5 a day makes me gain!

Louise1247

I have only gained a pound to half a pound , but fruit seems to be making me really bloated and gain a little weight back- this is the first gain since my weight loss started back in late February.

I have been eating 5 portions or less a day e.g:
Plum and juice for breakfast, raisins with lunch, banana and mushroom with another meal and then small amounts of salad with my meal.

Is this normal? how can i prevent this?

Dave198lbs

fruit is not a magical thing. you could limit your fruit to one serving a day and be just fine. rasins are not great as they are concentrated sugar,

try cutting back on the sugar (fruit)

Louise1247

ok, but this goes against everything I have ever learned! ll through my weight loss people were encouraging me to eat more fruit and veg

Its a perfect way to increase the calories, stay within carbs and stay below the fat limits! - veg does not give me the calories i need..

so confused

BeautyAndTheGeeks

The sugars in fruit are natural sugars, so I don't tend to worry too much about them. Certain fruits and vegetables are prone to making you more gassy/bloated though, so you kind of have to figure out which ones work for you. I prefer to stick with berries/bananas for fruit (although I've recently worked apples into my diet, despite them making me feel quite bloated and hungry if eaten alone) and then root vegetables, sweet peppers and carrots for my veggie intake. I'd like to start incorporating more greens into my diet too, but they leave me way too gassy, so I need to figure out a way to prevent that.
It's all trial and error, if you've recently upped your calories it'll take a couple of weeks for your body to adjust to that and then the weight will start coming off again .

Shelltighe87

I have the same problem. I ate apples and oranges like they were going out of fashion. Sounds daft but they contain natural sugar which is bad for you. So eating too many is just like having sugar.

vanderandkarl

maybe eat your 5 a day as veg also mix it up as your body gets used to the same foods all the time x

you really do need to eat your 5 a day to get all the vitamins and minerals you need to function properly

good luck xx

Pebble321

It's pretty unlikely that fruit and veg at making you gain - unless you aren't logging them and are going over your calories?
Australian guidelines suggest 5 veg and 2 fruit every day which seems like a good balance to me.

Edited to add: personally I wouldn't count juice or raisins as "fruit and veg" - they are both pretty concentrated forms of sugar, you need to be careful with portion sizes. How about dropping theses and replacing with with fresh fruit or veg.

ruggedBear

Try supplementing your veggies with lean proteins instead of fruits - lots more benefit with no downside, and similar calorie values. Within the first month of MFP, I dropped my fruit servings down to one or less per day, and it's been easier to curb sugar cravings when there's less sugar in my diet. There are some sweet vegetables that are good replacements when you do crave, or stick to berries which have plenty of nutrients to balance out the sugar.

Ilovejacks

My Dr. tells me only to eat between 1/2-1 servinging of fruit a day.Seems to work for me.Also, are you tracking your sugar on your food diary?

Louise1247

i havent upped my calories im still on 1200 that i have been since mid march

Also the veg doesnt supply me with the calories i really need to keep to a healthy amount!

Just looking over my diary now i think it may be the SALT!! water gain.. makes sense.

Also I log every tiny thing i eat, literally :P

Thanks guys

richx83

in the 5 a day program you should be aiming to be 3 - 4 portions of vegetables and 1 - 2 of fruit really.

Louise1247

yup i look at the sugar and everyone used to tell me not to worry about it if it comes from a fruit source! there is no way of sticking to just 27g anyway im sure...

Ill try a few things out and hope it sorts itself- my diet with little fruit worked well before so i should continue that way

Pebble321

i havent upped my calories im still on 1200 that i have been since mid march

Also the veg doesnt supply me with the calories i really need to keep to a healthy amount!

Just looking over my diary now i think it may be the SALT!! water gain.. makes sense.

Also I log every tiny thing i eat, literally :P

Thanks guys

This makes sense - salt is more likely to make you retain water an fruit and veg.
Keep up with the fruit and veg - they add so much goodness to your diet.
If you need to get up to cals, try higher cal options like avocado, bananas, sweet potato etc.

richx83

Oh and try not to drink calories in form of juices etc, its not great

madsenj12

It sounds like you aren't eating enough vegetables and too much fruit. Fruit is better to have as a snack and not with a meal. You could have a piece of fruit for breakfast before your meal, one piece for a snack mid morning and one mid afternoon as a snack. Eating fruit at night is not a good idea. Try not to eat dried fruits as they are full of sugar. You didn't say what type of meals you are eating but if you have a good balance of protein, carbs and vegetables then you are getting all the nutrition you need. The food diary is a great tool to keep you on track. Good luck. xx:happy:

Dave198lbs

i havent upped my calories im still on 1200 that i have been since mid march

Also the veg doesnt supply me with the calories i really need to keep to a healthy amount!

