I think cardio is hurting my weight loss goal!

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hskrdoo
hskrdoo Posts: 7 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
I have a dilemma. I hurt my foot a few weeks ago and was unable to do any cardio. I did stick to my diet however. Well, I ended up losing 4 lbs in those two weeks. I just started my cardio back last week - 4 30 minute sessions a week - and weighed myself today. I have gained those 4 lbs back. My diet has not changed. And this has happened to me before. I've noticed when I have heavy cardio weeks, I tend to either gain a pound or two or I stay the same. I never lose weight...

At first I thought because of the cardio, my appetite increased and I ate more. But this last time, I ate exactly the same amount of calories daily. I am so confused. Is it possible that cardio is making me GAIN weight???

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  • SimonLondon
    SimonLondon Posts: 350
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    Not if it is building your muscle.

    I thought I wasn't losing weight but when I measured my waist I was still losing. I had a fair bit of fat on my legs but now it is solid muscle. The leg muscle is huge so that was quite a weight increase (from fat to muscle).
  • nicolina823
    nicolina823 Posts: 450 Member
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    No, its not hurting. Your body just needs to get used to the activity again. Its holding on to water. Try drinking more water every day. Give it a little bit and it will release. This happens to me when I up my intensity or start/add a new exercise.
  • dj_stevie_c
    dj_stevie_c Posts: 270
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    This is why I think weighing yourself a lot is a mistake :)

    It's about how you feel and what you are doing. If you're working out, feeling good and things are heading in the right direction then sod the scales, they really don't matter.

    As Simon said you've probalby lost a bit of muscle which weighs more than fat, don't be upset if when you get back to training you gain a little. Recently lost muscle tends to snap back pretty quickly.
  • hskrdoo
    hskrdoo Posts: 7 Member
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    Could it be the intensity of my cardio? My sessions are only 30 minutes but my heart rate is in the 140s the entire time. I have toyed with the idea of reducing the intensity but then I would feel like I'm not accomplishing as much.
  • spaul82478
    spaul82478 Posts: 709 Member
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    I have a dilemma. I hurt my foot a few weeks ago and was unable to do any cardio. I did stick to my diet however. Well, I ended up losing 4 lbs in those two weeks. I just started my cardio back last week - 4 30 minute sessions a week - and weighed myself today. I have gained those 4 lbs back. My diet has not changed. And this has happened to me before. I've noticed when I have heavy cardio weeks, I tend to either gain a pound or two or I stay the same. I never lose weight...

    At first I thought because of the cardio, my appetite increased and I ate more. But this last time, I ate exactly the same amount of calories daily. I am so confused. Is it possible that cardio is making me GAIN weight???


    You said you ate the same amount of calories as when you were NOT working out??? If thats the case then yes you will gain or stay the same becasue your body is thinking that your starving it and holding onto the fuel...

    If this is not the case, then you may need to increase water, and mesure yourself too.. :) Cardio is never bad for you. it keeps your heart healthy. Hope this helps.. and good luck
  • RedneckWmn
    RedneckWmn Posts: 3,202 Member
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    I have a dilemma. I hurt my foot a few weeks ago and was unable to do any cardio. I did stick to my diet however. Well, I ended up losing 4 lbs in those two weeks. I just started my cardio back last week - 4 30 minute sessions a week - and weighed myself today. I have gained those 4 lbs back. My diet has not changed. And this has happened to me before. I've noticed when I have heavy cardio weeks, I tend to either gain a pound or two or I stay the same. I never lose weight...

    At first I thought because of the cardio, my appetite increased and I ate more. But this last time, I ate exactly the same amount of calories daily. I am so confused. Is it possible that cardio is making me GAIN weight???


    You said you ate the same amount of calories as when you were NOT working out??? If thats the case then yes you will gain or stay the same becasue your body is thinking that your starving it and holding onto the fuel...

    If this is not the case, then you may need to increase water, and mesure yourself too.. :) Cardio is never bad for you. it keeps your heart healthy. Hope this helps.. and good luck



