Trade off Between fat Loss & pounds

RozWynn

Hello group. I have lost weight before and know it is a lifestyle change that is not instant. I lost a lot of ground after I had surgery last fall and am working on diet and back exercising to get back to where I was. Looking to drop 15 minimum, 20 maximum.

I am getting discouraged because I do cardio & weight training and I am at that stage where I can see and feel changes in my body because my clothes are looser and my silhouette is smoother but the scale is barely budging.

How can I jump start a loss in pounds as my fat is being replaced by the heavier muscle?

southflhitnrun

Good question. <--- Sorry I didn't offer more then moral support. lol

beth230blue

I had a similar thing happen as I was ramping up my exercise and getting fitter. I stagnated with good diet for about 2-3 weeks ...but as you said my clothes were looser but the scale wasn't budging. Then the weight started to drop slowly. I've actually lost about 26 lbs in all, but put a few back on over the summer. Now I'm back to militant eating of 1200-1500 calories per day and exercising hard 5-6 days per week.

The way I look at it....if your body is changing to a more healthy version why does the number on the scale matter. It'll follow suit.

If you really want to jumpstart you have to cut calories.....but be careful, your body needs good fuel to exercise and build muscle.

RozWynn

Thanks so much! Glad to know I am not alone in this boat :-)

RozWynn

At least you have lost 9 pounds, I am trying to catch up to you!

Alice_H

If you can afford it, pick up a Tanita scale - I don't know how accurate they are, but they're consistent. They measure body fat percentage, so if you really need to see a number moving to be motivated, you might be able to see your body fat percentage and get satisfied that way.

thescrumisfun

Or better yet - get yourself a handy little fat caliper from GNC. I have a long term goal of obtaining a certain body fat percentage rather than weight. Seems better to lose inches and pounds slowly to obtain as much LBM as possible.

SFBarbear

Hi there,
I'm going through this exact thing at the moment. I started doing Power90 12 days ago and hasn't budged a pound in 8 days. I too am feeling discouraged. This is the suggestion I am trying to practice.

No matter how small ti may be, log every single NSV you notice. Put it on a sticky note, put the sticky note on your mirror, computer, car dashboard or whatever it takes to remind you that you are making great progress.

The weight will follow just keep on doing what you are doing and remmber this: YOU ARE AWESOME AND ROCK IT !!

heybales

Hello group. I have lost weight before and know it is a lifestyle change that is not instant. I lost a lot of ground after I had surgery last fall and am working on diet and back exercising to get back to where I was. Looking to drop 15 minimum, 20 maximum.

I am getting discouraged because I do cardio & weight training and I am at that stage where I can see and feel changes in my body because my clothes are looser and my silhouette is smoother but the scale is barely budging.

How can I jump start a loss in pounds as my fat is being replaced by the heavier muscle?

Depending on how big a deficit you took, you are probably not gaining heavier muscle at all. You'd have to be doing a serious lifting routine, and eating lots of protein, and have a minor deficit.

All possible, but not likely.

Your muscle is getting stronger, and because of exercise you are training it to hold more glucose, which stores with water, to the tune of 500 cal worth is 1 lb.
Muscles are holding more water too.

If you want to just drop weight, then stop the body improvements.

How?

Stop putting a load on your body so it doesn't have to keep improving. Body improvements usually have little to do with weight loss, even if the fat is coming off.

But suggest it would be much better to make your mind over to accept which one is really better, fat loss and body improvement, or just fat/weight loss which may not all be fat.

sstigerstar

No you aren't the only one dealing with this I have only recently started trying to lose weight and the scale just isn't budging. It can get pretty discouraging at times . But my doctor assures me that the pounds are not what matters right now it is more inches and size that shows I'm headed towards my goal. Which I have dropped from a size 24-26W to a 18-20W (depends on the clothes, OMG I wish they would have a better "standard" for clothes sizes... lol sorry another rant). But even with the loss in size I have only lost 5 lbs, which sometimes makes me want to give up, but then I go snag a pair of my 18's (a size I haven't been in, in over 20 years) and slip them on with a 1x shirt instead of a 3x, it gives me the motivation to push on and keep trying.

