How can Women reduce more fat?

[MadameSchmetterling]

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Edited January 3, 2011 by MadameSchmetterling

[Veggie]

I'd like to know as well. I have a trainer and she just went to a seminar and told me all vegetarians are "fat asses". I've been a vegetarian for 13 years. She then proceeded to give me a lecture on why I need to eat meat. She is a very good friend so I was shocked. I have no vegetarian friends and live in a very small town. So I decided to go opposite of what she suggested. I've been wanting to go Vegan for awhile and now is the time! Can't wait to prove her wrong but I need some help! Help!!

[Ducati]

Hi Romy,

 

25% on a woman isn't bad at all. I think 20% is about the lowest recommended for women.

 

If you want to get down to 20% body fat and you now weigh 116 at 25%, you are looking at losing 5.8 pounds of fat. That is 20,300 calories you need to restrict from you diet or burn in excess. If you do 500 calories a day, then you can reach your goal in around 40 days.

 

I suggest you use something like fitday.com to track your calories and see how much of everything you are eating. It is a great tool.

 

From what you have listed, I would suggest cutting out the oils and nuts while you are trying to trim down. They both have a lot of fat which equals calories. I recommend you try and get more protein and fiber. Protein takes more calories for your body to process, and fiber are calories in which your body cannot absorb.

 

For exercise, what has worked best for me are long slow distance exercises such as hiking, biking, rollerblading, etc. Something that I can do for hours. I also throw in some weight training and high intensity to mix it up.

 

Good luck.

[MadameSchmetterling]

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Edited January 3, 2011 by MadameSchmetterling

[Ducati]

Hi Romy,

 

I mean you need to either burn an extra 500 calories a day, or restrict 500 calories a day or a combination of both. I think a combination of light cardio and light calorie restriction works best for me. You will have to play around and see what works best for you.

 

Remember to deduct fiber calories from your total intake to get a more accurate number. Or, if you leave it in, it might help you to lose weight quicker.

[julia]

Hello from Austria

 

Have you tried counting calories? I've been desperately trying to lose fat this spring, but didn't really get anywhere for some time. I've been eating about 800 cals a day. I didn't feel healthy or strong any more after some time, so I finally started to do some research on the internet, and only then realized that 800 cals are below what I need. So I've started eating about 1200 calories daily and losing fat was much easier.

 

To make a long story short: Maybe you're eating too few calories?

[beforewisdom]

Even eating a very healthy vegan diet I didn't get my weight under control until I started counting calories.

 

Here is my story with that

http://beforewisdom.com/blog/?p=255

[MadameSchmetterling]

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Edited January 3, 2011 by MadameSchmetterling

[VeganEssentials]

Truthfully, there's not a major difference in how women and men need to train to lose fat and gain muscle. Despite the common programs/products/etc. that are thrown at us telling us that men and women are so different in how they need to train and diet, it really isn't that complex.

 

1. If you want to gain muscle, you'll need to take in more calories than you expend. You can't build muscle on a caloric defeceit regardless of gender, so that's a common factor. I don't mean that you need to eat a ton of food more than you usually do, but might I suggest adding in some more protein-dominant meals with your regular foods. Even an extra 30-50g of protein per day on your training days might make a significant difference over time. Be it from protein drinks or foods, start with increasing calories through added protein first before upping carbs as it will be most beneficial to muscle building.

 

2. Start a log of everything you eat. EVERYTHING. I know it isn't fun, but trying to analyze the flaws in a diet that you're trying to recall from memory is never going to be the best way. Anything other than water, make a note of it. Learn to keep track of protein, carbs (sugars and fiber) and fats (saturated and unsaturated) and it will help you to keep track along with your progress so that you can fine-tune the diet better periodically.

