Gaining weight!!! Help

holly333

Okay, so I'm at a loss--I started back on my fitness pal and I've been following everything to a tee for about 1 week and a half. I set my weight loss to one pound a week giving me 1320 calories a day before exercise. I started working out pretty hard --on the elliptical, running and some strength training. I wear a heart rate monitor that says I've been burning 850 calories per workout (I workout about 1 1/2 hours) And yes, I made sure to eat back all the calories that I worked out to get to the 1320. (and I know the calories are right since I either eat pre-packaged stuff or measure all my food out) Anyway, I started at 157. I weigh myself in the morning and I notice I was creeping up on the scale so I refigured my fitness pal to lose 2 pounds a week--cutting me back to 1200 calories. So today I got on the scale and I'm up to 161 pounds. What gives? I'm eating the correct number of calories so no starvation, I'm not cheating with my eating, I drink water, I exercise,--why have I gained 4 pounds? I might as well going back to eating whatever I want!

holly333

Okay, so I'm at a loss--I started back on my fitness pal and I've been following everything to a tee for about 1 week and a half. I set my weight loss to one pound a week giving me 1320 calories a day before exercise. I started working out pretty hard --on the elliptical, running and some strength training. I wear a heart rate monitor that says I've been burning 850 calories per workout (I workout about 1 1/2 hours) And yes, I made sure to eat back all the calories that I worked out to get to the 1320. (and I know the calories are right since I either eat pre-packaged stuff or measure all my food out) Anyway, I started at 157. I weigh myself in the morning and I notice I was creeping up on the scale so I refigured my fitness pal to lose 2 pounds a week--cutting me back to 1200 calories. So today I got on the scale and I'm up to 161 pounds. What gives? I'm eating the correct number of calories so no starvation, I'm not cheating with my eating, I drink water, I exercise,--why have I gained 4 pounds? I might as well going back to eating whatever I want!

gingermoon

Are you retaining water by chance?
I tend to gain up to 4 pounds for a week every month.

You may just be gaining muscle.
You can be toning and shrinking your body without weightloss and sometimes weight gain.
Try not to get so upset by what the numbers tell you.
Go by how you feel and how your clothes fit.


:flowerforyou:

shoppie

My guess with all that weight training would be you are gaining muscle. Have you taken measurements so you can check if you have lost inches even if you haven't lost pounds? I exercise a lot, and even when I'm slim I am right at the top of my 'acceptable' weight range for my height because I genuinely carry a lot of muscle.

There doesn't seem to be a hug smiley, but sending you a hug anyway as I understand it must be sooo frustrating!

cbrooks66

You may be just gaining muscle. Also, make sure that you're eating your proteins first, then your carbs so you don't have a spike in insulin. Also, it's just one week. You're fine...

mjfer123

If you're eating habits were poor before,
like binging and then starving
your body needs to get itself on track and know that it doesnt need to save nutrients (gain weight)
when you smooth this trend out, you should notice a dramatic decrease at first, followed by a more gradual losing streak.

Hope this helps.
Other wise, your body could still be adjusting without the previous symptoms if this is still a major change, your body just needs to fine tune itself and then it will be set.

plm209

Its probably just a muscle gain. Remember, muscle is denser than fat, so you can lose inches without losing pounds. This is why you might want to gauge your success with body measurements, not weight. There is a quote that caught my attention however:

and I know the calories are right since I either eat pre-packaged stuff or measure all my food out

Those pre-packaged foods can contain TONS of sodium and other artificial preservatives. These can all cause you to retain water and therefore, cause your weight to go up. Maybe try to stay away from the pre-packaged and try eating only "natural" foods. Just my 2¢. :happy: