Followed plan exactly for 2 weeks and gained weight!!!!!

ToniZ60

Hi I just restarted MFP two weeks ago and followed plan everyday, I really was anxious to get on scale because it always discourages me. When I logged in yesterday it prompted me to weigh in, big mistake.
I have felt better in my clothes and really thought I was down a few pounds, guess not I am up 2 pounds!!
My question is I also just started going to spin classes and working out this last month again, could that be it? I had a bad back injury and have not worked out in 9 months. Has anyone gained weight when they began working out? Thanks I am soooo discouraged this morning.

KMM17173

I gained weight when I first started exercising. Patience and determination required. Time will tell. You may have lost fat and gained muscle - 1lb of fat takes up more room than 1lb muscle, hence the clothes feeling looser. The whole water retention thing (can't explain it, just know it exists) when you start exercising causes havoc with weight loss too! Stick at it.

rejectuf

If you haven't been eating at a surplus, you haven't gained muscle or fat. Make sure you're not guesstimating things like oil in the pan, sauces, etc. These things add up and quickly take you from a mild deficit to a surplus.

If you only recently started working out, your body may be retaining more water as it repairs your muscles and adjusts to your exercise. This is temporary and goes away eventually. If you're a woman, then you're a little more prone to fluctuations in water weight naturally. This can cause swings of several pounds easily.

ToniZ60

I am definitely not estimating, if anything I am putting down more calories to be safe. This time I am also not eating back all exercise calories. When I complete entry at end of day it definitely has me as losing 6 lbs in 5 weeks, I am just very discouraged as I really felt like I lost

jenncornelsen

whenever i do a big workout i gain 3-4lbs. it sometimes takes up to three weeks for this to drop for me personally. wait it out.

KMM17173

Tried to quote and comment but I'm a newbie - sorry!

KMM17173

That's what I couldn't put into words! What rejectuf said about water!

turtle0022

Toni, have faith and patience with yourself. I had a similar experience and found that the weight loss (actual number on the scale) did catch up with my efforts after I started noticing a difference in my clothing. Have you taken your measurements? I was doing that weekly at first and now will take them every 2-3 weeks and noticed more consistent losses in the inches as opposed to pounds. Don't get discouraged... the number on the scale isn't the only way to measure success... keep up the good work.

mfermo

I go cycling and the day after I also always find myself at higher weight; in the long run however it decrease. I think it's the effect of the lactic acid in the muscles (or at least this is the explanation i give to me); Perhaps you just weight yourself in the "wrong" day, or maybe initial weight was not correct.

atypicalsmith

KMM17173 wrote: »

I gained weight when I first started exercising. Patience and determination required. Time will tell. You may have lost fat and gained muscle - 1lb of fat takes up more room than 1lb muscle, hence the clothes feeling looser. The whole water retention thing (can't explain it, just know it exists) when you start exercising causes havoc with weight loss too! Stick at it.

NOT! It takes forever to gain muscle. What actually happens when you start exercising is that your muscles are not used to it and your body holds onto water weight to repair your muscles.

KMM17173

I hate to disagree - but do so politely. It does not take forever to build muscle. It takes time but results can be seen within a few weeks with the correct nutrition in order to help muscles recover following training. This gain has followed a mixture of working out and cardio. I cannot comment on the former, only the latter. To ensure muscle recovery after a run, for example, ensure some protein is taken within twenty minutes to aid the recovery of the muscles, thus preparing them for the next run and causing less muscle fatigue. I notice a massive difference if I don't follow this guidance after a long run. So yes, the body uses water in its efforts to combat what its muscles have been put through but don't under-estimate the speed in which those muscles can alter. It can take just a couple of weeks to start seeing/feeling a difference.