Need motivation to stick to program

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There is so much misinformation in just a few posts.
OP yes muscle weighs slightly more than fat but you (especially as a woman) wouldn't have gained enough muscle mass for that to constitute a reason for lack of weight loss.
To the last PP, what do you mean cardio does not help with fat loss? Of course it can as long as you end up burning more calories overall (by living + exercise) than what you eat. Cardio is a great calorie burner. Yes strength training is great too, for different reasons. I agree with cutting down on carbs.

OP what do you mean by "watching" your calorie intake? Are you keeping track of all calories accurately? People are notoriously bad at estimating and eyeballing their intake and tend to underestimate how much they're eating. I use myfitnesspal to track cals and when I'm being strict about it I also measure or weigh my food.
Exercise is great but if you eat more than you burn you won't lose fat.
As to your specific issue, when someone starts a training programme the muscles often retain some fluid for repair. It's possible the reason you're not seeing a change on the scale is because of water retention (or maybe you're eating more than you think). Is it possible to move one of your rest days to the middle of that 5 day stretch?

Good luck and keep us posted!

Talk about misinformation. NO muscle DOES NOT weigh more than fat. A pound of muscle weights the same as a pound of fat. Just as a pound of feathers weights he same as a pound of lead. A pound is a pound is a pound. Muscle is however more dense than fat and thus takes up less space. So if two women weight the same, but one has more muscle then the one with more muscle will be smaller. Ever look at a female body builder and think wow she weighs 140, I weigh 140 so why do we look so different? It is also not all that easy to put on muscle. To do so takes some serious effort and lifting heavy weights. So is some is not losing weight it is likely not just a matter of putting on muscle.

OK all that aside. The key to losing weight is diet. Losing weight is 80-90% diet and only 10-20% exercise. You cannot out train a bad diet. So get your diet in check. Stick to real foods-meat, veggies, fruit and some healthy fats. Track your calories, you’d be amazed how even when you eat healthy you can still be eating more than you should to lose weight.

OP- what are you doing for cardo? You will get much more bang for your buck doing some HIIT versus just 30-40 min of steady state cardio. Spending 45 min on the elliptical while you watch TV is not at all an effective way to burn calories. You also say you do weight training-what kind of weights? Doing curls with 5lb dumbbells won’t do much for you. You are better off lifting heavy weights and doing bigger compound moves that work the entire body.

Hope this helps.

You're an idiot. OF COURSE I meant it weighs more FOR A GIVEN VOLUME. That would be more than obvious to anyone who's not a complete moron.

How am I the idiot when you couldn't use the correct term? Muscle is more dense than fat, it does not weigh more, and you be surprised at the number or people who say this over and over.

Geez how else are people going to compare the weight of two different substances. The fact that it's being done for a given volume should go without saying. Do people really need to state the obvious? To compare in any other way would be asinine. Or am I giving people too much credit?

[Anonymous]

Metric versions of the calculators available here:

Find out how many calories you burn doing your favorite activities or how long you should do an activity to lose weight. Find the best exercise to lose weight.
Enter your weight (very important)
Enter the number of minutes for any of the activities you do (1 or all)
Click on calculate at the bottom of the form for your personal report
Knowing the number of calories you burn in conjuction with a sensible diet can help you lose or gain weight.

What are calories? A calorie is a measure of energy, just as a pound is a measure of weight and a mile is a measure of distance. So the amount of energy you exert in doing an activity is measured by the calories burn rate.

How to burn calories? That's easy, just be alive! Your body is constantly burning calories to keep your body functioning. To burn more calories, do more activities, and the more strenuous the activity the greater the calorie burn.

How many calories to burn one pound? You have to burn 3500 calories to lose one pound of weight.

http://www.healthstatus.com/calculate/cbc
this site has a great calorie calculator. you will have to change what you eat and/or increase the length and intensity of your work outs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There is so much misinformation in just a few posts.
OP yes muscle weighs slightly more than fat but you (especially as a woman) wouldn't have gained enough muscle mass for that to constitute a reason for lack of weight loss.
To the last PP, what do you mean cardio does not help with fat loss? Of course it can as long as you end up burning more calories overall (by living + exercise) than what you eat. Cardio is a great calorie burner. Yes strength training is great too, for different reasons. I agree with cutting down on carbs.

OP what do you mean by "watching" your calorie intake? Are you keeping track of all calories accurately? People are notoriously bad at estimating and eyeballing their intake and tend to underestimate how much they're eating. I use myfitnesspal to track cals and when I'm being strict about it I also measure or weigh my food.
Exercise is great but if you eat more than you burn you won't lose fat.
As to your specific issue, when someone starts a training programme the muscles often retain some fluid for repair. It's possible the reason you're not seeing a change on the scale is because of water retention (or maybe you're eating more than you think). Is it possible to move one of your rest days to the middle of that 5 day stretch?

Good luck and keep us posted!

