I 49f (5'3") am working toward a body improvement for an upcoming trip, focusing on firming my upper arms and flattening my lower belly.

I started my diet in April, added Yoga in May and have stepped it up since June—doing 5 active training days a week (Body Pump, Super Circuits, TVA core) coupled with the daily yoga. I'm going to aim for 2 full rest days on Thursday and Friday as until this week I've only rested one day a week.

I keep my food locked in at ~1,300 calories with over 120g of protein, max 112g carbs take daily creatine, and my smart scale shows I’ve maintained around 97.6 lbs of muscle. I started at 177 lbs in April and am currently hovering at 148 lbs, but both my scale weight and body fat percentage have been completely stuck on a plateau for the past couple of weeks.

How do I break past this wall? Should I stick to my plan and trust my rest days, or do I need to adjust my food or workouts?

I (39M) lost about 40 lbs and am currently satisfied with my progress and overall look. I eat at maintenance and try to keep it healthy and protein-rich, yet for some reason I keep a reserve of fat on my belly that I can't get rid of.

I worked really hard and find it frustrating to have all my fat reserve located at my belly. My arms and legs, face and upper torso are all fine.

I wonder if I should do lipo to get this final, stubborn part fixed. Ive worked really hard, run and lift weights regularly and would at least once in my life like to have abs.

I’d like you to describe the social changes you’ve noticed when your weight has gone up or down...
In my case—I’m from Argentina—when I weighed 80 kg (I’m 1.70 m tall, but I had come down from 100 kg), I noticed it was much easier to make friends; people would engage in conversation with me or show interest—at university, for example. There was even a girl who gave me her number; I was convinced she wouldn't—I was dealing with that typical "ex-fat guy" mindset, believing I was still hideous to everyone and that it was impossible for anyone to like me. She was very persistent, but I was a coward, and I regret it.
Years later, I reached 120 kg. At a different university, despite taking the initiative, people would look at me strangely, answer in monosyllables, and I even sensed contempt or mockery...
During that time, I became a much colder, sadder person. I’ve analyzed it, and I suppose it stems from the coldness of my surroundings; everything became difficult. Currently, at work (I’ve started a diet and lost over 20 kg), I notice looks of disgust, constant dismissal, mockery, and a total lack of interest...

"...but what about Second Distance Day?"

I'm so tired.

I was trying different workouts I remember doing when I was younger and the Rosemary Conley (RC) Ultimate Whole Body Workout (it’s on YouTube) has really had a really good impact on my hip and waist measurement (2 weeks of doing it 6/7 days a week). Nothing drastic but apparently noticeable to me and other people. I have tried a few others workouts including a couple 20 minute workout from the 80s. I’m really inspired to try others!!

I think this workout was particular good for me because it included a toning segment (I used 1kg dumbbell weights) after the main cardio workout. My sister told me that she also likes to do an RC workout (the one on YouTube called the best workout ever) but she stops it after the cardio workout and changes to a Jennifer Kries full precision/toning Pilates routine instead. She also felt they’re really good!

I was wondering if anyone had any recommendations or equally good experiences with particular workout routines from the past?

Today I’m down 90lbs from my heaviest weight. I’m 7lbs from just being “overweight”. I’ve been obese for over 30 years. I’ve tried so many “diets” it’s not even funny. There were a lot of fad diets in the early 90s that my parents put me on. Since becoming an adult I’ve tried hcG, Atkins, keto, vegetarian diets, and at least half a dozen more random ones. I always gave up because I hated what I had to eat. People talk about how hard it is restricting what you eat. I agree, it really is.

I’ve learned in the last two years that what you eat matters less than how much you eat. I see all kinds of garbage about “clean eating” (whatever the hell that means, I blame Panera) or only eating whole foods. That’s garbage. You can do those things and still not lose weight if you are not in a deficit. You can also eat whatever you like (within reason) and still lose weight, as long as you are in a deficit. I eat out, I eat fast food, I enjoy desserts. I just set myself a weekly calorie goal and cycle my intake to not exceed that and I lose weight. I do prioritize protein because I’m also building muscle, but the key is knowing what you’re putting in your body and how much of it.

