Re: Need some encouragement!

April 15, 2006

My questions are:

Why do you think your results are poor?

What goals did you set?

Were they reasonable?

n

At 08:48 AM 4/15/2006, you wrote:

>Man, I have been so excited this whole challenge--I am 6 weeks into it

>and the size 10 I started in, is outright baggy on me all over. Most

>of my 8's are too small, though, so I guess I am between sizes. then

>I weighed and measured today. I lost 2 pounds (not that great, but

>the weight isn't the best indicator) GAINED 1/2 inch on my arms and

>hips, and my thighs and waist stayed the same. My stomach dropped 1

>1/2 inches though. I can't figure it out! I feel great, but now I

>wonder if I am kidding myself!!! I really want this to work, but why

>are my results so poor?

April 15, 2006

I think my results are poor because I have gained or not lost any

inches except for one area on my body [i thought spot reduction wasn't

possible;)]. As for my goals, mostly I just want to fit comfortable

into my size 8 pants again (this is mostly baby weight I am trying to

lose.) I don\t really have specific inches set, but I know that I

want to be smaller, not bigger!

> >Man, I have been so excited this whole challenge--I am 6 weeks into it

> >and the size 10 I started in, is outright baggy on me all over. Most

> >of my 8's are too small, though, so I guess I am between sizes. then

> >I weighed and measured today. I lost 2 pounds (not that great, but

> >the weight isn't the best indicator) GAINED 1/2 inch on my arms and

> >hips, and my thighs and waist stayed the same. My stomach dropped 1

> >1/2 inches though. I can't figure it out! I feel great, but now I

> >wonder if I am kidding myself!!! I really want this to work, but why

> >are my results so poor?

>

April 15, 2006

That sounds ideal and totally normal. You've gained a little in your

arms and thighs because your muscles are leaner and stronger and

pumped. You're also losing fat in those areas, but it's not showing up

on the tape measure right away because your new muscles are standing

at attention. The fat loss does show on your stomach because that's

not an area where you're building muscle. Fat DOES come off all over

in layers. So if you've lost fat from your abs, you've definitely lost

it from your arms and thighs as well. There's nothing poor about your

results. If you're excited and your jeans are loose. STAY excited,

because you're doing great.

Here's an old post on the subject of thighs and jeans:

~~

Keep training your legs. It's a major calorie burn. If you're feeling

big and bulky, the problem isn't your new lean muscle, it's the old

familiar fat that's still covering it. It's easy to gain some muscle

in the beginning. Once the fat loss catches up, you'll have some

sleek, rock hard, jiggle free legs that are smaller than what you

started with. Witness the fat and muscle comparison photo:

http://skwigg.tripod.com/fat_and_muscle.jpg

Quite a few women never get there though. They gain an inch in their

thighs the first couple weeks of training, wig out, and go back to

being flabby and soft. If they'd stuck it out for 12 weeks, they'd

have found that the fat loss catches up and their legs start looking

amazing! It's not unusual for the measurements in your arms, legs, and

hips to go up slightly at first but then drop like rocks. At the end

of a 12 week transformation you'll be inches smaller all the way

around. Most people don't stick it out though. The " I'm getting bulky "

phenomenon is an excellent excuse to quit and go back to something

safely ineffective.

Double check your meals, your portion sizes, and free day, and make

sure you're creating a substantial calorie deficit every week. You

have to have a calorie deficit in order to strip the fat off. If

you're training your guts out but you've increased your calories to

meet the demands, it's possible that you're accidentally doing a

" bulking " phase. That's all about your diet though.

If you're near your ideal weight, the ballpark estimates are that your

calories should be 8-10 times your body weight for fat loss, 12 times

your body weight for fat loss with some muscle gain, and 15 times body

weight for muscle gain only. Here's the BFL calculator:

http://www.bodyforlife.com/exercise/calcalc.asp

Remember, those numbers are only going to be close if you're already

near your ideal weight. Anybody more than 20-30 pounds over might want

to enter a goal weight instead of your current weight.

Also, you definitely want to check out Hussman's article " You

Really Do Change From the Inside Out " so that you understand what's

happening and why it isn't always immediately visible and measurable:

http://www.hussmanfitness.org/html/TSInsideOut.html

> Man, I have been so excited this whole challenge--I am 6 weeks into it

> and the size 10 I started in, is outright baggy on me all over. Most

> of my 8's are too small, though, so I guess I am between sizes. then

> I weighed and measured today. I lost 2 pounds (not that great, but

> the weight isn't the best indicator) GAINED 1/2 inch on my arms and

> hips, and my thighs and waist stayed the same. My stomach dropped 1

> 1/2 inches though. I can't figure it out! I feel great, but now I

> wonder if I am kidding myself!!! I really want this to work, but why

> are my results so poor?

>

April 15, 2006

Poor? Are you kidding?

You have almost lost a pant size in six weeks....you have lost 1.5

inches off of your stomach, and gained 1/2 inch on your arms...sounds

to me like you are throwing off the fat and building lean muscle that

is just waiting to pop out and show you what you have been working so

hard for. Six weeks....45 days. Not that long a time. Your results

are really great so far, just relax and keep at it. Your next six

weeks will be even better.

Barbara