How can this be?

Help! I'm am completly bummed!!! I have been doing a terrific job eating only healthy, non-processed foods in the correct protions for almost 2 years. After successfully taking off 30 lbs I hit a plateau and relized I had to add some sort of fitness program in order for my weight loss to continue. I have been strength training 3 times per week (60 min- with a personal trainer) as well as cardio 3 times per week (30 min) for a month and a half now.

Here is my problem-- I havn't lost any weight! In fact when I went to the doctor yeasterday, I confirmed that I had gained 6 lbs!

Has this happened to anyone else before? I really need to loose the rest of this fat- I'm sick of being overwieght! What else can I do?

Tue. May 9, 10:57am

They always say muscle weighs more than fat...do you feel a little more toned yet? It may be too soon to see it, but keep at it. It will pay off in the end. Talk to your trainer. Did they do a body fat test at your first meeting?

Tuesday, May 9, 2006, 11:00 AM

Get a new trainer

A lot of trainers only have one way of training people -- to build muscle/strength. You need to find someone who listens to you when you say "I want to lose fat, the number on the scale MUST go down, it is my ONLY goal for our sessions".

My first trainer had me doing heavy weights, and I plateaud. I'm now with a new trainer who works my muscles to failure using lighter weights and very different techniques...it's only been 3 sessions, so I can't say if it's working or not, but at least I'm doing something different. In fact, all 3 sessions were very different from each other.

Also, are you eating a lot of protein shakes/supplements? Protein isn't a bad thing, but my brother used them thinking they'd help him lose weight. I directed him to the South Park episode where Cartman uses Beefcake 2000 shakes to make my point (it's hard for a skinny guy with 10 pounds to lose to take his 70-pound overweight sister seriously). When he stopped, he turned his 2-pound gain into a 6-pound loss.

Tuesday, May 9, 2006, 11:12 AM

A few more suggestions

- Take your measurements a look for losses there rather than just the number on the scale.
- Add an interval training session to your cardio routine. Alternate sprinting and walking, for example.
- Bump up the time on your cardio workouts to 45 minutes.
- Vary the number of calories you eat each day by 300-400 calories (ex: one day 1400, next day 1700). It keeps your metabolism guessing.

Tuesday, May 9, 2006, 11:23 AM

I'll give it a try

Thanks! These all sound like fantastic ideas-

I did not have my body fat % mesured- although it is one thing I would like to have done (my PT is a very small private practice and doesn't have a caliper yet..). I will try talking to my PT and see if she can revise my workout to gear more towards weight loss, if she can't then I'll re-evaluate. I am doing the interval cadio training now, so adding 2 more sets (increasing 15 min) will not be a problem.

Food wise- thanks for the heads up about protien shakes... my boyfriend said the same thing.... I should have just listened to him....He'll like hearing that :)

Does anyone have any more information on the daily calorie variation? That sounds intresting, but I don't want to hurt my body with too much or too little.

Tuesday, May 9, 2006, 12:13 PM

Yep those protein shakes are calorically dense! One contains more calories than I eat at any single meal.

How do your clothes fit? Are they getting a bit tighter? If so then this may be an actual 'gain', but if they aren't then you have likely lost several pounds of fat and gained several pounds of muscle. Musle takes up less space than fat so you can lose fat, gain muscle, be smaller and still gain weight. This is the point where you can really freak yourself out with the scale if you are not keeping track of your body measurements.

Best wishes and congrats of keeping up with what sounds like a great exercise routine.

Tuesday, May 9, 2006, 12:37 PM

Varying calorie intake

I've done a bit of research, hopefully this will shed some light. As long as you don't drop below 1200 calories a day, you should be eating enough calories.

Source: Rev Up Your Metabolism, by Catherine Kruppa, MS, RD, LD
http://www.texas.usta.com/science/custom.sps?iType=1050&icustompageid=10131

• Eat more – chronic calorie restriction trains your body to survive on fewer calories. As you eat fewer calories, your body adapts by slowing your metabolism, at which point you will never lose those last 5 pounds. Eat just a bit more – about 250-400 additional calories per day. This can help rev your engine and allow weight loss to take place.

Tuesday, May 9, 2006, 12:56 PM

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