How can this be?

dlmowrey

Last week I lost two pounds, this week I gained them back!! I followed the program, exercised and was under my calorie goal every day! Does this system even work??

TavistockToad

how long did it take you to put all the weight on? longer than 2 weeks i would presume, so it will take longer than that to get it all off again... you need to be patient.

yes, the 'system' of eating less and moving more DOES work!

jensenkm2

I did the same thing when I first started, lost 5 pounds then put on 3. I was so discouraged. I had to start weighing in less in the beginning and just trusting that eating under my calories (and not eating back all the exercise ones) would really work. Try to weigh in every other week. Give it some time. You will see the results!!

Mako4761

did you do any weight lifting? retaining water?

If you gained weight from lifting, that is a good thing. Muscle burns fat and thats what you want.

Some people have drastic weight changes just based on keeping other stuff in their bodies (water, feces, etc).

Give it some time.

Aperture_Science

This is pretty common.

Most peoples bathroom scales are accurate to +/- 1lb at best
Also, your weight will fluctuate up to +/- 3 or 4lbs depending upon: Hydration, in transit food, and for women TOTM

Log everything as accurately as possible and stick with it. It does work.

Best wishes

Rozlynmac

Keep reading the forum threads. There are loads of variables and it'll take time to work it out.

Some people find bread is bad, others watch their sodium. Plenty find that eating below their allocated calories doesn't work well, and they need to be on even over the allocate amount.

There's plenty tales of 1st week loss being largely fluid and not fat.

Many find ignoring the scales and sticking with the body measurements is a far better guage of their progress.

Graceious1

It also depends how much under your calorie goal you are too. If you are under by half or a quarter(not sure really) then you body may go into starvation mode and increase your fat stores. I think that is so but maybe someone out there can give a clearer picture.

Hendrix7

It's been 2 weeks.

You need to stick at something quite a lot longer than that before you can decide if it works for you.

Try 2 months for a start.

Arrabindi

By 'this system' do you mean eating healthy food and exercising? Yes, that works. Your weight will always fluctuate, and 2 lbs can be a mere fluctuation. Keep at it and see what the scale says in a few weeks. You should also measure your waist and hips and don't worry too much about the scale.

chicpeach

The system does work, I'm proof that it does. Here's a few tips that will help:

Be sure to drink 8-10 glasses (8oz each) of water. This aids in digestion and elimination. Drinking more or less than this range will hamper weight loss. Water should be clear, i.e., coffee, crystal light drinks, etc don't count.

Limit your white flour carbs - they're metabolism busters.

Increase your vegetable (non-animal based) protein - they're metabolism boosters.

Make sure the fats you're getting are the healthy ones, those that contain omega-3 and omega-6. These also increases your metabolism and help give your skin more elasticity so as you lose weight, your skin will be more adaptive to your new body size.

smantha32

I put on two pounds this week just from retaining water. Next week it'll be down again.
Make monthly goals and don't worry too much about what the scale does daily or weekly.

newgirl512

WOW! Chicpeach, you really are a wealth of knowledge. Thanks for sharing. I know most of this stuff, but never really knew why. I'm off to work with my 80oz bottle of water!!!