Muscle gain vs weight loss fail?

amyk80 · September 2018

Hey guys. I'm 3 weeks in to an attempt to get my weight back under control. I'm easing myself back in to exercise because I'm extremely prone to soft tissue injury. So my basic plan is 40-50 minutes of cardio and 30-40 minutes of Pilates-type muscle building and stretching daily. I've also been consistently logging food and keeping calories down. My concern is that I'm not losing any weight. I feel stronger and I guess I'm a little more toned, but I feel like I'm failing at this again. Is the whole "muscle is heavier than fat" thing really true? Do I need to switch up my workouts? I'm a little discouraged. Any insight would be appreciated.

Francl27 · September 2018

Muscle weighs more than fat for the same density, but if you eat at a deficit, you will probably not gain any muscle anyway. It's common however to retain water when you start to exercise.

Unfortunately, exercise won't make any difference in your weight if you're not careful about what you eat too... a lot of people end up eating more to compensate and just don't keep any calorie deficit... that's why it's helpful to log your food as accurately as possible to make sure that you don't overeat.

amyepdx · September 2018

Pilates and stretching do not build muscle unfortunately.

cmriverside · September 2018

Unfortunately you haven't gained any considerable (or measurable) muscle weight in three weeks of cardio and Pilates. Muscle gains happen with heavy lifting. You may be retaining water due to a new exercise program, the time of the month, hydration or salt levels, stress, sleep, heat, etc. That will show as pounds on the scale.

So.

Tighten up your food logging. You are eating too much.

:flowerforyou:

Can you please open your FOOD diary and we may be able to spot problems. Go to FOOD> Settings> scroll down, click "Public"

Here:

https://www.myfitnesspal.com/account/diary_settings

owen1826 · September 2018

Any type I start a new workout habit I retain water! And it lasts a really long time!! Focus on your habits and don’t even look at the weight yet.

successgal1 · September 2018

"Newbie gains" and water weight. Weigh your foods to be certain you're logging correctly. If you're feeling better and feeling a tiny bit thinner or more comfortable in your clothes, you may have lost fat, but the loss is being disguised by water weight as your muscles acclimate to exercise. Give it another couple of weeks with perfect food logging. Stay hydrated. It took a full 4 weeks for me.

QuilterInVA · September 2018

You are not building enough muscle in 3 weeks with the exercises you do.

AnvilHead · September 2018

QuilterInVA wrote: »

You are not building enough muscle in 3 weeks with the exercises you do no matter what you do.

Fixed it for you.

AnnPT77 · September 2018

Just in to second the probability that you're holding onto some water weight, either because of new exercise volume, or timing of menstrual cycle, or one of the many other possible reasons healthy bodies temporarily increase water retention. (Stress is one of them, BTW.) Your best course would be to hang in there, make sure you're logging carefully, stay calm about the situation, and give your new regimen 4-6 weeks to see the net effect.

One thing I can't help but comment on: "40-50 minutes of cardio and 30-40 minutes of Pilates-type" exercise every day seems like an unnecessarily large amount for someone who is, as you say, prone to soft tissue injuries. I'd suggest you include some rest days in there, and build up fitness/resilience gradually, especially when you're also shooting for a calorie deficit - the combination is quite a bit of stress on your body.

For most people - though not everyone - working on the calorie intake side of things at first has the highest yield. Exercise helps create a calorie deficit or lets you eat a little more, but phasing that part in gradually is usually a better strategy.

Seffell · September 2018

Building muscle for women takes many months and in fact years of regular heavy lifting with an appropriate diet (as in NOT on a deficit to begin with). Sadly.

Three weeks is a laughably small period of time. Bodies don't change overnight.

You need to be patient. You're probably retaining water in your muscles from your workouts (which also might make them look "toned"). This is not a bad thing and you shouldn't look for ways to drop the water for the sake of the scale readings.

I understand you need to see changes to keep being motivated but sometimes changes don't come when you need them. Just keep at it.

psuLemon · September 2018

AnvilHead wrote: »

QuilterInVA wrote: »

You are not building enough muscle in 3 weeks with the exercises you do no matter what legal you do.

Fixed it for you.

FIFY.

OP, how often do you weigh yourself?

amyk80 · October 2018

Thanks guys! For those concerned about too much workout, I promise you that the cardio is very easy, low impact stuff, just longer minutes. I've been diligent with my logging so I'll keep that up. Could probably be drinking more water. I did however go shopping today and things are fitting better. So perhaps I spoke too soon...

Also I weigh myself twice a week except this week was like every day because I was getting impatient.

And for those saying I haven't been building muscle from Pilates... I think you underestimate how weak I was to begin with. As a hint, I had to do physical therapy for 2 months because a muscle in my neck was so atrophied I almost subluxed my cervical vertebrae. Anyways, I'm not saying I'm expecting to win the Arnold Classic after 3 weeks, but I do feel like I'm getting a little stronger 😂

psuLemon · October 2018

amyk80 wrote: »

Thanks guys! For those concerned about too much workout, I promise you that the cardio is very easy, low impact stuff, just longer minutes. I've been diligent with my logging so I'll keep that up. Could probably be drinking more water. I did however go shopping today and things are fitting better. So perhaps I spoke too soon...

Also I weigh myself twice a week except this week was like every day because I was getting impatient.

