[cyndyjlo]

Hi, all! I am new to this site, but have been reading your posts and trying your recipes for the past week (Thanks! ) This is Day 5 of P1 for me and I am down 7.2 lbs , What I'm wondering about is this: my scale also measures Body fat and I am up 3 percent! Has this happened to anyone else? Will it go back in the other direction? What to do? Thanks for any input you all might have. I will post on the bio thread to introduce myself.

[mygarden]

You have not lost fat weight. You have lost either muscle mass, water, or bone density. So your ratio of fat to other body composition is greater. Hence the body fat percentage is up.

[cyndyjlo]

Wow! Well I hope that it is water. I would hate to be losing either muscle or bone! I follow the diet and exercise 3-4 times per week. What am I doing wrong?

[mygarden]

Initially when we start to lose weight...it is water weight. If you don't eat enough...and starve yourself, then your body will use its muscle tissue and bone density to fuel itself. If you don't do/include weight training, resistance training in your exercise you will inevitably lose muscle weight as well as some fat. If you want to change your body composition from high fat to lean muscle then you have to do the right type of exercise. People get so caught up with the weight numbers instead of the size, shape, and strength of the body. If you do do the right kinds of exercising as well as eat the correct diet, you may not see the numbers go down on the scale as fast since your body is making muscle and replacing the fat.

Healthy strong bones are very heavy. Healthy well toned muscles are very heavy. So, you can be thin and "heavy" if you have strong bones and muscles or very light weight and have weak bones and poor muscle tone.

The other problem that arises is when you crash diet and then gain it back. Often on crash diets you lose muscle. What you gain back is fat. So your body fat percentage gets continually higher everytime you gain back weight. ( In other words, you might have lost 10 pounds of muscle by crash dieting and gain back 10 pounds of fat. )

It is very difficult to find the right balance of food and exercise to lose weight and build the muscles. I struggle with it myself. I keep a pair of hand weights (actually) I bought several various weights and do upper arm exercises while sitting in the living room. Every little bit helps.

[Barb0522]

Welcome to the Beach, cyndyjlo! In phase 1 you will lose water weight. South Beach is not a crash diet and you should be eating lots of healthy carbs (legumes, lots of vegetables and drinking milk/plain yogurt). So you don't have to worry about losing muscle. Most people wait until phase 2 before they begin an exercise program since they might be feeling a lack of energy in phase 1. I read your bio. You probably get a lot of exercise in just keeping up with your little ones.

[cyndyjlo]

Indeed, I do get plenty of exercise caring for my precious angels! Funny how that type of exercise never seems to be enough to lose the weight! I have absolutely been feeling run down, but I just keep telling myself it's a passing phase. I have to say that I have been thoroughly enjoying some of the recipes you all post. DH loves them too! He is happy to lose a little along with me, but also to save money by bringing breakfast and lunch to work instead of paying deli prices. Those zucchini puffs are addictive!
Thanks for your input, mygarden and Barb. I feel confident that this is water weight and will continue to eat as many healthy foods as possible, and exercise as much as I can. Hope you both have a great night!

[beachgal]

cyndyjlo, Congrats on such a successful Phase 1 so far!

You'll find that once you are done with Phase 1 (not during, as it can be too much to deal with), you'll want to do strength training or lifting to ensure that you maintain muscle mass. Also, make sure you get plenty of lean protein to give your body the fuel it needs so it doesn't take it from your muscles. The protein will also enable your body to build more muscle. Muscle burns way more calories than fat and the more you have, the better your 'metabolism' will be.

That said, the fat percentages on those scales are notoriously innaccurate. For instance, I weighed myself last week and got one fat percentage. The very next day, I had lost 4% of my fat. No way did that happen! (though I wish... ) Calipers, used by a trained professional that knows exactly how to use them, are the most accurate way for you to get your fat measured. The next most accurate is an electronic fat monitor (the kind you hold in your hands). The scale is the least accurate.

It's a great idea to keep track of your fat percentage, but think about finding someone at your gym or doctor's office that can measure you using calipers so you get a really accurate measurement, okay? In the meantime, you can measure your inches (waist, hips, bust, etc.), see how your clothes fit, and use your weight to help keep track of your progress.

[cyndyjlo]

Thanks beachgal! Now that I am halfway through Phase 1, I am starting to come up with a plan to fit the weight training in on a regular basis. I am up a lb, but now back to my previous BF - even though the scale is inaccurate, it still makes me feel better to see a lower number