Ask Me Help Desk - What am I doing Wrong?

I've been heading to the gym 3-4 times a week for about 1hr and a half each day. My routine is 30-40 minutes of cario and then toning. Ever since I started a month ago I gained 10 pounds and now I've only lost 4 pounds. I'm even taking a fat burner and going to the park on weekends and 1 a week on weekdays. I don't eat after 7 pm and I try to eat as healthy as possible. How can I speed up my metabolism fastern any suggestions?

You don't seem to be doing anything wrong. Have you had a physical checkup
Recently to rule out any types of metabolic or thyroid problems?

I would definitely have myself checked for those conditions as well as
Any problems with metabolizing glucose, which could indicate diabetes. Once
You have ruled out medical conditions, I suggest you just hang in there.
Losing weight seems to take forever. In addition, some exercises build
Muscle density which weighs more than fat. So, you could seem to be
Gaining weight, even though you're in better condition. Don't be like me, and
Just give up! :o

As couchcarrot said... muscle weighs more then fat... so try not to read into the numbers on the scale but look at your body... do you seem more toned? Do your clothes fit a little looser? It can take a long time to start losing weight. My doctor told me not to expect anything significant for 6 months!! This was after she checked for any medical problems since I put the weight on so quickly.
Just keep working at it... you are already ahead of the game in the fact that you are going to the gym and trying to lose weight. I can't drag myself to the gym to save my life!

I really agree with the advice in couchcarrot's post.

You might do better by taking your measurements on a regular basis and reserving your sessions on the scale to once a week.

Muscle weighs more than fat, but it will obviously give you a leaner appearance. It will also burn fat more than anything else in your body.

If you think you're building undesired bulk, try doing more reps using lighter weights.

By exercising regularly, you will see results. Sometimes you just have to wait for your body to catch up. Don't get discouraged.

Cross train.

Your body is designed to adjust to your life. When you do the same things over and over, your body adjusts to this and you don't see the results you get when you keep your body guessing.

For ex, my wife loves to run. A few years ago she was running miles everyday, and seeing her fitness was fine, but she wanted better results.

Two years ago she completely changed her program. One day pilates. One day running and walking. One day tae bo. The results were incredible. Within a month of cutting back the running and doing the pilates and tae bo she got a little line running down the middle of her abs. within a year of keeping at it, with less focus on cardio and more on core strength, she has a body that beats most women 15 years younger than her.

I like weights, walking, biking, hiking. Tae bo was a good toss in for me because it doesn't bore me and uses muscles in a way that I just wouldn't do otherwise. Pilates is unbelievable... I get bored with some long programs, but let me tell you... it rocks. If you are interested id suggest the Stott line of pilates dvds... they are really good and I can show you a couple of links if you are interested. Anyone who thinks pilates is just doing poses on a mat doesn't have a CLUE about how strong it can make your body. Its wicked stuff.

So... athletes cross train for a reason. You must continue to confuse your body to get the best results.

I believe the way to lose weight is to burn more calories than you are taking in. So.. you might want to check the caloric value of what you are eating. Not saying that you should calculate every time you eat a bite of food; but have some idea of the general number of calories you are taking in each meal. Try to get a target number of calories you should consume each day. Again, you don't have to be exact but if you find that you are consuming say 2500- 3000 calories per day ( which can easily be done even with supposedly " heallthy foods" that have little fat but many calories), and burning maybe 1-200 calories during a workout for the day, iit really is not a balance. By the end of the week you will see that your calorie intake has WAY surpassed the calories you burn when you work out.

That's just the way I started to lose weight & it worked pretty well at that time.
Now I don't really count calories anymore; but because I researched so much at one time I kind of know when I'm going overboard with what I'm eating & what exercises will probably burn more calories than others...

Just my 2 cents:)

There are a lot of posts here that are dead on accurate. I have struggled with weight issues for a long time. You have to change your lifestyle. I was 240 lbs, smoked a pack a day, ate fast food and garbage all of the time, drank beer, etc. etc.
The cardio workouts helped me quit smoking. I eat a good breakfast as often as possible and if not, I do a MetRx shake. I switch back and forth so I don't get sick of it.
It's all about grazing throughout the day with proteins and veggies and fruit.
Stay away from fatty foods and carbs as much as possible. Drink a ton of water.
Pick one day a week and eat whatever you want. Just watch the portion size. This will help ease the pain a little. Get into a good exercise routine. Start slow and don't burn yourself out. Work out with a buddy if you can so there is no cheating. After awhile it becomes part of your life. If you have to drink alcohol, train yourself to remember that 1 beer is 20 minutes on the treadmill give or take. Drink a Martini instead of 2 or 3 beers.
Believe me... It's not easy at all! Work hard at it. Leave yourself little notes all over to encourage you. Don't even look at the scale for 3 months. Just get into a healthy routine and stay with it. You sleep better, you think better, and you will soon crave food that is good for you. I lost 50 lbs in 7 months. Trust me, it works.
I work out 3 or 4 days a week for 1 hour. 20 or 30 minutes cardio, and the rest free weights.
Instead of the scale, use the mirror! I still cheat with my diet but I do it in moderation.
Good Luck!

