Screw this!

Lizzy_Sunflower

take measurements as well, the scale only shows 1/2 the story.

I highly recommend you read a ton about how the site works:

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/23912-links-in-mfp-you-want-to-read-again-and-again

there is SO much good information there. I particularly liked the your body's thoughts on calories thread

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/233474-the-latest-diet?hl=the+latest+diet

Best of luck! :drinker:

trekkiebeth

I guess the "I'm going to stop working out because it makes me gain weight" thing was pretty much an emotional outburst. I'll keep it up and try to be even more strict with food, but it's going to be difficult if two more weeks go by and I'm still gaining weight.

DestinyDarbi

Unfortunately I have to weigh myself every week because I just started participating in a weight loss competition, which is now going to be extremely embarrassing with all the weight I'm gaining.

I do watch my sodium and I buy mostly organic food.

You can pretty much ignore my food journal because I mostly use it as a guide since I eat basically the same thing every day. I can't afford much variety, so I just try to make what I buy as healthy as possible.

Don't just use MFP as a guide.. LOG LOG LOG.
Personally, I suck at estimating and doing it on my own. If I don't log for a day, then I go over probably by 300-400 calories. That adds up FAST. So log your food and don't give up.

SueInAz

Are you actually eating 1200 calories every day AFTER you subtract your exercise calories? That's called "net calories". If you're eating the same thing every day and are always at a net under 1200, you're not giving your body enough nourishment and it's not going to want to lose weight. I learned this one the hard way.

Keep in mind that losing weight is 80% nutrition and only 20% exercise. If you are really serious about simply losing weight, I'd cut back on the exercise for awhile, actually log your food and focus on getting those 1200 net calories every day for a few weeks. Often, seeing the total sum of what you're actually putting into your mouth each day can be an eye opener. Once you start losing, add your normal amount of exercise back in and be sure to eat back at least enough of your exercise calories to hit close to 1200 net each day.

GreenLifeGirl

First, make sure you are logging everything to ensure you are not eating too much or too little. Be faithful with that so you aren't guessing in the dark.

Second, give yourself time. Whenever I up the intensity of my workouts, my weight goes up 2-3 lbs because I am retaining extra water...but it always drops off once and in the meantime I get more fit. The scale is only a tool. Take measurements. = )

Third, DO NOT GIVE UP! If you are eating right, getting the right amount/kind of calories, and exercising...it WILL pay off. Give yourself time.

rml_16

I've been watching what I eat and working out regularly for 2 weeks now and I'm gaining weight faster than ever. If working out makes me gain weight, then I'm just going to stop.

And don't tell me it's muscle because you don't gain pounds of muscle after 2 weeks of cardio and a couple exercise DVDs.

If you guessed that I just got off the scale and cried for 5 minutes before posting this, you'd be right.

Your muscles retain water when exercise is new. It's part of repairing themselves.

There's more to health and fitness than the scale.

trekkiebeth

I tried taking my measurements once, but I couldn't get a consistent measurement for any one part. Anything that I measured varied by up to half an inch every time I tried.

grneyedgf

It's easy to get discouraged, but it's hard to stick with it. I don't know how many times I've heard people that the scale didn't budge after 4 or 5 weeks. Then one day, boom it finally got through the flat line. I also know that one month I ate nothing but tunafish and green beans and still gained 10 lbs. But a doctor will blow you off if you don't have a EXACT daily log. My deal was birth control pills, and found out I couldn't take them with out weight gain and depression. Look at what your eating, not just how many calories. Cut out breads and sugars for awhile and eat healthy fats like nuts, avacado's, olives & olive oil. These are some of the things that made a difference for me. Keep your chin up and fight back!

dmpizza

Two issues;
Are you working out hard enough and for long enough?
When you watch what you eat are you careful about portion sizes?

clw_888

You can lose weight by eating right and not exercising at all. You can't lose weight by eating terrible and exercising a bunch. Make sure the nutrition part is right and then GIVE IT TIME. It takes time for your body to adjust to reduced calories and to realize it can start letting go of the stored energy (fat). It doesn't happen overnight but it will happen!

lmelangley

How many calories are you eating? After I'd lost some weight, MFP lowered me to 1200 calories. My weight loss slowed and then stopped altogether. I then reset myself to only half a pound a week, increasing my calories to 1390. I've now lost 2 lbs in one week. I think that everyone is different, and calorie numbers that are good for one person, aren't for another. Try eating a bit more and see what happens.

ChitownFoodie

Gaining weight when you start a new routine is normal. You have to dig deep and get off the fracking scale! Leave it alone. Take measurements. Try on new clothes. Whatever. But two weeks won't see a big yield unless you're just dropping water weight anyway.

The only way you're going to fail is if you quit. Commit yourself to at least 90 days of a good, sound, scientifically tested routine (I don't mean random workouts).

If you want some help, shoot me a friend request. But no more crying!

