Confused about fat loss while weight training...need help please!

T

tombo

0
Hi all! This is my first post on the forum. From looking around it looks like theres a great bunch of people here with a lot of info to share so I'm really hoping someone can help me out.

Here's the deal: I started training with a personal training 2x a week 5.5 months ago. In that time I have also gained 20 lbs!! When my trainer re-measured my body fat (using calipers) he said that my body fat % only changed slightly. By his calculations I gained about 13 lbs of muscle and the remaining 7 lbs was fat.

My first question: Does this sound possible? I mean, 20 lbs is a lot of weight to gain and I don't want to go on believing that 13 lbs of it is muscle when, in fact, it's not.

My second question: How do I go about losing the 7 lbs that isn't fat? My body is not letting it go at all. I started out a bit underweight but I wouldn't mind losing some weight.

A little about me (to help anyone who might be able to help me): I'm a 38 y.o. female. I'm 5'3" tall and currently weight 125-128 lbs. I eat relatively clean: whole grains, lean protein (chicken or fish) & tons of veggies and fruit. I do have the *occasional* treat. I workout 5x a week. 2x a week is with a personal trainer. On those days I do about 2.5 miles on either the elliptical or the treadmill. On the other 3 days I do a combo of elliptical and treadmill totaling 5 miles. (Maybe I should think about HIIT?)

Anyway, thanks in advance to anyone who might be able to help me out!
 
My BMR is about 1680 (give or take).

I do 1 hour of weight training with my personal trainer 2x per week. Each session is a total body workout but on one day we focus on upper body and the other day we focus on lower body.
 
after figuring out bodyfat %, you multiply that number by your bodyweight. the number you come out with is fat weight. fat weight from total bodyweight is lean bodyweight which is the weight of everything minus fat. so thats muscle, bone, organs, waste, etc

so you are exactly correct, its not all muscle. lean bodyweight is the more accurate term. :)
 
I hope you were TRYING to gain weight!
That's an awful lot of muscle to put on in 5 and a half months; maybe impossible without drugs!

My guess would be that his body fat measurements or not correct. What inds of changes do you see in yourself when you look in the mirror? Has your waste size gone up? These are much "truer" means of measuring as there is no error factor involved.

Also, what kind of body comp device did he/she use? This will also have a factor.

Yes, do HIIT to get rid of fat.
 
gymcoch said:
I hope you were TRYING to gain weight!
That's an awful lot of muscle to put on in 5 and a half months; maybe impossible without drugs!
Click to expand...

Well...when I started working out with my personal trainer I wanted to gain maybe 10 lbs maximum since I was underweight at that time. Thank you so much for telling me what I was suspecting all along: that it does seem like a lot muscle in such a short time!! I've been asking and asking this question at various forums on the web and *finally* got an answer.

I just don't understand how, when my diet did not change, I could be gaining weight when I've increased the amount, quality & intensity of my workouts in the past 5.5 months. At the very least I thought I'd hold steady and perhaps gain a few pounds as I put on muscle. He used calipers to measure my body fat.

As far as changes in my body: I've gotten bigger everywhere. My waist size is up as are my thighs. I've had to go out and buy new jeans to fit me since all my pre-training stuff doesn't fit any longer. The only thing that is bigger and I don't mind is my butt LOL! It used to be flat and flabby before and now it's got a nice shape. I suppose that change could account for why I need to go up a size in jeans but it won't account for the increase in inches in my waist and thighs. Overall, though, I am toned and my muscles are defined. I look great (if I say so myself) but I'm larger, too.

I'd love to lose this extra weight but now I'm not too sure what I should set as a goal. Any ideas on how to determine what that # should be?
 
Tombo,
I am one trainer that is NOT all about numbers. Numbers, to me, are arbitrary. As you discovered, your BF% supposedly stayed the same, but your waste got bigger. Something wrong there.
At the same time, you are happy with the way your muscles look. GREAT!
So, I would say dont worry about what the exact # should be.
Decrease your calorie intake some (by portion control, not fad dieting), and perhaps add some hiit training and decrease the cardio.
...I just re-read your first post; 20 POUNDS!
WOW!

If you are in shape for it, add 2 days a week of 20 minutes of hiit. Make sure the amount of weight you are lifting is challenging. Decrease some calories and let me know how things progress.

Go by the pants and the mirror, not the scale and the calipers!

Wes
(please keep me up-to-date with your progress)
:)
 
LOL! You're right...20 lbs is wow! But, the bad kind...don'tcha think?

Anyway, thank you so much, Wes! You've been so kind and your responses really have gone a long way to making me feel a bit better. I've been thinking about this way too much and I need to just stop thinking and just live. I don't want to be in diet hell but, truth be told, I could definitely cut back on calories here and there.

I'm going to trade in 2 of my long cardio sessions for 2 HIIT sessions. I think I'm up for it since I'm currently running 5 miles in about 55 minutes. I usually start off around 5.4 mph and then work my way up to around 6. If I'm feeling good I might add a 6.5 mile in there. But, that all depends on how I'm feeling. I'm always feeling good and strong after my workouts, not depleted, so I'm hoping I'm up for the challenge!

I just went out and bought all new pants to fit my bigger body...how sad is that? So, should I be hoping to get back into my old jeans? I want to be realistic about this. I think I'd be really pleased if I could get my thighs down about an inch or so. I gained over an inch on each thigh since February. I'd also be happy if I didn't have that flab hanging over my waistband. But, that's probably because I was squeezing into too small jeans. Anyway, sorry to ramble....I'll defintely keep you posted on my progress...!

Thanks again!
 
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