Body Fat/Muscle Mass Question

daryan1203
daryan1203 Posts: 15 Member
edited April 2016 in Health and Weight Loss
I have a digital scale that provides body fat and muscle mass percentages. Not sure how accurate they are, but at least I have the ability to measure changes over time.

Anyway, on 2/18/16 my body fat was 24.3% and muscle mass 39.4% based on the scale. My weight was 225.6, so extrapolating, my body fat weight was 54.8 pounds and muscle mass was 88.9 pounds. Today at at total weight of 209.2, my body fat was 21.4% or 44.8 pounds and muscle mass was 41% or 85.8 pounds. Based on this, I've lost 10 pounds of fat and 3.1 pounds of muscle.

One of my big concerns is losing weight too fast so that I end up losing some muscle instead of all fat. I have been working out about 4 days a week for an hour each time at orange theory (combination cardio, body weight and lifting). I feel stronger and can lift more, do more push ups etc., so I was surprised to see that I had lost 3 pounds of muscle.

So my question is, does the above sound ok, specifically the 3 pounds of muscle loss? Ultimately, I'm ok as long as I get to my goal weight then I can focus on building muscle, but just curious if I should bump up my calorie intake to avoid any muscle loss. If it helps, I'm a 33 year old male.

Appreciate your input.

Replies

  • DanaDark
    DanaDark Posts: 2,187 Member
    You will lose muscle mass while losing weight. Period. The end. There is literally nothing short of illegal steroids you can do to stop that.

    However... lifting weights while in a calorie deficit will encourage more fat loss and less muscle loss. But muscle will still be lost.
  • daryan1203
    daryan1203 Posts: 15 Member
    Thank you, DanaDark. That's reassuring to hear.
  • Unknown
    Unknown
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  • vismal
    vismal Posts: 2,463 Member
    Those scales are worthless IMO. The number you get is neither accurate or reliable and not even all that great for tracking a trend over time. I would honestly stop looking at the number as I believe they do more harm then good. While muscle mass is lean mass, not all lean mass is muscle mass. While losses to lean mass are inevitable, losses to actual muscle tissue can be kept to a minimum by consuming enough protein and doing weight training. Again, just ignore the body fat readings and focus on seeing a weight loss over time combined with strength gains or maintenance. That is the main way to know that you are not losing too much muscle mass while you lose fat.
  • SingingSingleTracker
    SingingSingleTracker Posts: 1,866 Member
    edited April 2016
    daryan1203 wrote: »
    I have a digital scale that provides body fat and muscle mass percentages. Not sure how accurate they are, but at least I have the ability to measure changes over time.

    Anyway, on 2/18/16 my body fat was 24.3% and muscle mass 54.8% based on the scale. My weight was 225.6, so extrapolating, my body fat weight was 54.8 pounds and muscle mass was 88.9 pounds. Today at at total weight of 209.2, my body fat was 21.4% or 44.8 pounds and muscle mass was 41% or 85.8 pounds. Based on this, I've lost 10 pounds of fat and 3.1 pounds of muscle.

    One of my big concerns is losing weight too fast so that I end up losing some muscle instead of all fat. I have been working out about 4 days a week for an hour each time at orange theory (combination cardio, body weight and lifting). I feel stronger and can lift more, do more push ups etc., so I was surprised to see that I had lost 3 pounds of muscle.

    So my question is, does the above sound ok, specifically the 3 pounds of muscle loss? Ultimately, I'm ok as long as I get to my goal weight then I can focus on building muscle, but just curious if I should bump up my calorie intake to avoid any muscle loss. If it helps, I'm a 33 year old male.

    Appreciate your input.

    The mirror will tell you as body fat percentage images are all over the 'net....

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    25431601281_c3968cc86f_b.jpg

    25264459645_faa2c889ea_b.jpg
  • ElPasoMark
    ElPasoMark Posts: 47 Member
    What scale are you using?
  • daryan1203
    daryan1203 Posts: 15 Member
    Please note, I had a typo in my original post, my starting muscle mass percentage was 39.4% (as opposed to 54.8%). So my muscle mass % has gone up from 39.4% to 41% according to the scale. Thanks for the input everyone. I realize the scale is probably not accurate, and I like the recommendation to just focus on visible/tangible results as opposed to getting in the weeds on the numbers.

    The scale I'm using is Weight Gurus Bluetooth Smart Connected Body Fat Scale with Large Backlit LCD, by Greater Goods (Black). Purchased from Amazon.
  • nordlead2005
    nordlead2005 Posts: 1,303 Member
    You don't have to lose muscle while losing weight. However, we don't know if you lost muscle or not as those scales are inaccurate and the amount of muscle "lost" is pretty much in the noise. If I believed ever measurement I took (I use calipers and a tape measure) was 100% accurate then some weeks I lose a lb of muscle and others I gain a lb of muscle and honestly neither is probably true.
  • Adi4Fitness
    Adi4Fitness Posts: 97 Member
    Make sure you are maintaining sufficient daily protein intake as per your body weight / lean body mass. Doing weights on a calorie deficit while maintaining adequate protein intake is the best way to preserve a majority of your muscle mass.

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