What's more important: Weight or Physique?
Replies
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Building lean mass, otherwise known as muscle tissue, means that your body burns calories more efficiently. In the long run, that means you will lose weight more easily, and critically, keep it off more easily.
Lean mass also doesn't store various potentially-harmful hormones and chemicals in the same way that fat does, so an increase in lean mass and a commensurate decrease in non-lean mass may be protective against various diseases and illnesses that are related to excess fat.
Lean muscle mass also provides protection and support for your joints. Strength training can have a preventitive effect against various joint-issues.
On a purely visual level, a little strength training now (I use a five lb hand weight and a few body-weight exercises) will mean that as you lose weight, your physique will already be more in line to match up visually with your weight-related goals.
Why do you not want to do strength training? It needn't be a 'one-or-t'other' strength or cardio approach - both are good.
Thanks for responding. I haven't wanted to do strength training as I'm focusing on reducing body fat (not necessarily adding muscle in its place for now), and getting to a healthy BMI as my goal. It's not that my 120lbs goal weight based on BMI is a final goal, but that it's the marker to show I'm at a 'healthy weight' which I feel is important.
I'm going to keep the weight off, that's not an issue, nor is the speed at which I lose, or the look. For me, it's about nutrition and health, with the focus being on a body that will last, not necessarily one that looks good. That's why, for now, I'm solely doing cardio - working on my heart and lungs.
Just want to point out:
When you're in a calorie deficit, you don't do weight training to build muscle. You do it to help minimize the loss of lean body mass. It's much easier to preserve what you already have than trying to get it back later. Keeping your existing muscle mass will help you lose fat more effectively. Building muscle requires a surplus of calories, which means you would have to gain weight (and fat) to get it back.
If you start working on your physique now, you'll be happier with the way you look sooner and will save yourself a whole lot of additional hassle when you reach your goal weight.0 -
Physique!0
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def physique...i weigh the same as i did 1 year ago but am in pants that are 2 sizes smaller!!!
same here. 2 sizes smaller, same weight. amazing how much muscle can affect your body size, no matter what the weight.0 -
Building lean mass, otherwise known as muscle tissue, means that your body burns calories more efficiently. In the long run, that means you will lose weight more easily, and critically, keep it off more easily.
Lean mass also doesn't store various potentially-harmful hormones and chemicals in the same way that fat does, so an increase in lean mass and a commensurate decrease in non-lean mass may be protective against various diseases and illnesses that are related to excess fat.
Lean muscle mass also provides protection and support for your joints. Strength training can have a preventitive effect against various joint-issues.
On a purely visual level, a little strength training now (I use a five lb hand weight and a few body-weight exercises) will mean that as you lose weight, your physique will already be more in line to match up visually with your weight-related goals.
Why do you not want to do strength training? It needn't be a 'one-or-t'other' strength or cardio approach - both are good.
Thanks for responding. I haven't wanted to do strength training as I'm focusing on reducing body fat (not necessarily adding muscle in its place for now), and getting to a healthy BMI as my goal. It's not that my 120lbs goal weight based on BMI is a final goal, but that it's the marker to show I'm at a 'healthy weight' which I feel is important.
I'm going to keep the weight off, that's not an issue, nor is the speed at which I lose, or the look. For me, it's about nutrition and health, with the focus being on a body that will last, not necessarily one that looks good. That's why, for now, I'm solely doing cardio - working on my heart and lungs.
When you are lowering body fat % what do you plan on replacing the body fat with? Your answer should be lean body mass. That would be muscle, a product of strength training. I just started strength training a month ago I feel stronger, have lost inches off my body because the fat being stored is being burned off and I'm replacing it with muscle. I love cardio to don't get me wrong but I wasn't getting the results I am now when I was doing purely cardio.0 -
Physique!0
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Building lean mass, otherwise known as muscle tissue, means that your body burns calories more efficiently. In the long run, that means you will lose weight more easily, and critically, keep it off more easily.
Lean mass also doesn't store various potentially-harmful hormones and chemicals in the same way that fat does, so an increase in lean mass and a commensurate decrease in non-lean mass may be protective against various diseases and illnesses that are related to excess fat.
Lean muscle mass also provides protection and support for your joints. Strength training can have a preventitive effect against various joint-issues.
On a purely visual level, a little strength training now (I use a five lb hand weight and a few body-weight exercises) will mean that as you lose weight, your physique will already be more in line to match up visually with your weight-related goals.
Why do you not want to do strength training? It needn't be a 'one-or-t'other' strength or cardio approach - both are good.
