Normal weight for a size 18 Woman.

cuinboston2014

Also, I quite honestly don't get where people say you can't build muscle eating at a deficit. Perhaps I'm misunderstanding. I'm losing weight by eating at a deficit. However, I'm also getting stronger and lifting heavier weights - like grabbing 20 pound dumb bells instead of 10 or whatever it is. How would this be possible then? I also now have a noticeable bicep. I don't get it?

I hope you don't take my post the wrong way

Except for the very small exceptions already mentioned, you can't build any significant muscle without eating more calories than you're burning...it just doesn't work that way. You can't build mass without something to build it out of (extra calories). That said, you can absolutely build strength without building muscle mass, up to a point, at least. It's not the same process. If you have a noticeable bicep, it's far more because you reduced the fat surrounding it, not because you increased the muscle itself (much).

Thank you - and thank you to auddii for also mentioning the same thing. I know that I'm toning up though still have some fat to lose. I guess I assumed my muscle was increasing as I can see them now.

Sorry for taking a side step from the original post

firstsip

ITT: People who don't understand the difference between "building muscle" and "revealing muscle."

Runner5AbelTownship

1. Don't be tricked by yourself or others into thinking you are packing on muscle and that is why you are not losing weight. Adding muscle weight is a hard, slow process that is even more difficult for women. Besides, when you reduce calories to a necessary deficit to lose weight, you will lose weight...fat and muscle.

2. Your primary weight contributor is obviously fat.

3. To lose the fat you will need to continue experimenting (reducing) calories (increasing calorie defecit) until you lose weight (fat). Unless you have a medical issue, in which case, seek medical attention - you are probably pretty normal wrt calorie needs and will react the way the rest of us do who actually stay in a true calorie deficit condition...you will lose fat and weight. So eat less.

4. Stay away from restaurants - they make women fat. Think about portions... Do restaurants serve women a smaller portion than men...NO. Is there any difference between a woman's meal and a man's meal at a restaurant - is there a women's menu? Heck no. You all get the same amount of food as we do, and they give us too much! The calories that restaurants are serving women is so much more than they need, i cant imagine having the self control that a women needs to eat a proper portion at a restaurant, regardless of the healthiness of the food - too much.

5. Incorporate fitness. Unfortunately it is easier to do this when you are not as fat as you are - do what you can, and keep increasing fitness levels as you get trimmer.

6. Eat less - you'll lose weight.

In for the sheer amount of WTFackge in this post.

I actually wasn't offended by his post at all. Perhaps he could use a more PC word than 'fat', but aside from that, everything he said was fairly true. He even sympathized with how hard it is for us women to use self control when faced with large restaurant portions.

How hard it is for us women? Really?

RAREBIRDART

This is a tumultuous post that I can't stay away from.

Here's why:

OP - you want help and I get that. I think you look beautiful and you are definitely losing inches somewhere and maybe i'ts not reflecting on the scale. However, you also seem a tad defensive when some people are offering suggestions. Maybe I'm misreading - I'm not trying to upset you but I've seen a lot of push back. When you post something on here you will get everyone's opinion.

Are you completely 100% honest with what you are tracking? Do you have one day a week where you might eat or drink more than normal and maybe not log it? This was a problem I had - I intentionally gave myself a cheat day and made it my long run day where I burned a ton more calories. But I didn't log it and I would go to the bars, etc and probably undid all the good I did all week. I'm not saying you do this, but evaluate your overall habits.

Also, if you do talk to someone I urge you to see a Dietitian instead of a nutritionist. Nutritionists do not have the same regulations/education that an RD does. It isn't a bad idea for your Dr to run some tests on you, too to make sure everything is OK.

And just try to change it up a little bit from what you've been doing. Try doing some kind of intervals? Take a different class? See if you notice any difference.

I was a size 18 bottom at 5'10" and 285 pounds....err they buttoned at that weight I should say. I'm now 183, a size 8/10 bottom and if I'm trying to buy a blazer or a very fitted top I'm an 18.... it's all about individual build.

Also, I quite honestly don't get where people say you can't build muscle eating at a deficit. Perhaps I'm misunderstanding. I'm losing weight by eating at a deficit. However, I'm also getting stronger and lifting heavier weights - like grabbing 20 pound dumb bells instead of 10 or whatever it is. How would this be possible then? I also now have a noticeable bicep. I don't get it?

