Frustrated! Need Advice Please

J

jptash89

0
I'm a 23 y/o, 166 lbs, 5' 7'', body fat percentage of 21%. I was 186lbs in June/July 2008, and am very happy that I lost 20lbs, but unfortunately, I've PLATEAUED!

Here is my workout schedule that I've been consistently doing. I'm trying to lose fat, with my workouts because I know I can't gain muscle while losing fat. If there are things that you think I should change, please help me! :

SUN/TUE/THUR:
Upper Body / HIIT Day:
-do about 10 machines at the gym for the upper body. 3 sets of 12-10-8 repetitions.
-HIIT: Ellipitical for 20 minutes and 20-30 minutes on stationary bike.
-I use a heart rate monitor, which also has a calorie counter, which usually reads 1200cal by the end of my workout (I don't 100% believe the numbers, but I consider it a "ballpark" number).

MON/WED/FRI:
Lower Body / Core Day:
-do about 6 machines for my lower body. 3 set of 12-10-8 repetitions.
-Crunches and planks of BOSU ball.
-Captain's chair, oblique crunches, side bends with dumbells.
-Cardio: fast walk on treadmill for about 20 min. OR Precor for 20 min. OR both depending on how I feel.
-My calorie usually reads 1000cal by the end of my workouts.

SAT:
-Optional swim.

I've been at 166lbs for the last 3 weeks and it hasn't budged! My diet is consistent - love vegetables, lean meats, and usually steam my food. Barely eat anything deep fried, sauteed.

So can anyone tell me why I've plateaued? I'm starting to think that maybe I do too much of the resistance training, but I also read that more muscle you have, the faster you burn calories.

I want to get to about 150lbs with about 12% fat, but nothing has been happening these past few weeks and it's really frustrating!

Any help would be great!

Thanks in advance!
 
AWESOME JOB on losing 20 lbs already. Go figure that the first 5 was water weight and so it's 15 lbs which is still GREAT.

Now for the frustration. I was there and stuck for a couple of week as well. To keep me movitated, I measured my waist and other body dimensions. My waistline got smaller and the rest of my body was getting bigger, which explained why my weight was remaining the same.

What I did, it worked for me but may not for you, is take a step backward in order to take 3 step forward. What this meant is to crank up the calorie intake for one day and rest the next. I eat a lot more but kept it clean and healthy and then rested the next. Yes, my weight jumped up 1-2 lbs from it BUT I was energerized and hit the gym really hard the next 2 weeks. One time, I think I did cardio non-stop for 3 hours and burnt 2,500 calories; according to the machine (probably off). Push more time on cardio (try to go 1+ hour each time).

You have lost weight so the BMR is down so you might want to adjust the diet a little bit as well.
 
Just to touch on the previous point - seems your doing a lot of muscle building during the week, are you seeing gains in size/musculature?
Given that muscle is heavier, your weight might be static due to the trade off of fat to muscle. I'd keep a close eye on your body fat %, make sure that 's static each week before you let yourself believe you've plateaud.

Also, pounds usually get harder to shed when you get closer to your goal, they can be stubborn. This is when 'diet' plays a tremendous role.
Be sure you're eating super clean and that the number calories you're taking in is the exact amount you need to support continued weight loss while still giving you energy for the hard work. There are calculators available to give you a close estimate for your size/bodytype/activity level.

Keep the goal alive! Congrats on your amazing acheivements so far!
 
Thanks!

I'll start measuring myself to see if I'm building muscle. I should have started that in June, but better late than never. I actually was able to see my abs for the first time today! hahaha..ridiculous.

Anyways, on the days I'm not doing HIIT, what kinds of cardio would you recommend? Do PRECOR/treadmill on the "fat loss" HR or "cardio" HR? Do hard cardio for a short amount of time (20-30 min), or easy cardio for a longer time (an hour) to lose fat?

Thanks!
 
Dang, there you go... first one, then 2, then next thing it's an 8 pack. You are heading in the right path bud. Keep it up.

As for short hard burst or long sustain... Hmmm.. I used to subscribe to both. If my body can handle it and I was pumped, I would do HIIT but when I felt like watching a basketball game or football game, I would go for 1-2 hours cardio. Used to think that a calorie burnt is a calorie burnt, and the method did not matter too much. That was when I did not care about losing too much muscle. Now, I am not too sure anymore as I dont' want to lose muscle when I go on weight lost in february.
 
I have read over and over again that high intensity short bursts of cardio burn fat for longer periods of time after you're are done with your workout. It seems to have worked for friends of mine who have plateaued. They would lift weights a little, then jump on the tred mill for 45 minutes. They stayed the same shape. When they switched it up, off came the pounds.

It sounds like you have a great attitude! That is half the battle! Good Luck.
 
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