Yesterday I had my monthly body fat check in Santa Monica, CA at FitCheq.
From Jan 13, 2006 to yesterday Feb 16, 2006. I lost 17 lbs from 348 to 331. BUT my body fat % did not change much. From 37.7% to 37.5%
That is NOT good. Out of the 17 lbs of weight loss in a month only 7 of those pounds were fat lbs and almost 10... TEN FREGGIN pounds were in lean mass loss. Lean mass is what burns the calories... the less I have.. the harder it is to release fat!
If you want to do the math... do 348 lbs (My weight on 1/13/06) times 37.7 % and you'll get 131.196 lbs of fat with 216.804 lbs of lean mass. Compare that with 331 lbs times 37.5 % you get 124.125 lbs of fat with 206.875 of lean mass. The difference is 7.071 lbs of fat and 9.929 lbs of lean mass.
Basically what that means is that I've been eating way too low for the amount of calories my body is burning and therefore it's been eating my muscles for a snack since I haven't been giving it what it needs.
My results from December to January were much better (Lost 17 lbs of fat and gained 1.1 lbs of lean mass).. but it's because I was eating like CRAZY during work lunches.. family dinners.. new years celebrations. My body NEEDED those calories.
I'm at 2300 cal.. but most days I don't add all the extra stuff.. and I've actually been eating between 1700-2000 cal/day. All while I'm going to the gym doing an hour of cardio/day 6-7 days a week plus another hour of resistance training 3 days a week.
Well.. the result of this is quite shocking.
I haven't been keeping track of my protien at all. So now I'm seriously considering getting some protien supplements to boost my calories between 2700-3000 cal/day. That's still less than the 4400 calories my body needs to maintain it's weight. This way my body will get back up to normal metabolism and stop eating it's own muscles. Plus I need to lift even more heavier at the gym.. I've just been doing what's comfortable.. time to get serious!
Here's what my friend
Lucho Crisalle (A Registered Dietitian) has to say about body fat testing results:
If you are gaining or maintaining muscle and getting rid of fat, your meal plan is PERFECT-Keep it up. <-- That was me in Jan.
If you are losing muscle and gaining fat, you are not getting enough calories.
If you are gaining muscle and gaining fat, you are getting too many calories.
If you are losing muscle and getting rid of fat, you are not getting enough protein. <-- That's me today!!
So just a word of caution.. when you have alot of weight to lose.. your body NEEDS those calories.. be sure to eat EVERYTHING on your menu.
Cheers!

I have always been interested in your posts over the board. YOu have a lot of good information to share and this tops the list. A good lesson for all of us to learn here. If you don't mind me asking and if you do just say don't feel comfortable sharing but how much does it cost per your visit for the assessment of lean muscle? I would like to do something like that but am curious of the cost. Also, do you have to be careful where you go? Reputable vs. not-reputable????

The cost of the body fat check is $49.95/test. I bought a 1 year VIP membership with unlimited tests for 1 year for $279.95.
They also do metabolism test [$49.95] (to see how many calories you burn at rest.. how many you need to consume to lose, maintain, or gain muscle)
And they do a Vo2 test [$99.95].. to see what your target heart rate should be while doing cardio.. and to see if you can improve your cardio vascular fitness over time.
They have discounts if you buy more than one test at a time.
Their prices are all on the FitCheq website.
The owner's name is Phyllis Zanichkowsky

FIT-CHEQ
FITNESS TESTING LAB
No More Guess-timates !!

1530 Lincoln Blvd., Suite E
Santa Monica, CA 90401
310-576-6595 Phone
310-576-6582 Fax
http://www.FitCheq.com
They are based in Santa Monica, California.
If you live near there.. I highly recommend it. Tell them Ray from Jenny Craig sent you!
The biggest problem I had being so large.. was other methods of body fat testing didn't seem reliable. Pinching (very subjective.. most calipers couldn't pinch correctly with the amount of fat on my belly).. electric impedence (The kind you hold or step on)(Changes based on how much water you're drinking and weather or not you are going through your whole body or just your legs or just your arms).
Hydrostatic underwater body fat testing is considered the gold standard and that is why I chose to go there.
I was refered to them by Jackal (Member #11156) from the Jenny Craig message board.
She's got great results! and posts really good stuff.
Here's her before and after photos.
http://users.adelphia.net/~mwbrand/jackal.htm
You can also look into the local YMCA or Colleges around your area. I know that Cal Poly Pomona does it as part of their fitness classes.
Knowing how much body fat % you are and what your metabolism are.. will give you the feedback you need to adjust what you're doing so you're doing it better. By knowing what my body fat % is.. I was able to determine my ideal weight at 15% body fat is around 240-250 lbs.. and not anything as rediculous as 180 lbs.
Those people who are on the biggest loser show .. LOSE LOADS of muscle. I want to keep my muscle. That is why I'm getting tested.

Thank you for your feedback. Yes, I have been in contact with Jackal as I have been a regular in FitChicks. She's awesome and has really accomplished so much. Thank you for the information - I just may check into that. I work out a lot and was concerned about losing the muscle mass. The Biggest Loser people do not look like they have lost a lot of muscle though. They look amazing.

Just read your post. Glad to hear that you are doing the body fat testing. The same thing happened to me during my losing period. I started losing lean body tissue. My trainer had me slow down on my cardio to 1/2 an hour a day, instead of my normal hour. There was a point when I dropped below 1200 calories and my hair started to fall out. I only did this for a few weeks, boy did I pay the price for that. 1/3 of the volume of my hair was gone, and I am still recovering, if ever. Do watch your calories, and your weight loss. 1% of you body weight per week is healthly, and you will most likely be losing fat. You are doing this right, don't need to preach to the choir
You are doing an awesome job, keep it up. Remember this is a life style now, the odds of me keeping this weight off is staggering, but I am determinded to bet the odds. You will too!!!!
You are going to post a wedding photo?
Jackal

MagicMan795, Thanks for the info. I've been reading your posts a lot. Seems like we have a similar weight situation. You've been inspiring me, believe it or not. So keep it UP Good luck this week.