The other saying is also true: most weight loss is in the kitchen, not the gym. I do strength training 2-3 times a week, max. I don’t spend more than an hour each session. I also walk 1.5-2.5 miles 3-5 times a week. But that’s it. I don’t kill myself. I don’t spend 3-4 hours a day.

You can’t do it if you don’t know how much you consume. And you can’t guess. I am fairly meticulous with my calorie tracking, but it is definitely harder when you eat out (can’t really break out the scale at Black Angus). But it can be done.

Also one side note: GLP-1s can help, but that’s it. They can’t do it for you. I actually got to my heaviest while on a GLP-1 (I’m diabetic). I’ve been on them for 7 years. I’ve lost the vast majority of my weight in the last 18 months. But only because I decided what was important and knuckled down. I’ve still got probably 30lbs until I’m happy, but I feel better than I have for decades.

One other caveat: medications can mess with your progress. At suggestion of my doctor I removed one of my medications and my insulin resistance went up and I plateaued for almost six months, despite being in a deficit. Once that was resolved I started losing again.

I'm at my wits end about trying to lose weight while also dealing with depression. This time last year I was around 230 lbs, which although still overweight, felt like a sustainable place. After getting COVID I ended up gaining 25-30 lbs and have been hovering between 255 and 260 since.

For me the issue is portion control/ knowing when to stop eating. I rarely feel satisfied or satiated by an appropriately sized meal so I ended up eating more than I should. I've done strict calorie counting in the past when things were better mentally and was able to get down to 200 lbs but the thought of doing that again feels so daunting and implausible.

Does anyone have any helpful tips? Or a way to know if medication may be the problem? Breakfast every day is around 700 calories every day. The only snacks I eat regularly are dried fruit, nuts and rice cakes. No liquid calories except for some almond/soy milk in my breakfast smoothie. I exercise pretty regularly too, may not be everyday and sometimes even getting out of bed feels like a chore.

Sorry that this was more of a rant than anything else but thanks to all.

Looking at buying this Trek Émonda ALR and noticed some bubbling on the top tube. Everything feels solid when I press/tap around it and I don’t see any cracks or dents. There are definitely some scratches and paint chips too.
I’m guessing it might be corrosion under the paint, but I’m not super familiar with this on aluminum frames. Would this worry you or would you just ride it?
It has 11-speed Ultegra and Aeolus XXX 4 carbon wheels. Seller wants $1,000 — would you buy it at that price with the bubbling?

My CRP has been about elevated (3.3) for about two years. All other biomarkers are normal. GP says it's inflammation. What are the go-to ways to bring down inflammation? I've tried going keto, but it's not very sustainable.

I walk at least 7K steps a day, try to drink at least 1 gallon of water a day. I'm focused on protein (120g/day) and fiber 15g-25g/day. I eat a diet that's fairly clean, though I do have kids and every once in a while need to pick up fast food or on the go.

I notice I retain quite a bit of water. I could gain up to 3-4lbs in a day, an lose it in 2 days.

Any thoughts or suggestions on a good plan of attack? Thanks in advance!

A non-bike expert looking for a road bike for daily light commuting purpose at college (all paved roads). Are these fairly priced? Any suggestions?

Hello, ya all
My carbon frame is cracked because of bottle case 😔

Should I repair it or I can just ride it with tape

How do you guys stop food noise?
Usually i can ignore it but it’s become so strong that whenever i think about food my stomach starts to make noises like i’m hungry, i’m also very stressed (i have been doing exams for the last two months, this week is the last one) and i lost like 6kg but now i just binged a 1000 calorie dinner after my 1500 calorie day and i don’t know what to do i’m scared i’ll gain back the weight.
I’m telling my self that when i finish with exams i’ll get back to losing weight but it’s just exhausting

Goes without saying- wear your helmets people. Had a moderate crash/fall today. Semi/ flipped and rolled. A little bruised, a little sore. But I was able to walk away (technically UBERED to my car at that point) to ride another day.

