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There is a HUGE difference between weight loss and fat loss.
It’s possible to not lose any weight, but transform your entire body into the lean and toned look you’re after. It’s possible to even gain “weight.” Let that sink in.
Very often, people get caught up with the number on the scale… but that number doesn’t tell the whole story!
If you don’t eat for a day, you would weigh less.
If you sat in a sauna sweating it out, you would weigh less.
If you didn’t drink water for a day, you would weigh less.
But weighing less does not mean you made any progress to your goal, unless your goal is to actually weigh less for a weigh in, like in wrestling or an olympic lifting meet.
What kind of “weight” can you lose?
-muscle
-body fat
-bone mass
-water
Most people’s goals is to LOSE FAT and GAIN MUSCLE so they can look more lean and toned. Maybe even see some muscle definition or 6 pack abs.
Losing fat may not always be reflected on the scale. It all depends on your current body composition.
Take a look at this woman. She lost weight, 23 pounds actually from 145 to 122. But her goal was to look “lean and toned”. Through eating enough and weight training, she was able to achieve her body composition goal…. But gained back 18 pounds. But those 18 pounds were muscle, helping her achieve those toned legs, arms, and abs!
LOSING WEIGHT IS NOT THE SAME AS LOSING FAT
Most people, when they go on a diet, are after the number on the scale. Very often they under eat and over exercise and see the scale weight come down, so they feel successful. After a while, that “weight loss” plateaus, as your body can’t lose any more “weight” with that approach, so they quit their diet and gain back even more “weight” – but this time around they have a lot more body fat!
Why?
They lost water weight and muscle from under eating. So the scale number went down. But they are not able to tap into the fat stores because they were not eating ENOUGH. Losing muscle slows your metabolism.. So when you go back to your old eating habits, you start storing more fat than before. You do another “quick fix” or “detox” to lose that weight. And that’s the “yo yo diet effect”. You keep losing weight (water and muscle) and keep gaining it back PLUS extra since you slow your metabolism.
3 EXPLANATIONS OF WEIGHT LOSS
LOSING FAT
You lose fat cells! This is what we’re after!!! For that to happen you need to be fueling yourself properly and strength training, especially HIIT workouts like CrossFit.
You must be eating ENOUGH of the right foods to fuel your muscle and put yourself in a slight deficit to lose fat cells. It’s science! It’s not always about eating LESS.. but rather about eating ENOUGH.
LOSING MUSCLE
You don’t want to lose muscle! Muscle is what regulates your base metabolic rate – how many calories you’re burning at rest. Restricting calories and over exercising is a great way to lose muscle. It also regulates your insulin sensitivity – how your body absorbs nutrients. When you lose muscle tissue from dieting improperly, the food you eat will less likely be used by your muscle cells, but instead turned into fat cells.
LOSING WATER
Easiest to do! Your body is over 60% water.
Most quick fix diets are focused around losing water for the scale weight to drop.
Cut out carbs – and you’ll lose water – since carbs store water molecules with them when digested. Do this long term and you’ll shrink your muscle cells as well. It adapts to the dehydration and starts to atrophy. As you lose that “water weight” from your muscle, you’re triggering the whole metabolic dysfunction of BMR and insulin sensitivity. (AKA you’re wrecking your metabolism!)
FOCUS ON BODY COMPOSITION INSTEAD OF WEIGHT
This is the amount of fat and fat free mass (muscle, bone, water) that your body contains.
Your goal is bigger than the number on the scale!
You don’t walk around with the number that you weigh glued to your forehead!!!
What is seen is your body composition! What you actually LOOK LIKE!
A 150 pound female at 30% body fat…. Looks very different than a 150 pound female with 16% body fat!
So please… stop chasing that number on the scale!
You can’t rush this process. There is no quick fix. Let me say this again.. There is no magic quick fix!
If you’ve yo yo dieted your whole life, the only thing you should worry about fixing quickly is your metabolism!!
Having muscle instead of fat makes you look more compact, and smaller.
Having muscle gives you that “lean and toned” look everyone is always after.
Having muscle and losing fat is the answer to your “weight loss” dilemma.
Doing it the right way is a science.
Contact us to start your journey to your best body!