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View Full Version : P.M.S Question....



figurehopefull
10-26-2010, 10:03 AM
I am sure it has been asked before.....I but I am fairly new here so I figured I would ask it again....

My stubborn butt has been stuck at the same weight for 10 days now....(I am currently dieting for a show and I am doing the keto diet)... I know I was supposed to start yesterday, and my tummy is a little bloated...Is this making me retain water as well??? Is this what is making me not lose weight?? I know I still have some time before my show, but it is frustrating when you are starving, doing everything PERFECTLY, and still not seeing the scale budge.

Thanks all!!!

adpolice
10-26-2010, 11:15 AM
You just have to 'shake' things a little bit...A)increase cardioB)add veggie protein days or increase the dosage of your fat burners

tammyp
10-26-2010, 12:21 PM
Steph needs to chime in here. :)

sassy69
10-26-2010, 02:45 PM
Don't measure your progress and fixate ONLY on the scale. The more important measure is bodyfat - weight is the sum total of bone (doesn't change) , lean muscle mass (changes as you build, keeping in mind muscle weighs more than bodyfat), bodyfat (which weighs less than lean muscle and also takes up more room in your body), and water (which can vary on the order of 2-8 lb/day depending on hormone changes aka that time of the month, what you eat, e.g. sodium, etc).

Before freaking out on progress measured by the scale, I'd also look at progress measured by how your clothes are fitting or how you look in the mirror. Or if you have someone to help you, take regular 7-9 point skinfold bodyfat measurements to give you an idea of how you are changing in the different areas. We (women esp) tend to look at our problem areas first - hips, thighs, ass, stomach - for "progress". Given that we (women) tend to have a higher concentration of bodyfat in those areas, the relative changes are going to appear less dramatic there. Look at your WHOLE body / physique and don't just fixate on the one part to judge your overall progress. Bodyfat loss is not a linearly increasing process and it is also very proportional to each individual's physique / bodyfat distribution. IMO for better judgement of progress, you need to look for the micro-changes and the overall trend of all of them, vs simple, too high-level measures like weight to make a judgement on overall progress.

If after all that, you're still stalled out, review what you are doing. Here are some thoughts that came to my mind from what you mentioned (and keeping mind, go to these AFTER you've reviewed some other measures of progress to determine if you really are stalled out and need to make changes, or just need to keep doing what you're doing and be patient because it is working):
- keto diet - when was your last refeed? Going too long on a keto phase can make your body not respond anymore. THe point is to keep your metabolism noving, not stall out because it thinks its not getting enough food.
- what are you doing for cardio? Is it honesly consistent? I personally found I NEED to (honestly) do 2 hrs of cardio / day to make a significant change. My body tends to build both fat & muscle very easily - training is sort of my "natural state" because I do it all the time & have for years so it, in & of itself, won't make a significant change in my bodyfat - thus the importance of cardio. I personally do longer steady-state cardio (vs sprint / HIIT) because I have bad knees and plantar fasciitis that really makes sprinting more injury-promoting than it is worth. If you dont' have these issues, you can explore adding in a change in your cardio style (tho keto dieting, of necessity, limiits your ability to do "burst energy" activities w/o getting winded quickly) or increasing it to see how you respond.
- are you getting enough sleep / quality of sleep / stress? Cortisol is your enemy - this is why competition prep is such an art form - you have to push to the extremes to get to your goals, but if you go too hard and forget that RECOVERY is a critical part of the equation, you start to negate all your work. Consistency, peristance and patience (i.e. no panic, don't add more stress on top of all the stress you are putting your body thru just w/ your scheduled program).

figurehopefull
10-26-2010, 02:46 PM
I have done all that....20 weeks started diet...40 mins 6 days cardio...3 fat/1 non fat day...and fat burners.

at 18 weeks changed it to 45 mins 7 days and 2 fat/2 non fat days....still not losing....just hitting a wall i guess.

