Muscle and Fat

I weighed in last week to find out that I retained my weight from three weeks ago. Hmmmm...I didn't quite like it. But my fat mass decreased by 1.4 lbs. That should be good. According to the trainers and from reading a lot of health and fitness articles, I know that I should be watching my fat mass and not just my total weight. It could be that one is losing weight but retaining fat. Muscles are not formed/maintained or the muscles are lost for some reasons I'm going to post in succeeding entries. This defeats the purpose of keeping a lean figure and a healthier body.

On the other hand, one could increase or retain weight compared to a couple of weeks but with a lower fat mass which means muscles are being formed and the fats are going away. Muscles are heavier but occupies smaller space hence one looks lean and firm but could be heavier. Whereas one looks flabby if fats are retained.

One clear indication that you are going in the right direction in terms of weight management is your measurement. Just check if your skirt or pants are getting all lose in spite of having the same weight. If they feel like they got bigger and you're shrinking wearing them, right on. Muscles are forming and the fats melted, to oblivion hopefully.

I was still unaware of this when I read from the brochure of my gym a feature on a woman who was about 170 lbs three or four months ago. She looked really lean and fit in the picture but I was surprised when it was mentioned that she is at 148 lbs. Whooa. That couldn't be. She looked like 120 lbs or less. But that's the benefit of proper exercise and right diet. A leaner figure and lesser fats.

Am I happy knowing that? Yes. But I monitor both my total body weight and lean mass. Fat free mass should be increasing. I weighed in again at the gym today and was happy. Both weight and fat mass decreased by a pound. My BMI is within the normal range for a couple of weeks now.

The past days I've been munching on a few chips and sneaking three spoonfuls to half a cup of rice and white pasta. Blame the birthdays I've attended.

But what I eat, I burn. I make an effort to burn all that I have consumed the following day.
*I am now enjoying stair climbing equipment. The calories I burn is amazing in just 15 minutes of using it.
*I increased my weight load from 8 kilos to 10 kilos now for my triceps exercise.
*I did the captain's chair exercise yesterday for my abdomen.
*I joined another body balance class which, according to what I shared from my last post, burns around 265 calories (depending on your effort).

I believe these are the reasons I decreased by a pound after a week in spite of eating, though just very slightly, above what I require myself to eat.

But enough of three spoonfuls, enough of half a bag of chips every now and then. I don't want to gain weight even slightly because that means I have not disciplined myself. So tomorrow, I'll go back to my usual diet - fruits, wheat bread, lean meat, tuna and the like. Discipline is the key.