Lost Weight - But How?!

K

KateEQ

0
Hi everyone. I have been here before, and used to post questions about weight loss + hypothyroidism.

After finding out I have a thyroid disorder, I got the medication (in January) and continued to train and eat as normal. I lived with a personal trainer at the time, so I ate five mini-meals a day with lots of protein and the occasional snack. I went to the gym everyday, doing cardio for an hour and lifting weights for 1/2 an hour or so. I did everything more or less "by the book". As I had previously been training to compete in fitness, I knew what to do. I am 5'4 and my weight stuck at 134 lbs and no matter what I did (and I tried everything!) it would not budge. My trainer bf was baffled, but we had heard that people with hypothyroidism have a hard time losing weight.

I have since moved to a new city and got a new job which has me working 12-14 hours per day, 5-6 days a week. Making time for the gym and for making meals is difficult. Anyways, the bottom line I now go to the gym maybe twice during the week for 45 min of cardio and twice on the weekends for an hour of cardio plus maybe a twenty min upper or lower body workout. So I do half as much exercise and eat less frequently and smaller portion sizes, as I am much less hungry.

But I have lost 14 lbs!! And that is in less than 2 months. Whats up? I got my body fat checked, and it has increased a couple of %, but it is still low for a girl. I know muscle weighs more than fat, but still... 14 lbs is a lot for a girl who could not make the scale budge by even 1 lb just 5 months ago. I have lost a lot of size, but it looks better. I was looking pretty "thick" before.

So my conclusion goes against what I would have thought, but it seems that training and eating "right" made me heavier. And that training less and eating less frequently and less in general has made me look better. I am still as tight and toned as ever - maybe more so. What gives? Don't they say training can't bulk women up? And any ideas as to why the weight suddenly fell off me? I've been to the doctor and am otherwise healthy.
 
why do you care about the numbers???
Who cares what number you weigh, if you look better, feel better are are healthier then thats all that matters.

Plus - Dont worry about body fat %, its so inacurate its not worth looking at. The guy that did it the 2nd time was just holding the calipers tigher than the 1st guy.
 
R.Lewis said:
why do you care about the numbers???
Who cares what number you weigh, if you look better, feel better are are healthier then thats all that matters.

Plus - Dont worry about body fat %, its so inacurate its not worth looking at. The guy that did it the 2nd time was just holding the calipers tigher than the 1st guy.
Click to expand...

The ratio of fat to muscle weight is significant. And you muscle atrophizes fast when you don't train (look any anyone who has recently come out of a cast). You have gone form weight training 1/2 hr/day to 20 minutes two or three X week. Me thinks you have lost significant muscle.

That said, I am a 5'7" female and weight 147 lbs. For years I though that the 150 mark was FAAAAAAAAT, but I am a size 6 because I weight train. Numbers on the scale mean nothing.

You were training to compete for goodness sake. Throw that scale away.
 
I know that the ratio can be important. And that's why I am confused. I thought that since muscle takes up less room than fat, that I would look larger as my bf% increased. But I am much smaller.

I was so much thicker before, there is no way I ever could have competed and both my boyfriend/ trainer and I knew that. Training made me at least 3 clothing sizes bigger. But this goes against everything I've learned. I had given up dreams about competing, because nothing worked for me. And then when I stopped trying, I came closer to achieving my goals.

I am also wondering if there is going to be some kind of fall-out. If I go from training frequently to less-frequently, am I going to lose weight at first, and then gain it all back?
 
First, remember everybody is different. What works for 90% of the people may not work for you the same. You have to find what works best for your particular body at this time in your life. Many factors influence this: age, fitness level, diet, genetics, physiological, psychological, etc.

Second, if you had been doing the same general thing (diet and exercise plan) for a long time, perhaps you just needed a change of pace to break through a plateau.

Third, an hour of cardio and 1/2 hour of weights every day is probably overtraining for most people and the high levels of cortisone created by that could cause your body to hold fat (to be ready to fuel the 1-1/2 or exercise it was expecting the next day).
 
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