Real Life Fitness Questions Answered

What can I do to achieve this weight loss?

Hello, I was wondering if you could help at all. I weigh 149lbs, am 5ft 5ins tall and have a body fat % of 28.6. I do work out at least 5-6 times a week, each 30 min sessions. I do 30day shred during the week and running on the weekend. I don't want to loss too much weight, maybe 10-14lbs, but would love to get my body fat % down. I do eat up to 1488 kcal according to this plan. What can I do? Thank you very much in advance. Cindy D

Our expert says...

Hi,

Based on the information you have given, it sounds like your exercise frequency and daily calorie intake is very good. When aiming to reduce body fat, exercise consistency and quality is crucial along with good nutritional variety in your diet with limited saturated fat intake.

There is no single 'best' exercise for dropping body fat, but a combination of cardiovascular exercise and resistance training is most effective. Cardiovascular training is an effective method for burning calories and training your body to use body fat as fuel. Resistance training has longer term benefits due to the development of muscle tone which increases your metabolic rate meaning you burn more body fat more of the time.

When training with weights try a whole body circuit approach where you perform your exercises in a circuit-style fashion, one after the other with minimal rest. This means not only do you activate muscle tissue but you achieve the effects of cardiovascular training because the circuit format keeps your heart rate raised to an effective level.

Try alternating weight training days with cardiovascular training days. This allows your body to recover properly and will enable you to get the best out of both methods.

To lower body fat is a matter of consistency and patience because real noticeable decreases in body fat percentage take time, so stick with your calorie balancing and exercise regime and you will see differences.

Hope this helps,

Kelly