added more to workout and gaining weight???

asb923

I was doing well and was loosing pretty steadily and had lost 6 pounds. I have always done cardio 3-4 days a week and in the last two weeks I added weight training... and I gained two pounds back! I know muscle weighs more than fat but will I keep gaing weight if I keep doing the weight training or will my body adjust and start loosing again? Should I drop my calorie intake? I eat the daily recommended MFP calories and none to half of my excercise calories back. I also have one cheat meal a week but still stay within 500 calories of my daily goal on that day. Any advice, I am a little frustrated.

Magenta15

same has happened to me for the last two weeks I have really amped up my workouts (for me anyhow)
and been logging great, b ut hve gone up in weight . . . I don't think it's necessarily muscle just yet - it's only been two weeks, but do think its the muscles holding water because they are recovering from the new strain/workouts

"Strenuous exercise leads to structural damage to muscle cells which causes calcium to leak out of the muscle. This causes the activation of enzymes that breaks down cellular proteins in the muscle. These proteins then cause an inflammatory response by the immune system which then leads to edema (water retention at the site of injury) and pain."

so essentially like I said... recovering muscles will retain some water.

If you are eating on plan, you really have to ignore the fluctuations on the scale when you change your exercise level. It may even stay up there for a bit while your body adapts to the exercise. If it helps, get out the tape measure and measure your waist and prove to yourself you aren't getting bigger, no matter what the scale says.

fitnessperfection

PolliesGirl's response is perfect! Just keep it up!

kelli_panzera

Eat more to compensate. Sounds stupid, but it works. Good luck!
And muscle takes up less MASS than fat. A pound of feathers still equals a pound of pennies. Check your measurements as well as the scale.

kwardklinck

Eat your exercise cals. I know it sounds weird but I lose faster when I eat them then if I don't.

carrieberrie

Just give your body time to respond. You may not have gained a full 2 pounds. It's normal for body weight to fluctuate by several pounds a day depending upon fluid shifts in your body and the time at which you weigh yourself.
Some people believe that people gain weight from exercise because they are building more muscle mass. In your case, this is unlikely. You can't build much muscle doing cardio. And even if you were lifting heavy weights, it would be very difficult to gain 2 pounds of muscle in three weeks.

Sway

I thought the SAME thing this morning, it's really frustrating, but like everyone said here, and on every other site, apparently it's water weight. So I'll keep doing what I do and hope that it comes off. I hated that I even logged that in my weigh in today though. But I wanted an honest record of it. I knew that when I started working out I'd gain and I did 2 lbs like you. But we'll just stick with it, and drink MORE water!!

asb923

Thanks for all the advice. I will keep with it and eat more of my exercise calories. You guys have been a great support!

dwalden

Even though it may have seemed you gained weight you may have lost fat and gained some muscle. I have worked out diligently for the past 8 weeks and have not lost 1 pound. You may think that is a terrible thing but I actually lost 16 lbs of fat and gained 16 lbs of muscle. May body fat has dropped from 26% down to 18%. If I keep it up at this rate I will be 8% body fat at my current weight and will be more than happy. Just make sure you are eating the extra calories you are burning and don't try to push it. It will all happen naturally as long as you keep eating clean and exercise regularly.