So beyond frustrated

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ghostlystate1980
ghostlystate1980 Posts: 27
in Motivation and Support
I am at a loss about my weight loss. In april I started using weight watchers and in 3 months I lost 12 lbs and managed to keep that off until recently. I have gained 4 lbs in the past week and cannot understand why.

I started uping my workouts and have added strength/weight training, lots of squats, lunges, bicep and tricep curls with a 6 lb medicine ball, crunches, bicycle kicks and dips (I do these on the total gym) and I have ramped up my cardio with workout videos, tredmill, walks outside and major gardening. I try to get at least 30 mins of cardio 5 times a week and I do strength/weights 3 times a week.

When I lost the 12 lbs through weight watchers (was a discounted online three month trial) I was following the points system and it obviously worked, but I wasn't really working out.) Now that I am watching what I eat (mind you not as much as while on the points system) and working out, I am gaining weight back. I have started to keep a weight loss diary where I write down how much I eat and how much I work out. My food has pretty much stayed the same in the past 4 months so I am at a loss.

I feel run down and blah, I am stressed (lost job) and now is the worst time to find a job and I am having a heck of a time because I have had health set backs over the years which has not helped my resume so people think I am not a good employee because I do not stay at places for a long time due to health issues. I see a specialist and it is ongoing trying to get my problem under control, which there is no cut and dry answer for.

I think between not having a job (haven't for a while now) stressing about my health, not being able to sleep because of stress and medication, I am going nuts.

I WANT TO BE HEALTHY AND LOSE WEIGHT. I was once very slim and then in the last 10 years I have put on 80 lbs so I am not in a good place.

Replies

  • erickirb
    erickirb Posts: 12,293 Member
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    When starting a resistance training program or increasing intensity your body will retain water around the muscles to help the recovery process. This "water weight" will eventually go away once your body get use to the exercises. Keep it up and you will see results. Also, as you said you are run down, make sure you eat more to fuel your body for the exercise. Good luck
  • MOUSELADY
    MOUSELADY Posts: 16
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    Try changing your workout a little and the foods that you eat, and say a prayer and ask God to help you with the stress you are having, He can help you get back on track. Take it slow. Maybe you are expecting results too soon. These are just suggestions. Good luck.
  • summersk
    summersk Posts: 59
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    I sounds to me as though you are gaining some muscle and may also be holding some water due to your muscles not being used to the new weight training routine. And while the feeling blah and tired may be from stress, you may also need to increase you protein intake. When you strength train you use a lot more protein than normal, try increasing your protein intake and see if that doesn't help with the tiredness and "blah" feelings. Hope this helps you fell a little less frustrated. :smile:

    P.S. Good luck with the job hunt and health issues. Hope everything works out okay for you.
  • ghostlystate1980
    ghostlystate1980 Posts: 27
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    When starting a resistance training program or increasing intensity your body will retain water around the muscles to help the recovery process. This "water weight" will eventually go away once your body get use to the exercises. Keep it up and you will see results. Also, as you said you are run down, make sure you eat more to fuel your body for the exercise. Good luck

    Thanks. The whole science behind weight loss is hard because you think "oh, I'm working out hard core, why the heck isn't the scale going down?" so you get down on yourself and then feel what's the point.....horrible cycle of feelings. I am trying to keep my calories around 1500 - 1700 a day, which is very hard and I tend to go above that.
  • sadams327
    sadams327 Posts: 2
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    Muscle weighs more than fat, are you losing inches still?
  • kwelborn2873
    kwelborn2873 Posts: 14
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    Could your medication be playing a factor in your weight loss. You may want to discuss with your doctor to see if that is the case.
    My doctor told me that thirty minutes of cardio isn't enough. He said the body doesn't start burning off your stored fat until after the first thirty minutes of exercise. Use the food journal on MFP. I find it to be very helpful. Don't give up! Those pounds will start to come off you'll see.

    Kathy
  • ghostlystate1980
    ghostlystate1980 Posts: 27
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    Try changing your workout a little and the foods that you eat, and say a prayer and ask God to help you with the stress you are having, He can help you get back on track. Take it slow. Maybe you are expecting results too soon. These are just suggestions. Good luck.

    Thank you for your advice. I don't feel I am expecting results too soon, I am hoping for 1 lb a week loss.
  • Bella1973
    Bella1973 Posts: 3 Member
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    Since you're now including more strenght/weight training in your workouts, you are most likely building muscle. Rather than focusing on the number your scale is giving you, I would suggest keeping a records of your measurements. Your overall weight may be up due to the muscle your building, but you could be losing inches. Muscle does weigh more than fat, or so I've been told. Just as erickirb mentions it's important to keep your body fueled.

    4lbs in one week may seem like a lot, but there are many factors that can could have that sort of impact. Where you are in your cycle, if you indulged more than normal, water retention. I wouldn't freak out about this just yet. Track your measurements and track your calories to make sure your body is getting what it needs to keep itself fueled.

    Good luck :smile:
  • ghostlystate1980
    ghostlystate1980 Posts: 27
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    Thank you everyone for the advice, I really appreciate it. The medication I am taking for my health issue, I have been on for 2 1/2 years and it has helped me in many ways. I am actually seeing my Doctor this weekend, as for weight gain, it is not supposed to make me gain weight.

    I have heard that too about the 30 minutes of cardio not being enough, but what I find odd is how many doctors say you should get at least 30 a day but if that is not enough why don't they say that?

    Does weight training count towards cardio? It gets my heart rate up and I sweat too.

    I have lost about 1/2" on my waist since I last measured myself.