chubbygirl253

I would like to know too! I lost 10 lbs in the first 2 weeks of dieting. And continued to consistently lose 3 lbs a week in July and Aug through calorie counting and exercise. Lotsa exercise! But once my strength training took off I noticed my weightloss slowed waaaaaayyyy down. I was so bummed in Sept because I only lost 7 lbs the whole month. I felt like that was about half of what I shoulda lost. But when I took my measurements this past weekend I realized I had replaced fat with lean muscle. I lost 14 inches from various body parts in one month! (Well, technically more than 14 since I only measured 1 calf, 1 thigh, and 1 upper arm.) I think it will all shake out in the end and people are noticing I'm slimming down so I'm happy with it. I hope you are taking measurements so you don't get discouraged. Good luck! From what I hear if we keep doing all the right things, we will eventually get past any plateaus we face. Be patient and keep up the good work!

mgobluetx12

Stay off the scale. That's my advice. I'm boycotting my scale for October. I didn't lose a single pound in September, but I lost 8 inches total. That's progress for me. My clothes fit better, I can almost fit into another size smaller (I've already gone down one size). Who CARES what the scale says!!!!??? Focus on losing those inches and reshaping your body.

moneil61

Hello group. I have lost weight before and know it is a lifestyle change that is not instant. I lost a lot of ground after I had surgery last fall and am working on diet and back exercising to get back to where I was. Looking to drop 15 minimum, 20 maximum.

I am getting discouraged because I do cardio & weight training and I am at that stage where I can see and feel changes in my body because my clothes are looser and my silhouette is smoother but the scale is barely budging.

How can I jump start a loss in pounds as my fat is being replaced by the heavier muscle?

Can you measure your body fat instead of your weight? Look into a scale that measures your body fat or a body fat device. It's much more helpful to see the numbers changing as you lose body fat even if the weight isn't dropping like you want it. Also, you can be retaining a lot of water. Be sure to drink plenty of water before you excercise and throughout the day. I had an issue w/ water retention when I started working out hardcore and not drinking enough, I got really dyhydrated.

You can do it! So proud of you

RozWynn

Hello group. I have lost weight before and know it is a lifestyle change that is not instant. I lost a lot of ground after I had surgery last fall and am working on diet and back exercising to get back to where I was. Looking to drop 15 minimum, 20 maximum.

I am getting discouraged because I do cardio & weight training and I am at that stage where I can see and feel changes in my body because my clothes are looser and my silhouette is smoother but the scale is barely budging.

How can I jump start a loss in pounds as my fat is being replaced by the heavier muscle?

Depending on how big a deficit you took, you are probably not gaining heavier muscle at all. You'd have to be doing a serious lifting routine, and eating lots of protein, and have a minor deficit.

All possible, but not likely.

Your muscle is getting stronger, and because of exercise you are training it to hold more glucose, which stores with water, to the tune of 500 cal worth is 1 lb.
Muscles are holding more water too.

If you want to just drop weight, then stop the body improvements.

How?

Stop putting a load on your body so it doesn't have to keep improving. Body improvements usually have little to do with weight loss, even if the fat is coming off.

But suggest it would be much better to make your mind over to accept which one is really better, fat loss and body improvement, or just fat/weight loss which may not all be fat.

I only gained 12 pounds but on a 5'4 frame it took me from average to chubby. Its all in my thighs, stomach and hips. By stopping body improvements do you mean just do cardio and stop the machines/weights?

RozWynn

Or better yet - get yourself a handy little fat caliper from GNC. I have a long term goal of obtaining a certain body fat percentage rather than weight. Seems better to lose inches and pounds slowly to obtain as much LBM as possible.

Thanks for the suggestion, looking into one now.

RozWynn

Stay off the scale. That's my advice. I'm boycotting my scale for October. I didn't lose a single pound in September, but I lost 8 inches total. That's progress for me. My clothes fit better, I can almost fit into another size smaller (I've already gone down one size). Who CARES what the scale says!!!!??? Focus on losing those inches and reshaping your body.

That is what I think I am going to do too! Thanks

RozWynn

Hi there,
I'm going through this exact thing at the moment. I started doing Power90 12 days ago and hasn't budged a pound in 8 days. I too am feeling discouraged. This is the suggestion I am trying to practice.

