The scale keeps going up even though I'm staying on track. What am I doing wrong?

quiksandy

I'm feeling very defeated. Back in 2011 I used MFP to successfully drop about 30 lbs. Then I kept it off for years but started to slack. So, now I have about 8 lbs to lose, not much. But this time it won't come off. I dropped refined sugar for the most part and am staying just under 1400 calories (my maintenance is 1640) and I have increased my exercise and weight training. In 3 weeks I lost one pound. Now that pound is coming back. The weight graph is going up, rather than down. What am I doing wrong?



(ps...no, it's not that time of the month for me. I should not be in bloat mode.)

lorrpb

Surely with all your history you know that weight fluctuates normally 1-5 lbs per day. You chart shows 3/4 lb gain in 5 days. This is a non-event. I gained more than that this morning. Just keep with your plan, be sure to weigh your food, and log everything.

gamerbabe14

You need to be patient.

rileysowner

Make sure you are measuring your food accurately, and that the database entries you are using are correct. Otherwise stick with it as this is, as mentioned, a very small window of information. Water weight can come on for more reasons than TOM, including stress, new or increased intensity workouts, a big change in sodium, insufficient hydration, and more.

fiddletime

I have 9-10 pounds to lose as well. It's very easy to not stick with it at this point. I look "fine". I just want to weigh what I used to weigh. What I do wrong is assume I know the calories in the foods I eat pretty well, and and I also assume I can slip just a little. That's my reason for being "stuck". Pretend you have to lose 100 pounds. You'd be using the scale every meal and never slipping. Hang in there. "We" can do this!!

quiksandy

Thanks everyone. Yeah, I probably just need to chill and stop weighing myself every day. And I agree with fiddletime. When you are this close to your goal weight it is very easy to reason away not bothering anymore when the scale doesn't move in the right direction. I'm gonna stay the course and hope it irons itself out. Thanks.

quiksandy

The scale finally moved in the right direction. I lost about a lb and a half. Yay!

clicketykeys

Also I've heard that increasing exercise can cause you to retain more water.