I am 46 years old and weight 265lbs and have started back over 8 months ago doing Cathe workouts 5 days per week. I went to the doctor last week and I have not lost one pound on the scale since I was there 6 months ago. I know have I have lost inches because I have been able to size down one size on my jeans and my tops. I know I have muscle gains because I can see a difference in my legs and arms and with how my clothes fit. I had my thyroid removed back in 2015 however, since I have changed jobs my levels have been more stable than they have in awhile. My stress levels are much lower since my job change, but why am I not losing weight? Will I only lose inches, is that ok? Should I be worried? I spent time with a nutritionist about 3 years ago, and follow Intuitive Eating which has allowed me to let go of the food issues that I have had over the years. When I first started with "weight loss plan" I had simple goals at first; like being able to tie my shoes without breathing so hard, and bending over to hook up my beagles to let them outside. I would like to lose another pants size however, I just don't understand why the pounds haven't dropped off. Your thoughts? Suggestions?
Need advice....support....
- Thread starter slwitt
- Start date
workout
Cathlete
Hi slwitt, first of all you are definitely going in the right direction. It is possible that you are gaining muscle and losing the fat at the same time which would not show up on the scale (lose 1 pound of fat but gain 1 pound of muscle, which is much better). There are some women that are very thin but their body fat percentage is very high, so that would be unhealthy. Read the article I've attached below. Don't give up and don't let the scale decide how well you are doing, it is the most unreliable piece of equipment to measure healthy weight loss. Give yourself time and keep measuring your success with the clothes. Keep going, if you stop, you will never know but if you persist - whatever it takes -- you will succeed.
/iStock-639710428-5972364822fa3a00104c3b24.jpg)
www.verywellfit.com
.
Why Using a Scale Isn't Always the Best Way to Measure Weight Loss
If you're losing inches but not weight, you may need a new way to measure and track your weight loss. The scale won't always be the best tool.
Debinmi
Cathlete
Frustrating isn't it? You do everything traditionally recommended: "exercise more, eat less, reduce stress, improve sleep, take your meds, conquer emotions, check your hormones, don't focus on the scale, be realistic in your goals, see your doctor, see a nutritionist, hire a personal trainer, try this diet or that diet, read this book or that article", etc. Yet things don't change or minimally change. The best advice I got after years of this insanity was - "reduce your carb intake". So I cut out processed foods made with grains and sugar, reduced high carb vegetables and fruit, and eliminated highly processed oils/fats. After the initial adjustment to this way of eating, the weight loss came relatively easily. I believe my body was insulin- resistant and highly inflamed from the processed foods. Some may think this is too restrictive, but my health & quality of life have greatly improved and my meals and snacks are delicious - I never feel deprived or hungry or hangry, and I've made peace with the scale. And more importantly, I am comfortable, even happy, with my body. Best wishes for good health in your search for what will work for your body.
Jane Power-Grimm
Cathlete
Just had to say, WAY TO GO! You have really taken responsibility for your health and worked so hard to improve it. You deserve a lot of credit slwitt!
Working out with Cathe can not help but improve your overall health and wellness, so rejoice in that. I am wondering if you are seeing measurable progress in your cardio-vascular fitness (blood pressure going down, lowered resting heart rate ), your body composition (percentage of body fat decreasing - I use a scale that estimates body fat percentage and a measuring tape), improved sleep, improved mental health (mood, positivity), cholesterol levels, weight loads selected for your workouts (using Cathe's workout cards can help to track these gains), decreased rest intervals needed while working out, and your ability to handle some of Cathe's more challenging workouts over time. My guess is you are making huge gains in many, many important areas!
My weight doesn't change a lot either unless I cut out the 'BS' in my life - Bread, Booze and Sugar! But I would focus on the gains YOU see and feel you are making day to day, not just one number assessed on one day. Good luck. Please keep us posted slwitt.
Jane Power-Grimm! Thank you! I appreciate your feedback. My blood pressure is in check and waiting on blood test results to know about the rest. I do feel better, and sleep much better than I have in a long time. I just don't want to have to completely sacrifice the foods that I enjoy. I want to enjoy life! I would rather have a few bites then to not have any and then end up binging on something that I never wanted in the first place. I plan to keep going. I have been surprised by how much of Cathe's high impact moves I can do now and I finally got some heavier weights I ordered a few months back that I can now put to work. I have gotten to where I enjoy working out again. I just seem to feel so much better. I will definitely keep y'all posted on how its going.
Hazlady: I have given up on the scale a long time ago. I got rid of them when I did those nutrition classes LOL. I just frustrated that my doctor pushes the number on the scale as the most important thing when I don't feel that is the case. I have definitely lost inches and I feel so much better. I am just going to keep going and not worry about the number on the scale.
Sandra Walker
Member
Hey. Losing pounds is very difficult. I trained for a very long time to lose at least 2 kg. As a result, I came to the conclusion that you shouldn't pay attention to the number on the scales at all! Better look in the mirror, so you can see the result better. Good luck to you!
Lady Vol Fan
Cathlete
In addition to the great advice you've been given, sometimes it's important not to lose sight of the forest for the trees.
Exercising and taking better care of yourself is so much better for you beyond the scale and the jeans size.
I think one of Cathe's latest articles on her blog will help as a reminder of the greater purpose in your journey. Have you read this one?
https://cathe.com/5-science-backed-ways-exercise-slows-aging/
Anyway, keep up the good work and celebrate a monthly anniversary of your consistency
Exercising and taking better care of yourself is so much better for you beyond the scale and the jeans size.
