unsuccessful at losing fat

dara_con · 22-08-2013 10:40am #1

Hi all,

been cutting for 3 weeks now started off at 163 pounds at 21.6% bodyfat
Was down to 161.4 pounds at 20.3 % body fat a few days ago

but today the scale tells me im at 161 pounds with 20.8%
So ive lost weight (.4 of a pound) yet my body fat has increased?
This has pissed me off !

Just in case needed i need roughly 1800 calories to maintain my weight
I do a lot of cycling and play football
but on non training days i eat around 1300 calories
I aim for roughly 2 pounds every 2-3 weeks

i eat like 15-30g carbs ...i'd say 3 out of the 5 of my meals a day
Helpppppp why are the numbers so strange ? (ie down in weight but up in bodyfat)

I eat clean mostly .. might have a biscuit or 2 .. twice a week

My meals mainly consist of a meat/fish and broccoli and cauliflower
carbs mainly brown pasta/rice or brown bread.

Helppp please...
Advice would be appreciated !!!!

Stench Blossoms · 22-08-2013 10:48am

Post up exactly what you eat on a day to day basis.

Orla K · 22-08-2013 11:00am

I wouldn't trust those electric body fat measuring stuff. They don't measure body fat they measure the water in your body then subtract that from your weight. If you've just started then you could have lost excess water which will lower your reading for it in your body and then as a result raise the body fat.

But post up your average daily diet, there will be room for improvement.

thegreatiam · 22-08-2013 11:05am

dara_con wrote: »

Hi all,

been cutting for 3 weeks now started off at 163 pounds at 21.6% bodyfat
Was down to 161.4 pounds at 20.3 % body fat a few days ago

but today the scale tells me im at 161 pounds with 20.8%
So ive lost weight (.4 of a pound) yet my body fat has increased?
This has pissed me off !

Bold is where you are going wrong.
don't worry about short term results, just that there is a trend in the right direction over a period of months.

also the scales is about as accurate as I am at guessing your body fat.
If you ask me on Monday how much body fat you had and I said about 21.36, then the next week I said 22.93 would you doubt your measurement or my accuracy?

Stop stressing inaccurate nonsense numbers from a gadget and keep plugging away.

This identical question has been posted before, the answer is take photos to see your body change shape, check progress over a few months not weeks.

Also, it's .5 of a % of your body fat. chillax

Dravokivich · 22-08-2013 11:44am

dara_con wrote: »

been cutting for 3 weeks now started off at 163 pounds at 21.6% bodyfat
Was down to 161.4 pounds at 20.3 % body fat a few days ago

but today the scale tells me im at 161 pounds with 20.8%
So ive lost weight (.4 of a pound) yet my body fat has increased?
This has pissed me off !

!

Aside from how you are calculating you bodyfat percentage. You're not looking at it correctly also.

20.3% of 161.4 is 7.95
20.8% of 161 is 7.74

A percentage is just a ratio in this context. Not an absolute figure.

If you learn how to measure the percentage more accurately, learn to use it to figure out exactly what it means in numbers as well, before the next time you get in a panic over it.

Other than that. Keep up the work. You did make some progress, even if you couldn't recognise it.

Edit:
Just noticed my calculations were wrong. But you're looking at a higher ratio, of a lower number...

fitnessnow · 22-08-2013 12:19pm

Orla K wrote: »

I wouldn't trust those electric body fat measuring stuff. They don't measure body fat they measure the water in your body then subtract that from your weight. If you've just started then you could have lost excess water which will lower your reading for it in your body and then as a result raise the body fat.

But post up your average daily diet, there will be room for improvement.

Orla K is spot on dont fall into that trap i made that mistake before , most of those gadgets will have you like a yo yo with your diet .........

dor843088 · 22-08-2013 10:25pm

dara_con wrote: »

Hi all,

been cutting for 3 weeks now started off at 163 pounds at 21.6% bodyfat
Was down to 161.4 pounds at 20.3 % body fat a few days ago

but today the scale tells me im at 161 pounds with 20.8%
So ive lost weight (.4 of a pound) yet my body fat has increased?
This has pissed me off !

Just in case needed i need roughly 1800 calories to maintain my weight
I do a lot of cycling and play football
but on non training days i eat around 1300 calories
I aim for roughly 2 pounds every 2-3 weeks

i eat like 15-30g carbs ...i'd say 3 out of the 5 of my meals a day
Helpppppp why are the numbers so strange ? (ie down in weight but up in bodyfat)

I eat clean mostly .. might have a biscuit or 2 .. twice a week

My meals mainly consist of a meat/fish and broccoli and cauliflower
carbs mainly brown pasta/rice or brown bread.

Helppp please...
Advice would be appreciated !!!!

So your eating between 1300 and 1800 cals a day and between 50 and 100 carbs a day and your 160lbs and been cutting for 3 weeks with a 0.5lb loss? My advice is to start counting your calories and macros accurately cos those numbers dont add up .

doctorwhogirl · 23-08-2013 12:29am

Post up a daily sample of a food diary.

