scale up after lifting...

andreamck
andreamck Posts: 8 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Maybe someone can give me some advice...

Started to get more serious about losing weight in March...starting weight was 198, 5 feet 8 inches, running/walking 3 miles, 4 times a week.

Set calories at about 1300, increased to actually running entire 3 miles and walking a few until June and was down to 190.

Added Insanity, continued running (getting ready for 5K in Oct) and increased calories to 1400 for June and July. Down to 186 and lost 5% body fat and increased Lean Muscle Mass at end of July.

Read NROL4W at beginning of this month and started right away. Increased calories to 1500-1600 with nearly 100g of protein. Following every-other-day lifting plan but still doing Insanity or running 3+ miles on "non-lifting" days. I know the book encourages you to "step away from the treadmill" but I actually find myself looking forward to those cardio workouts (NEVER would have said this 4 months ago!!) I can't imagine eating more calories everyday, as I am never hungry at 1600/day.

On the positive side, I am seeing consistent increases in the amount of weight I can lift. It was intimidating at first, but I really enjoy the days I lift. I see some changes in my posture, my arms are more defined, my thighs appear smaller and tighter and my stomach is noticeably flatter.

But, the scale is up 4 pounds! I feel like I have worked so hard to get those few pounds off and now they are back!

So I guess my question is...should I have waited until I'd lost more weight before beginning this heavy lifting routine? Should I stop lifting and stick with T25 or Insanity and running until I lose another 10ish pounds, then go back to lifting? Is a big lose on the scale just around the corner and I should just keep lifting and have faith? Can anyone else relate to my situation??

Thanks!!!

Replies

  • ahavoc
    ahavoc Posts: 464 Member
    4lbs of muscle takes up less space than 4lbs of fat. When you weight train you are building muscle fiber, (there's lots on that in other threads.) I'll take muscle any day. It increases your metabolism, and helps your BMR stay at a good level.

    If you don't want to build more muscle, lower your weights and do more reps. Less muscle build, but still working the muscle. Good luck!

    And I strength train and do cardio. There's a difference between weight training, (to build muscle), and strength training, (to get in shape).
  • rileyhall00
    rileyhall00 Posts: 98
    Muscle weighs more then fat does. If like you said, your seeing your arms and that are more define then you are just gaining muscle. It's good though, with muscle you can actually burn more fat. So your scales might go up a bit but once u establish that muscle then the scales will go down and balance out somewhere. Sometimes with scales less isnt always more with some results. If you want to loose weight then less is better, but if you want to get leaner, then sometimes the scales need to go up a tad.
  • cingle87
    cingle87 Posts: 717 Member
    Minor correction muscle does not weigh more than fat, a pound of muscle still weighs the same as a pound of fat, the best way to put it, a pound of muscle takes up less volume than a pound of fat.

    Anyway back to you question, its very hard to gain muscle on a Calorie deficit, not impossible but very difficult. You have very similar stats to me im 5 7 1/2" :P current y weight 15st. I lift weights 6 times a week, cardio is just not for me. What you will be seeing it your overall body fat % decreasing thus giving the apperance of muscle growing. Everyone has muscles, they are all covered by a layer of fay, everyone has a six pack for example without doing a million crunches, but you have to decrease your bf% low enough for them to be visiable.

    So keep lifting weights, you will minimal increase in mass upto a certain point in your lifting career, but it will help keep a higher % of LBM you would have lose through dieting, meaning more fat will be lost.

    Forgot to add when lifting your muscles will store a little bit extra water to repair itself, so this could explain the weight gain rather than muscle mass gain.
  • AJ_G
    AJ_G Posts: 4,158 Member
    Minor correction muscle does not weigh more than fat, a pound of muscle still weighs the same as a pound of fat, the best way to put it, a pound of muscle takes up less volume than a pound of fat.

    Anyway back to you question, its very hard to gain muscle on a Calorie deficit, not impossible but very difficult. You have very similar stats to me im 5 7 1/2" :P current y weight 15st. I lift weights 6 times a week, cardio is just not for me. What you will be seeing it your overall body fat % decreasing thus giving the apperance of muscle growing. Everyone has muscles, they are all covered by a layer of fay, everyone has a six pack for example without doing a million crunches, but you have to decrease your bf% low enough for them to be visiable.

    So keep lifting weights, you will minimal increase in mass upto a certain point in your lifting career, but it will help keep a higher % of LBM you would have lose through dieting, meaning more fat will be lost.