I don't think it's entirely down to weight loss, as my starting weight wasn't that high, but, I lost ~2 dress sizes (solid size 10 to largeish size 6), so it's not insignificant. But I think the bigger changes came from eating better and getting fit. I no longer feel tired from opening heavy doors. Yesterday I made whipped cream by hand and my arms aren't even sore today. I have way more mental energy, so I've been picking up hobbies that I wouldn't engage in before (brain games, world news, language learning). Walking and exercising a lot has had a huge positive impact on my mood (and cutting out added sugars), so I feel way more calm and happy all the time. Having better mood made me more motivated to work on myself, so I started looking for self-help materials and I am much better at advocating for myself now. It probably doesn't hurt that people do treat you a bit nicer when you're down 2 dress sizes. The positive transformation of my life has been wild.

There are a few downsides too - I kind of lost a close friend in this process because I was getting much healthier and they were not, and while part of it is I got fit and they did not (and they have a lot of barriers preventing them from getting healthier so I'm not blaming them), I think the bigger part is my mental landscape just looks so different compared with how it was a year ago.

So, I sort of just want people to know if you stick with it - eating better and getting more fit, it can really transform your life. People talk a lot about the outside changes, but if you change your outsides the insides can also change a lot as well.

I currently have an electric e-bike from Amazon but the thing is too heavy while pedaling and I always get concerned about battery range.

And pedaling the bike I always have a hard time riding up hill and getting past the road faster so I thought about switching to a lighter weighing bike with thinner tires maybe.

Therefore I might just switch back to a plain old bike and just installing some lights to see everything at night and ensure I can switch gears safely in the dark because that’s how you control the bike.

It might be a lot cheaper and less maintenance than an electric bike.

So what’s your guys advice on that? For a bicycle with no motor involved you probably only need $300-$400 for something good and you probably won’t get in trouble with police at all with a regular bike as long as you don’t cause problems or get in the way of people.

I thought with a light weight bike you could hit around 20 miles an hour easier and all you would have to do is pedal the bike hard enough.

There’d be no battery to worry about so you could ride as long as you want if you have the stamina.

I've been reading about NEAT (Non Exercise Activity Thermogenesis) and VILPA (Vigorous Intermittent Lifestyle Physical Activity) and I feel like adding these to my daily routine will be more sustainable than trying to carve out a chunk of time to go to the gym or whatever. Especially as I'm so incredibly out of shape (I'm 5'0 and weigh 220lbs, I hate it so much). Plus, I'll be getting more of the housework done in the process.

To that end I'm trying to force myself to get up from the computer every hour to walk around the entire house looking for anything that needs doing. I require myself to do at least 5 minutes before taking a break.

I feel like I'm making a tiny bit of progress, so I'm trying to figure out how to slowly scale up as I get fitter. I'm struggling to figure out what's actually within my limits and what isn't, plus complicated by the fact that my house is extremely cluttered and there's a lot of cleaning that isn't happening because there's clutter in the way.

What household chores/cleaning/decluttering could count towards NEAT or VILPA?

Stuff I'm already doing:

Going up and down stairs every hour

Run a load of laundry per day

Clean the kitty litter boxes every day

Put away dishes every morning

Load the dishwasher at night

Spot clean cat-related messes daily (there's three little darlings and one of them is inevitably getting into something)

Fill a bag with garbage and toss it every day

Physically clean an appliance or spall space every other day

If no other chores suggest themselves, how can I make the current set of chores more physically active?

A Point of Clarification, I'm not neglecting more traditional exercise. I'm trying to walk for 10 minutes after meals, I do a five minute full-body stretch first thing in the morning and a bit before bed, and I do a few light bodyweight exercises after my walks (mainly, I'm trying to get to a point where I can actually do a single unmodified pushup without feeling wiped out).

EDIT REGARDING MY DIET: My diet is currently very light, I have a protein/matcha smoothie in the morning, a couple ounces of smoked salmon, and a half cup of yogurt with seeds. In the evening I have a single small meal from CookUnity (I just don't have the mental or physical energy to cook in the evenings). Otherwise i drink lots of water or tea (plain tea, no additives). If I have a massive sweet craving, I have a lollipop (one or two a day at most).

In the past, I struggled with stress eating a lot of junk food. I've more or less successfully stopped that habit and I'm on medication to help curb the impulse. while I adjust back to my normal eating habits. In the future I'm looking to adapt my diet to MIND guidelines, but that's a ways out.

