Logged all week and GAINED weight????

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rn214
rn214 Posts: 6 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Can someone please help. I have been diligent in logging and weighing all foods and I gained 4lbs this week. I went to a nutritionist last week and she told me to make sure I am eating 40% carbs. I followed that and stayed within my calories. Cooked all week except 1 day. I did a few Zumba classes during the week too. Can anyone offer any advise as to why this is happening? Thank you.

Replies

  • Mokey41
    Mokey41 Posts: 5,769 Member
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    You couldn't have gained 4 lbs of fat in one week. That would require you to have eaten in excess of 14,000 calories more than your body required to stay at it's current weight. I'd suggest that you are retaining extra water for muscle repair from the Zumba possibly?
  • linddavis
    linddavis Posts: 101
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    I had the same thing happen to me. I was told that muscle weighs more than fat so if you are adding muscle , that could be it.
    Also, are you eating food high in salt/sodium? If so, you could be retaining water. Muscle retains water unlike fat...
    A friend told me, losing weight is not a straight line down, so dont be discouraged. Keep movin' and watching what you eat :)
  • TheRealParisLove
    TheRealParisLove Posts: 1,907 Member
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    Open your diary. Your question is too vague to give advice at this point.
  • Nurseblondy
    Nurseblondy Posts: 76
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    Sounds like water weight. Make sure you are logging acurately though. I had to start measuring and weighing everything to be exact. Sometimes my guesses were much farther off than I thought, which can make a big difference over time.
  • Mokey41
    Mokey41 Posts: 5,769 Member
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    I had the same thing happen to me. I was told that muscle weighs more than fat so if you are adding muscle , that could be it.
    Also, are you eating food high in salt/sodium? If so, you could be retaining water. Muscle retains water unlike fat...
    A friend told me, losing weight is not a straight line down, so dont be discouraged. Keep movin' and watching what you eat :)

    She didn't add 4 pounds of muscle in a week and muscle doesn't weigh more than fat. Their density levels are different but a pound is a pound and no woman eating at a deficit and doing a couple Zumba classes has gained 4 lbs of muscle.
  • babbgirl1975
    babbgirl1975 Posts: 87 Member
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    I agree with the others. Without seeing your diary it is hard to determine what is causing the gain. Most people do tend to overlook there sodium intake. Could be water retention (which is usually the cause if I have a gain like that). Also could be from muscle gain.
  • agggie550
    agggie550 Posts: 281 Member
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    What is your water intake like, you need to make sure you get at least 8 cups of water,because thought it might not seem like there are somet hings you might be eating that have alot of sodium which will cause "bloat" or retaining water. Also sometimes the scale can be deciving, maybe you might want to start taking measurements, because you can feel better, have your clothes fit better and the scale might still say you gained. Good luck.
  • JamesChargerWolf
    JamesChargerWolf Posts: 83 Member
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    You couldn't have gained 4 lbs of fat in one week. That would require you to have eaten in excess of 14,000 calories more than your body required to stay at it's current weight. I'd suggest that you are retaining extra water for muscle repair from the Zumba possibly?

    ^exactly. it's straight up impossible for that to be actual gain. it's water. have you changed your sodium or potassium intake? doing something sweaty - like Zumba - without replacing needed potassium could throw things off in a major way. normal hormonal fluctuations also affect fluid retention. i wouldn't worry.
  • bathsheba_c
    bathsheba_c Posts: 1,873 Member
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    Assume you are logging accurately, sudden, unexplained increases in weight are generally caused by one of the following:
    1. Eating too much sodium
    2. Starting a new exercise regimen
    3. Menstrual cycle (usually actual time of the month, but sometime ovulation)
    4. Not having pooped in a while

    Be patient. It's more important what happens from one month to the next than what happens week to week or day to day.
  • bathsheba_c
    bathsheba_c Posts: 1,873 Member
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    Edit: Deleted for MFP being screwy and double posting
  • KenosFeoh
    KenosFeoh Posts: 1,837 Member
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    Water retention.
    Excess in small bowel and colon.

    Heavy thoughts? (haha)
  • neanderthin
    neanderthin Posts: 10,018 Member
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    Weight loss isn't linear and 1 week means nothing......16 weeks with a plan is more telling.
  • ldrosophila
    ldrosophila Posts: 7,512 Member
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    Are you weighing the same? Is the scale calibrated? Is the scale in the same place? Are you on a different scale? Did you weigh in different clothes? Are you close to your period? How drastic did you change your diet?

    Dont panic this fitness thing is for life. At least it should be focus on the strengths you were strong enough to get through a zumba class without stopping.

    Logging works for me and a lot of other people. Hopefully you find what works for you.
  • Riemersma4
    Riemersma4 Posts: 400 Member
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    First, open up your diary so we can peek around and give better input.

