Why am I gaining weight?

I am doing a lot of weight training but I didn't think it was possible to put on a pound of muscle in only a week. I opened up my diary though I am a little embarrassed lol. Thank you everyone for your help! I try to be pretty accurate and am for the most part with meals but sometimes its hard when I am picking at things so a lot of times for snacks i do the 'Quick add' option
For exercise I have been doing Biggest Loser power sculpt and cardio max videos as well as working on the elliptical.

In some instances, especially those who havent' workout in a long time, it's possible to gain a little muscle initially, but it's practically impossible to gain muscle under a caloric deficit. What is happening, or from what I can tell, is you are not feeding your body enough food, which it's conserving the food that you are putting in your system. What happens is your body holds onto the food and converts it to fat rather quickly to create energy later. So what your body might be doing is adding glycogen to your muscles for protection.


What is your caloric deficit set at?

I took a quick look at your diary and just wanted to ask if you've been skipping meals? I see a couple of dinner entries missing and a couple of breakfast....I caution you on skipping the meals especially if you're working out hard. You will put your body in starvation mode and won't have enough fuel to burn the fat....you'll be burning muscle.

Just something I've learned from my own mistakes....

And muscle is heavier than fat so if you're doing weight training, you may initially see a gain, but that will ebb as you continue under 1200 calories and cardio workouts.

Hang in there!!!

Remember that muscle weighs more than fat. When my scale lies to me, I get out the measuring tape...it never lies!

This is wrong! 1lb muscle=1lb fat. 1lb of feathers=1lb of steel. 1 lb of muscle occupies less space than 1lb of fat. This is why you should take measurements and compare them over time. If you are working out, over time you will lose fat and gain muscle. Lean people often weigh more than their fatter counterparts for this reason. Fat is fluffier. Muscle is dense. But 1lb = 1lb.

If you eat too little your body retains every single calorie you intake no matter how hard you exercise. Also, you could be gaining muscle mass instead of fat. To accurately gauge if you are losing weight, measure you waist, thighs and so forth. If you are dropping sizes, you are toning. Muscle weights more than fat. Drinks tons of water too!!!!! Even though it's annoying to pee every ten minutes:( Lol.

I took a quick look at your diary, and here are some suggestions based on my experience!

1) cut out processed foods. Anything that comes in a box! contains who know's what and tons of sodium. (try tracking your sodium)

2)do you have a heart rate monitor? I wore mine one day, just on a typical day to see how many calories i burned in a day, and then deducted 1,000 calories from that to determine what i should be eating every day to lose 2 lbs a week

3) are you insulin resistant/diabetic?? if so you might want to lower your carbs, try eating under 150 and never going over that.

4) are you logging accurately? I know sometimes i forget to log things like olive oil and condiments and such. makes a big difference.


Ok, that's all I can think of. My diary is open if you ever want to get an idea of what i eat. (i just started back on the 1st though)

I totally understand...my suggestion is to have a protein bar on hand for when you're not really hungry ---that will keep your calories and proteins to the optimal level in order to fuel your body.

Good luck!

you are eating
Bread - Italian, 1.5 oz
Hormel - Chili With Beans, 3 cup
and white chocolate chips and you are wondering why you are not losing any weight? :noway:


edit: read this-- http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/416542-i-hope-this-helps

You can lose weight just fine eating the above foods. You don't have to eat perfectly "clean" to lose weight.

It appears that the OP is eating too little and/or exercising too much. Our bodies do not respond well to this. It causes our bodies to release hormones that mask (through water retention), slow and even stop weight loss. Additionally large calorie deficits can lead to a lot of muscle loss. Moderate calorie deficits are key.

http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/why-big-caloric-deficits-and-lots-of-activity-can-hurt-fat-loss.html

http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/setting-the-deficit-small-moderate-or-large.html


Also, you won't be gaining pounds of muscle in a calorie deficit. So the argument "muscle weighs more than fat" is not valid here. (and it doesn't weigh more than fat it is more dense).

lose weight "fine" eating the above foods??? really? none of those foods are nourishing her body, not helping the metabolism and not fueling her muscles which raise our BMR. did you even read the post on that link? seems like you didn't
i never said muscle weighs more than fat! obviously, i know it has to do with density. and i know not eating enough slows the metabolism.. which is why i posted the link in the first place! :noway:

you are eating
Bread - Italian, 1.5 oz
Hormel - Chili With Beans, 3 cup
and white chocolate chips and you are wondering why you are not losing any weight? :noway:


edit: read this-- http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/416542-i-hope-this-helps

You can lose weight just fine eating the above foods. You don't have to eat perfectly "clean" to lose weight.

It appears that the OP is eating too little and/or exercising too much. Our bodies do not respond well to this. It causes our bodies to release hormones that mask (through water retention), slow and even stop weight loss. Additionally large calorie deficits can lead to a lot of muscle loss. Moderate calorie deficits are key.

http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/why-big-caloric-deficits-and-lots-of-activity-can-hurt-fat-loss.html

http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/setting-the-deficit-small-moderate-or-large.html


Also, you won't be gaining pounds of muscle in a calorie deficit. So the argument "muscle weighs more than fat" is not valid here. (and it doesn't weigh more than fat it is more dense).

lose weight "fine" eating the above foods??? really? none of those foods are nourishing her body, not helping the metabolism and not fueling her muscles which raise our BMR. did you even read the post on that link? seems like you didn't
i never said muscle weighs more than fat! obviously, i know it has to do with density. and i know not eating enough slows the metabolism.. which is why i posted the link in the first place! :noway:

Someone else implied that the OP might be gaining muscle, not you. Sorry for the confusion.

I skimmed your link.

With the exception of eating too little and working out too much (like the OP is doing), losing weight is all about calories. You CAN lose weight eating white bread, chocolate chips and chili from a can. The chili probably even has a decent amount of protein, and fiber.

http://www.wannabebig.com/diet-and-nutrition/the-dirt-on-clean-eating/

http://www.thespartanwarrior.com/post/6114152789/iifym

lose weight "fine" eating the above foods??? really? none of those foods are nourishing her body, not helping the metabolism and not fueling her muscles which raise our BMR. did you even read the post on that link? seems like you didn't
i never said muscle weighs more than fat! obviously, i know it has to do with density. and i know not eating enough slows the metabolism.. which is why i posted the link in the first place! :noway:

Chili is a rather good choice, actually. Legumes are great- protein and carbs. Presumably the chili has meat in it, so more protein, also a good choice, meaning the OP IS nourishing her body just fine.

As for the chocolate chips? I find it much easier to stick with a diet if I can eat some sweets now and then.

I don't understand why people feel the need to make dieting harder than it has to be. I'm all in favor of healthy choices- I try to make good choices myself- but processed food is not evil and a little bit of sugar isn't going to kill you.

---

OP, I'll add my vote for eating more. I think it will really help you. If you do increase your calories, expect a small gain as you build up glycogen stores, but you'll start losing again soon.

Which ever way you go, good luck.

That was such good advice, thank you.