trying hard but gaining weight

Baldylocks30

i have only joined here the last couple of days but i have been on my new diet and exercise regime for about 3-4 weeks now, i have significantly reduced my food intake and taken a much healthier routine.

on top of this i have joined a gym and do at least 60 minutes per week minimum - which is a big step up from nothing at all.

i am, a big lady and have a lot to lose so the first month surely i should be losing something and yet i have gained about 6lbs altogether over these weeks and i am absolutely gutted about it

TavistockToad

if you opened your diary, people might be able to help more.

kelscot30

Hey honey

Be good if you published your food diary then people here could help you better. Best decision I made.

Just try and remember though that you are being more active and taking more positive steps towards a healthier lifestyle for a long term, healthy weight loss x

Emma1903

Are you eating high carbs? If your working out a lot you might find some gain from water retention in your muscles. Open your diary and people can give better advice.

darsh11

Make sure you are drinking enough water. If you are not drinking enough water your body holds onto the water it has. Also check with your doctor to make sure you don't have any problems with your sugar levels or thyroid. Both can be killers if you are trying to lose weight. You might also be eating too many fruits and not enough veggies. This happened to me. Hang in there it is a long road to get to your perfect self so just keep going one step at a time.

wardba4

Not to over simplify things but it's as simple as calories in vs calories out!
If you are gaining either you are maybe under estimating what you are eating or over estimating your exercising.

sassysaylorgirl

i understand your frustration, but you have to remember since you are doing exercise that weight gain might be from muscle you are now gaining. Muscles weigh more than fat so it makes you gain weight, but you might actually be loosing inches! Just hang in there & keep doing what you are doing & the weight will start coming off! I think walking as fast as you can helps a lot with weight loss too! You also have to take in consideration water retained in your system for weight gain also! Keep up the good work & you will see results soon! Good Luck & God Bless You!!!

claire_xox

Mm I agree a bit, less food is great but are your food choices good choices? The best thing about diets is when you eat clean you can actually eat a greater volume of food and still lose!
It's hard to know what isn't going right for you, but if possible I'd lower carbs and sugar a little and add some more green veggies ... hard to know if that's good advice or not because I don't know where you're at.

Goodluck and I hope things improve!

Baldylocks30

how do i open my diary?


water is an issue - i do drink it but not enough so i will up that from now xx oh and my diary says no cups of water because i only just saw it on the page lol

Baldylocks30

ok i think i have managed to open it so feel free to have a gander, i am off to uni for a few hours now so will catch up later, thank you for your help and suggestions xx

lacroyx

In the tabs go to FOOD > SETTINGS > scroll to the bottom and set it to Public.

Coltsman4ever

Your body, not unlike an automobile, needs fuel to run. Make sure you're filling the tank properly by eating the calories MFP tells you to eat. Get yourself a heart rate monitor so you can more accurately count calories burned during cardio exercise. Weight training is a great way to turn your body into a fat burning machine. Hit the wieghts in addition to cardio exercise.

adonhoff0001

You'll gain muscle that first bit so you will see weight gain at first, since muscle weighs more than fat, but don't get discouraged! You may see your weight only go down slowly at first as your body sheds fat and gains muscle, but keep on your schedule and diet plan and you will see results. Its a lengthy process, but keep it up! You'll start feeling better and having more energy and it will get so much easier!

SergeantSunshine_reused

You'll gain muscle that first bit so you will see weight gain at first, since muscle weighs more than fat, but don't get discouraged! You may see your weight only go down slowly at first as your body sheds fat and gains muscle, but keep on your schedule and diet plan and you will see results. Its a lengthy process, but keep it up! You'll start feeling better and having more energy and it will get so much easier!

No. If only it was that easy to gain muscle. Very hard to put on mass in a calorie deficit. You wont be gaining much in a 3 week period even if you are eating a surplus of calories

Jemmuno

are those calories you've eaten the last 2 days correct? if so you need to eat more your body may be going into starvation mode meaning your body will hold onto anything you give it.

bluegirl10

If you diary is complete and that's all you have been eating, then you are not eating enough!.. Especially if you are working out every day! You need to start eating more from what I can see of your diary... Good Luck and don't give up!.. You can do it! :flowerforyou:

TavistockToad

From the couple of days you have logged you arent eating anywhere near enough, especially if you are burning 900 cals working out. you need to be hitting your calorie goal, and at the least, NET 1200 cals per week.

abbie017

You aren't eating enough. You have less than 800 calories for each day, and you have very high calorie burns.

(1) You should eat no less than 1200 calories per day. It's counter-intuitive, but you have to eat to lose.
(2) Make sure you are tracking calories with a HRM. At the very least, underestimate what you do if you are tracking with the MFP calculations or by the numbers of the machines. The calculations for calories burned on here can be really, really off.
(3) Search "eating back exercise calories." It's a contentious issue on the message boards and really depends on how your body holds on to food and processes calories. The posts should give you some background on whether or not you should be eating back at least some of those calories you burned.
(4) Be sure to have good macros: carbs, protein, and fat. Higher protein is helpful in building muscle.
(5) Working out strenuously (which you could make a case for by going from no exercise to regular exercise) causes your muscles to retain water, which can add to your weight.
(6) Be sure to drink lots of water and limit sodium to no more than 2,500 mg each day, but 1,500 mg or less is ideal.
(7) Avoid processed foods as much as possible.

Good luck! I hope some of these tips can help you.

Coltsman4ever

You'll gain muscle that first bit so you will see weight gain at first, since muscle weighs more than fat, but don't get discouraged! You may see your weight only go down slowly at first as your body sheds fat and gains muscle, but keep on your schedule and diet plan and you will see results. Its a lengthy process, but keep it up! You'll start feeling better and having more energy and it will get so much easier!

