The Fat Loss TroubleshootThis is your place to troubleshoot your fat loss problems from nutrition to training. This section is led by Leigh Peele, author of "The Fat Loss Troubleshoot," the ultimate fat loss manual. If your results have slowed or stalled this is the place to come for advice for all your fat loss needs.
Hi,
I am new to this website, but I have heard alot about leigh's programs and I really hope you can help me!
I am 20 yrs old, 5'6" tall and weigh 135lbs. Last year I was dealing with anorexia and had got down to 105lbs. I was eating less than 1000cal a day and exercising 5 days a week, cardio only. I started my recovery in June of last year and since then i have put on 30lbs.
I started working out again last october doing just cardio, 4 days a week. at this point i was eating about 1300cals, however i was not seeing ANY differance aat all!!
I decided to try the new rules of weight lifting in january. I am now at the end of stage 2 and i still have not seen any differance! My weight is stuck there!
My goals at this point are to try and put on some muscle and loose a few inches and fat (mainly from my thighs and stomach). I am still eating 1300cals and getting about 110g of protein.
my workouts now are:
Mon-rest
Tue-cardio (5km on treadmil)
wed-NROLFW + 5km on treadmill
thurs-Cardio (5km on treadmil)
Fri- rest
Sat- NROLFW + 5km on treadmil
sun- cardio (5km on treadmil)
No matter how much i try i cant seem to see any differance! how can i loose some fat?
Thanks
Carly
if you're not tracking by weighing everything, even condiments, you could be eating too much.
if you're not doing much other than your workouts, you could be sabotaging yourself with your intensity. remember the rest of the 23hours a day, they're gonna mean a lot more than that hour workout.
hey
thanks for your reply. I try to weigh and log everything i eat. my drawback i guess would have to be that i am not as active the rest of the day. i am a student so i do spend a lot of time sitting down. However i try to walk around as much as i can eg from one lecture to the other, 10min walk to the bus stop every morning, i walk to the shops etc.
I'm new to this site too so I don't want to step on any toes. But couldn't weighing everything, including condiments be unhealthy for a recovering/recovered anorexic? Seems it could foster an unhealthy relationship with food again. I just finished all of NROLFW and saw some nice changes in my body. I would recommend getting a little more protein - 1 mg per pound of body weight, continuing with the program, backing off on cardio a little, and then maybe cutting some fat at the end once you see where your body is. The experts moderating this site will have better recommendations regarding calories, but I would think you could go a little higher. Maybe even consider the Repair program Leigh has in her FLTS ebook.
I guess it depends. But then, if you don't know what you're eating, and you're not keeping track, how do you know what your protein or fat intake is, let alone know how to up it?
Carly, first I'd ask what makes you think you need to lose fat? If you have an unhealthy/unrealistic/dysmorph ed view as to what you look like, that could be your problem. Now, 135 at 5'6" could be great. Could be also more fat than someone wants, and that's understandable, but really what are you looking to lose? Weight? Fat? how much?
But all that aside, and assuming you don't have dysmorphia issues, all that intensity on so little food may be killin ya, ya know?
How much do you sleep? How tired are you during the day? Do you find yourself lacking energy?
If you know because you weigh and track everything what your intake is, then your next likely culprit is your expenditure. If you're not having the energy to do much, that can be it. Your workouts aren't gonna burn much more over just existing, so the rest of your day is important. And if you're feeling pretty drained otherwise, it is likely a sign that you need to back off.
When you put on the 30 pounds, was it fast? Slow? were you doing anything lifting-wise or was it just a matter of gaining the weight and that's it?
Are you open to the idea of backing off intensity of working out or eating more, to potentially see better results?
On 1300cals @160 and 5'3" I'd not be able to handle that intensity and not end up bonking and not losing. Same when I was 120. and everywhere in between. Some people can. Some can't. Personally I see much better results with lower intensity. It's a hard lesson to learn, and not what we expect to hear in our "eat less exercise more" world.
Aoife,
I think the problem lies in the fact that most people want to be as lean as a fitness model. They probably dont understand the extreme measures it takes to get down that low. And that its not really sustainable for the long term.
It always facilitates communication to know what someone is looking for and where they feel they're at. I know people who at 135 5'7"or8" who could stand some recomp, and still keep that. I've known others who are already pretty ripped at the same.
I'd venture that someone who dealt with anorexia prolly isn't looking for "fitness model," prolly more "movie star." Or maybe not, or neither.
Partly maybe depends on the definition of "anorexia," whether just meaning the behaviors and the underweight problems, or full blown mental issues and body dysmorphia as well.
The more the language matches the ideas, the easier it is to understand and help.
(ETA: I'm not disagreeing with you. sorry if it seemed such. You're right, far too often people expect to look all the time like someone looked right after depletion in a picture that was photoshopped.)
my day looks something like this:
breakfast: 150g oats made with 100ml skimmed milk and 100ml water + coffee with skimmed milk OR shredded wheat with 150ml skimmed milk + coffee with skimmed milk
Lunch: salad (lettuce, carrots, peppers, tomatoes, onions) + 1 small can of tuna in water. + banana
Workout after lunch
Post workout: 30g whey made with 100ml skimmed milk + 100ml water + apple
Dinner: Usually 140g of lean meat(chicken breast or turkey breast) grilled OR baked cod with about 100g of veg
Desert: fat free yogurt
if i get hungry again i will usually have a piece of fruit and some tea
I usually average about 110g of protein and about 160g of carbs and about 11g of fat
I goals are mostly to have some muscle definition and just look less "soft" around the stomach and thighs really (dont know if that makes much sense lol)
So, you are concerned more with look than weight? Body recomposition is what you'd be looking for.
