DEXA after 24 weeks: lean mass down 4.1 lb — news study overblown?

DEXA can swing 2-3 lb just from hydration and scan position. Did you use the same machine and fasting state?

Same machine, same morning fasting, no lotion. My lean went down 3.8 lb at week 24 too, but fat was down 26. My coach said look at the trend, not one scan. Following.

The hydration thing is real. I drank a ton before my first scan and had a weird 2.5 lb lean bump. Now I do same time, same clothes, no workout 24h prior.

What did your trainer say about resistance training? I added two full-body sessions and 1g protein per lb. My week 24 lean was down only 1.1 lb while total was down 24.

Short answer: headline is clickbait. 4.1 lean over 31.8 total is within what I’ve seen for any big weight change. Keep lifting and get another scan in 12 weeks.

I’m the opposite: lean stayed flat but fat loss stalled. Switched to tracking protein and sleep, and things moved again. The scale isn’t the whole story.

DEXA scan position can change my number by 3 lb. I stopped panicking after I saw same-day repeat. Cheap InBody is even wilder.

I added resistance bands at home because gym is chaos. Week 20 DEXA: lean down 2.2, fat down 19.4. Not perfect, but clothes fit better and I can do pushups now.

You’re fine. My week 24 was lean -4.6, fat -29.1. I wish I’d ignored the panic post and just kept protein high. Next scan is what matters.

This is the nuance I wish the news stories led with. DEXA “lean mass” isn’t just muscle — it includes water, glycogen, organs, and bone. I started asking for appendicular lean mass (arms + legs) because my total lean swung with hydration/carbs even when lifts were stable. Was your 24-week scan on the same machine/software, and did your trainer look at regional lean or just total? If your squat/row numbers held or improved, I’d weight that more than a 4-lb total lean change.

My spreadsheet says DEXA day is basically mood-ring science. Trendline > single scan.

Hey, cafe owner here too — those milk crates and 10-hour days are basically secret farmer carries. One thing I’d ask: were both DEXAs under the same conditions — same time of day, fasted, hydrated, and no hard lift 48 hours before? My tech said a tough workout or dehydration can nudge the lean reading by a couple pounds. Also, how are your lifts trending

Did you look at regional lean? My 24-week scan had total lean -3.9 lb, but legs were oly -0.8 while trunk/arms ate most of it. I expected the opposite. I also learned to compare same time, same hydration, no hard lift 48h prior — one salty weekend scan read +1.6 lb “lean” with zero real change. The glucose/A1c shift is the number I’d frame, honestly. What did your trainer say about the leg/trunk split?

What did your lifts do? If squat/hinge/row loads held or went up over 24 weeks, that’s a better signal than the lean mass line. Also scan conditions: same machine, same time of day, same hydration? Night shifts mess with my water/glycogen, and my scan swings a couple pounds from that alone. I log waist and pull-up reps. Did your strength hold?

The thing I wish I’d tracked earlier is function, not just scan numbers: I started doing a 30-second sit-to-stand count and grip strength at home. My 24-week DEXA showed lean down ~3 lb, but sit-to-stands went 12→18 and grip up 6 lb. That made the lean number feel less scary. Since your sleep is still mediocre, did you notice any change in recovery or walk pace? I’m an empty-nester too, and my after-dinner walks did more for my mood than the scale.

One thing I started logging is scan conditions—same scanner, morning, fasted, no lifting 48h, and hydration. My “lean” number swung ~2 lb between a dehydrated post-cardio scan and a rested, well-hydrated one. Were both of yours on the same machine/software and similar conditions? Also, did your VAT number move? For me that’s the one I care about more than total lean.

Honestly, your lean loss being ~13% of total loss honestly sounds within the range I’ve seen, especially with glucose/A1c moving that much. One thing I’d be curious about: how was your 130g protein distributed? I was hitting 130 too but mostly at dinner; shifting to 30–40g at breakfast and lunch, plus an afternoon walk, kept my next DEXA lean basically flat. Not saying it’s magic,

one thing that calmed me down was looking past the total lean number to the regional/visceral/bone columns. My follow-up DEXA had visceral fat down a lot and BMD basically unchanged, which made the lean dip feel less alarming. Did yours break out VAT and bone density, or just total fat/lean? Also curious if the lean loss was mostly trunk vs legs/arms—that would change how I’d interpret it. I’m trying to track those alongside waist and how my jeans fit, because the scale/scans can make me spiral.

4 lb lean down while fat flew off and you kept lifting? That’s a win, not a crisis—how are your workouts feeling lately?

Honestly, I’d zoom in on your lifts more than the lean number alone. DEXA lean mass can shift with glycogen/water too, so crummy sleep can nudge it around. When mine dipped, my squat and row stayed flat or crept up and my waist kept shrinking. How are your main lifts trending—same weight/reps, better, or sliding? If they’re holding, that 4 lb looks way less scary. Also, are you tracking tape measurements? Neck/waist/hip often tell me a cleaner story than one scan.

three-year forum vet here. I’d stop staring at the 4.1 and start tracking FFMI and waist:height alongside it—lots of us in past DEXA threads saw lean dip during big fat losses and then stabilize. What’s your protein split look like? 130g is solid, but spreading it 30–40g per meal plus something before bed was the only change that moved my lean trend from down to flat. Not magic, just n=1. Your A1c/glucose shift is the real story, honestly.

One thing I’d add: check your sleep and stress the week before each scan, not just the 24-week trend. My lean number bounced way more than fat when I was averaging 5–6 hours and traveling; a later scan after two weeks of 7+ hours and less chaos looked totally different. Did your sleep get worse as the weight came off? If so, that might be a quieter variable than protein. Also, same machine/software? Even hydration shifts can make lean look scarier than it is.

Airport gates are my cardio and my carry-on is my deadlift, so 4 lb lean dip wouldn’t scare me either.

Did your DEXA break out regional lean, especially appendicular (arms/legs)? Total lean includes water, glycogen, and organ mass; ALMI is a better contractile proxy. If leg lean held while fat dropped 27.7, that 4.1 is mostly noise. Also, 130g protein is solid, but distribution matters—are you getting 30–40g at breakfast or backloading? I’d track grip strength or 5x sit-to-stand alongside the next scan, not just the total.

not a vet, just deep in a similar plateau. What saved my sanity was logging strength, not just DEXA: top set squat/row, pushups to near-failure, and waist/arm tape monthly. When my scan showed lean down 3.5 lb but my lifts were up and waist down 2 in, I stopped treating it as gospel. Were you fasted/same time of day, and did you lift heavy or eat low-carb in the 48h before? Those alone can swing my “lean” number by 2–3 lb. Scan prep is the one I’d nail down next time.