A little help & advise
lucymcr82
Posts: 15 Member
Female, 32, 5'6, 15st 12lbs. I feeling unmotivated basically, since I weighed myself this morning. Been going to the gym 4-5 times a week for a little over four weeks. Mostly doing at hour a morning, mainly doing incline walks & cross trainer. Last weighed myself on new year & again today - lost 8lbs in that time. I just expected & hoped for more. I know going to the gym is all about losing the inches but if I'm not losing the weight - would it not be beneficial to me to just do the 1200cal diet?
PS I am 98% always spot on with my daily calorie intake.
PS I am 98% always spot on with my daily calorie intake.
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Replies
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So 8 lbs down in <6 weeks - pretty good going surely.
Your diary isn't open so can't see how much food you have been eating. Calories of food per day ?
If using treadmill at an incline do you hold on ? that reduces the calories burned. Personally I would do more than every other day at the gym if weight loss is the goal.0 -
8lbs in four weeks??? thats 2lbs a week? thats something to be proud of, im 15st 6 and i dont lose 2lbs a week i lose on average 1lb thats doing les mill body combat 4 times a week aswell!0
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If you want instantaneous weight loss, it's called liposuction. If you want to lose at a healthy rate then keep doing what you're doing, since it seems to be going great.0
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Could possibly be you are gaining muscle, hence muscle weighs more than fat. If you have lost 8 lbs since new years, be proud of what you have done. And another question would be, how are your clothes fitting? I don't always use a scale to measure my losses. I use clothes, because I know that changing body fat to muscle is going to happen. And when I see the number on the scale it messes with my head. ALWAYS... Look for non-scale achievements. Make sure you are drinking enough water and you have your carb to protein ratio correct. Hope this helps.0
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Mystical64 wrote: »Could possibly be you are gaining muscle, hence muscle weighs more than fat. If you have lost 8 lbs since new years, be proud of what you have done. And another question would be, how are your clothes fitting? I don't always use a scale to measure my losses. I use clothes, because I know that changing body fat to muscle is going to happen. And when I see the number on the scale it messes with my head. ALWAYS... Look for non-scale achievements. Make sure you are drinking enough water and you have your carb to protein ratio correct. Hope this helps.
She hasn't gained muscle eating at a deficit and only doing cardio. So not this. Muscle is denser than fat so takes up less space but 1lb of fat weighs the same as 1lb of muscle.
Macros are also irrelevant purely to weight loss but can be useful in helping retain muscle and stay satisfied.
With that said, your rate of loss is perfect. It's your expectations that are askew. I was the same starting weight or there abouts and I only ever aimed for 1lb per week. Some may think that slow but my body is looking exactly how I want it to as I shrink and I am now 42lbs down in what feels a lot like a blink of an eye. So keep going, you're doing great!0 -
8 pounds in 6 weeks is freaking amazing!VintageFeline wrote: »Mystical64 wrote: »Could possibly be you are gaining muscle, hence muscle weighs more than fat. If you have lost 8 lbs since new years, be proud of what you have done. And another question would be, how are your clothes fitting? I don't always use a scale to measure my losses. I use clothes, because I know that changing body fat to muscle is going to happen. And when I see the number on the scale it messes with my head. ALWAYS... Look for non-scale achievements. Make sure you are drinking enough water and you have your carb to protein ratio correct. Hope this helps.
She hasn't gained muscle eating at a deficit and only doing cardio. So not this. Muscle is denser than fat so takes up less space but 1lb of fat weighs the same as 1lb of muscle.
Macros are also irrelevant purely to weight loss but can be useful in helping retain muscle and stay satisfied.
With that said, your rate of loss is perfect. It's your expectations that are askew. I was the same starting weight or there abouts and I only ever aimed for 1lb per week. Some may think that slow but my body is looking exactly how I want it to as I shrink and I am now 42lbs down in what feels a lot like a blink of an eye. So keep going, you're doing great!
and all of that ...0 -
Guess I don't know much but I have lost 18 lbs 16% body fat and over 15 inches over all. This last 5 weeks I've gained 4 lbs of muscle. Hmmmm guess I've done something right!0
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Mystical64 wrote: »Guess I don't know much but I have lost 18 lbs 16% body fat and over 15 inches over all. This last 5 weeks I've gained 4 lbs of muscle. Hmmmm guess I've done something right!
