size and weight loss

[vfb2girls]

Okay just was wondering if anyone else out there has lost and gained weight many times, have you noticed that even though the weight has come off ,your'e body shape is never the same? What I mean is that clothes that fit before at this weight now seem snug and the weight has distubuted in different areas. Also for anyone that is in their later 40's, is the weight coming off slower for you? I have to struggle just to take off a pound, and was wondering if it is due to my age?

 

[TigH]

I have lost and gained weight so many times in my life. I can't remember if I was able to wear the same size clothes as I did at various times of being the same weight (if you follow me!)

I do know that I weigh more now than I did once when I basically stopped eating to lose weight (when I was 19 and didn't have any common sense). I am pretty sure I was not able to fit into the same size then as I can now, and I am 8 pounds heavier now (fitting into a 6, woo-hoo!)

I do think that things shift around as we get older, and then you have to take into account stuff like how much of my body is lean muscle and how much is fat - muscle doesn't take up as much space as fat...

Don't get discouraged! Make sure you aren't depriving yourself of the food you need to keep your energy level up and try to fit some exercise into your life. A brisk 15 minute walk 5 days a week is a great start!

 

[Dimplenose]

I too have been up and down (or should that be down and up?) many times and even at target I still had a big bum! Also I've noticed that since having kids I can wear smaller sizes at any given weight - but maybe clothes manufacurers have become more generous with thier sizes in the last 13 years.

Libby

 

[bicker]

There are two factors at work here, both TigH alluded to:

1) Age: As you age, your body will change to some extent, especially as compared to how it was in your teens and twenties.

2) Body Composition: Weight is not a clear indicator of body composition. I've weighed 175 pounds three times in my life, but I can guarantee you that my body composition was different each time I weighed 175.

If you're losing weight primarily through calorie-restriction and reliance on an excessive amount of aerobic exercise, you could end up, once you get back to a previously-held weight, being "fatter" at that weight than you were the last time you held that weight -- by "fatter" I mean having a higher body fat percentage. By contrast, if you lose weight through calorie-restriction with a significant attention to getting adequate protein, and reliance on a combination of a moderate amount of aerobic exercise and at least a moderate amount of resistence training, you could end up "leaner" at that weight than you were the last time you held that weight -- by "leaner" I mean having a lower body fat percentage.