A Reason to be Happy About Weight Fluctuation When Dieting.
When we exercise hard during a weight loss program we can still put on weight in the short term. Looking at the scale and seeing it not move or worse, go up a couple of pounds or a kilo can be a little disheartening.
Don't worry, if you are genuinely sticking to your diet and working out it is probably water weight. Whether the exercise you are doing is cardio (such as running, aerobics or cycling) or strength training.
If we are exercising harder then we are used to or different from what we normally do muscle is forced to grow. As we exercise our muscle fibers become damaged and then grow back stronger and possibly larger. In doing this they get surrounded by and filled with water. Water is denser than fat so it shows up clearly on the scale. Don't worry about this effect it is what you want as you recompose your body. We want to lose fat, not muscle and more muscle is good.
If you are performing any kind of exercise that requires endurance like running, cycling, or aerobics classes there is also another water-holding effect. Your muscle will adapt to store more glycogen for the next activity. Glycogen is a fuel your body uses to produce energy. For every gram of glycogen your muscle stores, it also holds 3-4 grams of water. You want this, it means you can work out longer. It also makes your muscle bigger and gives you better definition.
The water retention process will not go on forever you will not end up like a giant water balloon. There is a limit to how much water you will hold. Accompanying the weight increase could be a decrease in your waist size and a little more muscle definition. A good thing.
Why I am Writing This.
I decided to lose a few Kilos. I was a healthy weight but had put on around 3Kilos (6LBS). The gym is shut due to COVID 19. A shoulder injury was limiting some of the training I could do. So I decided to increase my running. Running had been a bit of half-arsed. Barely picking my feet up jogging with the odd 50 or 60-meter sprint. Nothing to write home about. So as the weight lifting was out I thought half marathon training alongside a diet would be a good idea.
Three reasons for this.
- Maintain or increase fitness.
- Retain muscle.
- I wanted to eat more than 2000 calories a day.
The upshot is even though I have a median calorie deficit of 600 calories a day over the past couple of weeks my weight is still the same (it went from 70Kilo to 69Kilo then back to 70). Looking in the mirror I can see a better outline on my abs, my waist measures 1/2 inch less, and my jeans are a little slacker around the waist. This is probably because the muscles being engaged the most are big ones. Glutes, quads, hamstrings, and abdominals. I know they are being engaged because they are still throbbing gently after yesterday's run. These bigger muscles retain more water weight than smaller ones like biceps. I noticed the same thing happening a couple of years ago when I began barbell squatting.
In Short, if you are in a calorie deficit. And if you are exercising enough to feel it. Upward weight fluctuation is probably water stored in muscle. Be happy things are moving in the right direction.
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