Conference rocks::weight_control

    Muscle weighs more per unit volume than fat.  If you're losing inches,
    why are you complaining????  Would you rather be a 135 lb size 10 or a
    120 lb size 14?  If you lose weight gradually by including exercise in
    your routine, you will be more successful in keeping it off.
    
    -e
    

	Keep doing the exercising. If inches are going away, then that's what
you want. With inches goes the fat. Fat is more imortant to get rid of then
lbs. Keep it up and good luck! I hope you get down to the inches you want to.



Glen

    I'd bet you're still loosing fat, but now you're gaining muscle.
    
    This IS GOOD!!!  Muscle may make you appear to be heavier (on a
    scale) but it will make you look a lot healthier and more fit.
    
    Remember, muscle is GOOD ... muscle consumes calories, fat doesn't.
    
    If you want to track how much fat you're losing, get a body fat
    skin fold or (more accurate) a dunk to determine body fat.  Also,
    you could take a pictures once a week in front of a full-length
    mirror.  That's a great way to track progress.  After a few months
    you won't believe how much better you look, compared to the previous
    month's picture.

    
    Hi! We went over this very thing in my WW class... My teacher
    said there is no real answer however some people who were
    like you said that in 2-4 weeks loss kicked in again.
    
    My group leader also asked what level you were following
    because if you start excercise and you are not giving
    your body enough food your body will change its metabolism.
    Thus if you were dong level 1 now try level 2 . You
    have to eat more to start losing again. Use your floaters
    and optionals....
    
    

    Keep doing what you're doing and eventually, the scale will
    begin to show it.  I've been on WW for about 1 1/2 years and
    I know how you feel.  When I added weight lifing to my
    exercise routine, it did seem to me that the weight loss
    slowed down temporarily.  But it did catch up!  As long
    as you're following program and exercising, you WILL lose.
    Also, try increasing your water.  I find that really helps.
    
    Linda

    I agree with all the others.  If you're drinking diet colas, cut back,
    and start drinking more water.  If I stop drinking diet soda for a week
    and just fruit juice and water, the scale goes down by several pounds!
    
    I started trying to lose weight at 160 lbs., not following weight
    watchers, but counting fat grams and eating lots of complex
    carbohydrates.  I began exercise immediately.  Because I was losing fat
    but building muscle at the same time, it felt like it was taking
    forever for the weight to come off.  But, the inches lost were
    incredible despite the higher numbers the scale was showing.
    
    I am now fluctuating between 128 and 130 and am down to a size 7-9. 
    When I weighed 120 lbs without exercise I was a size 9-11!  Yes, I do
    get discouraged because the scale has been sitting at 128-130 for a
    long time without showing any loss, but my body keeps getting smaller. 
    I finally put my scale in the closet and vowed only to take it out once
    a month.
    
    Several things can trigger weight gain without actual fat gain:  excess
    water in the body, excess waste in the body; if I eat a late dinner and
    weigh myself first thing in the morning I can be two pounds heavier. 
    What an awful feeling, and trying to convince myself that it isn't
    actual fat doesn't help much.  Best to not have the scale around at
    all!
    
    Hang in there!  You'll make it!
    
    -Roberta (still trying for a size 5!)
    

    The reason you're not seeing a weight loss is you're replacing
    lost fat with gained muscle.
    
    Do you have enough energy?  Do you sleep well at night?
    
    If so, you're eating enough and don't need to increase.

    Agree with Mike.  Don't eat more.  Just continue on the way you have
    been and sooner or later the scale will start showing loss in pounds
    again.
    
    I just read an article last night about stored water, and it stated
    that carbodyrates like bages, breads, and pasta increase water
    retention in the body.  I didn't know this.  Since my diet contains a
    lot of this, it could be part of the reason why I'm not seeing a
    signifcant loss in pounds as well.
    
    The reason I dislike WW is because they are so scale-oriented.  I would
    get very discouraged weighing in once a week (in clothes no less) and
    seeing very little or no progress.  This is not a WW criticism, as it
    is a great program that many folks have had success with.  It's just
    not for me.
    

    
    Also watch what you eat in terms of fat content...A study I
    read gave each group a 1200 calorie diet except one was in
    lower fat content . That group lost twice! as much as the 
    other.....something to think about.......
    
    Watch the salt too if you hold water easily..
    
    Don't be discourged!!
    

    re:.10
    
    You don't really store water with carbohydrates, you lose water.
    
    But ... to metabolize them (ever get very thirsty after a pasta or
    pizza meal?) you do need water.  So, if you keep eating carbohydrates,
    you will also be drinking a lot of water, but it won't be retained (ie:
    stored in tissues) it'll be in your stomach or blood or bladder.
    
    You'll be water-heavy, but it won't be from storing (retaining) water,
    it'll be from using water to metabolize the foods you're eating.
    
    If the article states otherwise, can I get a copy of it?

    Mike,
    
    The article was actually a 3 day diet plan on how to lose water weight. 
    It said to cut out sodium and carbohydrates and only eat fruit and low
    protein meals during the 3 days, plus water rich foods like vegetables. 
    It also stated to drink lots of water to keep the kidneys flushed.
    
    I don't remember how the part about carbohydrates was worded and it is
    quite possible I misunderstood.  It did concern me though.
    
    Thanks for the explanation.  All I could imagine were the bagels,
    breads and pasta sitting in my digestive tract and acting as sponges,
    soaking up all the water so it can't get out!!
    
    -Roberta (a carbohydrate nut)
    

    re: bagels and carbohydrates
    
    They WILL absorb water in your intestines.  But that's a GOOD thing,
    and it's the same physical mechanism that's at work when you eat
    high-fiber foods.  They force water absorption which in turn causes
    loosensing of the stool, more and faster nutrient absorption, and less
    overall time in the intestines (less exposure time to carcinogens, so
    fewer incidents of colon cancer).
    
    Now, that's not water retention.  Retention refers to storing water
    in body tissues.  The water in the intestines isn't being stored there,
    it's on its way out, but until it is out, it will show up as additional
    weight on a scale.
    
    re: the 3-day diet plan
    
    Most lose-weight-quick diets take advantage of the large weight gain
    you see when you flush the excess water and waste out of your body.
    This is NOT a fat loss.
    
    If a 150lb woman were to run a marathon every day for a week, she would
    lose  (7*100*26) = 18,400 calories, or about 5 pounds of fat. It is
    crazy to expect to lose even one-half that much weight in fat with any
    3-day diet, no matter how strict, unless you're also running or walking
    26 miles per day.

     .14 is right on target, as usual.  What you should ask youself is
    whether you want to weigh less or get thinner.  The 3-day,
    dehydrate-your-body diet will make you lighter, but no thinner.  What
    is the point of it?  
    
    -ellie