exercise less AND weigh less

[luvmylocs]

background:
so the past couple of years have been a little tough for me. i think i threw myself into teaching a ton of classes at the gym. i love fitness but i was taking on all these classes while having a full time job. my mother and a close girlfriend always warned me that i wasn't leaving enough time for my personal life. i was like whateva! in the last 2-3 months i've finally come to a place where i got frustrate by some things with management and i just wanted to reduce my teaching schedule greatly (at one point i had up to 6 regular classes a week plus i was subbing before work or extra classes before or after my regular classes). i'm now down to teaching 2 classes at the gym and one class at an apartment complex each week. i only teach strength training once a week, cycle once a week and pilates once a week (plus a 30 min pilates after my strength class). anyway, i'm feeling pretty good. i'm not even seeking out subbing opportunities. i'm going to start a short 3 week bellydance class that ends the wed night before thanksgiving. i still work out on my own doing whatever i want at the gym. i'd started doing the insanity dvd's and plan to pick that back up.

observation:
so while i was working out i began to notice that i wasn't losing weight (and i felt anywhere from 5 to as much as 12 lbs over where i should really weigh to be a nice size for my height, body type and muscle tone). anyway, i modified my diet, worked out harder and still didn't lose weight. now that i've cut back on my classes and made minimal changes to my diet (although possibly significant because i'm trying to reduce wheat/gluten and i've been on the apple a day kick for over a month) anyway...now i've lost weight and just when i look at myself in the mirrow i "look smaller" my waistline is reappearing.

when i was working out a lot i was baffled as to why my stomach was protruding. i've seen articles about how people that exercise tend to overeat disproportionately to the amount of calories they are burning and need to consume to maintain performance. i'm still eating the same types of foods except the wheat/gluten but i feel better too. less stomach discomfort. i'd also read and heard that stress affects abdominal fat levels/stores.

question:
so has anyone else experienced this...you exercise less AND end up weighing less too? do you attribute it to exercise or a reduction in calories or both?

[PixieCurl]

I'm one who weighs less when I don't exercise. When I was cheerleading in college, I always weighed about 5 lb less during the summers when we'd be off, and as soon as I graduated the 5 lb fell off. I've experienced similar patterns with other types of exercise as well. I think for me it's a combination of things - I tend to build muscle pretty easily, and lose it when I'm not exercising, and I do think I consume disproportionately more calories when I'm working out more.

[luvmylocs]

well i'm happy about this. i was worried that when i stopped teaching so much i'd get bigger but glad the opposite is true. not being in the gym quite so much leaves me more free time for lots of things and to do nothing!! kind of cool!

[wild~hair]

When I need to get in shape and lose weight, I find the best approach is to change my eating habits first, before picking up an exercise routine. My approach to "dieting" [it's really a lifestyle change] is portion control. I already eat pretty healthily, so it's all about quantity.

So I do this for a month or so. There's a point where your stomach sort of shrinks and you don't need as much food to feel full.

If I exercise during this time, I keep it light: short cycling trips and walks.

One I'm accustomed to that, I start the hard-core exercising. It would not work at all to do both at the same time, because exercise can make me sooooo hungry. If I'm cutting back on portions at the same time, I'll be miserable. But if I'm already used to smaller portions, then when I exercise, I'll eat a little more, but still less than I was originally, and then I lose weight.

I find that I lose a pound or two when the diet changes happen, but the weight doesn't really start to come off until I'm exercising as well.

The key for me is reaching that point of satiation when eating smaller portions, then everything else falls into place.

[2poodles]

Another thought: if you're eating less wheat/gluten, you've obviously cut down on carbs. Some carbs cause fluid retention, so maybe you've lost some of that?

[Josephine]

I only notice that if I'm eating less which is obvious. Everytime I've lost significant weight it's been from eating less. Working out helps a lot but only I after I build up to a point where I am working out hardcore(to the point of exhaustion almost) consistantly.

[luvmylocs]

yeah i guess it is nutrition. i'm probably not as hungry as i was when i was teaching as much. plus i tend to eat at home more now than when i was teaching out as much, then i just grabbed food out and even though it was healthy the portions were probably way too big....

