not losing weight :(

fisherj1126

Sorry I took over your post....I just started my own thread. My bad. Sincere apologies.

yarwell

Total Daily Energy Expenditure

mhcrunner1

Ideally, you need a combination of cardio and lfting. Lifting builds muscle which burns more calories than fat and weighs more than fat so a tape measure is probably a more effective way to measure than the scale when you're weight training. However, to really slim down, you need at least a little cardio - running is my personal favorite, but any type of cardio will work.

RGv2

I am so glad you posted all of this. I recently started running (I am training for a half marathon at the end of May) and I've started to do some strength training.....mostly just abs and arms about 3 days a week. I do use weights (8-10 pounds) when doing my arm exercises. When I started this I had about 5-10 pounds to lose and figured it would just drop off (I'm also counting calories...1200 on days I don't workout, about 1500 on days I do). I wasn't overly concerned with it because I figured the weight would just come off while I was training.

No luck.

I've now been on this program for nearly 12 weeks and haven't lost a pound. I do see some changes to my physique....but it's so frustrating to not see the scale move at all.

I've read through this entire post and will keep following it looking for any answers people share with you!!

One question, what is tdee???? I'm still learning!

If you're training for a half marathon, strength training for your lower body is just as, if not more important than your upper body. I'm also going to assume 8-10lb barbells are a bit light for you.

fisherj1126

Can you follow me on my own feed to help?? I really don't want to take over this persons feed. Sorry!

tinglecm16

Are you doing any cardio? Weight lifting doesn't burn nearly as many calories as cardio, so if weight loss is your goal make sure you do cardio too. I wouldn't give up on the weighlifting, because it will give you the look you're likely seeking, but add cardio to it. I'd start with 20 mins, 5x a week. I'm pretty gradual with cardio since i have overuse injuries.

I'm short too, under 5'3, and it's very hard for us shorties to lose weight because we can't get much of deficit. I don't eat back my exercise calories which helps improve my weight loss rate. Also, since we have to keep our cals so low, make sure you're eating a ton of veggies and lean protein to get the best nutritional value while feeling full. The bigger deficit you can make the more wiggle room you'll have if you want to have a glass of wine with dinner or dessert.....I eat a cookie everyday. At least one... but I make sure I don't net over 1200 and I'm losing weight at a good pace and still able to go out to dinner if I want on the weekends, have a drink, etc.

Aaron_K123

How long term have you been doing this? When you change fitness routinues in my limited experience it is often accompanied by a lot of water retention that can mask any real weight loss or even make it look like you are gaining weight. Best in those cases to believe your numbers and not the scale, if you are calorically lower in intake than you are expending then you will lose fat even if that fat loss is being masked by water retention.

I wouldn't recommend doing this for health but if you really want to know perhaps short term just drink a lot of water per day (much more than you usually would) and limit your sodium intake. If its water weight then after just a few days of doing that you should drop some pounds. Now that isn't progress to your goals right, I mean your goal should be to lose fat and be more fit not make the number go down on your scale so after confirming that you should go back to drinking a normal amount of water and returning your sodium levels. You will put that weight back on but its just water.

h7463

Hello again... @RGv2 and a few others... Maybe I should elaborate a bit. I am a woman, 5'5", currently at 135 lbs, 16.5 % body fat, dress size 4. I have lived an active lifestyle pretty much all my life, never been overweight, and I jumped into lifting from zero to 100%. No little pink dumbbells here. So yes, out of my humble experience, I say, for a beginner lifter, the muscles will respond rather quickly, while the fat is not, especially in the first 3 months, IF you are performing to full extend of your current abilities, that is.
I'm 50 years old, lifting for 2 years now, and I had in fact gained 8 lbs of lean muscle mass in the first 3 months of training. At the same time, I dropped 10% of my body fat, coming down from 25% to 15%. I have archived my goals by trying to eat as clean as reasonably possible, training 6x per week (3 days heavy lifting, 2 days HIIT with hand weights, 1 day cardio only), and keeping my calorie intake depending on the intensity of my workouts in a range that never drops below my BMR of about 1250, (calculated simply with calorie intake-calories burnt, and eat some more to hit 1250). As far as my nutrition is concerned, I keep my macros at 30% carbs, 25% fat, and 45% protein.
BTW, I'm not competing, I'm doing this just for the fun of it. I do, however, understand, that my level of discipline and determination may be a bit above average for the casual gym rat...
If a program isn't working, keep a detailed log, don't estimate your food, measure it, don't estimate your workouts, get a heart rate monitor with calorie counter, get a fitness assessment, re-evaluate every couple weeks. For women: we're taking on water at certain times, keep this in mind when you step on the scale, especially the scales that measure body fat.

