To ask How do I change my body shape by lifting weights?

[LittleMissPlump]

Apologies for posting here for traffic but I really want to become less chubby (need to lose about 1.5 stones). I’m trying to reduce the amount of carbs I’m eating but I’m totally confused about what exercise and how much I should be doing to lose weight. I’ve noticed that, particularly on LCHF threads, people often say exercise is counterproductive to losing weight . I’ve also read that weight lifting is the best exercise for toning up but does this include kettlebells as I’ve done this before and put my back out! Ive also recently tried running (hurt my knees) and step aerobics (ditto). Would Body Pump help do you think because I’ve got a bar bell!! Sorry for all the questions but I’ve just turned 40 (became anaemic and hypothyroid) and need to tackle my weight gain before it’s too late! Thanks for reading this far!

Weight training is useful for many goals but it is essential that you have good technique or you can end up injuring yourself like you did with the kettlebells. It can be very difficult to know if you’re doing it right unless someone is watching you. Based on what you’ve said, maybe think about getting a program/trainer for a bit to help get you going towards your specific goals if this is possible. Good luck!

Weight lifting is really good for changing your body shape and getting that more 'firm' and lean look. Adding muscle will boost your metabolism which will help with overall weight loss (and means you don't have to restrict your diet as much!)

Kettlebells are wonderful (work so many muscles at once AND burns huge amounts of calories) but they are SO EASY to injure yourself with.

It's worth noting that for pure weight loss, cardio exercise is more effective for burning calories, but it won't help you tone up in the same way. A combination of the two can be really great.

• Would also recommend getting a trainer to first show you proper weight lifting form to prevent injury.
• Ask them to show you the classic compound moves - such as squats, deadlifts and bench presses. These work multiple muscles at once so are really effective.
• They will likely explain reps to you as well. Usually, you will do a few sets of 6-8 reps of an exercise, with a weight that makes the last 2 reps feel very difficult.
• As you get stronger, increase the weights!
• Focus on different body parts on different days, e.g. lower body one day, arms and back another, making sure to give your muscles rest.
• Make sure you eat enough to fuel your workouts. You can still 'diet' but if you find yourself struggling with a weight you should be able to lift, it's a sign you might be overdoing it or not eating enough.

I would say that the person who thinks exercise is counterproductive to losing weight is onto an extremely unhealthy mental mindset.

Yes, net calorie defecit is the most important factor in weight loss. But exercise helps contribute to improving your metabolism, your resting consumption of calories, and most importantly, your activity levels when you've come off the weight loss phase of the diet. Especially as most people gain weight through a combination of INACTIVITY with bad eating.

All the people I know with bad eating habits who are super active by hobby or necessity have never gained weight. All the people I know who touted 'weight loss is 80% diet, 20% exercise' have successfully lost a lot of weight and then successfully munched their way back up to their original weight and more.

I'm not saying this to be a twat, it's just a pattern I've seen. I am losing weight through a combination of weights, cardio and yes, reduced calorie intake. I lost 9lbs and 7lbs respectively in the past two months, every week including a takeaway or a night out drinking. I also eat pasta most days. Because I used exercise to counteract the effect of the extra calories for treats!

I agree with PP that getting yourself on a program with a PT will help you find the most effective plan for you. Weight loss is a very personal battle, and you need to know what makes you tick. Tips on the internet help, but only take on the ones that sound like they motivate you, or the foods are similar to ones you already eat.

Good luck.

I wouldn't attempt Body Pump at home unless you understand weight lifting techniques.

Really appreciate all the advice, thanks all for taking the time to reply. Think I just need to stop feeling scared of exercise (it makes me feel like a failure most of the time) and crack on with both cardio and weights classes so I don’t injure myself again. I’ve started over so many times so maybe this would be the right time to get a personal trainer to keep me motivated. I’m just not myself with the extra weight and feel out of control. Thanks again

I lost 2 stone doing low carb, body pump x 2 a week, a hiit class once a week, and spinning. I wasn't strict so if we were going out I'd have carbs and booze etc. So it came off slowly and took me 1.5 years in all. I didn't follow a diet plan, just reduced the carb portion in meals or tried to find carb free recipes. It wasn't just weight loss, it was the change in shape too. I also think working with weights helped me after giving birth, I still have a bit of tum but it looks like pre pregnancy tum.

OP what exercise or sports do you actually enjoy?