[juicyfruit]

I need to exercise to keep my weight in check. It's mostly a little jogging or some time on the exercise bike. I don't think I adjust my eating much on whether I exercise or not.

[Curls Again]

Originally Posted by wild~hair

When I need to get in shape and lose weight, I find the best approach is to change my eating habits first, before picking up an exercise routine. My approach to "dieting" [it's really a lifestyle change] is portion control. I already eat pretty healthily, so it's all about quantity.

So I do this for a month or so. There's a point where your stomach sort of shrinks and you don't need as much food to feel full.

If I exercise during this time, I keep it light: short cycling trips and walks.

One I'm accustomed to that, I start the hard-core exercising. It would not work at all to do both at the same time, because exercise can make me sooooo hungry. If I'm cutting back on portions at the same time, I'll be miserable. But if I'm already used to smaller portions, then when I exercise, I'll eat a little more, but still less than I was originally, and then I lose weight.

I find that I lose a pound or two when the diet changes happen, but the weight doesn't really start to come off until I'm exercising as well.

The key for me is reaching that point of satiation when eating smaller portions, then everything else falls into place.

I agree with all of this and do this too.

Only thing I would add is that exercise shapes my body and tones me overall. So, once I've gotten food choices and portion control going on, I kick in exercise to sculpt my body. But I don't do anywhere near the level of exercise as the OP and Pixie, so maybe its a difference that exercise instructors see more often than laypeople..

Also, the obvious point of exercise building muscle which weighs more (so by dropping or lowering exercise, muscle weight would drop too).

[Mamacurl3]

[quote=Curls Again;1146165]

Originally Posted by wild~hair

When I need to get in shape and lose weight,



Also, the obvious point of exercise building muscle which weighs more (so by dropping or lowering exercise, muscle weight would drop too).

I agree with this.

[scrills]

yup, this happens to me because I loose muscle

[luvmylocs]

yeah i still feel toned and defined (in fact my waist/tummy looks better)...less flab. i really think the reduction in stress associated with teaching and ripping and running all the time has allowed my body to normalize.

eating better/different i'm sure is helping.

i'm still working out and lifting, just on my own. the main thing is i'm not doing cycling as much as i was. the super intense cardio.

tonight i'm going to bellydance class. i'm super excited. packed my hip scarf!

[Mamacurl3]

yay, happy shimmy-ing! belly dance is a great belly workout
cycling/spinning is definitely some hardcore stuff. glad you are in a happier place fitness wise

[luvmylocs]

bellydance was SUPER fun. i loved it. the teacher focused more on drills. she told us a lot of things to help us be better bellydancers. in other classes i've taken we've focused on a particular dance. i think i like drills and a brief combo at the end. we did do a little dance (just watching and doing what she did) to kick it off then stretching. fun, fun!!

[macluan]

Luvmylocs, I agree with what you said about the stress factor. I've been working with adrenal burnout and especially the book-Are You Tired of Being Tired and she speaks a great deal about how bad too much exercise can be for you. How sometimes what you really need is better food nutritionally, more sleep and some fun downtime. I'm an advocate of wheat and dairy free diets and notice most people are healthier if they leave these much over used foods out of their diets.

[luvmylocs]

Originally Posted by macluan

Luvmylocs, I agree with what you said about the stress factor. I've been working with adrenal burnout and especially the book-Are You Tired of Being Tired and she speaks a great deal about how bad too much exercise can be for you. How sometimes what you really need is better food nutritionally, more sleep and some fun downtime. I'm an advocate of wheat and dairy free diets and notice most people are healthier if they leave these much over used foods out of their diets.

thanks for that title! i'm always reading about something. i'll check it out

those 3 things you mentioned are what i'm really trying to do. i realized i was sort of obsessed with working out and felt guilty if i didn't do something super intense every day! crazy!

[wild~hair]

lml, I saw this article today in The New York Times and thought of this thread.

[juicyfruit]

Thanks for the link wild hair!

[WileECoyote - Dissolving Bikini Wearer]

Well, I guess that would make sense, since I weigh more due to exercising more

[2poodles]

Great article, thanks, w~h.