Koldnomore

I started lifting seriously in about November. Since Christmas I have lost around 2 lbs in total. So I know what you are going through. I eat quite a bit more than you do ( right around the 1700 mark) What I have found from my own experience..

If you have NEVER lifted weights before and you are lifting heavy (heavy = heavy FOR YOU) then you will gain a little bit of muscle. It's normally referred to as 'noob gains' but it is very little and it does not happen for very long. Your weight loss normally stalls out or you gain for a little while when you start any new program .. There is a good article about it here: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/595473-why-the-scale-goes-up-with-a-new-workout-program-must-read I didn't gain either when I started lifting but I also didn't lose ANYTHING for Months (I have only just recently seen the scale moving again).

I will tell you that it will take longer than 2 months to see much. If you haven't taken measurements do it now as they will be probably your only indicator of progress for a while. Even though I have not lost any weight I have dropped from a size 12 to a size 8 in the time that I have been lifting (about 6 months) To me this has been amazing progress! I have also seen the definition starting and my body fat % has dropped a lot as well.

I guess it depends on what your goals are. Personally, if I don't lose another pound I would be happy as long as I keep toning and re-shaping. I'd rather weigh more and look toned than weigh less and look flabby. Weight isn't the "be all and end all". Measure success by how you look, how clothes fit and how you feel instead of relying on the number on the scale and pretty soon you will reach your goal 'look' even though you may weigh more than you thought you'd want to

ninav1980

Thanks for all the comments.
I guess I should've have added I do still run 2 times a week plus my trainer incorporates HIIT during my training session, this gives me a little cardio plus weight training.

SLLRunner

Um.... @h7463 is pretty much 100% wrong when it comes to muscle mass. You're not gaining muscle. Gaining muscle is extremely hard, takes hours and hours and hours of training, and a caloric surplus.....for guys. Gaining muscle is EXPONENTIALLY harder for women. It especially doesn't grow faster than fat is lost. That is absolutely preposterous.

If you truly are only eating 1200 calories plus working out, you're not gaining muscle.

KMasz's post is pretty much spot on.

What I do agree with is pictures and tape measures better log progress than the scale does when you're lifting.

THIS. Women have to eat at a surplus and lift like a beast to gain muscle. It's ridiculously difficult for us to put on muscle. When you first start lifting you usually get some water retention, but that would be gone after two months.

Why not lift AND run? The lifting will help you hold on to the muscle you already have, and the running will help you lose fat. I don't understand why you think you have to do just one or the other.

I agree. I left heavy 3 times a week for an hour, then run three times a week for anywhere from 35 to 60 minutes. I find results with both .

Nina, with the exercise you do you should be eating more than 1200 calories, and you will still lose weight.

geekyjock76

I can tell you for certain I am eating 1200 cals. Its frustrating because this is the same "diet" I used before while doing the running. I literally lost lbs weekly. Just a little discouraging

Truth be told, anything larger than a 1 lb per week loss for someone of your stats is considered excessive. Sure, you may experience rapid weight loss - but it's likely going to be at the expense of significant loss in lean mass and an unfavorable body composition once you reach goal weight. Then you'll really be discouraged after realizing saving several lbs of lean mass could have made a huge difference in how your body looks. It's pretty hard to appear "toned" when excessive muscle mass atrophies.

ninav1980

I started lifting seriously in about November. Since Christmas I have lost around 2 lbs in total. So I know what you are going through. I eat quite a bit more than you do ( right around the 1700 mark) What I have found from my own experience..

If you have NEVER lifted weights before and you are lifting heavy (heavy = heavy FOR YOU) then you will gain a little bit of muscle. It's normally referred to as 'noob gains' but it is very little and it does not happen for very long. Your weight loss normally stalls out or you gain for a little while when you start any new program .. There is a good article about it here: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/595473-why-the-scale-goes-up-with-a-new-workout-program-must-read I didn't gain either when I started lifting but I also didn't lose ANYTHING for Months (I have only just recently seen the scale moving again).

I will tell you that it will take longer than 2 months to see much. If you haven't taken measurements do it now as they will be probably your only indicator of progress for a while. Even though I have not lost any weight I have dropped from a size 12 to a size 8 in the time that I have been lifting (about 6 months) To me this has been amazing progress! I have also seen the definition starting and my body fat % has dropped a lot as well.

I guess it depends on what your goals are. Personally, if I don't lose another pound I would be happy as long as I keep toning and re-shaping. I'd rather weigh more and look toned than weigh less and look flabby. Weight isn't the "be all and end all". Measure success by how you look, how clothes fit and how you feel instead of relying on the number on the scale and pretty soon you will reach your goal 'look' even though you may weigh more than you thought you'd want to

Thank you!!!! I'm going to keep going strong and hope for the best.