Gaining weight after eating meat again

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fantasticladybird
fantasticladybird Posts: 5 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Hi everyone,

I was a vegetarian for 6 years for ethical reasons. Recently I've started eating chicken again to see if it helps with my chronic migraines and fatigue. It's been about 3 weeks now and I have put on 5 pounds and it seems as though the scale goes up every time I step on it. I'm a female, 26 years old. I'm 5"5 and weigh 184 this morning. Before the chicken I was 177. I'm sad and frustrated. I've been eating around 1300-1500 calories per day.

On a typical day I've been eating:

Breakfast: 2 poached eggs or oatmeal

Snack 1: clementine

Lunch: 2 Oz of chicken with a vegetable of sorts (potatoes, beans)

Snack 2: clementine or pumpkin seeds

Dinner: chicken with vegetable

Snack 3: ezekiel bread with sunbutter.

Does anyone have any thoughts? I'm devastated and feeling extremely unattractive.

Replies

  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
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    Are you eating the same number of calories as you did as a vegetarian or did you begin logging after eating meat as a response to the weight gain?

  • missmagnoliablossom
    missmagnoliablossom Posts: 240 Member
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    fantasticladybird wrote: »
    I've been eating around 1300-1500 calories per day.

    1) Have you been tracking exactly? Or just guestimating?
    2) Are you weighing the meat, or just eyeballing it?
  • fantasticladybird
    fantasticladybird Posts: 5 Member
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    I am. And eating meat again has meant I am eating less carbs than I was previously which is why I am extra confused.
  • Whitezombiegirl
    Whitezombiegirl Posts: 1,042 Member
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    Its odd. I went from vegetarian to Paleo and lost 30lbs. Could it be water from exercise?
  • fantasticladybird
    fantasticladybird Posts: 5 Member
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    As a follow up, I have a digital food scale and have been weighing out my portions and macros.
  • Flapjack_Mollases
    Flapjack_Mollases Posts: 218 Member
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    Could be a couple things. Meat is slower to digest, so some could be in your intestinal tract. Or, you could just be gaining some muscle. Also, putting on 5 lbs in 3 weeks isnt the end of the world. My guess is that your body just needs some time to adjust to the added meat (figure out what to do with it) and you'll be fine.
  • fantasticladybird
    fantasticladybird Posts: 5 Member
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    @Whitezombiegirl I haven't exercised much in the last few weeks because of migraines. In the last two weeks I think I've had 3 days without headaches.
  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
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    fantasticladybird wrote: »
    @Whitezombiegirl I haven't exercised much in the last few weeks because of migraines. In the last two weeks I think I've had 3 days without headaches.

    So if your calories have stayed the same throughout and your activity level has gone down, it could be that burning fewer calories has resulted in the weight gain.
  • nowine4me
    nowine4me Posts: 3,985 Member
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    is eating chicken helping with migraines and fatigue?
  • JodehFoster
    JodehFoster Posts: 419 Member
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    consider where you are in your monthy cycle as well, you may be temporarily retaining water.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
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    fantasticladybird wrote: »
    @Whitezombiegirl I haven't exercised much in the last few weeks because of migraines. In the last two weeks I think I've had 3 days without headaches.

    Calories same with decreased activity...I think that's likely your answer...
  • Cat3141
    Cat3141 Posts: 162 Member
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    As others have pointed out, you may be eating more calories. You might also be eating more salt and therefore retaining more water. Often chicken meat is injected with salt water to make it weigh more.

    Also, rather than eating meat to attempt deal with migraines and fatigue, you might try finding a good book on vegetarian nutrition or seeing a Registered Dietitian/Nutritionist who specializes in vegetarian diets for help meeting your nutritional needs.
  • CharlieBeansmomTracey
    CharlieBeansmomTracey Posts: 7,682 Member
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    fantasticladybird wrote: »
    Hi everyone,

    I was a vegetarian for 6 years for ethical reasons. Recently I've started eating chicken again to see if it helps with my chronic migraines and fatigue. It's been about 3 weeks now and I have put on 5 pounds and it seems as though the scale goes up every time I step on it. I'm a female, 26 years old. I'm 5"5 and weigh 184 this morning. Before the chicken I was 177. I'm sad and frustrated. I've been eating around 1300-1500 calories per day.

    On a typical day I've been eating:

    Breakfast: 2 poached eggs or oatmeal

    Snack 1: clementine

    Lunch: 2 Oz of chicken with a vegetable of sorts (potatoes, beans)

    Snack 2: clementine or pumpkin seeds

    Dinner: chicken with vegetable

    Snack 3: ezekiel bread with sunbutter.

    Does anyone have any thoughts? I'm devastated and feeling extremely unattractive.

    are you weighing after you eat? you said you weighed 177 before the chicken? as for what you are eating on a typical day how many grams of those things are you eating? how much oatmeal? how much pumpkin seeds?etc? weight fluctuates too so that 5lb could be water weight.
  • savithny
    savithny Posts: 1,200 Member
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    How is the chicken prepared? "2oz chicken" is a very non-informative description.
  • fantasticladybird
    fantasticladybird Posts: 5 Member
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    Baked in a pan with salt, pepper, and paprika on it, @savithny

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