Just looking over my diary now i think it may be the SALT!! water gain.. makes sense.

Also I log every tiny thing i eat, literally :P

Thanks guys

I hope you arent afraid of fat. almond butter is an excellent source of good fat and has the calories you seem to need. ditch the juice and raisins and have some almond butter spread on a half an apple. yummy.

Louise1247

ok, I try to eat daily for veg: spinach, lettuce, cucumber, large mushrooms
and fruit: banana, plum, and raisins---- these are essential as the potassium is balancing out the salt from my diet

Shfiftyfive

I'm betting it's underestimating your calories consumed and/or overestimating your calories burnt that is making you gain. I've been on diets where I could eat as much fruit as I wanted and have lost weight.

RVfrog

I agree sugar in the fruit and salt will do that. Also, if you are careful with the serving size that can also help with a gain. I only get 2 fruits a day per dietitian because of the sugar content. Hope you got some good advice. YOU can do it. Be more aware of what you are eating for awhile and you'll be able to figure out what it is. Good luck

Pebble321

ok, I try to eat daily for veg: spinach, lettuce, cucumber, large mushrooms
and fruit: banana, plum, and raisins---- these are essential as the potassium is balancing out the salt from my diet

That's all good - but adding in extra veggies can only be a good thing. Look out for whatever is fresh and cheap and in season in your market - variety is good.

Louise1247

I tried almond butter and didnt like it BUT i love peanut butter

I eat chicken, haddock and gammon for my main meats

The fats i consume are from healthy sources such as olive oil, egg, peanut butter, etc- just trying to stick below the 50g mark

reach53

I would not count juice (unless you juiced it yourself) toward your fruit intake and I would be careful with dried fruit. Also the banana is very high in sugar. I avoid all 3 of those. Try being careful with overly processed foods. Some dried fruits are soaked in fructose prior to drying and I think it does not even have to be declared on the nutrition label. Not 100% sure though about that.

Better choices might be some berries to start off with. I go well with apples and oranges and pears. But everybody is different. Staying away from any processed foods is for me the fastest way to weight loss.

I would not worry so much about 1.5lbs it might just be the moon or TOM or a little too much salt. Weight naturally fluctuates...

Louise1247

I'm betting it's underestimating your calories consumed and/or overestimating your calories burnt that is making you gain. I've been on diets where I could eat as much fruit as I wanted and have lost weight.

Nah calories consumed im obsessive about- i make sure i check labels when logging them an stuff- the exercise i do is usually a 20 min selection of using my own body weight, cardio and resistance.

I measure everything too

Louise1247

This is all great advice!! I ill cut the dry fruit and the juice then, but will need to replace the calories somehow?

Dave198lbs

ok, I try to eat daily for veg: spinach, lettuce, cucumber, large mushrooms
and fruit: banana, plum, and raisins---- these are essential as the potassium is balancing out the salt from my diet

I have never heard potassium balances out sodium. for all I know it may be true but I have never heard that. the banana is one of the most over rated foods out there next to oatmeal. bananas have alot of sugar calories and I limit bananas to pretty much never. I dont know how the banana became so popular....fruit is a dessert item for me. I limit it and have had better success with limiting sugar items than not. I do eat blueberries quite often with my protein powder though.

Louise1247

ooooh- Quick question- is my diary public? I made it public

Louise1247

Yeah- my family made the mistake of adding fruit to their diet rather than replacing foods like dessert with it. They gained loads the week they tried it out!

Ill keep updated and swap for more veg- i off to the shop today anyhow

reach53

Some fresh fruit: they are so good!

reach53

Yes it is public. Good luck!!

flabisntfab

You should only have 2 servings a day.(: And none after 2 p.m. Studies show your body doesn't work as hard in the evening so eating any fruit after 2 p.m. could make you gain. Hope this was helpful!

claresusan

Had a look at your diary and although you are eating healthy and nutrient filled meals, have you thought about tracking your sugar as one of the options? Anyway, just my thought