How to tell if I'm losing fat or muscle?

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crys_aintgivingup
crys_aintgivingup Posts: 115 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
How do I tell? Because according to the scale, I've been losing pounds. But I don't think my inches have really changed because clothes are still as tight as before and visually I don't look too different.

I'm worried :(

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  • the_great_beyond_
    the_great_beyond_ Posts: 157 Member
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    Get some calipers... have a friend measure your body fat using it.

    If you've got some spare cash, find a place that does hydrostatic weighing or DEXA scans.
  • lrmall01
    lrmall01 Posts: 377 Member
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    But I don't think my inches have really changed because clothes are still as tight as before and visually I don't look too different.

    You should probably get a tape measure and actually know if your inches are changing. You can use the US Navy formulas to estimate body fat percentage to see if it is changing.

    http://fitness.bizcalcs.com/Calculator.asp?Calc=Body-Fat-Navy

    Note that this formula may not necessarily be accurate, but you can use it to determine if you body fat % is decreasing over time if you just measure consistently.

    Good luck!
  • JeffInJax
    JeffInJax Posts: 232 Member
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    Like bey said, calipers or another trusted method is the best way to tell but that will only give you a baseline if you havent already taken measurements before. A lot of it depends on your diet and how long you've been at it. If you are starving yourself its probably a good bit of muscle you are losing, if its the first week or two of losses. then more then likely its water weight which is why it does not seem too different visually or in clothes.

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