Doing 5x5 on a deficit, scales & measurements NOT changing
JustSammi
Posts: 79
Hi guys. I started Stronglifts 5 weeks ago and I knew the scales might not change much in this time but what's bothering me is that they've only moved by 1 lb and my measurements haven't changed either.
A bit of background info might help. I've lost nearly 30 lbs so far using TDEE - 20%, losing approximately 1 lb a week, this has been mostly consistent. During this time I did a dumbbell routine 3x a week using 2x10 lb dumbbells. I've been tracking my body fat % and that has gone down along with the scale weight and inches, I believe I have maintained most of my muscle during this time but probably not all.
5 weeks ago I decided I wanted to lift heavy so I started Stronglifts. I've done a lot of research and knew the scales might not move for a while due to muscles retaining glycogen to repair etc. However, I expected my measurements to change and they haven't (though I usually only track waist and hips, thinking I should track other measurements too).
In 5 weeks I've lost 1 lb. My clothes still fit the same, I don't look any slimmer. Parts of my body do feel harder and less squishy but I also know that I won't gain muscle on a calorie deficit.
My TDEE - 20% is 1660 cals a day, I eat 1600 cals a day 6 days a week and save the others to spend on Saturday where I'll usually treat myself and eat closer to maintenance. I log religiously and don't cheat. I don't do any other exercise except lifting and walking to work everyday which takes 20mins there and back. I set my activity level at 'lightly active' when working out my TDEE as I believe this is the most accurate setting for me.
Basically, nothing has changed since losing the first 30 lbs except that I switched to Stronglifts instead of my dumbbell routine. I still definitely have fat to lose, I'd like to lose around 15-20 lbs more. I'm not seriously overweight but not that healthy either at a BMI of bang on 25 and a body fat % of 27.
I'm sticking this out obviously, I'm definitely going to continue with Stronglifts and I'm certainly not going to eat less but I guess I just want to know if anyone else has experienced this and how long it took you to start losing again? And I'm also wondering if this is normal? It's quite distressing for me because I'm definitely putting 100% into this.
A bit of background info might help. I've lost nearly 30 lbs so far using TDEE - 20%, losing approximately 1 lb a week, this has been mostly consistent. During this time I did a dumbbell routine 3x a week using 2x10 lb dumbbells. I've been tracking my body fat % and that has gone down along with the scale weight and inches, I believe I have maintained most of my muscle during this time but probably not all.
5 weeks ago I decided I wanted to lift heavy so I started Stronglifts. I've done a lot of research and knew the scales might not move for a while due to muscles retaining glycogen to repair etc. However, I expected my measurements to change and they haven't (though I usually only track waist and hips, thinking I should track other measurements too).
In 5 weeks I've lost 1 lb. My clothes still fit the same, I don't look any slimmer. Parts of my body do feel harder and less squishy but I also know that I won't gain muscle on a calorie deficit.
My TDEE - 20% is 1660 cals a day, I eat 1600 cals a day 6 days a week and save the others to spend on Saturday where I'll usually treat myself and eat closer to maintenance. I log religiously and don't cheat. I don't do any other exercise except lifting and walking to work everyday which takes 20mins there and back. I set my activity level at 'lightly active' when working out my TDEE as I believe this is the most accurate setting for me.
Basically, nothing has changed since losing the first 30 lbs except that I switched to Stronglifts instead of my dumbbell routine. I still definitely have fat to lose, I'd like to lose around 15-20 lbs more. I'm not seriously overweight but not that healthy either at a BMI of bang on 25 and a body fat % of 27.
I'm sticking this out obviously, I'm definitely going to continue with Stronglifts and I'm certainly not going to eat less but I guess I just want to know if anyone else has experienced this and how long it took you to start losing again? And I'm also wondering if this is normal? It's quite distressing for me because I'm definitely putting 100% into this.
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Replies
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Well you are doing better than me, I put weight on! No expert in this stuff but I'd say from personal experience you have to give it a good 2 to 3 months, and be cautious about your deficit. Sure the brains will jump in here! :-)0
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I have the same thing at the moment, I've been doing stronglifts for 2,5 months now, at a deficit, and nothing is changing in measurements or on the scale. Very confused, but sticking in there, at some point it should start to drop again, I'm sure.0
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I am exactly in the same boat. In the past 2 weeks, I put on 1.5lbs :S0
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Might I suggest raising up your calories a little. 1600 sounds like a lot of calories, but if you walking to work all week and SL on top of that 1600 is probably not enough. Try upping it a little. I know a lot of ladies on here suggest 100 calorie increase at a time. so try 1700-1800 a day. I was only eating 1600 and doing SL 3 days a week and stayed hungry and wasn't progressing much. I upped cals to around 1800 a day reset my macros and I have been slowly losing.
