I have been working a very labor intensive job for about 3 months now and have lost enough inches on my waist to go down two pants sizes yet my total weight when I go on the scale remains around the same. How is it possible that I lost 4 or 5 inches off my waist yet the scale doesn’t change? Is it possible what weight in fat I am loosing is made up for with an increase in muscle mass?

  • s_s@lemmy.one
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    1 year ago

    Depending on the type of work you are doing, you could be losing fat while gaining both muscle and bone density.

    If you were mostly untrained/inactive before starting this job, you’ve most certainly grown/densified a lot of bone.

    • RivenRise@lemmy.world
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      1 year ago

      That’s what happened to me with my previous job. Family and friends kept telling me that I look good and thinner but the scale was more or less the same. I do feel better and went down a size so it’s a win for me overall.

      • ours@lemmy.film
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        1 year ago

        Muscle is denser than fat. You can “gain weight” while losing volume.

        • Kelsenellenelvial@lemmy.ca
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          1 year ago

          Also location it’s stored. Some people carry it differently, but fat often builds up around a persons mid-section and causes that pear/apple body shape. Muscles gain bulk on the ones being used. A person can loose the inches of fat around their waste, then build up muscle mass in their arms/shoulders. The fat loss is noticeable because a person starts using a different belt notch or their pants fall down, but the added muscle bulk around the arms will be less likely to require replacing/adjusting one’s clothing.

    • Smokeydope@lemmy.worldOP
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      1 year ago

      I didnt know bone density changed naturally, I thought you had to fracture it a bunch of times to build density. Very interesting!