Frustrated

Lynette621
Lynette621 Posts: 2
edited November 11 in Health and Weight Loss
Ok... I have been on this work out regimen now for 2.5 weeks. Working out 3-5 times a week for an hour and burning 500 + calories. I stick to my calorie limit of 1200 calories a day but got on the scale today and what does it tell me? I GAINED weight instead of loosing it. Last week I was down 1.5 lbs and now I am up almost 3lbs. I don't get what I am doing wrong! Help!

Replies

  • NewMeSM75
    NewMeSM75 Posts: 971 Member
    I gained a pound but I started strength training. I know it's muscle and water weight. But it's disappointing I'm sure. Hang in there. How are your clothes fitting?
  • StaciMarie1974
    StaciMarie1974 Posts: 4,138 Member
    You might be doing nothing wrong. Its been 2.5 weeks since you started and many things affect water weight.

    Points to check, though: are you logging accurately & honestly? Using a food scale for anything solid? Is your weight loss goal reasonable? Are you using realistic numbers for calorie burn?

    Other than checking things like that, if you have no medical reasons for concern, then keep going. You really need enough time to see trends over 30, 60, 90 days. Compare your weight now to 30 days ago. Be patient.
  • tbfincher
    tbfincher Posts: 32
    Forget the scale, it's all about the mirror.
  • RavenLibra
    RavenLibra Posts: 1,737 Member
    water weighs more than muscle or fat.. he wrote with a sardonic smile
  • malibu927
    malibu927 Posts: 17,562 Member
    Weight loss is not linear. Did you consume a lot of sodium in recent days or are you coming up to TOM?
  • Jolinia
    Jolinia Posts: 846 Member
    Still no exercise water weight post with scientific explanation stickied to the top of this forum yet, huh? I am dissapoint.
  • wkwebby
    wkwebby Posts: 807 Member
    Seriously, it could all be water retention. Did you have a bad sodium day or two? Did you slack in the water department for a day or two? Is your TOM coming? All these can lead up to 2-5 (or more) lbs. It is different for everyone. Changing your exercises also tends to make you retain water.
  • thingal12
    thingal12 Posts: 302 Member
    Are you eating back @ least some of your workout calories burned? If not, it could be that your body is storing some of what you're eating because it feels like you're starving yourself. Eat more.
  • juggernaut1974
    juggernaut1974 Posts: 6,212 Member
    thingal12 wrote: »
    Are you eating back @ least some of your workout calories burned? If not, it could be that your body is storing some of what you're eating because it feels like you're starving yourself. Eat more.

    No

    Water weight or inaccurate logging (since no details were given about how calories are determined/recorded)
  • bfanny
    bfanny Posts: 440 Member
    Exactly water retention may be to blame, I went to a Chinese buffet on Sunday, and Monday my weight was 145.4 today 138.7 see the difference? I didn't lost almost 7 lbs since I was 139.4 last Friday, good thing I did't got scared/disappointed and gave up or my weight would be higher for real today ;)
  • SueInAz
    SueInAz Posts: 6,592 Member
    I'm going to give you my big scale/water weight lecture. :)

    Weight loss is not linear. You need to wrap your head around that concept. Some days it's going to go down, some it will stay the same and some it's even going to go up, especially as you get closer to your goal. Our bodies retain water for many reasons and that water is constantly changing so it affects the scale. If that number is such a big deal to you, find another measurement without as much variability and volatility and use that instead.

    A number on the scale is simply a measurement of progress, the same as body fat %, the measurement of body parts in inches, the number of pounds one can bench press or squat, how far or fast one can run, etc. I believe that any one of these measurements should not be the end-all-and-be-all of a person's efforts to become more healthy and fit but neither should any of them be discounted. We cannot out-exercise a bad diet. Running and weight lifting doesn't make one thin but neither does getting our body fat % below a certain point make us healthy and fit.

    I realize that our society places a lot of emphasis on that scale number and that it's one of the easiest and most obvious ways for a person to measure "progress". The number gets smaller, progress is being made, QED. There are TV shows built around people trying to make that number go as low as possible in the fastest amount of time. I abhor those shows. I think they've done at least as much to distort people's perceptions of what weight loss should be about as the diet industry has. I believe that another measure of progress is when one realizes that the scale number shouldn't be the only goal or even the most important one.
  • hamoncan
    hamoncan Posts: 148 Member
    Your weight will vary quite a bit at different times throughout the week - pick a time for the week where conditions will be most consistent week to week (usually first thing on a particular day) and compare those numbers week to week to best measure your weight loss - after a while, even then, there are some weeks where you just know the number is probably a little off and it will often correct itself the next week
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