 

3. Cardio, while fine in moderation, can easily be counter-productive to muscle gain. Cardio doesn't really do anything beneficial for muscle growth (and excessive cardio will make muscle disappear easily enough), so if you're trying to gain muscle, keep the cardio to shorter sessions. Perhaps 10-20 minutes of high-intensity work or 30 minutes of low to moderate intensity cardio, but stay away from daily marathon-length cardio sessions that destroy muscle and often don't do much for body fat. Compare the people in the images below - the distance runner is on the left, trained to run for miles and miles on end. The sprinter on the right has trained for short bursts of pure power. Notice the huge difference in their physiques - it goes to show that long, sustained endurance athletics and massive amounts of cardio do NOT mesh well with building lots of muscle. When doing long periods of intense cardio, the body favors muscle over fat for a preferred fuel source, so that's why you'll never see a distance runner with a build that's comparable to a high-level sprinter.

 

http://blogs.monografias.com/sistema-limbico-neurociencias/files/2010/05/marathon-sprinter2.jpg

 

Many bodybuilders will train in phases, bulking to add mass during parts of the year, then cutting/dieting down for other parts. Some bodybuilders have superior genetics and can stay lean year-round and know EXACTLY how to eat for their bodies, but most of us aren't that lucky. That's why it's often easier for people to split into phases to focus on different goals that are often contradictory in how to be approached, so that they do not interfere with each other.

 

4. Do not be put off by the common mindset of "training heavy with weights will make a woman bulky". Many people think this, but they're far from correct. If it were easy to get huge simply by lifting, why isn't the world populated by hundreds of thousands of monstrous men and women who look like they're ready to step onto a bodybuilding stage at a moment's notice? Most people struggle to gain more than a reasonable amount of lean mass over time and WISH that they could gain more easily. If getting big and bulky without even trying to do so were such a huge problem, there wouldn't be thousands of products claiming to help people get bigger and stronger, because we wouldn't need them Women typically will put on lean mass at a slower rate than men due to factors such as less testosterone, and no woman has ever gone from a slim build to the Incredible Hulk in a year of training. For a great resource that helps dispel much of the fear of women getting too bulky from weight training, you'll definitely want to go here:

 

http://www.stumptuous.com

 

It's not a vegan site by any means, but plenty of great training info and proof that if you choose to lift hard and heavy, it doesn't mean you'll get anything undesirable from it

 

5. Finally, be patient above all else! A few weeks can make a visible difference for someone who is completely untrained or who is greatly overweight, but for those who are already in good shape, it's going to take longer to see results. Try to lose weight too fast, and you'll end up losing just as much muscle and you could technically still be the same bodyfat percentage when you're done dieting. Take things slowly, expect gradual change, and you'll be pleasantly surprised in the long run.

[MadameSchmetterling]

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Edited January 3, 2011 by MadameSchmetterling

[Paige]

I want to post here since I just did the U.S. Natural Bodybuilding Comp on Sat and went through the same thing. First, I don't agree with all of the posts here. My experience is that women and men do not respond to training and diet the same way. I wish we did! My life would be easier. This is just my experience. I do not believe that you need significant protein to build muscle. I put alot of muscle on my body for competition eatings fruits and veggies. Also, one must have a cal deficit to loss fat. Wear a HR monitor and cal counter when you train. Figure out your BMR and what you burn at rest and what you burn in training. Cut 3500cals per week for one lb. To put on muscle, lift, and lift alot. When doing cardio, do some sprints in between to increase calorie burn. Further, eat every 2.5-3 hours to keep metabolism high and your body burning fat. Don't cut out oils and fat completely. Fats help keep insulin levels in check and are good for joints. You do need some just don't over do it. And last, be patient. Great health is a lifestyle not a mission. Good luck!

[VeganEssentials]

I didn't mean to infer that all women and all men respond the same to training and diet, however, there are not enough major physiological differences to cause a need to have great variances in the way that both sexes train. Women's bodies in general do not have major differences in how they process nutrients, and a lift such as a squat will work things the same for both genders, hence my statement that men and women can eat and train alike for the same desired results.