And for those saying I haven't been building muscle from Pilates... I think you underestimate how weak I was to begin with. As a hint, I had to do physical therapy for 2 months because a muscle in my neck was so atrophied I almost subluxed my cervical vertebrae. Anyways, I'm not saying I'm expecting to win the Arnold Classic after 3 weeks, but I do feel like I'm getting a little stronger 😂

Keep weighing daily, this way you get more data points. I often find that certain days or even some weeks, i just weigh more.

shadow2soul · October 2018

amyk80 wrote: »

Thanks guys! For those concerned about too much workout, I promise you that the cardio is very easy, low impact stuff, just longer minutes. I've been diligent with my logging so I'll keep that up. Could probably be drinking more water. I did however go shopping today and things are fitting better. So perhaps I spoke too soon...

Also I weigh myself twice a week except this week was like every day because I was getting impatient.

And for those saying I haven't been building muscle from Pilates... I think you underestimate how weak I was to begin with. As a hint, I had to do physical therapy for 2 months because a muscle in my neck was so atrophied I almost subluxed my cervical vertebrae. Anyways, I'm not saying I'm expecting to win the Arnold Classic after 3 weeks, but I do feel like I'm getting a little stronger 😂

You can gain strength without adding muscle mass (to a point).

kimny72 · October 2018

amyk80 wrote: »

Thanks guys! For those concerned about too much workout, I promise you that the cardio is very easy, low impact stuff, just longer minutes. I've been diligent with my logging so I'll keep that up. Could probably be drinking more water. I did however go shopping today and things are fitting better. So perhaps I spoke too soon...

Also I weigh myself twice a week except this week was like every day because I was getting impatient.

And for those saying I haven't been building muscle from Pilates... I think you underestimate how weak I was to begin with. As a hint, I had to do physical therapy for 2 months because a muscle in my neck was so atrophied I almost subluxed my cervical vertebrae. Anyways, I'm not saying I'm expecting to win the Arnold Classic after 3 weeks, but I do feel like I'm getting a little stronger 😂

There's a difference between getting stronger and building muscle. It is certainly possible to get stronger doing all sorts of different resistance training while eating at a deficit. Building muscle is different, and a woman eating in a surplus, with excellent nutrition, doing a well-designed heavy lifting program would gain maybe a half a lb per week.

It could very well be water weight, and that could be linked to your new exercise or to where you are in your monthly cycle. If you aren't using a food scale, it might help to start. Hang in there!

SCoil123 · October 2018

amyk80 wrote: »

Thanks guys! For those concerned about too much workout, I promise you that the cardio is very easy, low impact stuff, just longer minutes. I've been diligent with my logging so I'll keep that up. Could probably be drinking more water. I did however go shopping today and things are fitting better. So perhaps I spoke too soon...

Also I weigh myself twice a week except this week was like every day because I was getting impatient.

And for those saying I haven't been building muscle from Pilates... I think you underestimate how weak I was to begin with. As a hint, I had to do physical therapy for 2 months because a muscle in my neck was so atrophied I almost subluxed my cervical vertebrae. Anyways, I'm not saying I'm expecting to win the Arnold Classic after 3 weeks, but I do feel like I'm getting a little stronger 😂

If Pilates and eating at a deficit could help a woman build muscle like that If think I would have to look like Arnold by now considering I do body weight strength training, heavy lifting, and just completed my first bulk cycle. I don’t though.

After my current cut I’ll know if I hit my ambitious goal of adding 5lb of muscle during a 4mo bulk.

r0ck3rgirl · October 2018

Maybe try keeping track with measurements. Sometimes you see the results better that way.

Silentpadna · October 2018

kimny72 wrote: »

amyk80 wrote: »

Thanks guys! For those concerned about too much workout, I promise you that the cardio is very easy, low impact stuff, just longer minutes. I've been diligent with my logging so I'll keep that up. Could probably be drinking more water. I did however go shopping today and things are fitting better. So perhaps I spoke too soon...

Also I weigh myself twice a week except this week was like every day because I was getting impatient.

And for those saying I haven't been building muscle from Pilates... I think you underestimate how weak I was to begin with. As a hint, I had to do physical therapy for 2 months because a muscle in my neck was so atrophied I almost subluxed my cervical vertebrae. Anyways, I'm not saying I'm expecting to win the Arnold Classic after 3 weeks, but I do feel like I'm getting a little stronger 😂

There's a difference between getting stronger and building muscle. It is certainly possible to get stronger doing all sorts of different resistance training while eating at a deficit. Building muscle is different, and a woman eating in a surplus, with excellent nutrition, doing a well-designed heavy lifting program would gain maybe a half a lb per week.

It could very well be water weight, and that could be linked to your new exercise or to where you are in your monthly cycle. If you aren't using a food scale, it might help to start. Hang in there!

To expand on this already good response. The process of getting stronger works like this: Stress (the amount of force you use against resistance, resulting in muscle 'damage'), followed by recovery (the body's repair of that damage - best done with rest), followed by adaptation. Early on, this is almost always the result of nerve recruitment, i.e. your existing muscles being asked to do more. During this time, your body will hold on to water as part of the recovery process. Once you are in a regular pattern, the amount of water held will reach a sort of equilibrium if you keep repeating the process. (This is a good thing).

Neurological gains always outpace tissue gains in the beginning. And tissue gains happen almost exclusively (but not completely if you're new) when you have a caloric surplus - the bricks used for construction. So getting stronger in your case is very likely. That's good. Getting more muscle tissue is probably not happening. That could be good or not, it's up to you.

So if your goal is to get weight under control, worry first about energy balance. (Calories). Do your fitness stuff for fitness. Your weight control will come from energy balance primarily. Your fitness stuff is a small component of the overall calories you burn in a day. It helps, but your intake control is a much bigger lever.

Muscle gain vs weight loss fail?

Replies

Categories