Fat loss results may not show the telltale signs right away. After all, not every fitness journey is linear. Invariably, the results will not be straight out of a textbook either.
In any fitness journey, with tunnel vision focused on results that are often mainstream, many forget that there is more than one indicator that you are losing fat. You may not right away see a slimmer tummy, a shrinking waist size or a sharp drop on the weighing scale. It is a gradual process, and many signs lead up to it.
Navi Mumbai based gynecologist, Dr Mallika Surve, who frequently shares key health insights on reproductive health, revealed 10 weird signs your body is shedding fat.
1. Urinating more
The gynaecologist mentioned one of the first signs is body is clearing out excess waste with frequent urination. Dr Surve noted, “You start peeing more than usual, like your body’s literally flushing out the old version of you.” This can also happen because of improved water intake during a fitness journey, which flushes out the toxins with urine.
2. Feel colder
Changes will be seen in the body temperature too! Dr Surve explained that when body fat drops, the temperature changes too, particularly in extremities, because stored fat acts as insulation for the body.
3. Sweat smells different
Body odour alteration is also noticed during the fat loss journey. When you are burning fat, there are metabolic shifts too, which drive this change. But this is not a bad thing either, as Dr Surve reminded, as it is just the body using stored fat as fuel.
4. Random bursts of energy
The gynaecologist attributed random bursts of energy to metabolism’s awakening. She noted, “You get random energy bursts, one minute you’re chill, the next you’re cleaning your whole apartment, metabolism’s waking up.” Because you are burning fat, insulin sensitivity also gets better, which means you have more energy.
5. Jawline begins to show
Mewing or chewing gum won’t enhance your jawline as much as actual fat loss does. When you begin to work out, your overall fat composition goes down, including face fat. Usually, the impact is visible first on the face because the fat in the face is thinner in density. The gyneacologist pointed this change out, reminding that cheekbones too begin to become more enhanced.
6. Clothes fitting weirdly
Workout does not melt the fat evenly in the body, which is why clothes fitting may be awkward sometimes. The gyneacologist highlighted that some spots may be loose, but this does not mean your momentum is decreasing.
7. Better sleep
Naturally, when you begin to get in shape, you sleep better, hormones become balanced and as Dr Surve remarked, hormones ‘chill out’ as the body begins to repair itself. The sleep quality changes for good as insulin resistance gets better.
8. Improved mood
There may be some mood fluctuations, but in the long term, you will see improvements. Explaining this aspect of change, Dr Surve emphasised, “You catch mood swings early on, then suddenly you just feel better fat loss balances way more than your weight.”
9. Popping veins
Flexing veins in front of amirror is one of the anticipated goals, but the gyneacologist observed that when new veins show up, even without flexing, then it means you are losing fat.
10. Appetite changes
Dr Surve mentioned another unconventional change: erratic appetite. Some days you may feel like you are starving, and other days not so much. She credited it to ‘hormones resetting.’