I hope you don't take my post the wrong way

Absolutely not! I appreciate posts like this! This is a great post! Thank you.
I was irritated with other posts, as they were unneeded. Rude, and when someone is Rude to me -- I let them know its not OK. Which is why they get it back. I all in all am a very happy person.

There are still TONS of things i do not know about weight loss, if I did -- I would be trying to change everything -- I feel like I have been trying everything and its still not working -- which is why I came here. Trying to explain everything I do. My boyfriend and I are on this weightloss journey together. And the scale is accurate, we have a digital, and we also have a regular old fashioned bathroom scale (which i couldn't even use before we got the digital -- I was far too heavy.) I do switch back and forth between the two and they are about 1 - 2 lb difference on each. So,I'm okay with that difference. I do know I retain a LOT of water -- especially around my monthly -- which I am just ending -- so I expect to see a weight loss because of that in the next couple of days.

Has any other ladies noticed this, too...Start seeing a gain about a two weeks prior to monthly? Usually 2 weeks prior i start seeing a pound, and then the week of, its like a 5 lb dfference. . .

I really do think i need to go to the DR -- and I think I posted on here for the extra push if there wasn't something else I could do. I really don't like going to the DRs so, I don't...but there may in fact be a thyroid issue -- others have mentioned it to me before -- but you never want to think there might be "something wrong" with yourself. So, I need to go see a DR.

japar

Noone called anyone fat or any other name (unless you are referring to the ill tempered bullies who called someone a jerk because he referred to the triglyceride filled lipids under their skin as fat - which is what it is). Restaurants indeed serve us too many calories and that goes almost double for women since they need almost half the calories as men to maintain a healthy weight - sorry, but it is true and I hate that for you ladies. I personally struggle to put down the fork at a restaurant with good food - I can only imagine that it must be even harder when you get two or three times the food you need and have to stop (but maybe it is easier for others than me).

As far as the OP I am not shaming you - I simply stated that if you are in the normal distribution of calorie burners, you are clearly not eating little enough, and your problem is not too much muscle. But even that hardly matters - whether a person has too much fat or has muscle - if they eat little enough, they will lose weight.

I do not know your exercise habits, and it is good you are exercising. The point I tried to make was that as you become more slim, you can be even more effective in exercise and have even more success - just need to keep at it. In my journey I put on several pounds of fat and getting rid of it through exercise became more efficient as I slimmed down. When I had too much fat, I simply couldnt exercise as well as I can now.

parkscs

Before you begin netting 500 or 1000 calories a day in order to try and lose weight, I would definitely talk to your doctor. If nothing else, it's very difficult to get sufficient nutrients when eating that little, and it may be as simple as needing some treatment for your thyroid. If everything checks out with the doctor, I'd check back here and plan to overhaul your weight loss program.

Runner5AbelTownship

Also, I quite honestly don't get where people say you can't build muscle eating at a deficit. Perhaps I'm misunderstanding. I'm losing weight by eating at a deficit. However, I'm also getting stronger and lifting heavier weights - like grabbing 20 pound dumb bells instead of 10 or whatever it is. How would this be possible then? I also now have a noticeable bicep. I don't get it?

Random side note in response to this. Increasing strength is different than increasing muscle mass. You can definitely get stronger on a deficit. In fact, one way to help preserve muscle mass is to progressively overload the muscles. The progressive part is important because you do get stronger, and once you are stronger, the same weight is not as useful. You want to keep pushing yourself to continue to build your strength.

This.

seltzermint555

I don't know if anyone has suggested this but there is a huge (no pun intended) difference between a size 18 and a 18W. I can fit a 18W no problem at 244 but have to be about 180 to fit a regular 18.

In my experience this hasn't been much of an issue honestly. I have dresses in my closet that are 14 and 14W and they fit the same way. Because of my bum there's no way I can wear 14 jeans yet but 16 from the misses section, 15 and 17 in the juniors section, and 16 in the plus section at Macy's all fit me EXACTLY the same.

I do find that the difference between 1X and XL tops is a HUGE difference.

auddii

This is a tumultuous post that I can't stay away from.

