What is going on with me?!?!? HELP!!!

lisa811

Do yourself a favor: Take the time to count your calories. This web site makes it easy. Doing it in your head just doesn't work. After a couple of weeks, if you're still gaining (which I predict you won't be if you follow the guidelines on this site), you can look back and see where you possibly went wrong. Think of yourself as a computer. If things aren't working quite right, it helps to have solid data to review in order to determine what's wrong.

Jennfit

If you think you are hitting a wall, try changing up your workouts By lifting more at least 4 days a week for a while in a circuit style training alternating between upper and lower body exercises, so you can maximize your caloric burn. Try HIIT - high intensity interval training for your cardio. Make sure you are eating your exercise calories. Eat all day long every 2-3 hours, measure your food. And take your measurements don't relay on the scale and BMI, get your body fat tested.

PJilly

Do yourself a favor: Take the time to count your calories. This web site makes it easy. Doing it in your head just doesn't work. After a couple of weeks, if you're still gaining (which I predict you won't be if you follow the guidelines on this site), you can look back and see where you possibly went wrong. Think of yourself as a computer. If things aren't working quite right, it helps to have solid data to review in order to determine what's wrong.

I agree wholeheartedly. It's hard to know which adjustments to make if you don't know exactly what you're adjusting. You may be eating too little, but what if you're eating too much? It doesn't sound like you are, but you're better off knowing than guessing. If what you were doing was working, I'd say keep doing what you're doing. But it isn't.

PJilly

P.S. If you had one coffee can full of fat and another full of muscle, the one with muscle would, indeed, weigh more.

samseed101

Semantics are confusing us here, it comes up a lot.

1 pound equals 1 pound.
1 pound of muscle weighs 1 pound - hence the name.
1 pound of fat weigh one pound, again, hence the name.

Density is another issue, and yes, fat is slightly less dense than lean muscle. But both kinds of tissue are mostly water and the diff is pretty subtle. This is not a case of "1 pound of muscle fills a bean can - 1 pound of fat fills a breadbox".
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I strongly doubt that she's gained muscle while eating 1200 cals a day and exercising like a demon. And even if she is,,, Arnold S on full 'roids never gained 3 pounds in a week. It just doesn't work.

To gain muscle mass your body must have excess material to make the muscle out of, most protein. If you're in a 1500 calorie a day deficit then you don't have the excess material (and your size, with your exercise routine, and not eating your exercise calories - I'm sure you're in at least that much deficit).

SO - you're probably in starv mode. Your abused body has grabbed 3 pints of water in self defense. I don't blame it, I would too.

So,,, what'cha gonna do?

Muscle has a density of 1.1 g/cc compared to fat, which has a density of 0.9007 g/cc. So essentially a pound of fat will take up roughly 20% more space than a pound of muscle.

Getting back to the topic, Yes I agree that there's no way that someone would gain anywhere near that much muscle mass, especially when they are barely eating. Put in ideal situations with a perfect diet and exercise routine, you may see 2lbs per month of lean muscle mass.

stacyoct19

I just want to clarify that everyone's bodies are different. And although not everyone will start gaining weight right away, it is very possible to gain weight if you starve your body. It was a suggestion.

Women's weight can go up and down. I just had posted this morning about being frustrated because this morning I weighed and it was nearly 5 lbs more than two days ago. I thought 1 or 2 lbs was normal, but found out that it's very possible to go up even 6 lbs. They made it very clear that just like it would be nearly impossible to gain muscle that quickly, it's nearly impossible to gain fat that quickly. Don't panic over this one week. I've had to tell myself that all day today!

And I agree, use this website for all it's worth! Take time to count your actual calories for a while. Log your exercise. You can even put in your weight, your activity level, how much you want to lose in a week and it will help you figure out the amounts you should consume. When you exercise, log it. It gives you extra calories because you need to eat those to keep fueling your body for that work. That's what eating your exercise calories means.

