I know this might be a bit of a personal topic, but I have been wondering about this for a while. I'm a 24 year old female, and I've been using a body fat scale for the past 9 months or so to track my body fat percentage. I've been fairly thin my whole life (I danced for many years) and have taken up running and weight lifting since about 2017. Since my activity level has increased within the past year, the scale has shown a steady increase in my body fat percentage. I try to weigh myself as soon as I wake up in the morning to keep a consistent measurement. About 9 months ago I was at 20-22%, and recently the scale has been reading 25-26%. However, I've noticed my arms and legs have been looking more muscular over time and my cardiovascular endurance has improved greatly (I'm into long distance running). Personally, I would like my body fat to be lower and considering my level of activity (I exercise most days of the week, working different muscle groups between weights/cardio), I feel like it should be significantly lower. There are a couple factors that are making me think this is happening:
1. Since the COVID outbreak, I've been limited to using the dumbbells I have at home. Maybe I've lost some muscle mass because I haven't used heavy gym equipment since March?
2. I've increased my calorie intake the past 2 months - I used to be pretty strict with my diet and I probably wasn't eating enough. Could this be my metabolism trying to "catch up?"
Any thoughts on this would be appreciated! I feel like I'm healthier and fitter with my current BFP, but I am curious as to why it has increased so much.
Body Fat Percentage vs. Workout Milestones
Hi everyone,
I know this might be a bit of a personal topic, but I have been wondering about this for a while. I'm a 24 year old female, and I've been using a body fat scale for the past 9 months or so to track my body fat percentage. I've been fairly thin my whole life (I danced for many years) and have taken up running and weight lifting since about 2017. Since my activity level has increased within the past year, the scale has shown a steady increase in my body fat percentage. I try to weigh myself as soon as I wake up in the morning to keep a consistent measurement. About 9 months ago I was at 20-22%, and recently the scale has been reading 25-26%. However, I've noticed my arms and legs have been looking more muscular over time and my cardiovascular endurance has improved greatly (I'm into long distance running). Personally, I would like my body fat to be lower and considering my level of activity (I exercise most days of the week, working different muscle groups between weights/cardio), I feel like it should be significantly lower. There are a couple factors that are making me think this is happening:
1. Since the COVID outbreak, I've been limited to using the dumbbells I have at home. Maybe I've lost some muscle mass because I haven't used heavy gym equipment since March?
2. I've increased my calorie intake the past 2 months - I used to be pretty strict with my diet and I probably wasn't eating enough. Could this be my metabolism trying to "catch up?"
Any thoughts on this would be appreciated! I feel like I'm healthier and fitter with my current BFP, but I am curious as to why it has increased so much.