Here's why:

OP - you want help and I get that. I think you look beautiful and you are definitely losing inches somewhere and maybe i'ts not reflecting on the scale. However, you also seem a tad defensive when some people are offering suggestions. Maybe I'm misreading - I'm not trying to upset you but I've seen a lot of push back. When you post something on here you will get everyone's opinion.

Are you completely 100% honest with what you are tracking? Do you have one day a week where you might eat or drink more than normal and maybe not log it? This was a problem I had - I intentionally gave myself a cheat day and made it my long run day where I burned a ton more calories. But I didn't log it and I would go to the bars, etc and probably undid all the good I did all week. I'm not saying you do this, but evaluate your overall habits.

Also, if you do talk to someone I urge you to see a Dietitian instead of a nutritionist. Nutritionists do not have the same regulations/education that an RD does. It isn't a bad idea for your Dr to run some tests on you, too to make sure everything is OK.

And just try to change it up a little bit from what you've been doing. Try doing some kind of intervals? Take a different class? See if you notice any difference.

I was a size 18 bottom at 5'10" and 285 pounds....err they buttoned at that weight I should say. I'm now 183, a size 8/10 bottom and if I'm trying to buy a blazer or a very fitted top I'm an 18.... it's all about individual build.

Also, I quite honestly don't get where people say you can't build muscle eating at a deficit. Perhaps I'm misunderstanding. I'm losing weight by eating at a deficit. However, I'm also getting stronger and lifting heavier weights - like grabbing 20 pound dumb bells instead of 10 or whatever it is. How would this be possible then? I also now have a noticeable bicep. I don't get it?

I hope you don't take my post the wrong way

Absolutely not! I appreciate posts like this! This is a great post! Thank you.
I was irritated with other posts, as they were unneeded. Rude, and when someone is Rude to me -- I let them know its not OK. Which is why they get it back. I all in all am a very happy person.

There are still TONS of things i do not know about weight loss, if I did -- I would be trying to change everything -- I feel like I have been trying everything and its still not working -- which is why I came here. Trying to explain everything I do. My boyfriend and I are on this weightloss journey together. And the scale is accurate, we have a digital, and we also have a regular old fashioned bathroom scale (which i couldn't even use before we got the digital -- I was far too heavy.) I do switch back and forth between the two and they are about 1 - 2 lb difference on each. So,I'm okay with that difference. I do know I retain a LOT of water -- especially around my monthly -- which I am just ending -- so I expect to see a weight loss because of that in the next couple of days.

Has any other ladies noticed this, too...Start seeing a gain about a two weeks prior to monthly? Usually 2 weeks prior i start seeing a pound, and then the week of, its like a 5 lb dfference. . .

I really do think i need to go to the DR -- and I think I posted on here for the extra push if there wasn't something else I could do. I really don't like going to the DRs so, I don't...but there may in fact be a thyroid issue -- others have mentioned it to me before -- but you never want to think there might be "something wrong" with yourself. So, I need to go see a DR.

You can definitely gain around your cycle. I was doing so good with about to be able to record another loss this week, and then bam, up 5lbs. Yay water weight! That will drop off soon enough.

I still agree with seeing a doctor, but you might want to reconsider your calories. I lose eating about 1900 calories a day (I'd be losing better if I actually stuck to those...), and I'm 5'8" and 204 right now. I don't know how much you exercise, but you do say you exercise and you don't eat back your calories. There isn't much science to back it up, but some trainers have noticed that large caloric deficits and working out can (inexplicably) limit fat loss:

http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/why-big-caloric-deficits-and-lots-of-activity-can-hurt-fat-loss.html

ETA: I'd only consider reassessing calories if you're sure you're tracking accurately.

Kriistabell

You think so? I consume 1300 calories. and exercise daily. I do weigh food. we just bought a digital scale for the kitchen.
based on a "normal" day just living/breathing i should burn "Your estimated BMR is: 2,005 calories/day*"
Im so confused.

I dont think I should be a size 18, based on my weight. (not that im complaining...i just think I should be a smaller weight for that size) And i checked out that website that you gave me -- it unfortunately has no pictures of women my size. Thank you for the suggestion.

