Fitness? how long it will take to have a low % of fat?

[girlygirl2015]

17%, and I'm like 24%. I know it's all in the diet. But I have to have a strict diet, but if I cheat once in two weeks? will it be ok?

[CasaNorba]

it all depends on how hard and consistent your workouts are. i myself been doing the P90X3 for 6 months now. on march i started consuming 1800 kcal a day and i used to cheat once a week yet you best belive i was loosing 2-4 lbs a week.

so i say yea you can cheat once a week without remorse. i mean i doubt your gonna gain more than a pound in one day unless you have the stomach of a cow

[ThatGuy98]

Cheating once in a while is actually beneficial whilst dieting, as it resets your insulin levels. Be sure not to overdo it though. Also dropping 8% of body fat is quite a lot, and it will take time. Especially if you want to stay healthy and not loose any muscle mass whilst dieting, it is going to take you half a year probably.

[girlygirl2015]

I already lost 10% of boyfriend in 8months. I'll keep going so.

[girlygirl2015]

lol, of body fat I meant

[ThatGuy98]

Okay, nice progress! Good luck!

[nalaa]

cheating every two weeks won't ruin your diet. It will however ruin any healthy habits you might have established

You know, no one tells a smoker to quit smoking by smoking less cigarettes or by having a cheat day every once in a while. Yet people do the same with diet, which is absurd
If you want to stay lean in the long run, cheat days are not your friend

[girlygirl2015]

thank u, that's very wise. It's hard though, specially when I have to study for exams. But I'll try to eat less crappy food until I don't.

[nalaa]

that's what I'm saying, eating less junk food is not how you quit

[girlygirl2015]

so how

[girlygirl2015]

how does a smoker do it? he just quit everything and stops?

[nalaa]

ya exactly

Most people find it impossible to quit by cutting down. You go cold turkey or just keep smoking. It's the same for diet. You can cut down a bit and it will improve your health but you will always still crave junk food. It's easier to just have no processed food for a month and afterwards you won't crave it anymore.

[girlygirl2015]

thank u!

[nalaa]

thanks for MH.
I should mention, when you do this, DON'T restrict calories. You'll be miserable. It's too much at once. Stay away from processed foods but eat as much as like. Just eat mostly vegetables and fruits with a few grains and legumes ( eggs and organic, unprocessed meat if you eat them).
But no bread, baked beans, deli meat, store-bought juices, or dairy products ...

You'll probably still drop a few pounds and if it's not enough you can always calorie restrict after. And drink at least 3 litres of water a day. I know people always say that, but it makes a world of difference to your skin and health so actually pay attention and do it.

If you need some ideas
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SD1sPisoHYE
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ywrZ7WX6veY
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6NuZUVCl5Vk
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2b17zecZ2fw
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n-391rcVlSY

[Dtegesd123]

gotta say smoking and losing weight is a little different. All the profession fitness models do have their cheat meal every week. So if they were to eat 2000 calories a day, on that cheat meal day, it would be around 2500. You're body can't handle low calories for long before it goes into starvation mode. So you gotta shock/trick your body that its not in starvation mode so it can let go of its reserved fats instead of eating away muscle.

[nalaa]

@Dtegesd123 I wasn't really talking about losing weight but about quitting junk food. There is a LOT of research that shows refined sugar and oils have a similar effect on the brain as heroin or cocaine, which is why a lot of people find it hard to just cut down
Did you know that heroin by the way, was given to soldiers in ww1 as cough syrup? Hence the name hero -in

My point how we perceive what we put into our body changes with time. Smoking while pregnant in the 50s no big deal, in 2015 a crime against humanity.
The same way attitudes changes on several drugs over time it's now changing on junk food, which really isn't food at all but poison in a bag.

You vary your caloric intake without eating junk food.
Nuts, seed and avocados for examples are good foods that have a shitload of calories. When eating whole foods though most people don't overeat and that's the point

[Dtegesd123]

@nalaa. oh my bad, then you are right

[Goldie757]

Woah 17% is to low. The recommended percentage for a woman is 22%.

[girlygirl2015]

I used to had 22% (then I gained weight) and I still feel fat, specially in the arms and belly.

[CourtJester]

A big carb overload once a week is proven to be beneficial. Once you start lowering your calorie intake it slows down your metabolism and a cheat day restarts it again and proven you'll lose more weight overall.

[justanothergager]

17 for a women is very low. 20 is perfect if u have a lot of muscle mass in my opinion. Trainer here

Focus on building muscle as it'll naturally bring ur fat down if u eat right.

Low fat by itself doesn't give u much of a shape.

[girlygirl2015]

so eat clean and weights?

[justanothergager]

Yes. Always focus on building muscle and controlling ur weight with carb intake.

Figure out how much calories ur weight and height needs and have an idea how much u should eat.:) good luck and if u got ur diet down u don't even need to do cardio reallyy

[girlygirl2015]

I used to had 22%, but I had lots of fat on arms and belly still. then I gained weight again. So I want a % less than 20%. Because most of my fat is in my arms, back, belly and waist. even in 22-20 I had like 28 inches of waist.

[Jonwhilkins]

I can't tell how hard it would be with a womans body. We're about the same age and I can cheat once or twice a week and still lose BF%

[Klaatu51]

yeah cheatin a little bit won't distract u from yer goal, but don't do it more often than once per 10-12 days.

[Not_Helping]

It is not all in the diet, it is the exercise, and if you are trying to diet your way down to a lower BF% you will fail.

[girlygirl2015]

it's 70% diet and 30% excersise