Muscle loss due to injury in only 2 weeks possible?
bathedinshadow
Posts: 117 Member
So I'm not sure I use this site for what most people do, but maybe somebody has some insight for me anyway?
I use this site purely to track what I eat so that if my body starts changing, I can go back and see if it's something I've done with my diet and so forth. I'm not trying to lose weight, but perhaps just tighten things up. To most people, I'm probably considered slim and sporty. Which I am, but of course I'm aware of all the tiny flaws I'd like to fix. With that said, I guess I'm mostly aiming to have my abs show a little more. Which means losing a thin layer of fat.
So, I set out to exercise more and removed processed foods from my diet and lowered my sodium intake. My weight initially dropped about 2 pounds from doing this over the course of a month or so. I figured it was mostly water weight due to low sodium. Then it leveled out for another 2 weeks and that's when I broke my ankle. This has ended up my exercise for about 2 weeks now. I don't have a gym membership and I live in rain-couver - so no outdoor activities on crutches in the slick rain. In the last 2 weeks, I've lost an additional 2 pounds. I was never doing any weight training as my cardio included a lot of hiking and biking that was already working my muscles enough for my taste. So I wasn't really putting on much muscle even when I was exercising. I'm sure it was minimal.
My concern is that I'm LOSING the muscle I already had. I've lost weight a lot faster without exercise than I did with exercise. Do you think it's possible to have muscle loss in only two weeks? I'm off my foot for at least another 3 weeks and this concerns me.
I use this site purely to track what I eat so that if my body starts changing, I can go back and see if it's something I've done with my diet and so forth. I'm not trying to lose weight, but perhaps just tighten things up. To most people, I'm probably considered slim and sporty. Which I am, but of course I'm aware of all the tiny flaws I'd like to fix. With that said, I guess I'm mostly aiming to have my abs show a little more. Which means losing a thin layer of fat.
So, I set out to exercise more and removed processed foods from my diet and lowered my sodium intake. My weight initially dropped about 2 pounds from doing this over the course of a month or so. I figured it was mostly water weight due to low sodium. Then it leveled out for another 2 weeks and that's when I broke my ankle. This has ended up my exercise for about 2 weeks now. I don't have a gym membership and I live in rain-couver - so no outdoor activities on crutches in the slick rain. In the last 2 weeks, I've lost an additional 2 pounds. I was never doing any weight training as my cardio included a lot of hiking and biking that was already working my muscles enough for my taste. So I wasn't really putting on much muscle even when I was exercising. I'm sure it was minimal.
My concern is that I'm LOSING the muscle I already had. I've lost weight a lot faster without exercise than I did with exercise. Do you think it's possible to have muscle loss in only two weeks? I'm off my foot for at least another 3 weeks and this concerns me.
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Replies
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oh my yes of course. I start to lose muscle in 3 days of no exercise.
the good news is that muscles have memory. It takes half as long to get your muscles back as it did to build them in the first place.0 -
OP,
Whats your stats?
Age
Height
Weight
Body Fat%
How much do you eat daily?0 -
Yep--you can definitely lose muscle mass in that time. :frown: But, the good news, as the previous poster said, is that once you get going again, it will come back quickly. Once you do get back to exercising, you might want to add pool exercise as an all-over strengthener with little to no risk of injury if you strap on a foam belt and do the exercise at the deep end of the pool. No contact at all. Great for recovery. I had an ACL (anterior cruciate ligament) tear in my right knee last May and pool exercise has been fantastic for getting back my range of motion etc.
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I think my nervousness is compounded by a previous experience. I tore meniscus 4 years ago, which resulted in a "bucket handle" tear. Which means it tore in the middle creating a sort of hole. It then flipped and wedged between my joints so to speak. This meant I couldn't move my knee at all. It was locked in a 90 degree angle. The doctors really dropped the ball with me. I did have surgery for over 2 months (and only got it then because I knew somebody who knew somebody). It was extremely painful the whole time. Once I did get my surgery, I was told that I should have had surgery the moment I walked into the ER. Anyway, I won't go down the full road of frustration. The point is, I was off my leg completely for 2 months. My leg became so emaciated that it was gross to look at. To this day, it is still smaller. Not horribly so, but still. So I get very nervous around muscle loss.
@helloitsdan
31
5'6"
117lbs before (now 115)
18% - but that's from a scale so it's hard to say how accurate it is. I'm careful to do it the first thing in the morning after emptying my bladder. But still - they aren't spot on.
I'm also normally VERY active. It's not just exercise for me, it's sport. So I go for 3 hour intense bike rides regularly. It's quite a change in activity for my body.0 -
Not likely, with the exception of some extreme calorie deficit.
Loss of weight faster due to NOT exercising is because you aren't breaking down muscle fibers which means less water is retained for repair and less glycogen is needed for energy storage.
Also less exercise means the muscle is losing conditioning and start to hold less water in it overall.
This is basically the opposite of when someone starts to work out for 2 weeks.
