I was about the same age and weight as you when I started my weightloss journey. Exercise is fantastic, but cleaning up your nutrition is key. Personally, I would ignore how many calories you think you are burning. To lose weight, I could never eat more than about 1400, even when I weighed 180. I probably ate considerably less while I was in my "lose it NOW" stage, but I wasn't counting calories so I don't know the exact numbers. I was exercising at least that much.
I'm a trainer, and I've seen this... and I think you are answering your own question right here:
Quote:
I confess that my diet has not been the greatest
Ultimately, it's why I "couldn't" get below 135 for 2 1/2 years in spite of daily cardio and daily lifting. I wasn't being completely honest with myself about my diet. It's why I have 2 clients in the same situation. Don't believe the "calories burned" numbers or the lifestyle calories in fitday....Your body may not be burning calories or processing certain nutrients in an average manner.
Sorry if this sounds harsh, and you
do deserve to be proud for sticking with the exercise! You are doing your body a world of good, and you already know that you are slowly changing your body composition, which is what we are all aiming for. But if you truly want to lose the fat, you need to clean up your eating.
I doubt that you are gaining massive amounts of muscle. Unless you have hormonal problems, it's just not possible. Some...5-10 pounds at most...but you can be losing a whole lot more fat that that at the same time.
Mel