Is it possible to loose weight and not inches?

nivi_r
nivi_r Posts: 37 Member
edited November 2024 in Health and Weight Loss
So I know what they say about loosing inches and not cms. And how it is a good thing.
And I get that.

I seem to be loosing weight, but not inches. Over the last three months, I have lost 8 kilos, 6.7 cms exactly.Two and half inches is all that I have lost.

Starting this month, my stomach looks funny. Think I should start doing crunches.

What am I doing wrong? I would like to loose weight and also want it to show. I do cardio and also some light weights.

Replies

  • Need2Exerc1se
    Need2Exerc1se Posts: 13,575 Member
    Where do you measure?
  • nivi_r
    nivi_r Posts: 37 Member
    neck, bust, frame, waist, hip, thighs (upper and lower)
  • Need2Exerc1se
    Need2Exerc1se Posts: 13,575 Member
    nivi_r wrote: »
    neck, bust, frame, waist, hip, thighs (upper and lower)

    It does seem like you should have lost more inches. It could be error in measuring. It's hard to get the same tautness each time. Either that or something you eat could be causing bloating.
  • nivi_r
    nivi_r Posts: 37 Member
    Need2Exerc1se wrote: »
    It does seem like you should have lost more inches. It could be error in measuring. It's hard to get the same tautness each time.

    True that - I measure myself regularly and in the long run, think this should cancel out.
    Need2Exerc1se wrote: »
    Either that or something you eat could be causing bloating.
    Could be, never thought of this. I have always felt bloated in the past, I thought it got better this time with all the water I drink.
  • WickedPineapple
    WickedPineapple Posts: 698 Member
    You know I had the same problem when I was first losing weight. The scale was going down, but measurements were practically the same. I discovered it was because I was losing weight mainly in places I didn't/couldn't measure like my shoulders and upper back. I also lost fat from areas on my legs between measurements (i.e., around my knees).

    I would suggest taking pictures and measuring a few more places like your natural waist (smallest) and widest part of your waist, ribcage (underneath breasts and above natural waist), forearms, bicepts, calves, and ankles. Some measurements don't change at all while others will shift quite a bit! For example, my bust size hasn't changed too much, but I've lost something like 8" off my ribcage.
  • nivi_r
    nivi_r Posts: 37 Member
    @wickedpineapple - Thank you!! I hope that's the case with me as well. I will start measuring the places you have mentioned as well. Hopefully I am loosing inches in the other places that I am not measuring currently.

    12061491.png
  • nivi_r
    nivi_r Posts: 37 Member
    edited March 2015
    Update - I erred while doing the math. It is 6.7 inches and not cms :-)

    Over the last two days, I have measured myself more regularly as I wanted to see if I was carrying water weight.

    I weight different over the day. Over the last two days I have gained one kilo(?). And gained inches. Surprising is that I have gained half a inch around my ankles and then some more around the rest of my body. This when compared to just y'day.

    Something's not alright. Is it reasonable to assume I am bloating like crazy as I can't gain inches around my ankles overnight? I do feel puffy, my face looks weird in the morning - always thought it was my sinus + some water retention.
  • LAWoman72
    LAWoman72 Posts: 2,846 Member
    edited March 2015
    I find measuring an exercise in frustration. Am I pulling tighter than last time? More loosely? Did the elastic-ish fabric of the tape measure stretch over time? Am I higher than the last time I measured? Lower?

    Beyond that, I am losing weight in some very weird and difficult-to-measure places. For example, one of the very first things I noticed after my first 15-lb. loss was that I was able to lie on my back on the couch to watch TV or read, and all of a sudden I could breathe easily that way; I didn't have to turn slightly to the side after a few minutes. My fat wasn't crushing my windpipe any more. I'm not sure where that fat was lost - my upper chest? My neck? Under my chin? Something in that area that was crushing the air (previously) when I was lying on my back.

    Another thing, and please don't laugh - I'm serious about this: my toes are thinner. I mean noticeably thinner. Actually, it IS kind of laughable...but it's true. If only I'd thought to measure the circumference of each toe when I was at my high of 220...

