Is it possible to lose fat but not weight

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codexavellum
codexavellum Posts: 112
in Fitness and Exercise
I have been doing heavy cardio the last 10 days. I usually do 60 minutes a day burning around 700-800 calories. I have noticed my clothes are fitting a lot looser but the scale is not moving at all (in fact it's creeping up) Is this possible and what can I do to change this?

Thanks!

Replies

  • erinhale
    erinhale Posts: 137 Member
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    Some people lose inches before weight. You are putting on muscle it seems!
  • codexavellum
    codexavellum Posts: 112
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    Some people lose inches before weight. You are putting on muscle it seems!

    Don't mean to sound dumb but I usually run 6 miles a day for my cardio. Is that putting on muscle? I was under the impression you need to strength train to build muscle
  • kell_riley
    kell_riley Posts: 312
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    Bump for replies!

    I have a similar problem, no results on scale ever with the amount of exercise I'm doing!
    Maybe your loosing inches?
  • GTOgirl1969
    GTOgirl1969 Posts: 2,527 Member
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    I'm on the second month of ChaLEAN Extreme (Push phase) and have only lost two pounds, but I'm losing inches and my clothes are fitting looser (wore a pair of denim capris yesterday, went to the store, and almost had a wardrobe malfunction when I stooped to get something off the bottom shelf). Muscle is more compact than fat; that's why you're losing inches without the scale budging that much.
  • erickirb
    erickirb Posts: 12,293 Member
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    depends on how fast. first off, it is very difficult to build muscle while on a caloric deficit (most people actually lose muscle as they lose weight). Unless you are new to strength training it is unlikely you put on muscle, even if you did it is difficult to gain more than 0.5 lbs of muscle per week, and that is aggressive even in a caloric surplus. Your muscles could be retaining water due to the exercise, this is the most likely scenario. You probably lost fat , but your muscles are retaining water. Drink plenty of water and soon your body will shed the excess water weight.
  • rjgazray
    rjgazray Posts: 41 Member
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    You're going to build muscle running as well. You'll build more doing weight training but running is definitely going to make build muscle as well, getting you toned and get rid of inches. I agree with everyone that you are most likely building muscle which is why the scale isn't going down. This isn't a bad thing at all. But if you want to continue losing and are discouraged, varying your workout will help break that so that the scale will keep moving. So instead of running, try doing some other things such as weight training, a different kind of cardio, etc.
  • erickirb
    erickirb Posts: 12,293 Member
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    You're going to build muscle running as well. You'll build more doing weight training but running is definitely going to make build muscle as well, getting you toned and get rid of inches. I agree with everyone that you are most likely building muscle which is why the scale isn't going down. This isn't a bad thing at all. But if you want to continue losing and are discouraged, varying your workout will help break that so that the scale will keep moving. So instead of running, try doing some other things such as weight training, a different kind of cardio, etc.

    No you won't build muscle running, it will actually be the opposite, you will lose muscle doing cardio. Have you ever seen a muscular marathon runner? or even long distance runner for that matter. Cardio burns fat, and it burns muscle.

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