    Forgot to add when lifting your muscles will store a little bit extra water to repair itself, so this could explain the weight gain rather than muscle mass gain.

    When comparing the weight of two substances, you take equal volumes of each substance and weight them. If following these rules, which you should be when comparing the weights of different substances, then muscle does in fact weight more than fat...

    OP: It is very unlikely that you gained 4 pounds of muscle in a short amount of time. For a woman, it takes a very long time to put on 4 pounds of muscle. It's more likely that you've gained weight due to water weight. When you lift weights, your muscles draw in water to repair themselves and this can lead to weight gains on the scale. Don't worry, keep lifting, and keep eating at a constant calorie intake.
  • AmyRhubarb
    AmyRhubarb Posts: 6,890 Member
    If this:
    I see some changes in my posture, my arms are more defined, my thighs appear smaller and tighter and my stomach is noticeably flatter.

    Then who cares about this:
    But, the scale is up 4 pounds! I feel like I have worked so hard to get those few pounds off and now they are back!

    If you are losing inches, you are losing FAT, and you are looking better, and I'd guess clothes fitting more loose? Who cares what the number on the scale says if you look better and are getting stronger?

    Don't let that scale define you! No one knows what the scale says unless you tell them - but people will see a firmer, fitter you, with a flatter tummy and more defined arms! With 10lbs to go, I'd focus more on lowering body fat percentage than worrying about the scale and a goal weight.

    Keep up the good work! Oh - and take your measurements and progress photos if you're not already. Much better way to see progress. :smile:
  • andreamck
    andreamck Posts: 8 Member

    If you don't want to build more muscle, lower your weights and do more reps. Less muscle build, but still working the muscle. Good luck!

    And I strength train and do cardio. There's a difference between weight training, (to build muscle), and strength training, (to get in shape).

    Thanks for your input, but this is exactly what NROL4W tells you NOT to do. Weight training, strength training, "toning", "shaping" are all the same I think. You lift heavy, you break down some muscle fiber, the muscle repairs itself, you become stronger. And in my case, you gain 4 pounds! :-)
  • 257_Lag
    257_Lag Posts: 1,249 Member
    Totally normal. Minor inconvenience, permanent improvement!I started lifting for the first time ever July 1. I put on 4 lbs within days. Then it just hung there for about 2 1/2 weeks. Since then the loss has been at about the same rate as before I started lifting, maybe even accelerated a little.
  • HIITMe
    HIITMe Posts: 921 Member


    When comparing the weight of two substances, you take equal volumes of each substance and weight them. If following these rules, which you should be when comparing the weights of different substances, then muscle does in fact weight more than fat...


    ummm NO, then you are comparing VOLUME not comparing WEIGHT

    a pound of feathers weighs the same as a pound of lard.... though the feathers may take up more space yet when compacted the volume is less....

    in any case, the weight gain could be due to the infamous water retention, glycogen stores and such....
  • ahavoc
    ahavoc Posts: 464 Member
    Nope, not all the same thing,
  • RGv2
    RGv2 Posts: 5,789 Member
    4lbs of muscle takes up less space than 4lbs of fat. When you weight train you are building muscle fiber, (there's lots on that in other threads.) I'll take muscle any day. It increases your metabolism, and helps your BMR stay at a good level.

    If you don't want to build more muscle, lower your weights and do more reps. Less muscle build, but still working the muscle. Good luck!

    And I strength train and do cardio. There's a difference between weight training, (to build muscle), and strength training, (to get in shape).
    If like you said, your seeing your arms and that are more define then you are just gaining muscle.

    John-Krasinski-no.gif

    You may have had some noob gains in muscle mass, but it shouldn't be much as you have been exercising for awhile. Professional body builders would have a hard time putting 4lbs of muscle on in 3 weeks, let alone a beginner. Also, wiith being female you also don't have the genes to build muscle like a male would.

    The added lifting workout is going to cause water retention for muscle repair until the body adapts. Every time you add new exercises, or up the intensity your muscles will retain water.

    Your becoming more defined as your body is MAINTAINING muscle mass as you lose the fat. The scale will slow down (or go up due to some water retention) when you add lifting to your weight loss routine because you are maintaining the muscle mass you already have while losing the fat that is covering those muscles, thus making you more defined.

    There is no difference in the gym between weight training and strength training. The difference between training to add muscle mass and training to add strength is in the diet. You need to eat at least at maintenance, but normally above, to add muscle mass.

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