Hi all-

I've been lifting 3-4 times per week for the last one and a half months, and just got the results back from my second body fat assessment. The good news: if the electrical impedence test can be trusted, I'm down a full percentage point of body fat, from 20.5% to 19.5%. My body fat kg went from 12.3 to 11.3. Great! The bad/confusing news: I've supposedly lost lean mass, too - from 47.7 kg before I started lifting to 46.7kg now. (Full stats at the end of the post)

So... what's going on? I've not lost enough weight to suggest that I would have been eating up muscle, and I've done a lot to avoid muscle loss:
--protein kept at close to 40% of daily calories, eating average 1550 calories per day (at my height and weight this should be plenty for a safe cut without cutting muscle out too... right?) and honestly probably higher as my diet wasn't as consistent as it should have been
--cardio only about 3 days a week (sometimes 25-35 min of LISS, sometimes around 20 minutes of my pseudo HIIT- running with 6-7 sprint breaks)
--Lifting as heavy as I can, and getting heavier, although still pretty beginner levels. And I SEE muscle growth in my arms. In other words, I shouldn't be seeing mass drops!

Am I confused about the lean kg measure? Is there anything included in that measure besides bone and muscle? I'd guess maybe water is included too and that perhaps I'm just not as hydrated... but the machine says my body water percentages were pretty near identical on the two different days, right?

SO - should I be worried? Is it somehow a matter of water? Am I misinterpreting lean kg measurements? Or is it just a matter of electrical impedence tests not being all that reliable? (Yes, I should be using calipers, I KNOW! :) Just a matter of investing as income becomes available...)

I await the mass wisdom of the JSF gurus. Thanks, guys!!

(By the way... did I mention I lost 1% body fat! I really, really want to trust that's true! Go me! :lol:)


INITIAL STATS:
Body Fat Testing Results:
Weight: 60kg
Height cm: 166
Body fat %: 20.5
B.fat kg: 12.3
BMI: 21.8
BMR: 1418 kcal
Lean kg: 47.7
Lean %: 79.5
Water lt: 34.9
Water %: 58.2
Target water: 54-61

CURRENT STATS:
Weight: 58kg
Height cm: 166
Body fat %: 19.5
B.fat kg: 11.3
BMI: 21.8
BMR: 1402 kcal
Lean kg: 46.7
Lean %: 79.5
Water lt: 34.2
Water %: 59.0
Target water: 54-61

electrical impedence test should not be trusted. there are too many factors that affect the readings. after getting your results, try drinking a whole bunch of water and test again. the reading will be completely different. what it's good for is to see a general trend, not an accurate body fat testing. get yourself some calipers and learn to use that. or, there is a easy way to assess whether you are losing muscle or not. go here (http://goldensummitinc.com/nucleus/index.php?itemid=207) and look under "the ratio". all you need is a good tape measurer and anyone can do it easily.

caliper, caliper, caliper.

caliper, caliper, caliper.


my BF% according to electrical impedance tester says i'm 18% bodyfat.

do i look 18% bodyfat to you ?

f that noise, buy the caliper, it will be the greatest invesment you make.

also, no matter what you will lose SOME muscle. it sucks. it happened to me. i lose fat at about a 6:1 to 7:1 ratio compared to losing muscle when cutting, but i still lose muscle.

Thanks, guys!

Bah, calipers. I knew I'd have to suck it up and buy those eventually. I guess they will be my July present to myself.

Remember that lean body mass includes water and anything water soluble (the, erm, contents of your large intestine, e.g.) with that test.

1. BIA measurements are unreliable - they are very dependent on hydration levels etc. etc.
2. To lose fat you are in a negative energy balance. This means that you will most probably walk around in a constant semi-depleted mode when it comes to the energy stored in your muscles as glycogen. The glycogen also binds a lot of water. If those stores are not full, you weight will be lower, and that's counted as "lean mass".

This is why you can drop a number of lbs in weight very rapidly if you cut out carbs completely (glycogen stores won't be refilled). This is also why your weight rebounds after a cheat day, or carb refill day when you're on a diet. Nothing to worry about - you probably haven't lost any lean mass at all, since you drop the fat in a rather slow pace.