In which case, I'd up your cals closer to maintenance. Then, I get lifting to 3 times a week. Cardio prolly not terribly intense, more walking than running, or cut it out entirely for a bit. Definitely replace a cardio day with a weight day.
But again, I'm curious as to your energy levels, your sleep amount, etc. Being a student can be terribly stressful, and can often be sleep deprevating.
I haven't had a chance to read everything in the thread, so if stated sorry for repeating. From what I read of your responses it seems that you ate away at muscle and put fat back on. Classic reaction with ED girls. Even by the time that they get what they shouldn't be doing, they still don't know what they should be doing.
The suggestion has been made to focus on body recomposition, and I agree. At 5'6 and at your weight you could likely see some great definition and body change with only losing a few pound but with altering your muscle mass.
Possible to post up pictures at all?
Also, if you sit all day you have to be aware that you likely burn next to nothing in calories and 1600-1900 may be your max, even with training. So really log not only your food, but what you do in a day to figure out an caloric need for yourself.
hi leigh,
Thanks for your reply. Yes when i was at my lowest i had very little muscle left, then i put the weight back on in about 4 months so i think it was mostly fat.
is it possible to email my pictures to you?
I'm pretty new too and don't want to step on any toes here...
First off, that's effing huge progress, good for you for turning your(unhealthy)weight loss around. Seriously...that's massive and incredibly hard to do.
With that said, it's still also fairly recent, June is not that long ago. I think for people who have experienced ed's, a good approach is to depart from the weighing and monitoring absolutely everything, and tracking calorie intake verus output ad nauseum. The important thing is to get back to regaining normalacy in how you feel and think out food, your body, and letting inflexible and overly strict thinking go. I don't know, I mean, be aware of what you put into your body, absolutely, and eat healthfully and balanced. But don't be overly concerned just yet about losing excess fat(and it doesn't sound like you have excess!! You are my stats almost...I have about 5lbs on you I think, haven't weighed self in couple of years). Your body needs to recover from I'm guessing months of restricion and overexericse. Give it a chance to sort itself out, it does take a bit of time, and your body does some funky stuff for a bit. Maybe instead of focusing on losing that little bit of extra fat you want to lose, and getting the numbers on the scale to shift, think about getting stronger, progressing more in the weight room, and having fun with New Rules. Just my two cents...I may be completely off the mark.
And again...awesome job on your progress in kicking your bout with anorexia in the booty
Great going cscerri1! I remember, during in-patient therapy for anorexia, another "recovered" young lady mentioning to take everything "one day at a time". As I heard her say it would get "easier", I felt like I laughed it off - couldn't imagine a day easier than the struggles I was feeling in trying to be completely "happy" while eating. As left that day, I remember thinking it's not one day at a time, but one minute at a time. Just remember that if or when things get challenging! You are doing the RIGHT thing for your future, as much as at times it feels like it goes against everything you tried to convince yourself of before! Congrats for being in THIS place TODAY!
It was mentioned before from someone... about assuming that someone dealing with anorexia probably isn't looking for "fitness model"?? Just like anyone else, there are specific goals in mind. The anorexia behaviors often take one towards a "look" they didn't necessarily want in the first place, but felt/looked better to them then where they were at the time their disorder really took full-force. I know for me, I didn't like the way I looked eating or not (heavy or skinny), but skinny (to me) looked a lot better than the "fatter" version.
And the "definition" of anorexia....????? Behaviors and underweight problems go right along with the mental issues and body dysmorphia. I know I am only speaking from my own experience and others that I've met "along the way", but I've never seen these not go hand-in-hand. If you're in treatment, the issues are physical and mental. Might not have a "deep-dark" issue causing you to become anorexic - might simply just want to lose some weight, but the moment it goes unhealthy/extreme and you can't gain the wait back willingly yourself, the mental issues are rearing their ugly head.
How long would you say you had eating issues? I truly think that plays a large part in your "recovery road", since the recovery deals with re-programming your thoughts. As difficult as this is, it was suggested that maybe stepping "back" and learning a healthy "lifestyle" now would be a better approach. I completely agree IF you can do that. For me, I felt that logging everything kept me on track so I didn't restrict and over-exercise.
I am not the best (of course, i know this) to be giving the "best-fit" advice - I'm just trying to share my thoughts with you. If I knew the answer, which I wish I did, I would give it to You and Myself! After being in clinic at age 20, having 2 babies since then and now at 28, I'm still seaking the "normalicy" of life. I'm not saying that to discourage you, I'm saying that so that you don't get frustrated when the road you are traveling on seems unpaved. Grooves have been made in your brain, and the "liquid thoughts" tend to fill those spaces. We have to consciously take them along a higher and better path. Some days are easier than others. But always know you will live to see a good life
need some advice pls!
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