Nervous to exercise again.

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RLFlores92
RLFlores92 Posts: 32 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I had surgery about a month ago and am unable to exercise until the first week of May.
Ever since I stopped running and lifting weights I have been losing weight! I am no longer stuck in a plateau.

Now my concern is incorporating exercise again. I don't want to get stuck again :/

Does anyone have a possible answer as to why I didn't lose weight while dieting and exercising?

Replies

  • AlphaCajun
    AlphaCajun Posts: 290 Member
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    You're losing muscle..
  • RLFlores92
    RLFlores92 Posts: 32 Member
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    That can happen in 6 weeks?! So... Should I maybe just focus on losing fat before gaining some of the muscle back? I'm currently at 166 and want to get down to 145 by the beginning of July.
  • msf74
    msf74 Posts: 3,498 Member
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    [It is entirely likely (unless you have been starving yourself) that most of the weight you dropped when you stopped exercising was fluid and / or glycogen stored by your body to prepare for the next bout of exercise.

    The name of the game is fat loss not weight loss.

    Keep doing what you were doing as long as it is safe to do so.
  • icemom011
    icemom011 Posts: 999 Member
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    AlphaCajun wrote: »
    You're losing muscle..

    Your body will use it's fat resources before attacking muscle. So if you are eating at the deficit, you will lose weight. You don't have to exercise, especially if you can't. Having said that, if your muscles are not getting same workout, they will get smaller, of course. Also, muscle will retain water after exercise, so it amounts to extra weight. And maybe you eat at maintenance, not at deficit. That will make your weight stable.
  • RLFlores92
    RLFlores92 Posts: 32 Member
    edited April 2016
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    Wow, this is enlightening to find out. In the past month I lost about 8lbs. So when I start exercising again will I gain weight or just stay at the 166? I eat around 1200 to 1300 calories a day and I try to stay as close as I can to my macros goals.
  • OfficialDSXIII
    OfficialDSXIII Posts: 91 Member
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    msf74 wrote: »
    The name of the game is fat loss not weight loss.

    What he said!

    If your goal is a great body then exercise.
  • RLFlores92
    RLFlores92 Posts: 32 Member
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    I used to run about 15 miles a week and strength trained 4 days a week before my surgery. I'll just pick that back up when I'm fully healed then :)
  • msf74
    msf74 Posts: 3,498 Member
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    RLFlores92 wrote: »
    So when I start exercising again will I gain weight or just stay at the 166?

    The likelihood is that your weight will go up when you start exercising again as your body will start storing more fluid to deal with it. That said it should plateau after a few weeks and then start falling again as you lose fat.

    As long as your weight starts trending downwards again over say a 4 week period you have little to worry about.

  • RLFlores92
    RLFlores92 Posts: 32 Member
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    Okay, good to know. Thank you :)
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 48,618 Member
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    Weight loss is from reduction of water in your body. The less energy your body need for activity, the less glycogen you store. And glycogen need quite a bit of water to store it in the cells. Also, no exercise means no muscle recovery, so less water needed there also.
    A TRUE PLATEAU is 6 weeks or more of no weight loss if one is consistent in diet and exercise. If there's any "break" in the 6 weeks, it's not a plateau, meaning if you included a snack that you don't normally eat, then the consistency is lost. Many people with STALL along their weight loss journey, however if they stay consistent to diet and exercise (calorie deficit) it should continue.

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    Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
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