4'11" 48yo - What should I weigh?

[whitab]

I love to see the petite and dense aesthetic on this sub, but I don't think I can achieve it. I have been working on losing weight off and on since June 2021 when I weighed 145 (all time high and not comfortable at all). I would lose some weight, get derailed by trips, get disheartened, give up, and then try again. I recommitted a few months ago, and it has been great. I finally feel like I've cracked the code of my eating style (4 mini meals a day is working for me right now). I am down to 125. Still fat, lots of visible bodyfat. I do not expect to get ripped, but I would like to look as fit as I feel.

Exercise has never been a problem. I'm a longtime cyclist and I love my bootcamp classes (a mix of weights/cardio, and high intensity, with one month cycles focusing on various types of workouts, power strength, cardio/muscular endurance, etc). I walk 3-4 miles with my dogs in the morning, do camp in the afternoon 4-5 times a week, and ride my bike on weekends (some variation from season to season).

I cannot exercise more than I am. I would love to get dense, and I do have a good bit of muscle, but I don't seem to have that body type and I'm wondering if it's normal not to have it or if I'm not working out right.

I am getting objectively stronger.

I know I am taking up less space than before, but I still look fat.

I'm worried that I will need to weigh 100 lbs to look normal, but I don't think I can achieve that. It's a struggle just getting to 125. I am going to try for 10 more.

Typical day of eating since May:

B: Ezekiel toast with half an individual guac cup and a fried egg, coffee with oat milk and a 0 cal vitamin drink - sometimes 2 scrambled eggs with homemade enchilada sauce and a wedge of laughing cow

(dog walk)

L: Turkey, laughing cow edge, apple, on a low carb tortilla (sometimes it is refried bean/cottage cheese enchiladas, today it is a salmon patty, cucumber vinaigrette and some broccoli)

Snack: Protein ice cream (getting a creami has been the best purchase EVER)

(camp)

D: A mixed bag. I like curries and anything in a a tortilla. Tonight it's grilled chicken, cucumber vinaigrette maybe broccoli, maybe roasted potatoes

Any thoughts would be appreciated.

 

[lettuce]

@whitab The exercise you describe is great for cardiovascular and overall health, but it isn't strength training. If you want to build up muscle you kind of need to do strength training. This could be progressive overload through weight lifting at a gym, or bodyweight strength training. You can check out darebee.com for guides and workouts and programs for low-equipment or no-equipment strength training, if you're interested in that.

 

[whitab]

@lettuce Well, my boot camps include weights. I use 20/25 dumbbells for power strength and 15 for higher rep endurance workout. I would like to add in some lifting only workouts (I like Sydney Cummings) but I don’t think I have the strength after everything else I do.

Also should mention a back condition means I cannot “lift heavy” ( think, squat 200 lbs).

 

[louis2017]

@whitab If you’re using 25lb DBs you don’t need to worry about squatting 200lbs yet.

You should try a couple of weeks of strength training (squat, deadlift, bench press (with DBs if you like that), pull-ups, dips) with no cardio (perhaps a couple of easy runs in the evening) and see how you feel.

 

[tongdtbds4]

@whitab Honestly, I’m 5ft and when I was in my early 20s I weighed about 95-100 lb and still looked ‘bigger’ than my super skinny friends who were around the same weight because I naturally have a curvier body fat distribution and have larger muscles. I used to be really frustrated about this, but I’ve kind of accepted that I’m always going to be ‘thicker’ so might as well go live my best life lol

It sounds like you have a healthy, well-rounded diet and a reasonably active lifestyle. Based on your post history with meals (sorry for being nosy lmao ) your meal portions look like an appropriate amount of food. Idk what you look like but I’m guessing your weight is reflecting a good amount of muscle mass!

 

[whitab]

@tongdtbds4 I have a pear/hourglass shape naturally, and I'm very soft. Also (dunno how relevant this is but it messed with my head) recently I was bra shopping, and either I've been wearing the wrong size all this time or I've grown because I had to buy a D cup instead of a C cup.

My husband loves it, but I want to look trimmer.

 

[genetheking]

@whitab You’re probably in the wrong size. Most womwn are. See the calculator at:
r/abrathatfits

 

[aussiealways]

@whitab Are you lifting heavy at all?

 

[whitab]

@aussiealways At my classes I will work until I have to move to one weight or body weight. I don’t press 200 if that is what you mean. Doctors orders due to back condition.

 

[aussiealways]

@whitab You might want to check into the book Next Level by Stacy Sims. It will give you a better idea of why I asked the question I did. I don't press 200 either! (I have a previously herniated L5...)

 

[whitab]

@aussiealways I will - thank you!

 

[whitab]

@aussiealways Purchased!

 

[aussiealways]

@whitab Great! I hope you enjoy! I learned a lot and have gone through it twice so far.

 

[floof]

@whitab I’m 5”4 with a very small frame and for years I was around 105 naturally, 115 at the highest. Now, I’m almost the same age as you, and I slowly blew up to 135 with Covid combined with perimenopause. I hated the extra weight. My body hurt all the time and I couldn’t fit any of my favorite clothes. That extra 15 lbs made me look like an entirely different person. I had no energy and my acne was terrible. Recently I’ve gotten back down to 108 with lazy keto and Pilates and it feels very sustainable. I should definitely add weights to the mix eventually but it’s never really been my thing. My biggest goal is a tight core, specifically lower belly.

I personally wouldn’t focus on the weight in terms of number, but more on how you wear it and how you feel.

 

[whathedunk]

@whitab Same height, 112. 124 has been my highest, and I still don’t look as I did when I was at 118 and working out everyday (mostly Nike + lots of walking).

I am sure there are parts of your body that are toner but beyond a point, you’re asking for only muscle and no fat which is very much based on genetics.

I would not recommend changing your diet (talking from experience). You are already eating very healthy.
If you’re trying to specifically target an area (e.g., I want to target my stomach), try exercises that target that area instead of repeated exercises (your muscles get used to them). For me, I know walking a lot (like 10+ miles) and doing solidcore makes me lose fat in my stomach faster than anything else.

On the exercise repetition, there was a time I could not do pull-ups or more than 5 burpees. When I made the smallest progress I could see it in my shape. Then I began to have a healthier lifestyle for about a year and by the end I could do A LOT more and see no difference.

TLDR: your perception of “fit” changes from your baseline. You have already made a lot of progress and consistency is key. And if there are specific areas that you really want to tone up, change your workouts to target those.
The only way to tone is: target the muscle, change intensity, change reps.

 

[joshslusser]

@whitab My only feedback is that if you want to try to cut anything from your daily meals it’s scaling back on the toast/tortillas. Even if healthy and low carb they cause an insulin response which makes weight loss very difficult. If you have to have something starchy I would have it no more than once a day or even less. I agree it’s very hard to get down to 100lb and maybe only realistic for someone with a very small frame to begin with. If your muscles are naturally a little bigger, if your shoulders are broad- it’s going to be impossible without sacrificing your health and it likely won’t even look good on you if you’re naturally meant to be a little heavier. Good luck with your journey.

 

[whitab]

@joshslusser I will read up on insulin response. Thank you.

 

[emilyj]

@whitab I'm the same height as you and my goal is around 120/125 and I currently weigh around 140. I, however, do strength training along with cardio. Whatever makes you feel the best is where to be.