(No, you don't need to lose muscle when you're dieting.. only if you drop weight too fast, cut down to extreme levels of bf or don't work hard enough in the gym.)

Remember that lean body mass includes water and anything water soluble (the, erm, contents of your large intestine, e.g.) with that test.

Ha! Forgot about the food! That + impedence error + Roibus' comment about the glycogen levels make me feel much, much better... feeling enlightened - thank you all.

On a side note, I just finished a weight session and I'm feeling totally high. I'm finally hitting challenging weights on the squats (which isn't much, still...) and damn if I don't feel it. This girl ain't losin muscle if she can help it.:tu:

I for one do not use calipers nor do I recommend that my clients use them at all either. It used to be the scale that delivered the most mind games when it came to progress or lack thereof, however I think calipers now take the cake.

I use the scale and weigh in's (in a certain manner for accuracy) as well as pictures to assess true progress. Proof is in the pictures!

If you are indeed losing lean muscle, you may want to analyze your dietary approach and make some changes.

~SC~

Damn, I gots all the JSF all stars responding to my post. Basking in the muscle glory...

Thanks, Swolecat!

I for one do not use calipers nor do I recommend that my clients use them at all either. It used to be the scale that delivered the most mind games when it came to progress or lack thereof, however I think calipers now take the cake.

I use the scale and weigh in's (in a certain manner for accuracy) as well as pictures to assess true progress. Proof is in the pictures!

If you are indeed losing lean muscle, you may want to analyze your dietary approach and make some changes.

~SC~

I've found the same thing with the calipers - Maybe I never found the right way to 'grab' the fat; I seem to get numbers all over the board.

I have my wife measure 10-15 parts of my body with myotape on mybodycomp.com. What do you think of this? It may not be accurate, but it at least seems consistant.

It's kind of the same idea for me, consistent or not.

I guess to me it's personally irreleveant as I'd rather not even take the time to do those types of measurements/assessments, because I am so used to using pictures and the scale every certain point in time to "see" what is going on, and what the numbers reflect. What I "see" should match the scale. I have also learned how to use the mirror in certain areas of my gym because I've been using them for years. Mirrors usually are no where good as pictures (and they aren't), but I can still guage progress because I know what I've "seen" before in those mirrors/spots, and when I look at myself in the gym over the days/weeks in those areas, I can definitely see improvement.

If measuring and such is something others like to do, that's completely fine. We all like to use different methods.


~SC~

I've found the same thing with the calipers - Maybe I never found the right way to 'grab' the fat; I seem to get numbers all over the board.

I have my wife measure 10-15 parts of my body with myotape on mybodycomp.com. What do you think of this? It may not be accurate, but it at least seems consistant.

I use that site on the first of every month to guage progress. It gives me one place to view and compare my measurements from month to month. I obviously keep up with the body fat % because it gives them to you based on the measurements but you have to realize it is not totally accurate.

For instance, I have noticed that when my thigh measurement goes up it looks at that as fat rather than muscle and raises my BF%.

It's kind of the same idea for me, consistent or not.

I guess to me it's personally irreleveant as I'd rather not even take the time to do those types of measurements/assessments, because I am so used to using pictures and the scale every certain point in time to "see" what is going on, and what the numbers reflect. What I "see" should match the scale. I have also learned how to use the mirror in certain areas of my gym because I've been using them for years. Mirrors usually are no where good as pictures (and they aren't), but I can still guage progress because I know what I've "seen" before in those mirrors/spots, and when I look at myself in the gym over the days/weeks in those areas, I can definitely see improvement.

If measuring and such is something others like to do, that's completely fine. We all like to use different methods.


~SC~

Hey there. Just curious - does that have to do something with more experience? You've been into this business for quite some time, and of course got to know your body extremely well and can notice even subtle changes. For others, perhaps these small changes can be more difficult to notice, and they can benefit from more "detailed" measurements.

I'm just starting to get to the point where I can see and feel approximately where I'm at, but I still enjoy watching the "hard figures" from the measuring tape go in the right direction :) Of course, pictures are the ultimate evidence.