15 days, and I'm gaining instead of losing

rachelklewis3

Over the past year I lost 20 lbs with MFP then gained it all back after I stopped logging and exercising regularly. I'm back to exercising (cardio and light weights) 3-5 times a week and tracking everything I eat. It's been 15 days and I have gained 3 lbs. I'm set at 1200 calories but eating back exercise calories so that's about 1400-1500 calories on the days I exercise. I am open to any advice. With the same sort of diet and exercise last time I was losing 1-2 lbs. /week. Frustrated but determined- I am 28, 189 lbs. and only 5'1... my goal is to lose 40 lbs.

maxit

You could continue to do exactly what you're doing for another couple of weeks. Your hormonal cycle may be masking weight loss. Of course you will get a lot of advice to really tighten up your tracking of calories (weigh all solids) accompanied by suggestions that you are eating more than you think you are. That might be going on as well. Then folks will also remind you that sometimes with increased exercise there is increased water retention - so that body weight is dropping but it's being masked by extra fluid.

BWBTrish

Do you weigh your solid food and measure your liquids?

Can you open your dairy?

malibu927

It's only been two weeks. You could be retaining water from sodium intake/TOM if you're near it/restarting your exercise routine. If it continues on, then you'll need to reevaluate the accuracy of your logging/burns.

rachelklewis3

I don't have a food scale. I do use measuring cups and spoons for just about everything. I do have a hard time figuring out what a "serving" is from recipes that I make.

dseign

I am frustrated too, but I recently read about the woosh effect and perhaps that is what is going on with me too. My cloths are much looser, but my scales is retaliating and seeking revenge. If what I'm reading is correct, don't give up!

I read that stress from dieting, especially in women, can cause cortisol changes. As well, as the fat starts melting, your body can fill those cells up with water. It takes a little bit, but if you stay on track, you will start seeing massive drops on the scale; known as the whoosh effect. It appears that men tend to do this when they get into lean gross body building, whereas this is more common in women due to the delicate hormone competition and balance.

Initial dieting, like low carb and low caloric, will produce a large weight drop, then the body does nothing and many times it gains. The fluid retention is a way of saving itself from starvation, but it's short lived and when it finally releases, there is huge results.

I'm waiting this OUT! Drink unsweetened tea, water, lemon or lime water and make sure your getting enough calcium and magnesium. Calcium and magnesium should be equivalent. I have to believe this crazy discouraging phase will pass and there will be a HUGE reward.

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PeachyCarol

rachelklewis3 wrote: »

I don't have a food scale. I do use measuring cups and spoons for just about everything. I do have a hard time figuring out what a "serving" is from recipes that I make.

Consider getting a food scale. We shorties have very little wiggle room when it comes to calories, and differences with measuring can REALLY add up quickly. Accuracy can make a huge difference.

As for how much your servings are? A good idea is to weigh the total recipe in grams and make that the total number of servings (subtracting the weight of the container). Take your serving, then weigh the amount you've taken. That will be your serving size. So... say you've made a pot of chili. You weigh it and it's 800 grams of chili. You'd enter it into the recipe builder as having 800 servings. You serve yourself some, weigh what you've taken, and it weighs 200 grams. Record 200 servings of chili in your food diary.

Iseulte

I'm the same height as you and find that I can't eat my exercise calories back. If I'm really hungry, I might eat back half. MFP tends to overestimate calorie burn.

DYELB

rachelklewis3 wrote: »

I don't have a food scale. I do use measuring cups and spoons for just about everything. I do have a hard time figuring out what a "serving" is from recipes that I make.

They're cheap, if you can afford one get it.

The easiest way I've found cause I hate dealing with serving sizes as well is to make a whole batch of whatever for multiple meals and log it as a single meal on MFP. Then if you split it up into 4 actual meals for example, just log 0.25 of the meal for the day. That way it balances out in the end.

It means I have to cook separate for my wife and kid, but it's easiest enough since we're pretty big on cooking in batches.

EmmaFitzwilliam

Seriously, a food scale is absolutely worth it. Estimating portion sizes rarely works. I use identical containers and weigh out my portions of just about everything. Chicken in simmer sauce for my roommate and me? Two identical bowls, equal weights. Dinner with leftovers? One third is a portion; three identical containers; all equal weights.

Clawsal

BFDeal wrote: »

As has probably been mentioned a food scale is the way to go.

I do have a hard time figuring out what a "serving" is from recipes that I make.

As far as recipes go, have you used the recipe builder? What I do is write down the weights of each ingredient as I make the dish. Then I make the dish. I weigh the final product and make that weight my number of servings so I have a calories per ounce (or whatever unit you weigh in) when input the dish in the app. That way you can weigh out portions (in the same units you weighed your dish in of course) without worrying how to split things up.

That is so smart! I usually use the total weight as a serving, so sometimes I am eating 0.20 servings of a recipe. I am using your technique next time.

Liftng4Lis

Get a food scale and start weighing. It's amazing the difference it makes.

SwankyTomato

Food scale is a necessary item as others have stated. I got mine from WalMart and it was "The Biggest Loser" brand, pretty cheap as far as items go.

As far as eating exercise calories back, I would just update your "diet profile" thing on MFP to include your exercise routine and not eat any back unless you are doing hardcore exercising, like running miles or heavy lifting.

For example MFP has Zumba and other cardio clocking you at burning a high calorie count and that is really just an estimation, which appears to me WAY overestimating it.

I suppose if you had a FitBit or other meter to track your calorie burn, you could use that.

rachelklewis3

Thanks everyone for the advice. Looks like I need to invest in a food scale. I do have a calorie counter for exercise but am questioning it's accuracy. I must be overestimating the calories I'm burning or underestimating what I'm eating...

Liftng4Lis

rachelklewis3 wrote: »

Thanks everyone for the advice. Looks like I need to invest in a food scale. I do have a calorie counter for exercise but am questioning it's accuracy. I must be overestimating the calories I'm burning or underestimating what I'm eating...

This is why most only eat back half (allows for miscalculations).