Difference in 3 months?

Rockin2014
Rockin2014 Posts: 196 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
Hi everyone

I started my weight loss journey end of february and I have lost almost 20lbs since then. I still have 30 more to shed so will be working on this for some time. I haven't done any exercising besides walking at least 12k steps daily but now I want to start working out.

I have made an agreement with my daughter to go to the gym at least 3 times per week and do a mixture of cardio and strength training. I am worried though that my strength training efforts may not pay off while I'm on a deficit. What is your take on this?

I would love to be able to see a difference and be more toned when we go on holiday in August, do you think this is realistic?

Replies

  • AllanMisner
    AllanMisner Posts: 4,140 Member
    While you won’t put on any sizable amount of muscle, lifting heavy will help you retain muscle mass (provided you’re getting enough protein), which will give you a better body composition as you shed fat. There are two aspects of strength gain: 1) the muscle gets bigger and/or 2) the muscle gets more efficient. In the case where you’re eating at a deficit, you’ll most likely see most of your improvement from efficiency gains.

  • callsitlikeiseeit
    callsitlikeiseeit Posts: 8,626 Member
    I have a lot more to lose than you, but im already down 30 pounds.

    I do cardio and strength training and eat at a deficit (around 1500 cals/day). sometimes i eat back ,sometimes not . just depends. anyways, from my own experience i find myself getting stronger and still losing fat. I consistently increase weight amounts and push myself more each time (as much as i can). There may be no VISIBLE results in muscle but I have recently discovered i am MUCH stronger in real world situations than i was - i can easily lift and carry a 50 pound bag of dog food, i was able to pick up a fully loaded large cooler without thinking about it or struggling, etc.

    so there are DEFINITE advantages to doing both!
  • kikichewie
    kikichewie Posts: 276 Member
    Oh it will pay off! For all everyone says that you can't gain muscle in a deficit, I'm not sure I believe it. I can see and feel new muscle and definition that simply wasn't there eight weeks ago. And it's not just water retention.
  • Rockin2014
    Rockin2014 Posts: 196 Member
    Thanks everyone! Off to the gym.... ;)
  • Brolympus
    Brolympus Posts: 360 Member
    Rockin2014 wrote: »
    Hi everyone

    I started my weight loss journey end of february and I have lost almost 20lbs since then. I still have 30 more to shed so will be working on this for some time. I haven't done any exercising besides walking at least 12k steps daily but now I want to start working out.

    I have made an agreement with my daughter to go to the gym at least 3 times per week and do a mixture of cardio and strength training. I am worried though that my strength training efforts may not pay off while I'm on a deficit. What is your take on this?

    I would love to be able to see a difference and be more toned when we go on holiday in August, do you think this is realistic?

    You can gain plenty of strength in a deficit, especially considering you haven't been lifting. Your body will undergo several weeks of neural adaptation, where your body gets continually better at recruiting muscle fiber it already has.

    You are correct though that you won't be able to add any actual new fibers until you are back in a small calorie surplus. Eventually you will plateau out neurally adapting and will need new muscle fiber to get any stronger, but again you have at least a month or two of "newbie gains" ahead of you. Enjoy!

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