I'm losing the wrong weight

__freckles__

People have told you all there is to say:
- scales like that are not sufficiently accurate for drawing conclusions like this one
- if you want to retain more LBM, you need resistance training and adequate protein

That's really all there is to it. There's no superfood you can eat that will put muscle on your body, and while getting adequate protein is important, it's really only half of the equation. You really need to do some resistance training if you want to maximize your LBM retention. If you're convinced you can't make any time for resistance training, then just deal with the consequences and work to add LBM back on sometime in the future.

^^Agreed. If I were you, I'd would just eat at maintenance until you can start lifting weights in November. Or you can keep losing weight and deal with the consequences like parsksce said. Don't get me wrong, bulking is fun, but it's a lot easier to retain the muscle you have now than it is to build it back up later.

T1DCarnivoreRunner

i doubt that you cant find a half hour in your day to exercise in one way or another. but thats up to you to find that time, whether its a half hour less of sleep or becoming more organized so you can fit it in without sacrificing that crucial shut eye

if you are losing muscle and gaining fat then there is some messed up stuff happening in your body. are you not eating at a calorie deficit?

I am eating at a calorie deficit, with the exception of 1 cheat day during that time, where I ate at a surplus.

Im at a loss as to how that could happen. your scale has got to be off man, i dont see how you could lose weight but gain fat. have you been to the doc to rule out any thyroid issues and complications of that sort?

I do have some medical issues... the only one related to thyroid is Hashimoto's, but I take Synthroid. I wonder if it is time to increase? Good point - I'll bring that up in a few weeks when I see the dr. next.

Lauren8239

When using a scale like that it's best to have damp feet. I have a Taylor and I sprinkle water on it before weighing. Your instructions will probably mention that as well.

T1DCarnivoreRunner

I'm no expert, but it sounds like your body fat percentage may be increasing because you're losing LBM. You're not gaining fat while eating in a deficit, but the percentage can increase if you're losing more LBM. This can happen when someone eats a deficit that is too aggressive and/or doesn't stimulate their muscles (i.e. lifting weights, resistance training, etc) in order to retain the muscle they have.

How much of a deficit are you eating? How much protein are you consuming a day?

Up until the last week, I had a deficit of 250 calories daily, and then raised that to 500 recently. Protein varies, but around 60-70g is about average.

As far as fat percentage, both percent and actual fat is increasing. That is based on taking the scale calculated fat percentage times the total weight.

T1DCarnivoreRunner

How do you fit in those unexpected bathroom trips that exceed 5 minutes?

Those are very rare, but on the 2-3 minute bathroom trip that I have once or twice each day, I multi-task (email and/or working on Excel sheets and such on my phone).

T1DCarnivoreRunner

OK, Thank you for all of your help.

Here's what I've decided from your comments: I'm going to increase food intake to smaller losses (back to 0.5 loss / week until November when I'll have time to exercise), and continue to monitor and go up to maintenance calories if the trend persists. And, I'll check with my dr. about whether Synthroid needs to be increased.

heybales

OK, So I just want to clarify a few things:

1. I truly do not have time right now. I could try to convince you, but I don't feel like I have to. Just know that I am ignoring any "You can find the time if you really want to" comments. While I really wish that were the case, it just isn't right now. I can prioritize this in November, but for now there is nothing I can prioritize lower in order to find time to work out. That includes working out at home, which is more likely than working out at a gym (I live in a rural area where the nearest gym that has reasonable hours is 1 hour round trip by car). I have about 5 min. of spare time each day... it is really tough, but if you have specific suggestions for that time, let me know exactly what you suggest without equipment (pushups, jumping jacks, etc. and how many of each).

2. I am not losing BOTH muscle and fat. I am losing muscle and I am gaining fat. While I realize there is some risk of inaccuracy of the electrical impedence scales, I'm seeing this as a trend, not just a couple of values. I would hope that the same scale is off with some consistency, so the trend would be concerning regardless. Still, I'm willing to keep on doing what I'm doing and continue to monitor if there are no other options. BTW, I'm using the Omron HBF-516B.

It only appears that way.

Correct decision to decrease the deficit and eat enough protein.

Studies have shown that's enough to retain muscle mass.

Consider that scale figure for BF% in the 5% range - if you presented a body with exact same level of hydration to it.
So far you are overlapping within bounds of accuracy.

Present a body with different levels - figure 10% now for accuracy.

To minimize water fluctuations, only use it on valid weigh-in days.
Morning after rest day eating normal sodium levels, not sore from last workout.

stealthq

I'm no expert, but it sounds like your body fat percentage may be increasing because you're losing LBM. You're not gaining fat while eating in a deficit, but the percentage can increase if you're losing more LBM. This can happen when someone eats a deficit that is too aggressive and/or doesn't stimulate their muscles (i.e. lifting weights, resistance training, etc) in order to retain the muscle they have.

How much of a deficit are you eating? How much protein are you consuming a day?

Up until the last week, I had a deficit of 250 calories daily, and then raised that to 500 recently. Protein varies, but around 60-70g is about average.

As far as fat percentage, both percent and actual fat is increasing. That is based on taking the scale calculated fat percentage times the total weight.

Ramp up your daily protein intake. There have been a couple of studies done that found that eating more protein was sufficient to reduce LBM loss in dieters. Unfortunately they weren't in your demographic, but the results likely apply anyway.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19927027 <- athletes
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18589032 <- postmenopausal women

Shropshire1959

Don't believe everything that your scales are telling your ... Body composition scales 'often' work based upon resistivity and is HIGHLY influenced by body water content and ambient humidity..

