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.
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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.
Quote:
Originally Posted by kcmpls
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." :)
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.
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.
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
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.Quote:
Originally Posted by grey
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 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
LOL! I think I'm carrying butt and thigh twins.Quote:
Originally Posted by OakLeaf
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...
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!
Quote:
Originally Posted by OakLeaf
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.
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.Quote:
Originally Posted by OakLeaf
Oh well. Feel free to ignore my reference. :D ;)
Well, for one...fat doesn't make milk, otherwise women with A cups wouldn't be able to breastfeed. ;)Quote:
Originally Posted by OakLeaf
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.