As the key to long term maintaining your weight is doing activities you enjoy as if you regularly have events/completions you are training for you aren't going to eat crap all the time.

The thing about kettlebells is that it combines weights and cardio all at once in about 45 minutes. If you go to a class they will show you the correct techniques and you don't need to be toting round 20kgs to start with. I follow a Kettlercise DVD starting with a 4kg bell- they have a separate section you watch first to get the correct technique. Start small and work up rather than going all out for massive at first.

Swimming's good too, especially if you have joint problems. Again, technique makes a huge difference.

I find low carb works for me, that's just my metabolism. The calorie deficit thing does work of course but it depends so much on individual body type, food preferences, ability to cook (time as well as technique). I was put off calorie counting by the Hairy Dieters - these six foot big blokes needed to reduce their intake to 1200 cals a day just to keep losing. That's just wrong.

However if you low carb you can't eat even a bit of processed sugar or it throws you out of the weight loss stage. So if you're one of these people who sees sugary stuff like biscuits and cake as a 'treat' it won't work well for you.

The modern thinking is to lose weight quickly - try the Blood Sugar Diet or intermittent fasting uses real food or something like Cambridge for absolute speed but it's not very nice if you're a foodie like me. Depends on your eating problem (mine is I'm greedy and like a vast quantity of food)

Loads of info on these boards.

Good luck!

people often say exercise is counterproductive to losing weight

Weird! Not true. What is true is that you can't out-train a bad diet (this was what my personal trainer said to me at the start of working with him).

I've always done cardio stuff, but never serious lifting. have been doing concerted weight/strength training for about 7 months now and my body shape hasn't changed so much as tightened up, and my outline looks quite buff now. There's still fat inside that silhouette (I'm almost 60 so it's harder to shift) but there's visible muscle definition eg in biceps, shoulders and quads, plus I experience being stronger. On a recent trip, I could easily lift my suitcase - it was grand being strong !

But I've also change the way I eat, and mostly stick to around 1500-1600 calories a day. Very healthy eating, though & I rarely feel hungry. About 2.5 liters of water a day as well.

Join a gym, get expert advice. You get injured because of a combination of inaccurate technique and bodily biomechanics not being perfect (none of us has perfect biomechanics). So you need to learn how to do things safely with good technique. A few sessions with a personal trainer would help.

Also, start really slowly. I never really got into running because I kept getting injuries. I have a lot of energy so I would start fast. And then my knees or my hamstrings would hurt so much. So use a Couch to 5k graded training app, or do interval work - 1 minute running, 1 minute walking and build it up.

In strength training do the same. There's a scheme "5 x5" I think it's called where you build strength by lifting in 5 specified lifts, and add a bit of weight each session, with 3 sessions per week.

Also pop into the Weights Room here on MN. Some really helpful people - I've learnt a lot from reading that forum.

Oh, just to add: I've been travelling for work a lot over the last 2 months. My rule is that when I travel, I don't count calories and I don't stress that I can't to eat the very simple healthy food I eat when I'm at home. So I've had 2 months of being away almost as much as I've been at home. I've kept up my training but not as regularly - either cardio or strength - not 6 days a week, as when I'm at home.

And I weighed myself yesterday after a week at home from a trip to a country where the food is amazing but high in calories (and I didn't stint!) I weigh 0.4 kilos less than a month ago.

It's not much, but what it shows is that the muscle I've developed from strength training is still doing its work of burning energy, even when I'm not training every day.

Don’t overthink it, would be my advice!

I’m a big believer in ‘functional’ fitness. I want to be getting up and down stairs, carrying my own shopping, getting down to the floor and back up again well into my 80s and 90s. So I exercise with those goals in mind, rather than weight loss or fitting in to my jeans.

Get a couple of sessions with a trainer and go from there. :-)

OP what exercise or sports do you actually enjoy?

What BlueBug said. Drop the idea of exercise you do for exercise's sake, and ask yourself instead: what activities that require moving around do I like?

It needs to be something you can get in to. Not a torture session you feel obliged to do for the sake of your health, because people give up on those after about a month. You need something you will pick over Netflix in six months' time, even if it's a rainy Wednesday after a shit day at work.

