Losing Inches but Not Weight: Good News From Your Treadmill

I have been a big fan of this site for a long time now. I'm doing my running on a treadmill at home as I can't get out with two small kids but I am enjoying what I do. My question is though, I had to stop the running there for about two months due to illness, and now I'm back again, I have found I am losing inches,

The scales are not going down but that does not bother me. The clothes are a lot looser on me.

Is it possible I am losing inches due to the running (also eating healthy)? Because the scales are not going down is it that I am gaining muscle and the age-old question is this muscle heavier than fat?

– Fiona

Answer by Dom: Hi Fiona,
Great to hear from you again, and well done for getting back on that treadmill after illness with two small children to look after. Looser clothes with a steady scale is a very common pattern, and it is good news. Here is how I'd read it, and how I'd track it from here.

1. A pound is a pound, but fat takes more room
2. Track progress with more than the scales
3. Why the scale can sit still early on
4. Rebuilding after two months off

A pound is a pound, but fat takes more room

Let me correct the old saying. Muscle is not heavier than fat. A pound of muscle weighs exactly the same as a pound of fat. The difference is volume. Muscle is denser, so a pound of it takes up less space — roughly 15 percent less than a pound of fat.

So if you lose a little fat and gain a little muscle, your weight can stay the same while your waist, hips and thighs get smaller. That fits your looser clothes.

I'd be careful about one thing, though. After two months off, you are unlikely to be adding large amounts of muscle. Running builds the muscles in your legs and hips, but slowly. Most of what you are seeing is probably fat loss, with your body regaining the condition it had before you were ill.

Track progress with more than the scales

You already know the scale is only one number. My advice is to give yourself three or four more, and check them on a schedule so you are not guessing.

Tape measure. Measure your waist (at the navel), hips (widest point), thigh and upper arm. Do it every three to four weeks, first thing in the morning, with the tape snug but not squeezing. Write the numbers down.

Photos. Take one from the front, side and back every month. Same spot, same light, same fitted clothes. Photos show change that your eyes miss day to day.

One pair of clothes. Pick a pair of jeans or trousers and try them on monthly. It is crude, but it is the measure you care about most.

Your treadmill itself. Pick a set session, say 20 minutes at 9 km/h, and repeat it every two weeks. Note how you feel, and whether your breathing and heart rate settle sooner. That is hard evidence of fitness, and the treadmill makes it easy to repeat exactly.

If you do buy a body-composition scale, treat it as a trend tool only. Readings move with how much water you have drunk, so look at the monthly direction, not any single day.

Why the scale can sit still early on

When you start training, or restart, your body holds a bit more water. Your muscles store carbohydrate for fuel, and each portion is stored with water. Small tears in the muscle fibres from new effort also bring fluid to repair them. That can easily add a pound or two — enough to hide a little fat loss on the scale.

It settles in a few weeks. Hormones, salty meals and the time of the month can move you by a pound or more from day to day as well.

If you do weigh yourself, I'd recommend once a week, same morning, same conditions, before breakfast. Then compare the last four or five readings. A slow downward drift over a month tells you far more than one reading on a bad day.

Rebuilding after two months off

Part of your progress is simply regained fitness. Two months off through illness takes a real chunk out of your base, and getting it back feels quick at first. That is a good sign, not a coincidence.

My advice is to stay sensible. If you are running three times a week, keep two of those at easy pace — a pace where you can chat in full sentences — and make one slightly longer, adding no more than 5 minutes a week. If you have been doing 20 to 25 minutes, build up towards 30 to 35 over a month, then hold there for a consolidation week before going further. Listen to your body after illness, and if you feel flat or get a niggle, drop back a step.

On food, I'm happy with what you describe. Eating well and not over-compensating after runs is what lets your body keep drawing on its fat stores. I wouldn't cut portions hard while you are rebuilding — you need the energy for those runs, and for two small children!

Give it eight to twelve weeks of steady running before you judge it, with your tape measure and photos in hand. I expect those numbers to keep dropping. You are clearly doing something right :)

All the best, and I look forward to your next question.
Kind regards,
Dom

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