Gaining Weight instead of loosing :(

healthychoices1
healthychoices1 Posts: 5
in Health and Weight Loss
I'm having the hardest time in trying to loose weight. I've given up soda, cakes, sweets and many other things. I was not a healthy eater at all! For a couple of months I have been changing eating habits, more fruits & veggies also more chicken and less meats. I've been even juicing!! Something that I wouldn't do before because I used to hate veggie juice. Anyway, my point is that I am changing my eating and instead of loosing weight I am gaining. At some point a couple months back I seemed to loose a couple of pounds, but now I have gained it all back and more which is very sad and frustrating. I have been exercising more often, I'm not going to say I do it every day but I do try at least 3 times a week. It seems that this healthy eating makes me more hungry. I was the type of person that would skip breakfast, and my hunger level was fine throughout the day. Now that I started eating every morning, I am hungry all the time... I am getting so discouraged with all this and I really don't want to keep on gaining weight....

Any suggestions on what I can change or do better?

Replies

  • thatmavigirl
    thatmavigirl Posts: 7
    Hi! I totally know what you mean - I thought I was at my best for years because I didn't eat that much junk and worked out 3x week.
    Actually tracking my food and when I eat breakfast, changing up the routine, and eating ALL of my calories made the change. The things I've learned from my own experience are:

    1. Eat within 30 minutes of waking up to wake up your body

    2. Eat about an hour before working out so you are not hungry and your body has something to burn, and again right after. Great ideas here: http://www.fitnessmagazine.com/recipes/healthy-eating/nutrition/best-workout-foods/

    2. Eat 6x/day (I have MFP set up for 3 meals and snacks between so I can see when I eat something that keeps me fuller and do that again!)

    3. Change up your workout, if you always do the elliptical on let's say "Weight Loss" level 2, try upping it to level 3. Or change to another program like "Hills". You'd be surprised what a little difference makes!

    4. WATER WATER WATER will help when you feel hungry. Think about if you're really hungry or if you're possibly just thirsty. I used to confuse the two all the time.

    I'm no pro but I figured this might help! Anyone feel free to correct me if I am totally wrong in something!
  • EmilyEmpowered
    EmilyEmpowered Posts: 650 Member
    I won't be able to tell you why you are not losing or why you started gaining. however, i will say that I am the same way-- if I eat breakfast, my hunger level throughout the day is much much higher. therefore, I dont eat breakfast. Timing of eating does not effect your weight, just the number of calories you consume. So if eating in the mornings makes you hungrier and eat more through out the day, skip breakfast.

    You can also try breakfast with more protein, that seems to help some people, but again for me if I eat early I am just starving all day, so I dont! My first meal is around 2 pm.
  • DebbieLyn63
    DebbieLyn63 Posts: 2,654 Member
    I'm having the hardest time in trying to loose weight. I've given up soda, cakes, sweets and many other things. I was not a healthy eater at all! For a couple of months I have been changing eating habits, more fruits & veggies also more chicken and less meats. I've been even juicing!! Something that I wouldn't do before because I used to hate veggie juice. Anyway, my point is that I am changing my eating and instead of loosing weight I am gaining. At some point a couple months back I seemed to loose a couple of pounds, but now I have gained it all back and more which is very sad and frustrating. I have been exercising more often, I'm not going to say I do it every day but I do try at least 3 times a week. It seems that this healthy eating makes me more hungry. I was the type of person that would skip breakfast, and my hunger level was fine throughout the day. Now that I started eating every morning, I am hungry all the time... I am getting so discouraged with all this and I really don't want to keep on gaining weight....

    Any suggestions on what I can change or do better?

    You didn't mention the most important thing- eating at a calorie deficit. Do you count calories? Log your foods? If so, how many calories are you eating per day?
  • glin23
    glin23 Posts: 460 Member
    Are you accurately logging your portion sizes? Even though I lost most of my weight without it, it's truly astounding what some serving sizes actually are. I'm willing to bet that your logging/measuring is off. Invest in a food scale. Either that or you might not be eating enough. But my bet is on the former.
  • MexicanOsmosis
    MexicanOsmosis Posts: 382 Member
    1. Eat within 30 minutes of waking up to wake up your body

    Ehhhh, that's more of a personal preference thing.
    2. Eat about an hour before working out so you are not hungry and your body has something to burn, and again right after. Great ideas here: http://www.fitnessmagazine.com/recipes/healthy-eating/nutrition/best-workout-foods/

    That's debatable. I've seen some that sources say that might want to wait longer before you workout, but again, that could be personal preference.
    2. Eat 6x/day (I have MFP set up for 3 meals and snacks between so I can see when I eat something that keeps me fuller and do that again!)

