If muscle weighs more than fat...

[skywalkerbeth]

I musta been pretty fat when I started!

Just a few months into this (and not even hard core riding, really) and I've gained 4 pounds BUT my clothes not only still fit they may even be slightly looser.

I was thinking that "I don't want to lose pounds so much as firm up" and now I've GAINED. Grrr. OK, I want to go back to the weight I was but firm up.

[Becky]

The number on the scale is just that, a number....how you look and feel is more important. If your clothes still fit well, then you didn't gain inches anywhere and you must have built muscle. Muscle is good :D

Accept it as a badge of honor :)

[jessmarimba]

It always makes me laugh when people are shocked at what I really weigh. As in, the number is always much higher than they expected from looking at me. Alllll muscle.

[OakLeaf]

When my mom was young she was a professional dancer off Broadway. She would sometimes amuse herself at "Guess Your Weight" carnival booths - she said she won the prize every single time. :D

[Dr.Doo]

A pound of muscle weighs exactly the same as a pound of fat. Muscle however is more dense, therefore when you build lean body mass you can reduce your size and weigh more.

[Becky]

It always makes me laugh when people are shocked at what I really weigh. As in, the number is always much higher than they expected from looking at me. Alllll muscle.

Same here. I'm ~20 pounds heavier than what's commonly accepted for my height and build. I have so much fun with the nurses and medical assistants at my various doctors' offices :D

[Biciclista]

I weigh 15 pounds more than I did before I started cycling. My waistline is so much nicer than it used to be. My thighs have definition. I admit the scale freaks me out but even my doctor said " you're perfect"

[Melalvai]

A friend of mine is losing weight/ gaining fitness and I'm encouraging her to use metrics other than weight, body fat, and circumferences. Like resting HR, and HR after 10 minutes on the treadmill at 2.5 mph.

I should probably take my own advice. I could stand to lose a little weight but more importantly I should monitor my fitness, and if I start to lose fitness, take steps (or pedals) to fix that.

[beccaB]

OK, I just have to brag a little. My recent bloodwork showed that my HDL is higher than my LDL. My doc says I have the highest HDL(good cholesterol) he's ever seen in any of his patients. He told another doc about it who was mad because someone had bested him!

[Biciclista]

beccaB, that's great, congrats!
My company was offering free cholesterol checks and when the nurse got my results she said "you're a breath of fresh air, your numbers are the best I've seen today" I looked at the others, 90% of them were younger than me.
Woohoo!

[Crankin]

Yep, I get the same thing about my HDL/LDL ratio and numbers. But my total is still a little above 200. I've been told numerous times not to worry and that my HDL is one of the best he or she has seen.
Most people think I weigh a lot less than I do, too.

[RubyTuesday]

Funny, I said this to my husband last night. In three weeks I have gained two pounds. Lovely.... I am going to start standing backwards on the scale when I go to the doctor. I don't want to know anymore.

Everyone always calls me trim. I look at the scale and just laugh. My weight is always under estimated also.

[VeganBikeChick]

Funny, I said this to my husband last night. In three weeks I have gained two pounds. Lovely.... I am going to start standing backwards on the scale when I go to the doctor. I don't want to know anymore.

Everyone always calls me trim. I look at the scale and just laugh. My weight is always under estimated also.

I always stand backwards on the scale at the dr.'s office and make sure they don't say the number out loud. I'd rather live in my fantasy world :)

[kcmpls]

A friend of mine was training for an Ironman Triathlon and was in awesome shape. She went into the doctor and was weighed. Her weight was well above what it should be, because she was all muscle. The doctor told her to lose weight! She had very little fat on her, but the doctor couldn't see beyond the BMI. She changed doctor.

[kcmpls]

Of course, me on the other hand. I'd like to think I'm 235 pounds of muscle, but my belly tells me otherwise...

But I'm down about 10 pounds this summer, but my waist and arms are considerably smaller than they were, so I know there is some muscle building happening.

[Velocivixen]

Muscle doesn't weigh more than fat. A pound is a pound. Muscle is more dense and takes up less space pound for pound. But I gather you've figured that out by all of the prior posts.