I am just starting my second round of SL, so I am in it 4 months. I can tell you that I have only lost like 8 lbs, and in pictures I can't see much change in my body. There are some differences though. I am increasing in weights ( some things faster than others), and I am building muscle. The rest will come in time. They say with weight training you will reap the benefits but that it does take time.
Try to be patient it will happen
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Might I suggest raising up your calories a little. 1600 sounds like a lot of calories, but if you walking to work all week and SL on top of that 1600 is probably not enough. Try upping it a little. I know a lot of ladies on here suggest 100 calorie increase at a time. so try 1700-1800 a day. I was only eating 1600 and doing SL 3 days a week and stayed hungry and wasn't progressing much. I upped cals to around 1800 a day reset my macros and I have been slowly losing.
I am just starting my second round of SL, so I am in it 4 months. I can tell you that I have only lost like 8 lbs, and in pictures I can't see much change in my body. There are some differences though. I am increasing in weights ( some things faster than others), and I am building muscle. The rest will come in time. They say with weight training you will reap the benefits but that it does take time.
Try to be patient it will happen
Thanks for your reply. I was thinking about raising my calories to 1700 but find it hard to believe I need to since I already set it at lightly active and I'm only cutting 20% from my TDEE (as I still have a fair amount to lose). I don't feel any more hungry but I've started failing at my lifts this past week so thought it might help to raise the calories a little.
I think I'll give it another week and see what happens. Maybe I'm just having a bad week re. the lifting? But if there's no improvement then I definitely think I should eat a little more. :drinker:0 -
Are the *other* weights changing? The ones you put on the bar, I mean. How much progress have you made there?
Are you feeling sore and tired? If you are, definitely up your calories.
5 weeks is not enough time to see much of a result as far as changes to your body go. And starting a new exercise regimen, especially a challenging one, could make you a good candidate for this phenomenon:
http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/the-ltdfle.html
How long have you been on a reduced intake, and how long has it been since you last took a two-week diet break?0 -
Just remember that progress can't always be measured by the scale, pictures, or measurements. Sometimes it comes in the way of feeling stronger, having more energy, nailing all 5x5 at a particular weight. This is a slow process, so make sure to focus on ALL positives instead of just the scale/measuring tape.
And it really can't hurt to up your calories a bit, especially if you're struggling with your lifts. You'll have good days and bad days, just keep plugging along.0 -
Are the *other* weights changing? The ones you put on the bar, I mean. How much progress have you made there?
Are you feeling sore and tired? If you are, definitely up your calories.
5 weeks is not enough time to see much of a result as far as changes to your body go. And starting a new exercise regimen, especially a challenging one, could make you a good candidate for this phenomenon:
http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/the-ltdfle.html
How long have you been on a reduced intake, and how long has it been since you last took a two-week diet break?
Hi. I've been on TDEE - 20% since January. I've had a few breaks such as family events, going on holiday etc. The last one was around 6 weeks ago and that was for a week. I put on a bit of water weight, lost it plus another 1 lb, started Stronglifts and haven't lost much since.
My strength stats are as follows:
Squats: 15kg start - 25kg currently (I had trouble with form for ages so I've only just started increasing these)
Bench: 20kg start - 22.5kg currently
Rows: 25kg start - 28.5kg currently
OHP: 15kg start - 20kg currently
Deadlift: 30kg start - 50kg currently (just failed 55kg yesterday)
I feel like I'm progressing at the right speed for me. I really struggle with the last few reps on the last couple of sets. I don't feel tired, soreness was an issue in the first week or so but not really anymore. I do feel like I'm adequately fueling my workouts on 1600 cals, I only feel hungry at meal times and I never really feel weak.
Thanks for the link, I'll take a look.0 -
While you are at it, I would have a look a this.
http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/the-full-diet-break.html
It explains why the diet break needs to be longer than 1 week, among other things.0 -
Just remember that progress can't always be measured by the scale, pictures, or measurements. Sometimes it comes in the way of feeling stronger, having more energy, nailing all 5x5 at a particular weight. This is a slow process, so make sure to focus on ALL positives instead of just the scale/measuring tape.
And it really can't hurt to up your calories a bit, especially if you're struggling with your lifts. You'll have good days and bad days, just keep plugging along.
Thanks. I know it's not going to be a fast and magical transformation but I guess I thought I'd maintain my weight for the first few weeks due to muscle repair and then assumed I'd either start losing (seeing the scale numbers go down) and/or that my measurements would shrink at least as often as it did before Stronglifts but that doesn't seem to be the case at the moment.
