Feeling Discouraged over Gain

PinkEarthMama

With the weather finally getting better in Northwest Canada, it's FINALLY lovely for exercising outside. I bought a bike, and started riding - sometimes more than 10k a day! I'm going walking and hiking with friends. I did an outdoors exercise class.

I also gained three and a half pounds.

I've been meticulously watching what I eat 90% of the time. I am drinking liter upon liter of water. I've exercised so much that my muscles are screaming... And yet, day after day for almost a week... A little bit extra climbs onto the scale with me in the morning.

I know it's not muscle. That's not physiologically possible... 3.5 lbs of muscle takes a long time.

I want - oh hell do I want - to believe it is water weight. But would it still be going up a week later?

That number on the scale makes me want to quit. My personal goal is to be able to bike 25k by the end of the summer, and I'm going to continue to work towards that.... But it's so easy to say " eff it, my diet isn't working anyway";

baileybiddles

Don't pay attention to the number on the scale.

Inches are key. I had a friend who didn't lose more than 5 pounds but her body was COMPLETELY transformed from all the inches she lost and how firmed up she got. She looked like she had lost 50 pounds but she really didn't.

Keep going. Even if you aren't losing, you're doing something great for your body.

JAMProphet

With the weather finally getting better in Northwest Canada, it's FINALLY lovely for exercising outside. I bought a bike, and started riding - sometimes more than 10k a day! I'm going walking and hiking with friends. I did an outdoors exercise class.

I also gained three and a half pounds.

I've been meticulously watching what I eat 90% of the time. I am drinking liter upon liter of water. I've exercised so much that my muscles are screaming... And yet, day after day for almost a week... A little bit extra climbs onto the scale with me in the morning.

I know it's not muscle. That's not physiologically possible... 3.5 lbs of muscle takes a long time.

I want - oh hell do I want - to believe it is water weight. But would it still be going up a week later?

That number on the scale makes me want to quit. My personal goal is to be able to bike 25k by the end of the summer, and I'm going to continue to work towards that.... But it's so easy to say " eff it, my diet isn't working anyway";

One way to check your progress is to move from paying attention to weight and paying attention to body fat percentage, since in reality, that is what we are most concerned about (I don't hear people saying "I am dying to lose this muscle mass")

1) Grab yourself a body fat percentage scale http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_1_12?url=search-alias=aps&field-keywords=body+fat+percentage+scale&sprefix=body+fat+per,aps,127
2) a body fat analyzer http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_2_9?url=search-alias=aps&field-keywords=body+fat+analyzer&sprefix=body+fat+,aps,138&rh=i:aps,k:body+fat+analyzer
or
3) some body fat calipers http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_0_11?url=search-alias=aps&field-keywords=body+fat+caliper&sprefix=body+fat+ca,aps,138&rh=i:aps,k:body+fat+caliper
and use this as a way to measure your progress.

Best of luck!

larsensue

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