Question:
Do I or do't I?

Okay, so I am now about 30 lbs away from my goal. I had been doing aerobics at least 5 times a week. Now, I have started at a gym with a personal trainer beginnging to weight train. I am doing that 3 days a week & cardio 3 days a week. I know that I have heard that muscle "weighs more" than fat or is "denser" so that I may not see the scale moving. Well, I really want to loose my last 30 lbs-so if I weight train & am gaining muscle-am I going to loose weight to meet my goal? Thanks in advance for the input!    — Heather N. (posted on January 3, 2003)

January 3, 2003
Heather, Speak with your personal trainer about this....tell her/him what your goal is at this time and see if they will adjust your training accordingly.... lifting less weight at more reps should tone and firm but not increase pounds drastically....lifting heavier weights with less reps will increase muscle mass which in turn would make you a bit heavier.... just my little ol' opinion though....check with a professional to be 100% sure! Love and light,
   — medium

January 3, 2003
I am a big fan of weight training. The best shape I've ever been in was due to a weight training regiment. If you want to lose inches and change (for the better) your appearance, do the weight training but THROW out the scale if this is what you do. If you are still lb. oriented, don't go to weight training. Even though you'll look GREAT if you weight train, the scale will frustrate you.
   — susanje

January 3, 2003
Hi Heather, heatehr here...I am not as close to goal as you, however, I will tell you that I just started some weight trainning myself and although the scale isn't moving as quick as it used to, I am seeing the greatest change in clothing size now. I am losing sizes even though I am not losing as many lbs. Good Luck to you!
   — heathercross

January 3, 2003
One thing to remember is that increasing muscle mass makes your body a more efficient machine. If you build lean muscle mass, your body will burn more calories even at rest. That is a huge benefit as far as I'm concerned. Weight bearing exercise is also a great thing to do for your bones. It cuts down on the risk for osteoperosis (sp?). Weight training and calcium supplements are an excellent defense. I started weight training a few months ago, and though the scale slowed down for a while, the pounds are dropping off again now and my clothes fit a lot better and my energy level has increased. I'm within 20 lbs of goal, but I have lost 25 lbs since I started weight training. My arms are looking so much better and my posture has improved. I've also really enjoyed how powerful and in control of my body it makes me feel. I hope that you'll think about it. If you do it, you'll get to your goal and your body will look and feel better than it would without. (RNY 9/5/01 330 lbs, now 179lbs 5'9)
   — Claire P.