Where are you getting your muscle and body fat info from? If it's a scale and not a DEXA scan they are woefully inaccurate. It is physiologically impossible for you to have gained 4lbs of muscle in that space of time, even if lifting very heavy and eating at a surplus, the two essentials to building muscle. If you are eating at a deficit you are not building any appreciable muscle if any at all. Your weight loss is great but you may want to check out the science of weight loss and muscle gain.0 -
VintageFeline wrote: »Mystical64 wrote: »Guess I don't know much but I have lost 18 lbs 16% body fat and over 15 inches over all. This last 5 weeks I've gained 4 lbs of muscle. Hmmmm guess I've done something right!
Where are you getting your muscle and body fat info from? If it's a scale and not a DEXA scan they are woefully inaccurate. It is physiologically impossible for you to have gained 4lbs of muscle in that space of time, even if lifting very heavy and eating at a surplus, the two essentials to building muscle. If you are eating at a deficit you are not building any appreciable muscle if any at all. Your weight loss is great but you may want to check out the science of weight loss and muscle gain.
My information comes from a Professional and it is accurate. And I have gained 4 lbs of muscle in over a 5 week time frame. I'm not eating deficit, I never said I was and didn't see where the gal was either. I eat over 1400 calories a day. Never deprived. I work with the best coaches and instructor I know. I've been going at this for over a year. I do know my body and I do know what I'm capable of.
Not to be a "B" or anything. The lady asked for help. I gave her my opinion and some inspiration to not get her discouraged. But you pretty much told me I didn't know s**t. There are more ways to have your body fat and water and muscle tested besides a scan and they are accurate. I also work with body builders and trainers. I'm pretty sure they know what they are talking about. And guide me with the information and anything else I need to drive my motivation.
Again, and then I don't care what you think. I was offering the gal some inspiration and telling her she was doing great!0 -
Mystical64 wrote: »VintageFeline wrote: »Mystical64 wrote: »Guess I don't know much but I have lost 18 lbs 16% body fat and over 15 inches over all. This last 5 weeks I've gained 4 lbs of muscle. Hmmmm guess I've done something right!
Where are you getting your muscle and body fat info from? If it's a scale and not a DEXA scan they are woefully inaccurate. It is physiologically impossible for you to have gained 4lbs of muscle in that space of time, even if lifting very heavy and eating at a surplus, the two essentials to building muscle. If you are eating at a deficit you are not building any appreciable muscle if any at all. Your weight loss is great but you may want to check out the science of weight loss and muscle gain.
My information comes from a Professional and it is accurate. And I have gained 4 lbs of muscle in over a 5 week time frame. I'm not eating deficit, I never said I was and didn't see where the gal was either. I eat over 1400 calories a day. Never deprived. I work with the best coaches and instructor I know. I've been going at this for over a year. I do know my body and I do know what I'm capable of.
Not to be a "B" or anything. The lady asked for help. I gave her my opinion and some inspiration to not get her discouraged. But you pretty much told me I didn't know s**t. There are more ways to have your body fat and water and muscle tested besides a scan and they are accurate. I also work with body builders and trainers. I'm pretty sure they know what they are talking about. And guide me with the information and anything else I need to drive my motivation.
Again, and then I don't care what you think. I was offering the gal some inspiration and telling her she was doing great!
I know you're "pretty sure" that the body builders and trainers you are working with are giving you accurate information, but the results you are talking about just aren't realistic for the time frame you have described. Just because someone is a professional doesn't mean they are infallible.0 -
Mystical64 wrote: »VintageFeline wrote: »Mystical64 wrote: »Guess I don't know much but I have lost 18 lbs 16% body fat and over 15 inches over all. This last 5 weeks I've gained 4 lbs of muscle. Hmmmm guess I've done something right!
Where are you getting your muscle and body fat info from? If it's a scale and not a DEXA scan they are woefully inaccurate. It is physiologically impossible for you to have gained 4lbs of muscle in that space of time, even if lifting very heavy and eating at a surplus, the two essentials to building muscle. If you are eating at a deficit you are not building any appreciable muscle if any at all. Your weight loss is great but you may want to check out the science of weight loss and muscle gain.
