Hi everyone. I'm female, 5'3" and about 140lbs with a fairly muscular body – broad shouldered, wide hips, muscular thighs. I am currently looking to slim down to a more leaner body and am having a pretty hard time acheiving results.
For the past 4 weeks I've been working out twice a day 5 times a week: 20-30 minutes on the elliptical at about resistance 5 in the mid-afternoons, followed by alternating evenings of 45 minutes of high intensity kickboxing 3x per week or 45 minutes of power bands (strength training) 2x per week . I'm also consuming 1600-1700 calories per day.
So far, I've gained 3 pounds (ahh!) and my legs have become even bulkier. Am I overworking, over eating, not eating enough? To be honest, I have a hard time going less than all out during my workouts (i.e. lowering resistance to 2 on the elliptical and going for say, 45 minutes) because I feel like I'm not doing anything if I don't "feel the burn."
Any feedback is greatly appreciated. Thanks!
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First of all, your exercise routine looks good. I always suggest a working out for an hour 6 days a week. I would say your diet is a little low, but then provided you keep it above 1500 calories a day you should be fine. I would however suggest varying your workout so you're not always on the elliptical machine, but you're doing other exercises as well. The problem is when you do the same routine over and over again your body gets used to it and it's less efficient. Try using the exercise bike, running, stairmaster or any other cardio type machine once in a while.
Now as for the weight issue, I'd say it's muscle more than fat. The question you should be asking yourself is, "do my clothes feel looser"? This is the best indication whether you've lost any fat or not. I would also say to cut down your resistance training if you're simply looking to lose fat. Maybe work on it once a week just to maintain what you have, or once every two weeks if you're looking to lose a bit of muscle.
And finally don't worry about it so much.