    I agree with this statement from spaul. When I was working out and burning a couple hundred calories and eating 1200 calories I was losing weight. When I upped my cardio tremendously and kept eating 1200 calories it pretty much came to a screeching hault. I had to eat more. My body was freaking out. As soon as I started eating more the pounds started dropping off. I've never heard of cardio hurting someones weight loss. I don't know what size you are but 140 is probably a good heart rate target. I'm usually up in the 150's 160's but I'm also 213 pounds. Try drinking more water and eating a little more. See what happens. But it is also about how you feel and not what the scale says. I constantly have to remind myself of that.
  • Ge0rgiana
    Ge0rgiana Posts: 1,649 Member
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    Yep. It's water. Your body is not used to the cardio anymore. Just stay off of the scales for a while and keep going!
  • Alita2011
    Alita2011 Posts: 265 Member
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    Funny you should post this! I eat about the same calories everyday and I workout really hard at the gym. This week my 9 month old is teething so I took a "break" I weigh myself everyday (FYI: I have a really good relationship with my scale. He says what he wants and I go with it I don't get mad but I do get curious. I am just a weigh-myself-everyday kind of chick) It has gone down about three pounds in the last couple days. I only record on Saturdays though. I don't really know what to say or do about it but I love exercising so next week I may have to deal with it going up so I oh well is how I feel about it!
  • hskrdoo
    hskrdoo Posts: 7 Member
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    Jess and SPaul, you both have very good points. I think my body might be going into some kind of starvation mode when I start hitting the cardio pretty hard. Still not real clear on that whole thing but that's for another post...
  • RedneckWmn
    RedneckWmn Posts: 3,202 Member
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    I had a really hard time grasping that just because I was working out more meant I had to eat more. I look at it like this, I'm working twice as hard to burn twice as many calories as I used to but I'm giving my body the same amount of food. I never really felt hungry. For me when I say I eat more it's still healthy choices. I eat a 190 calorie protein bar before my workout and a 100 calorie shake afterwards. The water retention is basically your muscles and body freaking out because they aren't used to all this cardio again and are holding onto whatever they can to protect them. I had this problem too. It's all trial and error and it's FRUSTRATING! You'll get there though! Keep up the hard work!
  • RedneckWmn
    RedneckWmn Posts: 3,202 Member
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    I just noticed your in Fort Worth, I'm in Dallas! :tongue: Had to point that out! :laugh:
  • hskrdoo
    hskrdoo Posts: 7 Member
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    Eating more on cardio days is really hard for me because I work out around 8:30 or 9 at night. So I don't eat after I workout because it is so late. So if I were to eat more on cardio days, I would have to add those calories during the day. My biggest fear is that I eat those extra calories during the day and then, for some reason, I'm not able to go to the gym. Then I just ate the extra calories for no reason. That rarely happens but for some reason it still worries me. I've worked really hard over the last few months and just don't want to mess it up.
  • RedneckWmn
    RedneckWmn Posts: 3,202 Member
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    Eating more on cardio days is really hard for me because I work out around 8:30 or 9 at night. So I don't eat after I workout because it is so late. So if I were to eat more on cardio days, I would have to add those calories during the day. My biggest fear is that I eat those extra calories during the day and then, for some reason, I'm not able to go to the gym. Then I just ate the extra calories for no reason. That rarely happens but for some reason it still worries me. I've worked really hard over the last few months and just don't want to mess it up.

    I do the same thing! I have been doing my cardio at night. In my mind that helps push me to do the gym. I eat my extra calories through the day and so that way when it comes time for the gym I go no matter what because I konw I ate all that food. Everybody works differently though.
  • spaul82478
    spaul82478 Posts: 709 Member
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    I myself LOVE working out at night... I normally log my activity ( do about the same calories burned when I do the gym) and then I feel OBLIGATED to go.... sometimes also I eat a healthy bowl of cereal when I get home. (if I need to eat more which usually isnt a problem for me) .. GOOD CARBS at night have been proven to help your body... BUT thats me... KEEP IT UP :)
  • JoyousMaximus
    JoyousMaximus Posts: 9,285 Member
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    Eating more on cardio days is really hard for me because I work out around 8:30 or 9 at night. So I don't eat after I workout because it is so late. So if I were to eat more on cardio days, I would have to add those calories during the day. My biggest fear is that I eat those extra calories during the day and then, for some reason, I'm not able to go to the gym. Then I just ate the extra calories for no reason. That rarely happens but for some reason it still worries me. I've worked really hard over the last few months and just don't want to mess it up.

    I do the same thing! I have been doing my cardio at night. In my mind that helps push me to do the gym. I eat my extra calories through the day and so that way when it comes time for the gym I go no matter what because I konw I ate all that food. Everybody works differently though.

    Another option is to eat them the next day. Your body doesn't automatically reset at midnight. You are still eating enough calories but don't have to worry about something coming up.
  • abredbenner
    abredbenner Posts: 125 Member
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    Eating more on cardio days is really hard for me because I work out around 8:30 or 9 at night. So I don't eat after I workout because it is so late. So if I were to eat more on cardio days, I would have to add those calories during the day. My biggest fear is that I eat those extra calories during the day and then, for some reason, I'm not able to go to the gym. Then I just ate the extra calories for no reason. That rarely happens but for some reason it still worries me. I've worked really hard over the last few months and just don't want to mess it up.

    Try a recovery drink afterwards. Myoplex Lite is about 170 calories.

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