[goldfinch]

A friend of mine was training for an Ironman Triathlon and was in awesome shape. She went into the doctor and was weighed. Her weight was well above what it should be, because she was all muscle. The doctor told her to lose weight! She had very little fat on her, but the doctor couldn't see beyond the BMI. She changed doctor.


I just had the opposite experience. I went into the doctor for a drug check as I had lost 22% of my body weight. I am 4'11" and 123 pounds. I told the doc that I had probably about 15 more pounds to go but I needed to work on building muscle. The doctor looked at the BMI tables and said I am close to not being overweight at all and don't worry about it. Well, excuse me but losing weight will result in muscle loss and I know that my fat percentage remains way too high. It isn't just about the pounds. Plus, I am very small boned.

She should be able to look at me and see that I still am "fluffy." :)

[ny biker]

Yes, of course one pound of muscle weighs the same as one pound of fat, or one pound of gold for that matter. The OP was merely commenting how frustrating it can be to gain weight while getting smaller.

[OakLeaf]

Neither the OP nor anyone else said that a "pound" of muscle weighs more than a pound of fat.

A liter of muscle DOES weigh more than a liter of fat. And that's exactly what she was remarking on.

[marni]

the one thing that no one has mentioned is that while muscle may weigh as much as fat, muscle does burn more calories than fat, so that is certainly an incentive for changing the ratios.

If I go by scale weight, bmi my body fat is 26% which puts me just barely in the normal range. If I go by circumference measurements, my body fat % is 19 %, if I go by caliper meaurements, my body fat % is 22% so I have a choice. I mostly go by how my favorite skirt, pair of pants and dress feel and look like on me.

marni

[grey]

My BMI is right in the middle range, though I look lighter than I am. What I want to know is, with all this muscle building and fat burning, why is it the Twins disappear first, and the gut fat hangs on for dear life? I don't even care too much about the girls disappearing - they make padded bras for that - I just want the belly to GO AWAY. My legs look great. My butt looks good. Even my arms look better from the holding-in-the drops position on the road bike. But my Little Buddha giggle-jiggle is still here. :mad:

[rubysoho]

My BMI is right in the middle range, though I look lighter than I am. What I want to know is, with all this muscle building and fat burning, why is it the Twins disappear first, and the gut fat hangs on for dear life? I don't even care too much about the girls disappearing - they make padded bras for that - I just want the belly to GO AWAY. My legs look great. My butt looks good. Even my arms look better from the holding-in-the drops position on the road bike. But my Little Buddha giggle-jiggle is still here. :mad:

Because your body is protecting your reproductive organs. The middle is the first place we gain and the last place we lose fat. The "science people" explained (and I am sorry, I do not have a source to quote online) that it was to protect those reproductive organs - and possibly the unborn child - during winter when we would naturally burn more calories trying to stay warm and have less food to eat.

[OakLeaf]

I don't know, I'm not a science person ;) but that doesn't make a lot of sense to me.

If that were the evolutionary reason, then (1) why would men carry more belly fat than women, and (2) why wouldn't women's bodies also retain fat around their breasts, to protect their born children?

Personally I don't have trouble losing waist fat, it's my thighs. Maybe I'm thigh-pregnant. :rolleyes:

[Veronica]

I think where we hold fat is based on genetics, not gender. What I have left is all in my legs, not so much on my belly.

Veronica

[indysteel]

Personally I don't have trouble losing waist fat, it's my thighs. Maybe I'm thigh-pregnant. :rolleyes:

LOL! I think I'm carrying butt and thigh twins.

[Susan]

A guy referred to me at our weekend ride, saying it was no wonder I could outride the guys on a climb being such a "small woman".

I'm 5'4'' and weight 140 pounds, still struggling to get into an acceptable BMI range...

[Catrin]

All of my weight is pretty much in my belly...don't have a butt - never did even when I weight 80 pounds more than I do now! My girls don't seem to change much though, that is the second to the last place where I loose weight My thighs and calves are larger than they've ever been - but they look a lot better than they used to!

