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cafe11red · Jun 1, 2009, 07:22 PM

I'm 22, 5'3 and 160 lbs. If you look at me, I'm very height/weight proportional. None of my friends would ever consider me over weight and I'm perfectly healthy in every other aspect. My BMI is completely off though and I've been struggling to trim off my left over baby fat since I was 14 and it's not changed a bit. Early May I started working with a trainer 3 times a week, we alternate upper body and lower body workouts each session which is every Monday Wednesday Friday. I do 25-30 minutes of cardio, either on the elliptical or jogging around the neighborhood 5 days a week. I take protein supplements before and after my workouts in order to ensure having enough protein in my system and to assist muscle recovery. My problem is that my body will not lose weight. I know I'm stronger, I know I'm in better shape cardiovascularly as I'm only increasing my time/distance weekly. A friend of mine mentioned that she also used creatine supplements when she lost a ton of weight so I was thinking of implementing that into my diet as well. I'm getting frustrated though as I don't understand what else I can do to lose the weight. To make things worse, my lower body has only gotten larger since I've started working with a trainer - I can't fit into certain pants I used to wear all the time. At the same time, I've had family and friends mention that I seem slimmer. Does anyone have any ideas?

justcurious55 · Jun 2, 2009, 10:31 AM

1) muscle weighs more than fat. All of that working out is going to build muscle, not jut get rid of fat.
2) How Accurate Is Body Mass Index, or BMI? the BMI index is only so helpful. You can't use only that to determine if you need to lose weight, you have to take other things into consideration as well (such as muscle mass)
3) there's a lot of debate over whether creatine is even safe to use. Do some research on it for yourself before you decide whether you are going to use it. If you do use it, you need to make sure you are drinking plenty of water everyday (I remember the football players at my hs would walk around with those gallon sized water jugs and they would have to drink a certain amount of those everyday from the ceratine)

ZoeMarie · Jun 2, 2009, 11:05 AM

I had a trainer before my wedding. I was doing basically the same thing you were doing. I was doing cardio almost every day, training for an hour 3 days a week, and drinking protein shakes like I was told by my trainer. I went for my final dress fitting and I had gained so much muscle I didn't fit into my dress. I stopped drinking the protein shakes and the dress fit for the wedding. Talk about frustrating. If you want to lose weight focus more an cardio.

Eileen G · Jun 2, 2009, 11:42 AM

Creatine is very safe to use, but it's more likely to make you retain water than to lose weight. It is used to increase strength and endurance, not to lose weight.

You've got to look at your diet. What are you eating and how much? Start measuring and weighing your food, then open a free account with FitDay - Free Weight Loss and Diet Journal and see how many calories a day you are eating.

If you are having those protein supplements in addition to other meals, you've probably added a good 300 cals a day to your diet, more if they have carbs as well.

DoulaLC · Jun 2, 2009, 12:36 PM

What are you actually doing, and for how long, when you say you are working out your lower and upper body with the trainer? With the time you appear to be putting in, it is unlikely you need protein supplements. You should be able to get what you need with proper food choices.

As Eileen said, take a good look at what you are eating as well. Amounts as well as caloric and nutritional value. Sometimes it helps to write everything down for several days to get a clear picture of what, and how much, you are actually eating.

You may also want to consider gradually increasing your cardio a bit more.

mshathaway · Aug 8, 2009, 03:43 PM

Hi Café. I went into a Rheumatologist as suggested by my family doc because my Vitamin D was soooo low. It was 12, and should be btwn. 50 and 75.
Rheumy wanted me to start taking Vit. D and Magnesium for three monthes and come back in after doing that and losing weight. My diet was stop eating salt, cheese and grain; all grain. Also spend 20 minutes a day in the sun, everyday.
I did exactly as he said, and lost 22 lbs. without exercises. My Vit. D number was 78 also. The magnesium took the place of the fiber, so I could go to the bathroom regularly.

Hope this helps everyone! I was very pleased with his method.