Hi im a college student looking to lose weight. I'm looking to transform myself a little bit. Kinda like a Carrie Underwood transformation if you know what I mean. I don't have much weight to lose but it seems like the last few pounds are the most difficult. I weigh 115-120 but I carry alot of it in my waist so it may not sound so bad but i'm not happy because like I said I have alot of it in my waist area. So yeah if anyone knows what I'm talking about or feel the same way or are in the same situation give me a holla! If you have any tips I would love to hear them. It's really frustrating I just can't seem to lose these last pounds! I have been running for like a week and a hallf (2.5 miles) and doing some weights and yet i still don't see a difference. I feel like quitting because I feel like I'm wasting my time. What ya'll think? Let me know. Look foward to hearing from ya'll.

how tall are you? im guessing on the shorter side if you have fat at that weight lol.

Check what you are eating, also exercise and diet usually have a delayed lagg of a week or three before you notice the weight loss. ie running one week, not the next, then loosing the weight then :O

Expecting noticeable change in such a short time is crazy. Management of expectations is of utter importance. If your expectations are left unregulated, frustrations will get the best of you.

Losing weight is easy.

However, you don't necessarily need to lose weight at your size. You need to change your body composition = more muscle, less fat. You don't want to become sickly thin.... which is a real possibility if you go about things incorrectly.

The hierarchy of importance as it pertains to you will look something like this:

1. Diet
2. Resistance Training
3. Cardio

With diet, you want to make sure you're getting in plenty of protein. When you don't have much fat to lose and you diet, your body will have the proclivity to 'give up' more muscle than desired. Sure, the scale weight will fall, but you'll be left just a lighter, softer version of your current self. I don't think that's what your after. So adequate protein creates a pool of amino acids in the blood for your body to pull from as needed.... opposed to pulling from existing amino stores (muscle). You'll also want to get in a good bit of healthy fats. Think nuts, natural peanut butter, avocados, fish, fish oil, flax, extra virgin olive oil, etc. This should have come first, but calories are going to be most important. Are you tracking calories? If so, at this stage in the game it's pretty important. You can use something like FitDay - Free Weight Loss and Diet Journal or CalorieKing - Diet and weight loss. Calorie Counter and more.. I'd start by setting your cals in the 10-12 per pound range. Again, what comprises those cals (protein, carbs, fats) is critical as well.

With weight training, it's up there in importance for the same reasons that adequate protein is. This is more true than ever for someone in your shoes; that being a female trying to 'tone up' and drop the last few pounds of vanity fat. It sends your body a strong stimulus to maintain muscle while dieting. Remember, diet = calories in < calories out. How should you weight train? I'd focus on something like 3 days per week following a full body routine. Do you have access to a gym? If so, I can provide you with some ideas of what to try.

With cardio, I'd start with 2-3 sessions per week. Doing more probably isn't necessary unless you aren't compliant with your calories. Ya see, cardio, aside from providing a benefit to your cardiorespiratory system, really only serves as a *caloric bank* for your fat loss efforts. The more cardio you do, the more, theoretically you can eat..... as it's all about energy balances. Expend more energy and obviously it creates a bigger cushion (savings account) to use up when eating. However, there's a fine line that must be walked. Too much of anything is bad, especially in your particular situation. I'd start with 2 steady state runs and maybe one tempo/interval run each week. We can discuss that later.

Realize, I'm shooting from the hip here as I don't know much about you beyond what you provided in your original post. Questions, concerns..... let's hear them. Hope this gives you a general idea of what you should be leaning towards in terms of programming.

Thanks for the responses. I have not given up yet. As of lately I have noticed that I am looking a bit leaner so that has helped increase my motivation to continue on with the excersize. By the way I am short. I am 5’2. I try to run 2.5 miles in 30 min at least 3 times a day and I also lift weights. I am actually starting to enjoy it just a bit. I do have more questions. So ok I am a woman and naturally I expect my pants to fit me a bit looser but they are not. Right now I am a size 5-7. I think I’m losing the “muffin top” which is great but they are still fitting me tight around the butt and thigh area? I am not known to have a big butt or an hourglass figure. Is this because I am gaining muscle around those areas? In other words I can’t fit into my skinny jeans (size 3) like I have been able to in the past but then again in the past I never weight trained. Is this possible? Or will I eventually drop down in pant size? Should I not expect a drop in pant size? Or is it too soon to tell since its been about 3 weeks. I also have questions about my excersize session. Should I start with weights and then cardio or start with cardio? Does it even make a difference?
I have also been eating more protein. I love munching on special k strawberry protein bars . They are suprisingly filling. I also try to eat egg whites. I wish I could say they taste as great as the bars but I’ve found that they are not so bad with chunky salsa. That’s basically what I eat for breakfast. I don’t really know what to eat for lunch because I am either on campus or at work. I am going to start working more so I going to have to pack something for lunch. Does anyone have any ideas? For dinner I eat lean cuisine or healthy choice. They are good for now but I gotta learn how to make something homeade because pretty soon I am going to grow tired of eating the same thing. Yeah I know they have a lot of varieties but It would be nice if I could make something at home.
Thanks again for helping me achieve a healthy lifestyle change. I still have that nagging belly bulge but I know I must be patient. I have been reading some articles on the internet that say belly bulge is genetic and some people just can’t achieve a toned stomach. This makes me sad and I hope it’s not true  but I’m going to give it a little more time since I have noticed a slight difference. I guess I’ll have to wait and see.

[It sounds like you may need to incorporate some new exercise in your diet plan along with change some of the things your eating to act as a catalyst to getting rid of those extra pounds on ur waist.]Hi im a college student looking to lose weight. I'm looking to transform myself a little bit. Kinda like a Carrie Underwood transformation if you know what I mean. I don't have much weight to lose but it seems like the last few pounds are the most difficult. I weigh 115-120 but I carry alot of it in my waist so it may not sound so bad but i'm not happy because like I said I have alot of it in my waist area. So yeah if anyone knows what I'm talking about or feel the same way or are in the same situation give me a holla! If you have any tips I would love to hear them. It's really frustrating I just can't seem to lose these last pounds! I have been running for like a week and a hallf (2.5 miles) and doing some weights and yet i still don't see a difference. I feel like quitting because I feel like I'm wasting my time. What ya'll think? Let me know. Look foward to hearing from ya'll.[/QUOTE]

Try entering our body transformation contest. That should give you some motivation to make goals and finish them - and you may get some prizes too!