No matter how small ti may be, log every single NSV you notice. Put it on a sticky note, put the sticky note on your mirror, computer, car dashboard or whatever it takes to remind you that you are making great progress.

The weight will follow just keep on doing what you are doing and remmber this: YOU ARE AWESOME AND ROCK IT !!

I have seen great results from people using P90X so I am sure you will do awesome. Um, what does NSV mean? lol

heybales

Depending on how big a deficit you took, you are probably not gaining heavier muscle at all. You'd have to be doing a serious lifting routine, and eating lots of protein, and have a minor deficit.

All possible, but not likely.

Your muscle is getting stronger, and because of exercise you are training it to hold more glucose, which stores with water, to the tune of 500 cal worth is 1 lb.
Muscles are holding more water too.

If you want to just drop weight, then stop the body improvements.

How?

Stop putting a load on your body so it doesn't have to keep improving. Body improvements usually have little to do with weight loss, even if the fat is coming off.

But suggest it would be much better to make your mind over to accept which one is really better, fat loss and body improvement, or just fat/weight loss which may not all be fat.

I only gained 12 pounds but on a 5'4 frame it took me from average to chubby. Its all in my thighs, stomach and hips. By stopping body improvements do you mean just do cardio and stop the machines/weights?

Nope, just don't increase weight, sets, or reps. Good indication is if you aren't sore the next day, you didn't get a real good lifting workout. Not always true.
But lower the weight by one notch so not hard anymore.

Any cardio you do keep the pace the same no matter where the HR goes.

No additional load.

RandomMiranda

Drinking lots of water and cutting WAY back on sodium helped get me over a plateau a while back. The loss on the scale was probably from not retaining water, but it felt good and motivated me to see the scale move again so I wanted to keep up all the hard work.

RozWynn

Hello group. I have lost weight before and know it is a lifestyle change that is not instant. I lost a lot of ground after I had surgery last fall and am working on diet and back exercising to get back to where I was. Looking to drop 15 minimum, 20 maximum.

I am getting discouraged because I do cardio & weight training and I am at that stage where I can see and feel changes in my body because my clothes are looser and my silhouette is smoother but the scale is barely budging.

How can I jump start a loss in pounds as my fat is being replaced by the heavier muscle?

Can you measure your body fat instead of your weight? Look into a scale that measures your body fat or a body fat device. It's much more helpful to see the numbers changing as you lose body fat even if the weight isn't dropping like you want it. Also, you can be retaining a lot of water. Be sure to drink plenty of water before you excercise and throughout the day. I had an issue w/ water retention when I started working out hardcore and not drinking enough, I got really dyhydrated.

You can do it! So proud of you

This weekend I am going to pick up a scale that does weight, water and body fat.
GNC Acculndex GS-7004 Digital Weight and Body Mass Index Bathroom Scale

RozWynn

Depending on how big a deficit you took, you are probably not gaining heavier muscle at all. You'd have to be doing a serious lifting routine, and eating lots of protein, and have a minor deficit.

All possible, but not likely.

Your muscle is getting stronger, and because of exercise you are training it to hold more glucose, which stores with water, to the tune of 500 cal worth is 1 lb.
Muscles are holding more water too.

If you want to just drop weight, then stop the body improvements.

How?

Stop putting a load on your body so it doesn't have to keep improving. Body improvements usually have little to do with weight loss, even if the fat is coming off.

But suggest it would be much better to make your mind over to accept which one is really better, fat loss and body improvement, or just fat/weight loss which may not all be fat.

I only gained 12 pounds but on a 5'4 frame it took me from average to chubby. Its all in my thighs, stomach and hips. By stopping body improvements do you mean just do cardio and stop the machines/weights?

Nope, just don't increase weight, sets, or reps. Good indication is if you aren't sore the next day, you didn't get a real good lifting workout. Not always true.
But lower the weight by one notch so not hard anymore.

Any cardio you do keep the pace the same no matter where the HR goes.

No additional load.

Thank you! I am also trying new types of cardio. I have a treadmill at home and go to the track. I have added the rowing machine this past month, gone back to using the elliptical machine and some weird machine that seems like an elliptical in reverse?