I don't understand why I'm not losing...

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  • jennk5309
    jennk5309 Posts: 206 Member
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    Also, since the cardio vs. weights debate has begun, I'll add my 2 cents. Just move, period. Who cares whether it's cardio or strength training? Moving burns calories. I'm sure that you have a ton of muscle underneath your fat, because you need it to hold up that much weight. So personally, I'd focus on cardio, but again, any movement is better than nothing and will help.
  • gotskilla
    gotskilla Posts: 14 Member
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    First, do not let yourself get discouraged. I started my journey at 320 pounds and I am still working on it. It will happen! A good place to start if you can is to go have your Resting Metabolic Rate (RMR) tested to get a more accurate reading on the minimum amount of calories that you should be taking in. Most insurance companies allow you to do this for free, mine did, I have Blue Cross. Also, don't weigh too often and don't pay too much attention to that number, it doesn't always show on the scale. Sometimes my weight barely goes down on the scale but I can still tell that I am losing, my clothes are getting looser, etc. I also highly recommend getting a good heart rate monitor to get a more accurate reading on how many calories you are burning during workouts. Devoting time to weights and cardio is also important. Also, finding a diet that works for you is also extremely important. There is so much information and misinformation out there, do some research, try different things, recipes, etc. Don't think of it as dieting, its a lifestyle change. To break it down, eat smart and eat fresh, as little processed stuff as possible, and track your calories in and calories burned as closely and accurately as possible. You can do this!
  • bonoeuf
    bonoeuf Posts: 58 Member
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    Cardio is better to lose a bunch of weight first, then lifting to sculpt and tone...

    Negative.

    I believe so for a person at that high in weight...need to get the heart at healthy levels.cardio is a great start.They both have benefits but I believe more cardio will help you

    Believing something does not make it true.
    Read as much as you can by the likes of Alan Aragon and his peers. You will learn that muscle built can be lost by too much cardio. A lot of women favour cardio because they fear that they will look like Arnold if the pick up heavy weights.
    Muscle uses more energy at rest than fat so the more you have the better and of course you look better. Keep lifting, with a short cardio session to warm up. Please don't be tempted to keep cutting calories. A 500cal deficit should lose you a pound per week and so on. Track and track some more. Good luck with your journey.
  • Naedantz
    Naedantz Posts: 5 Member
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    I agree that adding more Cardio to your workout regimen will be helpful, but it could also be what you are eating. You may have to adjust what you are eating. I have a personal trainer and when I reached a plateau, he had me to cut down on my fruit. Although fruit is very nutritious, it is also high in sugar and too much sugar can cause you to store fat. Then the weight started coming off again. I agree that a view of your diary might help to shed some light.

    Now, don't get discouraged, the numbers are not going up which is a good thing and congrats on the 9lbs. Stay focused. You may also want to try intervals training.
  • jessjunkies
    jessjunkies Posts: 8 Member
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    It took me six weeks before the weight starting coming off. You just have to be consistant and have patience.
  • MrsBassPlayer
    MrsBassPlayer Posts: 7 Member
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    Did you cut out bread altogether?
  • dmenchac
    dmenchac Posts: 447 Member
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    Cardio is better to lose a bunch of weight first, then lifting to sculpt and tone...

    Some of your posts really just blow my mind......
  • drwaddy
    drwaddy Posts: 50 Member
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    How do I open my diary? I can't find that option in the settings.
  • Parthus02
    Parthus02 Posts: 50 Member
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    I think the debate about cardio versus strength training is centered around how much you "lose" via the scale. You will lose with both types of exercise. However, muscle does weigh more than fat so it may appear (appearances can be deceiving) that you're not "losing" as much as quickly, but you will be getting leaner with strength training.

    I think the reason the people on the cardio side of the debate are advocating more cardio is that your heart rate and the duration of your exercise will determine how many calories you burn. Many cardio exercises are considered aerobic exercises (getting energy by using oxygen to fuel metabolism), which maintain a target heart rate somewhere between 55% and 85% of your maximum heart rate. Most people can keep up this level of intensity for a while. Strength training and other really high intensity activities can get you into anaerobic (non-oxygen) conditions, causing muscle fatigue so you may find it harder to do those exercises for as long of a duration as aerobic exercises.

    The reality is, in practically any exercise, we can switch back and forth from aerobic conditions and anaerobic conditions, depending on our intensity level (low intensity toning classes can provide great aerobic conditions, just like over exerting yourself in a long distance run too early will shift you into anaerobic conditions causing fatigue). The point is, you will lose with either cardio or strength training exercises. How many calories you burn will depend on your heart rate and the duration of the exercise.