 

Each person is different and needs to be treated accordingly. I, for one, do NOT lose fat on low to moderate protein diets - that's just the reality of the situation from 15 years of trial-and-error. Some vegans can go on a low protein diet and be ripped to the bone in a few months eating only as much protein per day as I taken in for a single meal. It's not a gender issue in regard to how people respond to a diet, it is simply a body's natural preference as to how it handles the diet it is being given. That's why I recommended increasing protein if it hasn't been done before to someone looking to gain lean mass - one cannot do the same types of things and expect different results, so if someone isn't gaining much muscle on lower protein diets, the logical conclusion is to increase protein to see if it makes a difference.

 

Conversely, I haven't seen a need for extremely high protein for my abilities to gain - I've done well on only around 150-200g/day compared to some guys who are much smaller who say they can't gain on less than 300g/day. Everyone will respond differently, so I recommend that, if something hasn't been working well, do things differently to see if it will bring about improvement.

 

There are many women who have built incredible physiques training exactly the same way that men do when training for the same goals - squatting will do the same thing for a woman as it will a man, but of course, it isn't going to bring about the exact precise development it will in men due to obvious differences. My point was to simply state that women do NOT need to be afraid of the best bang-for-your-buck free weight exercises because of fears that they look dangerous, will make you too muscular, etc. since those things are far from true. Of course, once again, everyone responds to training differently, so I'm not trying to make a blanket statement regarding this, but simply making a point that the same exercises do work for both genders, but the misinformation out there has unfortunately driven many women away from good freeweight exercises, which is too bad.

 

Though, I do stand by my note that it's often easiest for people to work in cycles for gaining then dieting down a bit vs. trying to do it all at once. You can't gain lean mass at a caloric defeceit, yet you need to be at a caloric defeceit to lose bodyfat, so it's a very tricky balance for anyone except those with long-term experience in training and knowing their optimal diet through lots of trial-and-error. And unfortunately, simply cutting calories to a defeceit doesn't work easily for everyone. If I don't keep protein high, I lose a great percentage of muscle along with fat, thereby keeping my bodyfat levels nearly the same as my total bodyweight decreases. Protein is helpful in sparing lean mass while dieting, so that is one more reason why I recommend to people to keep it higher since it serves both the function of helping to build mass as well as retaining existing mass while in a caloric defeceit.

 

There's a lot that can be discussed, but one thing's for sure - everyone needs to experiment, experiment, EXPERIMENT to find what is the best system for THEIR body, because what works for me may not work well for you, and vice versa. It's lack of experimentation that often makes people believe there's no way to succeed, when sometimes all it takes is a change of program, slight diet adjustments, an increase in intensity, etc. to break through the barriers.

[Paige]

I strongly agree that everybody has their own "formula". I am constantly reworking my program to fine tune and determine what is best for me. So, try, try and try again until you get it right. It is a journey. Never give up on finding out. Also, I need to make a note about soy and tofu. This may be an unpopular comment but in my experimentation I have found that I can not eat alot of soy/tofu. It does effect my ability to drop body fat. I have heard this from alot of bodybuilders. It is my experience.

[VeganEssentials]

This may be an unpopular comment but in my experimentation I have found that I can not eat alot of soy/tofu. It does effect my ability to drop body fat. I have heard this from alot of bodybuilders. It is my experience.

 

Agreed here for my own situation as well. Some people can eat soy by the bucket and it doesn't have any negative effect, but I'm finding that my fat loss was WAY better when I decided to keep soy down to the minimum, which for me still accounts for maybe 25-40g of protein per day. In the past, it made up 75%+ of my protein intake, and that's when I gained the most fat and had the hardest time losing it. I've come to prefer other plant-based proteins over soy since finding it's not ideal for me to take in large quantities, but again, some people can do it just fine.

 

Sure would be nice if training and diet worked the same across the board for everyone and we didn't have to spend years figuring all this junk out on our own!

