Went on a 17 day European vacation - gained 14 lbs

kseixas

For reference:

3 years ago I weighed 313 lbs
I lost 114 lbs in these last three years purely through diet and light walking.

I left on 11/10 for a vacation to Europe (Portugal, Spain, London). Before I left I was prett strict about my calorie intake...1100-1300 a day MAX.

While I was gone I didn't count anything. I know I ate a LOT more than I'm used to (bread especially...I don't restrict bread during a "regular" day but I don't usually eat a ton of it) and I drank a lot more alcohol (I usually don't drink anything). I also didn't drink nearly enough water while I was there (it was hard while on the go and they don't give it to you in restaurants - you have to buy a bottle). We did a lot of walking - but not much more than I normally do (I usually hit 8K in a normal day and while there we hit about 12K on average)

When I got home I had gained 14 lbs. I tried not to freak out too much, thinking half of it would probably be water weight, etc. so I immediately went back to my normal routine (stuck to 1100-1200 calories a day of mostly veggies, lean protein, the occasional fun size snickers - but I counted the calories for it) and drank tons of water.

It has been a week and the scale WON'T BUDGE. Well that's not true - I'm down about half a pound.

I'm stumped. I thought a good portion of the gain would be lost the first week back (which has happened when going on vacay in the past - though admittedly I've never been gone this long and gained this much) but I haven't really lost any of it - and I have been tracking, weighing and counting EVERYTHING.

Please help. I'm getting SO discouraged. I've still lost over 100 lbs, but I have another 35-40 to go and this setback is really upsetting (though deserved I'm sure).

nutmegoreo

When I fly, I retain water weight like crazy. My last trip, I came back the same weight, but knew I had lost just from clothing feel. It took two weeks for it to drop off. Keep doing what you know works. Some of it is going to stay, but it will move again. Patience! Sounds like you had a good time!

emilysusana

Okay, keep trying not to freak out, because in the absolutely worst case and also also highly unlikely scenario that you gained 14 lbs, you did it by eating amazing European food, and bread especially. My guess is you don't get to do this too often. Even if you have to spend 14 weeks losing it, my guess is that trip will have been worth it. Much more likely, you gained a few pounds and your weight will even put and reflect that soon. Just do your deficit thing, don't panic, and you'll be fine in any case.

successgal1

Your water weight might take longer then a week. My 3 days "off" at thanksgiving cost me a week of visible weight loss and looked like a 5 lb gain. But I was back at starting point in 7-8 days. Keep at it.

amyepdx

All of the above - even if 1/2 of the 14 is "real" you had a great trip and memories! The big win is that you got right back on your plan!

everher

You have lost over 100 lbs!!! Can we just take a moment to celebrate that? You are awesome and you are doing it!

Now to this 14 lb weight gain. We know that it's highly unlikely you gained 14 lbs. Some of it is probably water weight. It probably is just going to take longer to drop off.

Try not to get discouraged. You've done a great job so far just keep on keeping on.

kseixas

Thank you. I'm trying really hard to remain focused on what I have accomplished and my long term goals...I think that is bothering me the most is that in a "usual" week I lose 1-2 lbs. I thought I'd be losing all this water weight plus whatever I usually lose, so to see a measly 0.5 loss after such a huge gain and getting right back on track has been exceedingly frustrating to me.

ashjongfit

It takes me 2 or more weeks to drop bloat and have the scale go down after something like that. I wouldn't sweat it, just keep doing your thing and stay off the scale for a bit, it'll go back down. Besides that trip sounded worth it anyway.

Charlene_1985

I travel for work a lot. Usually to Europe or South America 5-6 times per month. The flying itself is hard on bodies, not to mention the change in sleep. Just keep doing what you are doing. It worked before, and it'll work again.

Showthyme

I agree with the water retainage post. Drink lots of water and give your body a week to settle down. I always gain 5-10 pounds when traveling even if I am meticulous about what I eat. I have learned to accept the uptick in the scale for the first week home.

kejw08

I would give it longer than a week. It took me over a week to lose my 4lbs of thanksgiving bloat so 14 lbs will take longer. Some of it is probably real weight gain I bet a lot of it is water and one day you will wake up down a huge amount.

eileensofianmushinfine

when I came back from our Jamaican vacation, I was up almost 8 pounds. It did take me close to 3-4 weeks to get back down to my pre-trip weight. Patience -- and trust the process.

gems74

Don't forget that it takes awhile for the body to adjust back to your time zone. Once your circadian rhythm gets back to normal, I'm sure you'll see the scale move again. Perseverance and patience!

