Question for my Wife/Ladies Please help

[Goldprospector]

My wife has watched my body tranformation and the way that I feel when I work out and she thought she would like to try some cardio on my Ecliptical machine. She has been working hard on it for about 2 months (I am very proud of her) and she is seeing results as far as fat loss but I am concerned that she is also losing muscle. She started out @ 20 minutes per day, and mostly 7 days per week, but now she likes going 40 minutes per day.

Anyway..she does not eat nearly enough but she says that she feels so much better now that she has been working out. A problem that she is noticing is that her breasts seem to be sagging a bit. Her breast size is around 34B and the seem to be losing there fullness.

Her stats are 34 yrs old 5'4" tall and 110lbs and never had any kind of cardio or training in the past, not even sports in school. The main body flaw is the pooch belly from having a baby 11 1/2 years ago. Her diet is mostly clean and healthy but she does not eat nearly enough calories (IMO). She works 3rd shift in a 12 hour swing , and when she works, she will only eat 1 meal per day which is as soon as she gets out of bed. She says that she "Just can't eat more when she works" But she does pretty good on her days off...

She wiil not touch my Protien powders and thinks I am crazy for drinking them, and I was wondering if you ladies could recommend a good High calories, high protien snack or meal replacement that she might could try at work on her breaks or something...anything to supplement her diet.

Also, If I can get her to start eating more...what simple excersize would you recommend to help lift the breast back up. I know that my buterfly machine is outstanding for my lower Pecs but I wont be able to get her to go down to my shop for a weight lifting routine...It needs to be something simple that can be done in the house...Maybe arched over a ball while doing Light weight fly's...I don't know, Please help.

 

[Sassy69]

Personally I find it hard to believe that 20 min of cardio / day for 2 months is going to make catastrophic difference. However, on some people, fat in the breast area is affected.

I guess you have tell her that if she's sold on the benefits of activity because she's feeling better as a result, how can she deny that eating a balanced and sufficient diet won't be as well?

To start, can you (or she!) post up her diet & we can take a look at it. Cardio can be a good aid to fat loss, but it can also be catabolic, though I still doubt that 20 min / day will do damage. I think that she will probably do better w/ a balanced approach to training that includes resistance training. A better body doesn't necessarily mean losing just bodyfat - increasing muscle (and I"m not talking like Arnold Schwarzennegger -- she can't do that because her body doesn't produce enough testosterone, so dont' worry about that!) can also produce a lower bodyfat ratio and can also create a leaner looking body. To build muscle, remind her that she needs protein BTW. And with the introduction of some resistance training, she also needs to schedule her training & cardio such that her body is getting an appropriate chance to recover.

Let's start w/ her diet and see where that goes. BTW, diet is also the major thing that will make a difference in her ab area. So yes, it is critical to what she's trying to accomplish.

 

[Goldprospector]

Personally I find it hard to believe that 20 min of cardio / day for 2 months is going to make catastrophic difference. However, on some people, fat in the breast area is affected.

She is now going at 40 minutes per day as I stated, and she has been doing the 40 minutes for about 3 weeks and 7 day per week.

To start, can you (or she!) post up her diet & we can take a look at it.

Now this is the sad part, She works a 12 night shift routine. Here is a typical week.
Sunday (day off) Breakfast 1/2 cup whole oats with cinnamon, raisins
Mid morning snack of fruit or granola bar or handful of peanuts or mixed nuts
Lunch: 1 serving of the following ( she loves "Michelina's microwave meals and eats them practically everyday when she has a meal by herself or for something quick) Here is the Nutritional facts from a box: Calories 250 Total fat 6G , Total Carbs 37g, Fiber 3g, Sugar 3g, Protien 13g.
If she has an afternoon snack, it is the same as the morning snack
Dinner, we eat a lot of steak, She usually has about 4 to 6 ozand she has to have A-1 sauce on it. Medium sized Baked potato with small amount of butter and generous amounts of sour cream. And a serving or two of green veggies.

Monday (work) one Michelina's meal shortly after she wakes up and Coffee with cream all day and 1/2 of the night @ work.

Tuesday (work) Same as Monday

Wednesday (off) Breakfast 1 serving of Maple Pecan crunch Cereal with skim milk, Nutritional fact on cereal are: Calories 220, Total fat 6g, Carbs 40g, Fiber 3g, Sugar 13g, Protien 4g.
Snack same as above
Lunch Michelina's meal
Dinner,Lean ground beef burger on whole wheat bun with tomatoes slices, onion, mayo and a very small portion of Baked French fries.
Thursday(off) Sleeps all morning to prepare for work the same evening (no food) wakes up around noon and has coffee for an hour or so then has a Michelina's meal goes to work and don't have anything until the following day when she wakes up at 3pm.

As you can see, it is a never ending cycle of not eating enough on the days that she works. there may be some variances on some days but this is pretty typical, We both have cheat days when we go out for Pizza or something but it is always in moderation. I don't think the Michelina's meals are bad for her....they do have veggies and meats...but I just don't think she eats enough. She says that she does not want to go to the bathroom while she is at work is one of the main reasons that she don't eat much, another is that she is just too tired to eat.
One major problem is she is constantly tired even when she sleeps 10 to 12 hours straight...and yes she does this. She takes frequent naps on her days off even after sleep 8 or more hours. The tiredness has led to other issues such as loss of sex drive and I think it also plays a role in her VERY HEAVY menstral (sp?) cycle which always has severe cramps.
She had none of these problems when she was younger even though she worked night shift at those times also. She had an almost perfect body when we were married even though she did not work out, she weighed 115 and you could not see any fat at all because of the great proportions, she was always full of energy and our sex life was through the roof.
Again since she has worked out, her upper arms, chest, and butt has seen the most fat and or muscle loss.
I can not convince her that she needs to eat more to lose fat and to feel better, I am hoping that I can find a simple MRP, or maybe a good protien bar to help supplement her body when she works.

 

[courtneybcca]

Well I have to say that the breast is fat and that is part of losing body fat. I had the same problem when I started to train so I went to the doctor and bought boobs. That is really the only thing to lift them back up and to regain the fullness.

 

[Sassy69]

LOL .. the sad reality. I know one girl who, granted she was competing in a regional NPC show and was cycling, but dropped from a natural D to an A & then bought some D's again. I would say that if she were including some resistance training she could get some lift in the pecs to help a little, but it is just the way it is.