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MyFitnessPal Community

Fatter At A Lower Weight

trudiebamford

Has anyone else found that they look fatter at the same, or a lower weight than they were in the past? A few years ago I got down to 159lbs, by running and eating vegan (definitely not low fat though). I looked very slim at that weight, no flab or a lot of cellulite. Then I gained it all back. Now I'm down to 152lbs (I'm 5'10", btw), my lowest weight in 15 years, and I have a lot more muscle this time too, and yet I definitely look fatter. The last time I was this weight I was happy to be seen in a bikini - this time, not a chance!!! I look slim, even thin, clothed, but without clothes I have a lot of noticeable body fat and cellulite, mostly on my hips/thighs.

Is it just age? Is it the losing/gaining process?

Replies

LazSommer

I mean this in a nice way but maybe you have less muscle than you anticipated. Did you only run and eat at a deficit?

trudiebamford

I definitely have more muscle now than I did last time I lost weight - I've built visible muscle mass in my upper body, core, and quads. I didn't have visible muscle anywhere but my calfs when I was a runner.

Chef_Barbell

Lift things up and put them down. You might need some body recomp.

SezxyStef

LazSommer wrote: »

I mean this in a nice way but maybe you have less muscle than you anticipated. Did you only run and eat at a deficit?

This would be my guess to be honest...it's hard for women to build muscle without doing some heavy lifting...are you doing heavy lifting? You may have lost muscle this time around to be quite frank or even last time...depends on the calories you are consuming and if you are using the muscle and if you are getting in enough protein.

But at 5 ft 10...and 152 that is pretty slim and to get there vegan means not a lot of protein...

every time you lose weight you lose some muscle...there is no getting around it....and depending on how big your deficit is you could lose a lot of muscle and not even know you are..

kshama2001

The most logical explanation is that you have less muscle. I realize your perception is that you have more muscle. However, this can be deceiving. For example, a few months ago my biceps seem bigger to me but when I compared them to a measurement I had taken a year earlier, they were actually an inch smaller.

Without having before and after DEXA scans, it would be really hard to compare muscle mass with any accuracy.

Also, now that I'm actually looking at myself in a mirror, I am more critical than I was when I was 50 pounds heavier.

trudiebamford

I'm not vegan now - I was vegan the last time I lost weight.

I definitely have more muscle now - as well as it being visible, I can compare by what I'm able to do. I couldn't do even girl push-ups before, now I can do proper push-ups. Just for example. I do lift, although not heavy, 12lbs or so.

I think you're probably right, I'm more critical now.

trigden1991

Everyone has less muscle and is fatter than they initially think. Very few people get lean enough to truly see what they look like without the layer of fat covering it.

SezxyStef

trudiebamford wrote: »

I'm not vegan now - I was vegan the last time I lost weight.

I definitely have more muscle now - as well as it being visible, I can compare by what I'm able to do. I couldn't do even girl push-ups before, now I can do proper push-ups. Just for example. I do lift, although not heavy, 12lbs or so.

I think you're probably right, I'm more critical now.

don't confuse strength with muscle.

and the last time you lost weight you would have lost muscle mass...

the only way to build muscle for a woman is to do a progressive load lifting program with at least maintenance calories or a surplus...you don't build muscle without trying...and women are lucky to build 8-10lbs of muscle a year...

don't confuse strength with muscle....yes I said it again...

Sumiblue

Yes, strength doesn't mean muscle gain. You have more muscle definition because you lost some fat that was covering the muscle. You might feel you are stronger than before because you are doing something to challenge your strength. But, if eating at deficit you probably didn't gain more muscle than you had. You lose a little muscle with the fat. Without comparing Bodpod or Dexa scans, it's hard to say but I'd guess your body composition is different. A good lifting program and eating at maintenance can help.

RhapsodyWinters

trudiebamford wrote: »

I'm not vegan now - I was vegan the last time I lost weight.

I definitely have more muscle now - as well as it being visible, I can compare by what I'm able to do. I couldn't do even girl push-ups before, now I can do proper push-ups. Just for example. I do lift, although not heavy, 12lbs or so.

