The graph of losing weight when gym training

[lucy123]

Hi All,
I have kicked 2013 off to a great start fitness and diet wise and feeling really pleased with myself and more importantly less worried about what the scales say and more bothered about how I feel and look.

I have taken up PT sessions again and am going to the gym 4-5 times a week swapping from interval to cardio sessions throughout the week. I also play performance tennis 4 times a week.

I have been sticking to a low gi diet since January again, so diet is healthy. No takeaways or chocolate and minimal alcohol.

I feel much fitter already and also look better already - the bingo wings are going down as is the stomach!

However, my weight has gone up the last 2 weeks by 1kg each week. i did get off to a terrific start before embarking on the gym crusade, losing 4kgs in one week after xmas.

The PT has told me he is not concerned about the gain as this is a normal cycle. He has said he has read an article that includes a graph that shows average weight loss/gain against each of the first 12 weeks.

He is looking for this article, but cant find it - but says it will allay my fears when I gain weight (but lose inches) and stop me worrying abou the gains when they happen and learn to just accept them as part of the cycle.

I have looked for the article but can't find it - and was wondering if anyone else can.

I have noticed quite a few embarking on the gym journey and thought it would be a good article for more than me if we can find it.

Or has anyone heard this process before?

I just need reassurance that the weight will come off.

I have my sons wedding in August!

I know the 'input is less than output' mantra that leads to loss, but can assure you with all the training and the diet, I am not eating too much.
I also dont want to drop any of the exercise as I am quite addicted.

Thanks all.🙂

 

[Dory]

Lucy,

it's well known that when you start doing a lot of exercise you may notice an increase in weight - this is due to the fact that muscle weighs more than fat. As you burn your fat stores and replace it with more toned muscle, the weight will come on initially. The trade off to this is that muscle also burns more calories than fat - so imagine an upside down 'U' being your weight - initially it may well go up, but as the muscles start building they will begin the process of calorie burning - which is when you will see the weight loss.

One thing I can't say however is how long it will take before the weight starts coming off - that depends on your body's natural pre-disposition, what intensity/frequency/type of sport you're doing, and your diet. Need to ask the experts on that one!

 

[haz]

Well done Lucy - that is great - and as Dory says your new muscle will burn calories more efficiently so you will win in the end. Power to you!

 

[lucy123]

Thanks - I have received a bit more of an explanation - so thought I would post it for others.

When I start out at the gym, I am doing both anaerobic (weights) and aerobic (cardio) exercises. The anaerobic exercise can cause the weight gain and the aerobic exercise can help the loss. To start with the two are out of sync. Due to being unfit, the anaerobic fitness outweights the aerobic, so you can gain wait. This is because you are not as fit as you will be, so are not able to work to full capacity aerobically - does that make sense?

As you get fitter, the aerobic will come in balance with the anaerobic, so you maintain, and then aerobic will take over anaerobic (once fit) and the weight comes off. This does make sense to me.

I did ask 'well why not just do aerobic then' - but the answer is that the fitness is not there to perform enough for long term results. Also by adding in anaerobic, it stops huge weight gains when you fall off the wagon a bit - I haven't got my head around that one yet!

Let me know if this makes sense to anyone else - I sort of understand it now!🙂