Thanks for responding. I haven't wanted to do strength training as I'm focusing on reducing body fat (not necessarily adding muscle in its place for now), and getting to a healthy BMI as my goal. It's not that my 120lbs goal weight based on BMI is a final goal, but that it's the marker to show I'm at a 'healthy weight' which I feel is important.
I'm going to keep the weight off, that's not an issue, nor is the speed at which I lose, or the look. For me, it's about nutrition and health, with the focus being on a body that will last, not necessarily one that looks good. That's why, for now, I'm solely doing cardio - working on my heart and lungs.
I have to go to lunch just now, but I will reply!0 -
awesome point! I am at a weight i am comfortable with, i have lost almost 12lbs of fat and put on muscle. Now the scale could go up 5lbs (or more) if i could just get the toning/muscles i wish for
The scale is SO over rated! 0 -
physique hands down. I never cared about the number on the scale. people see me and are surprised and shocked that I am over 300 lbs.0
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Physique fa sho! I haven't weighed myself in a long time :-)0
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Physique .... Most definitely0
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physique, definitely. But if i had the physique i wanted, i'd definitely not weigh this much either0
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For me personally if we are talking about sexual appeal for example - physique always matters more.
2 reasons:
1. I prefer the look
2. It's instinct to be attracted to a fit mate.
I like knowing my partner can run up a mountain with me.
Yes- I want to run up a mountain!0 -
physique every single day of the week :bigsmile:
This^^^0 -
Use to be about the number on the scale but now its Physique.0
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both!! for example i like to be less than 140lb ideally 133lb, this is always at the forefront of my mind, it doesn’t matter if i workout or not i like my physique either way around this weight . however if i go above this weight i feel too big even if i have been working out and my physique looks good xx0
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Body shape is definitely a huge part of it of course. This is why it is essential to take measurements too!0
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physique...I want to reach my goal weight BUT Ive seen some amazing changes without losing a pound, its frustrating but what can I do? The next few months Im going by my camera and the mirror, and I am noticing my clothes are getting baggy! Scales just piss me off, tape measures make me happy!
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so right! Me too!physique, definitely. But if i had the physique i wanted, i'd definitely not weigh this much either0 -
I hear it ALL the time. People are so concerned about the scale weight, but want to look great. What's more important? Looking great DOESN'T always reflect a good number on the scale. In fact some people's bodies change completely while the scale doesn't even budge a pound.
You can reach weight goal and still look and feel "soft" and "flabby". So what happens is you exercise and guess what? The weight goes up!!! So then you go through mental jumping jacks because you want to bring the weight back down, but of course that doesn't help the flabbiness you still have.
If you look great, people DON'T CARE how much you weigh. Only you do.
A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group FitnessTrainer
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Its hard to get out of the mindset of the "scale" but I'm there, I measure EVERY week when I weigh in, if I lose inches or I can see toning in my body, then I feel good about the week even if the scale doesn't go down or even sometimes if it fluctuates up. I think measuring is what keeps me not being discouraged by the scale. I mean lets face it, people look at the person first, it's not as if you have your scale number on your forehead. What seems like a hundred years ago, I lost a lot of weight, I worked out everyday, cardio and weights and I lost about 25 lbs and then my scale didn't move off of 160 I went from a size 16 to a 10 with my scale never budging. Nobody believed I was 160. But that was what changed my idea about the scale.0 -
I would say for me that it is both. I want to lose the weight to get to a healthy ranges and lose some flab but am also doing strength training stuff to work on the muscles. I want to leave the plus size area and be able to shop normally. i have seen more of a change in weight than muscles so far and that is ok since I am feeling better and looking better. Due to a weird bruise I am off of cardio workouts and doing strength which is ok however I am limited being that I am at home and having to find things to do.0
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The real number is the fat %. In the las month I lost 10 pounds in weight but I lost 16 pound in fat mass and gain 6 in lean mass (muscle mass). At one point the BMI or weight balance simply don't work.0
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What can improving my physique do that working on eating right, getting the right nutrition, hydrating well and doing cardio can't? Other than (as has been said) a faster metabolism resulting in faster loss, which isn't something I'm bothered about?
I hope someone will bother to explain the benefits that I can't get from my current exercise. I'll take away the information about the growth hormone from your post, though, so thanks for that.
Also and I dont think this has been said yet. If you dont work with weights whilst losing weight you will lose muscle along with fat and thats the last thing you want to do. Some forms of cardio will help your body to retain muscle too but not as significantly as weight training. I guess doing cardio is better than nothing but weight training is ideal! It is compounded by low calorie diets. ie You dont give your body enough protein for instance guess where the body gets it from. Thats right, it eats away at your muscle and its very easy to do so because you are not weight training!
