Muscle loss vs fat loss

mskeith2
mskeith2 Posts: 22
in Health and Weight Loss
Hi all,

I lost 5kgs a while ago in not the healthiest way - basically eating a VLCD (averaging around 800 cals per day). I wasn't exercising very much, the occasional 30 min run and walking to work (45 min walk). I was at my lowest weight at 55 kgs (im short). i then went on holiday and regained 2 kgs. Upon coming back from holiday I decided to lose those 2kgs but do it a healthy way. I introduced weight training into my exercise regime, as well as HIIT and endurance running. The weight training ive been doing is "heavy lifting", meaning i cant manage more than 10 reps at a time. ive been increasing my weights every couplr of weeks, ad well as thr speed on th treadmill when doing HIIT as well as the length of time i run for when doing slow endurance running. I've been doing that for nearly 3 months now. I eat more as well (probably average around 1100 cals per day...yes, I realise it needs to be higher and I'm working on that. At least it's an improvement from 800 cals per day!). I haven't weighed myself until this morning...and the scale says I haven't lost those 2kgs, I, still at 57kgs!! HOWEVER, my clothes fit the same as they did when I was 55kgs. I have a specific pair of pants that I try on that allows me to tell if I've gained/lost weight and I am quite certain they feel looser than when they did when I first got back from holiday. I haven't taken measurements except for my hips which I *think* have dropped by a centremeter, although I can't be sure that I have measured myself accurately.

Is it possible that because of my new exercise regime (particulalry the weight training) that I've lost body fat and increased muscle mass? Hence the reason for the lack of "weight loss" on the scale but that my clothes fit better/looser? I was disappointed when I stepped on the scale this morning as I feel that my 3 months of hard work haven't resulted in the weight loss that I was hoping for. I realise that by eating at a deficit the way I've been doing I probably haven't gained much muscle, but I still would've gained enough muscle to account for the same result on the scale but my clothes feeling loser?

Replies

  • mskeith2
    mskeith2 Posts: 22
    Anyone?
  • greatwestescape
    greatwestescape Posts: 49
    Get a caliper and measure your body fat %. I can go down 4% body fat but i weigh the same. However, it's doubtful you'd put on significant muscle with vlcd.
  • mskeith2
    mskeith2 Posts: 22
    My clothes feel loser, so I thought i ad possibly lost fat, despite the scale not showing any changes...
  • kkdelduca
    kkdelduca Posts: 73
    I notice when I eat more, ( 1600 cals) , I tend to lose more weight and faster than on a 1200 cal diet. I don't know about you muscle vs fat loss. Maybe if you fuel your body better you'll lose the weight faster?
  • mskeith2
    mskeith2 Posts: 22
    I notice when I eat more, ( 1600 cals) , I tend to lose more weight and faster than on a 1200 cal diet. I don't know about you muscle vs fat loss. Maybe if you fuel your body better you'll lose the weight faster?

    Thanks. I think I will try this.

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