Also, male or female? Maybe I've been sleepy and missed that bit!

King of the Hotcups · 23-08-2013 11:57am

I'm a bit of a noob at this, but isn't 1300 calories a bit too low? ... you might be putting your body into starvation mode, which is causing it store fat!

The weight loss could be down to reducing fluid levels!

Orla K · 23-08-2013 12:05pm

doctorwhogirl wrote: »

Post up a daily sample of a food diary.

Also, male or female? Maybe I've been sleepy and missed that bit!

The name kinda gives it away:P

dara_con · 24-08-2013 8:10pm

Thanks for the replies , much appreciated,
in case anyone is wondering, I have been in the gym 4 times a week since november trying to gain mass from july on i was considering starting to cut as my bodyfat was over 20%

.. at the start of august i injured one if of the tendons in my right shoulder and was advised not to lift until it heals, so i figured why waste the next few weeks ..ill start my cut then..

I still do legs in the gym once or twice week (every 5 days ish) but no deadlift and sometimes squat

I am thinking of taking 2 scoops of whey in the morning and again after the gym..currently only 1 scoop

meal 1 :

2x weetabix and milk + 1 whey scoop with water and hot chocolate powder
OR
porridge + """
OR
a piece of meat 100g and a handful of nuts

MACROS:
370 cal / 270 cal
40g carb / 6g carbs
34g protein / 33g protein
5/8g fat / 14g fat

meal 2 :

2 eggs + cheese+ham
2 slices wholemeal brown bread

MACROS:
400 cal
30g carbs
25g protein
17g fat

meal 3 POST WORKOUT
30g whey
15g dextrose + 15g maltodextrin
10g chocoloate powder

MACROS:
230 cal
30g carbs
24g protein
2g fat

I wrote this in as meal 3 but honestly i go to the gym whenever i have time so i could be having this "meal" at any point during the day

meal 4:
chicken breast 100g + 100g broccoli+ cauliflower+ banana

MACROS:
300 cal
35g carbs
34g protein
4g fat

this would normally be the type of meal i would have post workout(1 and a half to 2 hrs later), if i was to have this post workout i would replace the banana with brown rice 100g

meal 5 :
piece of fruit (banana) + handful of nuts + 200g veg

MACROS:
300 cal
36g carbs
12g protein
13g fat

throughout the day i would have a few teaspoons of honey

This would be what i would eat if i was doing cardio and/or legs on the day

1700-1800 cal
140-170g carbs ....are my carbs too high?
130-140g protein ..i know my protein is not high enough ..what should i be aiming for?
40-50g fat

dor843088 · 24-08-2013 9:01pm

dara_con wrote: »

Thanks for the replies , much appreciated,
in case anyone is wondering, I have been in the gym 4 times a week since november trying to gain mass from july on i was considering starting to cut as my bodyfat was over 20%

.. at the start of august i injured one if of the tendons in my right shoulder and was advised not to lift until it heals, so i figured why waste the next few weeks ..ill start my cut then..

I still do legs in the gym once or twice week (every 5 days ish) but no deadlift and sometimes squat

I am thinking of taking 2 scoops of whey in the morning and again after the gym..currently only 1 scoop

meal 1 :

2x weetabix and milk + 1 whey scoop with water and hot chocolate powder
OR
porridge + """
OR
a piece of meat 100g and a handful of nuts

MACROS:
370 cal / 270 cal
40g carb / 6g carbs
34g protein / 33g protein
5/8g fat / 14g fat

meal 2 :

2 eggs + cheese+ham
2 slices wholemeal brown bread

MACROS:
400 cal
30g carbs
25g protein
17g fat

meal 3 POST WORKOUT
30g whey
15g dextrose + 15g maltodextrin
10g chocoloate powder

MACROS:
230 cal
30g carbs
24g protein
2g fat

I wrote this in as meal 3 but honestly i go to the gym whenever i have time so i could be having this "meal" at any point during the day

meal 4:
chicken breast 100g + 100g broccoli+ cauliflower+ banana

MACROS:
300 cal
35g carbs
34g protein
4g fat

this would normally be the type of meal i would have post workout(1 and a half to 2 hrs later), if i was to have this post workout i would replace the banana with brown rice 100g

meal 5 :
piece of fruit (banana) + handful of nuts + 200g veg

MACROS:
300 cal
36g carbs
12g protein
13g fat

throughout the day i would have a few teaspoons of honey

This would be what i would eat if i was doing cardio and/or legs on the day

1700-1800 cal
140-170g carbs ....are my carbs too high?
130-140g protein ..i know my protein is not high enough ..what should i be aiming for?
40-50g fat

Your macros are good enough I wouldnt change much tbh. So to gain weight all you will need to do is more carbs less cardio but do it in increments of 10 carbs and 15 mins cardio. And to lose weight its the opposite increase cardio and decrease carbs in increments of 10 carbs and 15 mins cardio. Make adjustments only as you plateau . Simple and effective.

unsuccessful at losing fat

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