2 months of weight lifting and haven't lost any weight?

akindc
akindc Posts: 84 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
I'm 5'6", 160ish pounds (it changes a lot. Last night I was 160, this morning 164.4, so who knows.) I'm trying to get down to the 140s.

I typically eat okay. I love fruits and vegetables, and make most of my meals at home. I typically stay within 1300-1700 calories, higher on the days I work out.

March 1st I started a heavy lifting routine, and having been doing an A/B full body split 3x a week, and I usually do about 30 min of cardio after on those days. HRM says I burn 400 calories (roughly) doing that cardio, and I would guess I burn about 200 calories for the 60min weight lifting sessions. I'm always sweating after the splits.

However, I haven't lost a single pound. I measured myself last month, but I haven't seen any changes at all in my body (other than some new muscles in my arms and shoulders) so I haven't bothered to measure again.

Is it still water weight from lifting? When should I expect to see results? Am I just not working hard enough/eating the right things? I don't eat clean 100% of the time because it's not realistic for me, but I'd say it's about 75% of the time, especially when I prep lunches and cook at home.

Help me figure out what I'm doing wrong!

Replies

  • mommanurse33
    mommanurse33 Posts: 189 Member
    Remeasure!!! You may be surprised/.. :)
  • akaMrsmojo
    akaMrsmojo Posts: 762 Member
    You may want to up your protein. When working out, I feel better if I eat more protein and I have better results.
  • Goosiesnougs
    Goosiesnougs Posts: 420
    Maybe the 1700 is enough on those days? Maybe don't eat all the exercise calories back? Up the protein.
  • seena511
    seena511 Posts: 685 Member
    1) newbie gains. if you weren't doing much strength training before, you may notice an initial uptick in weight and muscle size.
    2) you might want to eat a little more. your BMR is about 1550 so maybe try to shoot for that net goal
  • RoseTears143
    RoseTears143 Posts: 1,121 Member
    See if you can get your body fat measured, there may be change there that you won't see on the scale. How are your clothes fitting? If there really is no change going on, then you need to tweak your diet - maybe less processed foods will help.
  • jacksonpt
    jacksonpt Posts: 10,413 Member
    If you're not losing weight you're not in a deficit.
  • jim9097
    jim9097 Posts: 341 Member
    Somebody already said it, but my thoughts exactly; did you measure before hand? If so you are likely going to find some missing inches. It's not always about losing weight. People need to remember lean muscle mass weighs more that fat. I would just keep at it. For every pound of lean muscle mass your body consumes and extra 50 calories per day. So eventually the scale will tip and you will start losing big...
  • ellesoul
    ellesoul Posts: 125 Member
    Remeasure!!! You may be surprised/.. :)

    this
  • akindc
    akindc Posts: 84 Member
    I'm pretty sure that I'm not eating above a deficit, even when I eat my exercise calories.

    1,700 is max WITH exercise that I usually reach, so about 1300-1350 net.
  • JLArispe
    JLArispe Posts: 62
    You may be losing fat, but gaining muscle, therefore the scale will not change much. I have weighed the smae for sometime now, but have noticed that my clothes fit differently and muscles are appearing that I have never seen before. Sometimes the number on the scale doesnt mean anything if you are weight lifting. As someone else mentioned above try weasuring again, you might be surprised.
  • AdrieneJ
    AdrieneJ Posts: 141 Member
    400 sounds like a lot of calories for someone of your weight to burn in 30 minutes of cardio. Your HRM might be estimating your calorie burn too high. There are several different ways to estimate calorie burn, and I found mine was estimating way too high. Now, I just take the average heart rate for the time I was exercising and input it here to figure out my calorie burn:

    http://www.triathlontrainingblog.com/calculators/calories-burned-calculator-based-on-average-heart-rate/

    And to find my V02 max, I use this:

    http://www.shapesense.com/fitness-exercise/calculators/vo2max-calculator.aspx

    Keep in mind that these are all only estimates. The only way to truly drop the weight is to keep on working hard and to eat as sensibly as possible, leaning toward the "less in, more out" way of thinking.
  • AdrieneJ
    AdrieneJ Posts: 141 Member
    If you're not losing weight you're not in a deficit.

