weight loss and the gym

dchogeland
dchogeland Posts: 5 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Hello, long time listener first time caller. first a bit of a back story. I'm a 42 yo m and I have always been heavy but in March of 2014 I hit rock bottom. I weighed in at 339 my heaviest ever. I picked up myfitness pal and it saved my life. through learning about portions and healthy eating I have lost 70lbs and feel better than I have in years. My only exercise was walking a couple times a week. Last moth the wife and I joined our local ymca and its been great. I am using all the fitlynxx machines on a regular basis. I can feel the muscle definition building but my steady weight loss has slowed down. Is this normal as lean muscle replaces fat. I'm down to about 1700 calories per day. Should i increase a little bit or be patient a little longer. I'm excited about being in the gym and feeling good but a little frustrated my measurable weight loss has slowed down.

thanks D

Replies

  • Capt_Apollo
    Capt_Apollo Posts: 9,026 Member
    your weight loss is going to taper off, but as long as you are eating right, exercising, and still losing weight, i wouldn't be too worried.

    however, 1,700 calories is pretty low for a dude. if you feel like your energy is dropping, try and eat a little bit more.
  • Hornsby
    Hornsby Posts: 10,322 Member
    Well, in the first month you are going to retain water as your muscles need it to repair. This will usually cause people to "stall" for a bit until their muscles get used to the new activity they aren't used to. This is completely normal.

    After only a month, I would probably wait it out for a couple more weeks.

    You don't build much muscle in a deficit so the "muscle replacing fat" theory is probably not the issue.

  • JenMc14
    JenMc14 Posts: 2,389 Member
    Muscle won't replace fat. You could be building a bit if you're completely new to lifting. What's likely happening is that previously, your loss was coming from dpfat and muscle. Now more of it is coming from fat as the lifting should help you retain muscle. That often makes the scale slow down. Use pictures and measurements along with the scale to judge success. Also, you probably could actually eat more and still lose.
  • Need2Exerc1se
    Need2Exerc1se Posts: 13,575 Member
    When you first start a new exercise, it's common to retain water for muscle repair. This is likely what's happening. Give your body time to adjust to the new exercise.
  • richardheath
    richardheath Posts: 1,276 Member
    Slow down, plateaus etc are all part of weight loss. By adding in a new exercise, you might be retaining more water (to help heal the muscle), giving the appearance of slowed weight loss too. Plus, as you get closer to goal, the loss is going to slow. As long as you are still heading in the right direction, I wouldn't worry about it too much.

    But yeah, 1700 does seem to low for a guy. How much do you weigh now? What does MFP suggest? Do you eat back exercise calories on top of that 1700? I think some of the best advice around here is to eat as much as you can while still losing - adherence is better if you don't feel too deprived etc.
  • dchogeland
    dchogeland Posts: 5 Member
    thanks, i appreciate the advice!
  • dchogeland
    dchogeland Posts: 5 Member
    My goal on mfp is down to 1710. I've logged for 209 days straight and have only went over less than 6 times. Ive been bouncing between 269 and 271 for the last couple weeks. When I walk outside or ride the stationary i will log that activity and eat those calories back. I've always had good luck trusting the map my walk calorie burn number. I havent been after the weights because im not sure how much to take. Usually it takes me 1 1/2 to 3/4 hour to use all 21 machines.
  • Kalikel
    Kalikel Posts: 9,603 Member
    The more you lose, the harder it gets. Enjoy the beginning when it comes off easier and remember that it's just going to keep getting harder, so you must keep plugging along.

    Remind your wife that men lose more easily, too. It's likely you'll start to look better before she does, so don't let her get down about it!!!

    Congrats on your success so far! :)

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