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Frustrated with weight loss
Im at my wits end..I’ve been trying to loose weight the last 5 months..and have done nothing but GAIN.
Here’s my background.. I’ve always had a great metabolism. Had 3 kids and basically left out of the hospital in my pre preggo clothes ect. Early this year i got sick.. My iron stores went down to 3% (they are suppose to be at 20%+) I rapidly gained weight (25lbs) because my body went into defense mode and hung onto EVERYTHING..basically my metabolism took a crap lol. Anywho. I gained 25lbs in 2-3 weeks. I got iron infusions and my iron was great afterwards. April, i got my pole and started working out on it 3-4times a week for a good 45-60 mins atleast, along with stretching. July, i started a pole class. And August i started walking 3-4 miles 5 days a week along with watching what i started eating and 2 weeks ago i completely cut out soda of my diet. I’ve gained 14lbs since i started poling. There really isn’t really a difference in how my clothes feel.. Im just frustrated and do not understand what i am doing wrong. Everyone says that the weight is going to come off fast soon bc muscle burns fat ect ect.. But they’ve all been saying it for 3mths now. I want to cry and know i shouldn’t even step on the scale, but i can’t help it.. i was one of those ppl that could eat 10lbs of doughnuts back in the day and loose weight..Help me!! lol Or atleast tell me im not insane lol
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27 Replies
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Hey hun….if your clothes feel the same (which means, if you have gained weight and your size did not change it is muscle weight not bodyfat that you have gained!)…here’s why….1 pound of body fat weighs the same as 1 pound of muscle, HOWEVER! bodyfat takes up 18% more space than muscle! Your metabolism is working right if your clothes still fit with the weight gain. I tell my clients STAY OF THE SCALE!!! If you must weigh yourself do it only once a month, go by how your clothes feel and your body!
As women we have gotten so indoctrinated over watching those nasty numbers on a box!! FORGET the SCALE!!! IT DOES’NT know the difference between fat and muscle!!! Here’s an example: I was 122 lbs, I worked out and poled…I went up to 148lbs…BUT! I was still wearing the same size clothes!! That was because I had soooo much bodyfat at 122 and replaced it with muscle!! It took me awhile to understand the concept. I do not OWN a scale…I’m weighed at the gym once a month! So keep in mind that if your clothes still fit YOU ARE NOT GETTING FAT!!! You are getting lean with strong muscle, which in turns increases your metabolism as long as you are exercising to burn calories you take in…and your nutrition and times you eat are important as well. I’d say your on track!!! *HUGZ*
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I completely understand your frustration. I had a horrible pregnancy (hyperemesis gravadarium, I was on home IV and medication pump), had a lot of muscle wasting and balooned up after my baby was born. In his first year of life I had two major knee surgeries that I am still not fully healed from. Anyway, I would suggest taking measurements. I have lost 22lbs in 6 weeks and 27.75 inches overall. Last week I was discouraged because my weight was up 2lbs until I did my weekly measurements and I had dropped 3.5 inches that week! Surprisingly, with my amount of weight loss my shirts fit much better, but I have not dropped a pants size yet.
My diet right now is pretty restricted- lean protein+ low glycemic veggie 5x/day, very little grains, and very few other simple carbs (I eat a yogurt in the morning that has 20something carbs from sugar) 100+ounces of water per day. Try not to get discouraged, it sounds like you are doing great!
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Are you on birth control pills/hormones of any sort? Also remember that our metabolisms slow down each year that we age…trust me…my early 30’s were NOT KIND to me.
I would seriously take a good look at your diet and maybe pick up the clean eating books.
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No, not on Birth control . Been TTC for 15 mths with no luck unfortunetly. I’ve pretty much am eating healthy except Tuesday nights for dinner bc its one of those i dont have much time to cook for a family of 5. I have pole class amoung other things to do that night..and if i left it up to my husband they would have cereal to eat for dinner https://www.studioveena.com/img/smilies/icon_lol.gif
I know i shouldn’t like the scale at all..i shouldn’t look at it..but regardless if its muscle or fat the damn thing still says 153!! And i’ve been 115-120. I didn’t even weight this much 9mths preggo.. I think its what bugs me the most. I mean am i always going to be at this weight as long as i have the muscle? Im only 5’2"-5"3" ..it is not flattering
Also, one more thing..what is a good excersize to get rid of back fat/tone side abs. Thats my main problem area. Before poling it was my theighs and my little bit of pooch..but i can’t seem to get those 2 areas to do anything
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Sorry it took me so long to get back on! I have had a long day/evening lol…I will post some menus tomorrow for sure! and megs…what is your typical day like? what do you eat, when do you eat and approx. amounts, and what is your level of activity and how often during a week…that will help to narrow things down. I’m in training right now for a NPC Figure Competition for March…so I am eating clean right now versus just healthy.