    I have also heard muscle weights more than fat and that it takes up less room then fat. My husband says that if you have two people standing beside each other and one guy/girl could be in crazy shape and weigh 150 lbs and then you have someone who is out of shape and weights 150 lbs (these people are the same height for the example) that the super fit person will look way slimmer even though each of them have the same weight.

    as for my blood pressure, it is excellent, 72/122 and my resting heart rate is 64 beats per min.
  • irchrismm
    irchrismm Posts: 95 Member
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    Muscle weighs more than fat, are you losing inches still?
    Like everyone else seems to be pointing at, it shouldn't be about weight so much as it is about body fat percentage. For guys, you can be 160lbs or 180 lbs and have the same body fat percentage. It is also about your over all health. How is your blood pressure? What about standing heart rate? If you go above your heart rate zone during your workout, you don't get as much out of it..same goes for if you fall below. Some people judge their health by the reading on the scale, and not by the other factors that really determine over all health. I would take a minute and figure out your body fat percentage, and go from there.
  • juday3
    juday3 Posts: 78 Member
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    I am sorry to hear about your frustration. I think the reason why you are having difficulty losing weight is because you are extremely stressed out especially about your situation. Even though you are watching what you eat and work out, having stress will counter act weight loss.

    I am in a somewhat similar boat. I am a recent college grad that has not been able to find a job in over 9 months. At the begging of this year I did not let anything bother me and just focused on getting healthy. I had lost 40 lbs by May then suddenly, stopped losing weight! I was only consuming 1200 calories a day and working out 2.5 hours a day doing circuit training. The weight should have been coming off but it wasn't. I began freaking out because I had been turned down job after job or was told that I was "over qualified" to work and stopped losing weight. To top it all off I suffered a severe knee injury and can't afford to have surgery to get it fixed....Now its August and I've gained 3 lbs. and not losing weight because I have been so stressed. I still have over 40 more lbs to lose.

    I was advised by a friend to take one day at a time, to watch everything I eat and exercise regularly but don't over do it. She also told me that when I begin to feel overly stressed to take a time out, take a deep breath and try to relax. She recommended yoga. I actually did not think that it would help but I gave it a shot. I went out over a week ago and bought a yoga DVD and I can actually say that it has helped me with my stress. When I feel stressed out I pop in the DVD and it does help elevate my frustration. The yoga has also helped me strengthen my injured knee so I have more stability. I haven't lost any weight since I started but I did notice that my waist and hip measurements are down by 1.5 inches and I fit in smaller size pants. I am confident that I will begin to see the scale go down again. She also told me to mix up my work out routines so that my body does not get accustomed to the same thing. It helps to keep your body guessing instead of expecting the same old workout routine.

    Losing weight is difficult especially with added stresses and difficulties that come with life. It may seem like your not getting anywhere but you will, just don't give up. Continue to eat healthy and exercise and once you find a way to help elevate your stress, the weight will start coming off again.

    Best wishes to you.:flowerforyou:
  • ghostlystate1980
    ghostlystate1980 Posts: 27
    Options
    I am sorry to hear about your frustration. I think the reason why you are having difficulty losing weight is because you are extremely stressed out especially about your situation. Even though you are watching what you eat and work out, having stress will counter act weight loss.

    I am in a somewhat similar boat. I am a recent college grad that has not been able to find a job in over 9 months. At the begging of this year I did not let anything bother me and just focused on getting healthy. I had lost 40 lbs by May then suddenly, stopped losing weight! I was only consuming 1200 calories a day and working out 2.5 hours a day doing circuit training. The weight should have been coming off but it wasn't. I began freaking out because I had been turned down job after job or was told that I was "over qualified" to work and stopped losing weight. To top it all off I suffered a severe knee injury and can't afford to have surgery to get it fixed....Now its August and I've gained 3 lbs. and not losing weight because I have been so stressed. I still have over 40 more lbs to lose.

    I was advised by a friend to take one day at a time, to watch everything I eat and exercise regularly but don't over do it. She also told me that when I begin to feel overly stressed to take a time out, take a deep breath and try to relax. She recommended yoga. I actually did not think that it would help but I gave it a shot. I went out over a week ago and bought a yoga DVD and I can actually say that it has helped me with my stress. When I feel stressed out I pop in the DVD and it does help elevate my frustration. The yoga has also helped me strengthen my injured knee so I have more stability. I haven't lost any weight since I started but I did notice that my waist and hip measurements are down by 1.5 inches and I fit in smaller size pants. I am confident that I will begin to see the scale go down again. She also told me to mix up my work out routines so that my body does not get accustomed to the same thing. It helps to keep your body guessing instead of expecting the same old workout routine.

    Losing weight is difficult especially with added stresses and difficulties that come with life. It may seem like your not getting anywhere but you will, just don't give up. Continue to eat healthy and exercise and once you find a way to help elevate your stress, the weight will start coming off again.

    Best wishes to you.:flowerforyou:

    I am sorry to hear you are having troubles finding a job as well. Don't beat yourself up, losing 40 lbs is a huge success and gaining 3 lbs in a few months is nothing to worry about!! A friend of mine just suggested yoga as well (sounds like we both have a great friend) to help with stress and weight loss. I know having all this stress in my life is not helping and it is really hard to get over everything that is happening and my husband and I want to start a family but cannot afford to so we have to put it off and I am 30 now and he is 33 and I feel we are getting too old :( and I have a fertility issue that may or may not give us trouble getting pregnant so yeah, stress is my middle name. I dont know when I last felt non stressed. I think I was born stressed!! I want to lose 14 lbs to get to my mini goal of 20 lbs lost and then from there another 40.

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