You will not see a gain from muscle unless you're working out 6 or 8 hours a day every day. It takes a long time and a LOT of hard work to gain even a small amount of muscle weight. Especially in a short period of time.
I noticed after looking at your diary, you're not eating nearly enough calories. Try to work in about 5 small meals a day to hit your calories.

According to the amount of calories you're burning comapared to the amount you're taking in, your body is going to hold on to ever lb of fat for emergency stores.

If you lose your job and are no longer bringing in money, you're not gonna run out and spend more. Your body is no different. If you're not bringing in calories, your body will conserve all the fat you are currently storing, for use later when it's needed. Eat more (healthy foods), lose more weight.

Ajaay

I only saw the last two days logged and you aren't eating enough. Make sure you log every bite and never go below 1200 calories (unless you are a short tiny person I suppose). You have to eat enough to not go into starvation mode.

kaetmarie

Eat all your calories! Your body needs them and MFP already calculates a deficit based on your goals

Nikstergirl

I'm saying this from a place of love, so please hear me.....

I know it goes against everything we think about "dieting" but you HAVE to eat!!! At LEAST three good meals, starting with a nice breakfast, protein at every meal, and eat the calories MFP gives you. Trust me, it will come off!!!! Measure and weigh your food so you know the calories are accurate. Get a heart rate monitor so you know how many calories you're burning and EAT them!!!! It's not complicated, but it's also so different from what we think of as a "diet". I can and will be eating this way for the rest of my life and after losing 50 pounds I never want to go back there again!!!

You can do this... but for crying out loud... EAT something!!!!

Ok, I'll be rooting for ya...

margo36

Had a look your food diary. You need to eat more food. No way could I survive on 700 to 800 cals a day. You need to net at least 1200 cals a day. Have a look at my diary if you find helpful. I eat my allowance plus most my exercise calories. I've lost 7 pounds in the last three weeks. I used to weigh over 300 pounds and lost most of it with another site which was a paying site but the principles were the same this site.

IronSmasher

This is the best thread ever.

LorinaLynn

What they said! If that's all you're having, that's not nearly enough. When I tried to lose weight years ago, I did the same thing - severely limiting my food - and my weight loss was so slow that I quit and gave up. This time, I ate more than twice as much food, felt great the whole time, had steady progress, and never felt deprived or frustrated.

Plus, fluctuation is normal. If you're exercising hard, your muscles will be sore and sore muscles hold onto fluid, which shows as weight on the scale. Monthly girlie issues change your weight. Sodium in food affects your weight.

What I'd do if I were you... Step away from the scale for a few weeks. Eat the calories allowed, and a good chunk of the calories burned through exercise. Take measurements now, and take some before pictures, with a self-timer or in the mirror, now. The less clothes you have on the better, and they're for your eyes only so don't delete them if you don't like how they look. Then in a few weeks, check the scale, your measurements, and take more photos in the same clothes and the same pose. You *will* see a difference.

And give yourself some goals that have nothing to do with the scale or how your clothes fit. For me, it was training to run a 5k. I couldn't run a quarter of a mile last year. I started the Couch to 5k running program - www.c25k.com - and started with running just one minute at a time. Each week, when I increased my distance, it was a victory, and no matter what happened on the scale, I knew I was getting healthier and stronger. Now I can run a 10k, something I never thought I'd be able to do!

It's hard looking at it one day at a time. We don't see the changes because they happen so gradually (both when the scale's going up and when it's coming down!), so think about what's going to happen a month from now, two months from now, six months from now, a year from now.

Biggipooh

Aren't you hungry all day? With only this little food? You got to eat a little more than that. Good luck with your weight loss.

jacksons4hokies

Good Luck, I have only been here for 4 days also..love this site. Hang in there I have similar issues as yours but we need to be patient for our results

kfue

I'm having the exact same problem. I started seriously exercising 3 weeks ago- running (~6 mph) on an elliptical about 45 min a day for 3-5 days a week and doing some weight training (and softball 2x a week). I also walk a lot at work (before, after and during). My heart rate monitor says that I am burning just over 2000 calories in a ~15 hour period (not incl. sleep) on workout days. I very rarely eat more than 2000 calories in a day and I am eating more than 1200 calories a day. I have somehow managed to gain 5-7 lbs in the 3 weeks since I've up'ed my workout (clothes are now tight, I am not losing inches). Not even sure how this is possible.

It's extremely discouraging.

Can you all let me know what I'm doing wrong?

Jaymefirst

I agree with the other posters, you need to eat more. I know that sounds crazy but seriously you must be so hungry not to mention tired. Your body needs fuel to run correctly. This is a learning process, keep it up!! Good Luck!

TavistockToad

I'm having the exact same problem. I started seriously exercising 3 weeks ago- running (~6 mph) on an elliptical about 45 min a day for 3-5 days a week and doing some weight training (and softball 2x a week). I also walk a lot at work (before, after and during). My heart rate monitor says that I am burning just over 2000 calories in a ~15 hour period (not incl. sleep) on workout days. I very rarely eat more than 2000 calories in a day and I am eating more than 1200 calories a day. I have somehow managed to gain 5-7 lbs in the 3 weeks since I've up'ed my workout (clothes are now tight, I am not losing inches). Not even sure how this is possible.

It's extremely discouraging.

Can you all let me know what I'm doing wrong?

You are burning 2000 cals on top of the cals you burn just living, but you arent fueling your body to deal with all the exercise so it's clinging to all the weight that it can.

Eat more!

Jaymefirst

Kfue - Can you open your diary, it may help.