Is it muscle weight or fat?

neesono

I have been working out for a week. I started on Monday March 14th. Two days of cardio, one off day, four days of strength training for endurance. I started on MFP Wednesday March 16th.

My goal is a loss of 2lbs a week. My start weight was 208 and has been fluctuating all week. Today I stood on the scale and it said 209! At this point I doubt I'll be at my 2lb a week goal (I'd have to weigh 206 on Wednesday and I don't see that happening)

I've been keeping track of my daily calories. Most days I have come in under my daily goal and on two days I went over slightly.

Could this extra weight be from muscle gain? I doubt I'd gain muscle weight in just one week. Or could it be I'm not eating enough?

I know it's only been a week and that I need time for my body to adjusting to the new lifestyle but that scale can be a bit discouraging.

Thanks for any advice.

backinthenines

I'm sorry but muscle does NOT build that quickly.

Have you eaten foods high in sodium? It could be water weight? But I promise you it's not muscle at that rate.

Wightvixen

First off, it's usually a bad idea to weigh yourself too often. Fluctuations like you've seen are extremely common and lead to unnecessary anxiety. Try to only weigh once a week, at the same time of day, same clothes, scales in the same spot etc.

The fluctuations could be due to water, or if you've been weighing yourself at different times of day to natural ups and downs - most people put on a little weight as the day goes on and are lightest first thing in the morning.

I agree that it seems a bit early to be putting on muscle weight yet.

mizfrankie

don't be discouraged! It could totally be water weight but I would say your body needs time to adjust to this new routine and is probably panicking. Give it a month and see where you stand then. Stick with it

janski2

When you exercise like that, you make microscopic tears in all the muscles you use. Aren't you kinda sore the next moring? Anyway, the protein helps to heal these tears and that's where you get your bulk. If you sprained your ankle, what would happen? You would have this swollen foot and ankle. Any time you hurt yourself there is swelling, right. Well there is swelling with all these little tears and that is why you gain weight and then lose weight while you are exercising especially if you are using large muscle groups. In the long run the more muscle you have the more calories you burn daily.

neesono

Thanks everyone. I figured it couldn't be muscle weight. I'm not sure if it's sodium although I'm no expert so it could very well be.

So far I have only gone over my daily sodium allowance once and I am doing my best to keep away from anything that comes out of a can or a box.

And you better believe my body is panicking lol. My body is a little pissed off at me right now.

I think maybe I'm doing too much research and I'm over thinking the process. There is so much info on weight loss. If you eat too much you gain weight, if you eat too little you gain weight.....it can be a bit overwhelming.

I'm not going to give up! I'll stick with it and see what happens. I don't expect to reach my goal weight and have an 8-pack by the summer. It took years to put on this weight and I know it'll take time to work it off.

sarahliftsUP

It is most likely water retention -- either from sodium or from your muscles which are sore.

Try to only weigh yourself once a week.. the scale can be discouraging sometimes. Also, take measurements and pictures, that way you have another way of tracking your progress besides the scale.

Keep doing what you are doing. In another couple of weeks if you still aren't seeing results, then it would be time to tweak some things.

backinthenines

I agree totally with the weekly-only weighing.

I can fluctuate by 3lb between morning and evening easily, but there is absolutely no point getting into a flap about it. Of course I haven't gained 3lb in 9 hours, it's just stuff like water, food in your digestive tract etc.

As long as the general direction on your weekly weigh in goes in the right direction, that's all you need.

In terms of weight lifting, after 3-4 weeks you should start feeling / if not seeing (depends on your BF%) some results, and may feel some of the benefit in terms of better metabolic rate. Keep your protein up so when you're training you're only losing fat not muscle.

mexiana

Because you only have 28 pounds to lose, I'd try changing your settings to 1 pound a week vs. two. The smaller you are the slower it comes off. Look around, I've seen this advice a LOT from people who have done it and suddenly the weight started melting off again! (and not necesarily just one pound a week either!)

Vicky14174

took a look at your diary and this is what i see:

1. too many carbs. even though you're under the MFP limits you should cut back more
2. too much sodium. same applies here.
3. too much sugar.
4. too much fat.
5. too much processed foods
6. skipping meals from time to time
7. not enough water all the time.

you might try cutting down on the ones listed above as your protein and fiber counts are great and adding more water might help. also, only weigh once a week on the same day of the week and 1st thing in the morning after you get out of bed and use the restroom. Do this before you take another step and take your measurements. some times you'll loss lots of inches and no weight and that's when you are replacing fat with muscle. Muscle does not weigh more than fat but it does take up less room.

These are only suggestions but maybe if you try them for 2 weeks you might see a change.

good luck with your journey.

Limeinthecoconut

4 days of strength training means 4 days your muscles need to recover from the effort! They do this with protein and retain water also. So don't stress, it's just your body getting used to using these muscles more often and thus retaining water.

backinthenines

You might also like to join people on this thread:

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/113609-relatively-light-people-trying-to-get-leaner

which IMHO is one of the best on the whole forum.

erickirb

took a look at your diary and this is what i see:

1. too many carbs. even though you're under the MFP limits you should cut back more
2. too much sodium. same applies here.
3. too much sugar.
4. too much fat.
5. too much processed foods
6. skipping meals from time to time
7. not enough water all the time.

you might try cutting down on the ones listed above as your protein and fiber counts are great and adding more water might help. also, only weigh once a week on the same day of the week and 1st thing in the morning after you get out of bed and use the restroom. Do this before you take another step and take your measurements. some times you'll loss lots of inches and no weight and that's when you are replacing fat with muscle. Muscle does not weigh more than fat but it does take up less room.

