Losing inches but weight loss seems to have stalled

A good friend once told me, "You're losing inches. You're getting smaller. You look fitter. The scale just hasn't gotten the memo yet!" It's true. The scale will catch up. Keep up the great work!

I think you have to keep in mind that weight loss, whether doing cardio or weights, is not linear for many people. Some will start off losing in a linear fashion, then all of a sudden it will go in fits and starts. No one seems to really understand with certainty why, but one reasonable theory I've seen is due to water retention and the "whoosh". I imagine, for whatever reason, you're retaining water -- could be more sodium, could be more carbs, could be new work out routine, could be reasons they don't really know.

Don't stress about it. It's super common and usually evens out over the long term. Here's Lyle's "whoosh" explanation:
www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/of-whooshes-and-squishy-fat.html
leangains.com/2010/01/how-to-deal-with-water-retention-part_28.html

Don't trust your scale - it gets a secret joy in playing tricks on you. I weigh every day, but only record my weight once a week. I also take my measurements on the first of each month.

I started running (walk/jog) in May, then almost daily starting June. At first the scale was going down at a pretty good pace, then in July, it seemed to almost stall. But I kept reminding myself that the scale is only one piece of the weight loss puzzle. When I checked my progress on August 1, I was crushed to have lost only 3 pounds for the entire month. BUT, I took those measurements and wow, I'd lost about 2 inches overall (except my thighs) and my body fat (which is not totally accurate using the home scale) has gone down about 5%. I do lift weights 3x a week with a personal trainer. He confirmed that my body fat has decreased (don't have his numbers in front of me, but he was impressed with the % drop).

So, watch the scale, but more importantly, watch those measurements and how you feel on a fitness level. The scale will eventually "get the memo" as a previous poster said.

Good luck!

Don't trust your scale - it gets a secret joy in playing tricks on you. I weigh every day, but only record my weight once a week. I also take my measurements on the first of each month.

I started running (walk/jog) in May, then almost daily starting June. At first the scale was going down at a pretty good pace, then in July, it seemed to almost stall. But I kept reminding myself that the scale is only one piece of the weight loss puzzle. When I checked my progress on August 1, I was crushed to have lost only 3 pounds for the entire month. BUT, I took those measurements and wow, I'd lost about 2 inches overall (except my thighs) and my body fat (which is not totally accurate using the home scale) has gone down about 5%. I do lift weights 3x a week with a personal trainer. He confirmed that my body fat has decreased (don't have his numbers in front of me, but he was impressed with the % drop).

So, watch the scale, but more importantly, watch those measurements and how you feel on a fitness level. The scale will eventually "get the memo" as a previous poster said.

Good luck!

The scale does seem to have a sick sense of humor I'm beginning to realize that the measuring tape is my new best friend. Working out is so much fun now, and I have so much more energy than before that I would let the number on the scale discourage me too much. Thanks so much for your encouragement. It's really helpful!

If you haven't read Staci's story, you definitely should. It's great to see the effect of lifting heavy on a woman and the super difference in her weight versus her body. The differences at 118, 131 and 142 are astounding (142 is wear she looks her best -- lowest fat, highest LBM percentage).

http://www.nerdfitness.com/blog/2011/07/21/meet-staci-your-new-powerlifting-super-hero/

Also, feel free to check out mybodygallery.com Lots of pics of women with different sizes at different weights. It really is impressive to see such the great variation based on body type, body composition, etc.

Bumping for people who are asking/wondering about this. I was;) I'm checking out the article for helpful information.

Also, keep weight fluctuation in mind as you continue with your weight loss. Just as sometimes you'll lose inches and no weight, or weight but no inches, you'll also probably fluctuate in weight sometimes. Someone else mentioned the "Woosh." It does happen so to keep from freaking out about it, I just weigh butt ugly naked (BUN weight) every morning and graph it on WeightGrapher.com, average it out for the week, and log the weight average on MFP every Sunday. This way there are no surprises when I'm fluctuating. I can see the pattern over time. I also measure myself once a month to track inches lost. It's kind of an overall process of scale, inches, and how you look and feel as your clothes get looser.

I've dropped 41lbs. so far and am just 10lbs. from maintenance. Just have patience and it will happen.