Cardio Question

[SadFatty]

I need to lose quite a bit of weight. 40-45 pounds. I am currently doing cardio 45 minutes each day and I weight about 155. I was thinking when I get to 140 I can go 6 days a week.....130 5 days a week....120 4 days a week.

How does this sound....the fitter I get the less cardio I need to do?

I am also working out 4 days per week going as strong as I can.

[Suzy Brown]

What's your diet like?

[Tatyana]

Hi and welcome.

That could work.

One other little bit of advice, don't focus on the number on the scales too much.

It can be a useful guide and you may also want to track your bodyfat, some body measurements, use photos and how your clothing is fitting.

What is your diet like?

[SadFatty]

What's your diet like?

It is now excellent.

Here is a sample of a few meals.

Meal 1

ezekiel bread with almond butter
egg and egg whites
1 cup green beans

Meal 2

banana
cottage cheese
1 cup veggies
fish oils and evening primrose oil

Meal 3

basmati rice
protein shake
few nuts
1 cup veggies

Meal 4

chicken breast
1 cup veggies
fish oils and evening primrose


Those are some sample meals. I am eating totally clean....having cottage cheese only about 3 days a week and lean red meat the other 3 days. I have one fruit per day.

The diet is almost like a contest diet. I take a multi, fish oils, evening primrose oils. I have protein shake usually right after a workout.

[SadFatty]

Hi and welcome.

That could work.

One other little bit of advice, don't focus on the number on the scales too much.

It can be a useful guide and you may also want to track your bodyfat, some body measurements, use photos and how your clothing is fitting.

What is your diet like?

Diet is fine. Why not focus on scale numbers. I also have 2 pairs of jeans I go by to see when I'm getting fat. My bodyfat is most likely above 25 percent. :(

[Tatyana]

25% is a normal body fat for a woman, and depending on your age, up to 30% is also normal.

If you are weight training, you are going to get heavier.

I am 5'3" and weigh about 145 lbs in my avatar (the little pic on the left).

[SadFatty]

I am 5'5 and weight 155. I have a bit of cellulite and my bottom and big love handles but no real flab anywhere else. I have the side lines of the abdominals but nothing else. I think if I lost about 10 pounds the cellulite might go away. I used to have cellulite on my tummy but once I started weightlifting and drinking lots of water it disappeared which was thrilling! The stuff on my bottom didn't though.

[Suzy Brown]

Tat is dead on about weight. I'm leaner than ever before in my life and am exactly the same weight as when I started BB. Went from 24% BF and 128(ish) to 13-14% bf and still, hovering around 125-128. I'm 5'4".

[Suzy Brown]

My bottom looks more or less lumpy depending on how many carbs I've eaten the day before.

[tammyp]

its more about diet than cardio really. lots of cardio wont fix a bad diet. try doing the least amount possible to start, its always better to have to add if your not seeing results.

[SadFatty]

its more about diet than cardio really. lots of cardio wont fix a bad diet. try doing the least amount possible to start, its always better to have to add if your not seeing results.

Do you think 45 minutes per day is too much? Also approx how much weight can a person lose per week safely? I was hoping if I eat really clean and not too many cals and continue my weights and cardio I could lose 2 poudns per week.

I don't have much muscle but I really don't want to lose the strength I've built up.

[tammyp]

are you weighing and measuring your foods? what is the cal/pro/fat/carb/ breakdown of your diet?

45 isnt too much, i am curious about the cals you rtaking in.

[Suzy Brown]

O I think 45 is fine, if I had that much weight to lose I'd be doing 2 hours a day.

[SadFatty]

I am measuring and weighing the foods. I intake 1800-1900 cals each day. Sometimes a little less.

If you had about 45 pounds to lose you would do 2 hours daily? That seems like alot but if that is what it takes I will. I have until October to lose it.

[Tatyana]

This is the science of fat loss.

1 lb fat is approximately 3500 kcals, so to lose 2 lbs a week you need to create a 1000 kcal deficit per day (7000 kcals over the week).

