Muscle weighs more than fat....blah, blah, blah

HM1971

I honestly dont care what muscle weighs. I just know that my scale wont budge!! I exercise about 1 hr per day either running or
the elliptical. Sometimes I eat my exercise calories, sometimes I dont. I dont eat over my limit.....i know I need to drink more water, but come on! Im getting so frustrated! My friends say im gaining muscle, but the BMI calculator doesnt care how much muscle I have!!!

cacrat

When you look in the mirror, do you like what you see? When you exercise, how do you feel?

BMI is BS. It says I'm overweight. My scale hasn't really moved in two weeks either, but I've lost body fat. The number on the scale isn't the end all be all of fitness.

Devlyn_P

Calories in/out is so important on your fat loss journey. Try to stick with it because it is going to help you adjust. Make sure you start off with a 500 cal deficit from your BMR. It's all in what you eat. Water is extremely effective for fat loss! i would consider this your number one weapon flushing out the fat Good luck and don't lose hope!

CouchSpud

Well, stop believing the BMI then... simples... every sportive person is prolly near obisity or even obese when it comes to BMI, that should tell you all you need to know...

purpleipod

Do you have much weight to lose? If you don't, it's not going to go very fast at all.

proudmommylmb

Drink almost two liters of water a day
Change up your workouts....cardio aerobics strength training thrown in dance, etc..
Don't eat breakfast or lunch, just dinner 2-3 times a week
??

LeanMeanFitnessMachine

Get a body fat calliper - BMI is worthless, IMO.

Jackdog89

I agree with LeanMean,..

or you can measure yourself with a tape measure. You'll have a better idea of where you're at. The scale shouldn't be you're only weight loss determination. Especially if you are building muscle mass.

itgeekwoman

Ok, I understand. You want to see numbers and results. So measure your waist, your hips, your thighs, chest and biceps.. maybe even neck.
Then continue for 2 weeks, DRINK MORE WATER, and then see what happens.
I am betting you are toning which in the long run will help the numbers drop faster in weight loss. Be Patient! You didn't get this big overnight, you won't shrink overnight either.
I measure regularly. I'm down 38lbs and over 30 inches. I didn't lose any weight for 30 days, but I was down 11 inches. Take your time, you'll be glad you did.
Good luck!!

thelovelyLIZ

BMI is a very flawed way to look at weight. My best friend is in the military and every time they have weigh ins she's classified as "overweight" or "obese" just because she's super muscular from years of playing volleyball.

Take some measurements and look at your body fat percentage. It's a much more reliable way to look at weight because it takes into account your lean body weight (muscles, organs, bones, etc). You could be losing inches but not pounds. I've seen pictures of a girl who weighed 120lb and wore a size 5/7 pants. Then she put on a ton of muscle, weights 119lbs, but now fits into a size zero. Don't be too quick to dismiss gaining muscle.

meggonkgonk

1) Forget BMI. It's a stupid *kitten* usless scale of pointlessness.
2) If you are working out at much as you say and are never over your goal my guess is you are both retaining water and plateauing from burning too much and not eating enough... If you open your diary I can make more specific suggestions to help.

how long has it been since you've seen a change in the scale?

YukonJoy

PLEASE look at my thread!!

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/459290-stop-basing-your-success-on-that-scale-pics

deadstarsunburn

Well first you can't gain muscle on a calorie deficit so that's not it.

If you are getting closer to your goal you will need to up the calories you eat in a day. Changing somewhere between .5-1 pound a week will help the most.

Good luck keep up the hard work

30yearssincebikini

You are getting in shape, you just don't know it yet because you think that the scale is the end all of your journey. I suggest you do this: Get a tape measure and measure your chest, waist and hips. Then measure the upper inner thigh. (One thigh is enough). Write everything down. Every two weeks, measure again. As you are gaining muscle, you are losing the fat, meaning that you are looking leaner and more muscular. You will see a difference in the measurements, which should make you happy.

The weight issue will take a while to get used to because the muscle you are gaining really does weigh more, and at first, you won't see a rapid difference in your weight, but you will in measurements and in how you look. Good luck. Don't give up!

chevy88grl

First off, stop putting so much faith in the BMI calculator. Do you know that it considers bodybuilders "obese"? It doesn't take into account your fat to muscle ratio. It only takes your weight, height, age, gender. Sorry, but it is very flawed and not an accurate way to gauge how you're doing overall.

Muscle does not weigh more than fat - not that you were asking, but I'm sick of seeing this.

If what you're doing isn't working, then it is time to switch things up. Zig zag your calories. Switch up your workouts - add in some strength training, do circuit training, etc. Your body is probably used to the workouts you've been doing. It needs you to shock it.

Make sure you're not creating too large of a calorie deficit. Remember that MFP already figures in a deficit for you when it gives you your daily calorie goal. While it seems like it would be beneficial to create a larger deficit to lose weight faster, this thought usually backfires. When you aren't giving your body the proper nutrition, weight loss slows or even stops. Make sure you are eating.

Drink enough water.

Get enough sleep.

kk1964

I am with you, so damn frustrated, i have never excercised so much and so consistently in my life, i am interested in your responses

dendra7

BMI is crap. Want numbers? Use body fat or measurements. Or get out a pair of pants/dress you want to wear and try putting it on once a week. That's way (or weigh) more exciting...Because (like it or not)- muscle does weigh more than fat.

Kimsied

I doubt that you would be gaining muscle if you are dieting and running/elliptical every day. But you may be retaining fluid in your muscles which is common with vigorous exercise. I usually only see it with strength training though, when I strength train I gain a couple pounds right away and if I stop for more than a week (travel, illness, whatever) at some point I instantly lose it. But are your measurements changing? Are your clothes fitting looser? If not, you probably need to look more at your diet not your workouts. If you are decreasing in size (measurements, clothes fit, etc), you may still be making progress.

