What am I doing wrong? Heavy lifting not working. Ugghh

meeper123

def get a food scale and watch out for processed food! it will help stick to something or you will just spin your wheels

bpotts44

Read this immediately and join the group eat train progress and read the rest of sara's information.

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/872212-you-re-probably-eating-more-than-you-think

skparker2

I wouldn't expect to see any results until the 3rd or 4th month mark.

And do you have a food scale?

That's a long time to start seeing results. Guess I'll have to work on my patience. I do have a food scale but I don't use it.

Started at the end of February--It took me about 2 and a half months before I saw my scale budge. Seriously. I about gave up & threw the towel in. I am doing cardio & weights. Lost 2 pounds at first, then gained it back & freaked a li'l. Lost it again, realizing that it was muscle. It didn't take until freaking April before I seriously saw results.

My work pants were getting really baggy & I was loosing inches. Then in April, BAM! Weight started to drop. About 1-2 pounds a week & lost about 10 pounds.

Can't say the same about May, but I'm trying slowly to get back on track. You are awesome for doing heavy-lifting. 9 out of 10 of the women on here who have already exceeded their weight loss goals thru heavy lifting wouldn't have done it any other way. They credit the lifting to their success.

Take pride in the fact that you are getting stronger each and every day. I'm still really weak in my upper body & should definitely start lifting! Lol. And not the weight machines!

Bernadette60614

2 to 4 months may seem long, but something to factor in: Not only will you see results, but your body will be stronger...when you are stronger, you'll be the person who wants to walk around the neighborhood after dinner instead of veggie out, the one who runs up the flight of stairs instead of asking someone ask to get something for you, the person who stands instead of sits.

All those "incidental" calories over time add up. We all know those people who seem to be able to eat everything and stay skinny. The research is that those people are the ones who do a lot of "incidental" movement...they are the people who don't circle the parking lot...they park in the distance lot and walk because what seems like a hike to other people is just a stroll to them.

clfern65

Don't give up, I've taking off 30 lbs and got very lack with calorie intake and put 20 back on. Like other have said make sure your putting in accurate food portions. This app will only work by what you're putting in to it. You didn't get this way over night so it won't come off overnight or in a month. Weight gain can be accurate because muscle does weigh more but in the long scheme of things muscle will burn 2-3 times more calories than regular tissue. And will actually burn while at rest. You do need to mix up your routine because your muscles will get a sort of memory to them you have to confuse them. Hang in there you're on the right track.

evenings_empire

This is what I would suggest (always works for me, and I see visible changes in a week or two at most):

First, ignore the suggestions on the app and eat very low-carb. Don't count calories or fat, but eat only natural, unprocessed foods. You should just be focused on eating plenty of protein. So I eat lots of eggs, milk, chicken, and vegetables, complete with butter or olive oil. Ideally, try to eat 30g max of carbs per day in the beginning.

Second, in addition to lifting weights, try HIIT. All you need to do is around 20 mins a day, maybe 4 or 5 days a week. I just alternate jogging and sprinting on the treadmill, or do a short high intensity cardio video workout at home.

evenings_empire

Actually, third: Try doing full-body exercises rather than just lifting weights or focusing on one muscle at a time. My favorite is the Spartacus workout

christina0089

Take a look at your week as a whole not just day to day. I was in your same position until I got a snap of reality!! Initially I was doing cardio only and watching what I ate. I lost 29 pounds. Kept hearing how heavy lifting would really boost my success..Decided to hit the gym started going hard core, lifting heavier, working with a trainer etc. Upped my cals as suggested and after about a month I had gained 5 lbs... I freaked! Talked to my trainer readjusted my eating and slowed down a bit. Turns out I was over training.. NOW I eat less cals and work out everyday but not 2-3 times a day. I have added cardio back in and I am happy to say that as of Friday That 5 pounds left and took another two with it! Just had to find the right balance that included both cardio AND strength training and eating for my bodies needs.. Best of luck to you! :flowerforyou:

RECowgill

I'm not gonna tell you to not give up, that's up to you. My weight loss goal was about 50lbs. I started lifting heavy 5 months ago and I'm about halfway there. I basically do everything right, and I put in a lot of hard work. It's slow going and really really hard.