i can tell I am holding some water cause my rings are tight and I am cramping like a madman. Hopefull when I start, everything will even out and I will drop like 3 pounds!!!! LOL

~gymdiva~
10-26-2010, 02:48 PM
do you not usually retain during that time of the month? my body flips out when I hit that pms the week leading to that time of the month....I literally gain 7-10lbs but then within 48hrs give or take it starts to come off....it is the worst mind game, especially when prepping!

figurehopefull
10-26-2010, 02:56 PM
Don't measure your progress and fixate ONLY on the scale. The more important measure is bodyfat - weight is the sum total of bone (doesn't change) , lean muscle mass (changes as you build, keeping in mind muscle weighs more than bodyfat), bodyfat (which weighs less than lean muscle and also takes up more room in your body), and water (which can vary on the order of 2-8 lb/day depending on hormone changes aka that time of the month, what you eat, e.g. sodium, etc).

Before freaking out on progress measured by the scale, #1-I'd also look at progress measured by how your clothes are fitting or how you look in the mirror. Or if you have someone to help you, take regular 7-9 point skinfold bodyfat measurements to give you an idea of how you are changing in the different areas. We (women esp) tend to look at our problem areas first - hips, thighs, ass, stomach - for "progress". Given that we (women) tend to have a higher concentration of bodyfat in those areas, the relative changes are going to appear less dramatic there. Look at your WHOLE body / physique and don't just fixate on the one part to judge your overall progress. Bodyfat loss is not a linearly increasing process and it is also very proportional to each individual's physique / bodyfat distribution. IMO for better judgement of progress, you need to look for the micro-changes and the overall trend of all of them, vs simple, too high-level measures like weight to make a judgement on overall progress.

If after all that, you're still stalled out, review what you are doing. Here are some thoughts that came to my mind from what you mentioned (and keeping mind, go to these AFTER you've reviewed some other measures of progress to determine if you really are stalled out and need to make changes, or just need to keep doing what you're doing and be patient because it is working):
- keto diet - #2-when was your last refeed? Going too long on a keto phase can make your body not respond anymore. THe point is to keep your metabolism noving, not stall out because it thinks its not getting enough food.
- what are you doing for cardio? Is it honesly consistent? I personally found I NEED to (honestly) do 2 hrs of cardio / day to make a significant change. My body tends to build both fat & muscle very easily - training is sort of my "natural state" because I do it all the time & have for years so it, in & of itself, won't make a significant change in my bodyfat - thus the importance of cardio. I personally do longer steady-state cardio (vs sprint / HIIT) because I have bad knees and plantar fasciitis that really makes sprinting more injury-promoting than it is worth. If you dont' have these issues, you can explore adding in a change in your cardio style (tho keto dieting, of necessity, limiits your ability to do "burst energy" activities w/o getting winded quickly) or increasing it to see how you respond.
-#3- are you getting enough sleep / quality of sleep / stress? Cortisol is your enemy - this is why competition prep is such an art form - you have to push to the extremes to get to your goals, but if you go too hard and forget that RECOVERY is a critical part of the equation, you start to negate all your work. Consistency, peristance and patience (i.e. no panic, don't add more stress on top of all the stress you are putting your body thru just w/ your scheduled program).

1- That is the funny part and the part that keeps me kind of sane...I can tell my clothes are getting looser and I feel like I have lost weight. The scale is the DEVIL. LOL

2- I take my cheat meals on Sat nights. After my first one I actually lost a pound. After my second one I gained 2 pounds but it was gone the next morning and I was back down to the weight I have been stuck at.

3- Hahahahah...Sleep, whats sleep??? LOL I get up at 5 am, work from 8am to 9pm, teach aerobics classes (just teach), train 5 people a day, run a gym, and chase around a 16 month old all day!!

