Over 100 pounds to lose and weight lifting
Aukeilagirl
Posts: 147 Member
I started weight lifting a few weeks ago. I understand that when you first start to lift you will gain weight due to retaining water and protecting the muscles or something like that. But I was wondering since I have so much weight to lose will I bulk up a lot if I continue. Should I stick with cardio until I can get my weight down then start to lift?
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Replies
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Lifting will help preserve muscle. You are highly unlikely to build muscle in a calorie deficit.5
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Lift, lift, lift!
The more muscle you have the more calories you burn. As long as you stay in a deficit you will lose weight.
Also make sure to take all of your measurements sometimes the scales is slow to show the results of lifting but the tape measure never lies!
Good luck.4 -
trigden1991 wrote: »Lifting will help preserve muscle. You are highly unlikely to build muscle in a calorie deficit.
In all fairness, the OP is overfat and new to lifting. If anyone can gain some muscle, it's probably her. Having said that, it would be unlikely it would be a lot of muscle and it wouldn't bulk up the OP. But even if she does gain muscle, it won't be at the same rate as fat loss.Lift, lift, lift!
The more muscle you have the more calories you burn. As long as you stay in a deficit you will lose weight.
Also make sure to take all of your measurements sometimes the scales is slow to show the results of lifting but the tape measure never lies!
Good luck.
While this is true, it's like 4-6 calories per day for every 1 lb of muscle gained. It's woefully overblown.3 -
Even with a lot of weight to lose, as stated previously, lifting will help preserve the muscle you already have with the possibility of slight muscle increase. In order to "bulk up" you would need to be at a calorie surplus. Do some research on body building and lifting. There are tons of good YouTube channels and tons of articles on the subject. Again, as stated, you may gain some muscle while eating at a calorie deficit, but not enough to be considered "bulking up".
When losing weight, you need to maintain a calorie deficit, during which your body will want to use the energy stores it already has, this is how weight loss occurs. During that process, the body will try and break down muscle before breaking down fat stores, because breaking down muscle is easier. Lifting or using muscles in general will "tell the body" that you're using those muscles and not to break down the muscle.
"The body has 3 energy sources: carbohydrates (stored as glycogen), protein and fats. It burns them preferentially in that order because of the energy requirements to both store and break them down. ... This is why during dieting you need to exercise to offset muscle protein loss and force the body to burn fat." (found as an answer to a question on quora.com but is a common belief everywhere you look)1 -
cmcollins001 wrote: »Even with a lot of weight to lose, as stated previously, lifting will help preserve the muscle you already have with the possibility of slight muscle increase. In order to "bulk up" you would need to be at a calorie surplus. Do some research on body building and lifting. There are tons of good YouTube channels and tons of articles on the subject. Again, as stated, you may gain some muscle while eating at a calorie deficit, but not enough to be considered "bulking up".
When losing weight, you need to maintain a calorie deficit, during which your body will want to use the energy stores it already has, this is how weight loss occurs. During that process, the body will try and break down muscle before breaking down fat stores, because breaking down muscle is easier. Lifting or using muscles in general will "tell the body" that you're using those muscles and not to break down the muscle.
"The body has 3 energy sources: carbohydrates (stored as glycogen), protein and fats. It burns them preferentially in that order because of the energy requirements to both store and break them down. ... This is why during dieting you need to exercise to offset muscle protein loss and force the body to burn fat." (found as an answer to a question on quora.com but is a common belief everywhere you look)
Fat and carbohydrates are primary energy stores. Proteins are not.1 -
Thank you for all your input. I have another questions. Should I eat all the calories that mfp recommends and should I also eat back all exercise calories? I wonder because every time I eat under my calorie goal people congratulate me for staying under. My recommendation is 1700 calories per day. I try not to go over 1500 is that to low?0
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Aukeilagirl wrote: »Thank you for all your input. I have another questions. Should I eat all the calories that mfp recommends and should I also eat back all exercise calories? I wonder because every time I eat under my calorie goal people congratulate me for staying under. My recommendation is 1700 calories per day. I try not to go over 1500 is that to low?
How long have you been in a calorie deficit? On average how much weight are you losing every week?1 -
Aukeilagirl wrote: »Thank you for all your input. I have another questions. Should I eat all the calories that mfp recommends and should I also eat back all exercise calories? I wonder because every time I eat under my calorie goal people congratulate me for staying under. My recommendation is 1700 calories per day. I try not to go over 1500 is that to low?
How long have you been in a calorie deficit? On average how much weight are you losing every week?
Since I started working out 3 weeks ago I have not loss any weight. I actually gained a few pounds. I was losing between 2-5 pounds a week but not anymore
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Give it a couple more weeks. You are retaining water from starting a new work out. Once you start losing again try not to lose more than 2 pounds a week. When you lose weight too quickly you lose muscle mass along with fat. Once you are getting close to your goal weight you will want to slow the weight lose. Maybe when you have 30 pounds to go aim for 1 pond a week.
In addition to retaining more of your muscle mass you will give your skin more time to adjust.