A.C.E. Certified Personal/Group FitnessTrainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition0 -
Oh, and regarding what I eat.
Well I don't really follow the same principle as most on this site, so I don't really count calories. Obviously when I input my foods on here, I can see roughly what they probably are. But I also don't measure everything out.
I'm a very strict vegetarian. I do eat eggs. So most of my foods consist of veggies, eggs, minimal fruit, quinoa, beans, flax oil, and legumes. I'll occasionally have tofu, but it's rare. I eat 4-5 times a day. I basically eat as much as I want - except for fruit. I could binge on fruit, so I monitor that. I end up right around 1200 calories a day when I'm just sitting around.
Where I'm sure we will differ in opinion, as this site is very focused on this, I don't believe in eating calories back. I don't want to get into an argument over this though. Just sharing because you asked about my eating habits. I believe in eating if you are hungry though. So if that means I eat more when I workout, then I eat more. I tried the eating calories back about 5 years ago for 3 months and gained weight and inches. Not a lot, but for somebody who very much has stayed the same size since I was 17, it was shocking and my clothes weren't fitting right anymore. So that's not the method for me.
I loosely follow the "slow-carb diet" I guess you could say. Though mostly by default. I guess the part I've implemented is that I give myself one day a week to eat whatever I want. It has kept me sane having to give up bread these last 2 months.
Like I said, weight loss isn't my goal. I'm content with my size. It's just been about losing that small layer of fat that prevents my abs from showing more. You can see them some, but not as much as I'd like. Which is why I'm concerned that my weight loss the last two weeks has been muscle loss. I'm not expecting to see the numbers go down, so when I do, I'm concerned something is wrong.0 -
I think my nervousness is compounded by a previous experience. I tore meniscus 4 years ago, which resulted in a "bucket handle" tear. Which means it tore in the middle creating a sort of hole. It then flipped and wedged between my joints so to speak. This meant I couldn't move my knee at all. It was locked in a 90 degree angle. The doctors really dropped the ball with me. I did have surgery for over 2 months (and only got it then because I knew somebody who knew somebody). It was extremely painful the whole time. Once I did get my surgery, I was told that I should have had surgery the moment I walked into the ER. Anyway, I won't go down the full road of frustration. The point is, I was off my leg completely for 2 months. My leg became so emaciated that it was gross to look at. To this day, it is still smaller. Not horribly so, but still. So I get very nervous around muscle loss.
@helloitsdan
31
5'6"
117lbs before (now 115)
18% - but that's from a scale so it's hard to say how accurate it is. I'm careful to do it the first thing in the morning after emptying my bladder. But still - they aren't spot on.
I'm also normally VERY active. It's not just exercise for me, it's sport. So I go for 3 hour intense bike rides regularly. It's quite a change in activity for my body.
you are underweight by a pretty big margin.
Shoot for TDEE now to help with the recovery of your injury then adopt a double progressive weight lifting program while eating 10%-15% above TDEE.
Shoot for maybe 125+.0 -
I am absolutely not underweight. You can't determine that by some stats alone. Bone structure plays a huge role. If I weighted 125 lbs, I would be chubby for my frame. Or I would have to really bulk up my muscles - which I can do contrary to what most people think of girls. I put on muscle easily. But that's not the look I'm personally after.0
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Not likely, with the exception of some extreme calorie deficit.
Loss of weight faster due to NOT exercising is because you aren't breaking down muscle fibers which means less water is retained for repair and less glycogen is needed for energy storage.
Also less exercise means the muscle is losing conditioning and start to hold less water in it overall.
This is basically the opposite of when someone starts to work out for 2 weeks.
A.C.E. Certified Personal/Group FitnessTrainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
This was a thought of mine as well. Before I upped my exercise 2 months ago, I wasn't exercising much because I hate winter weather. I noticed that on the days after I exercised, I usually weighed more. Which I contributed to water retention.
So it's possible that I'm losing even more water from being sedentary? I'm naturally muscular for a girl. It's odd for me to be concerned about this, but I am.0 -
Not likely, with the exception of some extreme calorie deficit.
Loss of weight faster due to NOT exercising is because you aren't breaking down muscle fibers which means less water is retained for repair and less glycogen is needed for energy storage.
Also less exercise means the muscle is losing conditioning and start to hold less water in it overall.
This is basically the opposite of when someone starts to work out for 2 weeks.
A.C.E. Certified Personal/Group FitnessTrainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
+1
Fat Free Mass is not necessarily muscle. The same changes that sometimes cause you to gain a couple of pounds when you first start an exercise program (increased glycogen storage, increased plasma volume, etc) reverse themselves quickly when you stop. It's a transient effect--and it is almost certainly not muscle loss.
And even if it were, the loss would not be permanent--that would be a transient effect as well.0 -
Not likely, with the exception of some extreme calorie deficit.