If you're serious about losing 100lbs and getting stronger while doing it, it might take you 2 years to get there. I'd say 1.5 to 2.5 years realistically. And it won't be an easy 2 years you will have to commit. You will not see signficant results after a month.

And also understand the body is not a linear system. Sometimes the weight stays the same, sometimes it comes off all at once. If I continue to do everything right and am lucky, I might be where I want to be after 1 year of dedicated work. But these things aren't gauranteed and predictable, you just have to put in the work and trust the system.

suelegal

Muscles make you weight more! But they make you look and feel great! Check your measurements, and your how your clothes fit. Also, how you are feeling? Are you starting to feel stronger, calmer, healthier? Weight is not always the correct thing to be measuring! Keep up the good work! Exercise an alternate set of muscles every other day so you don't overdue it!

1 pound of Muscle weighs the same as 1 pound of fat. The difference is 1 pound of muscle takes up less space - it's more dense, more solid than 1 pound of fat.

As others have pointed out, you've only been at it a month.

Let me tell you something to encourage you. Today I had to wear a business suit for a mediation in my office. I seldom have to suit up, the last time was 2 years ago for a trial. Last night I tried on all my suits and every single one of them as too big to wear, including my favorite Calvin Klein suit that I bought shortly after I lost 25 pounds. I ended up pulling a 20 year old suit out of mothballs that was ok - still a bit loose but I didn't look frumpy in it. I weight 15# more now than I did when I wore that suit last and it fit perfectly then. So you see, the scale is not a good indicator of getting fit!

Measurements tell better. Please don't get discouraged.

007FatSlayer

For me, it took two months of eating whole/clean foods and lifting heavy to see a difference.

007FatSlayer

I also did/do cardio 4-5x a week (30 mins of HIIT)

meshashesha2012

Actually, third: Try doing full-body exercises rather than just lifting weights or focusing on one muscle at a time. My favorite is the Spartacus workout

good point. the OP hasnt specified what she's doing.

heavy lifting doing bicep curls and tricep kickbacks arent really going to do anything if you're 100 pounds overweight. if you're heavy lifting and doing compound movements like deadlifts, squats, BB rows, bench press and OHP then that's very different

niqua215

The thickness of a piece of meat counts just as much as how much surface area it takes up. A thick piece of meat in your palm could be much more than 4oz.

I've tried "eyeballing" pieces of meat, and the thickness can make up the difference. I weighed two separate pieces of fish, similar size... vastly different thickness. One was a whole 2 1/2 oz more. Took up the same amount of area on my palm, though.

I used the food scale to weigh my dinner and my fruit for tomorrow. Will use from now on. thanks

niqua215

What are your current lift numbers?

Bench Press 70# 3x8
OHP 40# 3x8
Bent Over Rows 70# 3x10
Barbell Curls 40# 3x8
Squat 90# 3x10
Deadlift 100# 3x8
Leg Extentions 60# 3x8

albertine58

Weigh absolutely everything you put in your mouth. No measuring cups or spoons, and definitely no estimating. I think weighing is easier really- I put my bowl on the scale, zero it, add my lettuce, zero it, tomatoes, zero it, dressing...I track all the numbers right away. Milk in my coffee? I stick my coffee cup on the scale, zero, and add milk. I did not see results until I started doing this years ago.
When you make a recipe, weigh all the individual ingredients as you add them, and then weigh the entire batch after (might have to record the weight of the cooking/serving dish ahead of time and subtract it). I enter recipes into MFP like this: "Chili (100g)" and in the servings, I put the # of grams of the entire batch (for example, 1200) divided by 100. So 1200g entire recipe = 12 servings. Then you can serve yourself however much you want (say, 150g of chili) and enter the # of grams divided by 100. So 150g chili = 1.5 servings.
This works perfectly and allows me to eat as much or as little as I want of a recipe, and know exactly how many cals.
It sounds time consuming but it really isn't- and you save washing all the measuring cups!

darwinwoodka

More protein, less carbs, lose the bread. Walk more. Lifting alone isn't going to lose you weight, it just helps build muscle and keep you from losing muscle mass.

