What happened?

kwilliams386
kwilliams386 Posts: 156 Member
edited January 16 in Health and Weight Loss
I was losing 1 lb a week eating 1800 cals until 3 weeks ago doing all cardio 5-6 days a week. I started doing Body Pump 2-3 times a week to get in some type of strength training, and cardio every day with 1 rest day. I eat 1400-1500 cals a day. I am MAYBE losing .5lb a week now. I am also losing less inches than before. Why is my progress slowing down?

cw:148
gw:125

Replies

  • now_or_never13
    now_or_never13 Posts: 1,575 Member
    Your goal should be to lose 0.5lbs per week with only 23lbs to go. The slower you take the weight off, the longer it will stay off and the more muscle you will retain.

    If you recently switched up your exercise you will most likely be retaining water which can either mask fat loss or make it seem smaller than it is.
  • kwilliams386
    kwilliams386 Posts: 156 Member
    I sure hope so! I thought I should be losing a lb a week until I got a bit closer to my goal. my BF is really high - 38%. I am mostly concerned about getting that number to a healthier range.
  • megsmom2
    megsmom2 Posts: 2,362 Member
    weight loss isn't a linear process. it goes in fits and starts and ups and downs for no reason we can discern. Just keep doing what you're doing, eat right, exercise smart...and it will happen. Patience! best wishes!
  • now_or_never13
    now_or_never13 Posts: 1,575 Member
    I sure hope so! I thought I should be losing a lb a week until I got a bit closer to my goal. my BF is really high - 38%. I am mostly concerned about getting that number to a healthier range.

    If you want to get that to a better range start building muscle. More muscle burns more fat... more muscle means a lower body fat.
  • KKrdcs
    KKrdcs Posts: 30
    Body pump (which is a great class!) is making you gain muscle mass, more-so than just plain cardio workouts do. If you think about it, cardio makes lean muscles and lifting weights will make you gain mass. You are building more muscle to help you burn the fat off more efficiently, so just keep to it and you will keep losing and become a fat-burning machine (in the words of Chalene).
    As the other poster said, you sometimes gain water weight when you change workouts, especially since you are working different muscles and creating more muscle fibres. I've heard that it can take up to a month or so before your body gets used to the new workouts.
    Keep to it....you are doing great!!
  • kwilliams386
    kwilliams386 Posts: 156 Member
    Great, thanks. That is what I want to do, is build up my strength. I just wasn't sure if I can eating on a deficit from what I have read on here. I will try to be more patient and see where it gets me.
  • wibutterflymagic
    wibutterflymagic Posts: 788 Member
    The fact that you dropped 300-400 calories and upped your exercise could be part of it too. Whose to say for sure. Probably a combo of many things.
  • now_or_never13
    now_or_never13 Posts: 1,575 Member
    Great, thanks. That is what I want to do, is build up my strength. I just wasn't sure if I can eating on a deficit from what I have read on here. I will try to be more patient and see where it gets me.

    Strength and muscle mass are not the same. If you want to build muscle (muscle makes you look smaller even at the same weight or a higher weight) than eat at a surplus and lift. DO that for a few weeks than keep up with the lifting and drop down your calories to a small deficit so you lose the little bit of fat you gain.
  • kwilliams386
    kwilliams386 Posts: 156 Member
    Great, thanks. That is what I want to do, is build up my strength. I just wasn't sure if I can eating on a deficit from what I have read on here. I will try to be more patient and see where it gets me.

    Strength and muscle mass are not the same. If you want to build muscle (muscle makes you look smaller even at the same weight or a higher weight) than eat at a surplus and lift. DO that for a few weeks than keep up with the lifting and drop down your calories to a small deficit so you lose the little bit of fat you gain.

    Right. I understand that. I just thought I should lose some weight before building muscle since i have so much extra fat at the moment. I thought if I focused on building muscle at this point, it wouldnt matter how strong I was because it would be covered up by pure fat. Should I focus more on lifting and not worry about weight loss? Do I eat a surplus everyday or only on the days I lift?
  • haanmom
    haanmom Posts: 90 Member
    I have found that when I start serious weight training (I have done NROLFW and Jamie Eason Live Fit Trainer, also take Body Pump occasionally) for the first few weeks it is really difficult for me to lose scale weight. I achieve noticable measurement change even in the first month, but rarely lose any scale weight. Once you have built up muscle and your body is used to weight training, it will be more efficient and in theory less water-retaining (less chance of DOMS) and the weight should start coming off again.

    Also, remember that increased muscle mass should increase your metabolism, so it wouldn't be unusual for you to be more hungry or need more calories with weight training.
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