Talk about misinformation. NO muscle DOES NOT weigh more than fat. A pound of muscle weights the same as a pound of fat. Just as a pound of feathers weights he same as a pound of lead. A pound is a pound is a pound. Muscle is however more dense than fat and thus takes up less space. So if two women weight the same, but one has more muscle then the one with more muscle will be smaller. Ever look at a female body builder and think wow she weighs 140, I weigh 140 so why do we look so different? It is also not all that easy to put on muscle. To do so takes some serious effort and lifting heavy weights. So is some is not losing weight it is likely not just a matter of putting on muscle.

OK all that aside. The key to losing weight is diet. Losing weight is 80-90% diet and only 10-20% exercise. You cannot out train a bad diet. So get your diet in check. Stick to real foods-meat, veggies, fruit and some healthy fats. Track your calories, you’d be amazed how even when you eat healthy you can still be eating more than you should to lose weight.

OP- what are you doing for cardo? You will get much more bang for your buck doing some HIIT versus just 30-40 min of steady state cardio. Spending 45 min on the elliptical while you watch TV is not at all an effective way to burn calories. You also say you do weight training-what kind of weights? Doing curls with 5lb dumbbells won’t do much for you. You are better off lifting heavy weights and doing bigger compound moves that work the entire body.

Hope this helps.

You're an idiot. OF COURSE I meant it weighs more FOR A GIVEN VOLUME. That would be more than obvious to anyone who's not a complete moron.

How am I the idiot when you couldn't use the correct term? Muscle is more dense than fat, it does not weigh more, and you be surprised at the number or people who say this over and over.

Geez how else are people going to compare the weight of two different substances. The fact that it's being done for a given volume should go without saying. Do people really need to state the obvious? To compare in any other way would be asinine. Or am I giving people too much credit?

Ok I should apologize, I gave you too little credit (and i mean that sincerely/not at all snarky/how things ate often read in internet land) and, sadly you are giving people too much credit. I have heard people seriously say the "muscle weighs more than fat" soooo many times. And they say it as a way to explain not losing weigh. As in "oh Im not losing weigh, i must be putting on muscle and muscle weighs more than fat." It's ridiculous.

[Anonymous]

[Anonymous]

OP here. Thank you all for the replies and encouragement/advice. I just downloaded fitness pal and yes tracking EVERYTHING you eat gives a new perspective!!
I am looking at this as something long-term so I don't want to eliminate stuff entirely from my diet because I cannot perpetually be on a diet.
I had been working out regularly prior to the pregnancy but not so for past year and a half.
On the weight training - "You are better off lifting heavy weights and doing bigger compound moves that work the entire body" ....this is new to me and I don't want to injure myself. Do I need to hire a trainer? When you say "heavy weights" how many pounds are we talking about?

[Anonymous]

There are several posts mentioning My Fitness Pal. Anyone care to post some sample "Reports" with all personal info removed so we can see how you guys distribute your calories etc..

[Anonymous]

I started where you are, OP. 5'7 and 160 on January 1. I lost about 10 using Weight Watchers tracking and really upping my exercise. I had hit a plateau and just started South Beach diet. So far I'm down another 4 pounds after 6 weeks of the scale not moving.

I think SB will get me to the 135-140 range, where I want to be. The first two weeks are rough, but I had really been overdoing the carbs (somehow kids really made me backslide on that) and SB will help me get to a place where I rarely eat sugars and simply carbs anymore.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There is so much misinformation in just a few posts.
OP yes muscle weighs slightly more than fat but you (especially as a woman) wouldn't have gained enough muscle mass for that to constitute a reason for lack of weight loss.
To the last PP, what do you mean cardio does not help with fat loss? Of course it can as long as you end up burning more calories overall (by living + exercise) than what you eat. Cardio is a great calorie burner. Yes strength training is great too, for different reasons. I agree with cutting down on carbs.

OP what do you mean by "watching" your calorie intake? Are you keeping track of all calories accurately? People are notoriously bad at estimating and eyeballing their intake and tend to underestimate how much they're eating. I use myfitnesspal to track cals and when I'm being strict about it I also measure or weigh my food.
Exercise is great but if you eat more than you burn you won't lose fat.
As to your specific issue, when someone starts a training programme the muscles often retain some fluid for repair. It's possible the reason you're not seeing a change on the scale is because of water retention (or maybe you're eating more than you think). Is it possible to move one of your rest days to the middle of that 5 day stretch?

Good luck and keep us posted!

Talk about misinformation. NO muscle DOES NOT weigh more than fat. A pound of muscle weights the same as a pound of fat. Just as a pound of feathers weights he same as a pound of lead. A pound is a pound is a pound. Muscle is however more dense than fat and thus takes up less space. So if two women weight the same, but one has more muscle then the one with more muscle will be smaller. Ever look at a female body builder and think wow she weighs 140, I weigh 140 so why do we look so different? It is also not all that easy to put on muscle. To do so takes some serious effort and lifting heavy weights. So is some is not losing weight it is likely not just a matter of putting on muscle.