Warchortle

Your sets are extremely low. It's okay to do 3 sets at 8 reps for "working" sets, but you probably need to pyramid the weight down. It's possible that you're burning fat and building muscle. MFP sort of sets protein levels to non-lifting diets. I switched my ratio to 40% of my diet to be protein... you can mess with yours numbers that give the best results. A lot of people assume they're executing the exercise correctly. Have you learned proper form? If you haven't you could be making the mistake of using too much of your forearms and shoulders to bear the weight, which could cause lack of proper muscle stimulation.

dixiewhiskey

What's your BF? If you are lower than 25%, don't expect to lose a ton of weight or have measurements budge quickly. My weight hasn't budged in almost two months but my BF% has been dwindling down...

As for macros, find what works for you. I've tried 40p/30c/30f, never worked for me.. I never had energy and felt like crap. Now I'm at 40c/30p/30f and it works.. for others 50/30/20 works.

niqua215

Your sets are extremely low. It's okay to do 3 sets at 8 reps for "working" sets, but you probably need to pyramid the weight down. It's possible that you're burning fat and building muscle. MFP sort of sets protein levels to non-lifting diets. I switched my ratio to 40% of my diet to be protein... you can mess with yours numbers that give the best results. A lot of people assume they're executing the exercise correctly. Have you learned proper form? If you haven't you could be making the mistake of using too much of your forearms and shoulders to bear the weight, which could cause lack of proper muscle stimulation.

So should I aim for five sets instead of three? I've been watching youtube videos to make sure I'm getting the right form. Hopefully I am. As for macros, I have my diary set at 40c/30p/30f

RECowgill

Your sets are extremely low. It's okay to do 3 sets at 8 reps for "working" sets, but you probably need to pyramid the weight down. It's possible that you're burning fat and building muscle. MFP sort of sets protein levels to non-lifting diets. I switched my ratio to 40% of my diet to be protein... you can mess with yours numbers that give the best results. A lot of people assume they're executing the exercise correctly. Have you learned proper form? If you haven't you could be making the mistake of using too much of your forearms and shoulders to bear the weight, which could cause lack of proper muscle stimulation.

So should I aim for five sets instead of three? I've been watching youtube videos to make sure I'm getting the right form. Hopefully I am. As for macros, I have my diary set at 40c/30p/30f

i don't think pyramiding or not pyramiding makes any difference. I never pyramid weights, I do them straight at the same value for each set and I've lost weight that way. It just takes time and effort, that's all that matters.

Pyramid if you want, if you like it, but doing it or not doing it makes no difference to the weight loss unless it makes you more comfortable and likely to go to the gym.

I do think you could try doing 4 sets instead of 3. If you lift heavy the 4th set is where you will be most exhausted and most wearing down the muscle. Maybe not for every exercise but when I do full body or compounds I usually do 4 sets of it (squats, deadlifts, press, etc).

ColleenRoss50

Read this immediately and join the group eat train progress and read the rest of sara's information.

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/872212-you-re-probably-eating-more-than-you-think

^^^
Great information.

dmtober1

One thing that may help is substitute all sodas--even diet sodas--for water and unsweetened green tea. Green tea is a natural fat burner. You should drink about four cups a day with no sweeteners. Also, if you're using protein powder, make sure it contains no sucralose or artificial sweeteners. Better to have a little sugar, than anything artificial. I use either Isopure Natural or Golden Standard Natural Whey.

I was trying to lose about 9 lbs, which isn't that much compared to some, and it has taken me four months to lose 7, so I still have a few to go. I was getting very frustrated until I cut out all gluten (no pasta, no bread, you get the picture) and all processed foods. All I eat is protein, greens, a little fruit, coconut milk, and protein shakes--for 4 months--no cheating. I also work out at the gym 6 days/week for two hours at a time, run four miles 2-3X/week, and mix in whatever other activities I can. This is all to say that even with this level of activity, and strict meal plan, after 4 months I'm close to my goal, but still not there. It takes a while, so be patient and persistent!

