Very Confused

[lulugrl]

I have been eating healthy and exercising but I have not lost weight. In general I have been gaining weight but I have lost a lot of inches and am looking a lot better. I am just confused about why I have not lost any weight.

Does anyone have an idea of what is going on with my body?

[bigm141414]

Sounds like body recompostion. The scale lies most of the time. And if you have lost inches but maintained or gained weight, then things sound like they are heading in the right direction. Have you taken a look at spezzy's story yet? It shows the success of a body recomp.

Is your goal to lose weight? Or to look better? If the latter, then I wouldn't stress about what the scale says.

[silverpeacock]

you've probably been gaining muscle and losing fat at the same rate. If you were to put on muscle faster, then you would be gaining weight and losing inches. Losing fat, and not gaining as much muscle would lead to weight loss.

[Cavegirl]

I agree with the above posters and also want to add you could be retaining water in your muscles if you are doing more exercise than usual or a new routine; check out this article http://www.livestrong.com/article/393797-water-retention-after-resistance-training/ I am in the same boat as you- I've been eating paleo (and counting calories!) and working out hard every day and have actually gained 3lbs. But have lost inches off everything. Dont despair, you are headed in the right direction!

[Corbab]

The scale is a cruel mistress. I've had my weight shift by as much as 8lbs over a couple of days, without any noticeable physical differences. There are so many factors involved—water retention, stomach/intestine contents, hydration level, muscle vs. fat mass—that weight becomes a very unreliable barometer of health (especially as you become more fit). Have a look in the mirror—if you're happy (or happier than last week), you're just fine.

[lulugrl]

Thanks for all the answers to my question. It helped me out a lot

[KellyElizabeth]

Yeah, when I was in a Yogalates class my instructor and crazy fitness guru use to tell us she's not the weight she would like to be but she fits in the size of clothes she wants. I go through the same thing, I'm 5'4 and weight almost a 150 pounds, those two things usually don't go well together. I went to the doctor and he told me that when he read my chart he was prepared to tell me I needed to lose a few pounds until he saw me. So it's nothing unusual.

[Tola Seng]

lulugirl, as others have pointed out - you're most likely building muscle while you're losing body fat. Since muscle is more dense than fat, you're losing inches yet gaining weight. That's why I say the best way to track your progress is to simply look in the mirror and go by how you look and feel.

Congrats on the progress and keep it up!

[MightyAl]

lulugirl, as others have pointed out - you're most likely building muscle while you're losing body fat. Since muscle is more dense than fat, you're losing inches yet gaining weight. That's why I say the best way to track your progress is to simply look in the mirror and go by how you look and feel.

Congrats on the progress and keep it up!

+1 The mirror never lies.

[aj_rock]

Another thing that seems to have been missed in the shuffle is a likely increase in insulin sensitivity.

Exercise in general increases the sensitivity, which means more carbs in your muscles (contributes to muscle size), and feeling more 'energetic' in general.

But long story short, it's good stuffs happening.