Calories in/ Calories Out/ carbs

jennyct10

OK, I lost about 3 pounds in as many weeks by counting calories and making sure I had a deficit using a fitbit. Everything went well until we threw a party last Saturday. I was still under my total calories, but I ate some blueberry pie and a very small piece of fudge. 2 days later I gained 3 pounds and it's sticking. Soooo scientifically speaking, there is no evidence that carbs will make you gain weight as long as you are within calorie range. I am aware of insulin resistance, but I have no risk factors (pear shape, normal bloodwork, etc) that would suggest I am prone to that issue.
Finally, I am wondering how the metabolism would slow down because of carbs (you have to get your basic calories from somewhere, so how can you store/convert the carbs while you don't take in enough calories to meet your basic needs? How is it that you need less calories?

FYI, I have studied microbiology and human genetics, so I'm not clueless about research.

999tigger

So whats your point? Have you disproven cico? Based on 3 days aneecdotal observation and a piece of fudge?

davert123

Body weight is complex. It contains fat, LBM, glycogen water and stuff in the gutt. The complexity is variable - for instance salt can cause water retention, going into deficit cause a reduction in glycogen, eating carb will replenish it (and the water it is stored with). I weigh myself daily. Last week was unusual but not completely so - one day I wa up 3 lb, 2 days later I was down 2, next day down 3 next day down 2, next day up 2. I increased weight by 3lb, then dropped 7 and the increased by 2 :-) up and down is normal, the trick is to deficit regularity and over time (a few weeks/months) the trajectory will be down . Good luck

davert123

PS fat reduction is a little more complex than purely cico. We can also drop and gain lean body mass. Research I've seen suggests if you just diet hard you will initially show a better reduction on the scales than if you ate your pre-diet TDEE but exercised the same amount of calories off ... BUT the additional difference was nearly all loss of LBM. The moral of that one is to don't over do it and to burn.

livingleanlivingclean

I can fluctuate more than 3lbs in a day... Your blueberry pie and fudge likely came with fat as well as carbs,so not sure how or why you're targeting the carbs as the reason for weight gain. I'm presuming you eat carbs normally?

editorgrrl

jennyct10 wrote: »

OK, I lost about 3 pounds in as many weeks by counting calories and making sure I had a deficit using a fitbit.

Please, read the Sexypants post. So much good "MFP 101" information: https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/1080242/a-guide-to-get-you-started-on-your-path-to-sexypants/p1

To learn how to use Fitbit + MFP, read the stickies in the Fitbit Users group: http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/group/1290-fitbit-users

ndj1979

jennyct10 wrote: »

OK, I lost about 3 pounds in as many weeks by counting calories and making sure I had a deficit using a fitbit. Everything went well until we threw a party last Saturday. I was still under my total calories, but I ate some blueberry pie and a very small piece of fudge. 2 days later I gained 3 pounds and it's sticking. Soooo scientifically speaking, there is no evidence that carbs will make you gain weight as long as you are within calorie range. I am aware of insulin resistance, but I have no risk factors (pear shape, normal bloodwork, etc) that would suggest I am prone to that issue.
Finally, I am wondering how the metabolism would slow down because of carbs (you have to get your basic calories from somewhere, so how can you store/convert the carbs while you don't take in enough calories to meet your basic needs? How is it that you need less calories?

FYI, I have studied microbiology and human genetics, so I'm not clueless about research.

water retention. Drink a bunch of water and it should help flush it out.

Carbs do not slow down your metabolism. And your sentence about storing/converting carbs while not taking in enough calories does not make sense. Please clarify.

jennyct10

Why would you gain 3 pounds by changing the type of foods that you eat as long as you are under your expenditure? It can be water, but it should drop off as easily as it came on and it's been 3 days. So I'm at 3 weeks with zero change. This is totally unsustainable. People suggest that carbs convert directly into fat with insulin resistance, so my question was that as long as you are under expenditure, how can you convert carbs to fat?

