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- April 2015

Fat Mass Detail from Repeat DXA Scan
12 Apr 2015, 15:51

Lean Body Mass Detail
06 Apr 2015, 08:26

Repeat DXA Scan
03 Apr 2015, 08:31

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Maintenance Mundanities

I'm in maintenance but still whittling down my body fat levels in order to achieve a reasonable body composition. I have very low muscle mass so, although I have a low scale weight and look slender, I have an unwelcome kinship with streaky bacon, except that the bacon has a more favourable fat:lean ratio. :oops:
4 replies Page 1 of 1

No. 105lbs is not "fantastic"

by SSure on 15 Jan 2015, 13:52

Someone on another forum congratulated me on my "fantastic" weight today (weigh-in of 105lbs). And asked if I'm in weight-loss mode or maintenance.

I almost cried in frustration and it was difficult to put back a response that did not sound depressing. And I had to do this despite my belief that people need to know what to expect in maintenance (e.g., puppies, rainbows, and a smooth path for some; an initial smooth path of several months/years for others, following by stoicism and relentless vigilance).

105lbs is absurd but what I can manage. I would far rather weigh another 25lbs or more if the majority of that were lean body mass because it would make it so much easier to manage my health as I age. More skeletal muscle would give me some much needed metabolic flexibility and hugely reduce my risk of metabolic syndrome related disorders (CVD, diabetes II etc.).

I think if I dug out some of my clothes from before the accident - before this loss of muscle mass - they'd fit me - clothes from when I had about another 30lbs of lean body mass and muscle.

This is more of a downer than I mean it to be. I'm grateful to have been able to work out something that works for me despite the news of the sarcopenia and the loss of LBM. Despite the erosion of my muscle quality (my strength training weights are decreasing - I used to use 30kg dumbbells for bicep curls, now I struggle to finish 3x 12 of 5kg weights; my leg weights are down to 1/3rd of their former levels).

But - there is such an obsession with scale weight when it's amongst the least important proxies for our current and continued health. And it doesn't matter how often some of us say that - the lure of the tiny number is just too strong and promoted by so many media outlets.

HW: 168lbs (2011) CW: 102lbs BMI: <19
Maintenance IF 4:3

Dexa scan reports that I have low skeletal muscle mass and I'm categorised as sarcopenic, despite my age and fitness activities: body composition changed from 42% body fat at 127lbs to 20% at 103lbs.


SINS - Simple Is the New Sustainable
4 Comments   Viewed 7400 times

Comments

I hear you.
People tell me I'm not overweight. But I hate to admit that I'm heavier than I look.
Need to get another dexa scan and find my old one!
Yes! I've said before that nobody commented on the 60lbs weight change (which has its own advantages). And, one of the upsides is that I've never heard the comments about, "Don't lose too much" that other people report. Possibly because my body fat means I don't resemble what most people would think of as 105lbs at my height.

What did you learn from your DXA (ignore if intrusive)?
I learned that I had too much fat around my middle. But that's a world d away from where I am now, I'm fitter, lighter and leaner now. I did a local hospital diabetes research "The fenland study" did bloods and wore a heart rate monitor for three days, must hunt out my results.
How frustrating for you SSure. I had not appreciated how much the loss of muscle mass was impacting you in such a major way even though you are clearly very fit.
4 replies Page 1 of 1

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