Continue lifting while in a deficit. You will be very pleased with the results! Plus it is awesome to be able to pick up things without needing help.
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Aukeilagirl wrote: »Aukeilagirl wrote: »Thank you for all your input. I have another questions. Should I eat all the calories that mfp recommends and should I also eat back all exercise calories? I wonder because every time I eat under my calorie goal people congratulate me for staying under. My recommendation is 1700 calories per day. I try not to go over 1500 is that to low?
How long have you been in a calorie deficit? On average how much weight are you losing every week?
Since I started working out 3 weeks ago I have not loss any weight. I actually gained a few pounds. I was losing between 2-5 pounds a week but not anymore
I generally maintain 2 to 3 lbs of additional water weight from lifting. So don't stress it too much.
And in general, you want to find a balance between eating enough calories and weight loss. Getting too aggressive can make things like adherence harder, can increase water retention from stress and can lead to other issues. So if your goal is 1700, Id aim for that with +/- 100 calories.1 -
Aukeilagirl wrote: »Aukeilagirl wrote: »Thank you for all your input. I have another questions. Should I eat all the calories that mfp recommends and should I also eat back all exercise calories? I wonder because every time I eat under my calorie goal people congratulate me for staying under. My recommendation is 1700 calories per day. I try not to go over 1500 is that to low?
How long have you been in a calorie deficit? On average how much weight are you losing every week?
Since I started working out 3 weeks ago I have not loss any weight. I actually gained a few pounds. I was losing between 2-5 pounds a week but not anymore
I generally maintain 2 to 3 lbs of additional water weight from lifting. So don't stress it too much.
And in general, you want to find a balance between eating enough calories and weight loss. Getting too aggressive can make things like adherence harder, can increase water retention from stress and can lead to other issues. So if your goal is 1700, Id aim for that with +/- 100 calories.
This! I also usually have 2-4 pounds of lifting weight.
Eat as much as possible. You want wiggle room down the road. So stick to what mfp gives you and eat exercise calories. Or calc tdee and stick to it.
If you do add muscle and you may (newbie gains) it could look bulky if fat is still covering them. But as you continue losing fat you will get smaller.
Use not just the scale, but pics and measurements too.
Eat plenty of protein. Aim for 30%. This will help!1 -
Aukeilagirl wrote: »I started weight lifting a few weeks ago. I understand that when you first start to lift you will gain weight due to retaining water and protecting the muscles or something like that. But I was wondering since I have so much weight to lose will I bulk up a lot if I continue. Should I stick with cardio until I can get my weight down then start to lift?
I really wish I'd started heavier lifting far earlier in my journey than I did. I'd lost >70lb when I moved away from the machines and on to the free weights and since then although my weight loss has slowed the inches have melted away and my body shape has totally changed. I eat as close to my allotted Calories as I can, aiming for 5lb/month weight loss for 3 months and then a month at maintenance (concentrating on strength), rinse and repeat.
I'm not sure whether the muscle was somehow hiding under the fat but I now have very obvious muscle definition in both upper and lower body (as well as a lot of loose skin). I'm also at least 30lb overweight still (169lb), but am wearing size 12/14 UK, I'm much smaller than I was the last time I was this weight and heavier than I was last time I was this size.
Oh and I barely do any conventional cardio, I run (because I enjoy running not for cardio) and take several high intensity interval classes.4 -
I'm currently 5'8" and 172 lbs. I also had over 100 lbs to lose when I started (started at 254, goal is 150). I didn't start lifting weights until I dropped about 30 lbs. I probably should have started earlier, but the only exercise I did at first was walking.
I'm glad I picked up the weights! I wasn't even that serious about lifting. We have a set of powerblock dumbbells, a pulldown bar and a bench in our basement. I didn't follow a specific program, but I did some of basic dumbbell exercises (shoulder press, lunges, dead lifts, curls, chest press, etc.) that I found online. I only lifted maybe 2 times a week.
However, after losing 82 lbs, I'm amazed that I can see some definition in my back, arms and legs. I've moved on to a more structured program, but I'm so glad I didn't wait until I lost all my weight to start lifting. I'm 44 and I don't have too much loose skin yet either. There is some on my lower stomach, but I still have some fat to lose there. I don't have much in the way of bat wings on my arms either. I think a lot of it is how I carried my weight, but I also attribute a lot of it to lifting.4 -
trigden1991 wrote: »Lifting will help preserve muscle. You are highly unlikely to build muscle in a calorie deficit.
In all fairness, the OP is overfat and new to lifting. If anyone can gain some muscle, it's probably her. Having said that, it would be unlikely it would be a lot of muscle and it wouldn't bulk up the OP. But even if she does gain muscle, it won't be at the same rate as fat loss.Lift, lift, lift!
The more muscle you have the more calories you burn. As long as you stay in a deficit you will lose weight.
Also make sure to take all of your measurements sometimes the scales is slow to show the results of lifting but the tape measure never lies!
Good luck.
While this is true, it's like 4-6 calories per day for every 1 lb of muscle gained. It's woefully overblown.
