Want to lose 20 pounds

Question
Hi,
My name is Ajay, I'm 15, 5'11, and 181 pounds. I am tall, and I carry my weight very well. I also don't appear overweight by most standards(and wear a size 10) due to the fact that I'm very muscular. Still, I carry some extra fat in my inner thighs, upper abs(right underneath my bra I have an annoying pocket of fat, which I'm assuming is part of my upper abs), and although my arms are very large and muscular, I also have a small amount of fat on the insides of them that I want to lose. When all is said and done, I hope to lose about 20 pounds. I'm patient. I don't care if it takes a few months to do this, I just know that I will feel soo much better about myself if I lose this 20 pounds of fat.

Genetics is also an issue. Both my parents are overweight, and my grandparents(both sides) are, also. I'm sure it's obvious just by looking at my height and weight that I have a big build. I don't want to be overweight or obese as an adult. Is it inevitable, though, considering my whole family is?

I'm an avid exerciser. I do weight/strength training three times a week, and cardio(kick-boxing, swimming, running, soccer, basketball, jump rope, kickball, etc.) 3-4 times a week, so I exercise intensely AT LEAST 45 minutes a day, very often more than that. I'm proud of how muscular and defined I have been getting, and don't want to lose any muscle weight. Still, this annoying 20 pounds of so of fat just will not go away.

I eat a healthy diet, overall. Just probably too many calories. With how much I exercise, it seems like I'm ALWAYS hungry. It's hard for me to lose any weight, because I get even more hungry if I cut back too much on my eating. I consume about 2300 to 2600 calories a day, and I feel like I need almost all of those. 200-300 of those is sweets/desserts, three to four days a week. I'm a sweet-tooth, unfortunately, and that is a big weakness for me.  Any advice?  Other than that, I eat 3-6 servings of(normally fresh) fruits and veggies daily. Nuts, eggs, skim milk, whole grain bread, cereal(like total, rice crispies, and cheerios) and a nice variety, I think. I hate pasta, though, don't know if that effects anything.
What changes do I need to make to lose this 20 pounds? Is it an unrealistic goal, considering my genetics? I don't know if it would be healthy for me to exercise any more than I do now, and my parents may not want me spending any more time than I do already, anyway.

I'd appreciate any advice or suggestions that you can give me :) Thanks in advance for your help!


Answer
Dear Ajay, To lose weight, you will have to eat less calories than your body needs. The body will be forced to burn excess fat for energy. To get the body to burn fat, you will have to limit your sweets to say once a week or cut them out completely, and cut down your daily calories to say 2100 per day. If you do this, you can lose 2 pounds a month. Sweets can cause food cravings and excessive hunger, so limiting those types of foods is really a good idea when you are trying to limit calories.
Motivation has to come from within, and it appears that you have what it takes to reach your goals. Limit the sweets and you should lose the weight. Hope that helps, Laura Kraemer,Slimkids.com

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