Weight Loss vs. Fat Loss: What's the Difference?

Why Is There A Difference Between Weight Loss And Fat Loss?

Your bathroom scale might be lying to you. That dropping number doesn't tell the whole story of what your body is actually losing. Are you shedding valuable muscle along with fat? Are you sacrificing your metabolism for temporary results?

Licensed nutritionist Catina Wilson tackles the crucial distinction between weight loss and fat loss in this eye-opening episode. When you understand that weight loss encompasses everything—water, muscle, and fat—while fat loss specifically targets adipose tissue while preserving muscle, you'll approach your health journey differently. Catina explains why excess fat contributes to numerous health conditions and why focusing exclusively on scale numbers can lead to frustrating cycles of weight regain.

Strength training emerges as the unsung hero of effective fat loss. While many women avoid weights fearing "bulkiness," Catina debunks this myth and reveals how resistance training supercharges metabolism to burn fat even at rest. She shares practical protein strategies to preserve muscle during caloric deficits and explains why crash diets backfire by triggering muscle loss instead of fat reduction. With insights on effective tracking methods beyond the scale, including body composition analysis and macro monitoring, this episode provides a comprehensive roadmap for sustainable body transformation.

To learn more about Atlanta Wellness Clinic visit:
https://www.ATLWellnessClinic.com
Atlanta Wellness Clinic
1827 Powers Ferry Rd. SE, Bldg 1 STE 250
Atlanta, Georgia 30339
770-726-8978

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:04):
Welcome to the Atlanta Wellness Clinic podcast
Hosted by licensed nutritionistand clinic owner, katina Wilson.
We're here to kickstart yourweight loss journey Because,
let's be honest, the only thingwe want gaining weight is our
wallets.
From medical weight loss andnutrition coaching to body
contouring, we help MetroAtlanta women get real results.

(00:24):
Let's dive in.

Speaker 2 (00:34):
Many people use weight loss and fat loss
interchangeably, but did youknow that they're not the same?
Understanding the difference iskey to achieving sustainable,
healthy results.
Welcome back everyone.
Millie M, co-host and producer,back in the studio with
licensed nutritionist and clinicowner, Katina Wilson.
Katina, how's it going?

Speaker 3 (00:51):
Good, how are?

Speaker 2 (00:51):
you Doing well.
Thank you so much.
Everyone listening wants toknow what's the difference
between weight loss and fat loss.

Speaker 3 (00:58):
Well, I mean, you hit it on the head, right when you
kick things off.
They are certainly not the same.
So let's start with a littlebit of definition.
So when we're talking weightloss right, we're talking
overall body mass loss, right?
So that could be water, itcould be fat, it could also be
muscle.
So it's really about steppingon a scale and you see the

(01:21):
number change.
It could be any one of thosethings.
That's what we would kind ofcoin, kind of like weight loss.
When we're talking fat loss, fatloss is more desirable.
So when you think about fat,adipose tissue or body fat,
that's for a lot of people whoare trying to lose weight, it's
that excess fat, it's thatexcess adipose tissue that
they're trying to get rid of,and so you want to get rid of

(01:43):
that while preserving muscle,because having excess fat is
actually what contributes to alot of different diseases heart
disease and even some cancersand diabetes for a lot of folks.
So the goal when we're reducingfat would be to reduce fat.
When we're trying to loseweight, let's over index on
losing fat and we certainlydon't want to lose muscle.

Speaker 2 (02:06):
So how can strength training help with fat loss?

Speaker 3 (02:10):
Yeah, great question.
Strength training actuallystrengthens your metabolism.
When you lose too much muscle,it actually lowers your
metabolism and so with strengthtraining, think about it as a
way of keeping that metabolismgoing even when you're not
exercising, right?
So when you're strengthtraining and you're building

(02:31):
that muscle, your body now 24hours a day, seven days a week
it's constantly burning that fat.
When you're losing too muchmuscle, then your metabolism
actually slows down.
So strength training isdefinitely a way to balance it.
So when people talk kind ofdiet and exercise, a lot of
people when they're losingweight they want to focus on
cardio.
Cardio certainly is important.

(02:52):
It's great for yourcardiovascular, for your heart
health, and it's fun.
For a lot of people it is fun.
Well, for some people it's not.
Because it's you know, thetreadmill becomes the word
dreadmill, right?
So, some people, cardio can befun, absolutely, but let's
balance it with weight trainingand could be resistance training
, right?
So Pilates is very popular, baris very popular Definitely

(03:15):
women especially.
Sometimes we're afraid to pickup those heavy weights.
The reality is we're not goingto get bulky like a lot of men
would get just because ourbodies are not designed that way
.
The muscle is going to getbulky like a lot of men would
get just because our bodies arenot designed that way.
The muscle is going to give you, especially as you're losing
weight, that fit, toned physiquethat we're all kind of looking
for, right?
So, again, you want to focus onlosing the fat.

