So Close, Yet So Far! PLATEAU Problem

[JNicole]

Ok so first off, hi I'm Nikki! I'm a newbie to this site but from what I've gone through the information here is solid & gimmick free. (so rare nowadays!) I'm not afraid of working really hard to get what I want so here's the deal.

I've recently (last year) lost about 30lbs. This being primarily because I finally have depression/anxiety under control. So now I have the energy to hit the gym & no longer eat when I'm nervous.

I have been at or close to current weight since around March of last year. The scale won't budge!!
current stats are as follows: 25yrs old w/athletic build, 5'6" 136lbs, 36"-28"-35" I would like to lose 2 inches off waist. It was 26" in high school but I was starving myself & running all the time. I was smaller, but most definitely "skinny fat" and BALLOONED when I stopped starving myself. This time I want to get there the right way, see "tone not bone" & keep it like that!

I've been going to the gym about 3-4 days a week but have been trying to figure out optimal schedule.

So far this is what I came up with:
(2 to 3 exercises/muscle group, 3 sets of 10 w/mod to heavy weight, 300 varied crunches each day & sometimes butt exercises)

M: Biceps/Triceps, 30minutes steady state cardio

T: Focus on Abs (the 300 crunches plus 2lower exercises, 2oblique),
45min HIIT cardio (5min 30s:30s)(5min 15s:45s)(25min steady)(10min 1m:1m)

W: OFF

Th:Back/Chest, 30min steady cardio

F: Abs, 45min HIIT cardio

S: "Leftovers" Butt/Shoulders/Inner Thigh ( legs are crazy cut from soccer so I only work the inside)

Sn: OFF

As far as diet, I'm trying to eat clean. I am also very carefully watching sugar, not for medical reasons, just because I've noticed I consume too much lol. I also limit carbs to ezekiel bread & whole grains. I'm currently eating around 1450cals on off days and 1625 on gym days. I am also getting anywhere from 65-80 grams of protein daily.

Here's approx eating schedule:
Breakfast: 7:30
Snack1: 10:00
Lunch: 1:00
Dinner: 5:30
Snack2: 7:30

*Anything I should change, add or forget altogether?
I need some ideas because I'm stumped

Sorry if this was too long haha

[Boss Man]

You're meal times are good. The calories could be a little higher though due to the exercise.

Carbs can be had from things like Veggies and Legumes too.

You could increase Protein by 10 grams a meal and see how that works and consider increasing Fat by around 5g per meal as well.

Try subbing the Crunches for things like Planks, Leg Raises, Roman chairs etc.

Everything else looks okay. If you've done weights for some weeks then I'd go more for the higher weight than moderate, so aim for the 10 reps until it feels like you've got about 2 left, so you should be working around 95% of maximum ability.

This should help to increase the potential of what you do.

If you need anything else please do let us know, or you want to follow up on post please do .

GODO LUCK and best wishes and whatever happens be proud of yourself and keep believing .

[JNicole]

How many calories do you recommend I consume? On off days/gym days?
I'll follow your advice, although I'll admit that I'm finding it difficult to get past old ways of heavily restricting calories. Logically, I know that behavior will only lead me back to skinny-fatville, but old habits die hard I guess. I'm ready to change approach to diet as I'm clearly sabotaging own efforts here.

>>A quick question on sugars. For the most part I've cut out all refined sugars, but what about naturally occuring sugars in fruits? To what degree do I have to keep those in check? How many grams/day?

>>I am also transitiong to a plant based diet, so now I am even more aware of protein intake. I'm trying out "Sunwarrior Warrior Blend Protein Powder" 84cal/16g protein per scoop. I'm also trying out tempeh & seitan for protein sources.

All imput is greatly appreciated!

[Boss Man]

Sedentary calories for females for is around about 1,800, so you could allow another 300 roughly for exercise.

So you're looking at 1,800 on off days and 2,000 - 2,200 on training days.

Sugar is no reccomended at around 90g per day RDA. This figure was brought in in recent years to try and legislate better regarding sugar intake, as previously there had been no such RNI, RNA or GDA guidelines for sugar.

[JNicole]

Update: It's working! I've lost 3lbs so far! (averaged out, so it's definitely not water weight!)
I'm also finding that it's a lot easier to get in all rda's of vitamins with this many calories

Excited to keep going!

[Boss Man]

WELL DONE. Keep going and good luck. You're doing great and the continued self belief and application, are key cornerstones to your progress.

I hope things continue to work out for you .