I have thought about upping my calories but it's not like I'm undereating massively (according to the online calculators) and I'm definitely not overeating. I always eat above my BMR and until this point, I had lost fat quite consistently.
I will keep plugging along and raise my calories if nothing changes. If I'm not going to lose weight then I might as well not lose weight and eat more at the same time, as long as I don't gain fat! :laugh:0 -
While you are at it, I would have a look a this.
http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/the-full-diet-break.html
It explains why the diet break needs to be longer than 1 week, among other things.
Have you ever tried this? I'm definitely up for giving it a go to see if it works. In fact, I'm going away to Belgium for 4 days in a couple of weeks, just a little mini break and will be eating at maintenance then anyway so maybe I could eat at maintenance the week before I go too and get back on the wagon when I return.
I would like to know if anyone has tried this process with success. 0 -
While you are at it, I would have a look a this.
http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/the-full-diet-break.html
It explains why the diet break needs to be longer than 1 week, among other things.
Have you ever tried this? I'm definitely up for giving it a go to see if it works. In fact, I'm going away to Belgium for 4 days in a couple of weeks, just a little mini break and will be eating at maintenance then anyway so maybe I could eat at maintenance the week before I go too and get back on the wagon when I return.
I would like to know if anyone has tried this process with success.
Yes, I did this when I was about 10 lb away from my goal weight, and it felt like a very healthy thing to do both mentally and physically. I also got a whoosh afterwards.0 -
While you are at it, I would have a look a this.
http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/the-full-diet-break.html
It explains why the diet break needs to be longer than 1 week, among other things.
Have you ever tried this? I'm definitely up for giving it a go to see if it works. In fact, I'm going away to Belgium for 4 days in a couple of weeks, just a little mini break and will be eating at maintenance then anyway so maybe I could eat at maintenance the week before I go too and get back on the wagon when I return.
I would like to know if anyone has tried this process with success.
Yes, I did this when I was about 10 lb away from my goal weight, and it felt like a very healthy thing to do both mentally and physically. I also got a whoosh afterwards.
That's good to know. Did you gain whilst doing it? How long did you do it for? Also how did you work out your maintenance calories, TDEE or TDEE - 10% like that article suggests?
I've also read that someone here worked theirs out by taking the last 30 days worth of net calorie data, and summed the net calories. Then she took the weight lost during that period in lbs, multiplied by 3500, and added that to the net calorie sum. Divided by 30 and ate that number everyday.
Also did you still work out? I think it would be good for my strength gains to continue lifting at maintenance.
Sorry about all of the questions!0 -
Are the *other* weights changing? The ones you put on the bar, I mean. How much progress have you made there?
My strength stats are as follows:
Squats: 15kg start - 25kg currently (I had trouble with form for ages so I've only just started increasing these)
Bench: 20kg start - 22.5kg currently
Rows: 25kg start - 28.5kg currently
OHP: 15kg start - 20kg currently
Deadlift: 30kg start - 50kg currently (just failed 55kg yesterday)
I feel like I'm progressing at the right speed for me. I really struggle with the last few reps on the last couple of sets. I don't feel tired, soreness was an issue in the first week or so but not really anymore. I do feel like I'm adequately fueling my workouts on 1600 cals, I only feel hungry at meal times and I never really feel weak.
You could push yourself a bit harder on those lifts, too. Novice programs such as SL 5x5 and Starting Strength generally have women add 2.5 kilos to the working sets *each workout*, not each week. You can keep that up for a while, too, especially as you are a younger woman and still have some weight to lose. I suspect the weights haven't increased more you because haven't asked them to increase.0 -
... read that someone here worked theirs out by taking the last 30 days worth of net calorie data, and summed the net calories. Then she took the weight lost during that period in lbs, multiplied by 3500, and added that to the net calorie sum. Divided by 30 and ate that number everyday.
Also did you still work out? I think it would be good for my strength gains to continue lifting at maintenance.
Sorry about all of the questions!
I use the last 8 weeks of data to sort out my TDEE. That was the advice that I got in the ETP group. You have the calculation right. In your situation I would probably only use from the time that you started SL.
Remember that the TDEE calculator did not give you *your* TDEE -- it gave you an average based on the population that they studied. Yours will be something different. Mine is quite a bit higher than the calculators gave me and I was starving all the time until I worked out *my* TDEE.
ETA: VERY accurate tracking is really important when you're doing this!0 -
... read that someone here worked theirs out by taking the last 30 days worth of net calorie data, and summed the net calories. Then she took the weight lost during that period in lbs, multiplied by 3500, and added that to the net calorie sum. Divided by 30 and ate that number everyday.
