What the heck is going on?

infinikate

This is mostly just a rant out of frustration, but I've been super concious of my calories for the past two weeks, and working out regularly, getting a solid burn, doing both cardio and weights, eating reasonably clean, minimizing processed food, drinking 3L of water per day, doing all the stuff we all know we should be doing, and this week... a gain of 1.6lbs. I'm so frustrated with this rut that I'm stuck in.

I can feel that I'm making progress on the cardio, I am not struggling as much to get through the 45 minutes that I've set for myself, and next week I'm going to try to bump it up to an hour. I'm doing intervals, and have been able to raise the resistance and incline and am still able to maintain good form. I know that feeling physical progress in my fitness level should be enough for me right now, and I would have been willing to accept a week without losing, but to gain? I am not even sure how that is possible. UGH!

So frustrated.

kme2011

if you are close to having a menstral cycle that will cause you to gain weight. I can gain 3-4 pounds that week because of the water. And it makes me sick. So during that week i'm no where near that scale. I make it a point to not even look at it. lol

mzlynnduh

Don't weigh yourself because you're gaining muscles mass. Muscle mass weighs more than fat. The best thing you should do is to measure yourself with the measuring tape on your arms, thighs, waist etc.

tabi26

That's why I take measurements. When the scale won't move, or goes in the opposite direction, I bust out my handy dandy measuring tape and see the inches I've lost. Makes for great motivation!

kaleynichol

Also keep in mind, muscle weighs more than fat. My trainer advised me to stop weighing myself for a little while, because it was so frustrating to see those stupid numbers on the scale. You've been building your endurance and doing a lot of cardio; that's burning fat and building muscle. Keep track of things like how much more losely your clothes are fitting, how good you feel after a workout, how healthy your food choices make you feel, etc. Focus less on the number and more on your body overall. You might even think about measuring your "problem ares," like your hips, waist, etc, if you just feel the need to have a number to measure your progress.

Don't be discouraged! I weighed 207 when I first started the actual effort part of losing weight. I have slowly come down 32 pounds, and there were plenty of weeks that I either gained weight back or didn't budge at all. I once forbid myself from weighing for about three months, and when I finally got back on the scale I had lost ten more pounds!

Edit: Lol when I first replied to this, there were no other comments yet. I didn't mean to repeat back to you exactly what several other people already said!! But see, it's obviously true!

infinikate

Thanks All. I know I'm being a huge suck about this, and I really do know to pay attention to other things, but just got really frustrated this morning. Thanks for the pick me up!

Tourney3p0

Muscle weighs more than fat, but it still doesn't account for weight gain so long as you're eating at a calorie deficit.

docmenon83

hey
there will come a time when u will plateau....ur putting on muscle...hence the minute weight gain
increasing your cardio from 45 to 1 hr is gonna increase ur endurance...the idea is to keep ur bmr high for as long as possible even after your workout is over....
try this simple thing....break ur walk or jog into sections of high and moderate intensity...
high...walk or jog at 9-10 on a scale of 1-10 for 1 min followed by a moderate intensity walk scale 3-5 for 2 mins...
keep repeating this cycle till the end of ur workout...it helps to raise ur bmr for a really long time after the workout...

it'll be something different from the routine...why dont you give it a shot

rockerbabyy

muscle doesnt weigh more than fat - a lb of fat is the same as a lb of muscle - the muscle is just more dense.

OP: i would suggest eating your exercise calories. you net pretty low some days.

akkbatra

I had been stuck in scale for 7-8 weeks.
Negatives I noted - 1) not calculating portion size exactly. 2) having cheat meals too frequently. 3) consuming whisky more often than planned.

Positives - 1) I was decreasing waist wise. Had to make belt tight thrice during that period. 2) The new size pant bought fortnight ago, also kept loosening during a dance session. 3) Was able to palpate the new tones of muscles.

Now again started to loose on scale as well. Keep going.

Tourney3p0

muscle doesnt weigh more than fat - a lb of fat is the same as a lb of muscle

A pound of fat is not the same as a pound of muscle. One occupies considerably more space.

Of course, we both knew what the other was trying to convey.

becoming_a_new_me

Try tracking your sodium intake...looking at it, seems like you're probably really high. Also drink more water. You are more than likely retaining water.

Helloitsdan

You dont eat enough for an hours worth of work.
the diary setting should be closer to 1600 daily.
Not 1250...

LesleeAH

It is very difficult to gain muscle in a calorie deficit.

It's only one week, so don't stress about it. If it becomes a problem over more than a month, you should change either your diet or exercise.

Some weeks when I get on the scale I'm up a kg or more simply due to normal bodily fluctuations - water, hormones, etc.

