Help! I'm gaining and don't know why!

lc612411

According to the scale, I've gained a little bit each week for the past two weeks. However, I have been tracking my food and even exercising on top of that! (using mapmyfitness). I haven't been using the calories I burned working out as extra calories for food. So anyways, I feel like i should be losing 1-2 pounds each week based on what I eat and exercise. Can you guys think of any reason why I'm gaining?? Also, I've decided to change my lifestyle from sedentary to lightly active because I've been making an effort to move around a lot more at work. This increased my allotted calories from 1603 to 1837. Do you think that eating those extra calories will help me lose? I feel so confused and a little defeated...

MinnieInMaine

If you're willing, making your diary public so we can review your logging might be helpful to give more constructive advice.

Also, how much is "a little bit". If it's a pound or less, that could just be water weight fluctuations (too much sodium, hard workout, monthly hormones, etc). If it's a few pounds, it could be that something is wrong with your logging and you could be eating more than you think - in which case increasing your calories may not be the answer. Do you weigh and measure or do a lot of guesstimating?

WBB55

According to the scale, I've gained a little bit each week for the past two weeks. However, I have been tracking my food and even exercising on top of that! (using mapmyfitness). I haven't been using the calories I burned working out as extra calories for food. So anyways, I feel like i should be losing 1-2 pounds each week based on what I eat and exercise. Can you guys think of any reason why I'm gaining?? Also, I've decided to change my lifestyle from sedentary to lightly active because I've been making an effort to move around a lot more at work. This increased my allotted calories from 1603 to 1837. Do you think that eating those extra calories will help me lose? I feel so confused and a little defeated...

If you're 60 lbs overweight, 1837 is probably enough calories for now (and for now, I probably wouldn't eat back exercise calories unless you're feeling weak or grumpy). But are you sure you're weighing your food and logging accurately? I'm not saying you're not. I'm just asking, since that's a real common problem.

lc612411

My diary is public now. Feel free to take a look at it.

And I have been gaining around .5 pounds each week for 2 weeks. Nothing crazy but enough to make me notice.

So no, I haven't been measuring out my foods each time I eat them. But I know for sure that I am not eating 2 times as much as the recommended serving size or anything like that. And when I know that what I'm eating is clearly over the serving size, I changed the serving number to 1.5 or 2 when I log.

This past week I have been eating a little over my calorie number by maybe 100-200. However, I've been walking about 3 miles a day so I figured that that had to make up for the extra calories.

lc612411

Thanks for the advice on eating 1837. I've noticed that these past two weeks, I've been set at 1603 calories but walking about 3 miles a day and lifting a little. It seems that since I started working out, the 1603 never seems like enough so I end up going over about 100-200 calories a day. Hopefully with the increased calorie number, I will find it easier to actually meet my goal.

HeidiCooksSupper

Those extra calories are probably the problem. Three things I see in your message may be the problem:
1."Moving around more at work" maybe doesn't qualify as lightly active.
2. There are even studies showing that if we don't measure we underestimate how much we are eating.
3. And you say you've been eating an extra 100-200 a day.

To gain half a pound a week on average, you'd only need to eat 1750 extra calories a week on average or an extra 250 per day on average. So, I suspect if you reduce your calorie consumption back to the level you were eating your weight loss will resume.

chrissywelsh10

I see your sugars are usually a little bit high - so you could try cutting out the low fat high sugar items?

A great rule of thumb a nutritionist taught me was that no body is the same, you make a general plan for estimated weight loss (in my case thats 1kg a week) If you loose more than 1Kg you add 10% of your calories till you are loosing 1Kg that way you are not under eating.

The reverse is also true, if you are gaining or not loosing the 1Kg, reduce calories by 10% and check you start and end week weights.

If you are in a plateau - its best to try and just maintain your weight - relax and take a week off cutting fully back - then start again.

I hope the 10% rule helps you

ZenInTexas

So no, I haven't been measuring out my foods each time I eat them. But I know for sure that I am not eating 2 times as much as the recommended serving size or anything like that. And when I know that what I'm eating is clearly over the serving size, I changed the serving number to 1.5 or 2 when I log.

This past week I have been eating a little over my calorie number by maybe 100-200. However, I've been walking about 3 miles a day so I figured that that had to make up for the extra calories.

Here is your problem. Get a food scale. Do not eyeball or guess at your portions. Even measuring cups are way off. You have to be accurate with your food. And while walking is great it's not that big of a calorie burner. So log your food and exercise accurately.

sfbaumgarten

My diary is public now. Feel free to take a look at it.

And I have been gaining around .5 pounds each week for 2 weeks. Nothing crazy but enough to make me notice.

So no, I haven't been measuring out my foods each time I eat them. But I know for sure that I am not eating 2 times as much as the recommended serving size or anything like that. And when I know that what I'm eating is clearly over the serving size, I changed the serving number to 1.5 or 2 when I log.

This past week I have been eating a little over my calorie number by maybe 100-200. However, I've been walking about 3 miles a day so I figured that that had to make up for the extra calories.