YukonJoy

Well first you can't gain muscle on a calorie deficit so that's not it.

Oh good lord. Who told you THAT??? :noway: :sick:

xcrushx28

If you diet is consistent, then you may need a change. If not, then start becoming more consistent with your nutrition.

Nana_Booboo

A pound is a pound.

Doesn't matter if it's a blob of nasty fat or lean muscle.

However a pound of muscle will take up less room than fat so you will look smaller even if you're numbers are not going down.

Keep doing what you're doing, and pay attention to your clothes instead of the scale.

ejohndrow

Not to be a bad person or anything, but how many calories do you burn during that hour of elliptical/running you do. Also, add in some weight training, that combined with a healthy diet and your cardio would be a good jumpstart.

Nana_Booboo

muscle does weigh more than fat.

A pound is a pound.

a pound of fat does not weigh less than a pound of muscle.

chubbybunnee

Are you eating bleached white breads? Are you under your macros? I can't see your diary, so I am not sure, but some people stay under calories but are over on carbs or fats or sugars all the time. That kind of stuff matters. If you don't eat the right foods, your body is gonna keep storing the leftover. There is more science involved with the macros absorption. The time of day you eat, the way you do your cardio, etc....also you should add weight lifting and strength exercises to your routine. Weights will get you more noticeable results faster then cardio per my trainer.

If you are eating right, no bleached white breads, or bad McDonalds Fat and preservatives, then all you can do it switch up your routine. If you only do cario on two different types of machines, your body adapts and you need to try something else. If you normally do the treadmill, change it up for the stair climber.....instead of the elliptical, use the rowing machine...etc....Trick your body into using different muscles so you will not be as efficient at it. Also when doing your cardio, get your heart rate up for a little while, then let it go down, then take it back up. You fight fat better when your body is constantly changing it up and having to use more energy to get stabalised. Example: Friend and I did a 5K today. She jogged consistently and I jogged as fast as I could for a while, then would walk for 30 seconds, jog, then walk.....my friend at the gym normally burns double my calories doing the same exercises because she has more mass, but today during the 5k, I burned twice as much as her because my body had to work harder to adapt to the different paces I was keeping where as she was building more endurance and her heart was kept at a steady rate the entire time.

DO NOT skip breakfast and lunch and only eat dinner!!!! That will mess up your metabolism so bad! You will only slow it down! Eat breakfast, snack, eat lunch, snack, then eat dinner. Try not to eat after 7 p.m. and try really hard to not eat carbs past 3 or 4.
Do I do follow this eating plan right now? No. Have I plateaued...yes! Did I break through my past 2 plateus? YES....How? By doing this long enough to break it! lol. All of this will work if you follow it. And you don't need to do it forever, just long enough to get the results you want, then you can start maintaining at your lower weight or keep making changes as you lose more.

This is what worked for me. Everyone is different, but I wanted to give you advice based on what I have found works

shivaslives

I'm going through the same thing and. I recommend that you eat back your exercise calories everyday and ignore BMI readings. Weight and BMI are only one method of determine if you a getting fit and usually not the best ones because there are a lot of factors they don't take into consideration. If you want positive feedback on the improvements you're making, handheld body fat monitors are relatively inexpensive and will show you that you are losing fat and gaining muscle.


Advice is worth exactly what you pay for it.

ViSabbi

A agree with basically everyone on this thread. Mesurements is what you want to see change, who cares about the BMI or the scale really. I know it's disappointing when it's not moving but the blah blah muscle is true besides, muscles help burning fat so keep exercising. Water intake should be half your weight in ounces, otherwise you might just keep any water you drink. Eat proteins and go small on carbs. There's no magic here, every bodies are different but the basics stay the same. Keep pushing further and further in your workout. You can do it!

Hehe, I bought myself a mesurement tape especially because of that. I know the scale won't tell me what I want next week but it will be 2 weeks since I took my mesurements so I will either stick to my rule of mesuring once a month and handle the damn scale, or mesure myself to see if there's -any- change at all. If there's none, I will have to adjust, that's all.

primal_p90x

BMI = Badly Misinformed Individual. Muscle does not weigh more than fat.
1 pound equals 1 lb regardless if it is muscle or fat.
Forget the scale.
If you want to see real progress:
1. Measure waistline every other day
2. Measure your body fat once a week
3. Take pictures every 2 to 4 weeks and compare the photos.

shivaslives

Well first you can't gain muscle on a calorie deficit so that's not it.

Oh good lord. Who told you THAT??? :noway: :sick:

Agreed. My own personal experience shows that this is not true. You can build muscle and burn fat with a calorie deficit.

sarahsmom1

a pound of muscle, a pound of fat, a pound of feathers, and a pound of bricks all weigh a pound

HarlCarl

I'm going through the same issue right now. I haven't lost on the scale since Dec 30. I can see losses in the mirror, and I lost an average of .5" in waist, hip, neck and even around my wrists. My thighs increased by 1/2 inch, but I have been walking more, and even running (which I have disliked since track in high school.) I know it was running because both feet were off the ground.

It's frustrating to see the scale stuck where it is. I wanted to be simply overweight (no longer obese) before Jan 1, I didn't make that goal. But I feel great, that's for sure.

YukonJoy

muscle does weigh more than fat.

A pound is a pound.

a pound of fat does not weigh less than a pound of muscle.

Sigh. I swear to god this website is going to be the death of me.


http://www.nutracheck.co.uk/Library/WeightLoss/which-weighs-more-fat-or-muscle_1.html