Question:
How does a person still lose inches while not losing weight?

I've read many times that even when people are on a plateau and aren't losing weight, many times they're still losing inches. How is this possible?    — [Anonymous] (posted on December 12, 2001)

December 12, 2001
I believe it means that either you're gaining muscle or fat is turning into muscle. The plateau is because muscle weighs more than fat, but the inches are lost because muscle is leaner than fat! Just my two cents! :)
   — Deborah W.

December 12, 2001
Not to be argumentative, but a lb of muscle and a lb of fat weigh the same, muscle does not weigh more than fat. However, muscle does take up less space than fat. Picture 3 lbs of fluffy lard vs 3 lbs of tight steel. Sometimes when you exercise, you will lose 5 lb of fat, gain 5 lbs of muscle. Although the scale doesn't change, the amount of space you take up (your inches) does change, you have less volume. Muscle also works harder than fat. Muscle burns fat even while you are just sitting, so it's better to have muscle working for you, than fat who's just sitting there trying to leach onto every calorie you consume:) Best of luck
   — Becky K.

December 12, 2001
I theard its your body redistributing the weight. Whatever it is plateaus cause me to shrink BIG Time!
   — bob-haller

December 12, 2001
Actually muscle has more density than fat. So yes a pound of fat and muscle weigh the same, but are not the same amount, which is what I think the first poster was getting at. For instance a cup of sugar and a cup of flour do not weigh the same. So if you take the same amount (A 6"X6" square for example) of muscle and fat, the muscle would weigh more. A lot of people confuse density with weight. Another example is ice and water. Take a cup of ice and a cup of water, the water weighs more. I think that's what she meant.
   — [Anonymous]

October 26, 2006
hi to the water and ice person, i needed help on my homework so i went to ask.com and typed in if you have a cup of water and a cup of ice which weights more, and i found yours...you better be right...ty if you are!
   — jrhigh