If I dont workout I gain like crazy!

Ebwash89

I've noticed a patern with my body. If I get on a good role of working out 2-3 days straight I can lose a pound nicely but if I take more than a day off from working out I can gain 2-3 pounds back over night and then I have to start right back over again. Its driving me crazy! Why does this keep happening? Is it water? You would think at 1200 calories a day that you would atleast maintain without execise.

Acg67

I've noticed a patern with my body. If I get on a good role of working out 2-3 days straight I can lose a pound nicely but if I take more than a day off from working out I can gain 2-3 pounds back over night and then I have to start right back over again. Its driving me crazy! Why does this keep happening? Is it water? You would think at 1200 calories a day that you would atleast maintain without execise.

1) stop weighing yourself everyday

2) unless you are epically binging to the tune of 3500 to 7000+ cals over your maintenance it's not fat your gaining

engineman312

I've noticed a patern with my body. If I get on a good role of working out 2-3 days straight I can lose a pound nicely but if I take more than a day off from working out I can gain 2-3 pounds back over night and then I have to start right back over again. Its driving me crazy! Why does this keep happening? Is it water? You would think at 1200 calories a day that you would atleast maintain without execise.

1) stop weighing yourself everyday

2) unless you are epically binging to the tune of 3500 to 7000+ cals over your maintenance it's not fat your gaining

this.

and yeah, i'll be the first to chime in and say you should be eating more then 1200 cals a day. at least eat your exercise calories. just try it for two weeks.

and what kind of work outs do you do?

Ebwash89

I do cardio for the most part like Tae Bo but sometimes I'll switch it up and do ciruit training like Jillian Michaels so it incorporates weights or strength training.

Ebwash89

do cardio for the most part like Tae Bo but sometimes I'll switch it up and do ciruit training like Jillian Michaels so it incorporates weights or strength training.

engineman312

keep an eye on your sodium, and eat a little more protein, and stop weighing in every day. also, you don't need to work out every day. many people here lose weight without exercise.

_GlaDOS_

I agree with eating more - at least eat your exercise calories if your goal is 1200 calories or less per day. I imagine you would even be better off with a higher net calorie goal.

Ebwash89

Thanks. At one point as long as I stuck to my calories I was losing weight. Idk what happened :-/

engineman312

Thanks. At one point as long as I stuck to my calories I was losing weight. Idk what happened :-/

you body is a continuously changing machine. it will adjust to your increased activity and decreased food intake. trying new foods, a calorie spike day, intermittent fasting, and new exercise routines are great ways to give your body a boost out of a rut.

while i don't have scientific sources, an interval run is a great way to burn a lot of calories and "boost" your metabolism. try a light jog for 3 minutes, and then a sprint for one minute. this works well on a treadmill, where you can see the ellapsed time and your speed.

Aperture_Science

As others have said "stop weighing everyday". The reason for the fluctuations when you stop exercising is probably fluid retention as your muscles attempt to repair. You don't see this when you continue to exercise because you are continually flushing them by working them hard.

Ebwash89

Sadly I've tried all except for intermitted fasting. My body just wont budge

ironanimal

Stop ignoring what people are saying. Eat your exercise calories back, and consider upping your Net intake to 1400 or so.

mallory3411

I agree with cversey. There have been many multiple suggestions for you.

First of all, don't weigh yourself everyday. Weigh once a week at the same time, same day, under the same circumstances each and every week. Your weight fluctuates day by day and hour by hour so weighing everyday does not give you a realistic look at if you've actually gained weight.

Eat your exercise calories back. Eat at your BMR for the best weight loss. You may be undereating. Measure EVERYTHING you eat... you may be surprised at what a serving actually is and what you think it is. Watch the sodium, increase the water, increase your protein and fibre. Under estimate your calories burned from exercise as MFP tends to overestimate the amount.

Change up what you eat and do for exercise on a daily basis. Fasting may help you shed a pound or two (and maybe more) but usually you'll just gain it all back once you start eating again. Sometimes our bodies stop responding and than it's time to change things up a bit.

Ebwash89

Im not ignoring. I've tried uping my calories for a day or two and I end up gaining it back. Im a little afraid to eat 1400 everyday because I dont want to end up gaining everything I worked for back. In order to lose weight dont you have to burn more calories than you consume? So wouldnt eating half the calories you burned from exercise ruin your work or almost defiet the purpose?

anzi888

Not really... When you eat less calories than your body needs, it goes into starvation mode and hold on to the fat. It's not recommended to have a greater deficit than 500. If you really don't want to go up to 1400, try 1300. And yes eat the calories you burn, it seems odd but the body needs those calories to refuel!

and so I looked at your food diary. You are often below 1200, that's not good. You do take some empty calories/ useless sugars (gummy bears, oreo, merlot, etc) and you do consume a large amount of salt which will make you retain water. This is why you think you're gaining weight when you don't work out. Like all the others said, don't weigh yourself everyday.

ironanimal

Im not ignoring. I've tried uping my calories for a day or two and I end up gaining it back. Im a little afraid to eat 1400 everyday because I dont want to end up gaining everything I worked for back. In order to lose weight dont you have to burn more calories than you consume? So wouldnt eating half the calories you burned from exercise ruin your work or almost defiet the purpose?

It takes 3500 calories to make 1lb. You will not suddenly gain back from increasing your intake by 200. And for a couple of days, really? What's the hurry? It takes time for your body to adjust.

Ebwash89

Merlot is red wine. I thought it was actually healthy for you to have a glass of red wine a day??? And I don't drink it everyday. I understand with the gummi bears but are the 100 calories snack packs bad for you? Their low in calories and fat I assumed they were okay.

Ebwash89

I will try :-S. I have this fear now of gaining weight to be honest with you. A strong fear. I see another pound on the scale and I freak out. But in order to get to where i need to go I have to take a chance. I will try and if thats what my body has been needing this whole time I will be forever grateful :-)