I am 222 pounds/F, Should I wait to start strength training!?

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mrsKOrtiz
mrsKOrtiz Posts: 949 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
My hubby and I joined the YMCA, we are both looking to lose weight. He on the other hand, can not wait to get into the weight room. Should I start at such a heavy weight? and honestly I wouldn't know where to start. My height is 5'4.. Oh and should you use an hrm while weight lifting? By the way, I see a potential belly flap in the future of my weight loss journey.. lol I thought I should throw that in there somewhere.

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  • susanebondurant556
    susanebondurant556 Posts: 2
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    Hi Karina, I have been using weights for a couple years. If you start out with light weights and work your way up, building muscle is a great way to burn calories. Good luck!
  • mrsKOrtiz
    mrsKOrtiz Posts: 949 Member
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    Thank you. Honestly, as stupid that it may sound, I am afraid of stalling my weight loss.
  • Stev0lved
    Stev0lved Posts: 28 Member
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    Weightlifting will definitely not stall your weight loss. In fact, it will speed it up. Like Susan said, start light and work your way up. Maybe start with just the bar on some exercises and add 5 lbs. a week to the bar. It will be slow going, but it will help you so much.
  • Cielazul
    Cielazul Posts: 77 Member
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    I started lifting heavy weights at about 250 pounds (I am now just around 209), and I wish I had started earlier! And yes, my weight loss stalled for five full weeks after I started lifting, then at the end of that time, virtually overnight, I dropped 12 pounds. It was really difficult to keep motivated in the setting of stalled changes on the scale, but having read about other people's experiences I knew that if I was keeping within my calorie budget the weight loss would return full force eventually. I will say that I did not start lifting until I was two months into my weight loss (I started at 280 pounds) and I had firmly established my new eating style, logging my intake, and getting enough aerobic activity.

    The weight loss stall many folks experience is due to increased glycogen and water storage (a 1:4 ratio, so it is mostly water, but it must be there with the glycogen) in muscles (a good thing, as muscles can only use local glycogen) and water uptake by damaged/remodeling/growing muscle tissue. I suggest you roll with it, because it will only benefit you in the long run. People who lift during weight loss end up really happy that they did not wait until they got to their goal weight to start lifting.
  • h7463
    h7463 Posts: 626 Member
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    Hey! I've trained a girl at 235 lbs, and she litterally tore up the weights. Don't be afraid, it will give your metabolism a big boost, not to mention your confidence! Your skin might bounce back better, too. Practice good form and don't shy away from the bigger dumbbells as you improve! Lifting weights might make the number on the scale not go down as fast as you might think, due to the sore muscles holding water for repair. But that's not a problem, because you will still shrink in size. Get a tape measure and document your progress. Also, take some private pictures of yourself right now, best in a swimsuit or close fitting gym clothes, front, back, sides. Repeat every few weeks to monitor your shape change.
    Good luck!
  • kittikat1119
    kittikat1119 Posts: 96 Member
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    Start strength training/weight training now. I wish I would have worked to at least maintain my muscle the first time I went through a large weight loss. I ended up thin, but still flabby and kinda gross looking naked.

    You will look better and be smaller at a higher weight if you maintain more of your lean muscle. Which also means you will be able to eat more food when you get to maintenance. Both are awesome reasons to push your muscles. :)

    If you are afraid of getting discouraged when the scale doesn't move quickly, buy a tape measure! If you are not worried about that....buy a tape measure! Seriously, I love mine and use it along with my scale to measure my success. It helps me see when I have made improvements to my body even when the scale doesn't show a darn thing. It also lets me have hard evidence when I lose inches in my problem areas which keeps me going.

    If you need more inspiration, start looking at the pictures on MFP of women who lift, OMG they are amazing! If you look you will often see them weighing more in their after pic and yet looking much smaller than their before.

    So, to bring a very long winded answer to a close....yes, start lifting now! :)
  • cw106
    cw106 Posts: 952 Member
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    karinaortiz23 wrote: »
    My hubby and I joined the YMCA, we are both looking to lose weight. He on the other hand, can not wait to get into the weight room. Should I start at such a heavy weight? and honestly I wouldn't know where to start. My height is 5'4.. Oh and should you use an hrm while weight lifting? By the way, I see a potential belly flap in the future of my weight loss journey.. lol I thought I should throw that in there somewhere.

    1 dont wait.start asap.
    2 hrm only works for steady state cardio so,no.
    3 belly flap. do some planks,crunches etc too daily.
    g luck.

  • JosieRawr
    JosieRawr Posts: 788 Member
    edited November 2014
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    I agree- start now if you want to lift! you will retain some water and your muscles will store glycogen, but that's a good thing and not at all stopping you from also losing fat which is the ultimate goal.
    -

    edit- hrm does not accurately track weight lifting calories. if you have something like a body media or another full day type tracker it should be good.
  • arditarose
    arditarose Posts: 15,573 Member
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    Now now now. I'm sure everyone made good points. Also, it's great for your self-esteem because you will become physically stronger but also LOOK better at whatever weight you are, if you're lifting.
  • mrsKOrtiz
    mrsKOrtiz Posts: 949 Member
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    Thank you everyone
  • Fitteacherc
    Fitteacherc Posts: 38 Member
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    I weigh 230 and I started powerlifting in September. Lifting heavy weights has been an awesome experience for me. I go to a black iron gym where everyone powerlifts - it's a great environment. If you don't have experience lifting, it would be a good idea to have someone show you the ropes for a bit.

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