not losing weight after joining gym

shar1445 · 22-04-2008 11:35AM #1

hi,

i've joined a womens only gym (like curves) 3 weeks ago, i needed to lose 2 1/2 stone which i was losing about 1lb - 2lb a week but since i joined the gym i've put on a pound and lost nothing since. has this happened to anyone else and how come the weight loss has stopped after joining the gym

thanks

Jimmy Bottlehead · 22-04-2008 11:45AM

Its probably because the women in there potter about trying not to break a sweat or grunt, as it's 'n-lady-like'.

Best bet is to get into a proper gym, lift weights, do some cardio, and eat right. Can't help but to tone up and get slimmer if you do that.

shar1445 · 22-04-2008 11:51AM

i don't potter around. i eat healthy and work out 3 - 4 times a week for 45 mins and i break a sweat aswell

mack1 · 22-04-2008 11:51AM

The joining of the gym has no affect in itself, it's what you do once you get here. you'll need to give some more information, what do you do at the gym, how often do you go, how hard do you work, what is your diet like etc etc??

Also, you said you WERE losing 1-2lbs a week before you joined, so I would again ask the above questions for the time before you joined the gym.

22-04-2008 12:01PM

Are you measuring with a tape? It could be that you are building muscle and losing fat. Particularly if you are going to that lady gym that uses proper weights.

Are you monitoring your caloric intake somehow?

shar1445 · 22-04-2008 12:21PM

before i joined the gym i was doing no excercise at all but i was eating a low calorie diet. at the gym i do three circuits of machines which work all the different muscles. i then go on the treadmill for 10 mins and then the rowing machine for ten mins and i then do 120 sit ups. i am also still on the low calorie diet

22-04-2008 12:23PM

Maybe you need to up your calorie intake. There is a sticky to work out your calorie goals in this forum.

g'em · 22-04-2008 12:53PM

shar1445 wrote: »

i am also still on the low calorie diet

What do you eat each day and what do you weigh/ how old are you/ what height are you?

shar1445 · 22-04-2008 01:54PM

i weight 11st 7lb, 5ft 4 and i'm 26. i just eat cereal skimmed milk, a sandwich, water and fruit for lunch, and healthy dinner loads of veg fish or chicken. i don't snack between meals

g'em · 22-04-2008 02:06PM

shar1445 wrote: »

i weight 11st 7lb, 5ft 4 and i'm 26. i just eat cereal skimmed milk, a sandwich, water and fruit for lunch, and healthy dinner loads of veg fish or chicken. i don't snack between meals

The chances are that you are undereating. Whenever we want to lsoe weight the instinctual response is to start eating less. It sounds right in theory but in fact when we eat too little it actually discourages our body to lose weight because we try desperately hard to hold onto whatever stored energy we have in case the food supply diminishes further.

Instead what we have to do is reduce our daily intake just enough so that it's perfectly safe for our body to start burning excess fat as fuel - this will usually be no more than 10-15% of what our recommended daily intake should be.

In your case a very rough estimate of your daily calorie needs (taking into account some moderate excercise a few times a week) would be 2000 calories. To start losing weight you'd then reduce it to around 1700 - 1800 calories per day and make sure you get plenty of vegetables, lean protein and good fats into your meals.

Don't be afraid to snack - just make them healthy. Small handfuls of nuts, or yoghurts are great on-the-go choices and vegetable sticks, hard boiled eggs or slices of lean deli meats make for good nibbles too.

cowzerp · 22-04-2008 02:25PM

Moonbaby wrote: »

It could be that you are building muscle and losing fat. Particularly if you are going to that lady gym that uses proper weights.

This is the worst old wives tale in fitness, if this girl is on a low calorie diet there is no hope of her gaining muscle no matter what she lifts, and even if she was ifting heavy and eating loads she would need to be a genetic freak to gain any considerable muscle or following a very scientific plan of weights and nutrition and supplements too! does anyone know what a pound of muscle would look like?? a big lump of muscle!

Most likely filled up her glycogen stores and is on a maintenance diet instead of a weight loss diet, Defo not on a weight loss diet since she's gaining weight.

Any girls i train lift as heavy as they can and always lose measurements and weight assuming there eating to lose weight! but i've never come across a female who gained muscle without trying to build muscle, plenty have got firmer and mistook it as muscle gain but most realise there muscle is just getting solid rather than bigger..

There should be a sticky about females and muscle gain as it turns more girls away from weights for no reason at all-the opposite is most likely true, more women lose muscle mass than gain it in gyms!

Jimmy Bottlehead · 22-04-2008 02:42PM

cowzerp wrote: »

There should be a sticky about females and muscle gain as it turns more girls away from weights for no reason at all-the opposite is most likely true, more women lose muscle mass than gain it in gyms!

I agree. If females were more educated about weight-training (not their fault, the general public seem to think that weights are a man-only pursuit) there'd be less stupidity about faddy diets and endless situps/cardio, and more results.

Any chance of stickifying that, G'em?

Malteaser! · 22-04-2008 02:50PM

cowzerp wrote: »

There should be a sticky about females and muscle gain as it turns more girls away from weights for no reason at all-the opposite is most likely true, more women lose muscle mass than gain it in gyms!

I actually wrote out a really big piece about exactly that a little while ago. I've been meaning to put it up into one of the stickys for a while but wanted someone to proof read it first.

I might get Hanley to have a look through it later and post it up!!

ZENER · 23-04-2008 11:01AM

I regularly see new members come into the gym (SportsLink) and start using machines in totally the wrong way. For example big girls using only weight machines instead of doing a fat burn and cardio first. They then hop on the scales expecting results after just 30 minutes ! They rarely come back again.

I'd suggest the OP talk to the trainer at her gym and pay the 10 or so quid to get a proper assessment of their fitness/dietary requirements plus instruction on the use of the equipment.

I cringe when people come in with bottles of Coke in their hand getting on the scales !!!

It just requires a little education and research before starting out.

My 2c.

ZEN

Phaetonman · 23-04-2008 11:30AM

There only two possible reasons for this.

1. You are eating too much
2. You aren't working our enough.

It is highly unlikely that you are putting on pounds of muscle with you being a girl, your diet and the type of weights you are using.

cowzerp · 23-04-2008 11:37AM

ZENER wrote: »

I regularly see new members come into the gym (SportsLink) and start using machines in totally the wrong way. For example big girls using only weight machines instead of doing a fat burn and cardio first. They then hop on the scales expecting results after just 30 minutes ! They rarely come back again.

It just requires a little education and research before starting out.

Weight training is most important for people to lose fat, and the cardio is best done after weight training to perform better on your weights and to burn more body fat too than done 1st, maybe your last sentence here will help you too!

Hanley · 23-04-2008 11:52AM

cowzerp wrote: »

Any girls i train lift as heavy as they can and always lose measurements and weight assuming there eating to lose weight! but i've never come across a female who gained muscle without trying to build muscle, plenty have got firmer and mistook it as muscle gain but most realise there muscle is just getting solid rather than bigger.

I woulda thought that if your muscles are "developing" or becoming "firmer" then they would have to grow to achieve this?

not losing weight after joining gym

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