same plan. We do not advocate one plan over another, as far as BFL, WW, Richard Simmons, etc. They all have their advantages and disadvantages. We welcome anyone following a balanced plan-meaning no fad diets, diet pills,etc.-and a lot of our posters are also on another board as well. What is great for one person is not great for another. Some of us on 3FC do not want to be bodybuilders or run in marathons-some of us do. Some of us need the emotional support Richard Simmons provides to the seriously overweight and just want to be able to walk and perform normal activities without getting winded. Some of us need the weekly weigh in and meetings of WW to keep themsleves honest. Whatever works for you is fine with me. BFL is great-and while I follow some principles of the plan-and did even before the book was written-I do some things differently, like while I am a "grazer" I do not stick to the exact number of meals, etc. Some of us love the idea of having a free eating day once a week-I prefer having a small treat under 100 calories each day and other than that pretty much staying on plan. Do what works for you, and you have to do what you like.
As far as exercise-on our thread while I preach the benefits of weight training-I am happy if my ladies are doing ANYTHING. We have a lady that walks miles and miles each week, and we have a runner-(I hate running and will only run if being chased)-and so on.
I am in support of anyone who wants to make a change in their lives, and at whatever stage they are in in their journey of getting healthy.
I wish everyone well in their journeys to better selves, and everyone is welcome to our thread also.
Aphil
I posted earlier on this thread about my experiences with excess/loose skin after losing 120 or so pounds. Currently I weigh 134 pounds, am 5'4" and am at 13% bodyfat (and am 47).
I am satisfied with my upper body but not with my legs (where I was heaviest) so I scheduled a consultation with a plastic surgeon. I found a very reputable one (head of the department at our medical school) and went yesterday with my list of questions. First, and the good news is, he was absolutely blown away by how good of shape I am in (as I posted previously, I've been lifting weights all through my weight loss -- very similar to BFL). He said he has never had a patient who has lost as much as I have with visible abs! Most of his patients who have lost significant weight have done it through weight loss surgery and he said they frequently have rolls and rolls of fat remaining. He called everyone in his office in to see me (as I am standing there in my panties!).
My first question to him was how much of what I see on my legs is fat and how much is excess skin and he said that (at 13% BF) there is very little fat left on my body and it is ALL excess skin on my legs and butt. He took his hands and circled them around my thigh at my knee and lifted and yes, it is all skin. All of a sudden I had a slim leg with muscle definition, which is of course what I want. To my consternation, he said that I have an "enormous" amount of excess skin on my lower stomach and thighs and butt, and that, if removed and spread out, it would cover yards (not just feet). Yikes! How can I fit into size 4 pants with yards of excess skin? How small WOULD I be without it?
My next question was: will it improve over time and the bad news is that he said "no." Usually he would tell someone who had lost a great deal of weight to give it time to stabilize, but due to my low body fat % and good muscle tone, he said there won't be much in the way of change. Time isn't going to make it go away.
On one hand, it makes me happy that it is not fat and maybe I've done all I can in terms of diet and exercise to get rid of it but then the question is -- what to do about it? The doctor suggested a surgical procedure -- and I don't know the medical name (obviously I have a lot of research to do) -- in which he basically circumnavigates my lower body around my butt and in front at what would be the bikini line and pulls everything up -- he said about 6 - 7 inches! -- and gets rid of the loose lower abdominal skin at the same time. He would also tighten up those lower ab muscles stretched by pregnancy. It is major surgery but he said not very painful since no organs or joints are involved. It's about a 2 - 3 week recovery. He said that he felt I would have excellent results due to my muscularity and low body fat % -- you need something to anchor the skin to!
I don't have a lot more details because this is all preliminary but I am thinking seriously about doing it if it is the only way to get rid of the skin. I've worked awfully hard to get to where I am and I still wouldn't wear a bathing suit or shorts, so what else can I do?
Unfortunately it looks like insurance won't cover it (although it would if I had WLS -- go figure!) and he is going to send me a proposal with prices at the end of the week. I'll keep everyone updated.
It was worthwhile to spend the $75 for the consultation and I would urge this (consultation, not necessarily surgery) as a possibility for all who have lost a lot of weight and have concerns about this skin issue.
I see nothing wrong with having those type of surgeries. From your experience I have a question for you. What type of exercises did you do for your abs??
A lot of times doctor's won't give you surgery until you've maintained your weight loss for at least a few years. Did he ask you about that??
You are simply amazing!!! I'm in awe of how you've lost so much weight!! How long did it take you????? Sorry to be so full of questions but it really motivates me and surprises me how people can lose so much weight!!!
