Behaved myself, but no inches lost, GAINED weight :(

katymcd81
katymcd81 Posts: 73 Member
in Motivation and Support
Feeling really discouraged this morning...this is the end of my 4th week on MFP and for the first three weeks I did so well, I lost an average of 3lb a week. This week, I stuck to what I'd been doing, but threw in 30DS as well, and according to the scales this morning I have GAINED 2lb. My water and fat % on my scales are the same as they were last week. I took my measurements, and nothing lost there either.

What am I doing wrong?

Replies

  • droogievesch
    droogievesch Posts: 202
    Nothing. You started a new work out routine, give it a couple weeks to even out. Doing 30 day shred will not make you gain 2 lbs of muscle in a week, so don't think you're "replacing fat with muscle" or anything along those lines. To gain 2 lbs of fat in one week would mean an excess of 7,000 calories-also doubtful. Despite what the scale says (because scales that give you body fat% and what not are horribly inaccurate anyway) you're retaining water. Is it close to that time of the month?
  • HappyStack
    HappyStack Posts: 802 Member
    I'd ignore the BF% and water reading on the scales. You're probably retaining a little bit of water due to starting your exercise regime.
  • Nathill25
    Nathill25 Posts: 1 Member
    HI, I can be the same, at the start of the week I had lost 1lb since last, 2 days later I had gained 2lbs! yesterday I was back to what I was on Monday and today down 1lb, need to stop weighing myself every day, I have lost 9lbs in 3 weeks so it is coming off but slowly. Just stick at it, it will happen :)






    url=http://www.myfitnesspal.com/weight-loss-ticker]27438892.png[/url]
    Created by MyFitnessPal.com - Free Weight Loss Tools
  • junepinktigger
    junepinktigger Posts: 88 Member
    remember you will be starting to gain muscle. and muscle weighs more than fat. I was the same i did 6 weeks last couple of weeks i added in going to the gym, and sen a gain, i was heartbroken until i looked at all the other factors. bmi fat mass and body fat% had all reduced,
    i find if i don't have a great weight loss there is normally inch loss
    or bmi and fat mass,
    don't let it get to u even doing the 1 thing different in exercise can have an effect, :flowerforyou:
  • lombrica
    lombrica Posts: 1,419 Member

    What am I doing wrong?

    ... not being patient?!? Seriously - give your body a little time. Don't freak out... there's going to be weeks like that, maybe several and in a row... so? Just be patient! :)
  • a_stone_girl_dances
    a_stone_girl_dances Posts: 76 Member
    "Is it close to that time of the month?" is a very important question to remember! And during and after for a few days. There was one time where I "gained" 7lbs during that week and the extra weight left me a few days after I was done.
  • lombrica
    lombrica Posts: 1,419 Member
    remember you will be starting to gain muscle. and muscle weighs more than fat.

    ... muscles doesn't weigh more than fat. A pound is a pound. Muscle is usually more compact... but it doesn't weigh more.

    Sorry but just a clarification.
  • demhareis
    demhareis Posts: 35
    Oh, honey, you've done nothing wrong. Here's a big hug for you: ->*HUG*<-

    I understand your frustration. I've just had a week of grief myself. (Me, I've been dieting and exercising for over a month and thinking I'm doing all the right things, but haven't lost an ounce. Had a meltdown on Wednesday over it.)

    Despite what many people tout, the formula of simple "diet + exercise = weightloss" doesn't always compute out. The formula is far, far more complicated than that. Our body's metabolic pathways (and there's dozens of them!) are extremely complicated. If something changes, or goes off-plan, then things can happen in our body that may display as a general weight gain.

    Extra sodium intake can affect a change of a few pounds (or more), as can extra fiber intake, or normal hormone changes in the body (like That Time of the Month), or a food intolerance, or an illness, or the Magic Weight-Loss Fairy's taking a nap.

    As you've just started the 30DS (keep it up; I wish you success), that might account for this *temporary* gain in weight.

    Here's one hypothesis: when a person starts a new fitness regime and suddenly puts in a whole lot work into a muscle that might not be used to the workload, you will get some microdamage in the muscle fibers. As the body moves in to repair this damage, it will increase blood flow to the area, lots of various biochemical things will happen and there will be an increase in fluid (aka "water"). This is called inflammation and it's a normal response.

    Now, don't take the numbers of your scales as gospel. Your scale may be able to detect interstitial fluid (ie fluid existing between cells), higher blood volume and a few other things, but it might not be able to detect the water of the inflammation of your muscles. Likewise, if you're measuring your hips and your waist (places that don't have giant muscles, like say your arms or legs), this inflammation may not reflect in your measurements.

    This is just a guess. But if it's correct, this extra, unexplained weight will disappear within a week or two as your body repairs itself, as you continue the 30DS and as your muscles adapt to the new work load.

    Meanwhile, feel free to cry and wail and sulk a bit until you feel better. I know how hard it feels to put in effort and not get the results you want.

