Really thought I'd lost weight :(

webuiltthisnicky
webuiltthisnicky Posts: 84 Member
edited November 17 in Health and Weight Loss
So I've been busting my *kitten* in the gym and doing slimming world. I've been doing slimming world for a couple of months now but only signed back up for the gym two weeks ago as I took a lot of damage in labour during the winter. Anyway I lost two pounds last week which was great but nothing this week. And I've been so careful all week. I had like, one small ice cream when i was out in the sun with my friend on Wednesday and otherwise I've been really good. I feel smaller and I've even been told I look smaller, and i really thought I was going to have results at weigh in today.

My husband keeps telling me that if I'm gaining muscle i might not lose weight but I've heard that that's a myth. I never used to weigh myself when I was a gym goer before pregnancy and just went by how i looked but that's so subjective too.

On the plus side I was so frustrated that i didn't lose weight that I absolutely went mental at the gym this afternoon and shoved all my annoyance into my routine LMAO!

I literally just want a rant because i don't have gym friends and nobody i know cares about this stuff lol.

Replies

  • mfpanyko
    mfpanyko Posts: 21 Member
    I suggest taking your measurements once a month. Sometimes you will see changes that don't show up on the scale right away. Also, weight loss isn't linear and can fluctuate. If you are a daily weigher I suggest using an app like Libra or Happy Scale to track as it shows the trend and helps keep focus off daily fluctuations, if you are eating less calories than you need, the weight loss will show up ...
    And I also suggest a food scale if you are not using one. It is easy to overstuff a measuring cup but the food scale will indicate the exact amount!
  • webuiltthisnicky
    webuiltthisnicky Posts: 84 Member
    edited April 2017
    mfpanyko wrote: »
    I suggest taking your measurements once a month. Sometimes you will see changes that don't show up on the scale right away. Also, weight loss isn't linear and can fluctuate. If you are a daily weigher I suggest using an app like Libra or Happy Scale to track as it shows the trend and helps keep focus off daily fluctuations, if you are eating less calories than you need, the weight loss will show up ...
    And I also suggest a food scale if you are not using one. It is easy to overstuff a measuring cup but the food scale will indicate the exact amount!

    I love the food scale! I used to just guess everything, you should have seen how badly i used to underestimate the amount a uncooked rice or pasta to use! It was embarrassing. So much rice.
  • LivingtheLeanDream
    LivingtheLeanDream Posts: 13,342 Member
    edited April 2017
    It takes time to lose weight, two weeks is not enough time to see results. But you have lost 2lbs :smile: keep going, stay consistently within your calorie allowance and you will lose.

    Mentally we start feeling better about ourselves/our bodies when we start eating better.

    Your husband is wrong about the muscle being built that quickly - it takes a lonngggg long time, more so for us women. It is true that it takes up less space/ is smaller.

    If you have introduced more exercise recently then your body will be holding on to water weight as the muscles repair.

    All the best :smile:

    p.s weight loss isn't linear, you might not lose every week, for me it was every 3rd week. Also depends on how much you have to lose, if you have little to lose then its going to take longer to lose.
  • quiksylver296
    quiksylver296 Posts: 28,439 Member
    mitch16 wrote: »
    If you've been back in the gym for about 2 weeks now, then you may be retaining water as part of the muscle repair process...

    Yep. This^^
  • webuiltthisnicky
    webuiltthisnicky Posts: 84 Member
    mitch16 wrote: »
    If you've been back in the gym for about 2 weeks now, then you may be retaining water as part of the muscle repair process...

    I genuinely didn't know that that was a thing that could happen in the early days. Should I be drinking a load of water to shift that water retention or anything like that?
  • bbell1985
    bbell1985 Posts: 4,571 Member
    webuiltthisnicky wrote: »
    mitch16 wrote: »
    If you've been back in the gym for about 2 weeks now, then you may be retaining water as part of the muscle repair process...

    I genuinely didn't know that that was a thing that could happen in the early days. Should I be drinking a load of water to shift that water retention or anything like that?

    Loads? No. Don't make yourself uncomfortable. Drink to thirst and relax. As long as you have your food scale and accurate logging, you'll know things will even out shortly.
  • cerise_noir
    cerise_noir Posts: 5,468 Member
    bbell1985 wrote: »
    mitch16 wrote: »
    If you've been back in the gym for about 2 weeks now, then you may be retaining water as part of the muscle repair process...