[vivalasvegans]

Hey MadameSchmetterling, if I were you, I would intensify my workouts and just take the calories down a few notches. A 21 k ride in an hour isn't really too intense of a cardio workout, honestly, and my hunch is that you don't have a wide selection of heavy weights at your house. Working with light weights won't really do too much to help you transform the you want. You would have to lift heavier. So I would say, if you can't join a gym, just intensify your cardio and start doing more body weight workouts (a lot of push ups, pull ups, etc) and start tracking your calories. Fruit calories really add up fast.

[MadameSchmetterling]

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Edited January 3, 2011 by MadameSchmetterling

[MadameSchmetterling]

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Edited January 3, 2011 by MadameSchmetterling

[Paige]

I only do up to 1 cup of soy milk per day mixed with my protein powder. No tofu since I am planning on doing a competition in Aug/Sept. I don't know about lupine. Hemp is ok but my favorite is the gemma pea protein. Low in carbs and fat and high in protein. At first I had real digestion problems with it but as I got used to it it was ok. I think hemp and even rice protein would be fine. I have not heard of any problems with those two as I have with soy. I get my powders from trueprotein.com since they have all of these options available and it is well priced.

[MadameSchmetterling]

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Edited January 3, 2011 by MadameSchmetterling

[Paige]

Happy to share my regime:

Food

4am 1 cup coffee with stevia, 1 scoop gemma pea protein with 1/2 banana, water and ice.

7am (post workout) 1/2 cup oatmeal (measured uncooked) mixed with water, 2 scoops gemma pea, one banana

9:30am 1 apple 1/2 oz raw almonds

12:00 steamed broccoli, cauliflower, mushrooms carrots with 1/2c pumpkin and 2 oz of seitan

2:30 one scoop protein powder mixed with water

5:00 big bowl of broccoli, cauliflower, asparagus, brussels, spinach, romaine, mushrooms, mixed with one tbl. flax seed oil and zero cal balsamic vinegar (lots of pepper)

7:30pm 1 scoop protein powder with 1/2 cup soy milk, water and ice

1 gal water per day. I will drink green tea, dandelion root tea with stevia and sometimes a second cup of coffee.

Training Regime:

6 days a weeks I do 45-50 minutes of weight training. I have three separate programs, one for legs/glutes, back/chest/abs, tris/bis/shoulders. upper body days have nine exercises, lower body 7 exercises. I do 3 sets of 15 as I need to bring down bulk a bit. I do each program 2x per week. After weight training I do 35 minutes of cardio mostly running with 7 one minute sprints. On the seventh day I only do cardio, and I run for one hour.

 

I hope this helps. Let me know if you have any questions. Please note, this is what works for me.

[BlueRose]

Hello from Austria

 

Have you tried counting calories? I've been desperately trying to lose fat this spring, but didn't really get anywhere for some time. I've been eating about 800 cals a day. I didn't feel healthy or strong any more after some time, so I finally started to do some research on the internet, and only then realized that 800 cals are below what I need. So I've started eating about 1200 calories daily and losing fat was much easier.

 

To make a long story short: Maybe you're eating too few calories?

 

+1

 

Can't begin to tell you how many people couldn't lose weight until they ate more, self included.

[crashnburn]

Lots of Suryanamaskars and Yoga You'll come out better toned & fit than with all the other stuff.. Nothing better for a womans body unless she wants to start looking "manly"

 

PS: Eat as per your Ayurvedic bodytype - Check online test

[MadameSchmetterling]

You've migrated to India? Where? Cool, I love India too. I do Yoga but you are right I should do it more frequently, it is really the best for a woman - physically and emotionally. Do you know a got online test?

[lobsteriffic]

Lots of Suryanamaskars and Yoga You'll come out better toned & fit than with all the other stuff.. Nothing better for a womans body unless she wants to start looking "manly"

 

Really...? All other activities make women look manly? Oh geez...

[Paige]

Everyone knows by now that the only thing that makes a woman look "manly" is steroids. In fact weight training has been proven to increase metabolism, protect bones and make a woman look fantastic. To say that anything other than yoga and suryanamaskars makes a woman look manly is just wrong.