Eating for energy (IIFYM style) with beginning weight lifting, the scale is not my friend

lostalykat

I know that I have to be careful with the scale, I actually hid it for a long time but decided I need to get back to focusing on weight loss recently so dusted it off. I am following the propane fitness protocol with macros and calories which is higher than usual, but it factors in working out and such. I am just frustrated that the scale went up vs down. I also weight lifted 3 times since that initial lower weight and did an inferno pilates class. I guess it would be nice to hear other stories on how they coped. I know I should be tracking my measurements as well and I plan on doing that today. Thanks and any advice would be great.

sardelsa

You are likely retaining water from the new exercise. This is normal. Also make sure your calorie intake is right for your stats and goals and you are tracking as accurately as possible, as it could turn out you are not actually in a deficit.

It definitely helps to start taking measurements and progress photos and not rely entirely on the scale.

GottaBurnEmAll

sardelsa wrote: »

You are likely retaining water from the new exercise. This is normal. Also make sure your calorie intake is right for your stats and goals and you are tracking as accurately as possible, as it could turn out you are not actually in a deficit.

It definitely helps to start taking measurements and progress photos and not rely entirely on the scale.

All of this. Plus it helps me to track all of my data in a trending app since it removes noise from fluctuations and removes the emotion from everything. One of the things I've done (since I'm in a similar boat with an uptick on the scale due to an uptick in lifting) is to start a spreadsheet to go along with the use of a trending app. It's helping to keep me focused on the idea of collecting data to assess the impact of my choices and view everything in a detached way.

I used to be a scale avoider and pretty emotionally invested in hit. This new experiment is proving to be pretty helpful for me.

kshama2001

lostalykat wrote: »

I know that I have to be careful with the scale, I actually hid it for a long time but decided I need to get back to focusing on weight loss recently so dusted it off. I am following the propane fitness protocol with macros and calories which is higher than usual, but it factors in working out and such. I am just frustrated that the scale went up vs down. I also weight lifted 3 times since that initial lower weight and did an inferno pilates class. I guess it would be nice to hear other stories on how they coped. I know I should be tracking my measurements as well and I plan on doing that today. Thanks and any advice would be great.

My own scale went up 7 pounds when I started lifting again. Took a few weeks to come off. I didn't worry about it because I had read here about "new exercise water retention."

Also, I was more focused on the process than the number on the scale and was feeling good.

collectingblues

It's the new lifting and exercise. I see a 4ish pound gain every time I take a break from my workouts, and then start up again. For me, it takes about six weeks to come off. So I white knuckle through.

What I do find helpful, but a bit obsessive, is to have my actual weight that I track in the Health app (Apple), and then do what I call "adjusted" weight in a separate document that doesn't track. The adjusted weight is what I get when I subtract the water weight, and when it comes off, and any changes that could affect my weight. It's obsessive, and I don't recommend doing it if you have a history of weight-obsession or EDs (my therapist would kill me if she knew...), but it does help calm down the whole "OMG where did this come from!" process. And I thought it must be pretty accurate, based on an appointment I had a few weeks ago, and the tech asked me my weight. I was vague, with "mid 120s", and she looked at me, and said that well, *she* thought I looked around 122, so she'd enter that. And indeed, that was what my adjusted tally said that day.

azzeazsaleh5429

My weight remained the same my 3rd week but i lost 1 inch in abdomen and 1 inch in thigh. I started strength training 4 days a week. Now the fourth week weight started dropping.

lostalykat

Thank you everyone. I know I need to trust the process and not the scale. Using this current program I am doing they actually have you enter your weight each day and look at the weekly average, I try to focus on that but it can be a bit hard. Just trying to stay positive.