What am I doing wrong?

[Lozza05]

I started C25K in April & i currently can run up to 4 miles which is just amazing as I've never considered myself as a runner before. I run 3 times a week & i eat super healthy but I've not lost any weight since I started C25K. Whilst I'm not overweight at all, I would have like to have lost at least a couple of lbs. Where am I going wrong? Any advice gratefully received!

[Instructor57 Graduate]

You have probably increased your muscle which of course is denser and heavier than fat 😁

[Lozza05 Graduate in reply to Instructor57]

I keep telling myself I'm gaining muscle. Thanks!

[Maz1103 Graduate]

Same.. In fact I am a couple of pounds heavier (hungrier 🐽). Strangely though people are saying I've lost weight so maybe I've toned up. Decided I'd rather be a couple of pounds heavier but fit and toned 😁

[nowster Graduate in reply to Maz1103]

Same here. My weight did go up a little, and now it's settled back to where I started.

My trouser belt is now a little looser than it used to be. Odd that...

[Maz1103 Graduate in reply to nowster]

I've stopped fussing about it now otherwise I'll get obsessed. I feel much fitter and my clothes fit so it's all good 😁

[nowster Graduate in reply to Maz1103]

That's a great attitude. 😀

[Maz1103 Graduate in reply to nowster]

It's taken years to get a balanced relationship with my weight. Exercise has definitely helped.

[Lozza05 Graduate in reply to Maz1103]

I can see i have toned up a bit but was feeling really disheartened tonight. I will keep reminding myself how far I have come in the last few months & I will try & keep off the scales or the sad step as I call it 😂

[Maz1103 Graduate in reply to Lozza05]

😂😂I get on the scales far too often.

[Lozza05 Graduate in reply to Maz1103]

Oh so do I! That's why I call the sad step 😂.

[Maz1103 Graduate in reply to Lozza05]

We need to stop!! 😂

[Sortofrunning Graduate in reply to Lozza05]

Sad step? That’s funny! I’m assuming it is exercise compensation. Running, especially this time of year, cans deplete your normal nutritional intake. You may be compensating for that - not in a bad way. Your body may need it to keep running. You can try tinkering with what and when you eat. Also, I find a calorie/food tracker just helpful in understanding how different foods impact me and how I feel. Also, if you over focus on the scale, you might miss some fairly amazing changes to your body composition. Add some weight lifting to the mix? Whoa!!

[Dorian1 Graduate]

Get others opinions and look in the mirror, unless you have a bit of body dismorphia, then the mirror is a very bad thing to use. Fat is kind of fluffy, while muscle is dense, so you have probably lost fat and should not try to lost weight.

4 miles, that seems like magic to me as i have only just started running.

[Lozza05 Graduate in reply to Dorian1]

I think I will take your advice & ask my friends opinions.

I have worked so hard to be able to run that far & i never thought I could do it. You will get there in time, believe in yourself as you can do anything if you put your mind to it.😀

[IannodaTruffe Mentor]

Unless you run considerably longer distances you will not be burning enough calories to affect your weight.

The only answer is to reduce calorie intake. Even "super healthy" food contains calories, so if you want to lose weight, eat less.

[Lozza05 Graduate in reply to IannodaTruffe]

Thanks for the advice. I appreciate it 😀

[Runawaytrainer Graduate in reply to Lozza05]

I bought The low blood sugar diet cookery book. The recipes really suit our eating style. My problem now is keeping my BMI high enough!

[SammiN3 Graduate]

I haven't either! I lost a few lbs and 2cm on my tummy in the first month then the weight has crept back up to where I started. But... i feel healthier, happier and less crinkly in my shorts 🤭 I saw my friend for first time since before lockdown yest and she thought I'd lost weight so must be toning at least.

[Mel3007 Graduate]

Hi I'm due to graduate this week but I use an app called nutracheck which tracks all my food I am eating by calories. I have lost 10lb since starting. Also if you have a fitbit or Google fit it will sync the calories burnt by running. You can eat some of them back if you need to but I don't. We'll done on your running. X

[ALZMum Graduate]

Well done on your achievements. Depending on your stage of life, it could be hormonal. As a woman of a stage of life I’ve found my weight changing irrespective of what I do in way of exercise. Embrace your fitness levels and keep running.

