Why are my measurements not changing?

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dave_in_ni
dave_in_ni Posts: 533 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I've been measuring every other week since Jan, lost 30lbs and yet my measurements are more or less the same. The scales are moving but the measurements aren't shifting. Why would this be? My measurements are things like, waist, chest, thighs, arms, neck, shoulders etc.

Replies

  • Yi5hedr3
    Yi5hedr3 Posts: 2,696 Member
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    Lost muscle, gained fat. Need to track percent of body fat, not weight. ;)
  • Beth_Marshall
    Beth_Marshall Posts: 30 Member
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    Same problem here! Scales are moving nicely in.the right direction but the measurements are pretty much the same as always
  • beth1079
    beth1079 Posts: 12 Member
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    Same here.
  • mnemonicone3
    mnemonicone3 Posts: 20 Member
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    I'm in the same boat, but I've changed sizes in clothing. Could be that I'm measuring wrong or slightly in a different place so measurements are off? Don't really know. Are your clothes fitting differently?
  • arditarose
    arditarose Posts: 15,573 Member
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    You said "more or less" the same. What does that mean? A half in, quarter of an inch here or there is a difference.

    If you have a lot to lose, it could take a little while. You should start seeing a shift soon though.
  • jsecret
    jsecret Posts: 606 Member
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    when I was actively measuring I had to make sure to "behave" the same way each time I took measurements. I had a habit of sucking in, or flexing, or otherwise contouring myself to make measurements seem better. You might be best to have a trusted friend do the measurements for you.
  • kathrynjean_
    kathrynjean_ Posts: 428 Member
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    Also, what measurements are you taking? MFP has a pretty limited selection that it lets you log and track (neck, waist, and hips, I think?) I would recommend also measuring arms, calves, and thighs.
  • dave_in_ni
    dave_in_ni Posts: 533 Member
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    kathrynjean_ wrote: »
    Also, what measurements are you taking? MFP has a pretty limited selection that it lets you log and track (neck, waist, and hips, I think?) I would recommend also measuring arms, calves, and thighs.

    I dont measure on MFP, I do track arms calves and thighs as well.

    When I say more or less I am not talking inches, I am taking half centimeters which is 0.2 of an inch difference which is probably down to my variation in measuring.

    I also don't suck in etc
  • subakwa
    subakwa Posts: 347 Member
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    I am seeing the same on those key measurements, but clothes are fitting better so overall volume must be down! I think a good deal of my early loss has been at the extremities and those "inbetween" areas - the bits that make you round rather than contoured. My chest measurement has shifted, but bust hasn't. My hips have fractionally but waist hasn't, however I can feel the inbetween "saddlebags" have reduced helping clothes fit.

    The rest will shift soon, I am sure!
  • trjjoy
    trjjoy Posts: 666 Member
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    My measurements have also seen little movement, though the scale is being a darling. So I recently tried on a dress that always used to "accentuate my curves". It drowns me!
  • dave_in_ni
    dave_in_ni Posts: 533 Member
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    My legs have definitely got thinner as those slim fit jeans are no longer slim fit and are heading towards relaxed fitting, but I went yesterday to get measured for a new pair of trousers for a wedding. 36w still after losing 33lbs, It seems fat around my waist/belly is going to be the last to move along with the face.

    I wish face went first as its what people seem to notice first, you take someone who has lost say 5lbs coming mostly from face neck etc and someone who has lost 30lbs from elsewhere who will people notice?
  • blues4miles
    blues4miles Posts: 1,481 Member
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    Think about the difference in volume versus surface area...

    We'll start with a sphere with a volume of 700 (radius 5.51) That same sphere will have a surface area of 381.

    If that sphere loses 14% of its volume, so down to 600 (radius now 5.24) the volume is now 345. Only a 9% difference in surface area.

    That's kind of how people work. A certain amount of weight loss (volume loss) will result in a lower percentage of surface area loss, which is what we measure when we take measurements.

    Also, much like your weight can vary by how hydrated you are that day, so can your measurements. Add in some measurement error and you could be losing inches of fat but not see much if you are particularly bloated the day you measured yourself.
  • Nicklebee93
    Nicklebee93 Posts: 316 Member
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    If you're losing too quickly, you could be causing your body to burn off a lot of muscle, which is making you a "skinny fat". AKA your losing but have a high fat %. Now i'm not saying that's the case for you but it could be. For example, take a look at your fist. One fist is equal to 1 pound of muscle and two fists are equal to 1 pound of fat. Fat is 2x the size of muscle.

    Now another reason is you could be measuring wrong? It's no uncommon that you might measure in the wrong area, you could of sucked in. Maybe even wrote the number down wrong.

    Are you exercising? Making sure you're eating protein?
  • tomteboda
    tomteboda Posts: 2,171 Member
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    dave_in_ni wrote: »
    I've been measuring every other week since Jan, lost 30lbs and yet my measurements are more or less the same. The scales are moving but the measurements aren't shifting. Why would this be? My measurements are things like, waist, chest, thighs, arms, neck, shoulders etc.

    It depends how much you have to lose. Volume and surface area changes very slowly if you are significantly overweight (have a large radius).

    It took 35 lbs for me to drop from size 20 pants to 18. Size 14 to 10 was a bigger measurement change but only took 25 lbs because my volume/surface area is down so much.

    Trust the process. If the scale is moving, so to will your measurements.
  • frannyupnorth
    frannyupnorth Posts: 56 Member
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    I've read that as your weight changes, you can expect to lose about 1" from your waistline for each 6-8 lbs of weight loss. Personally, I've lost about 20cm from my waist for 17kg weight loss (~8" for 37lbs), but from an obese starting point, so I probably had more to lose in the way of visceral fat. Realistically you probably only need to measure yourself once a month to track and not get disheartened that you aren't melting away.
  • blewbell
    blewbell Posts: 30 Member
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    I've lost 15 lbs but no inches from waist and face is still fat. I am down a pants size, which is odd. It's almost like the area below my waist and my hips are smaller, but apparently not my waist. The last time I lost this much weight (other than post-pregnancy) I followed the same pattern. I guess it's just our thing. At some point the waist is going to have to give!
  • brb_2013
    brb_2013 Posts: 1,197 Member
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    I think you're losing the fat between your organs and in places you don't measure. Also, don't measure so often. You could check weight every other week but not measures. Those take much more time, dial it back to once a month.
  • kandeye
    kandeye Posts: 216 Member
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    I think it's more you aren't losing inches from where you want. If the legs of your pants are looser then you're losing inches. Sadly we can't control where fat comes from first. Also as others mentioned you could losing the fat from around your organs, which I would say is a good thing. Just keep going good an eventually you'll be where you want.

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