Also did you still work out? I think it would be good for my strength gains to continue lifting at maintenance.
Sorry about all of the questions!
I use the last 8 weeks of data to sort out my TDEE. That was the advice that I got in the ETP group. You have the calculation right. In your situation I would probably only use from the time that you started SL.
Remember that the TDEE calculator did not give you *your* TDEE -- it gave you an average based on the population that they studied. Yours will be something different. Mine is quite a bit higher than the calculators gave me and I was starving all the time until I worked out *my* TDEE.
ETA: VERY accurate tracking is really important when you're doing this!
Thanks, I think I'll use this method then. A quick question though, is it ok working this out from the last 5 weeks considering I've only lost a pound? I've not had a proper look at the math yet but I'm assuming the maintenance number would be different if I had lost 5 lbs in 5 weeks as I have previously?0 -
... read that someone here worked theirs out by taking the last 30 days worth of net calorie data, and summed the net calories. Then she took the weight lost during that period in lbs, multiplied by 3500, and added that to the net calorie sum. Divided by 30 and ate that number everyday.
Also did you still work out? I think it would be good for my strength gains to continue lifting at maintenance.
Sorry about all of the questions!
I use the last 8 weeks of data to sort out my TDEE. That was the advice that I got in the ETP group. You have the calculation right. In your situation I would probably only use from the time that you started SL.
Remember that the TDEE calculator did not give you *your* TDEE -- it gave you an average based on the population that they studied. Yours will be something different. Mine is quite a bit higher than the calculators gave me and I was starving all the time until I worked out *my* TDEE.
ETA: VERY accurate tracking is really important when you're doing this!
^^^ yes, extremely. You might actually be eating more than 1600 cal/day if you are not weighing everything.0 -
While you are at it, I would have a look a this.
http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/the-full-diet-break.html
It explains why the diet break needs to be longer than 1 week, among other things.
Have you ever tried this? I'm definitely up for giving it a go to see if it works. In fact, I'm going away to Belgium for 4 days in a couple of weeks, just a little mini break and will be eating at maintenance then anyway so maybe I could eat at maintenance the week before I go too and get back on the wagon when I return.
I would like to know if anyone has tried this process with success.
Yes, I did this when I was about 10 lb away from my goal weight, and it felt like a very healthy thing to do both mentally and physically. I also got a whoosh afterwards.
That's good to know. Did you gain whilst doing it? How long did you do it for? Also how did you work out your maintenance calories, TDEE or TDEE - 10% like that article suggests?
I've also read that someone here worked theirs out by taking the last 30 days worth of net calorie data, and summed the net calories. Then she took the weight lost during that period in lbs, multiplied by 3500, and added that to the net calorie sum. Divided by 30 and ate that number everyday.
Also did you still work out? I think it would be good for my strength gains to continue lifting at maintenance.
Sorry about all of the questions!
I think I just upped my intake by about 200 calories, because I had reason to believe that my deficit was fairly small at the time (I was losing about 0.5 lb a week). I can't remember if I worked out or not, but I probably did. A proper rest break would be full rest--that's what I am doing right now, actually.
In addition to what Elaine said about it being impossible to calculate your exact caloric expenditure using a calculator, keep in mind that it can also change, because your BMR changes a bit depending on your weight and activity. I have increased my intake overtime by about 600 calories, and believe it or not, I have maintained the same weight. I am still not quite sure what my maintenance intake is, and I've tried very hard to figure it out 0 -
... read that someone here worked theirs out by taking the last 30 days worth of net calorie data, and summed the net calories. Then she took the weight lost during that period in lbs, multiplied by 3500, and added that to the net calorie sum. Divided by 30 and ate that number everyday.
Also did you still work out? I think it would be good for my strength gains to continue lifting at maintenance.
Sorry about all of the questions!
I use the last 8 weeks of data to sort out my TDEE. That was the advice that I got in the ETP group. You have the calculation right. In your situation I would probably only use from the time that you started SL.
Remember that the TDEE calculator did not give you *your* TDEE -- it gave you an average based on the population that they studied. Yours will be something different. Mine is quite a bit higher than the calculators gave me and I was starving all the time until I worked out *my* TDEE.
ETA: VERY accurate tracking is really important when you're doing this!
^^^ yes, extremely. You might actually be eating more than 1600 cal/day if you are not weighing everything.
Oh, I'm really religious about weighing and logging everything. :happy: The only time I don't is when I eat out at a restaurant every other weekend or so, or on holidays/family events. But if I don't log I certainly don't stuff myself and I make healthy choices so even if I went slightly over maintenance on one day it's not going to undo 5 weeks worth of work. As I've said, everything has been consistent up until this point and nothing has changed with my eating habits at all.
