MariannNOVA Posted July 10, 2011 Share Posted July 10, 2011 I SO related to what you wrote. I started working out 4 weeks ago -- and working out really really hard. I am a former distance runner and find myself SO far away from the shape I was in then -- and so many lbs overweight that I finally decided to start hard and get harder. It is the end of WEEK THREE -- I have lost a MERE 5 lbs (and I did spend the better part of three weeks actually putting pounds on according to the scale). I have decided to stay off the scale for the most part -- yesterday I HAD to go buy a pair of pants that fit and I have dropped TWO pants sizes -- THAT will be my new barometer of how I am doing - I am forgetting about the scale. So hang in there -- I've also noticed that in the past that I would see results (good results) in about two weeks -- but getting older (I will be 57 next month), it took till the end of week three for me to see any noticeable results. Keep up the good work! FWIW, I just finished Jillian Michaels' No More Trouble Zones for the first time -- OMG, it makes Shred and Shred it with Weights look like a snooze!:svengo: I am next going to work in her Banish Fat Boost Metabolism.:D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Capt_Uhura Posted July 10, 2011 Share Posted July 10, 2011 The scale is not your friend! That's what I keep repeating to myself. It is so common to gain when starting a new exercise routine. Your muscles retain water in order to heal, hence the weight gain. If you're combining weight training w/ cardio you're also building muscle. Muscle is more DENSE than fat (it weighs the same :001_smile:) so even though you may be gaining weight, you'll be more compact, more slim, hence the need for smaller pants! If you truly want to gauge, you'd need to do regular body fat testing. Also, when starting a new exercise program, your body tries to get you to eat more b/c it wants to hold on to that fat ....so carefully watch your diet and make sure you're not unknowingly, eating more calories than you need. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MariannNOVA Posted July 10, 2011 Author Share Posted July 10, 2011 The scale is not your friend! That's what I keep repeating to myself. It is so common to gain when starting a new exercise routine. Your muscles retain water in order to heal, hence the weight gain. If you're combining weight training w/ cardio you're also building muscle. Muscle is more DENSE than fat (it weighs the same :001_smile:) so even though you may be gaining weight, you'll be more compact, more slim, hence the need for smaller pants! If you truly want to gauge, you'd need to do regular body fat testing. Also, when starting a new exercise program, your body tries to get you to eat more b/c it wants to hold on to that fat ....so carefully watch your diet and make sure you're not unknowingly, eating more calories than you need. EVERYTHING you write is so WISE!!!!!! Thank you for putting it here! and, in red: I am a fanatic about not eating more calories than I need AND a fanatic about eating what is good for me (you know, like NOT eating a bag of Hershey's Kisses ;)). THANK YOU!:grouphug::grouphug::grouphug: PS -- I've pushed the scale to the back of my closet and I refuse to step on it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Capt_Uhura Posted July 10, 2011 Share Posted July 10, 2011 :001_smile: There is a video of a man shooting his scale with a rifle....but pushing it to the back of the closet works as well. :lol: Seriously, I've been keeping a food journal. Dh might say I'm fanatic about it. But, it has really shown me why so many AMericans are over weight. We have NO IDEA how many calories are in foods we eat....especially bad foods. According to a calorie calculator, at my height, weight, age if I am a sedentary person, I only need 1500 cal/day to maintain my weight. If you're eating a lot of carbs, you can hit 1500 cal by 1pm! I've been playing w/ my nutrition. I'm currently doing INsanity. The Insanity nutrition guide suggests 40:40:20 carbs:protein:fat. Well, when doing that, it is hard for me to get to my 1800 calories (1800 is for my age, weight, height doing an extreme program like Insanity and wanting weight loss) b/c the protein is quite filling. When I was eating my regular, usual diet, I was hard pressed to stay at 1700-1800 b/c of carbs. And I've lost a lb or two! I'm getting close to my ideal weight so it's getting harder to lose any weight. I've noticed a bit of drop in performance so I'm going to add 100cal of carbs each day. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MariannNOVA Posted July 10, 2011 Author Share Posted July 10, 2011 :001_smile: There is a video of a man shooting his scale with a rifle....but pushing it to the back of the closet works as well. :lol: Seriously, I've been keeping a food journal. Dh might say I'm fanatic about it. But, it has really shown me why so many AMericans are over weight. We have NO IDEA how many calories are in foods we eat....especially bad foods. According to a calorie calculator, at my height, weight, age if I am a sedentary person, I only need 1500 cal/day to maintain my weight. If you're eating a lot of carbs, you can hit 1500 cal by 1pm! I've been playing w/ my nutrition. I'm currently doing INsanity. The Insanity nutrition guide suggests 40:40:20 carbs:protein:fat. Well, when doing that, it is hard for me to get to my 1800 calories (1800 is for my age, weight, height doing an extreme program like Insanity and wanting weight loss) b/c the protein is quite filling. When I was eating my regular, usual diet, I was hard pressed to stay at 1700-1800 b/c of carbs. And I've lost a lb or two! I'm getting close to my ideal weight so it's getting harder to lose any weight. I've noticed a bit of drop in performance so I'm going to add 100cal of carbs each day. :party::party::party: Portions are out of control in this country! Again, I agree with everything you've written! Keep up the good work! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Danestress Posted July 10, 2011 Share Posted July 10, 2011 Unfortunately, I have been running and strength training and my old pants don't fit cause I seem to be getting BIGGER. But I've decided to just ride it out like others said - keep exercising and not let myself get discouraged. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Capt_Uhura Posted July 10, 2011 Share Posted July 10, 2011 Danestress - that is difficult. What I've read in P90 literature is that if you've hit a plateau w/ weight loss or even gaining weight, the solution is to increase your calories. Counter-intuitive I know. But think about it.....if you're not taking in enough calories, what does your body do? It burns muscle and keeps the fat and tries to store more fat. Have you noticed a drop in performance? When I dropped 4lbs, it was on my recovery week!!!! My body no longer felt stressed and was able to shed the pounds. I held on to those pounds the entire 90days of P90X doubles!!!! one week of taking it easy, bam, dropped 4lbs! And it wasn't water .... my pants are baggy! So you might just try adding 100-200cal/day to your diet for a couple of weeks and see what happens. Also, be conscious of water weight due to female cycles. I gain 2-3lbs of fluid around 2weeks before Aunt Flo is due so it's best not to get on the scale during that time. The P90X fat shredder ratio if 50:30:20 protein:carbs:fat. The maintenance ratio is 40:40:20 The athletic ratio is 20:60:20 Where in there do you think you fall on most days? Have you calculated your calories required? If not, I can send you two of them and you can compare and see where you fall on avg each day. Capt Uhura Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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