Unexplainable Weight Gain (H2O, exercising, eating right)

Sebani

Hi guys.. So I'll just give you a brief on my story.

I've been going to the gym on and off depending on my school schedule. When I do go, I do weights and no cardio.
In terms of eating.. I'd say I eat moderate to poor but I've been working hard to improve it.

This past Tuesday, I weighed in at 133.5lbs my lowest in 6 years I was ecstatic. I went to dinner with my boyfriend and it went downhill from there. I wouldn't say we ate like crap but it wasn't the best. The next morning I weighed in at 1-2lbs heavier, I can't quite remember and ever since then I've been steadily gaining 0.5-1lb a day. I'm absolutely pissed. By tomorrow morning (1 week later) I expect myself to be 137.5lbs aka FOUR pounds heavier than a week ago. This is absolutely ridiculous. Ever since last Thursday I've been eating very well (to my standards) and have been to the gym 6 days straight. Very well would include: Broccoli with cheese, apples, tuna with mayo, pan fried salmon (no oil) with basmati rice and lemon. These past few days have probably been the healthiest I've eaten in a long time. Yet the weight just keeps on piling on. I'm also trying to drink more water I'm close to 1-1.25 L a day which is a LOT better than before trust me. I'd say usually I'm in a state of dehydration so this is a major improvement lol

Anyways someone please figure out what I'm doing wrong because I'm getting very discouraged and ready to just down a tub of ice cream if this keeps up. I'm not happy with this at all. Thanks in advance

Oh I'm 5'6 and can range from size 6-8/M-L :P

ErinRibbens

Honestly, I wouldn't stress about it at ALL. Certainly not worth giving up over, you're doing great. Your weight will fluctuate, it happens. If it keeps up for a month or so, you might re-evaluate your diet and exercise routine but otherwise it's probably just water weight or one of those things. You can't completely ruin weight loss from one bad dinner.

Francl27

Water won't make you lose weight, first.

Second, weights won't really make you lose weight. When I started doing more weight lifting, I didn't move for 2-3 weeks, heck I even gained 2 lbs, but then it came down. Be patient. When you add all the stuff that happens with women cycles too, it's very easy to gain 4lbs of water or bloating alone.

Keep doing what you're doing. As long as you're eating enough (at least 1400 calories a day if you do weight training 6 days a week), the weight will come off.

soonergirl03

If your doing weights then you may be gainning muscle and muscle weighs more then fat.

SirrahSara

Is it maybe coming up on that time of the month? I know for me, around that time I can fluctuate between 5 or more pounds.

Also, what everyone above said.

hparros

OH NO! DO NOT GIVE UP! Seriously.......do not. What I would assume is likely going on is all of this working out is making you GAIN MUSCLE...which is great!!! And the water could add to the bloating...but water is great for you.

Keep it up and don't give in to the the ice cream You've got this!

Sebani

Thanks for the response guys. TOM isn't for another half month so definitely not that. I'd say when I was 133.5 I was in a state of dehydration so I'm really trying to be better with the water but yah it's just oh so frustrating!! I don't like seeing that number go up daily! :mad:

5n0wbal1

You may be gaining muscle mass. Weight gain isn't necessarily a bad thing, considering that you say you're doing everything right.

jenny3073

I know where you're coming from but please don't give up! I lost 10 pounds in my first month on MFP, and it's just been a train wreck since. I lost 2 more very very slowly (about 5-6 weeks) then I gained 7 back within a few days (after eating a high calorie birthday dinner) and it's been stuck there for awhile. I don't eat so great every single day, but I stay under my calorie goals at least 6 days a week, I drink 2 liters of water a day and exercise at least 3 days a week, way more than I did before MFP. I eat at least 1500 calories a day LESS than what I was eating before MFP (and not gaining back then). Even if I'm still eating some not-so-great stuff every few days, I'm still eating much better, working out, and drinking water way more than ever so it's frustrating and a bit discouraging but I think it happens to everyone. The first weeks of weight loss were probably mostly water and now my body is just trying to adjust to the changes and eventually it will break frozen scale! Just keep at it and we'll celebrate our changes soon enough

ILiftHeavyAcrylics

So it's been a week? And you've been eating how many calories per day? Do you use a food scale?

ILiftHeavyAcrylics

You're not gaining muscle in a week, but you may be retaining water for muscle repair. The scale went up a couple of pounds when I first started lifting. It should settle down in a couple of weeks if that's the culprit.

LJGettinSexy

Please don't weigh yourself everyday, you will drive yourself crazy and that will make you give up. It sounds like you're trying but not really trying to control your diet. I think 133 lbs. sound like you're already small and it sounds like you're in a panic because you gained a few pounds in a week, which you shouldn't do. Calm down and enjoy your 133lbs. I wish it was me. LOL!