OK all that aside. The key to losing weight is diet. Losing weight is 80-90% diet and only 10-20% exercise. You cannot out train a bad diet. So get your diet in check. Stick to real foods-meat, veggies, fruit and some healthy fats. Track your calories, you’d be amazed how even when you eat healthy you can still be eating more than you should to lose weight.

OP- what are you doing for cardo? You will get much more bang for your buck doing some HIIT versus just 30-40 min of steady state cardio. Spending 45 min on the elliptical while you watch TV is not at all an effective way to burn calories. You also say you do weight training-what kind of weights? Doing curls with 5lb dumbbells won’t do much for you. You are better off lifting heavy weights and doing bigger compound moves that work the entire body.

Hope this helps.

You're an idiot. OF COURSE I meant it weighs more FOR A GIVEN VOLUME. That would be more than obvious to anyone who's not a complete moron.

How am I the idiot when you couldn't use the correct term? Muscle is more dense than fat, it does not weigh more, and you be surprised at the number or people who say this over and over.

Geez how else are people going to compare the weight of two different substances. The fact that it's being done for a given volume should go without saying. Do people really need to state the obvious? To compare in any other way would be asinine. Or am I giving people too much credit?

Ok I should apologize, I gave you too little credit (and i mean that sincerely/not at all snarky/how things ate often read in internet land) and, sadly you are giving people too much credit. I have heard people seriously say the "muscle weighs more than fat" soooo many times. And they say it as a way to explain not losing weigh. As in "oh Im not losing weigh, i must be putting on muscle and muscle weighs more than fat." It's ridiculous.

Pp here. No need to apologize but I should for calling you idiot. I agree it's ridiculous that people use that reasoning. It just hurts them in the end.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:There are several posts mentioning My Fitness Pal. Anyone care to post some sample "Reports" with all personal info removed so we can see how you guys distribute your calories etc..

I'll do this later when I get off my phone and on a computer.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Thank you all for the replies and encouragement/advice. I just downloaded fitness pal and yes tracking EVERYTHING you eat gives a new perspective!!
I am looking at this as something long-term so I don't want to eliminate stuff entirely from my diet because I cannot perpetually be on a diet.
I had been working out regularly prior to the pregnancy but not so for past year and a half.
On the weight training - "You are better off lifting heavy weights and doing bigger compound moves that work the entire body" ....this is new to me and I don't want to injure myself. Do I need to hire a trainer? When you say "heavy weights" how many pounds are we talking about?

I agree lifting heavy is a great way to do it. But you're right, you don't want to injure yourself. I would say lifting "heavy" is relative. You wouldn't start off lifting what an experienced lifter would do. It's what's heavy for you. I've forgotten the rule of thumb but I think it's whatever you can lift in 5 reps to exhaustion (meaning you can't do more). Or maybe it was 8. My memory is sketchy. I have some online workout friends that swear by the "New Rules of Lifting for Women". You might want to look into that.
If you can afford it and the idea appeals to you, hire a trainer. Or if you don't want an ongoing thing, ask for one session to show you how to lift with proper form.
Feel free to add me on myfitnesspal. My name is Servilia on there. I haven't been good with logging lately but will try to be better at it!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Thank you all for the replies and encouragement/advice. I just downloaded fitness pal and yes tracking EVERYTHING you eat gives a new perspective!!
I am looking at this as something long-term so I don't want to eliminate stuff entirely from my diet because I cannot perpetually be on a diet.
I had been working out regularly prior to the pregnancy but not so for past year and a half.
On the weight training - "You are better off lifting heavy weights and doing bigger compound moves that work the entire body" ....this is new to me and I don't want to injure myself. Do I need to hire a trainer? When you say "heavy weights" how many pounds are we talking about?

Bigger compound moves are things like squats and deadlifts. Basically moves that use a lot of muscles at once versus things like bicep curls or tricep kickbacks with 3lb weights. Heavy is relative and you can get a gereat workout with just body weight, but to put on muscle and change your body you need to lift a weight that is challenging to you. You are better off lifting enough weight where you feel fatigue in 8-10 reps. If you have the money for a trainer then go for it. I learned so much from working with a trainer, got over my fear of the weight room and saw great changes in my body when I traded hours of cardio for the weight room. The accountability of a trainer is great too.

Good luck!

[Anonymous]

OP, I'll be your exercise buddy. I'm 5'6" and 167 pounds. I've lost 5 pounds in the past two weeks. I'm using a FitBit and monitoring my calories. My goal is 145.

How is your food intake?

[Anonymous]

I had good success with the digest diet. It's a little dairy heavy so you can't have any lactose issues.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:There are several posts mentioning My Fitness Pal. Anyone care to post some sample "Reports" with all personal info removed so we can see how you guys distribute your calories etc..

Join MFP, post a username and I'll give you access to all my stuff.

I am 5'11", 202 (dropped from 240 over the past year and a half), 28% body fat and dropping. I lift heavy twice a week, followed by 15-20 minutes of cardio, two boot camp/HIIT type workouts, one day of Zumba.

I'm losing weight slowly but I am in the best shape of my life. My body fat is a lot lower than what you might expect for someone of my weight....and that is why strength training is awesome.