I think you're probably right, I'm more critical now.

I'm not sure 12 lb is enough to tone you the way you want. My personal trainer made a plan for me to lose 130 lb and tone up while I'm at it. Basically, when you're using a resistance machine, you should be doing 3 repetitions of 10-12. If you can easily do 12 lb 10-12 per set, then you need to increase the weight. There is NO way you can bulk up like She-Hulk unless you are actively trying to do so. That would be doing 3 reps of 3 using 150 lb and loading up on protein.

For example, I'll do the Hip Abduction with weights of 20lb and do 3 reps of 10-12. Once I'm more fit, I'll probably add weight. That won't make me super buff.

nowine4me

OP - I'm the same. In 2012 I got to 150 and looked pretty darn good. Gained it all back. Now I'm back at 150 four years later and wearing the exact same jeans, but my legs and stomach look really flabby. I'm chalking it up to age and will just keep losing very slowly until I'm where I want to be with the help of running and Stronglifts.

kshama2001

trudiebamford wrote: »

I'm not vegan now - I was vegan the last time I lost weight.

I definitely have more muscle now - as well as it being visible, I can compare by what I'm able to do. I couldn't do even girl push-ups before, now I can do proper push-ups. Just for example. I do lift, although not heavy, 12lbs or so.

I think you're probably right, I'm more critical now.

For which lift do you use 12 pounds and for how many reps and sets?

Ready2Rock206

Yes! Several years back I lost 40 lbs - dropped a bunch of clothing sizes. Never exercised at all back then so it wasn't muscle making me look smaller. Gained it almost all back. Now I have lost more weight than that but I am so much larger! Have barely lost one size. I work out several times a week, I have a trainer, I eat better. I am still huge. There's no way even at my goal weight that I will look how I looked back then. Maybe age - I don't know. Frustrating but I think I am healthier even if I don't look it.

trudiebamford

Oh, I'm glad it's not just me!

trudiebamford

kshama2001 wrote: »

For which lift do you use 12 pounds and for how many reps and sets?

I use dumbells, 12lb each, and do about 7 exercises, shoulder presses, bicep & hammer curls, ones that target triceps & lats (I'm blanking on the names!). 3 sets of 8-15, depending on how strong that muscle is.

I also do body weight exercises every day.

middlehaitch

The problem with losing then gaining then losing again is that, unless one makes a concerted effort to retain muscle by eating adequate protein and uses a progressive type resistance routine during the whole of this time, one loses fat and muscle initially, gains fat (with little muscle gain), then loses fat and muscle when losing the 2nd or 3rd time.
This leaves one with a lower muscle mass than one had after the initial loss at the same weight.

Each time one reaches goal weight one has less muscle and more fat and a slightly lower BMI, because of the lower muscle mass, making it easier to regain weight.

Do not automatically chalk it up to age. One can improve ones body composition at almost any age.

I have been maintaining 6+ years and was quite happy with my body, especially for my age. I had always done some form of resistance work so had retained a reasonable amount of muscle and improved my strength.
About 3 years ago I got a bit more serious about strength training, first bodyweight, then AllPro, a heavy lifting programme. I am doing the slowest recomp ever- but it is working.

Below are the results, I am the same weight in both pics.

The pic on the right was my 63rd birthday - please, don't let age deter you.

Cheers, h.

SueInAz

Every time you lose weight you lose muscle along with the fat, especially if you aren't weight training. As others have said, more strength doesn't equal more muscle mass and your body fat percentage is very likely higher now than it was in the past.

The good news is you can still work to correct that. Keep working at the weights, lift as heavy as you can. Eat at maintenance calories and you can start a slow body recomposition. That's actually what I'm doing now. If you'd rather put muscle on more quickly then eat at a 250 calorie surplus while lifting for a few months. You can then go on a cut cycle and continue to lift while eating at a calorie deficit to lose fat.

peaceout_aly

I started at 107 lbs. (105 lbs. on a good day) and weigh 115 lbs. now and look MUCH leaner. Yes my legs look bigger, but they are toned. More muscle, less fat.

trudiebamford

Really interesting, thanks everyone!

frankiesgirlie

OMG...Middlehaitch!!