Yup! I gained weight after all 90 days of P90x, but then lost the same amount after the second time i did it...so I netted 0! Looked 100% better, though.

BeeElMarvin

You've been on MFP long enough to know how this works. We've all been through it and you should know all the things you need to try. You vented, now keep working!

GreenLifeGirl

Ok, so I took a look at your diary. Wow, no wonder. You really need to log everything...I only see a couple days logged in the last couple weeks. First, start with logging everything and make sure you are actually eating back most of your exercise calories. Exercise only does so much good if you aren't eating right. Your food log is where to start....log faithfully everyday, everything you eat....and stay in your correct calorie amount and after two weeks of doing this....re-evaluate.

Let us know how it goes!

Bankman1989

I've been watching what I eat and working out regularly for 2 weeks now and I'm gaining weight faster than ever. If working out makes me gain weight, then I'm just going to stop.

And don't tell me it's muscle because you don't gain pounds of muscle after 2 weeks of cardio and a couple exercise DVDs.

If you guessed that I just got off the scale and cried for 5 minutes before posting this, you'd be right.

Here's a few suggestions...
1) Don't quit.
2) Don't say your gonna quit. Working out is just as mental as it is physical.

As far as weights I would suggest circuit training. If you are on a machine I would suggest very low weight and a ton of reps. In fact 10-20 pounds and doing as many reps as possible for 30 seconds. After a 30 sec rest repeat. Over time you will get a lot stronger and a lot leaner.

I looked at your eating and it looked great. You were pretty close to your daily caloric intake though. Burning more calories will help. 3500 cals = 1 pound of weight loss.

PS DON'T QUIT!!!

maab_connor

log, log, log, drink all of your water and log it to make SURE you're getting it in. remember that the protein on this site is set low, you can up it safely, and if you're working out, you SHOULD b/c your muscles need lean protein to repair, that will help them not hold on to as much fluid. note where you are in your cycle - i have one week a month i don't even LOOK at the scale b/c i know it will be wrong. note any new meds OR VITAMINS that you are taking.

it takes the body 30-40 days to understand that it's in a new program and for the signals to straighten out - also, it takes that long to form a habit - so log and water and log and water and log your water. lol.

biggest part? breathe. i know you're in a competition and that's adding stress, but try to keep in mind that this is about more than winning this one competition. you can do this. just let yourself relax a little.

kapeluza

"Why the Scale Lies

As a personal trainer I’m constantly warning people that the scales are an evil contraption designed to make us feel bad about ourselves and so “diet clubs” can look down on you and say “have you been cheating” to make you feel even worse!

I constantly tell people over and over again that daily weighing is unnecessary, yet how many of you cannot break the ritual of hoping on the scales every day. Do your self a favour and throw the scales in the bin or my favorite, give them to someone you don’t like! If you can’t bring yourself to do either of those then you should definitely familiarize yourself with the factors that can influence its readings. When you factor in things like water retention, glycogen storage and changes in lean body mass, fluctuations in your body weight is normal. The bathroom scale should not be looked upon as your sole guide of success or failure. Once you understand more about how the body works, you can free yourself from the daily battle with the bathroom scale.

Your body is made up of approximately 60% water. Daily fluctuations in the body’s water content can send scale-watchers into a panic if they don’t understand what’s happening. Two things that can influence water retention are water consumption and salt intake. As strange as it may sound, the less water that you drink, the more of it your body retains! If you are even slightly dehydrated your body will hang onto its water supplies, possibly causing the number on the scale to creep upward. So if you are thirsty, drink up as you are already dehydrated!

Excessive amounts of salt (sodium) in our diet can also play a big role in water retention. A single teaspoon of salt contains over 2,000 mg of sodium. As a guide, we should only eating between 1,000 and 3,000 mg of sodium per day, so it can be easy to go overboard. Sodium is a sneaky substance, its in nearly everything you eat and drink. The more highly processed a food is, the more likely it is to have a high sodium content. That is why, when it comes to nutrition I recommend sticking to the basics: fruits, vegetables, lean meat, beans, and whole grains. Be sure to read the labels on canned foods, frozen meals and anything that comes packaged in a box.

Women may also retain several pounds of water prior to menstruation. This is very common and the weight will likely disappear as quickly as it arrives. As with general water retention, pre-menstrual water-weight gain can be minimized by drinking lots of water, maintaining an exercise program, and keeping high-sodium processed foods to a minimum.

The body stores carbohydrates as glycogen. Think of glycogen as the fuel tank for daily living. Some of this glycogen is stored in the liver and some is stored the muscles themselves. This energy reserve weighs more than a pound and for every gram of glycogen stored the body stores approximately 4 grams of water. This can add up to 3-4 pounds of water weight when its stored. Your glycogen supplies, along with the stored water, will shrink during the day if you fail to take in enough carbohydrates. When this happens our weight will drop on the scales but its only temporarily because as soon as we eat a meal containing carbohydrates the body will fill the glycogen fuel tank along with storing water. It’s normal to experience glycogen and water weight fluctuations of up to 2 pounds per day even with no changes in your calorie intake or activity level. These fluctuations have nothing to do with fat loss, however I can imagine they would make the weekly weigh-in at the diet club frustrating, something I’m sure they don’t tell you about!

