Sad and confused :(

liezelcha

I'm 8 weeks into the NROLFW and I took my measurements. I have been holding steady on the scale in the past weeks but my measurements were dropping. Today, I dropped a pound (first in quite awhile) but my measurements went up!!!!!!!! 1/2" to an inch!! WTH!!! I could actually tell even before I measured. My clothes which felt better were back to tight. I do work out at home and I have to get creative but I felt that I was doing pretty good and my diet is still the same as it was weeks ago. I try to not eat less than my BMR and I use a HRM with chest strap to calculate my cal burn and I usually eat my exercise cal. If I'm truly not hungry I don't force it. I'm on a 40/30/30. I have watched my protein and although I struggle have been increasing it quite nicely (esp on weight training days) I haven't missed any weight training or cardio since I started the program either.

I'm beyond sad at this point. What am I doing wrong all of a sudden? I was so excited and inspired and now I'm just sad and confused............

HeidiMightyRawr

How long was it between the difference in measurements? Weight/Size can fluctuate so much day by day that you kind of have to take what it says with a pinch of salt.

I'd say that as long as your diet is definitely in check, no overestimating on foods, underestimating on exercise, that it's likely to just be water. Lot's of things can cause it, sodium the day before, TOM and also weight training as water goes to your muscles to help repair. You may well have lost 2lbs fat, but gained 1lb water temporarily causing a difference in measurements, it could be lots of things.

Don't give up, give it another week or two, watch the overall weight/measurement drop rather than each time what it says. You could be taking 2 steps forward, 1 back sort of thing and at least then you're going in the right direction

summer827

Hey Lisa! I joined the group so I could respond, but I'm glad I'm here! I didn't know about it.

I experienced something similar with my measurements (particularly thigh measurements!) a few weeks ago. This week my pants feel tighter in the thighs again (but I'm not going to measure!! I've been doing lots of lunges and squats.) I know I'm doing the right things, so I am perservering. I believe I'm positively changing my body composition. I see you are doing the right things and eating well. Let's just keep on and ride it out! You're very faithful and are doing great!

Cathleenr

I'm 8 weeks into the NROLFW and I took my measurements. I have been holding steady on the scale in the past weeks but my measurements were dropping. Today, I dropped a pound (first in quite awhile) but my measurements went up!!!!!!!! 1/2" to an inch!! WTH!!! I could actually tell even before I measured. My clothes which felt better were back to tight. I do work out at home and I have to get creative but I felt that I was doing pretty good and my diet is still the same as it was weeks ago. I try to not eat less than my BMR and I use a HRM with chest strap to calculate my cal burn and I usually eat my exercise cal. If I'm truly not hungry I don't force it. I'm on a 40/30/30. I have watched my protein and although I struggle have been increasing it quite nicely (esp on weight training days) I haven't missed any weight training or cardio since I started the program either.

I'm beyond sad at this point. What am I doing wrong all of a sudden? I was so excited and inspired and now I'm just sad and confused............

your diary isn't open, so it's tough to comment on the food side. I was on a similar macro mix with rice and oatmeal as part of my carbs. It was designed for me by my trainer and we had a date by which I had to lose a certain amount of weight for a show, so there wasn't any time to experiment. I had been losing erratically and plateauing every couple weeks, so it was frustrating...AND I was already at 1200 calories, so there wasn't room to lower that. When she dropped my carbs to about 20%, though and increased my protein and we cut out the carbs from grains (the rice, quinoa and oatmeal), I started losing 2 1/2 to 3 pounds a week consistently. We were also doing intensive strength training to shore up the muscles under that fat!
I did make my show goal weight.
Since you are so far into NROLW, you may have a higher protein requirement...even on days you aren't lifting. You need more carbs on days you work a large muscle group, like the back or the legs, not so much on the other days, and you might try taking out a staple carb (and replacing it of course) if you see that there is one that you eat consistently.
Also, your cardio should be increasing in intensity and/or duration each week, not by a lot, but increasing the effort will require more energy expenditure and your body will respond to the new load requirements. HIIT is good, but so is the occasional long run if running is your thing. If you treadmill it, add 5 minutes to your time one week, then a half incline the next week and build on that.
good luck

liezelcha

Thanks everyone for the input. I really appreciate it. I flipped out at first but I will keep going and see what happens

Cath: You eat better than I do - i stay within my calories but I have some "bad" stuff sometimes. Maybe my diet needs to be cleaner....I've noticed that I have had to increase my cardio intensity to get my HR in target zone now.