Don't fret. Don't stress. If you need to, seek medical advise if you're really thinking there's something wrong with you.

Good-Luck!

chgudnitz

No, it is safe to say lead is more dense than feathers. It would be safe to say that 1 cubic inch of lead weighs more than 1 cubic inch of feathers. But "weighs more"? - no,,, a pound is a pound.

Where have you been?

GinaB30

I'm confused because the personal trainer always said that a pound is a pound.

Kind of like, if you have a pound of butter and a pound of sugar..it's still a pound.

So how exactly does muscle weigh *more* than fat?

If anyone can explain that, I'd love to know!! lol

I just explained it above. You are thinking of it the wrong way. Yes, a pound is a pound. But think of the density. Muscle is much more dense than fat. Think of this as another example:

Lets say you are 200 lbs. Now lets say that through exercise, you manage to burn 20lbs of pure fat, and you also manage to gain 20 lbs of pure muscle. Of course, that's not going to happen quite that way, but let's just use that for arguments sake.

Now lets say that you step ion a scale. You will be greatly disappointed to learn that you are still 200lbd after all that work! But wait a second, if you are still 200 lbs, why are your clothes fitting more loosely than before? Your waist size, hip size, etc all shrunk, yet your weight is the same? How is that possible?

That is because muscle is more dense. Given a certain volume, muscle will weight more than fat. So you could actually be a few sizes smaller and in much better shape yet when you step on the same it says the same exact thing.

LOL Thank you! I just had that same conversation with my mom LOL

GinaB30

I'm confused because the personal trainer always said that a pound is a pound.

Kind of like, if you have a pound of butter and a pound of sugar..it's still a pound.

So how exactly does muscle weigh *more* than fat?

If anyone can explain that, I'd love to know!! lol

Just to add (although i already mentioned this above.)

We also all know that a pound of feathers is the same exact weight as a pound of lead. But isn't it safe to say that lead weighs more than feathers?

No, it is safe to say lead is more dense than feathers. It would be safe to say that 1 cubic inch of lead weighs more than 1 cubic inch of feathers. But "weighs more"? - no,,, a pound is a pound.

That's what I was saying...lol

Kittany

Muscle doesn't weight more than fat, sadly. They weigh the exact same, they're just different volumes. Muscle is leaner, smaller. But the same weight.

http://www.onemorebite-weightloss.com/muscle-to-fat.html


*Edit* Btw, that is a total dream killer. I used to always say that muscle weighed more than fat, and it was my weigh in excuse.

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It sounds to me like you need to consume more calories, sometimes your body can react negatively to little calories and too much work. I would research some possibilities.

samseed101

maybe it's just me, but I thought it was pretty obvious that when people say that muscle weighs more than fat, they are talking about a given volume or space. That just seems like plain common sense. It's no different than anything else in life and as far as I thought, such comparisons made the assumption of volume based on common sense.

Of course if you want to take semantics, you can say that a pound is a pound. Well no kidding, but I don't know of many situations where people actually do that in reality. In the common english language, they are almost always talking about density. if you said that steel is heavier than wood, I would think that it's safe to say that most people would not argue that they are the same. Most people know that you are talking about density, or comparing something of the same volume. otherwise, everything would weigh the same.

But if people want to get REALLY technical and scientific, and if somebody really want's to compare the two, then compare them on a cellular level or even a molecular level. That's no more absurd than comparing it strictly based on weight and completely ignoring volume.

It's like I explained before. in a given volume, the muscle will have more weight than the fat. It will typically be a 20% difference. So in plain, common English, most would say that muscle weighs more than fat. And most people would understand exactly what that means. People can ignore that if they choose, or pretend that there is no difference. But when it comes to something like a human's weight and size, there is a difference and it's a pretty big difference.

Look at someone that is 200lbs and 20% body fat. Compare them to someone who is 200lbs and 8% body fat. The difference in density is quite obvious. And when people are trying to get in shape, that is usually what they are trying to do. they are trying to look better.