    Because you have had prior success, the chances are great that this setback is only temporary. Keep your chins up and feel free to come cry on our shoulders in a few weeks if you don't see any improvement.
  • mccbabe1
    mccbabe1 Posts: 737 Member
    u and me both!!! ditto... I m at 7wks on mfp.. and ive lost every wk.. something.. more or less.. down 15#'s in 6wks! felt pretty good.... then today i weighed myself and im up 3 pounds!!!.. since sunday!!! soin 4 days?!?! okay??? and i didnt go over on cals at all.. but I did have a LOTTT of sodium yesterday and my digital scale battery is getting super super low.. so a factor mabye???
    all i know is I didnt have a "TRUE" gain cuz I didnt go 3500 calories over my maintenace cals a day!!! (how many cals u hafta eat to gain ONE pound) so i got 'over it' and motivated again.. and am going to wait a few days.. let my female body that is trippin .. get a battery for my scale too) and weigh again in a wk or so.. DO NOT OBSESS OVER A NUMBER.. .. u loose inches too and unless u shoved the fridge down your throat over last few days to gain 2 pounds then dont trip!! keep going and say motivated.... you are one month in and loosing and feeling good....
    tomorrow is a new day.. and more days to the 'new you'! :flowerforyou:
  • Sarauk2sf
    Sarauk2sf Posts: 28,072 Member
    remember you will be starting to gain muscle. and muscle weighs more than fat. I was the same i did 6 weeks last couple of weeks i added in going to the gym, and sen a gain, i was heartbroken until i looked at all the other factors. bmi fat mass and body fat% had all reduced,
    i find if i don't have a great weight loss there is normally inch loss
    or bmi and fat mass,
    don't let it get to u even doing the 1 thing different in exercise can have an effect, :flowerforyou:

    Sorry, but on a deficit and doing 30DS, she will not be gaining muscle - it will be water weight repairing the muscles used due to the exercise.

    OP: Ignore the scale for BF% and water weight - they are really quite innacurate. Carry on doing what you are doing, and don't let (or try not to let) weekly fluctuations bother you too much - look at the longer term picture.
  • Marmitegeoff
    Marmitegeoff Posts: 373 Member
    remember you will be starting to gain muscle. and muscle weighs more than fat. I was the same i did 6 weeks last couple of weeks i added in going to the gym, and sen a gain, i was heartbroken until i looked at all the other factors. bmi fat mass and body fat% had all reduced,
    i find if i don't have a great weight loss there is normally inch loss
    or bmi and fat mass,
    don't let it get to u even doing the 1 thing different in exercise can have an effect, :flowerforyou:

    Sorry, but on a deficit and doing 30DS, she will not be gaining muscle - it will be water weight repairing the muscles used due to the exercise.

    OP: Ignore the scale for BF% and water weight - they are really quite innacurate. Carry on doing what you are doing, and don't let (or try not to let) weekly fluctuations bother you too much - look at the longer term picture.

    Plus 1 The weekly figures are inconsistant look at the longer term trend, months not days you will go up and down. Just keep going it will happen.
  • jesz124
    jesz124 Posts: 1,004 Member
    remember you will be starting to gain muscle. and muscle weighs more than fat. I was the same i did 6 weeks last couple of weeks i added in going to the gym, and sen a gain, i was heartbroken until i looked at all the other factors. bmi fat mass and body fat% had all reduced,
    i find if i don't have a great weight loss there is normally inch loss
    or bmi and fat mass,
    don't let it get to u even doing the 1 thing different in exercise can have an effect, :flowerforyou:

    How on earth would she be starting to gain muscle? She's on a calorie deficit and hasen't been doing any heavy lifting in the gym. I really wish it was that easy to gain muscle.....
  • katymcd81
    katymcd81 Posts: 73 Member
    Thank you all for the replies!

    Some answers to questions - it is not TOM, I'm coming up to ovulating, so may be retaining a bit of water due to that.

    I have started doing a *bit* of lifting (a couple of weeks ago), though compared to you lot, I can't lift anything heavy yet, I'm just using the machines, but I'm doing 2x10 reps of as heavy as I can manage, so I'm practically dead by rep 20.

    I'm doing 30DS on the days I don't run, swim, or do cardio/weights at the gym. But yes, this is the first week where I've exercised pretty much every day, and if the fat and water % on home scales are as inaccurate as everyone says, I can definitely see my 'gain' being due to microdamage/inflammation.

    I know I definitely haven't eaten 7000 calories over maintenance this week, so putting that into perspective I am hopeful this will just be a blip...it was just a bit of a shock after such massive losses the past few weeks and I panicked! On the plus side, my endurance is increasing and I feel better about myself in general :)

    Thank you all again for taking the time to read and reply, you have all really helped me out!
  • NorthWestWildWind
    NorthWestWildWind Posts: 18
    I'm kinda new to the lingo, what's 30DS? Work out program? Maybe you gained some muscle?
  • kellygirl5538
    kellygirl5538 Posts: 597 Member
    Looked at your diary, you need to start incresing your protein.
  • MSimm62385
    MSimm62385 Posts: 227
    When I began heavy lifting, my weight shot up 4 lbs and stayed up there for weeks, even though I continued eating at a caloric deficit. You're doing a new routine, and your muscles are bound to be retaining water as they repair themselves. Just keep eating right, drink plenty of water, and wait it out.

Categories