I find this so weird

[Guy_solo]

Everyday i get up and look at the scales then measure myself with a tape measure. The pounds seem to be coming off quite slowly on the scale but the inches are just flying off, i can now fit into about 80% of my clothes as opposed to the 25% before (i like most people keep old clothes that don't fit in the hope of losing enough weight to fit into them again ).

Is this common?, to lose inches way fatser than pounds i'm still doing my exercise by the way.

Guy.

[Elizellen]

Re: I find this so weird

Yes - it is very common especially if you are doing your exercise as well as following the eating plan.
One pound of muscle is much smaller that one pound of fat so as you replace fat with muscle you will see yourself shrink even though the scales dont move downwards.
This is one reason we encourage people not to weigh too often but to measure regularly so they see the progress they are making.

[iwillbethin]

Re: I find this so weird

I agree. I have lost more inches than anything. I tell people how much I weigh and they dont believe me. I'm hoping when i do get to goal i will be super super tiny...lol!

[texwife&mom]

Re: I find this so weird

Yep, that whole musle weighs more but takes up less space thing is really hard to get your head around. I logically know this is how it is, but I still want that D*** scale to move!!!! Hang in there and the pounds will follow, but I mean people see the inches not the number.

[2big4mysize]

Re: I find this so weird

actually it has to do with fluid weight in the early days of Atkins more then adding pounds of muscle. We are shedding fat mass adding muscle mass and our fliud mass is in a constant state of flux.

Fat is a light weight large for its weight compound with very little water content. Water is a denser molecule and small in size. Muscle tissue is about 75% water. As we lose fat molecules from our fat tissues our bodies for very complicated biochemical reasons need to maintain shape stuff water molecules into those shrinking tissues which allowes for some inches loss but not much scale weight loss. As our bodies react their individual tolerance for the biochem interferance the added water causes our bodies will release chemicals to shed that stored up water and you will get an overnight whooshie everybody is posting about wanting as those pounds of stored water are released.

Muscles as we increase our workouts or change them up react to this new load being placed on them as a threat to our safety and store fluids (superhydrate is the science term) so they can react better should this threat return. Soon they learn that the new workout is their normal load and release that stored fluid too.
The human body because of our genetics attemps to store all foods digested that it can for a time of famine and protein is no different so with the highewr then the UDSA high carb protein amount in our Atkins plan we are also storing proteins in muscle tissues and organs which will add lean body weight to our scale numbers since scales only tell us the total change in mass of our body as effected by gravity. It doesn't know if we have lost 10 pounds of fat, added 2 pounds of muscle tissues, added 6 pounds of fluid weight since the last time we weighed for a net change of just 2 pounds.

That is why the vets here will urge all new folk to make friends with their tape measure so they can see inches of fat leavign the body while the metal monster doesn't validate all that hard work they have done in the gym and with their eating program.
Just rememeber when folk see you they see the smaller body not the scale number.

Happy low carbing.

[Discolemonade]

Re: I find this so weird

2big, thank you very much for that explanation, I see the light.

[america57]

Re: I find this so weird

The scale is evil, I won't allow myself to weigh more than once a week, or I get discouraged.