Please tell me how I've been eating via Fitday

[lyra]

Here is my fitday account:

http://www.fitday.com/WebFit/PublicJournals.html?Owner=winterbalto

I would love to hear some suggestions on how I can improve my diet. I still have no idea how many calories I need Am I taking in too many or not enough? Can someone please help me?!

I'm a 20 year old female-5'6'' and weigh 142 pounds.

I'm pretty active, I waitress full time, go to the gym twice a week (lift weights twice a week and cardio), I also ride horses 6 days a week.

I want to lose this excess fat I have on my butt and thighs. I keep hearing girls on this board saying they take in like 1500 calories a day but to me that seems so little! Then again when I first started paying attention to what I was eating keeping what I ate under 2000 calories seemed impossible. I just don't know what to do. I really want to lose body fat but more importantly I don't want to lose muscle or energy. How many calories should I be eating? Oh, and I'm trying to roughly keep my protein/carb/fat ratio at 40/40/20.....what does everyone think about that? Any type of advice, thoughts will be very appreciated!

~Nicole

[tweeter]

keep ur bread to only 2 slices a day, and try for some days to not eat it at all.

try to eat ur body weight in protein(so if you are 130, eat 130grams a day.

how has ur body reacted to the meals you have been eatting and the cardio/weight training you are doing? are you working out ur all muscle groups(chest,tri's,back,lower back,bi's,quads,hams,calves,shoulders,abs)

if your really stuck you might want to try and base ur diet around ur BMR. try this site to find it out http://http://www.fredysnet.com/id34.html i would only use this as a base for ur calorie intake tho

[lyra]

Why so little bread? The bread I eat is low-carb so I thought it was ok.

I don't think I'm exercising enough different muscles.

The link didn't work

~Nicole

[CF-OC_gal]

I keep hearing girls on this board saying they take in like 1500 calories a day but to me that seems so little!

I'd sure like to see the links to who is saying that! Only the ones who come on here complaining about their weight and lack of progress post those kind of totals if I recall correctly. Take an honest look at what women who are healthy and fit are really saying and remember that we are all individuals.

I want to lose this excess fat I have on my butt and thighs.

I think you are trying to spot reduce which is not going to happen, ever! accept your beautiful female shape because that is the gender you are. And BTW, you are not overweight or in need of reducing your weight or calorie intake. 5'6" and 142 lbs is a very healthy weight to be.

Don't get all caught up in this low carb , specialty food crap. Eating is not that difficult to do. Eat a balanced diet including carbs, fat and fresh veggies and watch that you don't overeat on sweets, sodas and refined grain products. You are eating a lot of processed/altered foods and fruits but not vegetables. Try starting with a small green salad once a day and some olives or olive oil dressing.

I don't think I'm exercising enough different muscles.

Now I think you've got the right idea. What exactly do you do in the gym? There is an enormous amount of information around to get you started on a balanced strength training program.

[Lady C]

Including what Brat said. I think you should think about increasing your veggie intake. Some days you do eat lots of bread carbs.

There is no one answer to "how many calories to eat". You will have to experiment with that.

[.V.]

Like everyone else said, post your exact workout. Your base nutrition plan looks like a good starting point. Like LC said, if you want to burn some fat increase your green veggies. And what Brat said, you can't spot reduce. Reduction in total body fat and increase in total lean body mass will reduce those "spots" too.

Depending on your exercise level and your own personal endocrine and metabolic needs, tweak your diet - experiment and find what works perfectly for you. If you need to reduce starchy carbs - replace them with green veggies. If your body needs more fat - add some healthy fats - olives are good choices, cook your meats with olive oil. Red meat isn't the devil - neither are starchy carbs (as some of my posts might indicate) - they all have their appropriate time and place for every individual.

Personally, I time and cycle my carbs and fat. Most days are lower in carbs - with my sugars coming immediately after workouts. My starches come about an hour after workouts. Protien and lower fat with the starches, protein and higher fat without them - The rest of my day is meats and green veggies, protein shakes before and after workouts. Two days a week (my heavy lifting days) I have starches in the morning too - either oatmeal or whole wheat bread.

You need to experiment with small changes ie lower carbs when not active, more fats throughout the day, protein throughout the day... or smaller amounts of protein/complex carb feedings throughout the day all day long until you find what is perfect for YOUR body.

So you gain a few pounds one way? Change it. So you lose some muscle another way? Change it. Once you hit what works for you - stick with it as long as it works.

Good luck to you - it can be done.

[lyra]

Originally Posted by Brat

I'd sure like to see the links to who is saying that! Only the ones who come on here complaining about their weight and lack of progress post those kind of totals if I recall correctly. Take an honest look at what women who are healthy and fit are really saying and remember that we are all individuals.


I think you are trying to spot reduce which is not going to happen, ever! accept your beautiful female shape because that is the gender you are. And BTW, you are not overweight or in need of reducing your weight or calorie intake. 5'6" and 142 lbs is a very healthy weight to be.

Don't get all caught up in this low carb , specialty food crap. Eating is not that difficult to do. Eat a balanced diet including carbs, fat and fresh veggies and watch that you don't overeat on sweets, sodas and refined grain products. You are eating a lot of processed/altered foods and fruits but not vegetables. Try starting with a small green salad once a day and some olives or olive oil dressing.


Now I think you've got the right idea. What exactly do you do in the gym? There is an enormous amount of information around to get you started on a balanced strength training program.

Actually it was another board where one recommended 1500 calories a day and another said that was what she took a day. It was on the World Fitness Forum. I know that everyone is different it just seems like I should be happy with 1500 too since she was my same height and seemed to be physically active like me.

