5ft 7.5, 143lbs, bmi 21.7, fat % 18.5

bumblebee

Hi there

I have always been slimish, weighed just under 10stone and been a bit of a random exerciser - not really sticking at things for long. For the past 3 months, however, I have on average either run for 30-40 mins or spinned for 1 hour every other day. I'm now comfortable running 7km.

I haven't really altered my diet, which I feel was always on the healthy side anyway. My goal is to weigh between 9 and 9 and a half stone by August ( my 40th birthday). However, my weight is going up! From 9st 12lbs to 10stone 3lbs. Ok, I know it could be muscle, and the sensible person inside me knows that my body fat % has dropped from 21 to 18.5, but I keeping getting scared that I'm just kidding myself, that all this exercise is just making me bigger and bulkier and that I might be overreating.

I know you shouldn't worry about weight, that it is the way your clothes fit etc, but really? Wouldn't I have noticed the scales going down by now? Psychologically its what really works for me to see the scales going down

Any pearls of wisdom out there?

Thank you xx

SezxyStef

no it's not muscle...muscle is gained by eating at a surplus and doing a progressive load lifting program.

It could be water retention and depending how long it has taken to go up it could be water retention and weight gain.

How do you measure BF%? How long has it taken for this extra to appear? How long did it take to lose that 2.5% BF?

bumblebee

Thank you

So are you saying that you don't put on muscle from running or cycling, but only from weight lifting? Does running and cycling tone you up at least?

It has taken 1 month to go on. I measure using body fat scales, it has taken me 3 months to lose that body fat

Thank you x

sijomial

You can add some small amounts of muscle from resistance based cardio (cycling, rowing etc.) but that's going to have to be pretty serious cycling and gains will be minimal. It's not muscle accounting for your weight gain.
There isn't such a thing as muscle "toning".

Don't believe your body fat scales, they are very influenced by hydration levels.

You need to look at the accuracy of your food logging and calorie goal in the first instance. Your food diary is private so hard to know what you are doing.

bumblebee

So basically to see any good results of exercise i.e slimmer thighs, flatter tummy, nipped in waist, longer, leaner looking limbs, you have to actually strip off the fat too? Isn't it possible to just do lots of exercise, eat healthily and look better and fitter for it?

sijomial

So basically to see any good results of exercise i.e slimmer thighs, flatter tummy, nipped in waist, longer, leaner looking limbs, you have to actually strip off the fat too? Isn't it possible to just do lots of exercise, eat healthily and look better and fitter for it?

And a calorie deficit if you are trying to lose weight.....
(You can't make limbs or muscles longer without surgery BTW! )

If your calorie burns put you in deficit then yes you will lose weight - but it's very easy to eat enough to offset any exercise. I did exactly that for years!

georgina1970

So basically to see any good results of exercise i.e slimmer thighs, flatter tummy, nipped in waist, longer, leaner looking limbs, you have to actually strip off the fat too? Isn't it possible to just do lots of exercise, eat healthily and look better and fitter for it?

Of course you can:-)
Some peoples goals are more extreme than others. It sounds like you've probably gained some muscle as you said you weren't exercising much before and can now run 7km.
Check out how your clothes are fitting, better? Then your on the right track. Worse? Then rethink your plan.

SezxyStef

So basically to see any good results of exercise i.e slimmer thighs, flatter tummy, nipped in waist, longer, leaner looking limbs, you have to actually strip off the fat too? Isn't it possible to just do lots of exercise, eat healthily and look better and fitter for it?

Of course you can:-)
Some peoples goals are more extreme than others. It sounds like you've probably gained some muscle as you said you weren't exercising much before and can now run 7km.
Check out how your clothes are fitting, better? Then your on the right track. Worse? Then rethink your plan.

If she did it would be measured in oz not pounds...

To get that lean look you need to lose weight...get rid of fat...but if you aren't doing some form of resistence training and getting in enough protien you are losing muscle in that weight too.

You don't have to lift heavy that's a choice...you can do resistence training like bodyweight exercises, resistence bands and even small hand weights...

bumblebee

I have quite a warped view of my body or so I'm told. Maybe I'm just looking for compliments, but does my height, weight, fat % and BMI suggest that I look slim already?

bumblebee

Well thank you for your help so far x

Aaron_K123

Thank you

So are you saying that you don't put on muscle from running or cycling, but only from weight lifting? Does running and cycling tone you up at least?

It has taken 1 month to go on. I measure using body fat scales, it has taken me 3 months to lose that body fat

Thank you x

You don't put on muscle from anything if your body is at a caloric deficit. Not at any appreciable rate anyways. Your extra weight is likely water weight due to water retention in your muscles.

Aaron_K123

I have quite a warped view of my body or so I'm told. Maybe I'm just looking for compliments, but does my height, weight, fat % and BMI suggest that I look slim already?

18% bodyfat, assuming your measure is accurate, is very slim for a woman...pretty much athletic. It is about as low as bodyfat gets for a woman without going into the bodybuilder type of diet.

GretaGirl8

So basically to see any good results of exercise i.e slimmer thighs, flatter tummy, nipped in waist, longer, leaner looking limbs, you have to actually strip off the fat too? Isn't it possible to just do lots of exercise, eat healthily and look better and fitter for it?

exercise will definitely achieve all of those things...but cardio activities basically work by burning calories--which leads to slimmer/flatter/leaner looking. Yes, there will be some toning as well--but not the sort of muscle bulk that would result in weight gain. (that is why people who are really scale cautious seem to flock to the cardio machines).

also, i think body fat percentages can be misleading. I think it is difficult to get an accurate measurement. I had my body fat calculated at my gym with a hand held "Omron" device resulting in a BF % of 16.8. I had her do it twice. I still don't think that is accurate. I am fairly thin...but I do not work out AT ALL (something I need to change).