Thank you, thank you for posting those photos.
You look incredible!
I will continue to lift and eat my protein.
There is hope for my 55 year old belly!!

ogtmama

I'm also going to throw in that your skin also probably isn't as firm this time either

trudiebamford

eveandqsmom wrote: »

I'm also going to throw in that your skin also probably isn't as firm this time either

Probably! Let's hope the daily collagen helps with that.

Jezreel12

That's amazing indeed!

lady_ghost

trudiebamford wrote: »

Has anyone else found that they look fatter at the same, or a lower weight than they were in the past? A few years ago I got down to 159lbs, by running and eating vegan (definitely not low fat though). I looked very slim at that weight, no flab or a lot of cellulite. Then I gained it all back. Now I'm down to 152lbs (I'm 5'10", btw), my lowest weight in 15 years, and I have a lot more muscle this time too, and yet I definitely look fatter. The last time I was this weight I was happy to be seen in a bikini - this time, not a chance!!! I look slim, even thin, clothed, but without clothes I have a lot of noticeable body fat and cellulite, mostly on my hips/thighs.

Is it just age? Is it the losing/gaining process?

You probably need to change ur diet or cut. High protien high fat low carb. That or when you start strength training they say ull look more fat but if you keep at it you will eventually look more lean The body will retain water for a while.

LAWoman72

middlehaitch wrote: »

The problem with losing then gaining then losing again is that, unless one makes a concerted effort to retain muscle by eating adequate protein and uses a progressive type resistance routine during the whole of this time, one loses fat and muscle initially, gains fat (with little muscle gain), then loses fat and muscle when losing the 2nd or 3rd time.
This leaves one with a lower muscle mass than one had after the initial loss at the same weight.

Each time one reaches goal weight one has less muscle and more fat and a slightly lower BMI, because of the lower muscle mass, making it easier to regain weight.

Do not automatically chalk it up to age. One can improve ones body composition at almost any age.

I have been maintaining 6+ years and was quite happy with my body, especially for my age. I had always done some form of resistance work so had retained a reasonable amount of muscle and improved my strength.
About 3 years ago I got a bit more serious about strength training, first bodyweight, then AllPro, a heavy lifting programme. I am doing the slowest recomp ever- but it is working.

Below are the results, I am the same weight in both pics.

The pic on the right was my 63rd birthday - please, don't let age deter you.

Cheers, h.

Hot dang! When I grow up, I want to be you.

You are beautiful!!

LAWoman72

So...I have the exact opposite. I am smaller than last time around, based on the same pants (I kept them...so I mean literally the same pants). I'm not lifting heavy. I do Pilates and some resistance with up to 20 lbs. dumbbells. So who knows.

middlehaitch

Heck @LAWoman72, you have started years earlier than I did (54) you will grow up wonderfully.

Cheers, h.

Sued0nim

@middlehaitch have I mentioned lately that you rock

middlehaitch

trudiebamford wrote: »

eveandqsmom wrote: »

I'm also going to throw in that your skin also probably isn't as firm this time either

Probably! Let's hope the daily collagen helps with that.

A good level of protein (.8-1g/lbs lean body weight) will help in the production of both collagen and elastin.
I think this is one thing that is often overlooked when one is concerned with lose skin. Genetics still overrule though.

Women, not sure about men, have a structural change and decrease in collagen/elastin formation once they are post menopausal- this often shows as striations in the skin.

The shift to more visceral fat storage also impacts the appearance of the skin.

Good hydration helps it look firmer.
If I am going out for the night in a sleeveless, backless dress I always up my water intake for a couple of days before just to plump up my skin

Cheers, h.

@Sued0nim mutual admiration society

lorrpb

Um, it should not be a shock that your body looks different than did 15 years ago, especially since you gained then lost weight during that time. Im NOT saying older people are destined to look fat, not true, but the body does change the way it carries weight over time. Just sayin.