[malkin]

Neither the OP nor anyone else said that a "pound" of muscle weighs more than a pound of fat.

A liter of muscle DOES weigh more than a liter of fat. And that's exactly what she was remarking on.


Right.

Go to the grocery store and compare the sizes of a pound of butter, a pound of cheese and a pound of the leanest meat they have. Check the size of something that is mostly water too--like produce or juice.

[rubysoho]

I don't know, I'm not a science person ;) but that doesn't make a lot of sense to me.

If that were the evolutionary reason, then (1) why would men carry more belly fat than women, and (2) why wouldn't women's bodies also retain fat around their breasts, to protect their born children?

Personally I don't have trouble losing waist fat, it's my thighs. Maybe I'm thigh-pregnant. :rolleyes:

I totally understand. I do have a larger butt and thighs as well. I was just repeating what I read elsewhere. I do lose weight from the outside-in though. And I have seen people who look like their heads have shrunk while their bodies have yet to lose more weight. Then they went to the other end of the spectrum with itty bitty bodies and lollipop heads.

Oh well. Feel free to ignore my reference. :D ;)

[zoom-zoom]

(2) why wouldn't women's bodies also retain fat around their breasts, to protect their born children?

Well, for one...fat doesn't make milk, otherwise women with A cups wouldn't be able to breastfeed. ;)

I've always gained and lost weight pretty evenly all over my body. I have a couple of stubborn spots. And my boobs are the first place I gain and the last I lose--which isn't a great thing, given that I'm a D cup AFTER breast reduction surgery.

I would wager that our fat gain/loss patterns have a lot to do with body type...mesomorph, endomorph, ectomorph. I'm mostly a mesomorph. Most of my dad's side are endomorphs. My mom is a mesomorph (though with age she's starting to carry weight more in her middle...mostly because she is so inactive), brother is a mesomorph, sister is an endomorph.

[OakLeaf]

Well, for one...fat doesn't make milk, otherwise women with A cups wouldn't be able to breastfeed. ;)

Fat doesn't make babies either ... my point was that when fat is broken down for nutrition, it's carried by the bloodstream, and I'm not aware of any advantage in fat being deposited near the organ it's supposed to be feeding. If that were the case then our brain would be near our lungs, right? :) And if the idea has to do with physically insulating the organ from traumatic injuries, then it would be even more important around the breasts than in the abdominal area?

[Juliegoddess]

A friend of mine was training for an Ironman Triathlon and was in awesome shape. She went into the doctor and was weighed. Her weight was well above what it should be, because she was all muscle. The doctor told her to lose weight! She had very little fat on her, but the doctor couldn't see beyond the BMI. She changed doctor.

Oh I have a tough time with this, too! I don't even care what the BMI number is anymore, because it absolutely does not take muscle into account. It makes me LAUGH out LOUD when I hear about hard-core athletes with BMI's over 30...their bodies are hard as ROCKS, but according to their BMI, they are OBESE!! Yeah, RIGHT! I think the BMI measurement works for the "average guy/gal", but is totally skewed when applied to an athlete. It's quite discouraging to a person who is trying to become an athlete, too...the scale goes up, and with it, BMI, but fat is going DOWN...!

[skywalkerbeth]

Oakleaf and NYbiker - that's what I meant, you're right.

Though I do wish I could get rid of belly fat more quickly. My legs look pretty good, not happy with the gut.

[Owlie]

I've lost some fat this summer, though probably not much weight. I lose fat around my waist pretty quickly, but there are stubborn spots of belly and inner thigh fat. Less of either now than a year or so ago. Let's try to keep it that way.

[buffybike]

I used to console myself with the larger scale number by reminding myself that i ride over 100 miles a week and that it's "just muscle". Even so, i didnt like the way i looked in photos and felt that i should look...smaller. After paying closer attention to my eating habits, i realized that i was consuming a lot more calories than i needed but justified them by telling myself that they were "burned off" on the bike. For example, i would eat 2 packets of oatmeal before a 30 mile ride, a Cliff bar during, and a big lunch following (to "refuel"). I was so afraid of bonking or not fueling properly afterward that i actually went too far in the other direction, and gained around 6 pounds over a year. Now i'm more careful not to overestimate my caloric needs and I'm seeing the number on the scale go DOWN even as my legs are getting stronger.