    And like someone mentioned earlier, the magic formula is calories in - calories out, so technically you can lose weight without exercise (but it's healthier to incorporate some).
  • drwaddy
    drwaddy Posts: 50 Member
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    Ok, after re-reading my Original Post, I can see how some are confused.

    I started working out 2 months ago, and lost 9 lbs in 2 months. I was just lifting 25lb dung bells at my house which I've had forever. I was barely doing 15 min of lifting, and I was just reducing my calories to as close to 2500 a day as I could. I was frequently over by a couple hundred.

    On the 10th of april I signed up to my local gym, and have since been on a 6 day workout routine of using 6 or 7 machines and doing 90 reps with very low weight. It takes me a little less than an hour sometimes more to complete this circuit and I call it a day, when I'm done with this workout I look like I jumped into the pool and my heart pounds so hard it's scary.

    In the last two + weeks, since april 10th, I have had the same measurements and weighed the same amount, despite cutting my calories by a significant amount and added 6 hours of workout a week... That is the part that has me wondering, if it's just not enough time, that's fine, but I would think at my size anything this aggressive would be giving significant results.

    If my diary isn't showing still, I'm like a robot I have almost the same meals every day.

    I have 4 protein shakes in the morning, 100 grams of protein and I mix in some oatmeal for fiber and I can't do any type of seeds and most of the fruits I have tried have also caused my IBS to give me issues. This puts me at about 740 calories for breakfast. I then come home from the gym after my lunch break and have another 2 protein shakes, with more oatmeal and then one of those small tostino's pizzas which is about 1000 calories.

    I supposedly burn about 550 calories at the gym working out for an hour, but it could be a little more or less. and that leaves me about 1500 calories for dinner. I average around 1300.

    I think I finally figured out how to share my diary.
  • pinkhippie
    pinkhippie Posts: 10 Member
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    I am SO not an expert so take what I say with a grain of salt, but i noticed that you eat a Totinos pizza every day. My husband loves those things and eats probably two or three a week for dinner and it really concerns me since they are so processed and unhealthy. But I digress... they have very high levels of sodium. I know that when I consume a lot of sodium it will show up on the scale as water weight since I believe too much sodium makes you retain water. Someone correct me if I am wrong. Could it be something like that combined with your increase of muscle since muscle weighs more than fat?

    eta: and the whole muscle fiber tearing holding onto water to heal thing? That has gotten me a few times when I just started a new intense work out program.
  • lindsey1979
    lindsey1979 Posts: 2,395 Member
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    Ok, after re-reading my Original Post, I can see how some are confused.

    I started working out 2 months ago, and lost 9 lbs in 2 months. I was just lifting 25lb dung bells at my house which I've had forever. I was barely doing 15 min of lifting, and I was just reducing my calories to as close to 2500 a day as I could. I was frequently over by a couple hundred.

    On the 10th of april I signed up to my local gym, and have since been on a 6 day workout routine of using 6 or 7 machines and doing 90 reps with very low weight. It takes me a little less than an hour sometimes more to complete this circuit and I call it a day, when I'm done with this workout I look like I jumped into the pool and my heart pounds so hard it's scary.

    In the last two + weeks, since april 10th, I have had the same measurements and weighed the same amount, despite cutting my calories by a significant amount and added 6 hours of workout a week... That is the part that has me wondering, if it's just not enough time, that's fine, but I would think at my size anything this aggressive would be giving significant results.

    If my diary isn't showing still, I'm like a robot I have almost the same meals every day.

    I have 4 protein shakes in the morning, 100 grams of protein and I mix in some oatmeal for fiber and I can't do any type of seeds and most of the fruits I have tried have also caused my IBS to give me issues. This puts me at about 740 calories for breakfast. I then come home from the gym after my lunch break and have another 2 protein shakes, with more oatmeal and then one of those small tostino's pizzas which is about 1000 calories.

    I supposedly burn about 550 calories at the gym working out for an hour, but it could be a little more or less. and that leaves me about 1500 calories for dinner. I average around 1300.

    I think I finally figured out how to share my diary.

    Read up on water retention. Many people don't see any losses on the scale (and some even gain) in the first few weeks after starting a new weight routine. It's really common because the body pulls in extra water to aid in muscle repair. Since you seem pretty darn confident in your calorie tracking, that's likely the issue. Read up on this and the "whoosh" and I bet you'll drop a bunch of water weight in the next few weeks.

    http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/of-whooshes-and-squishy-fat.html
    http://www.leangains.com/2010/01/how-to-deal-with-water-retention-part_28.html
  • drwaddy
    drwaddy Posts: 50 Member
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    Yeah, I've been tracking my calories, and trying to figure it out. I think it's my sodium is holding a lot of water weight, that would make a lot of sense. So, I'm sure I may start losing soon.

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