QuestionQUESTION: Hi Tasha,
First of all, thanks for answering all questions! It really can make a difference..
So, my story goes like this: it's been a year now that I've been trying to loose weigh. I'm 28 years old and work in an office. I have started going to the gym, fixed my nutrition (was actually under-eating beforehand) and made any possible change in order to reduce by BF% from 28% to something lower together with loosing a couple of kilos.
I initially gained some weight (around 2-2.5 kg) which i suppose was because i started eating normal again (from around 900 kcals/day to around 1400 kcals/day which is my resting metabolic rate). From around December, i have stopped gaining but don't seem to be able to either loose weight or lower my BF%.
A typical week of training is:
- Mon-Wed-Fri: whole body circuit workout (40-50mins)
- Tue: 40min swimming
- Thu: 40 min interval cardio
- Sat: rest
- Sun: 45-60 min cardio
A typical daily food intake:
8am: low-fat strain greek yogurt (love it! and is also high in protein) + 2tbsp granola + 1tsp seeds
10am: small fruit+low fat cheese OR half wholemeal turkey sandwitch
(workout usually between 11:30-12:30)
1pm: bananna+whey shake OR 1/2bananna+whey shake with milk
2.30pm: tuna OR chicken and cottage cheese salad (spinach, greens, cabbage, carrot)
4.30pm: low-fat strain greek yogurt + 1tbsp seeds
7.30pm: omelet(2 egg white, 1 whole eg) and salad OR salmon and broad bean salad OR beef and peas casserole with salad
10.30pm: low-fat strain greek yogurt + 1tbsp seeds + 1tsp honey
I usually drink 1 coffee a day plus lots of tea!
All in all should be around 1500 kcal/day
So, after all of that i still can't loose any weight, nor loose inches or BF%. Where do you think all of this goes wrong? It is my nutrition, my exercise routine, both?
Any suggestions would help me a lot!
Thanks,
Anna
ANSWER: Hello Anna,
First of all my name is Laurie and I'm a registered dietitian... I'm not sure if you meant to send this question to someone else.
Nevertheless, I have a couple of ideas for you....
1) Have you been eating and exercising like this for the entire year? Or just started... if so it may take some time to see results
2) Do you eat exactly these foods every day? You never eat out or eat with friends or break down and have a snack? If so you are very unusual! It's proven to help weight loss if you keep a food diary and I'm not sure if you are?
3) I don't know your current height and weight, but 1500 calories could possibly be not low enough to see the weight loss you want... I'm also not sure of your portion sizes and you could certainly be eating 1700 to 1800 calories and thinking it's 1500.
4) the amount of exercise you are doing is perfect for maintaining weight loss. However, exercise is not as efficient in helping for weight loss. You may be burning about 300 calories per work out and you might want to add to it---another 15 minutes to what you are doing or perhaps a 20 minute walk in the morning or evening would burn an extra 500 calories per week.
---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------
QUESTION: Hi Laurie,
I'm really sorry for the name, i just asked the same question to a couple of people but was actually wanted your opinion (that's why i resend it with the correct name)! Sorry for that..
Thanks for answering, it means a lot!
On your questions:
1) I have started exercise regularly from last May, the current training schedule i do for about 6 months now (with holiday breaks of course for xmas, easter, weekends etc)
2) That's a typical day's food. I'm not eating exactly the same every day and of course i eat out with friends and have the occasional treat. But i am just quite careful not to eat too many treats to often
3) You are absolutely right i forgot the most important info! My height is 1.7m and my current weight 66kg (started from 64 last May, went up to 67kg and from around xmas i am at 66-67kg). My portion sizes are not big and i can pretty well calculate the kcals i am consuming. Of course i might be a bit up or down, but not by much
4) I have started with a workout of around 30 min/day (last May) and gradually increased it to around 40-50/day. I do walk around 15mins to and from work every day, but unfortunately i can't find any more time to exercise - my everyday visit at the gym is during my lunch break and i already do a bit more than my allowed 1h. Does the training program look fine? should i maybe do more cardio instead of circuits?
Thanks a lot again!
Anna
AnswerAnna,
I would still suggest keeping a food and exercise diary to find out of there are more times you have a treat than you realize or more days of missed exercise than you realize. You are on a healthy eating and exercise plan but because you are so close to your ideal weight (and probably even currently within the ideal range) it's going to be tough to lose more! Circuit weight training is good because the muscles continue to burn calories around the clock, which cardio does not; but in general the more you move the more you will burn. Find any opportunity to move more, such as parking farther away, walking more quickly, or taking stairs instead of the elevator (lift?).
Good luck!
