Trying to see abs- where to cut calories?

[pamplemousse]

Hello! newbie here.. not actually sure how many more pounds left i need to see abs (but i can tell pretty close, probably 2-3 more lbs). For my 5'4, 119 lb frame my maintenance range is about 1800-2000 calories, but I would like to lose a few more to become leaner in the stomach. I am working out 6x per week (3 days of weights and 3 days of HIIT or running), here is what I typically eat in a day. I am thinking I should cut calories from breakfast.... but I hear it is supposed to be the biggest meal of the day? thoughts and suggesions? my biggest problem is snacking after dinner (i go to bed very late, around 12 am or 1 am due to studying for school)

B: 1/4 (dried) cup of steel oats, 1/2 banana, 1 tbsp flaxseed meal, 1 tbsp almond butter, ground cinnamon, splash of almond breeze (1 oz or less) + 2-3 eggwhites with 1 cup of spinach and 2 tbsp of salsa + coffee with stevia

S: 1 whole carrot + string cheese

L: light flat out wrap with 3 oz of lean meat, spinach, cucumber, 1/4 avocado, 2 tbsp salsa + small apple

pre-workout snack: 1/2 kashi bar or 1 serving of beef jerky or handful of almonds

post-workout snack: whole foods chocolate protein powder mixed with water with splash of almond breeze (2 oz or so)

D: large spinach salad with lean meat and almond slices, large portion of veggies (steamed or roasted with olive spray and cracked pepper)
-OR- 3 oz lean meat with plateful of veggies

S: 1/2 cup cottage cheese with fruit (normally 1/2 a pear or 1/2 a grapefruit) 1-2 pieces of dark chocolate lots of herbal tea

[Aoife]

Well, you could just eat less often, makes it easier to cut out cals I've found.
You could also back off on the workouts so much, do more activity that isn't so taxing on the system, and let your body rest some, maybe that might help.
I don't personally think any meal should inherently be the biggest of the day, it all depends on what works for a person and total calories consumed.

Are you weighing your food or just counting measuring? Maybe you're not eating what you think you are.
Rearranging your meals may also help with having more cals left in the evening for study.
Don't neglect sleep, your body needs that (but for all I know your "late" nights are made up for in "late" mornings).

Welcome.

[LisaS]

I didn't do the math - how many calories does that typical day come out to? Surely not 1800-2000? What size deficit are you running now if that is how you are eating?

[galya]

You could try half a carrot Just kidding. Welcome aboard.
It could be better to have 3 or 4 larger meals rather than the little bitty meals. You could also cycle your carbs/calories before you cut them. Have you tried that?

[pamplemousse]

thanks you guys for the responses. lisa- you're right... if you add everything i listed it is under 1800-2000, but with my nightly grazing it comes to about that.

galya, i prefer not to have 3 or 4 larger meals because i get hungry pretty easily... plus i think i tend to binge more on less frequent meals i will look into cycling my carbs/calories... do you mean the zigzag method?

[LisaS]

or cut the nightly grazing and then you will eat at the level that you indicated for a typical day - which should be a slight deficit (given what you have stated)

[galya]

Zigzagging sounds about right

Just go lower on easier training or non training days

[fitness-siren]

I agree with what everyone said. Your nutrition looks pretty good already but you just have to watch out for the snacking at night. From what I understand, you don't do your HIITs on the same day as your weights? If that is the case, I would consider doing them together in one day then doing a 30 minute light activity on your off days. Also, I find supersets and compound movements to be really effective so you might consider doing those (that is, if you're not doing them yet).

Also, if you haven't counted your calories for awhile, it may be a good idea to count them again for a few days just to make sure that you're still at a deficit.

Hope this helps!