If you lift weights you will maintain your muscle mass. If you are able to retain your muscle mass your BMR will be higher because muscle is an active tissue it needs fuel to stay alive. This means that you can eat more each day and still lose fat. You will also be able to maintain your weight eating higher amount of calories because of the muscle you carry.
When doing the actual activity of weight lifting your metabolism will be revved up and if lifting heavy enough you will have epoc. Post exercise oxygen consumption will be greater ie increase in metabolism. Your body has to work extremely hard to get your body back into normal homeostasis. In order to do this the body needs calories to get back to normal levels. The level it was before you started your exercise. ie breathing rate, heart rate etc etc etc. In other words your body burns more calories to achieve this!!
I can eat a lot more for someone of my height. 5 foot 2 than another person my height who doesn't do weight training or exercise because I have more muscle, more LBM (lean body mass)
re: This comment of yours below
"a faster metabolism resulting in faster loss, which isn't something I'm bothered about?"
When you weight train it wont result in a faster loss because you are retaining your muscle. This only happens when you dont weight train and do zero exercise when you lose faster because you are losing muscle along with fat. Your metabolism lowers because of this.
I highly recommend buying Tim Venuto's Burn the fat feed the muscle. A very good read. Also read up about body recomposition.0 -
physique hands down. I never cared about the number on the scale. people see me and are surprised and shocked that I am over 300 lbs.
Yes ditto. People are shocked when they hear I weigh 60 kg. They think i'm closer to the mid 50's!
btw Congrats on your 172 lb loss! That is amazing! wow.0 -
Obviously if you aren't bothered about it then I guess it's weight that matters.And surely ones also available without working on physique?
What can improving my physique do that working on eating right, getting the right nutrition, hydrating well and doing cardio can't? Other than (as has been said) a faster metabolism resulting in faster loss, which isn't something I'm bothered about?
A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group FitnessTrainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 28+ years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition0 -
physique! I wouldn't give a hoot about the scale if I had a 28 inch waist, abs galore, toned arms, toned bum, nice legs. that scale could say just about anything if I knew I was solid and not flab.0
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Physique(:
If I weighed 200 pounds, but looked super tiny, trim and toned... I wouldn't give a rip(:0 -
this is a great post, one that i have always struggled with
wanting to be a certain weight but have the "physique"
And when i got the physique i wanted i was at 192 lbs
then i went back up to 200 and mentally it killed me
the physique changed a little, but not much
yet i was tore up about the scale
even though i was still running farther and lifting more and doing more reps at 200 lbs
the scale every morning to me..
told me i was geting fat again
a stupid number that takes away your perspective when you look in the mirror
all you think about is the number you just read and dont really pay attention to the image in the mirror
the physique is there
forget the number0 -
that's a harder question than it seems. i do care mostly about my appearance/physique, but my weight is still important. if i looked good but weighed 10 lbs more than i do right now, i honestly think it would bother me.0
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My physique makes me more comfortable with how much I weigh. Everyone always guesses I weigh about 110 - 115 lbs when I actually weigh 130lbs. I would like to weigh 120lbs but really as long as I look good I can't really complain. Physique makes all the difference.0
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Clinical studies conclude that adding strength training increases fat loss (if that is your goal) in conjunction with diet. Also anyone with more lean muscle will usually be deemed as overweight on the BMI scale.Thanks for responding. I haven't wanted to do strength training as I'm focusing on reducing body fat (not necessarily adding muscle in its place for now), and getting to a healthy BMI as my goal. It's not that my 120lbs goal weight based on BMI is a final goal, but that it's the marker to show I'm at a 'healthy weight' which I feel is important.
While cardio IS important, many Journals of Medicine have emphatically concluded that strength training is essential to good health. This is why seniors and others who may be cardio fit are still encouraged to strength train since it has a direct effect on joint support, bone density increase, reduction in muscle injury, etc.I'm going to keep the weight off, that's not an issue, nor is the speed at which I lose, or the look. For me, it's about nutrition and health, with the focus being on a body that will last, not necessarily one that looks good. That's why, for now, I'm solely doing cardio - working on my heart and lungs.
If strength training is something you don't want to do or don't care to do, then just admit it. That's a personal choice. But there are way too many benefits to disregard it and to equalize cardio as having the same benefits is a reach.
A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group FitnessTrainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 28+ years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition0
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