    Just keep on keepin' on. You're obviously doing something right. :)
  • nivi_r
    nivi_r Posts: 37 Member
    @LAWoman72‌ - true that. I find measuring myself or even the food I eat, very cumbersome. It is a pain. And measuring inches is never easy. Some of the weird places you have mentioned, aren't really weird. I think I have lost some weight off my back too, my clothes look a lot more clean (you know what I mean, they don't cling as before).Toe, now that is weird - do you have any before and after pictures? :-)

    As long as I am doing something right, I have no issues.But if I am only loosing (and gaining back) water weight - I would like to do something about it.
  • WickedPineapple
    WickedPineapple Posts: 698 Member
    edited March 2015
    I wouldn't measure any more than once a month. And DON'T do it when you feel bloated (i.e., TOM or right after a night of drinking or fast food, etc.). Just like your weight, your measurements will vary quite a bit day to day, so if going up bothers you then weigh/measure less often.

    I had the same experience as LAWoman. I went from a shoe size 7 or 7.5 to 6.5 after I lost weight. My ring finger went down several sizes as well (6.5 to 4.75). The shoe thing threw me. None of my shoes fit!
  • Wiseandcurious
    Wiseandcurious Posts: 730 Member
    nivi_r wrote: »
    Update - I erred while doing the math. It is 6.7 inches and not cms :-)

    Over the last two days, I have measured myself more regularly as I wanted to see if I was carrying water weight.

    I weight different over the day. Over the last two days I have gained one kilo(?). And gained inches. Surprising is that I have gained half a inch around my ankles and then some more around the rest of my body. This when compared to just y'day.

    Something's not alright. Is it reasonable to assume I am bloating like crazy as I can't gain inches around my ankles overnight? I do feel puffy, my face looks weird in the morning - always thought it was my sinus + some water retention.

    This sounds exactly like what one would expect with serious water retention. The one serious thing to have in mind and get checked out with your doctor is kidney issues. They can and do sneak up on people, there may be no obvious symptoms like pain etc but bloating, especially in the face and ankles, could be a symptom. A simple urine test can be enough to check this out.
  • mimikins2412
    mimikins2412 Posts: 25 Member
    Water retention could be relate to TOM and sodium intake too
  • arditarose
    arditarose Posts: 15,573 Member
    In response to you mentioning your tummy looked "funny"...how so?
  • crystalstinson7
    crystalstinson7 Posts: 101 Member
    Going by measurements is so frustrating to me. I've lost almost 60lbs and my measurements don't seem to have changed as much as you'd think they should. I think there are a multitude of reasons for this, the first being errors on my part. I probably did it wrong in the beginning. Another thing that I struggle with is loose skin. It might not contain fat, but it still takes up space. And, as others have mentioned, I've obviously lost weight in places I don't measure--feet, lower legs, lower arms, back, etc. I love weighing myself. That's my go-to for measuring progress. Second is how my clothes feel.
  • nivi_r
    nivi_r Posts: 37 Member
    Wiseandcurious wrote: »
    This sounds exactly like what one would expect with serious water retention. The one serious thing to have in mind and get checked out with your doctor is kidney issues. They can and do sneak up on people, there may be no obvious symptoms like pain etc but bloating, especially in the face and ankles, could be a symptom. A simple urine test can be enough to check this out.
    \Now, that you point this out - there is some pain in the abdomen as well. I never connected the two. So I should I just go to the doc and ask him to me prescribe a test for me to check water retention?
    Thanks for this. I never knew water retention could cause medical problems as well.
  • nivi_r
    nivi_r Posts: 37 Member
    arditarose wrote: »
    In response to you mentioning your tummy looked "funny"...how so?

    I have a belly. I had one earlier as well, but now I look pregnant. My clothes looks a lot neat at all other places but my stomach and it shows/protrudes. My belly button looks like a frown/like gravity is making it go down. I didn't have this problem even when I weighed a lot more.

  • ChaiTea2015
    ChaiTea2015 Posts: 15
    I think it's like someone else said. I lost weight and I went down about 2 inches in my waist but everything else hasn't changed at all. I looked at some "before and after" photos of myself and it seems I lost weight in my arms, stomach and below my bust but not around the key areas that affect measurements.
This discussion has been closed.

Categories