Instead of weight loss, I'm actually gaining?

courtney1189

Have any of you had a similar situation or have any ideas of what could be going on with my body?

I'm not new to weight loss and eating right. Over the course of several years, I've gone from 220 to 140 lbs. I'm currently 25 and 5'5. I work out (usually) at the very least 2 times a week (cardio/strength). I eat 1300 calories a day at the very least. More like 1400 or 1500 when I work out.

Here's my dilemma... when the scale hit 140, it really hit 140. I can get a few pounds under with intense exercise and low carb, but other than that, 140 seems to be my happy weight and I've maintained it for about 4 years now. So, I'm comfortable with that. However recently, my scale has been slowly creeping up. The only thing about my diet that I have changed has actually been adding less "empty calories" - just trying to eat cleaner in general.

When I stepped on the scale for the first time after Christmas, it had moved up to 145. So, for the past month and a half, I've been diligent with counting calories and exercise again. I weighed last week and it still read 145! I chalked it up to being that time of the month for me. But after another week of being diligent (just counting calories/no workouts this week), I stepped on the scale to 146.6!

Do any of you know what is going on?? I know I'm eating enough calories. I'm not the healthiest, but I'm definitely not eating anything that should be causing gain. I used to drink one diet soda a day, but I've recently been shaking that habit as well. It's never caused a problem in the past though. Here's an example of my day below -

Breakfast: 6 tbs egg whites, 1 piece low sodium turkey bacon, fat free cheese, low carb toast, 1/2 tbs sugar free strawberry jam, water - 140 cals

Lunch: heart healthy pita wrap (60 cals), 1 piece low sodium turkey bacon, 1 slice turkey, tomatoes, lettuce, fat free cheese & carrots, salad, water - 250 calories

Snack 1: 150 cal. green smoothie..or 140 cal bowl of special k and almond milk

(depending on the day, I may have a 200 calorie latte here)

Snack 2: Small apple, water (50 cals)

Dinner: 4 oz. tilapia filet, 3/4 cup brown rice, salad (with fat free ranch) - 300 calories

Snack 1: steamer box of edameme (110 cals)

Snack 2: 100 cal. popcorn, or apple & orange, or yogurt

totals: 1300 calories


This is just an example, and most days I go a little over 1300 with fruit throughout the day. Praying that some of you might know what is going on with me! Thank you in advance!

ncboiler89

If you are gaining weight, and really gaining weight, then you are eating too much. Weigh your food and be diligent about logging.

You say you know you are eating enough calories. That's clearly not the problem if you are truly gaining. You mention that you can lose weight with low carb. Low carb is just a way of eating at a calorie deficit. The lack of a calorie deficit, or actually a calorie surplus, is what makes you gain weight.

That being said, five pounds could be something other than fat storage - such as water a large amount of water retention.

JohnBarth

I second the accurately weigh your food advice.

When you're eating at maintenance, if you're underestimating your calorie intake, you'll gain weight.

A "small" apple, for instance, may be closer to 70-80 calories. I was shocked about what I thought was a "large" apple was actually about 1.6x the calories listed for the "large" size.

A good scale that allows you to weigh things to the gram will often uncover a few areas, though small, that can add up over the course of days and weeks.

TiffanyR71

Also, if you can work out, do!

jmagdalena707

JohnBarth wrote: »

I second the accurately weigh your food advice.

When you're eating at maintenance, if you're underestimating your calorie intake, you'll gain weight.

A "small" apple, for instance, may be closer to 70-80 calories. I was shocked about what I thought was a "large" apple was actually about 1.6x the calories listed for the "large" size.

A good scale that allows you to weigh things to the gram will often uncover a few areas, though small, that can add up over the course of days and weeks.

This. I started weighing foods about a week ago and am still astounded at how off my logging was before. I was consuming close to 300 cals a day more than I thought I was. Mostly from inaccurate fruit estimations (hello 210 cal monster apple!)

I also weight prepackaged/portioned foods and they are almost always a few grams over what the nutrition info says. I can see how it would add up over time.

annavalente

Tablespoons and cups are not accurate...you need to use a scale and weigh things.
Agree with post regarding weight of apple..'small' is not accurate!

If you are gaining weight you are eating over maintenance unfortunately ...so if you tighten up your logging and keep to a deficit you should lose :-)