I am here today to tell you all of the scenarios of the forbidden body weight scale! I know the number thing…it is frustrating and I hope to shed some light with 3 different scenarios. I hope you can find a peace of mind here and relate to these 3 actual client situations. Personally I have witnessed every possible scenario when it comes to peoples frustrations with physique and strength. Remember fitness is not just 12 weeks..it is a lifetime of events. I always stress that you must learn your body and how different foods and situations affect the way you feel and look. So sit back and enjoy these 3 scenarios and I will give you troubleshooting tips.
Now in my prior post “Guidelines after the 30 Day Shredded Diet”I talked about how people should approach their fitness with a peak phase and also a maintenance phase. This is very important for several reasons but also remember your body weight will do the same. Weight loss is never linear but fat loss is! When I have clients that record daily body weights the chart will show the following, 133.6, 133.4, 132.6, 134.1 133.4 and so forth. It is really neat to look over a years progression and see how you fluctuated week to week or month to month.
The human body consist of over 80% water and we all know how important increasing our water consumption is for fat loss and general health. Also we know that a calorie deficit is important for shocking our body to change…but keep in mind your initial weight loss within the first week is NOT fat but water loss! Body fat cells store excessive water.
There is an interesting science of people who constantly check their body weight everyday or even several times per day. Have you ever experienced the following scenarios? You are watching the scale and nothing is changing…then all of the sudden you are down 4# just like that or the opposite happens when all of the sudden the scale jumps up 2# for no apparent reasons? The science of this is called the “tidal wave factor”. When our fat cells empty from water loss they all of sudden refill back up with water. On the flip side the cells alleviate all of their water causing a major body weight loss. I have had clients who increase their water weight gain after St. Patrick’s days corned beef and will notice a major drop of 8-10# in a week. They notice they urinate a ton and this helps flush out all of the excess sodium. How did they do that? They increased their fluid intake and did a lot of sweating.
Remember the bodyweight scale is not an indicator of your true fitness level! Let me repeat..your bodyweight reading is not an indicator of your true fitness level! You are the only one that know this reading! It is just a number:) Train your mind to focus on circumferences and your fitness performance! If your scale number goes up 4# you did not increase 4# of fat..more likely just excessive fluid.
CLIENT #1
Jim is 5′8 and 210# with a body fat level of 20%. Jim lost weight initially but is at a stand still with his bodyweight loss. Jim notices during the weekdays he will drop 6-8# consistantly on the bathroom scale. Now coming off of the weekends Jim will notice that his negative bodyweight loss of 6-8# is back up.
ANSWER:
Jim’s activities are higher on the weekend but he is out of his routine. Jim’s water intake decreases drastically and his diet soda intake is increased. Also Jim is skipping his snacks and is only consuming two meals if he is lucky. Also Jim is eating foods with higher sodium contents such as barbeque smoked foods, chips and basically low nutrient level foods. This is causing a bounce effect with his scale.
CLIENT #2
Mandy has noticed 0# weight loss on the bathroom scale. Mandy’s physical measurements are 5′4 and 128# with a bodyfat of 18% and teaches kickboxing classes at least 4x per week. Mandy is also incorporating boot camp and weight training into her week . She has actually gained 4#and is monitoring her caloric intake to the recommend levels. Mandy has been super dedicated to exercise and is frustated…but no weight loss like she had hoped for but is happy how her body tone is feeling!
ANSWER:
Muscle gain has happened. The new exerciser can actually increase 1/2 pound of muscle per week. Many individuals gain faster depending on their genetics. When we increase our activity drastically you are physically hurting your muscles therefore causing a large supply of glycogen. One important factor to consider is when an individual’s body fat level is low we store less water within our adipose fat tissue therefore showing less results on the scale. This is why people with higher percents of bodyfat drop drastically in the beginning…water loss storage depleting! One recommendation is that she needs to focus on her body fat and try lowering her calories by 100. The veteran exeriser or athlete will hit plateaus faster and more often. Caloric cycling is a good tip to try!
CLIENT #3:
Abby is a dedicated point watcher. She could tell you every point value of every food on the planet. She is like a hawk…watching and counting points. Now she has reached her desired goal and is now a lifetime member but she still wants more. She has learned this system but is still not happy with her unknown bodyfat %.
ANSWER:
One common troubleshooting tip is making better food choices within the point system. Choosing foods with lower glycemic index readings will get the body off guard. Yes she is staying within the point recommendations but is not being careful on her carbohydrate choices. I personally believe that you can lose weight with any type off nutrition program but in order to get the lower percentages of bodyfat you must focus on low glycemic carbohydrates, healthy fats and lean protein. With the switch of food choices she will notice a change in how her body feels in regards to body composition and energy.
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