***GET Off THE COUCH! ***EAT SALAD

Sometimes you will hit a plateau, also if you are eating too FEW calories and burning too many, your body wants to holds on to every single one of them. If you are really watching your calories and only eating 800-1000 calories, try INCREASING just a bit to get going again. I definitely agree about the scale, when building muscle you won't see much going on. If your clothes are consistently getting loser, you're doing OK.

Quote:

Originally Posted by jillrenee15

If you are really watching your calories and only eating 800-1000 calories, try INCREASING just a bit to get going again.

I completely agree. Love this answer.

Just as cross training can throw the body off balance, keep it guessing, keep it from adjusting to the same old routine, you can do the same with your diet.

What's great about this suggestion is it gives you a little wiggle room to perhaps indulge, satiate a craving, and throw your body off... your metabolism stalls at night... if you skip breakfast you are essentially delaying the upkick in your metabolism, so one of the best things you can do is workout in the early AM and not skip breakfast and perhaps a late morning snack... something like lean meat and cheese are a fav of mine. Just a few bites satiates, and the early "extra" calories keep your body from staying in "sleep" mode.

maybe this was already stated, maybe not. I glanced through the answers real quick, but you will gain wait when you first start working out. It happens because your body is building up muscle. If you gained 10 lbs and now you've lost 4 that's awesome! Keep it up! Don't just go by the numbers on the scale. If you really want to keep track buy a scale that has a body fat analyzer in it. I'm willing to bet that your bmi is going down even though you've gained. Definitely mix up your routine though. If your body gets used to what you're doing you're not going to get results. So surprise it from time to time. Good luck! =)

Okay just have to throw this out there. Muscle does NOT weigh more than fat. That's a huge myth. Muscle is more dense than fat and 5 lbs of muscle takes up less space than 5 lbs of fat but it doesn't make you weigh heavier. What might do that is when you add an extra workout your muscles from being sore will hold onto water but that's just water weight and it'll go away. Don't justify not losing with the muscle weighs more than fat lie don't disalude yourself.

I know what you're getting at, but (pardon my gross analogy) if you filled a 5 gallon bucket with fat and another 5 gallon bucket with muscle, which would weigh more? The one with the muscle, because, yes, it's more dense.

The point, without this becoming an extended argument, is simply change in body composition isn't simply determined by weight loss...

Loss of fat weight and gain in muscle mass that requires more calories burned to maintain should also be considered, and isn't reason to avoid weight training.

Quote:

Originally Posted by ethansmommy

okay just have to throw this out there. muscle does NOT weigh more than fat. that's a huge myth. muscle is more dense than fat and 5 lbs of muscle takes up less space than 5 lbs of fat but it doesn't make u weigh heavier. what might do that is when u add an extra workout ur muscles from being sore will hold onto water but that's just water weight and it'll go away. don't justify not losing with the muscle weighs more than fat lie don't disalude urself.

Yes and no. it's dependent on the direction from which you approach it.

If you go back to the old "which weighs more: a pound of feathers or a pound of lead" game, then of course a pound of anything is going to weigh the same as a pound of anything else.

Yes, when it comes to slimming down, a clear difference between lean muscle mass and pure fat lies in their difference in density.

However, because of that difference in density, if you were to measure out a liter of lean muscle to a liter of fat, the muscle would weigh more.

Working out, especially if done to an extreme, and even more so if combined with weight lifting, will build muscle. This muscle will burn more energy per unit of time than will fat.

If they're sticking to a proper plan, most new dieters and anyone breaking into new exercise routines will not add a quantity of muscle that is greater than the amount of weight lost. This means that the numbers on the scale will usually start going down, not up.

Still, some people do gain a small amount of weight as their bodies add muscle and begin to transform into more powerful calorie burning machines. At the same time, there are people whose bodies will build a significant amount more muscle than others who are doing the same thing.

Water retention can certainly play its part, but that is temporary. Sticking to a healthy lifestyle and putting out more than you take in will eventually lead to a leaner, more shapely figure.

Npgreen, if you're still here, how are things going?

EDIT: I have to stop writing something out and failing to hit the send button. In any case, I think the question has been covered. I did want to note, however, that adding 10 pounds in the first month of working out is not going to be mostly muscle. There has to be an eating issue behind that kind of weight gain. Some people think that exercising will give them the ability to eat significantly more. If you track how many calories you'll actually be burning during an intense workout session, you'll realize that this isn't the case. You'll need to watch what you eat in any case. Also, as exercise can cause an increase in appetite, adjusting your diet can become even more important. Best of luck.