Okay… i dont get this at all…
I started at 265.8 three months ago. I am down to 238.4 today.
Like everyone always suggests…take measurements. So i have taken measurements each month. But this is what i cant explain??
My clothes are getting oversized on me. Not just jeans but shirts and bras and heck…even my underwear. I can buy smaller sizes. I dropped a size and a half in a swimsuit and dropped a size in my shirts and shorts etc and YET my measurements say i have only lost 3 inches this month and even gone up an inch in my arms and my legs??
I know it cant be the gym cause i havent been since last Wednesday. So its not water retention in my muscles. I just dont understand how i can lose weight but then go up inches in my legs and arms? And yet have smaller clothes sizes???
Any ideas? Cause this is just discouraging and i am trying not get emotional about it but i thought a tape measure was supposed to be the accurate way to tell?
9 pounds a month over 3 months is pretty impressive results. Why quit?
That would be 108 pounds over the course of a full year if maintained.
You think about this too much and are driving yourself crazy with it. Just eat healthy, exercise, go about your daily routines, and don’t overthink. Let time take care of it.
Whenever I have had weird issues along the way, what has seemed to work well was waiting a month while continuing on doing what I need to do each day.
I have done actual tape measurements of my waist twice in 5 months. It’s not necessary for anything except deciding what size of belt to buy.
I used to do tape measurements of my waist, but I also got stronger in my waist (gained muscle), and the measurements are highly variable anyway. The error is easily plus or minus an inch daily. Plus, unless you’re losing a lot very quickly, they aren’t useful.
Personally, I would just chill and drop the measurements. The only things I measure now are ketones and blood sugar, and didn’t measure those for a while either. I don’t even step on the scale.
Don’t give up the fight Heather. I believe you’ll get past this.
What is a better alternative if you quit?
Do you think you’ll begin loosing again if you give up this WOE?
I read your profile so I know this has been a longer struggle than 3 months. I don’t have a clue about why you’re weight/measurements seem odd but maybe it’s just moving towards your goals in a way that seems unexpected. Our bodies are always changing no matter what we do.
I know people say to measure and ignore the scale, but I don’t measure. It just adds stress for me. I only pay attention to how my clothes fit and the scale in moderation. You’re succeeding. Theres no reason to quit.
I have a set of measurements I used to track, and I noticed the same thing, there would be very little difference in those locations even if I went down a size. I think it’s because, overall, your body is down an inch or so in an area, but spread that out over a number of areas and it doesn’t register. Also, as you build up bone density and muscle, some areas are going to increase while others decrease. I think I have to look at measurements the same way I look at scale-weight, as something to only do occasionally, and instead focus on NSV’s and clothing.
I’m not sure that I understand the problem here. Most often, people are told to take measurements because the scale isn’t showing a loss. But you’ve lost almost 30 lbs in 3 months. I’m not sure why that would be frustrating to you OR make you want to quit.
Keto is a muscle sparing diet, which means that, when you lose weight, you lose more fat than anything else. Unlike other diets, where you’ll lose fat AND muscle mass. So maybe you needed more muscle in your arms and legs? Maybe you’re measuring differently?
But really, none of that matters. You’ve already said your clothes are getting oversized, so you know you’re getting smaller.
I noticed the same thing. I was actually thinking of making marks on my body so that I know exactly where I measured the time before because each time I measure (once a month) it’s different. Sometimes more sometimes less… so discouraging. So I think I’m going to take the advice of others and trash the measuring tape. My clothes are getting bigger and I feel better and that’s all that matters!
Pounds on a scale are nice but i would rather see inches going down i guess… I have been told my whole life its “all about the scale” and now i have people telling me “its all about the measurements”.
I certainly dont want to be losing muscle mass. My goal was to maintain or increase muscle while losing inches.
Thanks David.
My guess is probably “fat, sick and almost dead”
There has been no other alternative that worked.
I just find it discouraging to work so hard at it but to see the inch loss so low. I know others would rather see pounds difference…but i dont want to end up as "skinny fat. When i leaned out with swimming last year…it was good… but i also ended up with an excessive amount of thigh and arm skin. My goal was to do weights off the bat, so that i can minimize the loose skin issue from the start.