Here's a list of 39 calorie-burning activities to start you off on working on what you want to do. uk.businessinsider.com/exercises-workouts-burn-most-calories-2017-8

Losing weight is 80% diet and 20% exercise. The main reason exercise is often said to stop people losing weight is because they subconsciously eat more 'because they are exercising and have burned the calories' when the actual number calories burned during their exercise is way smaller than assumed! I was so guilty of this for many years - oh I've been for a five mile run so I can eat what I want. The run itself burned 500 calories - the excess food I ate was probably double this!

if you are worried about hurting yourself, please get a proper PT who can give you proper advice, write a programme, advise you on food and also show you how to do exercises properly without hurting yourself.

Why don't you sign up for a free trial of Les Mills On Demand and see if you like the body pump classes?

try the 30 day shred

Before you even think about doing any serious amount of weight training, get there to a gym or a trainer and make sure your form and technique are correct for the exercises you will use. Ideally also have a few sessions and get an exercise plan which (even if you abandon it) will give you a ball park idea of what a professional thinks you are capable of.

Don't try to make serious changes with weights etc at your age and no experience without these things, it costs comparatively little effort to do your homework first and reduce your chance of injuries that could hurt you for a long time (maybe even the rest of your life).

With that out of the way, you surely can make an immense difference with both weights and cardio -
good luck :)

Blobby

So the fault is of not measuring and using exercise correctly with calorie consumption then, isn't it? Not the exercise itself?

I do four workouts a week, plus walk 3 miles round trip to work, and do little HIIT booster sessions at home on off days from the gym, plus one full rest day a week.

I make sure I earn a night out/off before I do it (enter all the calories I intend to consume, then work out until MFP equals it). I have about 3 days a week where I bank my exercise calories, and 3 where I increase my food allowance for them. I've had to fine tune it, and adjust my calorie allowance down as I've lost weight, but I'm two stone down, and feeling fitter than I have for YEARS, which means so much more than just the lbs lost.

Nothing works if you just sort of guess!

Agree with those saying that exercise is key to keeping the weight off after weight loss - the more muscles you have, the more you burn calories esp when resting.

Also many think that they can eat what they like just cos they've done a workout - which is a classic mistake, as you only burn around 300-400 calories. The fastest way to lose weight is to eat better.

You need to see it is as a lifestyle change if you want permanent, long lasting results.

Ive just joined a gym after years of contemplation and anxiety/fear. I've been three times this week, each time is still terrifying BUT I do want to go and I'm feeling the difference already. Thoroughly recommend it. I'm massively antisocial so classes etc are my nightmare, I'm enjoying the cardio and resistance side though. Food wise I'm low carbing as I know that's my weakness, so I'm going for lean protein and fruit/veg. Still having the occasional plate of pasta though, and choosing nuts/dried fruit to snack on. Making small changes is better than big ones! I started off by cutting sugar/sweetener out of tea/coffee, switching to BOB milk, and not having tempting stuff in the house. Meal planning is also hugely helpful.

Can anyone advise me please?
I’ve recently lost nearly 5 stone to add to the 2 stone I lost previously when my IBS made me give up gluten and have less than 1.5 stone to go to where I want to be
However I struggle with exercise - I did join a gym but hate it and never really knew if I was doing the right things (did a mixture of cardio and weights machines) so decided swimming was better as at least I really enjoy it - now swim 2-3 times a week it has really helped tone my arms
My problem areas are overhang from 2 c sections and very wobbly thighs (bottom not too bad and I have a tiny waist and ok boobs)
I can’t afford a personal trainer and can’t run or power walk due to arthritis in hips and knees

Jace - are there classes at the gym? I would attend these.

Recumbent bike Jace? Low impact but might help tone up your legs?

Muscle weighs more than fat so for example my daughter who had allowed herself to get unfit during GCSE's has just started going to the gym including weights and she has actually put on a couple of lbs but her body shape has changed for the better and her body far percentage has lowered.

You could probably do with getting advice from a decent personal trainer. My daughter for example is starting a professional dance course in September so she has been given specific excercises/weights to use so that she doesn't bulk up the wrong muscles for a dancers aesthetic eg working her inner thighs and losing bulk on her outer thighs.

Jace. Dd has joined Xcercise4less (she has to pay more becasue she's under 18 so its a rolling contract rather than committing for 12 months) but she gets 1 session per month with a personal trainer as part of her membership.

Simple at home way: get some 5kg weights.
Do lunges holding them followed by squats also holding them. Find 1/2 meter or so high solid/heavy surface i.e. bench outside/heavy coffee table that you can do step ups up onto also holding weights/punching the air as you step up.