Definitely going to give the diet break a try though, it makes a lot of sense to me. I haven't had 2 weeks off since I started in January.0 -
... read that someone here worked theirs out by taking the last 30 days worth of net calorie data, and summed the net calories. Then she took the weight lost during that period in lbs, multiplied by 3500, and added that to the net calorie sum. Divided by 30 and ate that number everyday.
Also did you still work out? I think it would be good for my strength gains to continue lifting at maintenance.
Sorry about all of the questions!
I use the last 8 weeks of data to sort out my TDEE. That was the advice that I got in the ETP group. You have the calculation right. In your situation I would probably only use from the time that you started SL.
Remember that the TDEE calculator did not give you *your* TDEE -- it gave you an average based on the population that they studied. Yours will be something different. Mine is quite a bit higher than the calculators gave me and I was starving all the time until I worked out *my* TDEE.
ETA: VERY accurate tracking is really important when you're doing this!
^^^ yes, extremely. You might actually be eating more than 1600 cal/day if you are not weighing everything.
Oh, I'm really religious about weighing and logging everything. :happy: The only time I don't is when I eat out at a restaurant every other weekend or so, or on holidays/family events. But if I don't log I certainly don't stuff myself and I make healthy choices so even if I went slightly over maintenance on one day it's not going to undo 5 weeks worth of work. As I've said, everything has been consistent up until this point and nothing has changed with my eating habits at all.
Definitely going to give the diet break a try though, it makes a lot of sense to me. I haven't had 2 weeks off since I started in January.
I took a quick look at your logging from February onward (see http://www.designbyvh.com/myfitnesspal-export-data/), and it could use a bit more consistency. In May you logged only 10 days, and there are holes in other months, too. Your average intake (logged) is sometimes as low as 271 calories (I assume this is partial logging, not fasting), and protein and other macros are really erratic. Use the reports feature to look at your graphs for all the macros and you'll see what I mean.
Finally, it doesn't matter how good your choices are; your body doesn't know good choices from bad when you are over calories.0 -
... read that someone here worked theirs out by taking the last 30 days worth of net calorie data, and summed the net calories. Then she took the weight lost during that period in lbs, multiplied by 3500, and added that to the net calorie sum. Divided by 30 and ate that number everyday.
Also did you still work out? I think it would be good for my strength gains to continue lifting at maintenance.
Sorry about all of the questions!
I use the last 8 weeks of data to sort out my TDEE. That was the advice that I got in the ETP group. You have the calculation right. In your situation I would probably only use from the time that you started SL.
Remember that the TDEE calculator did not give you *your* TDEE -- it gave you an average based on the population that they studied. Yours will be something different. Mine is quite a bit higher than the calculators gave me and I was starving all the time until I worked out *my* TDEE.
ETA: VERY accurate tracking is really important when you're doing this!
^^^ yes, extremely. You might actually be eating more than 1600 cal/day if you are not weighing everything.
Oh, I'm really religious about weighing and logging everything. :happy: The only time I don't is when I eat out at a restaurant every other weekend or so, or on holidays/family events. But if I don't log I certainly don't stuff myself and I make healthy choices so even if I went slightly over maintenance on one day it's not going to undo 5 weeks worth of work. As I've said, everything has been consistent up until this point and nothing has changed with my eating habits at all.
Definitely going to give the diet break a try though, it makes a lot of sense to me. I haven't had 2 weeks off since I started in January.
I took a quick look at your logging from February onward (see http://www.designbyvh.com/myfitnesspal-export-data/), and it could use a bit more consistency. In May you logged only 10 days, and there are holes in other months, too. Your average intake (logged) is sometimes as low as 271 calories (I assume this is partial logging, not fasting), and protein and other macros are really erratic. Use the reports feature to look at your graphs for all the macros and you'll see what I mean.
Finally, it doesn't matter how good your choices are; your body doesn't know good choices from bad when you are over calories.
Yep, partial logging not fasting due to meals out/events/weekends away. I went to Croatia in May which is responsible for the lack of logging then. I see what you mean with the macros. I've generally been a lot better at hitting them lately but I've struggled with protein and I'm still working on that. Still, it's been like that all this time and I've still lost weight until now. Even when I don't log at weekends I tend to eat the same meals every day so I know I don't go seriously over or under on those days.
This is a really great tool that you linked to. I was wondering if there was a way to get a large range of data so this will help me a lot. Thank you for all your advice. Really appreciated. 0