I think one of Cathe's latest articles on her blog will help as a reminder of the greater purpose in your journey. Have you read this one?
https://cathe.com/5-science-backed-ways-exercise-slows-aging/
Anyway, keep up the good work and celebrate a monthly anniversary of your consistency
Last edited:
Thanks so much for the words of encouragement and advice!! I am grateful to be able to reach out to the community for support. It gets lonely at times on this journey when you are not always sure sometimes you are on the right path. I haven't given up. I still keep working at it. I enjoy Cathe's workouts and know I am getting stronger and continuing to lose inches. Hopefully the rest will fall into place soon enough.
I followed all the advice like "sleep more, sleep less sugar, work out three times a week, massage", but it does not help much. Yes, I was able to control myself more. But still, it is very tiring to live like this all the time. Do not focus on the numbers on the scales, because our body is both fat and muscle and water. Look at the volumes and how you feel.
Traildoggie
Cathlete
Most conclude it's WAY easy to eat too much, even too much "good" food. you can certainly be fit and somewhat over the range #s on weight charts, but exercising seriously and not losing when you are trying....... should make you look at your diet. consider Weight Watchers? its not extreme and people eat normal food without any push to eliminate huge categories of food. you get "points" for all your exercise, and also points for tracking your food.
tracking your food might be an eye opener for you. you can't out exercise a bad diet! bad diets can be 100% good food but too much of it. have you been checked for thyroid issues? there are some meds that make weight loss more difficult.
WW usually has a 3 month special sign up deal this time of year that costs less than normal monthly cost. gives you a chance to see if it works for you. even if you choose not to continue, 3 months will give you insight into the problem.
I do NOT work for WW and recommend only because it works for me. there is a huge amount of flexibility in the program to accommodate different people. I am older and have always had problems losing no matter how active I am.
tracking your food might be an eye opener for you. you can't out exercise a bad diet! bad diets can be 100% good food but too much of it. have you been checked for thyroid issues? there are some meds that make weight loss more difficult.
WW usually has a 3 month special sign up deal this time of year that costs less than normal monthly cost. gives you a chance to see if it works for you. even if you choose not to continue, 3 months will give you insight into the problem.
I do NOT work for WW and recommend only because it works for me. there is a huge amount of flexibility in the program to accommodate different people. I am older and have always had problems losing no matter how active I am.
Traildoggie, thanks for the feedback, I am sure my diet can use some tweaking however, I have made a lot of changes. I eat better than I have in a long time. I eat balanced meals and snacks. I don't drink any soda. Only water or unsweet tea and a small glass of milk with meals. However, my thyroid was removed back in 2015, and haven't been the same since. I am on supplement medication but it's not the same. My levels have stabilized finally but it's taken a lot to get to this point. I also think my family genetics play a role in this, and may not be able to do too much more than where I am right now. I have set goals of things to accomplish along the way, which I have achieved. I am going to keep going see how things go over the next few months.
Traildoggie
Cathlete
I can write a book about difficulty losing weight! I have to work very very hard. normal restrictions don't make a difference. WW helps me stay accountable. there are many ways to do it without WW too, but ww works for me.
you could ask your doc. maybe you can be tweaked upward a touch on your replacement hormone. or maybe its something less complicated, like your idea of a serving size is too large. if you are resistant to loss, it doesn't take a big overstep to stay where you are. a lot of times family genetics combines with family eating habits and a program like WW gives you something objective to compare to.
when I signed up for WW around this time last year it was I believe $30 for 3 months. after its , $20 a month. I have not looked to see what kind of deals are out there now. I used to throw myself into a diet and after about 3 weeks of not enough progress would taper off and stop counting. with WW I've stayed with it a year and am down 12 lbs. I am not very much overweight but its the last few stubborn pounds that refuse to leave the area. good luck to you and keep on working out.
you could ask your doc. maybe you can be tweaked upward a touch on your replacement hormone. or maybe its something less complicated, like your idea of a serving size is too large. if you are resistant to loss, it doesn't take a big overstep to stay where you are. a lot of times family genetics combines with family eating habits and a program like WW gives you something objective to compare to.
when I signed up for WW around this time last year it was I believe $30 for 3 months. after its , $20 a month. I have not looked to see what kind of deals are out there now. I used to throw myself into a diet and after about 3 weeks of not enough progress would taper off and stop counting. with WW I've stayed with it a year and am down 12 lbs. I am not very much overweight but its the last few stubborn pounds that refuse to leave the area. good luck to you and keep on working out.
Traildoggie
Cathlete
there is lots of support on WW . the most useful thing is it shows what healthy eating is, and that you can eat "everything' and still lose as long as you balance things.
there is a feature called connect. people post their success and failures, and there are a lot of people out there with much greater problems than yourself. perspective. its a way to track a your food intake and your exercise and weight over the long term. I cant do some weird eating approach, it takes me too long to lose anything. this is very flexible and the phone app works well. good luck.
there is a feature called connect. people post their success and failures, and there are a lot of people out there with much greater problems than yourself. perspective. its a way to track a your food intake and your exercise and weight over the long term. I cant do some weird eating approach, it takes me too long to lose anything. this is very flexible and the phone app works well. good luck.
Jane Power-Grimm
Cathlete
This 13 minute Ted Talk by women's nutrition and athletic performance researcher Stacy Sims may be of interest. She addresses why some active women have challenges losing weight. She talks about nutritional strategies that can address the specific needs of women at different stages of life. Some really important messages for females who train!
Stacy Sims TED Talk
Stacy Sims TED Talk
Traildoggie
Cathlete
thanks I watched it. I'm one who will maintain on lettuce and distilled water. I'm way older than any groups she was addressing.