You need to weigh and measure your food. It's that simple. If you think you're eating over and you're not weighing, you're probably eating a LOT over.

EvgeniZyntx

Be consistent in your logging - you have two days this last week without logging.
Measure.

1 lb gain over two weeks should not be a concern - could be water weight, TOM, etc...

Just keep swimming.

Michelle8683

Don't eat the calories you get back from exercising, the only time those extra calories come to help is when overeat. I would suggest that you lower your calorie intake to around 1350 calories a day. I hope I helped!

lc612411

By "moving around more at work", I mean going outside and walking a mile during each break and parking much farther away from the building and walking the rest of the way. That's around 3-4 miles a day. I would say this qualifies as lightly active.

grandmothercharlie

Sometimes, when you first start exercising, or increase exercise significantly, you retain more water. This goes to your muscles I believe to help heal and to move glycogen. I'm not sure of the science behind it, but I do know I had the same problem (actually much more so) and I just waited it out. After a couple of weeks, I started losing the additional and my body caught up to where it should have been. You can search this topic on the forum as that is where I found the info.

MACJL

I'd like to add my two cents also. I have just gotten back into my exercise program the last month and have really not lost any weight, but I have lost 8 inches. IF you are moving more, sometimes it's not the scale that matters, but the inches. Muscle weighs more than fat.

Also, I agree with everyone, you need to be accurate. The plus of logging is to see truly what you are eating and how much, it's really for YOU to be overly honest. Guessing and logging over or under won't help YOU.

And most of all, you've gotta move.

lc612411

One of my issues is that I live at home and my parents buy the groceries (I am a college student and am saving up as much money as possible). I am the only one in my house trying to lose weight so the food in the house probably isn't the best food to eat when trying to lose weight.

Maybe I should start buying my own groceries so I can have plenty of protein and vegetables in the house instead of sugary things. This may be a reason for my weight gain. My mom was doing weight watchers for my first 2 weeks of logging food and I lost weight. But my mom quit and stopped buying healthy foods and I've gained since then...

RGv2

One of my issues is that I live at home and my parents buy the groceries (I am a college student and am saving up as much money as possible). I am the only one in my house trying to lose weight so the food in the house probably isn't the best food to eat when trying to lose weight.

Maybe I should start buying my own groceries so I can have plenty of protein and vegetables in the house instead of sugary things. This may be a reason for my weight gain. My mom was doing weight watchers for my first 2 weeks of logging food and I lost weight. But my mom quit and stopped buying healthy foods and I've gained since then...

It really doesn't matter what food is in the house for weight loss. It's calories in vs calories out. If your logging was correct, a person could lose weight just eating twinkies, McDonalds's, etc. It may not be great for overall health, but can be done.

jeffpettis

If you are gaining you are not in a calorie deficit. Granted a half a pound a week is not much and could be a normal fluctuation, but the simple answer is, the only thing "required" for weight loss is a calorie deficit, if you are not losing weight then you are simply not in a deficit. You just have to figure out why you are not in a deficit...

hj1119

Just out of curiosity - are all these "homemade" entries your own?

I stay far far away from entries marked homemade, unless I put them in myself. You have no way of knowing what someone else puts in their homemade chili or on their homemade pizza. You could be looking at a difference of hundreds of calories depending on the recipe and preparation of a homemade dish. If my homemade potato salad contains the grease of a pound of cooked bacon it does not have the same caloric value per serving of someone making potato salad with light mayo.

Truly accurate logging takes a lot more work than most people are willing to put in, but if you aren't losing (or gaining) then I would go ahead and set a goal for yourself of 10 days or 2 weeks of 100% truly accurate logging. 100%. Buy a food scale - you can get a digital one from Amazon for less than $10 - and use it for EV.ER.Y.THING. Try to refrain from fast food as much as possible during your 2 week log challenge. Weigh even prepackaged foods just out of curiosity - I checked my prepackaged bread rolls - they're 120 cal for a 52g roll. Some rolls were 46g, but some were 70g or more! A 70g roll will be 161 calories. Those 41 missed calories can add up.

It'll be time consuming but at the end of two weeks, at least you can have a clearer picture of what you need to do whether its increase your intake, reduce your intake, adjust your macros, etc etc..

lc612411

I agree. However, it is a lot harder to feel full on 100 calories of junk food than on 100 calories of vegetables.

lc612411

The homemade foods are from when I go to a restaurant or something and their calories aren't listed anywhere so I just log the homemade version of that food

StaciMarie1974

Your intent is good, but pretty much you're just guessing. There is no way to know how one person's 'homemade food' compares to another dish even if it sounds similar. Ingredients vary, portions, etc. - you just don't know. Kind of like saying I ate a large apple and you said you ate a large apple. Our definitions of large are not going to be the same.

I would not worry about .5 pounds fluctuation x 2 weeks. Doing a new exercise routine, hormones, stress, sodium, etc. can cause water retention which is temporary. But take as much control of your food choices as possible, and weigh everything you eat on a food scale.

The homemade foods are from when I go to a restaurant or something and their calories aren't listed anywhere so I just log the homemade version of that food