cardio and weight gain

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K3rB3ar89
K3rB3ar89 Posts: 263 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
so i started working out again. This time last year i lost 30 pounds thanks too MFP and eating healthy. i then met my now fiance and i gained it all back:(.. I never noticed before but do you gain water weight when you do cardio? i have been eating healthy always have a deflict of like 1000 or more after i work out and the other day i was 10 pounds heavier! I know this isn't actual weight gain this just never happened before! and how long can i expect it too stay on? at the gym i do bike, treadmill 30 mins, bike 25 mins, and elliptical 30.... i drink 4 maybe even 5 water bottles in that time alone. help lol this is super frustrating! i realize i havent been up too speed on my log but i know im within the limit because i eat and work out pretty much the exact same everyday.
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  • hill8570
    hill8570 Posts: 1,466 Member
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    How long have you been back on the workouts? Soreness directly translates into water weight gain -- once the soreness starts to fade, the water should slough off.
  • K3rB3ar89
    K3rB3ar89 Posts: 263 Member
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    just got my membership beginning of the month so im like almost 2 weeks in. Im not really sore though. The working out thing isnt new for me so i dont get sore from simple things like that unless im pushing weights. i do notice im kinda tight though. i just never noticed a weight gain quiet like this before ever even when i was pushing weight to gain muscle:S its just weird i heard of muscle retention but i thought that was only with weights and stuff... weird... im kinda hoping by friday im gonna even out though because im hoping to jump back on the weight in train!
  • hill8570
    hill8570 Posts: 1,466 Member
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    I suspect you'll see the water slough off in the next couple of weeks. With the time change, I'm getting a lot more biking and running in in the evenings, and my weight's been hovering two or three pounds over it's usual level. And I'm not particularly sore either, although I can feel the tightness in my legs. Hang in there.
  • K3rB3ar89
    K3rB3ar89 Posts: 263 Member
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    thx i needed that... it seemed so much simpler the first time around hahaha i know it wont stay its just seeing it is frustrating because i been working my butt off! good luck on you journey and thank you for easing my frustration!
  • Mr_Knight
    Mr_Knight Posts: 9,532 Member
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    Your burn estimates are crazy high over-estimated, so your "deficit" isn't anywhere near what you believe it to be.
  • jkwolly
    jkwolly Posts: 3,049 Member
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    Mr_Knight wrote: »
    Your burn estimates are crazy high over-estimated, so your "deficit" isn't anywhere near what you believe it to be.
    This is exactly what I was going to say.
  • hill8570
    hill8570 Posts: 1,466 Member
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    @Mr_Knight, @jkwolly -- from what I can see, OP is not eating back calories, so the inflated burns would seem to be irrelevant. Admittedly, OP doesn't seem to be eating at much of a deficit (impossible to tell with the hit-or-miss logging), but a 10 pound gain over two weeks is pretty much certainly water.
  • Mr_Knight
    Mr_Knight Posts: 9,532 Member
    edited March 2015
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    OP's food logging is too inconsistent to know what is or isn't being eaten back, IMO. Red flags all over the place on this one...
  • K3rB3ar89
    K3rB3ar89 Posts: 263 Member
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    lol just because im not logging doesnt mean i dont know... like i said this isnt my first go around i dont need everyone telling me things i already know lol i was religious with this site last year kept up on everything did tons of research... as far as my work out stuff goes i add the calories from a work out it has on here and i have a fitbit so i use that app aswell... anyways thst wasnt what my question was because i know its not consistant lol i was just wondering why it would happen and if cardio work out would be the reason. Never once did i ask WHY im not losing weight lol i asked why the MASSIVE gain with cardio...
  • K3rB3ar89
    K3rB3ar89 Posts: 263 Member
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    as far as my deflicts go i can tell you that my fitbit tracks me on a good day at about 2500 calories lost sometimes 3000 depending on my activity but i eat about 1600 in a day so the deflict from that is 900 at the lowest when im working out... even if say thats not accurate i would still take off say 200 and thats still a deflict of 700 lol... and thats just everyday activity and not heavy cardio session lol... im gonna be ok
  • esjones12
    esjones12 Posts: 1,363 Member
    edited March 2015
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    K3rB3ar89 wrote: »
    lol just because im not logging doesnt mean i dont know... like i said this isnt my first go around i dont need everyone telling me things i already know lol i was religious with this site last year kept up on everything did tons of research... as far as my work out stuff goes i add the calories from a work out it has on here and i have a fitbit so i use that app aswell... anyways thst wasnt what my question was because i know its not consistant lol i was just wondering why it would happen and if cardio work out would be the reason. Never once did i ask WHY im not losing weight lol i asked why the MASSIVE gain with cardio...

    Did you weigh yourself before the workout and then after and gain 10 pounds?

    Sorry but you don't really know unless you are keeping track somehow. Or have a crazy mind that can subconsciously keep track of calories and a hand that can weigh food without a scale....just saying.

    10 pounds of water gain from cardio? Doubtful. More like 2ish. Your body can range a few pounds a day. And yes you can weigh a little more after a workout (cardio or lifting). Not sure how you are downing 5 water bottles (assuming 16oz bottle is like 10 cups of water) in a 60min workout. Are you not hydrating throughout the day? How do you not have to use the restroom? Sorry I'm not trying to be rude...it just seems crazy. I workout hard and barely go through 32oz in 1.5 hours burning 1,000 calories.
  • jkwolly
    jkwolly Posts: 3,049 Member
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    K3rB3ar89 wrote: »
    as far as my deflicts go i can tell you that my fitbit tracks me on a good day at about 2500 calories lost sometimes 3000 depending on my activity but i eat about 1600 in a day so the deflict from that is 900 at the lowest when im working out... even if say thats not accurate i would still take off say 200 and thats still a deflict of 700 lol... and thats just everyday activity and not heavy cardio session lol... im gonna be ok
    How do you know for sure if you don't track accurately?