This does make me think about some things though!!! Thanks alot!!! :hmn: I try to be a super mom, wife, and trainer! I try to do everything that probably 3 people need to do. I do need to find a way to get more rest and maybe incorp a nap during the day when my daughter takes one. Also, I was talking with my husband and he thinks I am training to much. We are at a gym 7 days a week cause we own it, so of course I weight train like 6 days a week. He thinks since I have no carbs I am not resting enough. So starting TODAY, I am knocking it back to 4 days a week. So my body can REST more!!!

figurehopefull
10-26-2010, 02:57 PM
do you not usually retain during that time of the month? my body flips out when I hit that pms the week leading to that time of the month....I literally gain 7-10lbs but then within 48hrs give or take it starts to come off....it is the worst mind game, especially when prepping!

Not really sure, never really focued on the weight that much until I started dieting. I can always tell I hold water and my fingers swell, but I try not to weigh myself that much right before I start normally.

stephaniewicked
10-26-2010, 02:59 PM
Steph needs to chime in here. :)

Haha, I knew I had to comment before I even saw what you wrote! ;)

FH - ALL good advice here. The body is a very complicated example of science. This happened to me EVERY month during my last prep. It can be very discouraging, but you are doing everything RIGHT therefore, things will most certainly balance out after your period issues have ceased.

I'm sure it is unlikely that you will gain ACTUAL weight during your dieting phase (except for maybe the day after a cheat - but that doesn't count! :p)... so trust the process, trust your coach and trust yourself. A little leap of faith could save you days and hours of stress! Take it from one who's been there...

During prep I jump on the scale every single morning - even during period week when I know it's going to go up a little bit. I can't help myself, so I can sympathize... but I (and everyone else here) can also tell you from personal experience that this is completely normal. Don'tcha just love being a girl sometimes? :)

figurehopefull
10-26-2010, 03:02 PM
Don'tcha just love being a girl sometimes? :)


NOOOO.. LOL I was joking with my husband and told him I should have just had it all taken out when I had my tubes tied!!!!

Suzanne
10-26-2010, 03:12 PM
I definitely look different even if weight doesn't go up while pms during prep. Even if don't actually get period i still get the soft squishy look

sassy69
10-26-2010, 05:28 PM
NOOOO.. LOL I was joking with my husband and told him I should have just had it all taken out when I had my tubes tied!!!!


Then you just get early menopause - whole other set of hormone issues.

musclemilf
10-26-2010, 06:58 PM
NOOOO.. LOL I was joking with my husband and told him I should have just had it all taken out when I had my tubes tied!!!!

Agree with Sassy, taking out your girl parts only cause more issues. Also note that tubal ligation is linked to hormonal imbalances. Google "tubal ligation syndrome".

figurehopefull
10-26-2010, 08:15 PM
Then you just get early menopause - whole other set of hormone issues.


true true...there goes my muscles. LOL

figurehopefull
10-26-2010, 08:16 PM
Agree with Sassy, taking out your girl parts only cause more issues. Also note that tubal ligation is linked to hormonal imbalances. Google "tubal ligation syndrome".


really???? :mad::confused:
I am diffently going to look that up now....damn...thought I was preventing a kid so I could do figure...LOL Not making it harder on myself to do figure. ha

figurehopefull
10-26-2010, 08:56 PM
Agree with Sassy, taking out your girl parts only cause more issues. Also note that tubal ligation is linked to hormonal imbalances. Google "tubal ligation syndrome".


Ok, now I am sick to my stomach and I just want to sit here and cry. This explains so much of what I have been going through the last year. I wished I would have known this then, I never would have done that.

musclemilf
10-26-2010, 09:10 PM
Ok, now I am sick to my stomach and I just want to sit here and cry. This explains so much of what I have been going through the last year. I wished I would have known this then, I never would have done that.

Don't worry, you have lot's of company - me included :)

What's done is done. You can't undo your decision. However, you can arm yourself with knowledge on what you're possibly dealing with. Doctor's generally don't sit and do research during their off time (they're tired and have a life like everyone else). Take charge of your body and if you're not satisfied with your practitioner's answer, find someone else who will listen to you.