(03:35):
Strength training, resistancetraining, can definitely help
preserve the muscle.
Another thing that preservesmuscle going down the path of
your weight loss journey, makesure that you've got adequate
amount of protein.
It could be in the form of eggsor meats like lean chicken,
lean beef.
It could be a healthy proteinshake.
You definitely want to makesure that you're getting an

(03:58):
adequate amount of protein tohelp also preserve that muscle.

Speaker 2 (04:02):
Do you prefer one form of protein over another?
A shake, a bar chicken?
Does one work better thananother?

Speaker 3 (04:09):
I wouldn't say that one necessarily works better.
I think it comes down topersonal preference.
For me, I like it all right.
It's very easy for me in themorning, as I'm making breakfast
, to make a smoothie and I'mgoing to drop a scoop of protein
in there.
Sometimes, when I'm busy andI'm on the run, having protein
bars in the car are very, veryhelpful, but I certainly like a

(04:30):
nice grilled piece of meat,whether that's steak or chicken,
and definitely healthyvegetables and that sort of
thing as well.
For me, it's a variety and Ithink it just comes down to
personal preference.
There are good vegetarian, goodvegan options that are out there
.
Beans, lentils, are certainlythings that people can lean in
on.
Nuts, if you're not allergic,are also a good protein source.

(04:55):
But I think the more proteinyou have, the better chance you
have at preserving muscle.
And then, to your earlier point, resistance training, strength
training.
You should definitely do someof that.
Don't be afraid of the weights,don't be afraid of it,
especially if you're a woman.
It really is going to help youget not only supercharge your
metabolism, but it's going togive you that lean look that
you're looking for.
Perfect for summer bodies, yeah,so why do crash diets often

(05:16):
lead to muscle loss instead offat loss?
Well, because it's just thatit's a crash diet.
Your body is losing weight sofast and many times these diets
are not necessarily low innutrients.
You end up losing your body andit's trying to hold on to all
of that fat, really trying toprotect itself.
So it kind of turns on you in away and it starts to eat at the
muscle, and so that's whypeople tend to feel a little bit

(05:37):
weak and sluggish when they'redoing these kinds of crash diets
, because instead of burning theexcess fat, the body is taking
the muscle instead.

Speaker 2 (05:47):
So what are the best methods to track fat loss rather
than just relying on the scale?

Speaker 3 (05:52):
So here at the clinic we help with that.
One of the things that we do iswe actually have a full body
scan.
It's called a testiku body scanand it measures everything from
head to toe.
We look at everything from notonly the number, so the weight,
how much you weigh.
We obviously we look at bodymass index, but then we look at
visceral fat, that's the fatthat's, like you know, surrounds

(06:13):
your organs, and we look atpercentage of that.
We look at the percentage ofexcess fat on your body.
We look at the percentage ofmuscle and over time, as you're
losing weight, we're monitoring.
We want to make sure that you'renot losing too much muscle,
that you are doing thoseresistance exercises, that you
are following our protein heavymeal plans, because our goal is
to get in front of that asquickly as possible.

(06:34):
So having access to a machinelike our body scan machine is
certainly one way to ensure.
Another way is to track yourmacros.
For some people and it variesthere's different kinds of
schools of thoughts, but formost people who like to track
macros, that's really abouttracking a certain percentage of
fat that you want to get intoyour body.
You know, healthy fats that youwant to eat on a daily basis, a

(06:56):
certain percentage of proteinthat you want to get on a daily
basis and a certain percentageof carbs that you want to get on
a daily basis, and that is justa combination of tracking
literally everything that you'reputting in your mouth.
So there's different ways to beable to kind of track and
monitor.

Speaker 2 (07:09):
Love it.
Thank you, Katina.
We'll catch you on the nextepisode.
Have a great day.

Speaker 3 (07:13):
Thank you.

Speaker 1 (07:18):
That's a wrap on this episode of the Atlanta Wellness
Clinic podcast.
If you're ready to kickstartyour weight loss journey, and
not just your bathroom scale andfrustration, visit
atlwellnesscliniccom or call usat 770-726-8978 for a free
10-minute weight lossconsultation, because the best

(07:40):
time to start was yesterday.
The second best time right now.
See you next time.