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My iron stores went down to 3% (they are suppose to be at 20%+) I rapidly gained weight (25lbs)
Do you know if your doctor has checked your thyroid? I have had thyroid issues for many years. One thing I know is that your thyroid hormone does not function properly if your iron is too low. The thyroid is a big factor in metabolism.
Just a thought.
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@lilbit a typical day i will wake up and have my one bad thing a day which is coffee with sugar and cream. I will either have a bowl of oatmeal with fruit or i will have regular cheerios.
I will have usually a chicken salad with light ranch dressing for lunch
Will have a snack of some sort of fruit when the kids get home and eat there snack.
Ill usually have some sort of lean meat, a veggie and salad ect for dinner
I’ve cut down my portion size to where they are small portion size (the correct portion size lol)
I drink a good 80+ oz a day
I pole about 4 times a week for a hour-hour and a half and walk 5 days a week for 3-4miles a day
@ Colette.they have run a whole string of blood tests on me.. My thyroid came back right smack dab in the middle of normal. Everything came back normal except my Iron and FSH (which the fsh is a whole different story lol)
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I also want to add that I’ve cut out all junk food in the house (poor hubby and kids lol) when I eat bread, pasta ect I only choose whole grains. This is only a sample of my day though of coarse I eat different stuff everyday lol. Just what I had yesterday
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I totally understand what you are saying. I am having the same issue. I think I am going to take all my measurements tomorrow (thats my weigh-in day) so that I have something else to look at. What is TTS? I am also eating cleanly and limiting white carb intake. My only hope is that I add in new goals to focus on the scale will change. I have started small with my goals so that I would be successful, but seeing the scale go the wrong way is truly the worst!!!
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What do you mean what is TTS? https://www.studioveena.com/img/smilies/icon_question.gif
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I think I went through the same as you – you just have to realise that pole won’t make you lose weight. I actually gained a little weight since I started poling. It totally put me off until I realised that I dropped TWO dress sizes as well! I don’t weight myself anymore because it’s just disappointing and I don’t think it reflects my real size. People generally assume I am a good 20lbs lighter than I actually am.
I talked to a personal trainer about this and he said pole builds muscle really fast. You lift heavy weights (your own body weight basically) and you lift it only a few times – exactly what body builders do with heavy weights in the gym. So you get loads of muscles, and we all know muscles are heavier than fat!
I haven’t poled for 2,5 months now (no pole https://www.studioveena.com/img/smilies/icon_e_sad.gif), but I do 1 hour of cardio every day. The result is that all my muscle definition is gone and I lost about 8-10lbs. This just shows that pole is going to add to your weight, but frankly I’d rather have my muscles than a slightly flabby slimmer body https://www.studioveena.com/img/smilies/icon_e_smile.gif
Bottom line is, measure yourself and go by how your clothes fit instead of weighing yourself. As others said, the scales don’t make a difference between fat and muscle.
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Oops my bad. I meant TTC. I don’t know what that stands for. Gotta love my morning brain!
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lol. TTC=Trying to concieve https://www.studioveena.com/img/smilies/icon_e_smile.gif sry about that! lol
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Ok…megs982, one thing it looks like you are not taking in enough protein…you need at least 1 gram per pound of what you want your LBM (lean body mass) to be…so say you want to weigh ideally 120 lbs and you body fat percentage is at 20% you would need a minimum of 96 grams of protein total for the day to get to and maintain that body weight (the lean body mass is 96 lbs). It is beneficial to have your BF checked so you can determine how much protein you need. You need to add a snack in the mid morning so your metabolism doesn’t start to lag…you should eat something even a few nuts every 3 hours. You should never have less than 1200 calories in a day as that slows down metabolism…the body requires at least that to burn fat and stay healthy.
As far as your coffee…I use sugar and cream still, but am not allowed REFINED sugar, it adds FAT calories…I am allowed to use raw unrefined sugar because it is not stripped of the natural molasses and is much sweeter..it also does not add the unusable fat calories! I found SUGAR IN THE RAW at Walmart, it is a lightly brown crystal and is 100% all natural sugar cane sugar, it is also found in health food stores and co ops under the name SUCINATE or TURBINO sugar, but is more expensive in those stores. I will have to give it up closer to comp, but in the meantime I can enjoy real sugar…my trainer DOES NOT ADVOCATE ARTIFICIAL SWEETENERS because that is not what our body is supposed to try to process.
I am pulling together some menus with many food choices for times of day and will post them sometime today. I will help as much as I can…TO YOUR SUCCESS!! *HUGZ*
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Thank you so much lilbit!! I will start eating more nuts throughout the day!! When i go to walmart later i will pick some of that sugar up. With my calorie counter i’ve been getting anywhere from 1600-1800 ish calories a day. Also with my cream i’ve decided to go fat free..to help atleast a little bit lol.
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