T1DCarnivoreRunner

I'm no expert, but it sounds like your body fat percentage may be increasing because you're losing LBM. You're not gaining fat while eating in a deficit, but the percentage can increase if you're losing more LBM. This can happen when someone eats a deficit that is too aggressive and/or doesn't stimulate their muscles (i.e. lifting weights, resistance training, etc) in order to retain the muscle they have.

How much of a deficit are you eating? How much protein are you consuming a day?

Up until the last week, I had a deficit of 250 calories daily, and then raised that to 500 recently. Protein varies, but around 60-70g is about average.

As far as fat percentage, both percent and actual fat is increasing. That is based on taking the scale calculated fat percentage times the total weight.

Ramp up your daily protein intake. There have been a couple of studies done that found that eating more protein was sufficient to reduce LBM loss in dieters. Unfortunately they weren't in your demographic, but the results likely apply anyway.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19927027 <- athletes
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18589032 <- postmenopausal women

For some reason, the addresses don't work.

stealthq

They do. Just double-checked. Copy and paste into the address bar. Just make sure you're only getting up to the last number. The rest of the line is my comment about the demographic for that study. The addresses you're copying should be the following:

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19927027
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18589032

BenReedCreative

Firstly and most importantly of all.
THOSE SCALES ARE NOT ACCURATE. They are not even usually in the ball park. They will measure your weight fine, but the rest is utter rubbish. And i mean UTTER rubbish.
If you are still concerned however then:
Eat at least 120g protein a day.
Do some form of full body resistance training, even if minimal.

sijomial

I have Omron body fat scales too. Over a period of months and years they have provided a reasonable trend.

But over a period of days and weeks they are a bit of a joke. I'm maintaining my weight and if I believed my scales then I can miraculously go from 19% to 13% body fat in a matter of days while not actually gaining or losing any weight. Incredible wouldn't you say? (That's 'incredible' as in impossible to believe!!)

As an experiment I tried morning and afternoon measurements and in a few hours the reading will change by a few percentage points, that's due to differences in hydration and the amount of food in my system. By the way - the afternoon measurement is much closer to the truth than the morning one.

You are putting far too much faith in an unreliable device.

T1DCarnivoreRunner

I have Omron body fat scales too. Over a period of months and years they have provided a reasonable trend.

But over a period of days and weeks they are a bit of a joke. I'm maintaining my weight and if I believed my scales then I can miraculously go from 19% to 13% body fat in a matter of days while not actually gaining or losing any weight. Incredible wouldn't you say? (That's 'incredible' as in impossible to believe!!)

As an experiment I tried morning and afternoon measurements and in a few hours the reading will change by a few percentage points, that's due to differences in hydration and the amount of food in my system. By the way - the afternoon measurement is much closer to the truth than the morning one.

You are putting far too much faith in an unreliable device.

Yes, I know there is some risk on accuracy. I only weigh at least 2 hours after eating, and towards the end of the day. If I weigh in the morning, I'm too dehydrated for a good reading before a shower, and too hydrated for an accurate reading afterwards. Like I said, the trend has only had 1 outlier that definitely looks wrong.

T1DCarnivoreRunner

They do. Just double-checked. Copy and paste into the address bar. Just make sure you're only getting up to the last number. The rest of the line is my comment about the demographic for that study. The addresses you're copying should be the following:

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19927027
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18589032

Yes, those are what I was using. It's odd, though... I tried several times on one computer and couldn't get them to work (other websites worked fine, so I know it was connected). I am now in a different location on a different computer and they work. Thanks for the followup!

okulyd

Stick to the diet. Exercise is easier when you have less extra mass to carry around.
Eat more protein like everyone said, it will help fill you up and help with blood sugar. You can't go wrong with more protein.

Weight loss is more about diet than exercise. It damn difficult to burn enough calories with the average hour a person has to spend per day working out to really get the 500 calorie deficit that is recommended to hit the 2 pounds per week. Focus on the food and weight should come off. If you lose muscle don't worry about it too much, you can build it back in November when you ready to focus on it.

likitisplit

I do body weight exercises three times a week. They take between 15 and 30 minutes a day. I could cut that down to 7-15 minutes if I needed to. However, I am still making progress at my level.

SeptemberLondon

As someone who stays very busy and has used that as an excuse in the past, I'd say to stop making excuses and find a way to do some resistance training if preserving muscle and adding strength are truly your goals. At a minimum you can start doing some body weight exercises, but I'd wager you could find time to get to the gym if you really wanted to. It will likely take some sacrifices, but it's doable if you really want it.

I absolutely agree with all of this.

With the relatively little I've learned so far, I'd say your protein is definitely too low. Check me on this, but I think the minimum should be .8 grams per pound of body weight to maintain lean muscle while losing.

Also, my boyfriend does pushups while studying, and I do squats while folding laundry. While everyone at work takes smoke breaks; I take crunch & squat breaks. These types of exercises are sufficient until you have more time, but I sincerely think you'll be glad you did.

I completely disagree with the previous comment to "wait until you lose weight", particularly if your complaint is that you're losing lean mass. Everyone's different, but this is an extremely strange suggestion to me.

Sthere

I briefly scanned your post are you avoiding wheat gluten if you have hashimotos?

T1DCarnivoreRunner

I briefly scanned your post are you avoiding wheat gluten if you have hashimotos?

No, I do not have Celiac's.