Mommy08

Read this link (and many others on here) about eating back exercise calories.

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/6556-the-answers-to-the-questions?page=1

How do you know your meals are under 400 calories if you are not counting calories? Are they prepackaged meals? Maybe you are taking in a lot of salt from those meals and retaining water.

I am about the same BMI as you, just under 25. I am on about 1200 calories a day to lose 1.5 pounds/week. I exercise about 6 days a week (walking, running, biking, swimming, strength training or combo). I usually don't eat back all of my exercise calories (sometimes 800/day) but I try to eat back most of them.

I would strongly suggest filling out your goals and then track your calories and exercise. MFP will tell you how many calories you should have/day.

Well Like I said I know roughly how many calories are in what I'm eating but I'm not one of those people with a calorie book counting to the 0.009 of calorie you know? Also I'm not eating prepackaged foods and am very aware of what sodium can do to your body. Thanks for the thoughts and advice though!

CasperO

maybe it's just me, but I thought it was pretty obvious that when people say that muscle weighs more than fat, they are talking about a given volume or space. <<snip>>

It's just you.

Words have meanings, they mean things. "weight", "density", "mass", "volume",,, these are all real terms with real defined meanings. ""Muscle is heavier than fat" is a demonstrably untrue statement, and some technical minded people will choke on it.

Sorry,,

Now, back to our regularly scheduled dissection of this gal's starvation, already in progress

samseed101

Now, back to our regularly scheduled dissection of this gal's starvation, already in progress

I think that's one thing that everyone here agrees on.

PJilly

"Muscle is heavier than fat" is a demonstrably untrue statement, and some technical minded people will choke on it.

I beg to differ, but then again, I'm a brat. "Muscle" and "fat" in the above statement are not specific enough to say the statement is either true or untrue. A pile of muscle is heavier than an equal-sized pile of fat. However, a pound of muscle is not heavier than a pound of fat.

chefstef612

Do you eat all fresh/frozen produce & cook your meat or do you use precooked, canned or frozen dinners (ex: Lean Cuisine or Smart Ones)? If any of the latter, you could be getting too much sodium & retaining a few lbs in water weight, regardless of how much you are or are not driking. Also, if your exercise routine is new, it could be temporary as well. in my history, i normally gain 5-6 lbs when I start exercising again & gaining muscle but after about a week it starts coming back off because more lean muscle burns more fat in the long run. When it comes down to it, every body is different and the same things don't work for everyone, but so far i've picked up some good tips here. Good luck!

DeeDeeLHF

I know it seems counter productive and it is scary. No, it is down right TERRIFYING, but increase your calories. :noway: What is the worst that can happen? that you gain a pound? Well you are already doing that! Purchase a heart rate monitor, fill in the excercise tab, eat those calories like it says. You may wish to increase your basic calories up by 50-100 per day. See what happens...you really may be pleasantly surprised. Every person I have spoken to and myself included when they did these things started seeing weight loss. Keep us posted over the next couple of weeks.

DD

lisawest

Here's a thought, and it may be a clue, it may have nothing to do with this, but are you close to TOM? Since you are a woman, I am going to assume that you still have one. (If not, I apologize for assuming:blushing: ) MOST (not all) retain water before and possibly during TOM. I gained FIVE pounds in one week a couple months ago!:noway: :grumble: Fortunately, I lost it just as quickly afterwards. So that may account for the actual weight gain.

That being said, (so I don't get jumped on by everyone ) I, too, think you may have seriously slowed down your metabolism by eating too few calories. I read, in one of the stuck posts for newbies, that you should slowly begin adding calories so that your body doesn't freak out and store all the additional calories as fat. I believe that it said to start with adding 50-100 a day for a week and then up it again the next week, etc until you've reached the appropriate amount. I don't personally know much about the adding calories thing, so don't take my word for it, go research and read some more. Perhaps someone else will answer who knows more about that.

Good luck on finding the balance that works for you!