These are only suggestions but maybe if you try them for 2 weeks you might see a change.

good luck with your journey.

Regarding #1. That is a personal choice, and as long and the carbs are from good sources (complex carbs) then going up to or even slightly over MFP's recommendations is fine. (low carb does not work for everyone) A balanced diet consists of carbs ranging from 45-60% of total calories

neesono

Thank you for the great advice everyone!

I will be looking into ALL of your suggestions and trying to figure out which works best for me.

At the moment fine tuning my daily food intake seems to be the trickiest part..as I'm sure it is for many people.

As for the carbs, don't I need them especially if I am working out 6 days a week? I'm trying to stick to whole grains and I am avoiding "white" carbs like the plague.

Skipping meals has always been a problem. I am trying to adopt a habit of eating something every 2-3 hours. I'm hitting breakfast every day.

For water what is a good amount? At the moment I'm trying to get at least 72ounces a day.

robin52077

Thank you for the great advice everyone!

I will be looking into ALL of your suggestions and trying to figure out which works best for me.

At the moment fine tuning my daily food intake seems to be the trickiest part..as I'm sure it is for many people.

As for the carbs, don't I need them especially if I am working out 6 days a week? I'm trying to stick to whole grains and I am avoiding "white" carbs like the plague.

Skipping meals has always been a problem. I am trying to adopt a habit of eating something every 2-3 hours. I'm hitting breakfast every day.

For water what is a good amount? At the moment I'm trying to get at least 72ounces a day.

72 ounces a day is great.
Avoiding white carbs and eating whole grains is great!
You don't need to go low carb as the carbs do provide the energy your body burns for your cardio.
Just make sure you get lots of good protein or your strength training will go to waste.
I have read in many places, and do myself, 1 g per pound of weight. So since I weigh 105 I aim for just over 100g of protein per day.
You can adjust your ratios yourself. I see you are at 51g of protein. That is ridiculously low IMO. Take a little from fat and a little from carbs and put it into protein. Track fiber instead of sugar and change the number to 30, ensuring the carbs you do eat are the right ones.
Those are my suggestions for your food intake.
And only weigh once a week!

On another note..your calories are way too low. 1500 is the recommended bare minimum for males, 1200 is for women. MFP doesn't let ANYONE go below 1200 but they aren't taking gender into consideration. You probably have your goals set at 2 lbs per week. That is too much. Try 1 lb per week and see what it tells you to eat then.
Also, check your activity level. If you put sedentary, change it. MOST people are NOT sedentary unless they roll out of bed and go right to the couch and barely move except to go to the bathroom or kitchen.

When you are only trying to lose a little bit, you NEED to go slower, and you can't gain that nice muscle you want while in a deficit. You need to eat close to maintenance level and eat right. Too big a deficit can be hurting you rather than helping you.

neesono

Ok I tweaked my stats a bit.

I bumped up my daily goal to 1500 which MPF then boosted to 1850.
I pumped up the protein to 45% which will give me 208g a day
Also bumped up the fiber to 30g
And I dropped down to a 1lb a week goal

I am still using the sedentary level only because during the week I really don't do much aside from going to the gym. I work at my desk most of the time.

Time will tell ;-)

Thanks again so much for all the help!!

robin52077

It looks WAAAAYYYY better!

Now just eat that protein, eat your veggies, drink your water, and DON'T weigh for at LEAST a week because it sometimes take 2-3 weeks for changes to show up when you change your eating or exercise habits.
Use your clothes as a better tool than the scale. Go by how they fit. Sometimes you lose inches but NOT pounds, especially if you are trying to build some muscle. Take your measurements now and after 3 weeks of doing it this way and then tell me the difference! :happy:

neesono

It looks WAAAAYYYY better!

Now just eat that protein, eat your veggies, drink your water, and DON'T weigh for at LEAST a week because it sometimes take 2-3 weeks for changes to show up when you change your eating or exercise habits.
Use your clothes as a better tool than the scale. Go by how they fit. Sometimes you lose inches but NOT pounds, especially if you are trying to build some muscle. Take your measurements now and after 3 weeks of doing it this way and then tell me the difference! :happy:

Actually it's the inches I want to lose more than the weight. Of course I want to get rid of the gut but there is an outfit that I would very much like to be able to wear rather than squeeeeeze into :-)

Thanks again for the advice and I'll be sure to update with those measurements!!

pyro13g

Most likely water weight from inflammation of your muscles.

bizco

Commenting on Robin's reply:
"Also, check your activity level. If you put sedentary, change it. MOST people are NOT sedentary unless they roll out of bed and go right to the couch and barely move except to go to the bathroom or kitchen."
[/quote]
If you enter your workouts in the exercise log (and you should) then it's perfectly fine to have your activity level set to sedentary, especially if you have a desk job. MFP will then add your exercise calories to your daily goal. Make sure you eat them. Your body needs the fuel and your calorie deficit will remain the same.

AmandaR910

I have weeks where I gain. I'd take measurements and make sure to watch the sodium and TONS OF WATER. It *will* come off. It's just a slow process sometimes. You can do it!!