[LaraT]

Originally Posted by alessa

Hi,

I am in my third workout of Stage 2, and I have definitely gained inches in my legs or butt. Something is making my all of my pants tighter. I have worked out for years but always focused on my upper body and then cardio for my legs. This kept me on the small side (in a good way, I am 5'3") with defined arms but no leg definition. I am eager to have leg definition, but I am freaked by the pants situation. I am guessing that I put on muscle without losing fat, thus having a net increase in size. I am wondering if I should continue or if this workout is too bottom-focused for my body type (generally curvy, can build muscle or gain fat). On the positive side, this is the first time I am seeing my legs get stronger, but I guess I thought the more intense working out would result in some fat loss at the same time.

My diet is pretty good, no sugar, high protein (carbs ranging from 120-200), average 1800 calories/day and has been this way for a long time. I still do cardio (HIIT 2x/week plus 1 or 2 ss for 45 minutes plus an hour or more of walking everyday to get around the city). I am not really sure how much less I can eat without ending up in a revolt. I never cheat or binge on real sweets this way so I hesitate to restrict much more. I do not eat perfectly clean in that I eat a commercial protein bar every day and eat sf/ff yogurt, and sf hot cocoa at least a few times/week. But other than that, I eat tons of veggies, chix, fish, lean meat, and dairy like cottage cheese and plain greek yogurt.

So I guess my question is whether I should continue with the idea that eventually the metabolic perturbation will result in some fat loss, change my cardio, or what.

Any thoughts would be appreciated. Thanks!

I am in the exact same position (except I am 5'2) and have a similar history of doing more upper body focused work and cardio for legs. I have one workout left in Stage 2 and my thighs have gotten bigger. I am pear shaped and my thighs definitely hold onto fat. It is frustrating but I keep reminding myself of some of the points mentioned above i.e. the extra muscle will help burn off the fat over time.