Exercise and Weight Gain

captnesshowdy7

I have been following this program pretty religiously for about 3 weeks after a 6 month break (stupid yes but life will move on!). I have been exercising my behind off and the scale is moving UP when I exercise and not down. I know muscle weighs more than fat and I know that it will eventually move but I'm just so frustrated. I suffered a 5 pound gain after last week! :-( My clothes aren't fitting much better either. I think I am just imagining things and eventually everything will all work out, right? Right...I mean, it's only been 3 weeks after all.

BeautyFromPain

Bump.

garlic7girl

Well, check and make sure you measure food so you are accurately portioning out the correct amount. I know that is where I have faltered before and a weight scale for food also doesn't hurt either.
Also sometimes I think we focus (especially women) so much on weight instead of health. What we eat junk versus fruits and vegetable and whole grains have a tremendous effect on our bodies. Movement is important for our whole circulatory and nervous system not to mention mental health. So, do know that all of this is NOT in vain. It is helping you.

bentobee

When muscles are worked hard they hold onto water as part of the repair process. Keep exercising, keep hydrated.... the excess will eventually flush out and you'll see a nice drop on the scale!

BeautyFromPain

Are you drinking all your water?

Sometimes if we do not drink enough water and we do hard workouts our body holds onto everything it can (water weight) cos it has no idea what is going on

petrulak

It could be some water weight gain! I had that problem a few weeks ago. Don't give up, it will come back off.

Atthea

Hi there!

I had the same thing happen to me; for the first 5 months I gained steadily 2lbs/mth!!!!!!!! :noway: REALLY!!

It takes ahile to adjust..
I was probably eating more than before. ( as I used to starve myself)
And there is the water weight from all the new exercices..Muscles repare themselves with water retention...Fat cells won't change overnight; they want to stay the same size so they fill up with water.

Then finally I started losing again..only 3 lbs I know but better shape overall..
It can take weeks, months :ohwell: but consistency is the key so hang in there !

Don't forget to lower sodium, very low, i.e 1500
And cut sugars, most of them even fruits can get you way over your daily needs..!

It is so much fun to be limber and strong !!! Skin is clearer, mind is lighter !
Lots of nice things!! I love it even if I am still heavy!!

:flowerforyou:

rdvincent

I know how you feel! it's true though that your muscles hold water when you exercise, so keep it up, I haven't seem any scale progress in 2 weeks and I was discouraged, then my son pointed out it isn't only about the scale, we're making good lifestyle changes for better health on the inside, the outside will follow!

melhort

I agree! Drink.....drink......drink! You NEED to drink your water!! Don't give up! You will see results soon :happy:

SarahRuth♥

It is really hard to put on five pounds of muscle, and it takes a long time. A five pound gain can be explained a number of ways. First, of course, check your eating. Are you tracking everything? Are you staying within your goals? If you are, there are a couple other things I would look at. If your sodium intake is high, that can cause a water weight gain that will go away after a day or so. And if you exercise particularly hard one day and then weigh yourself the next day, you will see a gain because your muscles will retain water in order to repair.

If your eating is on track, I would recommend a day of low sodium and rest, staying within your goal calories and drinking lots of water... then weigh yourself first thing in the morning for an accurate weight.

Also, always weigh yourself at the same time of day using the same scale and wearing approximately the same weight in clothes (I stick with naked... safer that way). Your weight fluctuates throughout the day and a pair of jeans or a sweatshirt can make a bigger difference than you would think.

melhort

I know how you feel! it's true though that your muscles hold water when you exercise, so keep it up, I haven't seem any scale progress in 2 weeks and I was discouraged, then my son pointed out it isn't only about the scale, we're making good lifestyle changes for better health on the inside, the outside will follow!

I sooo agree!!

Tobi1013

Hey Manda! I took a quick look through the last week or so in your diary and I have a few suggestions (based on what has worked for me):

1. Start tracking your Sodium! This was a real eaye-opener for me and, though I am FAR from perfect, I can tell when I am gonnna hold on to water and see the scale go up based (partly) on my sodium intake.
2. Try to avoid Quick Add Calories whenever possible. Yes, calories are important, and the Quick Add is better than nothing, but it doesn't provide enough information (no macros, no sodium, etc.)
3. Be more consistent with your logging. There are several days in the last few weeks that were missing at least one meal. This is another one where I am not perfect, but I also know that our current weight loss goals are different. Believe me, when I was just starting, it was the religious logging that kept me honest and I saw great results.
4. If you are not already, weigh and measure your food. Even after a year of doing this and weighing and measuring consistently, I still struggle with eye-balling and seldom get it right (and wind up underestimating my intake). It is only when I get more strict with weighing and measuring that I see better results.

I know that you have been more consistent the last three weeks, and that is AWESOME, but I think that if you try to incorporate the above suggestions, you may start to see better results.

Tobi1013

Hi there!

I had the same thing happen to me; for the first 5 months I gained steadily 2lbs/mth!!!!!!!! :noway: REALLY!!

It takes ahile to adjust..
I was probably eating more than before. ( as I used to starve myself)
And there is the water weight from all the new exercices..Muscles repare themselves with water retention...Fat cells won't change overnight; they want to stay the same size so they fill up with water.

Then finally I started losing again..only 3 lbs I know but better shape overall..
It can take weeks, months :ohwell: but consistency is the key so hang in there !

Don't forget to lower sodium, very low, i.e 1500
And cut sugars, most of them even fruits can get you way over your daily needs..!

It is so much fun to be limber and strong !!! Skin is clearer, mind is lighter !
Lots of nice things!! I love it even if I am still heavy!!

:flowerforyou:

This is also really good advice!!!

EMc4452

I would suggest to not weigh yourself every week. Just focus on making good food choices, logging your diary, and exercising regularly. It is true that muscle is more dense than fat, but muscle also retains fluid when you start excersing after periods of rest...so hang in there. There are a LOT of reasons why you could be experiencing this weight gain...so defintiely don't let it get you down!

Quiltmania

Just keep at it. Something I learned from Weight Watchers -- when you exercise, you are actually breaking muscle fibers in order to build them up. Those muscle fibers hold water while they are healing. That is why, when you exercise more, you may see the scale go up. Your muscle fibers will eventually shed that extra water. Also, instead of focusing on the number on the scale, try looking at your measurements. Contrary to popular belief, muscle and fat weigh exactly the same amount (a pound of feathers weighs the same as a pound of bricks) but they do not have the same volume. The scale may not be moving but are your measurements changing?

captnesshowdy7

Thanks everyone! I really appreciate all the great advice and as much as I want to quick, I never will. I just need a little reassurance and a kick in the rear sometime.

Off to drink some more water! :happy:

neela31

I agree with one of the previous posters about your food intake. Try to log better and reduce some of the canned/proccessed foods and replace with whole natural foods.

Dottie27

bump