GraceB2God

**Soonergirl said it true... "Muscle weighs heavier then fat." You might be losing fat and the little extra weight is muscle.
Plus all the Woman factors we get to deal with. Yay ~huh~ DON'T GIVE UP!

Crankstr

If your doing weights then you may be gainning muscle and muscle weighs more then fat.

NO.

TylerJ76

If your doing weights then you may be gainning muscle and muscle weighs more then fat.

1lb of muscle weighs the same as 1lb of fat.

Sebani

I try to use a scale and count calories but it's almost near impossible to when you cook your own food since everything gets mixed in with other stuff and you can't measure it to a tee. Same with eating out. The only way I can 100% know how many calories I ate in a day is by eating prepacakged foods that have calories listed on the package lol

And I'm 5'6 133 is okay but it's still a little chubby on me. I have fat inner thighs and a bit of a tummy :P

ILiftHeavyAcrylics

I try to use a scale and count calories but it's almost near impossible to when you cook your own food since everything gets mixed in with other stuff and you can't measure it to a tee. Same with eating out. The only way I can 100% know how many calories I ate in a day is by eating prepacakged foods that have calories listed on the package lol

And I'm 5'6 133 is okay but it's still a little chubby on me. I have fat inner thighs and a bit of a tummy :P

Use the recipe builder. Find the entries in the database with no asterisks. I actually think building your own recipes is the most accurate method.

So what's your calorie goal? Have you been meeting it?

Edited to add-- I think what you should do is keep lifting (if you haven't got a program yet I'd recommend Stronglifts 5 x 5) and eat at a very slight deficit. Set MFP to lose half a pound a week and eat back half your exercise calories.

And stop weighing so much if it's going to upset you. You need to understand that weight fluctuates. Sodium, food in your system, and water retention from exercise and time of month can all make the scale show a higher weight, but none of those things means you're gaining fat. Log accurately, stick to your goal, and trust the process.

theCarlton

Anyways someone please figure out what I'm doing wrong

Without an accurate idea of how many calories you're consuming and how many you're burning during working out, there is nothing to figure out.

Sebani

I think 1400 calories is a fair goal and I'm pretty sure I'm meeting it (if not below). I'll try to track foods I actually make on my own but I still find it to be a difficult task.

SmartAlec03211988

I try to use a scale and count calories but it's almost near impossible to when you cook your own food since everything gets mixed in with other stuff and you can't measure it to a tee.

I don't understand this. I do this perfectly fine. Weighing the individual ingredients is easy.

theCarlton

I think 1400 calories is a fair goal and I'm pretty sure I'm meeting it (if not below). I'll try to track foods I actually make on my own but I still find it to be a difficult task.

It's really important to track what you're burning. Not eating enough and gaining weight is very common.

Cabrinii

I've been trying to figure out what caused my weight to stay at 111 insted of going down. It must be my stomach that has bloating from my menstrual period last week or not doing enough cardio to burn fat and calories. I'll have to add more cardio and lose all my belly fat to make my weight go down at the scale so wouldn't have to plateau at my next weigh-in. I can keep the weight off myself from regaining it and do a lot of sit-ups to take inches off of my waist for good.

Tkrauty

Muscle doesn't weight more then fat, a pound is a pound.
BUT - Since a lb. of muscle is leaner and takes up less room then a lb of fat, you could be adding on the muscle while NOT losing much fat. Try incorporating HIIT training to rid the fat and it will also up your muscles' fat burning capacity.

redshoe61

As one of my favorite bloggers explained, if you have a big heavy dinner then jump on the scale the next morning whatever food has not "exited" your body is now going to show up as a weight gain. If you ate a carb heavy meal then you're probably retaining water. Most restaurant food is fairly high in sodium so that's another factor that would cause you to retain water. All of that can easily contribute to a 4-5 pound weight gain.

Don't panic and don't quit! Eat some high fiber foods, drink more water and keep up with the healthy eating. Most of it will come back off when your body is ready to let go of it.

I've noticed, after years of giving up every time the scale crept up, that my body can and will retain water for about 4-5 days on average and sometimes longer depending on hormonal factors.

ILiftHeavyAcrylics

I think 1400 calories is a fair goal and I'm pretty sure I'm meeting it (if not below). I'll try to track foods I actually make on my own but I still find it to be a difficult task.

It just takes practice. You'll get it. Weigh in grams when possible. So for example, if I make a pot of chili I put in all the ingredients, in grams, and then when it's done I measure how many cups the pot made. Usually it's 6 cups. So then I'd put in that it's 6 servings. That makes it easy to figure out my calories. If I eat 2 cups then it's 2 servings. You can also do it by weight. So say a serving is 100 grams. Then when you want to eat some, you weigh your portion. If it was 235 grams, you'd put it in as 2.35 servings in your diary. Make sense?