    Is Zumba new to you? When we start a new/different work out, our body takes a little time to 'adjust'. It stores water, etc to prepare for teh new activity. We are glad for this as this is how our body naturally protects us from our changing environment. There is a long discussion here on Insulin, Cortisal, Adopinectin, etc but that is for another time.

    It is a journey. I would encourage to focus on the bigger things: working out, good fuel at teh right level, etc.

    I susppect your body is just adjusting.

    Good luck!
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,867 Member
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    You couldn't have gained 4 lbs of fat in one week. That would require you to have eaten in excess of 14,000 calories more than your body required to stay at it's current weight. I'd suggest that you are retaining extra water for muscle repair from the Zumba possibly?

    ^exactly. it's straight up impossible for that to be actual gain. it's water. have you changed your sodium or potassium intake? doing something sweaty - like Zumba - without replacing needed potassium could throw things off in a major way. normal hormonal fluctuations also affect fluid retention. i wouldn't worry.

    Bingo...my weight fluctuates anywhere from 1-4 or 5 Lbs in a given day depending on water rentention, food and liquid in, and food an liquid out.

    OP...also, if you're weighing once per week make sure you're doing it on the same day and under the exact same conditions...weight not only fluctuates day to day, it fluctuates quite a bit during any given day. Already this morning, I'm two pounds heavier than I was at 5:30 AM...all I've done is my cardio, eaten my usual breakfast, and taken a shower.

    Personally, I like to weigh daily, but only have Friday as my official weight in...I like to track the data points daily so I can see the trend over a period of time. It's not linear so if you're not tracking as a general trend it can be difficult to see the Lbs lost on the scale for the first few weeks given normal body weight fluctuations.
  • rn214
    rn214 Posts: 6 Member
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    Thank you all for your help. I have been working out for years now on and off. Zumba is not new to me and if I steadily work out I can see a difference. I was doing some kickboxing a few weeks ago too. Just strange. It was a different scale and I never had such a weigh from watching. Thanks again. I will try to stay positive.
  • MinnieInMaine
    MinnieInMaine Posts: 6,400 Member
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    Wait, it was a different scale? That could be your answer right there! Not every scale is going to be calibrated the same - they tend to be off by at least a pound or two. Were you wearing the same clothes (or lack of) that you normally would when weighing? Was it the same time of day you normally weigh? All of these things could be factors in the "gain".

    Use the same scale every time, at the same time of day in the same kind of conditions...before eating, after peeing, wearing the same kind of clothes, or nothing, etc
  • i64X
    i64X Posts: 7 Member
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    Another thing to keep in mind is that you should weigh yourself at the same time of day. I weigh myself in the morning before and after a shower. My weight can vary up to 4-5 lbs from the beginning of the day to the end of the day, so I've found that weighing myself at the same time every day provides more consistent results. Definitely use the same scale as well, and make sure you "zero it out" before jumping on it, if that's required (it is on mine).
  • rn214
    rn214 Posts: 6 Member
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    Normally I weigh myself everyday. I havent the last few months because I felt the weight coming on and I didn't want to know. I had lost 15 lbs 8 months ago and it took only 3 months to put back on. I tried everything so I decided to go to a nutritionist last week and she weighed me on a scale with clothes on. Then 2 days later I weighed myself at home and it was 2lbs more so I figured that was the differnece in the scale. But this morning without any clothes I weighed myself and it was 4.4 lbs more than last thursday on her scale and 2.4 lbs more than my scale from Sat. All the time when I watch I weigh myself everyday and I never see a gain or loss like this in this time frame. I have a digital food scale and I weighed everything. She said to eat but to keep the carbs to 40% and to spred them out over the course of the day. You will then stay under the 1400 calories she recommended for now to try to get my body back to normal. Since trying no carb diets and such. So that why I freaked out because I never in all the years of weighing have had this much of a swing. I think you all for your advise. Rachel.
  • aliciapenny
    aliciapenny Posts: 51 Member
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    I had the same thing happen to me. I was told that muscle weighs more than fat so if you are adding muscle , that could be it.
    Also, are you eating food high in salt/sodium? If so, you could be retaining water. Muscle retains water unlike fat...
    A friend told me, losing weight is not a straight line down, so dont be discouraged. Keep movin' and watching what you eat :)

    She didn't add 4 pounds of muscle in a week and muscle doesn't weigh more than fat. Their density levels are different but a pound is a pound and no woman eating at a deficit and doing a couple Zumba classes has gained 4 lbs of muscle.

    Exactly this. It isnt muscle.

    It is probably water weight. Also be sure you are being accurate on weighing. Somethings actually need to be weighed instead of measured for accuracy. Oatmeal is one that comes to mind.

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