I dont know whether to even continue going to the gym. It makes me feel good for sure even though its hard to push myself. But maybe im doing this wrong?
I do over-think. I have perfectionist tendencies and somtimes i even go to that place of self-punishment. Going from being fat to being small to being fat again, has made me extremly self conscious and somtimes i see the gym as punishment for being fat. Its like i am angry at myself for all the re-gain and i want to feel like ive paid my penence or somthing. Like i feel as if i dont workout enough…its not good enough. Isnt that what society says? Your fat because your lazy so dont be lazy?
I know i know… i have some self-anger that needs dealing with and probably some confidence and esteem issues too… working on it.
Your body is evolving and the process will continue. It’s literally trying to figure out what you’re doing and how best to keep you alive and healthy. You’ve made great progress, but you’re not where you want to be yet… so keep going until you get there.
I’ve gone through some interesting changes myself and I personally believe that my body chemistry is constantly triggering my epi-genetic markers that are bringing up different elements of my ancestry. I know this hasn’t been proven yet, but here’s how I see it:
Your body has a massive catalog of DNA that it can go to to adapt to changing environmental conditions. Most are suppressed when you’re eating a SAD diet, but once you go keto, your body starts triggering ancestral DNA epi-genetics that you’ve inherited but have been dormant for generations maybe. So you’re actually picking up traits that someone in your ancestry had and as you persevere, your body will continue to seek out better matches to the environment you’ve created for it.
If you’ve ever watched a baby go through early development stages, you’ll actually see some of this as their features will literally change over time as the body tries to “tune” the epi-genetic markers to their environment.
Don’t give up - your body is absolutely amazing and it is looking to work with you to figure out where you want to go. It may temporarily go somewhere you don’t like, but if you keep at it, it’ll figure out which epi-genetics to suppress and which to express. You have a massive library of ancestral DNA and you’ll find the one that’s right for you if you keep at it.
This is my opinion and instinct - trust your body and keep at it. You’re awesome for getting to this point, so don’t let temporary distractions break your resilience.
Most of the literature is based on disease, but I see a trend:
You have already had such great success, keep it up! I think our bodies do reshape over time, and fat is being used for fuel so we will see things moving and resettling.
I think, for me anyway, taking measurements helps me stay motivated. It may stress people out, but I like to see where I am gaining muscle and where I am losing fat. My biceps and calves have actually gone up in size several times but yet my clothes are loose in these areas. It is bizarre!
You are doing great, and remember, we didnt gain it all overnight, and we will not lose it that way either.
Quit, and do what? Go back to your old way of eating? All of us know where that leads.
You’ve lost heaps of weight and dropped clothes sizes. End…of…story!
You’re doing fantastic. Keto on, but most importantly Keep Calm! Look at the overall picture of where you’re at and what you’ve achieved. Don’t sweat the small stuff.
There’s this idea that if we just work hard enough, we’ll achieve some body image, size, fitness etc that we want. But we are a product of our genetics. For example, if you wanted say, to be 5’6", do you think you could work out hard enough to make that happen? Nope. I’ve always wished I had a long, elegant neck. Seems like all the really attractive people have gorgeous necks. Not me…I’m stumpy. Think if I dieted enough, maybe did neck stretches or something, that I could get there? Nope.
Yeah, those examples are kind of silly, but there’s a point to them. You’re trying to force your body into some sort of image you have for yourself…whether it’s to have enough muscle, no excess skin, be thin enough, have things happen on a certain timeline, etc…and some of that, you will NOT be able to make happen no matter what you do.
You have to learn how to be happy with yourself because you will never be perfect. Learn to love some extra skin because it’s better than weighing 300 lbs. Don’t beat yourself up for being “skinny fat”…enjoy being skinnier and work on the fitness in a joyful, FUN way. Ultimately, YOU are always a work in progress, so you need to find a way to be happy with yourself today, NOW, because there’s always something else you can improve tomorrow. That’s life and I think the key to enjoying it is enjoying the work of becoming better…which is entirely different than saying you’ll be better or happier AFTER x, y, z happens.
Most often, people are told to take measurements because the scale isn’t showing a loss. But you’ve lost almost 30 lbs in 3 months. I’m not sure why that would be frustrating to you OR make you want to quit.