ILiftHeavyAcrylics

I've been trying to figure out what caused my weight to stay at 111 insted of going down. It must be my stomach that has bloating from my menstrual period last week or not doing enough cardio to burn fat and calories. I'll have to add more cardio and lose all my belly fat to make my weight go down at the scale so wouldn't have to plateau at my next weigh-in. I can keep the weight off myself from regaining it and do a lot of sit-ups to take inches off of my waist for good.

Your goal is 97 lbs? How tall are you?

Anyway sit ups won't take inches off your waist. You can't spot reduce. Just decrease your overall body fat and it will come off. For body recomposition lifting weights is going to be more effective than cardio.

cmcollins001

As stated a couple of times already, you're not gaining enough muscle mass eating at a deficit to constitute much of a change, if any. Muscle is built on a calorie surplus and hard work. You might be making some "newbie gains" if you're new at lifting, but it won't be enough to really worry about.

As far as weight gain, I personally wouldn't worry about it. The scale isn't going to tell the truth anyway. Its good for trending over a long time, but it can show anywhere from 2 lbs to 8 lbs gain over the course of one day, and that's simply not possible. You may be retaining water, which is often the case when lifting or exercise, it may be that you're body is holding on for a while and then you'll experience the "swoosh" effect and lose several pounds all of the sudden. There are several women on this site who will tell you that they actually weight more because of lifting over time, but their measurements and body composition are 10 times better than before. They've lost inches and body fat, but maintain and even built muscle.

Give yourself some time, a week or even a month sometimes isn't really worth measuring. I've been stuck going up and down and up and down but never losing anything for 2 months, then all of the sudden it's dropping at a steady rate and still dropping...and I even recently upped my calories, and that didn't seem to matter much with my weight loss. I am currently at my lowest (as of this morning) than I can ever remember being in the last 25 or more years. I also fully expect to be a lb or two heavier in the morning than I was this morning and probably even higher later in the week, but most likely will have a decent drop before the weekend is up or by this time next week.

If you are gaining or not moving after a couple of months, you might doing a little tweak here or there, maybe up your calories by a couple hundred at first, I know it seems counter-productive, but your body is designed to survive, and if it thinks it's not getting enough fuel, it will do what it needs to do to make it last and that often means a slower metabolism. You may have set yourself for a much faster goal than your body wants.

foleyshirley

I think 1400 calories is a fair goal and I'm pretty sure I'm meeting it (if not below). I'll try to track foods I actually make on my own but I still find it to be a difficult task.

If you are lifting weights, 1400 calories may not be enough. You should use an onine calculator to determine your TDEE. Then subtract 10% and start there. You don't have much to lose, so you should not be eating at a large deficit.

Sebani

@redshoe it's been more than a day though.. Been a week and I'm up 4 but I'll give it another week or so before I fully spaz. If I creep back up to 140 I seriously will throw a fit!

@AngelAmberL Thanks for the advice and everything! I'll definitely give it a shot but I have a question for you, when I cook rice, do I count it when its cooked or before it's cooked? Or is there a value in MFP for both lol

@foleyshirley TDEE says 1916 cals and I know you say I don't have much to lose but I do... there's flab everywhere (stomach hips thighs) so if I lost 10 lbs I may be satisfied but 120 would be ideal!

noexcuses84

if its coming up to "that time of the month" u will notice a difference! i tend to gain a few houndred grams right before i'm due. this is normal for us women!! try not to weigh urself everyday, u will always fluctuate, it's just how the human body is. i personally weight twice a week, just to make sure i'm on track. if u find in a couple weeks ur still gaining have a look at ur calories in compared to calories out, u may need to tweak it a bit. the important thing is to keep going! ur making some great changes and i'm sure u will get to where u want to be! best of luck

BeachGingerOnTheRocks

1) If you aren't accurately weighing and measuring your food, you're very likely eating more than you think you are. You must count everything. You say your diet is poor to moderate, but not fantastic. One or two days of a better diet isn't going to change things much. You need to count everything, including the ketchup and relish packets. Those add up! Honestly, weighing and measuring food takes practice, and a digital scale. Enter every single thing.

2) Muscle needs water to rebuild after lifting, so it is going to retain it. This is good.

3) You haven't been working out long enough to have gained any appreciable mass. Strength gains, probably. Mass, no.

If you're only doing a partial job at calculating what you eat, then you're not going to have the success you're hoping for. You can't make guesses and just hope for the best. Getting the food right is most of the battle. Grabbing a chip here or a bite of a cookie there will add up to hundreds of calories in a day if you're not careful.