[ctdancer]

I thought the "belly fat" issue was due to the OMENTUM, which is deep visceral fat meant to protect internal organs, and regulate hormones/enzymes in the liver(For the exact explanation see Dr. Oz's website) ....and whether or not your an "apple" vs "pear"...and I'm sure all of you already know that being an apple shape can possibly lead to heart disease and diabetes....so from what I remember Dr. Oz saying, the Omentum starts off like a small laced doily, but as you gain it grows, and releases more insulin, and estrogen directly into the liver, which is very bad....and it becomes stubborn to decrease the omentum once it has enlarged, BUT can be done.....Be patient and keep MOVING and eating "CLEAN" !

[alexis_the_tiny]

Someone once said the BMI was a little thing some mathematician came up with but with no intention of applying it to health care. It does sound plausible. I used to train women in a gym and they'd all come complaining about gaining weight but being able to wear smaller sizes after a few months at our gym. I'd tell them to stop looking at the scales and just rely on body measurements and their clothes. Muscle is really important for women because its responsible for our metabolism and bone health. We start losing muscle after the age of 30 so it makes sense to build as much of it as possible.

[blue_angel]

A guy referred to me at our weekend ride, saying it was no wonder I could outride the guys on a climb being such a "small woman".

I'm 5'4'' and weight 140 pounds, still struggling to get into an acceptable BMI range...

How is 5'4" and 140 not in an acceptable BMI range? I wouldn't put much stock in BMI anyway: according to that metric, most athletes are obese.

[limewave]

I had my annual appt last week. And my doc, who is very blunt and has terrible bedside manners (one of the reasons I love her) actually approved of my weight! She looked at my height, my weight and said "technically, you are over a healthy BMI. But, I can look at you and see that you are very fit--it's one of those rare times I throw out the bmi. Good work."

:) She's an athlete too.

[itself]

Scales are evil! I never weigh myself! I've been in a size 8/10 forever. When I started lifting weights 20 years ago, I put about 15 pounds on. At 5'5 135lbs, I am quite muscular, and am surprised at 50 that I really have not lost as much as the stats all predict. I guess I have good muscle memory.

Remember, muscle BURNS fat. Weight lifting is of huge benefit to woman as it can ward off osteoporosis. Weight lifting is an impact activity like hiking. This is why I do not exclusively focus on cycling, as it is non-impact.

If you FEEL good, that is all that matters!

[ultraviolet]

Just echoing what others have said about BMI. It really isn't the best measure of how healthy you are or aren't. It's a statistical measure meant to be applied to large populations, not to analyze individuals.

In my case, I recently had a DEXA scan to measure my body composition. From that I learned that, assuming no loss of lean body mass, even getting down to 18% body fat (in the "Athletic" range for women by most measures), I would still be categorized as Obese. I wouldn't get myself out of that category until getting down to 13.5% body fat, dipping close to the Essential Fat level and probably not very sustainable/comfortably livable. Even then, my BMI would still be 29.8...so just barely out of BMI's Obese category.

I'm not suggesting that my situation is the norm (at all). I realize that I'm something of an anomaly--with my big bones, big muscles and average height (just under 5'5"). I'm just pointing out that BMI is not the end-all be-all of body measurement or analysis.

[Susan]

How is 5'4" and 140 not in an acceptable BMI range? I wouldn't put much stock in BMI anyway: according to that metric, most athletes are obese.

Oh, you are right, I didn't do the math properly going from metric to your standard measures. 5'4'' and 140 is in an acceptable BMI range, but my BMI is 26. ;)
I don't put much stock in BMI or even the scale, but I am much heavier than I look.

[Dogmama]

A woman on another board has won many competitions in the dead lift. She is solid muscle, but her BMI shows her as obese. For that reason, she's unable to get life insurance. Crazy.