Hi Happy Housewife_- don't apologize for your questions -- if I can help one person experience the joy of FINALLY conquering the weight loss monster, I'll be thrilled! I don't know about you, but my struggles with my weight have been the biggest frustration of my life. Everything else that I wanted to accomplish, I could, through hard work and perseverance. And finally, at the ripe old age of 47, I learned how to lose weight and it’s just what they’ve always said: diet and exercise. No magic pills or drinks in a can or ab exercisers.
Briefly (and I'd be happy to go into greater length in a PM if you want more details), it seems like I had been a WW member for my whole life, never losing more than 25 or 30 pounds and then putting it back on -- plus more -- and then trying again in a vicious cycle that put me up to 257 pounds. I'm hypothryoid also and I figured I was doomed to be fat by my metabolism (wrong!). Last May (2001), my daughter wanted to join a gym and I went around with her to look at them and joined with her on a whim, not knowing if I'd ever go (major intimidation factor plus I hated to exercise). At that point, I realized that I was clueless about the gym and signed up for five weeks with a personal trainer. I told myself I would do EXACTLY what he told me to do for those five weeks and I did. He explained to me that there are three parts to losing weight -- nutrition, cardio (to burn calories) and lifting weights (to build muscle). You see, I never realized that I was losing muscle as well as fat on WW and then gaining back strictly fat with all my yo-yo'ing. That's how I ended up with 57% body fat -- a truly horrendous number. So I did exactly what he said and in the first four weeks, I lost 25 pounds of fat and gained ten pounds of muscle, for a net loss of 15 pounds. And I've never looked back. Now I am completely hooked on lifting weights and going to the gym. Who would have thought?
I did (and still do) an hour of cardio a day, which admittedly some people think is excessive, and lift weights five days a week (again, some may think that's too much). I eat 5 - 6 small meals per day of about 1300-1400 calories total, made up of about 50% protein, 30% complex carbs (no sugar or white stuff, very little fruit and dairy), and 20% fat. It's really quite similar to Body For Life and you can find a lot of great info on BFL on their threads.
And I kept losing steadily for 11 months until I reached 136 and 16% fat in May, 2002. My weight has stayed fairly steady since then, but my body fat % is still dropping, indicating that I am still adding muscle and losing fat, even if the scale stays the same. I went from a size 22 to a 4 in those 11 months. Can you say “whole new wardrobe”?
I don't do anything particularly special for abs -- just crunches and the usual. I'm just fortunate that my body does not store fat there. It was all on my hips and thighs and butt, which is why I have the excess skin problems there. Everyone is different where they hold their fat and you can't spot reduce -- you just have to lose the fat from all over until you see abs and biceps and triceps and quads and all the cool muscles (and there is nothing more fun than being a 47 year-old mom with muscles).
The plastic surgeon did say that ordinarily he would advise someone to wait on the surgery to see if their body continues to change, but because I have so little fat left (13% -- maybe less by now -- I'm aiming for 12% as a final goal) and I'm in such good shape, he said I should do it now. If I do decide to go ahead with it, I'll wait until after the holidays, so I have plenty of time to think and to research.
Ask away on the questions. I think that places like 3FC are invaluable sources of information for all of us and help us in our common journey. You are doing fabulously well yourself. What program are you following or are you doing your own? How long has it taken you?
Well, I'm still amazed at you! WAY TO GO, GIRL!!! I'm actually doing my own thing. I'm trying to do the 3-meal a day thing. Maybe one or two snacks, if I'm hungry. (But I am rarely really hungry), I just eat out of bordom. It's taken me since the beginning of April to lose this measley 30 pounds. The rest just won't seem to come off. No matter what!!
I just try to start over everyday. I'm going to do about 30 minutes worth of cardio now.
Do you eat a mostly vegetarian diet, or do you eat mostly meats and low-carb foods???
Have a great day! Catch ya later!!
Meg - I think you've done wonderfully judging from your numbers
Believe me, I'd be tempted to get a thigh lift/tummy tuck as well (I believe that's the procedure you're referring to) because even though my skin IS tightening up, it's a long process. In addition, I'd been on the diet rollercoaster since I was 7 years old...
Here are my reasons why I can't do it:
1) MONEY!!!! I live in the Bay Area so I expect the procedure would be even more costly here than elsewhere. Using my sister as an example - when she had her breasts lifted, it cost $4,000. From what I've read a thigh lift alone (without the tummy tuck) can run from $5,500 - $8,000 in surgical costs. I just don't have that kind of money lying around and I refuse to go into hock for it. (and if I HAD the money - I'd probably buy a horse )
2) I'm a big chicken as far as pain and surgery go - my dentist has to give me a Valium BEFORE the novocaine when I get a filling done! Even though they knock you out for this kind of surgery...it still scares me.
3) I have a real tendency to develop keloid scarring - I have a 2" keloid on my wrist from 7 years ago. Not pretty. I can only imagine how horrible a keloid running around my waist would look!
Fortunately I love training with weights and will keep pumping!
)