My information comes from a Professional and it is accurate. And I have gained 4 lbs of muscle in over a 5 week time frame. I'm not eating deficit, I never said I was and didn't see where the gal was either. I eat over 1400 calories a day. Never deprived. I work with the best coaches and instructor I know. I've been going at this for over a year. I do know my body and I do know what I'm capable of.
Not to be a "B" or anything. The lady asked for help. I gave her my opinion and some inspiration to not get her discouraged. But you pretty much told me I didn't know s**t. There are more ways to have your body fat and water and muscle tested besides a scan and they are accurate. I also work with body builders and trainers. I'm pretty sure they know what they are talking about. And guide me with the information and anything else I need to drive my motivation.
Again, and then I don't care what you think. I was offering the gal some inspiration and telling her she was doing great!
It's painfully obvious they don't. I don't even mean "they're slightly off, maybe it's an honest mistake." They either know absolutely nothing, or they're intentionally lying to you. I know it's not what you want to hear but it's the truth.
An 18 year old male, in his prime and full of testosterone, wouldn't be able to put on 4 lbs of muscle in 5 weeks eating at a calorie deficit (and yes, if you're eating 1400 calories a day and losing weight, you're at a calorie deficit). There's no way in h-e-double hockey sticks a 51 year old woman can. That's not an insult to your age or gender, just the truth of human physiology.0 -
Elite athletes and body builders doing everything right to maximize their gains might- *might* put on half a pound of muscle in a week. So gaining almost a pound a week of actual muscle is not realistic. This is a hard limit of human physiology as we understand it.
If your trainer knew a way around this, they'd cost too much to be training anybody but the ultra-elites.
Somebody could definitely put in a pound of fat/water/glycogen a week from eating and working out, though.
But you're probably not a special snowflake whose physiologic rate of muscular hypertrophy doubles that of ever other human. If they're telling you you're doing something physiologically impossible, the obvious answer is they're misled or just lying to you to make you happy.0 -
Be Nice. I suspect Mystical64's trainers are using calipers for measurement. This is typically accurate to 1-3% depending on the method and measurer. Yes 4lbs of muscle in 5 wks is very improbable but this is likely measurement error. Provided that you are tracking trends using the same method with the same measurer this will average out over time. Just like some people have 15lb weight loss weeks and 0lb weight loss weeks. This can be water, full bowels or bladder, etc, etc. Trends are what matters and it is likely if she is measuring regularly that muscle mass is increasing. The rate of increase will fluctuate over time. Keeping in mind all measurements have error, even DEXA measurements, (2D scan extrapolated to 3D) can be off by a few percent.0
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juggernaut1974 wrote: »Mystical64 wrote: »VintageFeline wrote: »Mystical64 wrote: »Guess I don't know much but I have lost 18 lbs 16% body fat and over 15 inches over all. This last 5 weeks I've gained 4 lbs of muscle. Hmmmm guess I've done something right!
Where are you getting your muscle and body fat info from? If it's a scale and not a DEXA scan they are woefully inaccurate. It is physiologically impossible for you to have gained 4lbs of muscle in that space of time, even if lifting very heavy and eating at a surplus, the two essentials to building muscle. If you are eating at a deficit you are not building any appreciable muscle if any at all. Your weight loss is great but you may want to check out the science of weight loss and muscle gain.
My information comes from a Professional and it is accurate. And I have gained 4 lbs of muscle in over a 5 week time frame. I'm not eating deficit, I never said I was and didn't see where the gal was either. I eat over 1400 calories a day. Never deprived. I work with the best coaches and instructor I know. I've been going at this for over a year. I do know my body and I do know what I'm capable of.
Not to be a "B" or anything. The lady asked for help. I gave her my opinion and some inspiration to not get her discouraged. But you pretty much told me I didn't know s**t. There are more ways to have your body fat and water and muscle tested besides a scan and they are accurate. I also work with body builders and trainers. I'm pretty sure they know what they are talking about. And guide me with the information and anything else I need to drive my motivation.
Again, and then I don't care what you think. I was offering the gal some inspiration and telling her she was doing great!
It's painfully obvious they don't. I don't even mean "they're slightly off, maybe it's an honest mistake." They either know absolutely nothing, or they're intentionally lying to you. I know it's not what you want to hear but it's the truth.
An 18 year old male, in his prime and full of testosterone, wouldn't be able to put on 4 lbs of muscle in 5 weeks eating at a calorie deficit
snip.
