Need some advice...

[Boopster]

Newbie to this site. Just reading over others posts and need some advice from some of the personal trainers on here.

I have been working out diligently for the past 2 years. I started slow and realized after seeing and feeling results, I wanted to kick it up a notch. Recently, I have noticed I am reaching a plateau and not seeing much of hard work paying off. goal is to have better ab definition and tighten upper legs and . So here's routine:

1. I eat 6 times a day, 3 of which are a 15 gram snack of protein (in between meals). Consume 1 protein shake before I work out in the a.m.. lunch/ dinner consists of lean meats (turkey, chicken breast) or fish (salmon/tuna) with a healthy choice of veggies and brown rice or sweet potatoe, plenty of salad with nuts, no creamy dressings. Tons of H2O. I stay away from refined sugars and caffeine. Skim milk only and egg beaters. No white bread. Only whole wheat. Peanut buuter is one of favorite snacks. Also no fat cottage cheese with no fat yogurt.

2. I do cardio 6 days a week. I love to run and usually do 30 minutes at each workout. I start off slow 4.5 mph and increase each minute thereafter until I hit 7.5mph and then back to 4.5. Each cycle takes 5 mintues and I continue until I hit 30 mintues. It ends up being 3 miles a day.

3. I alternate upper body and lower body routines M/W/F Lower T/Th upper and then do an ab routine every other day. The next week would be M/W/F Upper and T/Th Lower.

4. Had body fat % checked today and it was 19.9%, I weigh 135 pounds and am 5'8" at 38 years old.


So question is how do I get better definition and what type of foods if any that I am eating above are not helping me with goal? I wish I could afford a personal trainer but at this point I have been doing this on own and am very happy with the results. I just need a little advice. Thanks to all for your response in advance. I love this site!

[SarahPT]

Hi there,
You're obviously working very hard. Have you ever totalled your calories? It looks like you are very active. To be that active you need to take in enough calories to give your body the fuel it needs. It could be that you're undereating and have stalled your fat loss.
have you ever tried doing high intensity intervals? You could substitue a couple of your longer runs with this to give your body a different challenge.
Let me know if I can help more.
Sarah

[Boopster]

Sarah,

Thanks for your response...Iwas hoping you would post to message. Visited your website earlier...you look great! I will try to start counting caloric intake. How much should I be taking in so body has enough fuel to encourage fat loss?

Another question...I do the butt routine this website consisting of squats, reverse lunges, reg. lunges, bridge, leg lifts, etc.... How long does it usually take before I start seeing results?

And the never ending question....can you really rid your thighs and butt from cellulite without surgery? I don't have a lot by any means, but would like to be firmer in those areas.

Thanks for your help!

[swanso5]

i would suggest puposefully maintaining where you are as the body will get down to a bodt fat 5 or wt that it doen't like or isn;t accustomed too ans stay there.. giving it a chance to feel comfortable at a new wt/%, you can kick start some more fat loss in about 6 weeks

[SarahPT]

Sarah,

Thanks for your response...Iwas hoping you would post to message. Visited your website earlier...you look great! I will try to start counting caloric intake. How much should I be taking in so body has enough fuel to encourage fat loss?

Another question...I do the butt routine this website consisting of squats, reverse lunges, reg. lunges, bridge, leg lifts, etc.... How long does it usually take before I start seeing results?

And the never ending question....can you really rid your thighs and butt from cellulite without surgery? I don't have a lot by any means, but would like to be firmer in those areas.

Thanks for your help!

Hi there,
thanks so much for the compliment. I don't know how many calories you should be eating...before I tell this to nutrition clients I do a thorough assessment and I don't like to make guesses without doing that because I could give bad advice.
As for results with your workout...the exercise that you are doing are likely strengthening your muscles and burning calories. Most of the progress you are going to see on that area of your body will be from losing fat, through nutrition and a good exercise program. Those exercises won't target and remove fat from that area of the body though.
You can certainly make a big difference with the cellulite. Some women just can never get fully rid of it. However, with time I think you can see a major difference.

Sarah