About 10 lbs left, but plateauing? :(

[plumerias]

Hello everyone! I'm new to this forum.
I'm a 17 year old female, part Asian, 5'2 and I weigh about 121 lbs. My scale reads me as 23% body fat, but I don't know if I trust it. I started losing weight after changing my lifestyle a couple years ago from highly processed no-nutrient foods to basically the paleo diet: protein, fruit, veggies and some healthy fats. In those couples of years, I worked out (heavy weights, 8-10 reps) for intervals of about 3-5 months probably on and off, and I currently do not have access to a gym. It just became too annoying for my parents to take me to the gym and back :/ but I plan to be a gym bunny when college starts so I can use the gym on campus! My highest weight was 148lbs.

Anyway, I'm trying to lower my bodyfat even more and I feel like I'm almost at the point I want to be, but I seem to have stopped at 121 lbs. I don't know what I can do, because I have no access to a gym- maybe someone can suggest things I can do at home if I buy some free weights? We live in an apartment so there isn't much room.

As for my diet, there was a time where I ate about 1200 calories and I was losing a lot of weight (not exercising). Now I eat about 1400.

An example of a typical day:
Breakfast: 2 eggs
Snack: Apple, maybe some berries
Lunch: Lean roast beef (homemade), spinach
Snack: Handful of almonds, a grapefruit
Dinner: Salad with balsamic viniagrette, chicken meat, maybe some avocado or a sprinkle of cheese.
Snack: Carrots with hummus, chicken broth, berries or melon

I can't lower my calories anymore, and I don't know what to do now. I'm not really a fan of cardio for a number of reasons, but I've been doing Jillian Michael's 30 Day Shred workout for a couple weeks to try and stay active and moving.

If needed, I could post pictures too. Thanks in advance :)

[n0ts0smart]

Plumerias,

I don't think anyone hates cardio more than I do. However, I've found that it's neccessary to couple it with weight training. Even if you walk for a half hour a day, you really need to do some form of cardio. I would also recommend either free weights or resistance bands if you have only a small place to work out. You can get a killer resistance band workout dvd and not have to do a ton of cardio to burn the fat.

[euco09]

I think you should have a week off dieting and eat at maintenance. I used to think that increasing cardio was the answer but from my experience it is sooooo not! Thats just my experience though, im not at all what any one else says is wrong.

[Kelvandros]

I think you should have a week off dieting and eat at maintenance. I used to think that increasing cardio was the answer but from my experience it is sooooo not! Thats just my experience though, im not at all what any one else says is wrong.

Sometimes even a day or a weekend of eating higher carbs and calories and have a surprising result. Depending on how long you've been losing, you may have to take longer.

[Bout2break69]

Maybe convince your parents to get you beachbody's insanity?;) it's high intensity cardio you can do in you're home without any equipment. It would definately get you to the next level of fitness and help you shed your last few pounds. It lives up to it's name though, so I'm not sure if you want to try it or not since you don't like cardio. Definately worth it though:) check out insanity transformations on YouTube if you're interested. You can buy the program on beachbody.com or eBay. I'm not sure if it'd be good in an apartment though. Although you need very little space to do it there is quite a bit of jumping so if someone lives below you they may not like you very much lol

[KimPossible98]

Do you know what your macros are? How much do you eat every day? What you posted, is that what you eat day in day out?

How long as it been since you took a diet break? How often do you cheat?

[plumerias]

Hello!

I've been keeping a stricter eye on my intake and I found I was probably over-doing the "little pieces" chocolate :P I have since then cut out chocolate except for a thumbnail sized piece of 70%+ dark once a week if I want it. I also cut out dairy completely because I feel like it made me feel bloated and sluggish. I also cut out nuts for the moment.

For my macros, I've started tracking them on dailyburn.com and I aim for 35/25/40 fat/carb/protein ratio. I eat about 1,200 calories/day and my meal plan is basically the same as before, without cheese+nuts+unnecessary cheats like chocolate/candy.
I usually eat on a school day:

Breakfast: 1 large egg
Snack: apple
Lunch: 1 chicken thigh, 1/2 cup fruit salad
After school meal: 4-5 oz beef or chicken, steamed spinach or broccoli
Dinner: 5-6 oz salmon filet or other lean protein
Snack: 1 tbsp hummus with carrots, soft boiled egg
Depending on my hunger, I might eat a couple more boiled eggs.

So yes, that's what I eat day in and day out. I don't eat bread or rice or wheat, and I avoid soy products. I only recently started tracking again, so I think I was probably eating maintenance calories before by underestimating + chocolate love lol. So hopefully that will fix my plateau.

For the past week I've been eating very clean and I'm planning to continue to see results.
For workouts
- Arm exercises with 5lb weights (which I need to upgrade because they're too light.)
- Push ups
- Lunges, squats with weights.
- Planks
- "The worlds fastest workout" (which is HIIT- 2x a day a couple days a week.)

I'm really bummed with my workout. I want to lift heavy, but I don't have the equipment to do so. I'll have access to a gym when college starts in the fall, but that's so far away! (And bikini season will be over :( )


Thanks everyone for your replies :)