That I should be seeing progress by now?

[Chubarubrub]

Any advice welcomed, even if that’s just ‘you’re doing it all wrong start again’.

Long story short, I decided recently it was time to get myself into shape. I’ve lost just over a stone since March from exercise and healthy eating but my fat % hasn’t moved.

I’m a size 14 and I have lost almost 2 inches each from my hips, waist and thighs (nearly 3 from my boobs - typical!) but why isn’t my fat % going down? Surely it should be?

Its embarrassingly bad too at 35% which is way over what it should be for my age. I’m a pear shape so this fat isn’t around my stomach either so it must be internal - which is worse!

Does anyone have any ideas? I work out every day and alternate between cardio and weights. Happy to post what I eat but it’s usually 1400 to 1600 calories a day.

My measurements are (to give you an idea of my shape)
bust: 41
waist: 32
hips: 43

I’m 11 stone 7 and size U.K. 12-14 top, 14 bottom, sometimes 16. I’m 5ft 9.

Sorry I know this is a non problem compared to many but it’s really getting me down and I’m worried about all this internal fat.

My username has never felt so apt.

Nothing to help, but well done on the weight loss. I wish I could lose even a pound !

Well done you've done amazingly!

What are you using to measure body fat? They can be very inaccurate!

Fat percentage is very difficult to measure, despite all the silly gadgets that basically send a shock through you and judge it from your water content. Guess what. Your water level fluctuates throughout the day and women carry more. They're completely inaccurate. Ignore them.

You can measure fat loss with callipers and lots of algebra if you fancy it, but few bother.

You're losing size. Inches. That's what's important. That's the progress.

Seriously I wouldn’t worry if you are losing weight, getting fit and building muscle, you are on the right track.

eat plenty of lean protein and lots of vegetables and give ultra processed foods and refined carbs and sugar a miss, and you’ll be fine.

Thank you! I didn’t lose anything for about 6 weeks then it started coming off, if that helps? I do feel silly moaning when I’ve lost weight but this fat % is so high and it’s bothering me

Also I didn’t mean to make it a vote 🙄

Thank you! A weighing scales that records fat, muscle, water and bone mass %

I am a similar height and dimensions but with a bigger waist. I would love to be your weight!
If you are bottom heavy maybe running and cycling would help encourage the loss? Even if it's just a 10 minute jog each time.
I know that I could cut to 1200 calories and it's still only exercise that makes me lose weight

I’m definitely a water retainer! Always a bit bloated. ☺️

Ignore the body fat %.
You've lost inches, and if I'm not mistaken, you're in a healthy weight and not classed as overweight or obese?

Carry on what you're doing, it's working! Well done. x

You're losing size. Inches. That's what's important. That's the progress.

Seriously I wouldn’t worry if you are losing weight, getting fit and building muscle, you are on the right track.

Thank you.

I googled my body fat % and I have the % of a woman twice as old as me and then all the articles about ‘visceral fat’ and the damage it’s doing to my organs! Just feel yuck sometimes despite the progress.

I have started on the bike as part of my cardio but only the last few weeks, hoping it pays off!

Unless you're measuring body fat with calipers just ignore it because it won't be anywhere near the true reading.

Thank you!

Yes I’m just within healthy weight now I think. I think I’m a ‘skinny fat’ person (although not skinny at all but outwardly I look ok but really I’m quite fat inside!)

I’m also desperate to get rid of some bad wobbly cellulite on my thighs though and hoping reducing fat will reduce the bubbles!

I guess I’m being impatient ☺️

It definitely sounds as if you are losing fat, I think it's a scales issue.
My scales at home also tell me that I have a body fat % of about 35, on the much more accurate ones at the gym it's about 23.5%. I also found the ones in our local boots much more realistic, so maybe try some other scales if you have access to them.

Congratulations on the weight and inch loss, it sounds like your hard work is paying off!

The best way to get rid of cellulite - or at least make it less noticeable - is to firm up your legs.

Do this every day for a month and you’ll start to see a difference. Do it for 3 months and you’ll have skiers’ legs!

I really highly recommend JaneKate on YouTube. I followed her workouts consistently for a couple of years and I saw massive results! She’s honestly brilliant, they’re very easy to follow and they can be done at home. I would suggest drinking water wherever possible and replacing any sugary drinks with that, just keep your diet to lean meats and veggies with a healthy carb like rice, keep portions relatively small but enough to fill you, and that’s you sorted. Mostly trust the process, it does take quite a while of consistent effort and healthy eating to see progress, but you can and will get there. ❤️

www.bizcalcs.com/body-fat-navy/

You may get a more accurate reading from the Navy body fat calculator. Link above.

I suggest you ignore the scales. They are notoriously inaccurate and fickle although the better ones (the ones with separate sensors for hands and feet) can give a decent idea of trend over time. The ones you just stand on are useless.

If your waist measurement is half your height (or less) then you are unlikely to have much of a visceral fat problem, if any.

Ah that'll be it.

At my gym body scan, my body fat is 18%. At home, 25%! It's probably somewhere in the middle.

Don't get hung up on numbers, that way self-destruction falls, just go by how you feel.

Keep going!

Has your gym got the proper machine to assess your body fat etc. mine has this really swanky version. It might be worth doing that?

I'm not a dissimilar size to you although I'm a bit taller and half a stone heavier. Lots of exercise but my diet has a lot to be improved!

But bloody well done. I genuinely think fitness is far more important than size or weight!

Hi, sorry I haven’t responded life got in the way.

Thank you for those YouTube recommendations they’re great, I’ve done a few of the videos already. I also stumbled across ‘mad fit’ and she’s great too if anyone needs another fitness YouTuber to follow.

I don’t use the gym I do everything at home. I had a bad experience with this bloke that always goes getting a bit letchy so it has put me off.

I think I’m just going to keep going and just look at my weight and measurements and ignore everything else, thank you😊

Are you eating enough protein? The risk is that you retain fat and lose muscle

I think so, well near enough but could do better I suppose. This is my MyFitnessPal snapshot for today:

That's not really true. The human body will burn Glycogen first then fat and muscle lastly. Protein should be eaten in a caloric defecit for two reasons, because its more satiating and if you're weight training alongside a calorie controlled diet it's best to have protien in the tank so you can potentially build muscle while losing fat.

Is that 27g total protien for the day? That's way too low you should be aiming for 0.8g per pound of lean body weight.

I agree. You need way more protein - at least 3 times as much. And reduce the carbs. How much of the carbs are fibre, i.e. 'good' carbs?