[Jell6 Graduate]

Although great, running doesn't burn up an enormous amount of calories!

You need to combine it with healthy eating.

I haven't lost weight in over 2 years, my weight is pretty stable ( I go by clothes as I stopped weighing myself a few weeks after starting. )

I was weighing more!!, but I think apart from some muscle improvement most likely cause for any increase is that I am better hydrated than ever before.

[TheAwfulToad]

If you're not overweight, I'm not sure why you would want to lose weight. However if you are actually carrying some excess squishiness, and it hasn't gone away (you should be able to see it in the mirror - the scales won't tell you anything useful), then the most likely reason is that your diet is not as super-healthy as you think it is. The vast majority of British people are eating far too many carbohydrates on a regular basis, and not nearly enough fat. This tilts your metabolism towards fat storage and can ultimately end in Type 2 diabetes. I suspect many people also have chronic, subclinical vitamin and mineral deficiencies because of the lack of dietary fat.

The right diet, plus exercise, will usually result in a fairly low bodyfat ratio within a short timeframe. The only logical conclusion, then, is that you need to modify your diet. Roughly what are you eating on a day-to-day basis?

[nowster Graduate in reply to TheAwfulToad]

Unfortunately public advice for many decades has been to cut down on fat and take in carbohydrates instead.

[TheAwfulToad in reply to nowster]

Indeed. And the British public are fatter than ever. Which in hindsight (given the basic facts of physiology) was rather predictable.

[nowster Graduate in reply to TheAwfulToad]

It could be worse! We could be putting HFCS into everything like they do on the other side of the pond.

[Lozza05 Graduate in reply to TheAwfulToad]

So on a typical day I have fruit for breakfast, salad at lunch time & then at tea, i have a protein with salad or veg. Maybe im not eating enough fat?

[TheAwfulToad in reply to Lozza05]

I would say you're not eating enough food Especially considering your active lifestyle. Your general lack of calories has probably put your body into metabolic emergency mode. But yeah, add some fat (in whatever form you enjoy - dairy, meat, olive oil ...), have a proper breakfast (maybe something with eggs in it?) and you should find it makes a difference. Ensure that you're always full at mealtimes. Your body will not discard bodyfat if it thinks you're going through a prolonged famine; to do so would be suicide.

[Lozza05 Graduate in reply to TheAwfulToad]

Thank you so much for your advice. I will take it all on board & like you said, add some more fat to my diet.

[Gwyrdd Graduate]

Don ‘t weigh but use a measuring tape! My weight on the scales has stayed the same but my shorts are falling down😮🥱🩳

[Lozza05 Graduate in reply to Gwyrdd]

Oh good advice! Will use a tape measure as i may have lost inches without realising & i suppose that is better than keep weighing myself

[Newbie59 Graduate in reply to Lozza05]

I started in mid April and I have no scales to weigh myself but all my trousers are falling down. I measured and I've lost an inch off my waist and an inch off my hips. I find since starting running I eat less!

[Rick-shaw Graduate]

Definitely muscle replacing fat.

No worries there.

[Hedgehogs123 Graduate]

I would say the same as the others that muscle wise you will be more toned so maybe thats why you weigh lightly more, but regularly running 4 miles is amazing, well done on that front!!

[Lozza05 Graduate in reply to Hedgehogs123]

aww thanks. It feels like such an achievement to get to 4 miles. My next aim is 5 miles. I run early in the morning as I find that the best time for me as after work I know I wouldn't bother.

[Hedgehogs123 Graduate]

Hiya, me too I love early morning runs, sets me up for the day. I'm doing between 35 and 40min and about nearly 6km, so I'm getting close to 4 miles but although I now look forward to my runs, they are always still hard work!

[Lozza05 Graduate in reply to Hedgehogs123]

Oh i know what you mean about being hard work. Some mornings I have struggled to get out of bed early but then I just have to remember how good I feel once I have completed my run & like you say, it definitely sets me up for the day.

[Run4Hills Graduate]

Hi! I think the fat and hormone comments are really worth thinking about.

My diet is not as healthy as yours -too many carbs and not enough fat (but I have been trying ! ) I weigh the same as before I started BUT I am definitely more toned and have lost flab from my top half -arms back sides and legs. Just wish a little would go from my tum and derrière so that I could drop a dress size. Think that is going to take weights. Sigh.