Questions about the scale vs. progress.

Uptopargolf

Alrighty, well I have a few questions/comments that I would love for someone with a bit more fitness knowledge than me answer. I know all the time people get frustrated when the scale does not move. I on the other hand, don't really care. I may not even weigh myself once a week anyway. I know that while working out and eating well I will do what I need to. HOWEVER;

After my first two rounds of p90x, which went very well.. I did not see the scale move nearly at all from Day 1, to Day 180. I started at about 195ish. And I finished at about 189ish? Give or take a few each way.. But nothing crazy. But I looked like I had lost nearly 30 pounds. Now I understand that fat takes up more space than muscle. But could I really only of lost 5 pounds of fat? Or did I put on muscle?

I am just curious because now starting my 3rd round. I haven't weighed myself since 10/16/10 when I was 189. However, I do feel like I look a bit better. Can you really drop fat and not see the scale move at all? Or just very little? Does this mean I'm gaining muscle mass on a calories deficit? (which I am sure probably is not possible, form my knowledge) Or is it something else?

While It does not bother me about the scale not moving, I am curious as to others thoughts. I know there are some people on here with a very good knowledge of knowing how the body puts on muscle, takes off fat, etc etc.

Thanks for any thoughts anyone. -Chris.

murf19

Hey Chris,

I'm about to start my third time as well. Being a coach now, I've learned a few things about the diet. In fact the second time I did the program I only did phase 1 for 2 weeks and then I did the rest of the program in phase 2. I never went to Phase 3 with the high Carb intake.
I lost more body fat ( which accounded for weight loss) but my muscles grew too. I'd suggest if your looking to lose weight, but want to gain muscle, stay in phase 2, especially if your already in good shape.

Try it. Everyone is different. that worked for me, The amount of carbs in phase 3 was not burning off and my weight never really went anywhere after the inital phase 1. One I stayed in phase 2 and only ate natural carbs, I saw a big difference.
Here's my page. I'd be happy to answer any other questions: www.beachbodycoach.com/murf19

carl1738

I'm not really an expert, but from speaking from personal experience it is possible to lose fat while gaining muscle without seeing the scale move much. I've increased my arms from a flabby 16 inches to a much more defined 18 inches while dropping 10 inches off of my waist, from 52 to 42 inches. My weight has only dropped roughly ten pounds since I started strength training, but my body composition has changed drastically. I've heard some people on this site say that it's impossible to gain muscle while losing fat, but I would disagree. I try to eat a lot of protein, and I'm usually close to my target calories for the day (sometimes a little over, but mainly a little under), and I usually eat most of my exercise calories. Maybe that's keeping me close enough to a balance where I can lose fat while gaining muscle? I don't know, but I would be interested in hearing from somebody with a bit more knowledge.

Uptopargolf

I'm not really an expert, but from speaking from personal experience it is possible to lose fat while gaining muscle without seeing the scale move much. I've increased my arms from a flabby 16 inches to a much more defined 18 inches while dropping 10 inches off of my waist, from 52 to 42 inches. My weight has only dropped roughly ten pounds since I started strength training, but my body composition has changed drastically. I've heard some people on this site say that it's impossible to gain muscle while losing fat, but I would disagree. I try to eat a lot of protein, and I'm usually close to my target calories for the day (sometimes a little over, but mainly a little under), and I usually eat most of my exercise calories. Maybe that's keeping me close enough to a balance where I can lose fat while gaining muscle? I don't know, but I would be interested in hearing from somebody with a bit more knowledge.

Yeah, there are a lot of conflicting ideas about gaining muscle, while on a lower calorie diet. However I'm sure someone will weigh in and give us some more incite. Also I want to add, I'm not talking about 'newbie' gains when you just start to lift. I'm talking about after I've already been lifting for half a year.