RHachicho

Because 3lbs of WEIGHT is not equal to 3lbs of FAT.

Carbs are only really a problem if you are inactive. If you have anything like a decent exercise habit they shouldn't be an issue. Even then as long as you maintain a calorie deficit you should still lose weight. This is a real good way to end up skinny fat though.

Don't panic just because the scale wobbled. Like people said a 3lb variation can easily be accounted for with water weight. Or maybe you just have a decent amount of food passing through your digestive system. Trust me I lost like 115lbs and there where weeks where I was like wtf I did so well this week and gained a lb. And other weeks where the scale ended the week 7lbs down. This is not a linear process.

Merkavar

Is this not just water weight?

Why do people seem to focus on 2-4 days.

Your weight goes up and down every day even several times a day. And if your losing 1-2 pounds a week it doesn't take much water or other body fluids to off set the weight loss temporarily.

If you aren't looking at more than a month I wouldn't be trying to make conclusions or blame a specific macro.

Bshmerlie

Depending on your monthly cycle you could also gain 3-4 pounds in water weight. I have found that I can gain three pounds in a couple of days and then lose it just as quickly two weeks later.

Mellouk89

RHachicho wrote: »

Because 3lbs of WEIGHT is not equal to 3lbs of FAT.

Carbs are only really a problem if you are inactive. If you have anything like a decent exercise habit they shouldn't be an issue. Even then as long as you maintain a calorie deficit you should still lose weight. This is a real good way to end up skinny fat though.

Don't panic just because the scale wobbled. Like people said a 3lb variation can easily be accounted for with water weight. Or maybe you just have a decent amount of food passing through your digestive system. Trust me I lost like 115lbs and there where weeks where I was like wtf I did so well this week and gained a lb. And other weeks where the scale ended the week 7lbs down. This is not a linear process.

Carbs are not a problem for inactive people, i'm inactive myself because i'm injured and I maintain my weight eating 400g of carbs per day. Hell, the USDA recommends 300g of carbs for someone eating 2K calories.

If carbs were a problem than Japan would be fattest nation on the planet, their obesity rate is at 1%.

jennifer_417

Nvm.

Sued0nim

LOL that's not how it works

water weight .. see above

hints and tips .. see above

plus weight loss not linear and sodium / hormones

coreyreichle

jennyct10 wrote: »

OK, I lost about 3 pounds in as many weeks by counting calories and making sure I had a deficit using a fitbit. Everything went well until we threw a party last Saturday. I was still under my total calories, but I ate some blueberry pie and a very small piece of fudge. 2 days later I gained 3 pounds and it's sticking. Soooo scientifically speaking, there is no evidence that carbs will make you gain weight as long as you are within calorie range. I am aware of insulin resistance, but I have no risk factors (pear shape, normal bloodwork, etc) that would suggest I am prone to that issue.
Finally, I am wondering how the metabolism would slow down because of carbs (you have to get your basic calories from somewhere, so how can you store/convert the carbs while you don't take in enough calories to meet your basic needs? How is it that you need less calories?

FYI, I have studied microbiology and human genetics, so I'm not clueless about research.

Metabolism doesn't slow down because of carbs...

If you've studied microbiology, you've got most of the tools to understand things. Do yeast react differently when presented with a starch vs. a sugar? No, they still grow.

You probably gained 3 pounds of water weight. Maybe your sodium is off, muscle repair, etc etc Can only guess since your diary is closed.

jennyct10

Thanks for all the posts. For many years I maintained a normal weight because I had an extremely physical job and ate practically nothing (no breakfast, little lunch). My last personal trainer and my orthopedic told me I have little muscle... I would lose muscle even when working out while dieting (caliper testing from trainer). I'm going to try and change the macros (I'm low on protein) because I'm still not losing... In another month after trying this tactic, I will open my food diary.

chivalryder

Saying you gained 3 lbs because you ate carbs is like saying the number of people across the USA who committed suicide by hanging, strangulation, or suffocation is caused by the American Government spending more every year on science, space, and technology.