Yup.0 -
Female, 32, 5'6, 15st 12lbs. I feeling unmotivated basically, since I weighed myself this morning. Been going to the gym 4-5 times a week for a little over four weeks. Mostly doing at hour a morning, mainly doing incline walks & cross trainer. Last weighed myself on new year & again today - lost 8lbs in that time. I just expected & hoped for more. I know going to the gym is all about losing the inches but if I'm not losing the weight - would it not be beneficial to me to just do the 1200cal diet?
PS I am 98% always spot on with my daily calorie intake.
So you're losing 1.5-2 pounds/week? You're doing great! (I'm 5'5", CW 122, lost 60+ pounds since April 2015, at 2lb/week and slower).
I sometimes worry that shows like "Biggest Loser" and magazine/web articles make it seem like it's expected and a good plan to lose huuuuuge amounts of weight every week. It's Not A Good Plan.
Ideally, you lose weight, and stay strong, energetic, and healthy while you do it. And you eat in a way that's sustainable - you can stick with it happily - over a long time period, and you use the weight loss process to learn how to eat permanently in a way that keeps you at a healthy weight.
For most people, unless they're more obese than you are, this means losing something like 1% or less of body weight weekly as a maximum, and means that the loss rate should slow as you get closer to goal weight.
Please don't go to 1200 calories in order to chase an unhealthful weight loss rate. It's not necessary; it's not desirable.
Note: If your gym routine is new, and vigorous enough to require muscle repair, that may mean your body will hold onto a little extra water weight. If it's time of month, you may have some extra water weight from that. Ditto if you've eaten more-than-normal salt or carbs lately. You'll see ups and downs on the scale from factors like that, and it takes time (sometimes multiple weeks) to see the actual loss rates you're really making.
Just patiently stick with a healthy, sustainable calorie deficit, and you'll lose. The people I see succeed on MFP are the ones who do that. The people who freak out about losing too slowly and do steep calorie cuts, exercise overload, etc. . . . . seem to be the ones who binge, fall off the healthy routine for long periods, and often finally disappear from MFP altogether.
You're doing well. Stick with it.0 -
Female, 32, 5'6, 15st 12lbs. I feeling unmotivated basically, since I weighed myself this morning. Been going to the gym 4-5 times a week for a little over four weeks. Mostly doing at hour a morning, mainly doing incline walks & cross trainer. Last weighed myself on new year & again today - lost 8lbs in that time. I just expected & hoped for more. I know going to the gym is all about losing the inches but if I'm not losing the weight - would it not be beneficial to me to just do the 1200cal diet?
PS I am 98% always spot on with my daily calorie intake.
Just keep doing what you are doing. I still think you are doing a great job! Some people just don't like to see people succeed. And I have. I'm in the best shape of my life. I have everything to prove it. Soon I will be teaching some of the classes I go to. They just don't know how much I train nor what I put in my body. Keep up the great work. As one of the instructors say, you didn't gain it over night, so you won't lose it over night. You should see significant changes in ten weeks if you keep pushing through.0 -
I think your expectations are unrealistic. You have done great and should be proud of yourself. I had the exact same issue and so now I weigh myself once every couple of weeks and have lost a total of 13 lbs in just over 2 months. I'm very proud of myself and do not let the scale define me. Good Luck!0
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Thank you everyone. I'll keep at it and enjoy it x0
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Imagine what you'll look like by this time next year!!!!0
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My advice would be to incorporate resistance training as well. I am a girl (and I don't want to look like the hulk), initially 14.9 stone, 5 ft 8 but I lost 19 pounds in my first 4 weeks by doing resistance and only 15-25 mins of cardio (sometimes even only 10 minutes of cardio). I have a personal trainer once a week which only cost me £55 for 6 sessions but there are loads of tutorials on YouTube.
The key is eating protein, cards and good fats in the right proportions (MFP helps with that) and a mixture of cardio/resistance training. If you squat with a 10kg sandbag for 15 reps or even 10 reps then your heart rate soars meaning you do interval training
my back and arms are already looking toned and it's my 6th week! I noticed results after only 2 weeks and I only go 3 days a week so it is not consuming every evening. I am 13 stone and 4 pounds last time I checked and I had a night out last weekend so I'm hoping to see weight loss this week as I probably retained water last week!
Hope this helps!0 -
You need to get realistic expectations. You've averaged more than a pound a week.0
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