    This. Also, where are you in your cycle? Near ovulation OR period, you can retain water which can mask a loss. For example, I started a new style of training and I'm ovulating...the scale is UP. I'm not trying to lose at the moment, but I know that I haven't gained fat.

    And remember weight loss is not linear. Some weeks you might just not lose as much, but it will come off eventually.

    Yep. This.
  • Silentpadna
    Silentpadna Posts: 1,306 Member
    edited April 2017
    webuiltthisnicky wrote: »
    mitch16 wrote: »
    If you've been back in the gym for about 2 weeks now, then you may be retaining water as part of the muscle repair process...

    I genuinely didn't know that that was a thing that could happen in the early days. Should I be drinking a load of water to shift that water retention or anything like that?

    Water retention is something your body does when it needs it and it is not inherently a bad thing. Yes, there are times when too much sodium can make you feel bloated, but in the case of muscle repair or regular body needs, it's something your body will do whether you are trying to maintain, lose fat, or gain muscle weight.

    Because you are trying to lose weight fat, as a previous poster mentioned, fat loss can be masked by fluid retention, which fluctuates. For me, I see weight fluctuate up 5 pounds in a day. There's no way, at a deficit, or even a "cheat day" (which I don't do), that I could really "gain" weight fat by that much. Since I'm trying to lose 2 pounds per week - soon to drop to 1.5 pounds per week, a fluid retention fluctuation can be more than twice what I am trying to lose in a week......in one single day.
  • rsclause
    rsclause Posts: 3,103 Member
    If in deficit it is hard to gain muscle. My take on it is to be in deficit and workout but not to expect to gain bulk. After you reach the weight you like then add calories and step up your workouts to match your goals.
  • LivingtheLeanDream
    LivingtheLeanDream Posts: 13,342 Member
    webuiltthisnicky wrote: »
    mitch16 wrote: »
    If you've been back in the gym for about 2 weeks now, then you may be retaining water as part of the muscle repair process...

    I genuinely didn't know that that was a thing that could happen in the early days. Should I be drinking a load of water to shift that water retention or anything like that?

    drinking water does help but any weight gain from exercise will subside in a few weeks once your body gets used to the extra activity.
  • ConquerAndBloom
    ConquerAndBloom Posts: 94 Member
    BusyRaeNOTBusty wrote: »
    Weight loss isn't linear. You aren't going to lose every week. I weight often but then plot it in Excel and add a trendline so I can see what is really happening.

    461710c1923edd7ff6329089750aea296bfb.jpg

    I absolutely love this idea! Bottom line is a downward trend, but the fluctuations are also normal. Thanks for sharing!
  • A_Rene86
    A_Rene86 Posts: 141 Member
    I use an app called Libra to track my weight in the same way and I love it. It shows me the overall downward trend, tells me my average rate of loss per week, my average caloric deficit, projects a date I'll reach goal based on past data and most importantly, has allowed me to view that number as a data point and not the enemy. I can also add notes, so for instance, if I had a lot of sodium Sunday and my weight was up Monday, I can note that and over time, begin to understand the reasons for my fluctuations.
  • webuiltthisnicky
    webuiltthisnicky Posts: 84 Member
    These responses are really interesting. Because i don't really have any friends who are into fitness I've never really thought about factoring in all these things, I've always just sort of gone for it and kept an eye on the mirror and my clothes. I think I'm going to try plotting my weight like that and see if a trend appears over time. I genuinely was wondering where i had messed up this week but I don't feel so disheartened now. Thank you!
  • A_Rene86
    A_Rene86 Posts: 141 Member
    Feel free to add me as a friend if you ever need anything! The people here are really helpful as a rule and you'll find the forums can be a really great source of information when you have questions. There's always a few nonsense threads lol, but you can usually pick those out based on the responses :)
  • cthoma19
    cthoma19 Posts: 10 Member
    You probably turned fat into muscle. You have to measure youself as well as weigh yourself to see changes.
  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
    cthoma19 wrote: »
    You probably turned fat into muscle. You have to measure youself as well as weigh yourself to see changes.

    OP is talking about one week. Someone in a deficit won't add significant muscle in one week and we don't even know if she is doing resistance training (she may be, we just don't know). Adding muscle is hard, even in the best circumstances when one is trying to do so and fat doesn't turn into muscle.
  • dotwilldoit
    dotwilldoit Posts: 53 Member
    Glad to see your success!
This discussion has been closed.

Categories