That is a HUGE calorie deficit.

If you are hugely overweight or really high bodyfat (and you aren't) you can tolerate this sort calorie deficit as your body knows it has fat stores. There are all sorts of hormonal signals that let the brain/body know this.

1 lb of muscle is 600 kcals (although I did read somewhere that it takes something like 35, 000 kcals to put on one pound of muscle).

If your diet is too calorie restricted and you are normal body fat or leaner, your body is going to try and hold onto fat as our physiology is all wired up to survive living in caves.

Fat equalled survival, whereas extra muscle could be lost.

The problem with the starvation model of dieting is that you just end up as a lighter, but fatter version of yourself. The other issue is that muscle is far more metabolically active than fat, so when you lose muscle, you reduce the number of calories you need in the day.

All that being said, you can lose 2 lbs a week, it is really tough, especially if you want to hold onto muscle.

That is why I also said not to focus on the numbers on the scales too much.

It is great to lose 2 lbs/week, but you have to ask yourself, what are you losing, fat, muscle or water weight?

[SadFatty]

I'm pretty sure I am not starving myself to hold onto fat. Maybe I will only lose 1 pound a week but I would still be happy with that. I weigh myself at the same time each day....as soon as I wake up and go pee....just so I know it isn't water weight I am losing.

[tammyp]

great post tat..you always amaze me!:)

2 hours is too much, and you have til oct? i never do that much cardio when im prepping for a show. too much can be catabolic.

[Tatyana]

Your calories are ok.

What happens with most women when they start training is that they start to recomposition their bodies, which means they put on more muscle and lose fat.

While 1 lb fat weighs the same as 1 lb of muscle, muscle is more dense, it takes up far less space, so you will still look a lot smaller, but the numbers on the scale may not go to the 110 lbs you are seeking.

Focusing on a certain number on the scale is really a recipe for disaster in my opinion.

You could end up at 120-130 lbs, but with a 16% bodyfat (that is lean for a woman).

[SadFatty]

Do you guys know Iris Kyle? She is Ms Olympia.....at her leanest what do you think her bodyfat is. I don't want it that low....I just want to compare. She said it was 3 %. What do you think?

[MsGuns]

Do you guys know Iris Kyle? She is Ms Olympia.....at her leanest what do you think her bodyfat is. I don't want it that low....I just want to compare. She said it was 3 %. What do you think?

I know Iris...
She's pretty tiny in person...
Ive never seen it written about her BF...
I dont think she stays that low thats only for show contest...
Im try to stay @ 10% or less yr round...
Ive been below 5% b4...

[Tatyana]

Pros compete at between 3-6%.

It isn't something they maintain for long periods of time.

This is the rough guide to female bodyfat

25-30 % Overweight up to age 30/ 30+ normal

20-25 % normal bodyfat

Under 20 % Athletic (women aged 16-20 normal from 18-20%)

12-14% essential body fat for normal reproductive function

< 12% ripped

< 10% shredded

< 6% almost impossible, drugs are required.

[Tatyana]

I know Iris...
She's pretty tiny in person...
Ive never seen it written about her BF...
I dont think she stays that low thats only for show contest...
Im try to stay @ 10% or less yr round...
Ive been below 5% b4...

Do you still have periods?

[MsGuns]

Do you still have periods?

yes...i guess Im a rare gem...smile

[SadFatty]

That is me in my avatar about 15 pounds less than I am now. So add 15 pounds to that and that is me.

[Tatyana]

There is going to be a variation in the amount of fat that women need to menstruate.

[aprilmichelle]

Dave has me do 2 hours of cardio starting around 8 weeks out but I always start with about 45 mins every day when I first start prepping. I agree with everyone else, diet is key...Good Luck with your prep! You have a plenty of time, don't get discouraged...you'll make it!

[SadFatty]

It is hard to read your pink April. I would think 2 hours cardio would hurt the metabolism? Or have I been reading this board too much haha. Shouldn't 2 hours be left till the end? So far I like 45 minutes.