People also tend to forget the actual weight of the food that we eat on a daily basis will affect the number on the scale. So eating a big meal along with any drinks before hopping on the scale is only going to result in a higher reading. The 5 pounds you put on right after eating a huge meal with drinks is not fat, it’s the weight of the food and will be gone in several hours when the body has finished digesting it. For this reason, it’s a good idea to weigh yourself first thing in the morning before you’ve had anything to eat or drink.

In order to store one pound of fat we need to eat 3500 calories above our daily caloric needs. So if you take the above example, to actually store the above dinner as 5 pounds of fat, you would have to eat a massive 17,500 calories. This is highly unlikely, and in fact it’s probably not humanly possible(but please don’t try to prove me wrong!). So if the scale goes up 3 or 4 pounds overnight, relax, as it’s most likely increased water weight, glycogen, and the weight of your dinner. Bear in mind that the 3,500 calorie rule also works in reverse. If our goal is to lose one pound of fat you will need to burn an extra 3,500 calories more than you take eat. Generally, it’s only possible to lose 1-2 pounds of fat per week. So when you follow a severely low calorie diet that causes your weight to drop 10 pounds in 7 days, it’s physically impossible for all of that to be fat. What you’re really losing is water, glycogen, and muscle.

This brings me to the scale’s sneakiest lie. The scale doesn’t just weigh fat; in fact it only tells you how heavy you are under gravity at that moment. So when you hope on the scale what it collectively weighs your muscles, bones, water, internal organs, in fact everything that is you. Losing weight and losing fat are two different things and in fact, the scale has no way of telling you what you’ve lost (or gained). With that in mind, if you have been on a restrictive diet and lost a lot of weight in a short period of time then you have probably lost a lot of muscle tissue. Losing muscle is nothing to celebrate. Muscle is a metabolically active tissue, the more muscle you have the more calories your body burns on a daily basis, even while you are sat reading this. That’s one of the reasons why a fit, active person is able to eat considerably more food than the dieter who is painfully counting points and who is unwittingly destroying muscle tissue. Also if you are losing a lot of weight by crash dieting and not exercising and therefore by sacrificing muscle tissue you will not get the body transformation results you desire. You will just end up a smaller version of yourself. Or as one of my clients recently put it, a smaller fat person!

If you were to compare your muscles and fat to gold and feathers with one pound of fat being a big lumpy bag of feathers, and one pound of muscle as a small but extremely valuable piece of gold. Our goal would then be to get rid of the lumpy feathers and replace it with as much gold as possible. So in effect we would weigh exactly the same the only problem with the scale is that it doesn’t differentiate between the two. It can’t tell you how much of your total body weight is lean tissue (gold) and how much is fat (feathers).

Skin-fold calipers, hydrostatic (or underwater) weighing and bioelectrical impedance are all methods we can use to measure our body composition to discern whether we are losing (or gaining) fat and muscle and while none of these methods are 100% accurate, they offer a better way of measuring our bodies changes than the scale.

Now if the thought of being pinched, dunked, or gently electrocuted doesn’t appeal to you, don’t worry, one of the best measurement tool of all is a simple tape measure and your very own eyes. If the tape is showing that you have lost inches, your clothes fit better and the person looking back at you in the mirror is a leaner, fitter more confident person who isn’t bound by different coloured days then surly that is a better judge of your success than the lies from the bathroom scale.

Do yourself a favour and buy yourself a big hammer and introduce it to the springy, beady eyed lying menace, not only will you release a lot of built up tension but you will feel better for it, (just be sure to wear the correct safety clothing)!

Train Hard, Eat Smart! "

ejohndrow

-Actually log your food in
-eat more fruits/vegetables/natural fiber
-try not to eat packaged foods
-one day of healthy eating will no automatically undo months or years of unhealthy eating, give it time
-drink more water
-exercise more
-the body's weight can fluctuate quite a few lbs over the course of a day
-try to weigh in only once a week
-don't expect to drop so much in 2 weeks

margmeyers

It's just a little set back. Make sure you take your measurements 'cause if you don't lose the lbs, perhaps you're losing the inches. Don't give up. You don't have far to go!

iuangina

If you are not logging in, are you writing down what you eat? One of the best ways to lose weight is too keep a log of what you are eating (even if it is the same thing every day). You also need some variety in what you eat. I know that when I eat the same things every day by body stops losing weight. I have to have a different amount of calories every day in order for my body to function. It kind of tricks my system. I think you are retaining water right now but it will eventually go away. Also, I think another person asked where you are in your cycle....I tend to have a fluctatution of 2-3 lbs during that time of the month.