SteveHunt113

Here are a couple of articles worth reading. The first is about how some people will drop weight, then stop, and then drop again. The second is a must read about plateauing.

http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/of-whooshes-and-squishy-fat.html

http://fitnesswithnatalie.blogspot.com/2011/05/most-dreaded-word-in-weight-loss.html

I don't know if either of these will be helpful or not to your situation, but at least one of them will likely be beneficial at some point.

xHelloQuincyx

http://www.everydayhealth.com/weight/busting-the-muscle-weighs-more-than-fat-myth.aspx


read this

LesleeAH

http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/of-whooshes-and-squishy-fat.html

That was a great read, explained what I have been experiencing. Thanks!

sailorsiren13

bump

ChristineS_51

Here are a couple of articles worth reading. The first is about how some people will drop weight, then stop, and then drop again. The second is a must read about plateauing.

http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/of-whooshes-and-squishy-fat.html

http://fitnesswithnatalie.blogspot.com/2011/05/most-dreaded-word-in-weight-loss.html

I don't know if either of these will be helpful or not to your situation, but at least one of them will likely be beneficial at some point.

Like the opening post, I too suddenly seemed to have slowed down, and now put on - only a kilo but hey, that's not in the plan! I found the link from natalie very interesting, and gave me some hope, hope it will help the OP too

Thanks for sharing the links, and BTW - LOVE your arms

coraliethomas

I took a look at your diary... and I dont mean to offend... but the tim hortons Bfast sandwiches, choc chip cookies and gummy worms might not have helped either...

However.. if you are weight training and doing all kinds of cardio, or close to your period/ovulation those are all things that could scramble the numbers...Like the others have said.. pay attention to the measuring tape, its my fallback when the scale is being mean.

kaitlynn29

Here are a couple of articles worth reading. The first is about how some people will drop weight, then stop, and then drop again. The second is a must read about plateauing.

http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/of-whooshes-and-squishy-fat.html

http://fitnesswithnatalie.blogspot.com/2011/05/most-dreaded-word-in-weight-loss.html

I don't know if either of these will be helpful or not to your situation, but at least one of them will likely be beneficial at some point.

the second article explains sooo much. Ive pretty much stayed at the same weight for a whilee anddd I get headaches. I RARELY had headaches before I changed my diet. I'm going to up my calories a bit and see if that helps. Thankss so much(:

mocoworm

Don't weigh yourself because you're gaining muscles mass. Muscle mass weighs more than fat. The best thing you should do is to measure yourself with the measuring tape on your arms, thighs, waist etc.

Muscle does NOT weigh more than fat. 1lb of muscle is the same weight is 1lb of fat.

Muscle is DENSER than fat. This means 1lb of muscle fits in a smaller space than 1lb of fat. This is how you can look leaner but weigh more.

Teliooo

Also keep in mind, muscle weighs more than fat. My trainer advised me to stop weighing myself for a little while, because it was so frustrating to see those stupid numbers on the scale. You've been building your endurance and doing a lot of cardio; that's burning fat and building muscle. Keep track of things like how much more losely your clothes are fitting, how good you feel after a workout, how healthy your food choices make you feel, etc. Focus less on the number and more on your body overall. You might even think about measuring your "problem ares," like your hips, waist, etc, if you just feel the need to have a number to measure your progress.

Don't be discouraged! I weighed 207 when I first started the actual effort part of losing weight. I have slowly come down 32 pounds, and there were plenty of weeks that I either gained weight back or didn't budge at all. I once forbid myself from weighing for about three months, and when I finally got back on the scale I had lost ten more pounds!

Edit: Lol when I first replied to this, there were no other comments yet. I didn't mean to repeat back to you exactly what several other people already said!! But see, it's obviously true!

Muscle does not weigh more than fat.

em9371

as some other posters have said, your cals seem very low, some days you have netted way below 1000 which is going to cause your body to hang onto fat.

I weigh 212lbs and eat 1770-1900 most days, netting around 1500-1600 after exercise, and i have lost 9.5 lbs last month.

Try increasing your protein too, MFP standard is very low @ 15%, especially if you are working out. Cook food from scratch as much as possible, and try tracking sodium as this can cause water weight.

KathleenPub

WHen I started I would be super careful about what I eat, work out every day and track everything and not only did I gain weight my measurements didn't change and I lost zero inches...anywhere...I think I actually gained a bit. It was like this for over a month and the funny thing for me was that I would get uber bummed and take a day where I said F**K it! And put on sweats and eat a giant plate of fries and cheese, wash it down with a pepsi, eat some cookie dough and do NOTHING! I would wake up the next day or a couple days later and lost two lbs. Not really sure why but whenever I plateau or get discouraged, this never fails for me lol, as long as I don't do it all the time or every week it always helps to reboot me and my motivation, especially since I tend to lose a couple lbs and I alwayas hate how gross I feel after all the grease which just reinforces the healthy food and excercise lol. Soo! My advice : Eat fries and cheese :P

Stefanie7125

I don't weigh every week, only about once a month. I hate the scale. I measure. It is so much more encouraging. I see inches lost long before I see lbs lost. Don't give up, concentrate on eating healthier and forget the scale!