Starting to feel frustrated.

Turkeylips

My husband and I started a workout program called Farrell's Extreme Bodyshaping 7 weeks ago. It is an awesome workout with a great nutrition plan. We workout for 45 min, 6 days a week. Every other day is kickboxing and resistance bands. As the weeks progress they add new technique and start changing things up a bit so that your body doesnt get used to the same old thing. Also every week before we start we do extra push ups and different ab workouts. The first week we did 10 extra, 2nd week, 20 extra and so forth. Next week we start out 8th week and do 80 extra of everything. I am feeling physically better, and in the beginning I saw great changes, but it has been about 2 weeks now of seeing no loss on the scale. I know that I shouldnt be looking at those numbers but it is hard not to especially when my husband is to the point where he doesnt need to lose more weight but continues to do so. In the past I have seen great results losing weight while changing just my diet and not exercising, but this time with the exercise it doesnt seem to be moving as quickly. I am committed to making this a lifestyle change and know the physical changes will come, I am just getting impatient and frustrated!!

AquaAura

You could be gaining muscle and muscle weighs more than fat. Muscle is good the more you build the better your body will burn fat!! I wouldn't worry too much at this stage. When I first started out doing circuit training with my trainer he didn't want me to even look at the scale for a month because of that muscle gain. If you're noticing changes in a good way then that is awesome. The weight loss will come just stick with it.

Thena81

hey girl, I'm Athena and i understand your frustration completely! I have been doing this journal and exercising just about everyday for 3 weeks. According to the plan i should have lost like 5 lbs but I've only lost 2. To add insult to injury, last weigh in i gained, yes somehow managed to gain two pounds. I was like AAAHHHHHH!! lol but I'm sticking with it too, because i miss my lil skinny jeans! Keep up the good work and effort, and it will pay off in the end... well, that's what i tell myself anyway! lol good luck girlie

charcharbec

Yes... you are definitely gaining muscle.. but after about 2 months or so you will definitely see a slow. My trainer reccomended for me to REALLY kick my nutrition in the pants (which I am trying to do). I probably should eat less in carbs but I just can't help it since I am vegetarian. Anyway.... maybe you need to look more into your nutrition. Are you eating late at night? Are you eating more loads of carbs? What about sugar? I had to cut back on my fruit intake and eat more veggies. This article here (http://tucsoncitizen.com/living-thin/2010/08/12/thermic-vegetables-burn-calories-while-you-eat-check-out-this-list/) explains some veggies that help you lose weight also.

Hopefully this helps. Also.... don't go by the scale. See if you can get someone to do a body comp for you. My trainer does this for me and its included in my membership at my gym.

susanofscottsdale

Your program sounds excellent! And, how nice to have a committed partner to work with.

You sound like an experienced dieter - so you know that two weeks is not a long time, that temporary water weight gains can hide progress, and that weight is not lost evenly.

I know all this too, but still have impulsively given the scale the finger when it has too persistently disapointed me. If you are eating right and do not need to make any changes, then you might consider focusing on progress with other numbers (push ups, plank time or what ever). This will pass.

And, I have found that if I drink even more water than usual over a day, that this sometimes is reflected in weightloss the following day.

Good luck.

sarahkatara

Don't compare yourself to your husband. Men and women are in different stratospheres when it comes to how we gain and lose weight. My fiancee put on about 35-40 pounds and then all of a sudden, i looked up less than a month later and *BAM* it's all gone , plus five extra pounds! And this guy doesn't eat "healthy", no matter how hard i try. Their metabolisms are faster usually, and they burn and store fat differently. I hate that my fiancee didn't have to try and now i'm complaining to him, "you're too bony!" Not cool, I know! but just do YOUR best and do what's right for your womanly body and you will see those results

JeSuisPrest

You will have moments or even days of frustration along this journey. Just keep reminding yourself you are making changes for the better!! Just keep pushing!!

Turkeylips

Thanks everybody! I am doing great with the nutrition side of things. I dont eat fruit but very rarely and always towards the early part of the day so I can burn of the carbs/sugars through out the day. We eat 6 small meals a day, every 2-3 hours. And have figured out our carbs and protein needs based on our weight. I dont stick to those numbers hard and fast but am very close. I am not really following the MFP calorie goal, but what I am eating is keeping me pretty close to the MFP guidelines for 2lbs a week. I am usually under my carb intake and over protein. I do think I need to drink more water so that could definitely be an issue. Its partly frustrating because I have about 70lbs to lose to get to goal so I was hoping it would come off a little faster in the beginning.

ninerbuff

Just to clarify if people don't know: you DO NOT gain muscle on calorie deficit unless you're

A former athlete returning to exercise after an extended layoff

A very overweight or obese person who hasn't lifted weights/or wasn't consistent in lifting weights

A newbie who has NEVER lifted weights before.


To gain muscle you need to be in calorie surplus. Gaining muscle means "adding" weight, that's why it's practically impossible to do it on deficit.

To the OP, the body adapts to exercise well. This whole "muscle confusion" thing is just another way of just saying you're training muscle with different exercises. If it were really relevant, then people shouldn't stall because the muscle is "confused". What I have clients do it change the "intensity" of their exercise even if they are doing the same ones repetitively. Instead of adding reps (which is for muscular endurance), change the resistance to make it harder.
The problem with just doing body weight exercises is that as you lose weight, your resistance is also less. So when people say they are getting "better" at a push up, it's because they are actually pushing up less weight. Does that make any sense? Increasing the resistance will make you stronger and increase your resting metabolic rate which is more responsible for burning excess fat than any exercising you do.

NotGoddess

I did Farrell's last year. In my group most of the women didn't start seeing serious results until week 6-7 but then it really kicked in. Those that sticked to both the diet and training had the best results, so I think you'll do great!

sarahmaryfearnley

I know all this too, but still have impulsively given the scale the finger when it has too persistently disapointed me.

This cracked me up because I've so done the same thing and also know the informaiton well.

To the OP, I just try and remind myself that it's not a race. If I keep eating right and exercising, changes WILL happen. Hnag in there, you'll make it!