Heidi: What you say makes sense. I'm going to watch my food intake a little closer. I weigh some stuff but not everything. Maybe I'm gradually getting off track. I may need to adjust my cals too......

Summer: Thanks..I have been doing a ton of deadlifts, squats and lunges lately. I did go up from 2 sets to 3 sets on everything. Glad you joined the group. I forgot to mention it earlier.

bizco

HRMs are not accurate in measuring calories burned when lifting weights. You're likely overestimating your burn. I use MFP's default for "strength training" when logging NROL4W workouts. Don't freak out over short-term changes. Keep your diet clean (most important) and continue your workouts.

liezelcha

HRMs are not accurate in measuring calories burned when lifting weights. You're likely overestimating your burn. I use MFP's default for "strength training" when logging NROL4W workouts. Don't freak out over short-term changes. Keep your diet clean (most important) and continue your workouts.

Everybody on here talks about MFP's cal burn being too high?? You don't think it calculates high?

deb54

bump

bizco

HRMs are not accurate in measuring calories burned when lifting weights. You're likely overestimating your burn. I use MFP's default for "strength training" when logging NROL4W workouts. Don't freak out over short-term changes. Keep your diet clean (most important) and continue your workouts.

Everybody on here talks about MFP's cal burn being too high?? You don't think it calculates high?

Not for strength training. I agree it can be overstated for cardio exercise, but I've never found it to be crazy high when I compare it to my HRM after a cardio workout.

Enter your lifting workouts under the Cardiovascular section, choose "strength training" (weight lifting) from the database and key in your minutes. I usually subtract my rest periods from the total minutes and I only count true lifting; meaning I start my HRM after warm-ups and I stop it immediately after my last lift, I don't count the cool-down/stretch afterwards. If you're in the stages of NROL4W that include interval training or the body matrix, start your HRM again before performing these exercises and stop it immediately after completion.

liezelcha

Thanks Bizco!!

I used MFP for my calorie count and you are correct it is the lower calorie option. I appreciate the assistance very much!!

Since you are really familiar with NROL4W I have another question for you. I am going to have some surgery starting next week and it is going to take me out of commission for a bare minimum of two weeks, maybe a little longer. How do I start up again when I'm ready to get going again. Do I just test to see where I am with the weights again from a strength perspective and back up a few weeks on the program? I appreciate any input you have on it.

bizco

Thanks Bizco!!

I used MFP for my calorie count and you are correct it is the lower calorie option. I appreciate the assistance very much!!

Since you are really familiar with NROL4W I have another question for you. I am going to have some surgery starting next week and it is going to take me out of commission for a bare minimum of two weeks, maybe a little longer. How do I start up again when I'm ready to get going again. Do I just test to see where I am with the weights again from a strength perspective and back up a few weeks on the program? I appreciate any input you have on it.

You're welcome! I had to take about 2 weeks off around Xmas time and I was shocked at how weak I was when I got back to the program. I thought I could just pick up where I left off, lifting the same amount of weight as my last workout. Wrong! The good news is it doesn't take very long at all to get back to where you were; that's the beauty of muscle memory. So yes, you will have to test to see where you are with the amount of weight. Plus, I would add one additional workout for each A and B, whichever stage you're in. You end up repeating the same exercises in later stages so you'll have plenty of time to master the moves and increase your weight load. Best of luck in your surgery, I hope all goes well.

liezelcha

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You're welcome! I had to take about 2 weeks off around Xmas time and I was shocked at how weak I was when I got back to the program. I thought I could just pick up where I left off, lifting the same amount of weight as my last workout. Wrong! The good news is it doesn't take very long at all to get back to where you were; that's the beauty of muscle memory. So yes, you will have to test to see where you are with the amount of weight. Plus, I would add one additional workout for each A and B, whichever stage you're in. You end up repeating the same exercises in later stages so you'll have plenty of time to master the moves and increase your weight load. Best of luck in your surgery, I hope all goes well.
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You have been so helpful and I really do appreciate it. BTW I keep meaning to tell you that I love your kitty.........