JS's Fitness Thread

[js334433]

I've been scouring this place for a long time, and the fitness threads have inspired me to start one too.
I started my path of losing weight 2 years ago, and when I started I was about 170. As of yesterday, I'm down to about 135 and am happy about it. The only problem is I'm still not happy with the way I look and don't know what to do. Any advice would be lovely.

Just some information:
Weight as of now: 135

Diet:
Breakfast: yogurt with kashi go lean cereal and glass of v-8 fruit/veggie juice
Lunch: A sandwich (either lunch meat with veggies or good old pbj) with either a serving of sunchips or some fruit and a glass of skim milk
Dinner: Most of the time some kind of protein, some kind of fruit or veggie, and some kind of carb. Usually water or flavored sparkling water.
I have been doing snacks three times a day and they usually consist of a kashi go lean granola bar, a cheese stick, or nuts.
I do drink of a lot of water and stay away from soda and sweet tea (a guilty pleasure of mine).

Exercise:
While I was at school, I would do some weightlifting with 20lb free weights three days a week and cardio three days of week. Since the summer started, I've been doing cardio six days a week and just started getting back into weight ltraining with the machines at the gym.

Pictures:
The left picture was from when I started and the right picture is from today.

 

[KaraBulut]

A few missing pieces of information:

1. How tall are you?
2. Did you take before/after measurements of your chest, arms, waist, hips and thights?

The thing that is most noticeable about your plan is that it is heavily geared toward weight loss. It would be a good time to do a calorie count to see what your total daily consumption is.

What about your current body are you not happy with? Where do you want to go from here?

 

[js334433]

A few missing pieces of information:

1. How tall are you?
2. Did you take before/after measurements of your chest, arms, waist, hips and thights?

The thing that is most noticeable about your plan is that it is heavily geared toward weight loss. It would be a good time to do a calorie count to see what your total daily consumption is.

What about your current body are you not happy with? Where do you want to go from here?

To answer your questions Kara, I'm 5'8 and did not take any measurements. I'm not exactly unhappy with my body, but I would like to add a little muscle to shape things out. I guess what I'm looking for is some advice on where to go weight training wise.

As for daily consumption, it's hard to say, but with the tinkering I've been doing, it's about 2200 calories including three meals, three snacks, drinks, and the medicinal chocolate. I'm just coming off of eating in the dining halls so I'm still working on the whole eating on my own thing.

 

[js334433]

A few missing pieces of information:

1. How tall are you?
2. Did you take before/after measurements of your chest, arms, waist, hips and thights?

The thing that is most noticeable about your plan is that it is heavily geared toward weight loss. It would be a good time to do a calorie count to see what your total daily consumption is.

What about your current body are you not happy with? Where do you want to go from here?

I did a little more thinking last night, and I'm ready to stop with the weight loss. I wouldn't mind gaining some of the weight back, but I just don't know what to do.

 

[kallipolis]

I did a little more thinking last night, and I'm ready to stop with the weight loss. I wouldn't mind gaining some of the weight back, but I just don't know what to do.

Regular weight training will grow your muscles, and as a consequence add meaningful weight, rather than blubber.

 

[js334433]

Regular weight training will grow your muscles, and as a consequence add meaningful weight, rather than blubber.

Thanks for the info. I'm actually starting back with the weight training. Hopefully I can solidify a schedule before classes start back up again.

 

[KaraBulut]

You're where a lot of guys end up- you've dieted and done cardio to trim off fat but- as you discovered- dieting doesn't promote muscle development.

One of the reasons that I mention getting base measurements is that a good program may not show big losses in weight but you should see loss (in inches) around the waist and hips with muscle gains in the chest, shoulders, upper arms and thighs. The scales don't always make for the best measurement and they should not be the only goal.

What would probably be best for you is to work with a trainer to put together a good fitness program to strengthen your muscles then move on to specific goals in building muscle in your upper body. To accomplish this, you'll also need to work on including additional protein and increasing your caloric intake to build muscle.

 

[js334433]

You're where a lot of guys end up- you've dieted and done cardio to trim off fat but- as you discovered- dieting doesn't promote muscle development.

One of the reasons that I mention getting base measurements is that a good program may not show big losses in weight but you should see loss (in inches) around the waist and hips with muscle gains in the chest, shoulders, upper arms and thighs. The scales don't always make for the best measurement and they should not be the only goal.

What would probably be best for you is to work with a trainer to put together a good fitness program to strengthen your muscles then move on to specific goals in building muscle in your upper body. To accomplish this, you'll also need to work on including additional protein and increasing your caloric intake to build muscle.

Thanks for the advice, Kara. I'm definitely thinking of getting a trainer as soon as possible to help with things. Until then, I'm going to work on tweaking my diet to include some more protein and calories.