Hi Everyone,

I found John's web page a few days ago and found it to be very helpful. I have been doing cardio for about 6 months and recently have been doing strength training as well. I would love some input from everyone though because my body fat is not moving and I'm having a hard time losing anymore weight. My tanita scale says I am 28-30% body fat so I've got a ways to go yet...

Schedule: (doing the reps and sets in body for life book, this is where i get my exercises from also)
Upper body/twice weekly
Lower/twice weekly
Abs/twice weekly

Cardio 5 times weekly for about 30/45 minutes and I am eating a clean diet although I do have a free day or meal once a week.

Any input would be appreciated on what I can do to get more toned/defined and anything else! Thanks!

Those body fat scales arent really that acurate, so I would suggest getting a caliper reading to get a more acurate result...

Consider doing HIIT instead of regular intensity cardio to speed things up. I switched to HIIT about a week ago and it sped up my weight loss alot.

BTW looking great!!!! :tu:

Your pictures do NOT show someone at 28-30% bodyfat.

My electric scale measures me consistently ~5% higher then the caliper method.

Most important thing is taming your diet. The tool I found that FINALLY worked for me is fitday.com (Recommended by members of this forum!)

When I look at what I've already eaten and what my goals are (40/40/20, ~2000 Calories) it helps me make intelligent food choices for my other meals so that I achieve my goals. Almost immediately upon using Fitday.com I started dropping a pound every couple days versus stalled fatloss for a couple months.

-Allen

The Tanita scales are ... well ... garbage. I have found them to be VERY inaccurate. Calipers are affordable and more consistent.

As far as you reaching a plateau, tell us about your diet. I think you'll find that it all comes down to "you are what you eat". Do you log your calories and nutrients? How bad is your weekly cheat day?

Best wishes!

... one last thing. You look great !!!

Hi Mandi, welcome to the forum!

First off, you really don't have much fat to lose at all, IMO. I don't think there's any way you could be at 30% BF!

It sounds like your workouts and cardio are good, if not a little excessive. With the exception of your abs, working each muscle group intensely just once per week should be sufficient. Overtraining can really hurt your progress - you've got to give your muscles plenty of time to recover and grow.

Of course proper diet is the key to getting "toned" and, because you say you are eating clean, you are already doing the most important thing when it comes to fat-loss. You might want to post an example of a typical day's food intake if you are at all unsure about your diet. You really don't have far to go; you should look tight and toned in practically no time if you stick to you plan. Good luck!

Ok, so I have switched to HIIT traning for my cardio and I plan on doing this before I eat in the morning. Hopefully this helps with the weight loss and fat loss. My legs were shaking this morning upon completion of this! I think I will also find another method of tracking my fat loss. My biggest problem is my hips/legs...anything I can do for this area? I assume this will become less noticeable once my body fat goes down??

I am eating:
protein: chicken, fish and lean beef, tuna, egg whites (about 6 oz. serving)
carbs: brown rice, fruits, yogurt, oatmeal, etc. (serving size of fist)
Veggies about twice daily if not more
some fats: olive oil, avocado's
and plenty of water.

I have not tracked my eating and plan to start using fitday.com because maybe I am still eating to much, not sure. I assume I should be eating around 1200/1500 calories a day if I want to lose weight?
Thanks again, I really appreciate all the advice....and of course John you are an awesome inspiration!

Mandi

Ok, so I have switched to HIIT traning for my cardio and I plan on doing this before I eat in the morning. Hopefully this helps with the weight loss and fat loss. My legs were shaking this morning upon completion of this! I think I will also find another method of tracking my fat loss. My biggest problem is my hips/legs...anything I can do for this area? I assume this will become less noticeable once my body fat goes down??

I am eating:
protein: chicken, fish and lean beef, tuna, egg whites (about 6 oz. serving)
carbs: brown rice, fruits, yogurt, oatmeal, etc. (serving size of fist)
Veggies about twice daily if not more
some fats: olive oil, avocado's
and plenty of water.

I have not tracked my eating and plan to start using fitday.com because maybe I am still eating to much, not sure. I assume I should be eating around 1200/1500 calories a day if I want to lose weight?
Thanks again, I really appreciate all the advice....and of course John you are an awesome inspiration!

Mandi
Your food choices look excellent.

Your hips and legs will shrink as you lose body fat, but there's no way to target those areas specifically. Most women store fat in those areas first, and that's also the last place it will come off. Us guys tend to store fat around our lower abs first. I think you'll find HIIT cardio just the what you needed to kick start your fat-loss.

Mandi,

Personally, I think you look HOT already. ;) Wow! There is no way you are 30% body fat either. You have great proportions.

I wish you luck!

Mandi,

There is no electronic gizmo, or magical tape that will tell you when you're at an "ideal body weight". The best instrument for measuring body fat is attached to the wall above your bathroom sink. Or for some of us in our work out rooms. A mirror. Don't be a slave to a percentage. Get yourself to a point where you want to look. If you want to measure once you get there that'll be good.

:db: :flex: :db:

i think you have a nice body already...
nice work..keep it up!!

Mandi- you're already looking great! Keep up the good work.

I agree with everyone above about the HIIT cardio. Switching your routine could really boost your fat loss.

One item- in your diet, I would watch the fruits. Since fruits are mostly sugars they are not the best pick for cutting. If you are going to eat them, try to just eat them in the morning.

Hope this helps, and keep us posted with your progress.