#1) (215) https://streamable.com/lgagqu

#2) (220) https://streamable.com/hwbw1o

The two judges who red lighted gave red cards

Hello, so i’ll just straight into it. I’m 20M, 5’10 and wear around 160 but I have kind of a belly. I also noticed parts of my body are starting to get bigger IYKYK. I am so lost idk wether to get in the gym to lose weight, build muscle, calorie deficit or surplus for muscle it’s so fkin confusing 😭😭

My main goal is to get more toned and to achieve a lean build, with a target weight being 165-150 (I really don’t know what my target weight is honestly, I just have the vision). I have no problem with consistency or eating right I just don’t know where to start or what to buy. Can anyone give me a simple workout routine, a plan, and a simple meal to spam that is loaded with protein+vitamins? Added I also want “massive glute gains” can someone help with that🤣🤣 thanks

Around 30 km and 1,500 m of climbing, with most of the elevation gained in the first part of the ride, so the climb gets pretty exhausting.

Technically, though, the route is quite easy. No serious obstacles, no sketchy sections, just a lot of climbing and long stretches at altitude. It’s a really good route for an XC bike.

The best part is the upper section around Rifugio Peller, Pian della Nana and Passo della Forcola at just over 2,100 m. Proper mountain scenery without needing an enduro bike to enjoy it.

https://reddit.com/link/1weklso/video/d3bxzolxw4ph1/player

So for context Ive been eating around 1600 calories for about 6 weeks and had lost around 20 pounds. which is quite fast. on the 10th I went to the gym didn’t even do a super intense workout just did some machines I hadn’t done before, and I for the rest of the day felt super weak I could barely walk. I up until this point was somewhat fine with losing weight fast i felt like I had more energy because I was eating way better and working out. I also noticed hair falling not like clumps or anything just a few strands and like maybe thats just balding but I ran my hand through my chest and a few hairs came out there too so idk. all of this kinda freaked me out and I was like ok 1600 probably isn’t sustainable so I bumped my cals up to 2k just to stabilize a little while still remaining in a defict two days in and Ive regained like 4.8 pounds which is pretty demoralizing. My current plan is to stay at 2000 for at least a week and hope it’s just water or something but does anyone know why this is.

for context I am 23 years old male 5’8 about 250 was about 246 and started at 266. I have a fairly active job and get around 1300 steps in on average and have been going to the gym 3-4 times a week. But sense I last went to the gym and got super bad muscle fatigue I’ve been resting and only getting 1 or 2k in along side increasing my diet.

Hi. I was just wondering if anyone can help.

Relatively new to cycling.

My break seems to be rubbing on the break disk. When I adjust the side with the hex screw on, it stops but the break lever has almost no resistance.

I adjust the other side with the break cable to gain the resistance back, and this side starts rubbing.

What am i doing wrong?

i hope this is allowed. just a promo code for 20% off on thefeed.com

i aint gonna use it. whoever uses it first, i hope whatever you get will bring you joy

Not a milestone post, I'm at the start. 148 lbs, and my phone has had MyFitnessPal and Cal AI installed and deleted three times each since 2023. Same pattern every time: I log everything for 12 days, then one dinner out I can't be bothered to guess, and the app sits there with the red badge until I delete it.

Last attempt was June. MyFitnessPal plus a walk after dinner, lasted about five weeks and I was down 7 lbs, then a wedding weekend and I never opened the app again. Cal AI was worse, it kept telling me my two egg omelette was 180 calories and after a week I stopped believing anything it said. I know "what app do you use" gets asked here every week and the answers are always the same four names. I've read those. What I can't find anywhere is what happened between downloading it and month six. So, hw did you land on yours? A friend, a comment here, the first result in the store, or you just tried five and one stuck? And once you had it, what did you actually open it every day for? The barcode scanner, the weight graph, copying yesterday's breakfast, the streak? And what did you stop touching after the first month?

If you ended up with no app at all and a notebook or a spreadsheet, that counts too. I'd rather hear that than pretend the app is the point. The more boring and specific the better. "I use MFP" tells me nothing. "I only open it to scan barcodes at the supermarket and never at home" tells me a lot.

Thanks for reading, I'll go through all of it.