Maybe you're just bootylicious! That is ok! I'm so sick of clothing sizes, they are so stupid to me at this point. I've gained weight since HS but still fit into my size 7 jeans. But then certain brands I have to buy up to a size 11!! How does this make sense? Clothes are built for different body types + different companies have different ideas of what a size "small" is and what a "size 16". The skinny jean thing didn't help us bootylicious girls either! I'm over the size of my clothes and the number of the scale. I promised myself to measure my waist once a week and record the results along with the size of my neck. I think that will allow me to monitor progress MUCHHHH more precisely than a stupid scale that changes based on what day of the week it is and clothes that are made by different companies with different standards for what a small, medium, and large are! Don't stress it

mccindy72

Also, I quite honestly don't get where people say you can't build muscle eating at a deficit. Perhaps I'm misunderstanding. I'm losing weight by eating at a deficit. However, I'm also getting stronger and lifting heavier weights - like grabbing 20 pound dumb bells instead of 10 or whatever it is. How would this be possible then? I also now have a noticeable bicep. I don't get it?

I hope you don't take my post the wrong way

For one, strength and building muscle are not the same thing, although they're certainly related. You can get stronger without adding additional muscle mass to your body, at least up to a point.

And I'm not trying to say the other posters are entirely wrong; it's just what they're saying isn't entirely accurate. It's worth pointing out that for many people, they probably can't build muscle and lose fat while simply eating a caloric deficit (i.e., not doing a recomp/calorie cycling). If you're a beginner starting close to 300 lbs and lift heavy from the get go, you may well add a bit of muscle to your body during the cut down to <200 lbs. Not a lot, mind you, and there's no way it would account for a 6 month stall as the OP is having, but it's possible you could add a bit. On the other hand, if you're 150 lbs and trying to drop to 140 lbs, you might as well forget the idea of losing fat/adding muscle at the same time (again, unless you look into a recomp plan).

A 6 month stall though almost certainly comes down to not eating at a true caloric deficit. Even if the OP was building some muscle, it's much easier to lose fat than to build muscle, and so her weight should still be coming down. It's possible there's some medical condition that's causing her to stall out at this caloric intake, but given it's been 6 months, I'm highly skeptical it's just elevated cortisol levels due to stress from eating too little and working out.

You said it much more eloquently than I did, but this really is the point I was trying to get across. Many people on these forums will grab that one line of "when heavy you can build muscle while losing fat" and ignore the "only for a very short period of time, and not 1:1". That's why I stay away from that type of thing, because readers will ignore everything after than about needing a deficit to burn fat and a surplus to build muscle.

cuinboston2014

OP - It's completely normal to gain during that time. When I notice the scale go up 3-5 pounds overnight and know it's around that time, I stay off for a while. It comes right off plus more usually.

Second, if you don't already, in addition to your food log, keep a workout journal. It will help you get an accurate picture of the type of exercise you are doing and when. It can be hard for us to look back without a bias and be certain we are doing it right. I fail at doing this sometimes, but know when I do I can look back at trends in my weight and measurements and also tend to identify factors that nudge me off track, so I include my mood or any significatn factors.

It's really exciting that you and your BF get to go on this journey together!!

Take a couple of weeks to completely be 100% honest with yourself and then evaluate. If your insurance will cover it or you can afford it I'd see a Dietitian too. That can't hurt!

RAREBIRDART

It's really exciting that you and your BF get to go on this journey together!!

Thank you! We have been doing this since Jan. 2012. Together we have lost around 135 lbs. Its much easier for him to lose, But we work out together, we eat together, regulate our food together. We keep each other in check. Otherwise we would give up. and we would fail miserably.

Kristinam921

I would think 18 would be the right size. For the weight you posted. If you aren't losing sometimes adding calories helps. It did me I was on a 2 month plateau. I added 300 calories and it helped alot!! I lost 10 lbs in 2.5 weeks! Not losing doesn't always mean that you are eating too much. Sometimes you're not eating enough. Just stick with it!

meshashesha2012

1. Don't be tricked by yourself or others into thinking you are packing on muscle and that is why you are not losing weight. Adding muscle weight is a hard, slow process that is even more difficult for women. Besides, when you reduce calories to a necessary deficit to lose weight, you will lose weight...fat and muscle.