    Also, 900 net is seriously low for the day.

    Listen to the advice, but wait, you already know it all - so why are you even asking? ;)
  • K3rB3ar89
    K3rB3ar89 Posts: 263 Member
    edited March 2015
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    Just an update... Since you all told me 10 pounds water weight was impossible I DID lose it all... So to tell me I don't know what I'm talking about is nuts.. I never said I was eating only 900 calories I'm eating 1200--1600 sometimes 1800 depending on my work out day.. My question was never why I wasn't losing weight it was is it possible to gain 10 pounds water weight from a new vigorous cardio work out., the answer is YES because I lost it already.. Thx for putting me down when it seems like your speaking on something you don't know about.. My fiancé just started working out too and stepped on thx scale 6 pounds heavier.. So I know I'm not crazy.. I spend 2 hours sometimes 3 a day in the gym straight cardio an hour on the eliptical at 6.0 alone so the fact I'm "eating to much" or not weighing things properly is crazy. Just got a scale and what I have been doing isn't far off actually I have been eating LESS then what my estimates were... As far as how much water I drink while at the gym I'm not sure how this applies too ANYTHING maybe I just like to drink a lot of water in my day.. To stay hydrated your supposed to drink half your body weight. I'm not sure why this is a big deal to you. Water is the only thing I drink., my work out is 35 mins on treadmill ( with cool down) hour on eliptical at 5.0-6.0 and bike for 25 mins.. if I wanna do more I do.. If you all think I'm crazy my tracker is now negatively set to mfp..
  • hill8570
    hill8570 Posts: 1,466 Member
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    OP, I believed in yous...thanks for checking back in. Rock on!
  • K3rB3ar89
    K3rB3ar89 Posts: 263 Member
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    Thanks for the encouraging words!
  • kpw818
    kpw818 Posts: 113 Member
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    I gained weight in the last few months after doing more strength training and more mileage. Clothes fit the same. Are you going up sizes?

    Sometimes I notice extra weight and looking a little puffy after harder workouts. Your muscles will retain water, etc. and become inflamed as they heal.
  • AllanMisner
    AllanMisner Posts: 4,140 Member
    edited March 2015
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    I think you’re taking the advice the wrong way, you are losing weight, but not necessarily in the best way possible (losing muscle along with the fat). This becomes increasingly important when you lose a good bit of weight (like 30 lbs) and then gain it back (mostly as fat) and then start working to lose weight again. If you’re losing muscle along with the fat, you lost muscle in round one and now you’ll lose even more in round two.

    This long hard cardio does burn calories and for some, you can maintain the activity and generate a larger calorie deficit. However, it also escalates Cortisol. Cortisol is a stress hormone that is very catabolic (bad for muscle).

    The short of it, you’re too scale focused and should really think about the overall health and fitness goals you have.
  • rileyes
    rileyes Posts: 1,404 Member
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    I try to stay close to the MFP calorie limit (without exercise calories). Some people eat back half their exercise calories. Almost everyone here on MFP agrees that the calorie burn readings are not so accurate and seem to be inflated.

    A formula that seems to work for me is the following:
    __ 5 calories per minute of HIT
    __ 7 calories per minute of intensive Cardio

    I do about 30 minutes of 2-3 HITs and a 20-minute cardio four days. That's about a 300-calorie burn for about an hour's worth of hard work!

    I think @hill8570 encouraged you to keep with it and eventually the weight would "slough off". And, @K3RB3ar89, I see that you got your prize for all your hard work! Don't you love when that happens!?!
  • K3rB3ar89
    K3rB3ar89 Posts: 263 Member
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    Allen maybe your right. BUT, my first go I did a lot of yoga 30 day shred yada yada Maybe I did lose muscle thinking I was gaining it but I deff got a lot stronger. This time around I wanna lose alittle weight Before I start the muscle thing. If anyone believes in muscle memory before I had my daughter about 4 years ago I had ALOT of muscle so gaining it back won't be a problem.. You say I'm losing weight but when the scale doesn't budge it gets frustrating:( Cuz I'm trying so freakin hard.. Maybe I'll just forget the scale abit and take my measurements. Thank you for sounding abit more encouraging it seriously hurts when you want help but feel like you get attacked:(
  • Hollywood_Porky
    Hollywood_Porky Posts: 491 Member
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    AllanMisner wrote: »
    I think you’re taking the advice the wrong way, you are losing weight, but not necessarily in the best way possible (losing muscle along with the fat). This becomes increasingly important when you lose a good bit of weight (like 30 lbs) and then gain it back (mostly as fat) and then start working to lose weight again. If you’re losing muscle along with the fat, you lost muscle in round one and now you’ll lose even more in round two.

    This long hard cardio does burn calories and for some, you can maintain the activity and generate a larger calorie deficit. However, it also escalates Cortisol. Cortisol is a stress hormone that is very catabolic (bad for muscle).

    The short of it, you’re too scale focused and should really think about the overall health and fitness goals you have.

    Post of the day!!! I agree completely. Too often and especially on here it's about the scale - it's not about the scale if you always eat good whole foods and stick with it over the long-term - then combine that with good exercise, emphasis on weight training and cardio to create your deficits. Over the long run, the tortoise will win that race!

    FAT loss doesn't necessarily equate to Weight loss - but muscle loss WILL correlate with weight loss. Gotta find a way to preserve that muscle while getting rid of visceral fat.

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