dmtober1

Regarding lifting, if you can I would highly recommend getting one or two sessions with a good trainer. You can't really learn form, at first, without someone there watching you and positioning your body properly. Also, I would start with a warm-up weight for each exercise and then do an additional 3 sets with increasing weight. Your first set could be up to 15 reps, gradually declining until your last set is about 5-8 with heavier weights. Also, the more muscles engaged during a particular exercise, the more calories you burn. Exercises like squats, dead lifts, etc., burn a lot more calories than regular bicep curls, for example. However, you can still maximize the calorie burn for smaller muscle groups; for example, when doing bicep curls you can balance on one leg (or a bosu ball), and switch legs with each set. This helps you strengthen your core and work on balance. Almost any exercise can be adapted to engage the core and larger muscle groups. Most people, for example, do flat bench dumbbell presses with a weight in each hand. If you do them with a weight in one hand, and have half of your body off to the side of the bench, you will be contracting your glutes, flexing the core, and working the pec muscles all at the same time. This burns more calories and maximizes your workouts.

edwardgaweda

As far as training, I would suggest following a tried and true program like Starting Strength. Follow that up with 30min of cardio post lifting and HIIT on off-days and you should see results come much quicker.

As far as diet, you have to be 100% sure that you aren't cheating. Whether it's by accident, or you're sneaking in a brownie and not counting it... the results end up the same: your progress is hindered. Forget measuring solids with spoons, weigh them in grams. Every calorie you eat needs to be accounted for. Beyond that, make sure you're drinking around a gallon of water daily and keep your refined/simple carbs to an absolute minimum.

I also applaud you for doing squats and deadlifts... just make sure you're doing them right.

rotill

You are getting a lot of really good information here. However, if after another month none of this works, I'd recommend that you ask yourself a few questions about your own body and habits.

Do you notice any food intolerances? Personally, I discovered a gluten intolerance and an extreme sensitivity to sugar (not diabetes, but my body just doesn't like processed sugars) while testing out different diets. When I cut out certain things from my diet, I lose weight, even if I don't change the calories much.

Do you have a slow metabolism? Not everybody burns calories at the same rate. While exercise will make you burn more calories faster, you may have to push your body a little to find the level that fits you. MFP is a great tool, but the values for a healthy male with a fast metabolism are NOT the same as the values for a woman with a slow metabolism, even if they have the ame activity level.

Do you eat/drink diet products? Faking sugar by having sweeteners can trick the body into releasing insulin, which will bind carbs as fat rather than burning them. This is one reason why some of the advice above is for all water and green tea.

Do you drink alcohol? Alcohol can be as disruptive to weight loss as diet products.

Do you get enough sleep? Sleeping well is important for weight loss, to the point that a constant sleep deficiency can cause weight gain in otherwise healthy people eating healthy.

Sometimes getting the body back on the right track is really easy - and sometimes it's a struggle, and demands a total reevaluation of all habits and ideas about health and food. Don't give up, the final benefits are much greater than the pain you now feel.

Ipalavra

Losing weight correctly:

Step 1: Throw away your scale
Step 2: Buy a mirror
Step 3: Pick a regimen, stick through it for a 3 month period, and decide if it's working or not.

baptiste565

Losing weight correctly:

Step 1: Throw away your scale
Step 2: Buy a mirror
Step 3: Pick a regimen, stick through it for a 3 month period, and decide if it's working or not.

and what if after 3 months u find out it didnt work? 3 months wasted! if u r in a proper calorie deficit, the weight should start coming off 1-2 weeks.

jimmmer

Losing weight correctly:

Step 1: Throw away your scale
Step 2: Buy a mirror
Step 3: Pick a regimen, stick through it for a 3 month period, and decide if it's working or not.

and what if after 3 months u find out it didnt work? 3 months wasted! if u r in a proper calorie deficit, the weight should start coming off 1-2 weeks.

By being on the same regime for three months with progressive overload and planned recovery, you'll:

a) learn a lot about yourself and how you cope with increasing load
b) sharpen up your form
c) learn how you body deals with fatigue

Those three things are true even if the scale goes up, stays the same or goes down.

Only a tunnel-visioned fool would call dedicating yourself to a tried and tested routine for 3 months a waste of time.........

FlowersInTheDirt

Keep at it! I think you will start seeing some changes over the next month. You body is adjusting to the change from constart cardio to weights. The fact taht you are lifting heavier each week is a great start!