    What he said.
  • monicabaker88
    monicabaker88 Posts: 1 Member
    I'm in the same position as you. Same weight and doing almost the same routine. However I just started eating smaller portions and eating more meals in the day. I'm eating approx 3 oz protein and a cup or more of veggies and in one of my meals I'm eating a small sweet potato with the protein and veggies. I'm not as hungry and my calorie count has actually gone down. I've lost 4 pounds this week. I'm crossing my fingers this keeps working for me, I've been stuck since I had my second son over a year ago. Good luck!
  • phjorg
    phjorg Posts: 252 Member
    are you lifting properly? how much have your numbers increased in the last couple months?

    Also, whats your macro breakdown?
  • JulesAlloggio
    JulesAlloggio Posts: 480 Member
    I lift really heavy... I don't eat 1700 calories in a day. I stick with a 40% carb/ 35% protein/ 25% fat diet to stay lean. I also only eat 1300-1500 calories a day.

    It could be your diet. It could be that you're consuming too many calories on a weight lifting day. Unless you're burning a ton of calories, your body doesn't need that much. You need to up your protein intake.

    Just trying to help.
  • akindc
    akindc Posts: 84 Member
    are you lifting properly? how much have your numbers increased in the last couple months?

    Also, whats your macro breakdown?

    I started with machines, which I know is easier, and have basically dropped the weight back down now that I started learning proper form with dumbbells. But as a reference, I increased the dumbbell weight 10lbs for most of my exercises this week.

    I try to stick to a 50/30/13 that MFP gives me, but I might try more of a 40/40/30 split.
  • metacognition
    metacognition Posts: 626 Member
    Make sure you are eating within calories.

    Your results sound like mine. I stayed around 105 (goal was 95) for a couple of months and I do look leaner around the torso and the upper arms. Try to use measuring tape once a month to see if there is any difference. Scales lie. Loose pants don't lie. Adjust your calories periodically. Another thing I've noticed is that weight training increases my appetite. As soon as I cut back my calories and tried to be as honest as possible about tracking them, my weight dropped predictably. If you feel an edge of hunger each night when you go to sleep, that is a hint for me at least that I am still in a caloric deficit.

    As for weight staying the same, yes it could be water or muscle. A couple of people asked me recently I'm still losing weight, the answer is yes but too slow to notice. I've lost a little more fat and gained muscle, though.
  • llkilgore
    llkilgore Posts: 1,169 Member
    I lift really heavy... I don't eat 1700 calories in a day. I stick with a 40% carb/ 35% protein/ 25% fat diet to stay lean. I also only eat 1300-1500 calories a day.

    Seems low. I'm 30 years your senior and lift like the nearly 60 year old reforming couch potato that I am (50lbs is heavy), and maintain on 1900 calories a day. 5'7", ~123lbs.
  • JulesAlloggio
    JulesAlloggio Posts: 480 Member
    I lift really heavy... I don't eat 1700 calories in a day. I stick with a 40% carb/ 35% protein/ 25% fat diet to stay lean. I also only eat 1300-1500 calories a day.

    Seems low. I'm 30 years your senior and lift like the nearly 60 year old reforming couch potato that I am (50lbs is heavy), and maintain on 1900 calories a day. 5'7", ~123lbs.

    I'm 5`4 125lbs... I eat according to my macros.
  • akindc
    akindc Posts: 84 Member
    Make sure you are eating within calories.

    Your results sound like mine. I stayed around 105 (goal was 95) for a couple of months and I do look leaner around the torso and the upper arms. Try to use measuring tape once a month to see if there is any difference. Scales lie. Loose pants don't lie. Adjust your calories periodically. Another thing I've noticed is that weight training increases my appetite. As soon as I cut back my calories and tried to be as honest as possible about tracking them, my weight dropped predictably. If you feel an edge of hunger each night when you go to sleep, that is a hint for me at least that I am still in a caloric deficit.

    As for weight staying the same, yes it could be water or muscle. A couple of people asked me recently I'm still losing weight, the answer is yes but too slow to notice. I've lost a little more fat and gained muscle, though.

    LOVE your ticker!
  • AlongCame_Molly
    AlongCame_Molly Posts: 2,835 Member
    Measure everything, and you probably need to eat more. I'm smaller than you and am eating more and still losing.
  • akindc
    akindc Posts: 84 Member
    Measure everything, and you probably need to eat more. I'm smaller than you and am eating more and still losing.

    Could it be something else then? Even during weeks where I religiously measured and tracked everything, I didn't lose. Should I get my thyroid checked?
  • metacognition
    metacognition Posts: 626 Member
    haha We both have excellent taste. in tickers.

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