Weight training and losing weight.

I am in the exact same boat. I would like to lose about 20 or more pounds of fat, but I have been weight lifting heavy with a trainer for 9 months. I see a huge difference in my body shape, but I've only lost 10 pounds in these past 9 months. I made a new friend here the other day, she said for her, it took about 2.5 years or so to lose the 30 pounds while lifting heavy. I had kind of already resigned myself to the fact that this was going to be a long journey, but yeah, it sucks that it may take so long. I feel your pain!

Number one reason to weight train while dieting is to reduce muscle loss. It's much harder to gain muscle than lose fat so treat it with respect

Your calorie deficit is what's going to make the fat come off... the exercise you do really doesn't have that much impact on weight loss. Exercise is for health, not weight loss.

But when you're getting the right nutrition (more protein than MFP suggests) and strength training, you keep more of the muscle mass that you already have. It's easier to keep it than it is to lose it and try to put it back on.

Your calorie deficit is what's going to make the fat come off... the exercise you do really doesn't have that much impact on weight loss. Exercise is for health, not weight loss.

But when you're getting the right nutrition (more protein than MFP suggests) and strength training, you keep more of the muscle mass that you already have. It's easier to keep it than it is to lose it and try to put it back on.

That sounds abit discouraging. It is easier to regain muscle after losing it than it is to gain more hypertrophy.
To avoid muscle loss you need to eat enough protein though. Vegetable diet is for sure going to make people weaker in terms of muscle size.

Also resistance training tend to reduce risks for developing diabetes for people who are prone to it.

I think what she was saying is: why avoid lifting while you lose, then plan to put on muscle afterwards? Much better to use that muscle, cultivate it, and allow it to stoke the metabolic fire all along. Basically, don't waste muscle as you lose the fat, and you'll be better off in the long run. Pretty sure you missed her point entirely.

I've noticed that about those doing strength training too. They all seem to have not that much to lose. I have 60lbs and started doing bodyrock workouts 2-3x a week along with leslie sansone videos. Her faster miles that involve jogging. I started just doing the walking videos and have moved up and feel much stronger. I've been working out for 6months now, love it. I say start now and don't underestimate bodyweight exercises. The workouts are HIIT and supposed to be very effective for fat loss. My clothes fit well and am now trying to make them fit too big.

So when you weight training while losing weight, you preserve more muscle. I found this article really interesting:

http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/the-energy-balance-equation.html

If you lose 100% fat (which never happens but weight lifting and adequate protien intake brings us as close to this as possible), 3500 calorie deficit = 1 pound of fat.

If you lose a pound, 50% muscle and 50% fat, you only need a 2050 calorie deficit, so you'd lose more than a pound w/ a 3500 deficit, but you'd lose muscle.

SO without strength training you might actually lose MORE weight, but you are losing muscle, and no one wants that (I hope). But the pure fat pound takes up more physical space than the mixed fat and muscle 1.5 (or whatever, I didn't do the math) pounds. So while the scale doesn't go down as fast your size goes down faster. Make sense?

This is how I've gained 10lbs but haven't increased in clothing size.

I don't know all the science behind it, but you will not regret weight training, and the fat will come off.

A lot of people like to say that you can't lose fat and gain muscle at the same time, but for beginners, you can, and I think that's the category that a lot of women fall into.

If you want to lose fat, you will thank yourself a thousand times over if you can speed up your metabolism, and building muscle is how you do that.

I started ChaLEAN Extreme only a couple weeks ago, but I feel like I can see a difference in the way I feel and look already. I'm still losing weight, even though I am doing some heavy resistance training. My muscle definition is slowly but surely coming around, and it is absolutely gorgeous.

I don't know of too many women who have actually tried strength training and regretted it. I can think of tons of them who have been scared and never tried.

Trust me, there is nothing to be scared of. Try it for yourself. You will get healthier. It is possible for us to lose fat and gain muscle at the same time. A lot of trainers say you can't do it that way, because most bodybuilders can't, but if you are new to strength training, you probably can lose fat and build muscle simultaneously. It's a sweet spot that probably will only work like that for a couple months, but if you're anything like me, you'll be so grateful you gave it a shot.

And oh my goodness thecrossfitte! You look great!

I think Rae gave some really cool insight to that! Definitely check out her link.

That said, I know I've driven myself crazy trying to analyze all of this. Instead, I finally just put my scale away and pulled out a tape measurer and a camera to track progress. I weigh once a month out of sheer curiosity.



I'm wearing the same size (and literally the same clothes) that I wore when I was 127lbs, except now I'm 145lbs. The scale just wasn't very useful for me. But I DO get wanting a way to track progress! Measurements and photos

the SCALE was driving me crazy too!!! It's a very evil discouraging device. Throw it out!!! ALL OF THEM!!!