Loss of weight faster due to NOT exercising is because you aren't breaking down muscle fibers which means less water is retained for repair and less glycogen is needed for energy storage.
Also less exercise means the muscle is losing conditioning and start to hold less water in it overall.
Agreed...muscle doesn't just "poof" disappear that quickly...your body wants to hold on to it. The people who say they lose muscle mass in 3 days of not working out are literally making me LOL You can lose a tiny bit of conditioning in a short period of time, but not muscle mass. I didn't work out or lift weights for 4 YEARS after I had kids, but I could still feel my biceps and abs under all the flab. I was overweight and unconditioned, but my muscles were still there. It's almost certainly water weight, since your muscle hold quite a bit of water when you're actively working out.0 -
Not likely, with the exception of some extreme calorie deficit.
Loss of weight faster due to NOT exercising is because you aren't breaking down muscle fibers which means less water is retained for repair and less glycogen is needed for energy storage.
Also less exercise means the muscle is losing conditioning and start to hold less water in it overall.
This is basically the opposite of when someone starts to work out for 2 weeks.
A.C.E. Certified Personal/Group FitnessTrainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
^^this.0 -
I am absolutely not underweight. You can't determine that by some stats alone. Bone structure plays a huge role. If I weighted 125 lbs, I would be chubby for my frame. Or I would have to really bulk up my muscles - which I can do contrary to what most people think of girls. I put on muscle easily. But that's not a look I enjoy.
+1
You have the frame you were born with. I can never understand how people feel free to arbitrarily judge someone based on a couple of numbers and nothing else.
BTW, for some reason, I really like the phrase "slim and sporty".0 -
I was hoping this was the case. Thanks for easing my mind a bit. Just after my knee injury a few years ago that I mentioned, I guess it's left me a little more paranoid.0
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I am absolutely not underweight. You can't determine that by some stats alone. Bone structure plays a huge role. If I weighted 125 lbs, I would be chubby for my frame. Or I would have to really bulk up my muscles - which I can do contrary to what most people think of girls. I put on muscle easily. But that's not a look I enjoy.
+1
You have the frame you were born with. I can never understand how people feel free to arbitrarily judge someone based on a couple of numbers and nothing else.
BTW, for some reason, I really like the phrase "slim and sporty".
It's a numbers focused world. But I've seen people with similar numbers look completely different. So many components going into it that you can't measure or weigh. While I put on muscle easily, I don't actually weight lift. I know I could, it's just not for me. So my arms are relatively small, but strong. Some women weigh 20 lbs more than me and have smaller waists but bigger muscles. Anyway, I just resent being told I'm underweight without somebody ever seeing me. It's not like I'm sitting here at 115 lbs saying I'm fat. I'm not. I'm just not underweight.
haha, I never know how to describe my body to people. Fully clothed, I look small and probably wimpy. Though not too skinny. I see plenty of women who are smaller than I am. But when you can see my body, I'm probably more fit than you were expecting. And I like sports. Specifically mountain biking with some road biking thrown in for good measure. So slim but sporty seems right? 0 -
Not likely, with the exception of some extreme calorie deficit.
Loss of weight faster due to NOT exercising is because you aren't breaking down muscle fibers which means less water is retained for repair and less glycogen is needed for energy storage.
Also less exercise means the muscle is losing conditioning and start to hold less water in it overall.
This is basically the opposite of when someone starts to work out for 2 weeks.
A.C.E. Certified Personal/Group FitnessTrainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
This. You aren't losing muscle mass this soon. And the small amount you may lose over the course of your rehab will return shortly after you resume training.
ps, we all pretty much use the site for the same reason you do0 -
You are built pretty much like my wife based on your stats and your description. As others including a couple of pros have said, you will not lose muscle mass that quickly. Water weight yes, not muscle mass. About once a quarter I take a week off and I drop about 4 lbs in water weight in that week. Get it right back when I start to work out again.
Lol at some of the statements about losing muscle mass that quickly! In 3 days? Riiiight!0 -
muscles atrophy at a very quick rate if not used at all.0
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Not likely, with the exception of some extreme calorie deficit.
Loss of weight faster due to NOT exercising is because you aren't breaking down muscle fibers which means less water is retained for repair and less glycogen is needed for energy storage.
Also less exercise means the muscle is losing conditioning and start to hold less water in it overall.
This is basically the opposite of when someone starts to work out for 2 weeks.
A.C.E. Certified Personal/Group FitnessTrainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
This. You aren't losing muscle mass this soon. And the small amount you may lose over the course of your rehab will return shortly after you resume training.
ps, we all pretty much use the site for the same reason you do
You think? I feel like most people use it for weight loss and calorie counting. Not that I'm insulting that, I'm not at all.
Thanks everybody for your replies!0 -
You don't lose muscle that quickly. Also, you should find ways to exercise your upper body. Most athletes are forced to work around injuries at some point in their career and if there is a will, there is a way...muscles atrophy at a very quick rate if not used at all.
If you're bedridden.0
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