Try calculating out the calories over a month to get a sense of how much it really makes a difference.1 -
ijsantos2005 wrote: »trigden1991 wrote: »Lifting will help preserve muscle. You are highly unlikely to build muscle in a calorie deficit.
In all fairness, the OP is overfat and new to lifting. If anyone can gain some muscle, it's probably her. Having said that, it would be unlikely it would be a lot of muscle and it wouldn't bulk up the OP. But even if she does gain muscle, it won't be at the same rate as fat loss.Lift, lift, lift!
The more muscle you have the more calories you burn. As long as you stay in a deficit you will lose weight.
Also make sure to take all of your measurements sometimes the scales is slow to show the results of lifting but the tape measure never lies!
Good luck.
While this is true, it's like 4-6 calories per day for every 1 lb of muscle gained. It's woefully overblown.
Try calculating out the calories over a month to get a sense of how much it really makes a difference.
An extra 120 to 180 calories a month. Assuming all things are equal. A trained person counting calories can under represent calories at 300 to 400 a day. Which one will have more impact?2 -
ijsantos2005 wrote: »trigden1991 wrote: »Lifting will help preserve muscle. You are highly unlikely to build muscle in a calorie deficit.
In all fairness, the OP is overfat and new to lifting. If anyone can gain some muscle, it's probably her. Having said that, it would be unlikely it would be a lot of muscle and it wouldn't bulk up the OP. But even if she does gain muscle, it won't be at the same rate as fat loss.Lift, lift, lift!
The more muscle you have the more calories you burn. As long as you stay in a deficit you will lose weight.
Also make sure to take all of your measurements sometimes the scales is slow to show the results of lifting but the tape measure never lies!
Good luck.
While this is true, it's like 4-6 calories per day for every 1 lb of muscle gained. It's woefully overblown.
Try calculating out the calories over a month to get a sense of how much it really makes a difference.
An extra 120 to 180 calories a month. Assuming all things are equal. A trained person counting calories can under represent calories at 300 to 400 a day. Which one will have more impact?
People gain/carry more than a pound of muscle. That's the calculation I'm talking about.
Edit: I guess my point is that it can add up to be pretty significant.1 -
Lift lift lift lift!!! If you are in a calorie deficit you will loose weight and your body will transform! still keep your cardio in there as it's good for your heart, of course! I've been lifting for nearly three years, at first I couldn't press the bar, I'm now pressing nearly 80kg for max rep on bench. You'll fall in love with it ❤️❤️☺️1
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ijsantos2005 wrote: »ijsantos2005 wrote: »trigden1991 wrote: »Lifting will help preserve muscle. You are highly unlikely to build muscle in a calorie deficit.
In all fairness, the OP is overfat and new to lifting. If anyone can gain some muscle, it's probably her. Having said that, it would be unlikely it would be a lot of muscle and it wouldn't bulk up the OP. But even if she does gain muscle, it won't be at the same rate as fat loss.Lift, lift, lift!
The more muscle you have the more calories you burn. As long as you stay in a deficit you will lose weight.
Also make sure to take all of your measurements sometimes the scales is slow to show the results of lifting but the tape measure never lies!
Good luck.
While this is true, it's like 4-6 calories per day for every 1 lb of muscle gained. It's woefully overblown.
Try calculating out the calories over a month to get a sense of how much it really makes a difference.
An extra 120 to 180 calories a month. Assuming all things are equal. A trained person counting calories can under represent calories at 300 to 400 a day. Which one will have more impact?
People gain/carry more than a pound of muscle. That's the calculation I'm talking about.
Edit: I guess my point is that it can add up to be pretty significant.
Your current muscle mass would be a part of the base formula. Gaining muscle is the additional variable. Yes, I know burn more calories as a 175 male because I have more muscle than a 120 lb women. But that same women would never naturally compete with me.
Telling someone if you gain more muscle you will burn more calories is true. And your basal metabolic rate is driven by their current base lean body mass. So for a women who weighs 120 @ 20% = 96 LBM. This equates roughly to a BMR of 1310 (based on Katch McArdle). So if a person gained 1 more lb of muscle, you are talking about a BMR of 1316.
Now the bigger caveat come into play is the difference in NET and TEA driven by lower total mass, So even if you have an increase in BMR functions, you would have a decrease in NET/TEA due to less overall mass (since you are in a deficit, you'd lose weight).1 -
This is all so confusing to me. I will just keep lifting and hope for the best. Maybe I should get a weight lifting coach.
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Aukeilagirl wrote: »This is all so confusing to me. I will just keep lifting and hope for the best. Maybe I should get a weight lifting coach.
Your good. Just keep going. We are merely arguing sematics and its not important.1 -
Aukeilagirl wrote: »This is all so confusing to me. I will just keep lifting and hope for the best. Maybe I should get a weight lifting coach.
When I started my journey I hired a coach. So that way any questions I had about the weights they could answer, show me good form right off the bat and introduce me into an unknown world. Hire them for a couple sessions and then go from there! Doesn't hurt for sure! I know I learned a lot!
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