2. Your primary weight contributor is obviously fat.

3. To lose the fat you will need to continue experimenting (reducing) calories (increasing calorie defecit) until you lose weight (fat). Unless you have a medical issue, in which case, seek medical attention - you are probably pretty normal wrt calorie needs and will react the way the rest of us do who actually stay in a true calorie deficit condition...you will lose fat and weight. So eat less.

4. Stay away from restaurants - they make women fat. Think about portions... Do restaurants serve women a smaller portion than men...NO. Is there any difference between a woman's meal and a man's meal at a restaurant - is there a women's menu? Heck no. You all get the same amount of food as we do, and they give us too much! The calories that restaurants are serving women is so much more than they need, i cant imagine having the self control that a women needs to eat a proper portion at a restaurant, regardless of the healthiness of the food - too much.

5. Incorporate fitness. Unfortunately it is easier to do this when you are not as fat as you are - do what you can, and keep increasing fitness levels as you get trimmer.

6. Eat less - you'll lose weight.

I'd be pretty peeved if there was a women's menu or women's portion at a restaurant where I was eating.





you are insulting...we dont call people of any size "fat" and you are sadly mistaken. sweet heart she is gaining muscle if she is losing inches and not pounds, muscle is more dense, thats EXACTLY WHY SHE IS GETTING SMALLER BUT THE NUMBER ON THE SCALE ISNT DROPPING......shes already NoT EATING ENOUGH!!!!!!!!!!!!!! THATS WHY THE POUNDS arent going away, do not call her fat! that fact that she is working out and trying to incorporate workouts DAILY, shes already on the right track!!!!!!!!!!!!

Hey, I thought the guy was a jerk too, but you are incorrect. You absolutely cannot build or gain muscle when eating in a calorie deficit. If she wasn't eating enough, she would be losing weight. Period. That's how weight loss works. In order to build muscle you must eat a calorie surplus, in order to provide the material necessary to add bulk to the existing muscle.

well i sure built muscle, toned up, shrank in inches, never increased my calories, the size on the scale didnt budge, but i went from a 14 to a 10....... i didnt change my calories, BUT i did change the foods i ate, i ate mainly dark greens and white meats!!!!! never increased my calories..... also didnt lose pounds but im 4 whole sizes smaller, and again, built muscle! so how do you explain that???

seeing more muscle means that you lost fat that was covering . you dont have to gain muscle to get stronger.

newbie gains for lean body mass (which means not just muscle but all connective tissue) are anywhere from 1-6 pounds when those in the overly fat (ie obese) start a new exercise program after that it becomes just as hard to build muscle as for everyone else.

meshashesha2012

too bad butthurt doesn't burn enough calories to get someone out of a plateau

RAREBIRDART

Before you begin netting 500 or 1000 calories a day in order to try and lose weight, I would definitely talk to your doctor. If nothing else, it's very difficult to get sufficient nutrients when eating that little, and it may be as simple as needing some treatment for your thyroid. If everything checks out with the doctor, I'd check back here and plan to overhaul your weight loss program.

Thank you for posting.

(You have posted almost everything else the rude people have posted, but have posted it in a educative/mature way.)

I am going to call the DR and get checked out. I appreciate it.

JewelsinBigD

I think your scale is broken - I weight 20 pounds less than you do and I doubt you are taller than I am (5'10"), and I am not in a size 18 most of the time. I have one pair of size 18 jeans that fit but the others don't fit yet - still in a 20. I can wear smaller dresses- like 16 but not jeans...so confused... I agree with your boyfriend.. Wait- are you an 18W or 18? Because I can wear 18W all day long but not 18.

ElizaB84

I'm a size 18. 5'6" 242lbs.

Iron_Feline

Just to confirm - you say you've stalled in the last 6 months but have lost inches and show two photos as proof of inches lost

BUT

between those two photos you have lost at least 30lbs - your ticker says 54lbs. You stated you lost 30lbs in your first month - was that Jan 2013 - after the first photo was taken? When did you lose the next 24lbs?

Did you lose 54lbs between those two photos being taken?

Do you have any photos taken just before your stall began and now?

Oh and getting stronger =/= building muscle. :noway: