I've been working out for a month....

[wannabeBB]

and I never believed the personal trainer that told me you will "push out" the fat when you build muscle. Well, I think it's happening to me. I am not getting discouraged, I am just curious when the fat loss usually catches up with muscle growth.

I was wanting to lose a size in pants not gain a size, which is what I did. (I have nothing that fits now) I currently do cardio 3 times a week, high intensity.
Should I increase it? I want to but am scared of not gaining as much muscle. I can actually feel muscle on me that I never have before! woohoo- beginner gains! But as of right now I'm not looking much better.

Here's what I do:
I lift heavy 3 days a week.
3 days of high intensity cardio for 30 min.
I eat clean, mostly following body for life eating guidelines(cause its all I know for now). I havent begun to count calories yet. Not sure how many I need.
I take one cheat meal a week.


Is there anything I should do differently for losing fat, gaining muscle?
My bodyfat is high (guessing 25%?) and I dont know what it is cause I cant get an accurate reading. I'm 5'7 160 lbs.

 

[wannabeBB]

No, I didnt post it but I will. It sort of varies from day to day.
For protein, I eat chicken, egg whites, top round, ground turkey breast, cottage cheese, tuna.
For carbs, I eat sweet potatoes, brown rice, oatmeal, grits, red potatoes and sometimes black beans but not often.
I take 1 tbsp of Udo's oil everyday.

I dont eat bread anymore and the only fruit I eat is apples. I dont eat dairy except for the cottage cheese. I don't eat protein bars because I heard they are not a good source of protein. Sometime sI will have an MRP (lean body for her) but that's rare. I eat 6 times a time a day.

A typical day would look something like this:
1- 1/2 cup oatmeal
6 egg whites

2-cottage cheese
apple

3- chicken breast
brown rice
a veggie

4- tuna
sweet potato

5- chicken breast or turkey breast
brown rice
a veggie

6- protein powder
oatmeal

 

[Dingo12]

Are you measuring portion sizes?

How many kcals per day?

Also losing fat is the last thing your body wants to do - I only noticed bf% changes once every 4-6 weeks. This is mainly because I started dieting on week one of my monthly cycle - during my cycle I gradually gain water retention up until the last few days of my period, then it falls out of me so I only notice fat/weight lost once every 4-5 weeks.

Be patient 1 month is not a lot and your body is adjusting by increasing muscle mass.

It could be you are eating ar maintenance leve but the muscle you do gain will increase your metabolism thus burning more kcals in the long run resulting in greater fat loss.

 

[Daisy_Girl]

Wannabe -

I can't remember from your previous posts, is this the first time ever you have been working out? Dingo is right, one month isn't very long...gotta be patient. Also, if you have only been working out for a month, it takes most people a lot of time to find the RIGHT workout plan for them personally. Everyone is so different.

But also, 3 days/wk of 30 min cardio? I know FOR ME that is nowhere near enough cardio. I have to do much more cardio to keep my BF in control (and watch my diet carefully) and I am still building muscle. Yikes, I wish I could do 30 min/3 times a week and lose BF. But no way would that happen right now. I know you want to build muscle, but cardio (along with diet) is vital to losing body fat. Honestly, I would try adding another day of cardio in, or extend the 3 days from 30 minutes high intensity to 45 minutes at a moderate-high intensity.

But I also agree with Spatts - could definately be a diet issue. I know you aren't counting calories yet, but that might be a good place to start refining. Your food choices look pretty good - maybe it is a portion issue (too big of portions)? Or conversely, the portion sizes are too small so therefore you are taking in too few calories.... I would start to count calories for a couple weeks to get an idea of what EXACTLY you are putting in your body. It always helps me to keep a food journal to keep myself "in check" - to make sure I am not going too high on the calories and/or too low on the protein.

But congrats on gaining some muscle - that is so awesome! Isn't it nice to feel (and see) the results of all your hard work? Keep up the good work!

-DG

 

[wannabeBB]

Thanks for the replys. I have goals but I just dont know how to reach them yet.
I would like to start counting calories but dont know how to calculate how many I need.
I've been doing the diet portion of body for life. I think it's supposed to be close to a 40/40/20. He goes by portions and not calories. I am willing to start counting though.
Doesnt look like alot of food? I am stuffing myself just trying to get all that in.

I have only been doing cardio 3 times a week because I was told that any more than that will hinder muscle growth. I am willing to do 7 days of cardio if I had to. I really want some muscle. Not sure if I will get them because I've never worked out like this. But the downside is I have alot of fat to lose.
Some say you can gain muscle and lose fat at the same time and some say you cant. I'm confused. cut or bulk? or do you even have to do one or the other?

I considered doing Labrada's GetLean plan. However, the diet is very low in fat (no efa's) and I am scared of gaining it all back once I get off it.
Heck, I dont even know what I want to do or where to start. I mean I want to be muscular and have low bodyfat and my dream is to one day compete (amateur level, not asking for much).
I am willing to give it years. I just need to know what I should be doing now.
I've worked out before but never with weights. I've done loads and loads of cardio (long distance runner). Ive also yo-yo dieted like you wouldnt believe. So I know I've lost alot of muscle there.

Any help at all will be appreciated.

 

[nikkita]

A good thing that you are having the initiative to look answers for yourself

I think that for your goals, constancy should be considered because in order to get the body you want you'll need to be following a new lifestyle which demands discipline regarding what you eat and how you train. With constancy, you'll be watching results gradually.

Did your personal trainer gave a specific period for your workout?
(i.e., 1..2..3 months)?

If you're beginner, be sure to have the following for daily intake:
* Multivitamin
* Vitamin E 500iu (twice daily)
* Vitamin C 500mg
* Water 3-4 liters

Ask your trainer about protein intake for your weight. Because when loosing weight (fat) you need something to protect muscle. If you need help with this, I'll be glad to help.

Tell your trainer that you want the specific goal of competing amateur, because with this your trainer will know that you are serious about this and may give you additional tips.

About the diet... remember is not how much you eat... but rather the quality of food you eat. Being on diet doesn't mean to starve yourself to dead, because that is the main reason for yo-yo dieting.

Try to be patient and don't overtrain your body... remember to sleep well (at least 8-10 hrs per day)

Try to find a motivator that won't lead you out of track... in this type of sport patience and selfmotivation is amust... I'm sure that you'll get to build muscles even if you never worked out like this.

 

[FitFossil]

Give it some time. Even though many people when starting out can experience muscle gain AND fat loss, they don't necessarily happen at the same rates, and rarely as fast as we want. The good news is, if you're gaining muscle, this will help the fat loss, because more muscle raises your metabolism.

With myself, I did feel like there were lag times. I'd add some muscle and feel bulky, fat, and worried, and then a week or so later start feeling leaner. That cycle would repeat itself over and over, but in the end everything worked out. With your history of yo-yo dieting (I had 20 years of eating disorder history myself), it's going to take time for your body to trust you. Bodies have long memories, but eventually, with consistent sufficient nutrition and not overtraining, they will forgive (and reward) you.

Even though the accuracy of bodyfat measurements can vary by method, I recommend you pick one method of measurement and get tested every month or so using this same method. This will allow to track your progress more accurately than a scale or tape measure.

 

[wannabeBB]

Ok, dumb question, how do you calculate BMR?
Also, how do you keep your fat intake as high as your protein- what do you eat?
I looked at labrada's program and it's 30% protein about 60% carbs and 7% fat. I dont know about that. I got the idea from some other people on another message board who did it and are very ripped(they compete). But it does sound like not enough protein and fat.

I dont have a personal trainer. I cant really afford one, being in college. At one point, however, I did approach one at the gym to see how much he charges. Well, he was the one that told me I could never be a bodybuilder cause I'm too tall.(5'7) This was last year so I quit that time. Now I hate the man and when I see him at the gym, I just lift harder knowing that one day I will show him. What a loser.
I am determined to do this myself.

 

[Daisy_Girl]

If you do a search on the internet for BMR, you'll get about a gazillion site where you can plug in your info and get an estimate of your BMR. Since you said you aren't exactly sure of your BF%, you don't know your LBM number (BF% will give you a break down of fat weight and lean body weight). Even though the formulas on the internet aren't always completely scientific, if you get a couple different ones and take the average, I think it will give you a good starting point.

And definately don't worry about not having a trainer. As long as you can motivate yourself through your workouts there is no need for a trainer. Any questions you have can be answered here - much better than by most trainers. And this is coming from a former trainer.

As far as cardio goes, yes, too much cardio can inhibit muscle growth. But FOR ME if I start noticing fat gains or slowed fat loss, after I check my diet, cardio is the most important thing I have to increase and/or change up. Like I said before - my body doesn't respond to 3 days a week of cardio. I typically do cardio 6 days a week 30-45 minutes each time, moderate-high intensity, usually done after weights. And I have not found this to be catabolic yet, but my BF is much higher than I would like (was 20.6% 3 weeks ago). Like I said previously, I would add another day of cardio or increase the 3 days to 45 minutes. Remember, it is all trial and error - you gotta make changes then figure out if they work better/worse for you.

Good luck!

 

[FitFossil]

...Well, he was the one that told me I could never be a bodybuilder cause I'm too tall.(5'7) This was last year so I quit that time. Now I hate the man and when I see him at the gym, I just lift harder knowing that one day I will show him...

THIS WORKS - believe me!
There used to be a woman in my gym who thought she was hot stuff. She'd take up several pieces of equipment with her stuff and then stand around talking, often giving out unsolicited training advice. Sometimes she'd go up to someone on a machine and tell them she was using it, even when she'd been nowhere near it!

One time the gym was really busy and I'd been waiting for a bench. After waiting awhile, I moved her bottle and used the bench. She came over all hot and bothered, saying she was using the bench. I calmly told her she'd not used it in the last 10 minutes, and this was a busy public facility where we need to share equipment. She went off in a huff.

Truthfully it scared me to death to have to stand up for something so trivial, but I was tired of her bad gym etiquette and trying to intimidate other members. It was at that moment that I decided I was going to bust my ass and put her physique to shame. In time I did ! Then she'd give me dirty looks, and train in different part of the gym from wherever I was(!).