No, I'm not trying to spot reduce, I know that's not possible. But I would like to lose some body fat, by the way, is there some kind of way that I can find out my body fat? I'm not obsessed with being skinny, I really just want to be fit.

Why did you say that about low-carb? Did my diet on fitday look low-carb? I was trying to have a good ratio between protein/carb/fat, with protein and carb being equal and fat being the lowest.

Yes, I do eat a lot of altered food I eat a lot of fruit because I have a sweet tooth and without those I would be eating candy bars. I will definately buy some salad and try to have one a day to get me started on more veggies.

Well, in the gym I usually do about 30-40 minutes treadmill or elliptical. I try to keep my heart rate in the fat burning zone but it's hard since my heart is a little out of shape. I always do crunches on the machines and I also do these weights where you squeeze your legs together. Not sure about the names of these. And I also work with dumbells for my arms and use a couple other weight machines for my arms. I'm sorry, I don't know the names of any of them

~Nicole

[.V.]

The treadmill and eliptical are great for cardio. But your lower body (legs) and back need work too, not just your arms.

Read the beginners exercise description thread here, find some lifts for all of your parts - not just your arms.

Think of things like deadlifts, squats, pullups, bench press, crunches, something for your hamstrings like the stiff legged deadlift, leg curls, or whatever and you'll find that your entire body responds better.

You CAN NOT base your caloric intake on what some other person does. What's perfect for me is wrong for someone else of the same height/weight. For an example of this, go to the progress pics section, find mine, Todd's, and MostMuscle's - we are all approximately the same height and in similar weight ranges...BUT... They both carry about 50-75lbs more muscle than I do so if I tried to eat like them - I'd weigh 300 pounds and die of fatness in about a week and a half.

To calculate your body fat percentage without having to buy calipers or go use a bod pod - go here: http://www.he.net/~zone/prothd2.html It isn't 100% accurate, but if you measure the same way each time, you can still track your progress.

[CF-OC_gal]

Gee that was a fast reply Nicole! Welch gave you a great response as far as the importance of a balanced and complete strength program goes.

I made the low carb comment because you pointed out that you were eating low carb bread. I thought it might be of importance to you.

I don't know world fitness forum but if the gals there are prepping for competitions or are models in regular photo sessions, they may be eating in that fashion.

I once read an article about the woman who is considered to have the "best abs" and she is very busy as a model (covergirl on Oxygen.).Her diet made me cringe it was so boring but it is more along the lines of what people are recommending here. You do not have to go to this extreme. She says it's 2000-2500 cals a day.

In her case it is her career. She would be working after her looks 24/7. (This girl!)

 Here is one example of how I eat in a day
#1 1 cup egg whites 1 serving oatmeal ½ cup fruit
#2 Protein shake
#3 Chicken breast ½ cup brown rice 1 cup mixed veggies
#4 Chicken breast 3 oz yams 1 cup mixed veggies
#5 Protein shake
#6 1 serving of fish ¼ cup nuts Salad

I try to have a high level of protein in my diet from natural sources of foods.
I don't drop my carbohydrates significantly and try to eat all my complex carbohydrates during the day.

Drink at least 3-4 liters of water a day.
Eat 5-7 small meals a day.
My caloric intake is around 2000-2500 calories a day depending on my activity level.

I always do 1 hour of cardio in the morning on an empty stomach 6 days a week. When preparing for a competition I will add an extra short cardio session at the end of the day

My resistance training split is as follows:

Day 1 Chest shoulders Triceps
Day 2 Legs Abs
Day 3 Back Biceps
Day 4 Abs
Day 5 Chest Shoulders Triceps
Day 6 Light Legs Abs
Day 7 Back Biceps

My point is that she is the extreme but her basic approach is healthy and realistic. Most people don't need this much cardio unless they are trying for some kind of record in their aerobic sport.

[lyra]

[quote=a_welch503]The treadmill and eliptical are great for cardio. But your lower body (legs) and back need work too, not just your arms.

Read the beginners exercise description thread here, find some lifts for all of your parts - not just your arms.

Think of things like deadlifts, squats, pullups, bench press, crunches, something for your hamstrings like the stiff legged deadlift, leg curls, or whatever and you'll find that your entire body responds better.

quote]

Yes, I see your point. I am definately going to start doing some different weights/exercises at the gym from now on.

Brat-I like that eating and work-out example. I think I'm going to start working out in the morning more rather than mid-day. I do eat some of what she's got going. I sometimes wonder if i take in too much protein or if that is even possible. I'm always worried about keeping my fat below 30 grams so I tend to stay away from nuts and things that are fatty, even though i know it is good fat. Thanks for the advice.

I took a body fat test thing with this little machine at the gym. It said I have about 21 % body fat. I took it twice just to make sure it was accurate. Is this normal/healthy? I didn't have anyone at the gym to ask.

~Nicole

[.V.]

It's within normal limits for a female.

[Maxgain]

Its a very good percentage for a woman especially starting off

[CF-OC_gal]

I'm always worried about keeping my fat below 30 grams so I tend to stay away from nuts and things that are fatty, even though i know it is good fat. Thanks for the advice.

You might want to rethink that especially if you plan to eat extremely lean foods. Fats satiate you. It is easy to eat nuts and seeds and still stay well below 30% fat.

I myself am curious about how she eats one cup of egg whites!!! I may have to experiment with that. That would be one small carton of "Simply Whites" every morning.

She must be eating a large portion of meat protein to meet her calorie intake of 2000-2500 per day. There is not a lot of calories in the portions she is controlling.