Input requested: I feel like I have plateaued….how do I strengthen and lose fat?

[songasmith]

Hi Reddit,

I’ve been browsing this sub for a long time and have gathered a lot of good information but am struggling with how I should proceed to hit my goal of losing fat and continuing to get stronger. Any input would be appreciated!

Background: 38f, 5’1” 117 lbs, almost 2 years postpartum, 22-25% body fat using various calculators

Goal: get down to 18-20% body fat and keep getting stronger!

Workout regimen: I currently do f45 and have averaged 11.5 days a month of working out since August, mostly on their strength or hybrid days.

I have definitely noticed I’m getting stronger. Meaning, I can lift more weights doing deadlifts, chest presses, etc. During these workouts, I try to max out my weight even if I can only do a few reps.

Data:

1) I have 5 months worth of data using my garmin watch and log between 225-300 calories at each workout.

2) I log an average of 7,500 steps a day

3) I’m not sure if my level of activity is considered light or sedentary but my TDEE comes in at around 1375-1500 using that criteria.

Food intake:
My guess is this is where I need to be more precise so I just started logging my food intake, but my estimate is that I consume around 1400-1600 calories a day during the week and 1600-1800 calories on the weekend.

Here is a typical day of food. Finishing all this food is traditionally a task, meaning I’m not hungry after eating this much.

Morning:
- whole grain toast with 1/2 cup of egg whites, 1/8 cup of mozzarella, 1/8 cup Parmesan, spinach, tomato, spices.

Total: 344C - 31g protein, 13.5g fat, 24.5g carbs

Lunch: cottage cheese and protein shake (5 frozen strawberries, 2 scoops of Benefiber, small scoop of creatine, 2 scoops of orgain vanilla powder, 3/4 cup low sugar chobani greek yogurt, water)

Total:
cottage cheese: 430C - 45.5g protein, 9gfat, 46g carbs

Dinner: 1/2 cup white rice, 6oz some sort of lean meat (often 93/7 turkey), 1 cup frozen veggie stir fry with garlic, ginger, coconut aminos and hoisin

Total: 436C, 36.5g protein, 13.9 fat, 36.4g carbs

Snack: turkey jerky and fairlife protein shake

Total: 230 C, 40g protein, 3.5g fat, 13g carbs.

Grand total: 1440 C, 135g protein, 39.9g fat, 119.9g carbs

I am less diligent on the weekends (less protein and 3-4 drinks for example) so perhaps that’s what causing my plateau? Anything else standing out?

I’d like to get to my goal partially by mid March. What would you recommend I change to get there?

Thank you!!!

 

[godisatulpa]

@songasmith You're talking about a very low body fat percentage, that's hard to achieve. The only thing that jumps out at me is increasing your training if you want to get there. 11.5 is good but probably not enough to get there.

I notice you drink the fairlife protein shakes.... what are your thoughts on them? I only ask bc I was using them for a while but during that time period I actually lost muscle and gained some fat. I question how good they actually are. My workouts may have been lacking in intensity during that period since it was summer and my kids were home from school, interrupting me constantly but I have since switched to a different protein powder, along with having uninterrupted workouts and am once again on track.

 

[songasmith]

@godisatulpa Thanks for the thoughtful input. You’re absolutely right and honestly might be unattainable for me at this stage! I’d love to get to 15-20x/month and see if that makes a difference. The only other thing I’m never sure of is if I’m eating too much or too little.

I do normally drink one a day as a supplement, typically right after I workout. To be honest, I love them and haven’t noticed a difference in fat composition. I will keep an eye out on it though! Would be curious if others have any experiences with it as well.