All right, please reassure me that I'm not sabotaging my fat loss. I've been really starting to enjoy my exercise, so I'm doing it fairly consistently (about 6 days/week). In addition to the elliptical, I've been adding kettlebell exercises (I usually do elliptical 3 days on and one day off, and do my kettlebell workout 3 days per week).

As many notice when they increase exercise, the scale numbers have started to slow their downward trend, and even tick up lately. I'm fine with this (for now), because from what I've read, my muscles are retaining some water due to their increased use.

However, I still need to be convinced/reassured that nothing that I'm doing is inhibiting fat loss. I'm still sticking to my 1800 cals/day target religiously, drinking > 100 ounces of water per day, and staying away from refined carbs for the vast majority of my calories. I'm perfectly fine with the scale moving slowly or even not moving as long as I know I'm burning fat as fast (if not faster than) I was before with less exercise.

I mean, with regards to fat loss, the bottom line is always calories in vs. calories burned, right???

Nope, its not inhibiting fat loss. Certain exercises can cause you to retain water which can actually increase your scale weight or make weight loss seem slower. I'd keep doing what you are doing.

I don't think there is any scenario where exercise would make you gain fat. Unless of course your exercise makes you hungrier and you eat more. ;-) but keep doing what you are doing! You'll never gain fat from exercising. Ever.

Could you further extend this quote and say: "You'll never SLOW your fat loss from exercising. Ever." (That is, keeping the same qualifier that as long as you're not eating more.)

LoL, I ditto what everyone else said above. You're doing great!

You can slow your WEIGHT loss - meaning the number on the scale - from exercising. But that doesn't mean you are slowing your fat loss. You just have to be patient and focus more on size and shape and physical ability vs. the number on the scale. Eventually, it will catch up with you and start registering your fat loss again.

I so know the feeling you have right now. The weeks that I work my butt off the scale punishes me so harshly. The weeks I "slack" off, doing the minimum that is required, ends up showing a great loss on the scale.

I think for me, there is a fine line between doing not enough exercise and too much exercise. I am on a medically supervised diet and it's pretty low calorie. And some days if I work really hard I am pushing my limits very close to calories in and calories out. I don't worry about it too much but it sticks in the back of my head.

I feel like I am chasing an elusive exercise/weightloss line and anytime I think I might find it, back into hiding it goes.

So, I guess I have no help or advice for you, I just wanted you to know I am right there with you.

I know how you feel!

I'm eating 1200 cals/day, working out EVERYDAY (weights, spin classes and bootcamp...alternating them all.

And yet that scale is NOT moving below 147/148. My pants are way looser, my knee high boots are looser, and my bra straps keep slipping off. But the darn scale won't move! And to make matters worse, I still need to lose 30 lbs so its not like I'm so close that I shouldnt be focused on numbers. Of course I am!

If anyone is putting in any muscle training, the weight number should not dictate your progress, but the inches you lose. Like I have told everyone who is discouraged about not losing weight, I just tell them that when I did muscle training for 6 months, I only lost 10 lbs, but went from a size 14 to a size 8. @Bex1984, the evidence of your body changing can be from the inches instead of the scale. You can also measure your BFP (body fat percentage) as a number to look at.

I am in the same boat. I have been going to the gym everyday since 1st january and also dancing for an hour a day. The scale has not budged now in the last 3 weeks although I feel and look a lot slimmer . Just hoping that once my body gets over the shock of my muscles being worked so hard I will see a loss again.

This is all very reassuring! I have been hitting the gym pretty hard for a week now, and the scale has not budged! I will just keep on trucking and not worry about the scale too much and hope a big whoosh is in my near future

Fit Dad 2 B - a lot of men put on muscle mass pretty easily - your FAT loss will not slow down because of exercise as long as you're eating fewer calories than you burn. I have even GAINED weight while getting smaller in size. (I didn't reduce my calories during that period) and I certainly looked a lot better!

Exercise is also so good for you in so many ways.