Good luck! You got this! *high5*

trigden1991

As much as the gain is likely to be mostly water retention and food in-transit, there is a possibility that you gained fat during this time. 17 days of eating over your maintenance isn't a short period of time. If you have been dieting for a prolonged period of time with severe calorie restriction your TDEE is likely lower due to adaptive thermogenesis.

However, you enjoyed your holiday and are losing weight again so don't worry about it. Life is too short to regret or try to understand some of these things.

LivingtheLeanDream

A lot of that will be water weight, give that time to go...but in the meantime resume your normal calorie allowance and that gain will be history before very long.

It takes me a month after being on holiday/vacation before I'm back to my normal weight. I can be up 5lbs after being on a trip away but at least half of that goes in the first week and the rest is gone within the month.

Francl27

Just be patient. If your period is due soon, you probably won't lose anything for a bit, for example.

girlwithcurls2

Get rid of your expectations. Just get back to real life and carry on. In time, your body will respond. Remember too, that your body might still be in a different time zone. I live on the West Coast, and after my return from Europe last summer, it took a long time for the jetlag to pass and for me to get back to normal. FWIW, my European weight was off by September (June/July trip). I had such a good time, I didn't worry about it. Like you, I don't always eat and drink like that. It still took time to get the extra weight (whether water or otherwise) off. You'll get there.

PAV8888

Are you taking "spot measurements" of your weight or are you using a trending weight app?

I suspect that because you are used to quick weight losses you have not been using a trending weight app. As you are losing weight and approaching the overweight and normal weight ranges your weight loss will stop being as predictable. Start using a trending weight app

No matter what % of the weight gain is water and which part is not... if you continue doing what you're doing now you will shed it sooner or later!

There is only one path back to 313lbs and it involves giving up for some reason.
Whether the reason is good, bad or indifferent, it really won't matter in terms of the outcome!

The real wins here were that you enjoyed yourself and got back at it without letting discouragement derail you!

The warning sign for you (and the same one exists for me too) is that our "un-mindful"/"I am eating as much as I would want" caloric consumption is more compatible with our former weight than with our current weight. Something we should both keep in mind

As you will discover when looking at your trending weight app in the future, there are many reasons why your weight loss may be stalled for a week or two!

_dixiana_

Travel weight for me is ALWAYS slow to come off. I went to Europe this summer and was pretty moderate with eating, I didn't overdo it most days but I was still up a good 5lbs when I got home. It took weeks to come off.

Lynzdee18

No freaking out, please!

You had a holiday. You enjoyed food, drink, culture.

You also experienced that it's so so easy to get on the gain-train again.

One. Day. At a time. You will lose this weight and then resume your downward trend to goal!

maidengirl_

You are still down over 100 pounds! Life is way to short to worry! Get back on track and stay on track to get the weight right back off. It's not going to be easy but the longer you sit and worry, the more off track you're going to get and the more the scale will creep up. I just went on vacation in November and when I left I was 145. When I got back I had gained like 10 pounds. Like you, I didn't calorie count as I didn't really have the means to. I tried to stay active for the most part but who was I kidding? I enjoyed my vacation, immediately got back on track when I got home and lost the weight again just as I had before. Imagine if I had sat around beating myself up, I would've added another 20 unnecessary pounds! Never lose sight of your goals Good luck!

bwogilvie

Trust in the process, not the scale. As long as you're back to doing what worked before, the weight will come off. Just be sure to log as carefully as ever. I put on a bit of weight over the last year because there were a few periods when I was traveling and had some stress, and I didn't take it off in the intervening time because I was slacking in my logging. Now that I'm paying more attention, I'm seeing some progress.

SCoil123

I just got home from a long weekend in Maui and gained 4.2lb even though I was only there 3 days. While it's entirely possible I gained 1lb (thank you kahlua pork) I know that travel causes water retention as well as the saltier foods I ate so I'm giving it 2 weeks to *kitten* the damages lol.

Chances are good that a portion of what you appear to have gained isn't actual weight. Give it a few weeks to even out and keep working towards your goals.

I hope you had a great trip!

DEBOO7

Don't freak! I got back from 6 days overseas holiday where I 'managed' my eating but enjoyed a few extras like wine and the occasional ice cream. Gained 800 grams and now two weeks later I've finally got rid of it.
Probably doesn't seem a lot but I'm only 3-4kg from my goal weight so it is relative.
Just keep doing what you were before you went away and I'm sure you'll be rewarded by a sudden whoosh.
Oh... and stressing/worrying about it is likely to assist in holding onto the weight too.
What evil body's we have, lol.

ninerbuff

It's only been a week. Once you're back to consistency for a couple of weeks you're body should respond.

A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition