Making progress but measurements won’t budge?

tararose777

Hi! I have decided to get back in shape after taking a couple years off post marriage (whoops) .
However this time I want to build muscle and lose body fat rather than the usual get skinny (used to do this rapidly with cardio and extreme calorie cutting and oddly enough the weight loss would stay)
So it’s been a month of tracking my macros, eating at probably a 500 calorie deficit? But if I workout or run I do not count those as extra calories- I strictly stay under 1200 cals.
I am weight training 3-5 times a week and I pair the workouts with HIIT which I do at least 3x a week , trying to rest body parts for at least a day. Doing glutes 2-3 tines a week and cardio (running for an hour) 2-4 times a week.
Yoga once and a while for fun.
I am vegetarian and have had to up my protein so much!!! I had no idea and have never eaten this much protein. Aiming for 1 gram per body weight but with so few calories I have it’s almost impossible - I end up around 80 to 105 grams. (Gw 115-118)
It’s been only a month if this grueling regimen (egg whites, protein powder “ice cream”, salads and steamed veggies, with one cheat meal a week not exceeding calories ever.
I have lost 4 to 5 lbs which is great, and my “booty” has drawn some comments. I look more muscular (newbie gains? The first arm workout I did I couldn’t even cook dinner the next day I was so sore!) and am overall happy , looking and feeling strong.
However!! I am used to being a smaller size, at my normal skinny weight if 117 I was waist size of 26. My waist has been 30” since I gained weight and even though it looks like it’s tightened up, the measurements won’t budge!
I still have so much back fat. In the past I could lose several inches a month off my waist from dieting. But I’m frustrated that I don’t seem to be losing much body fat at all esp in the places I want to. I can’t believe my waist is still the same size! I have a trip coming up and will have access to gyms but I wanted to be able to fit into my clothes by then... have been living in sweatpants for a while 😂

I will post some pics/ I have been doing a lot of research about fitness but am concerned I’m doing something wrong. I was concerned I wasn’t taking enough cal or protein to build muscle but I seem to be building.
Even though I workout a lot I have non active job mostly. My metabolism seems super low/ in the far past when I was an actress and model I would live on less than 1000 cals a day sometimes 500, to maintain weight.
I feel like my metabolism has always been very slow and I could get by eating nothing. But I know my body can’t be immune to the laws of physics! I would think with the hard workouts lifting and clean eating I would have more fat loss. My waist looks leaner but still 30” cannot squeeze into my jeans without a real glorious muffin top 😭
Once I lost 10 lbs in a month by eating only steamed veggies. I maintained that goal weight for a while, ( until I started eating everything wanted to and didn’t work out. )
But I’m my experience it’s the only way my body lets go of stubborn fat is to really drastically cut calories in essence starve myself. As a former actress I tried every diet know to man and nothing worked except semi starvation so I’m very tempted to just cut more cals to try and budge the fat, since I know that works. But I don’t want to sacrifice my hard earned booty. Anniversary vacation at the beach is coming up soon in August!
Help me oh wise fitness ones!
Thank you

sardelsa

First, you say your weight, how tall are you? If you are close to underweight and not happy with your body composition I would actually recommend gaining weight to put on some muscle. Otherwise you will likely spin your wheels. If you are somewhere in the middle you can eat in a slight deficit to lose fat and retain muscle, or recomp/maintain to lose fat and gain some muscle (which can be a bit slow).

Also in order to lose weight you need to eat in a deficit. You can eat clean and exercise all you want, but if you are eating more than you are burning, you will not lose weight. Weigh all solids and measure all liquids and track your intake on here.

Some of the comments in your post raise some red flags, with a possible history of disordered eating. Diet strictness, talks of starvation, Please be kind to yourself, not only will you not obtain the body you want, but your health will be on the line. Don't hesitate to reach out to your doctor or treatment team (if applicable) if you are really having thoughts of starving yourself.

born_of_fire74

I think your main problem is that you are trying to gain muscle while in a caloric deficit. If you want to build muscle, you kind of need to decide between recomping or doing a bulk and cut. It is very difficult to build muscle while in a deficit.

Recomping means eating at or just below maintenance and being very, very patient. VERY patient. Bulk and cut is self explanatory. I chose not to bulk and cut because it is very distressing to me to see the scale coming up after working so hard to lose weight. It is a much faster process than recomping, though, so you might prefer it.

Right now, if you are maintaining a 500 cal deficit, you are basically trying to bulk and cut simultaneously and that doesn’t work very well.

That said, your photos look great and you are definitely making some progress despite your frustrations. Don’t starve yourself, there’s no need for that. Good luck sorting things out.

tararose777

Thank you so much!!!
If I don’t do recomping. ...Would anyone recommend cutting first or bulking first? Is one way better ? Grateful for your advice I did not know that !!

sardelsa

tararose777 wrote: »

Thank you so much!!!
If I don’t do recomping. ...Would anyone recommend cutting first or bulking first? Is one way better ? Grateful for your advice I did not know that !!

It depends on your stats, bodyfat % and goals what you do.

tararose777

Hmm, I see. I don’t know body fat but I would guess 24-26 . Height 5’4”, weight is 131 now (from 138). I don’t have a goal weight per se I just want to lose body fat and build lean muscle -look relatively cut and muscular/ athletic rather than just skinny. Balance out mesomorphic shape. I had a more athletic physique when I worked as a landscaper and I miss that feeling of strength and confidence and feeing bad -and how it improved other aspects of my life.
Just a quick update I actually upped my calories and protein on two days including rest day and this morning my waist has dropped an inch! Been measuring every morning for months and it’s always the same. Not sure if it was cals and protein but it’s possible like you said. I’m relatively new to weightlifting and very used to dieting slashing calories to lose so I was afraid to eat more. It must be what they call newbie gains but I feel like I see more muscle every day even though that seems a little crazy. Thanks so much!!!

sardelsa

It sounds like you want to recomp to build muscle and lose fat over time. You are in a good place to do that based on your stats.

This thread has some great info in it as well as success stories

https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10177803/recomposition-maintaining-weight-while-losing-fat/p1

mutantspicy

Based on what I can see, you've made some really great progress. Great job! keep it up. Our eyes can see the differences way before the tape starts to change. But you're making progress, I can see it.