    Definitely personal preference. Look up Intermittent Fasting.
    3. Change up your workout, if you always do the elliptical on let's say "Weight Loss" level 2, try upping it to level 3. Or change to another program like "Hills". You'd be surprised what a little difference makes!

    Agreed.
    4. WATER WATER WATER will help when you feel hungry. Think about if you're really hungry or if you're possibly just thirsty. I used to confuse the two all the time.

    Agreed.

    When it comes down to it, everyone is a little different, the only thing that remains the same for most is that you need to eat at a calorie deficit. It's not mentioned in your OP, but do you track ALL your food? Do you have a scale to weigh food with? Just because you're eating "healthier" food doesn't mean you'll automatically lose weight, specifically if you eat enough of it so you're not at a deficit. Just keep at it and find what works for you.
  • RGv2
    RGv2 Posts: 5,789 Member
    Diary isn't open....
  • Lleldiranne
    Lleldiranne Posts: 5,516 Member
    Sometimes juicing can be deceptive -- I mean, all those veggies and fruits, you have to lose weight, right? But not necessarily. You condense a whole bunch of food into a cup of juice, and depending on the machine you may be removing the pulp (= fiber, helps you feel fuller). So you may be eating more than you think. The same thing with your other foods - just because it's healthier doesn't mean you can eat it all day long. In the end, it's a calorie deficit that will make you lose weight (or a surplus to make you gain). I'm not saying go back to junk, but if you haven't been tracking your calories, that could be your problem.

    Open your diary (if you've been logging) for better suggestions. Or start logging, if you haven't, and make sure you are at a deficit. (If you follow MFP calculations, make sure you eat back at least some of your exercise calories to avoid too big of a deficit; MFP already works in a deficit before exercise)
  • floop1207
    floop1207 Posts: 194 Member
    i can't eat as soon as i get up. i need to have been awake a good couple of hours. maybe have your 'breakfast' later during the morning and you'll be less hungry by lunchtime.
  • Johnpaul1987
    Johnpaul1987 Posts: 11 Member
    Have you been monitoring you calories? Has anything changed in your lifestyle?
  • born2drum
    born2drum Posts: 731 Member
    How about you start using MFP like your supposed to and track your calories? Then, you will lose. Just because you cut calories here and there doesnt mean you're not overeating?

    Make sure you figure out what your maintenance calories are (TDEE) and eat 500-750cals less.

    Simple.

    The hardest part is tracking.
  • Warchortle
    Warchortle Posts: 2,197 Member
    It's about energy balance TBH.

    Juicing isn't necessarily healthy. You strip the fiber out and yes, you get minerals and vitamins... but also if you're juicing fruit.. a lot of sugar.

    You can't gain weight if you're consuming less than your TDEE, but you should be eating above your BMR.

    BMR < What you need to eat < TDEE
  • PikaKnight
    PikaKnight Posts: 34,971 Member
    Are you weighing your food with a food scale?

    Do you log everything and do you log everyday?
  • healthychoices1
    healthychoices1 Posts: 5
    I've read many good points, and I appreciate all of the comments and will start making some changes that have worked for others :)

    I will go get me a scale and start tracking that way (thanks for the suggestion). I have been eating a lot of fruit in between meals because I get so hungry, I hadn't been counting calories for a while now (which has led me to this problem) and will definitely start doing so immediately.
  • PikaKnight
    PikaKnight Posts: 34,971 Member
    Yeah. If you don't log consistently..no one is going to be able to really help you. Log everyday and EVERYTHING..fruit, vegetable..everything..

    Work at it for 3-4 weeks and then see where you are.
  • Warchortle
    Warchortle Posts: 2,197 Member
    Well if you start getting loose ... (insert witty innuendo because the title is loosing =/= losing)
  • LAntifeau
    LAntifeau Posts: 1
    I have the same problem as you in some regards- I excercise regularly, I weight train a couple times a week, and I eat as a general rule a total of between 1200 and 1400 calories a day after excercise. It's been over a month and although I change up my excercise routines regularly and allow myself one cheat day a week to spike my calorie intake, I have gained weight instead of lost it. I am so confused as to what else I could do to help myself.
  • WxLLe
    WxLLe Posts: 11
    Yeah unfortunately if you don't keep track and monitor you good intake, even if you're eating a bunch of healthy foods that doesn't mean you're going to lose weight. Here try this out it's called Smack Fat. It's a 30 day challenge that guarantees you will lose weight in 30 days or less. It has helped a bunch of people I know so here I am telling you about it :) if you want to try it out here's a link http://goo.gl/y4bN55

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