Exercise Calories - SO FRUSTRATED, NEED HELP!!!!!

twingirls05
twingirls05 Posts: 52
edited September 21 in Fitness and Exercise
Ok, I need some advice b/c I'm getting really frustrated right now!!!

Little history of this past week. I weigh in on Wednesday mornings. Last Wednesday, I was 169.6. I usually do a mid-week weigh-in (before the weekend) too...so I weighed in on Saturday morning. On Saturday, I was 166.4...SUPER excited!!!!! I weighed in today and was at 171.0. REALLY?!?!?! What happened??

Here's my theory and I want to see what others think.

Last week, I ran 4 miles on Wed night and then 5 miles on Friday night. On those shorter runs, I typically don't eat many exercise calories back...maybe 200 of them....so I'm below my calorie goal every single day. So, I had a good "fake" weigh-in on Saturday morning.

Then, I ran 10 miles on Sunday, 6 miles on Monday and 6 miles on Tuesday. I was hoping for an awesome weigh-in today!!! Only to find out that I was at 171 and had GAINED 1.5 lbs!!!!!! How can that even be possible??? I mean, I logged 31 miles for the week and was under calorie goal every single day!

My theory is this...I think I'm NOT eating enough of my exercise calories. I usually count 100 calories for every mile that I run...to err on the low side of my calorie burn...b/c unless I do some kind of speedwork, I am not a fast runner (average 10:30 pace on my runs that are like 10 miles and over). But, I'm afraid to play around with eating TOO many of those exercise calories and then completely sabotaging myself...lol!!!

But, I do short runs during the week and I'm ALWAYS down by Saturday morning. Now, last week, I ran a 14 miler on a Saturday morning. I went to the fair that day and had a buttered soft pretzel, 6 of those small fried "waffles", lunch, dinner and a huge bfast b/c I needed some fuel before and after my run. I thought for sure I would blow it that day and gain. No, I lost 2.5 lbs that week!!!!

Then, there were 2 weeks where the most I did was one 6 mile run per week (knee injury I was healing), were my two best weeks on MFP!

So, according to all that info, I've come to the conclusion that I need to be eating more on my exericse days.

Any advice??? What do you guys do that are heavy into physical activity with your earned back calories???
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Replies

  • jrich1
    jrich1 Posts: 2,408 Member
    Maybe water retention in your muscles from the heavy running and exercise
  • sallyLunn
    sallyLunn Posts: 381
    Maybe water retention in your muscles from the heavy running and exercise

    What he said. I often weigh more after a super intense workout. Just weigh yourself again in a couple of days. You didn't gain a pound and a half in one day.
  • jkohan
    jkohan Posts: 184 Member
    I agree that your muscles are retaining water. I also would invest in a HRM to know for sure your calorie burn. I am not sure 100 calories per mile is accurate.

    I feel your pain though--my weight fluctuates with the wind--and I've found the LESS I weigh in the better to account for the wild swings due to water retention.
  • carreen
    carreen Posts: 175 Member
    I don't know what your daily calorie goals are, but if they are low (like 1200), then you do need to eat back some of the exercise calories or your body will go into starvation mode, and you will not lose weight.

    That's what I am struggling with right now. I eat 1200 cals. per day and burn around 700, so that's only 500 calories that I'm taking in. A dietician my husband works with says that's way too low, and I need to eat back at least half of them. The problem is how can I force myself to eat when I'm not hungry?
  • rml_16
    rml_16 Posts: 16,414 Member
    Google "Why the scale lies."

    Gains happen for all sorts of reasons. And I think your scale and my scale may have been in cahoots this week. I averaged just under 1,200 net calories a day last week and gained 2 pounds. Go figure!
  • cparter
    cparter Posts: 754 Member
    Here is my opinion:

    I think it is wiser to weigh once a week first off because of the many fluctuations your body go through with water, etc.

    I typically pick my rest day as my weigh in and I usually do it first thing in the morning on that day after my bathroom break, etc.

    Second, you are right to look at your exercise calories as may needing to consume more of them. When I burn 2200 calories on my long run I eat at least 1900 to 2000 of them and leave my deficit set to lose 1 lb a week. If I eat even less of my calories that is ok too as long as it is around 1.5 lbs per week for my deficit but no more than that. Earlier 2 lbs were sufficient but that was not my desire. I wanted to make sure it stayed controled and slow so my body will adjust with the weight loss.

    It is such a delicate balance but embrace the fact that you have lost 87 lbs and are looking marvelous. You are an inspiration for that but I also understand the desire to achieve a goal. Do not be so hard on yourself and be willing to adjust and readjust as you complete this leg of the journey.

    Carlos
  • millermichellelea
    millermichellelea Posts: 226
    What was your sodium intake during that week? I also have about 1 to 2 pounds of extra weight after a run for a couple of days. Make sure you up your calories when you are doing a good workout. Are you close to when you would normally bloat and gain water?
  • ejgreene
    ejgreene Posts: 5
    Everyone hit it that it is probably simply water weight. Another consideration are hormones related to "that time". We men have it easy and can usually have a pretty consistent loss over time but you guys regularly get hit with cycles due to changes in your hormone levels which affect metabolism (usually slightly) and water retention.
  • twingirls05
    twingirls05 Posts: 52
    As for water retention, I typically try to drink at least a gallon of water per day. Sometimes I'm just under that, sometimes I'm over. So, I would hope that I am drinking enough to compensate.

    As for "that time of the month," that's really hard to guage. I have the Mirena IUD and I don't get periods anymore. However, I do notice that at least once to twice a month, I go through really bloated/crampy times, just like I would be getting a period.

    Yes, I know I should only weigh once a week, but to do nothing crazy and out of the realm of my caloric intake and STILL gain, that's what I don't understand! I don't want to make excuses, just trying to find some answers.

    I do only having about 10-12 more lbs that I want to lose. Trying to get back to 158....and yes, sometimes I am entirely too hard on myself. But, I also feel that busting my butt running and eating healthy...I should see some reward! It aws NEVER this hard before I had 3 kids and turned 30...lol! I just feel like I shouldn't have to work THIS hard and see negative results. I mean, I'm in the best shape of my life right now, I should be enjoying it!

    Right now I'm at 1400 calories (pre-exercise)...I have it set to be losing 1 lb per week (want to do it slow and steady), but I'm sick of gaining!

    I really don't want to get a HRM. I know it's the most efficient way of knowing but I just can't fathom wrapping that around me for a 3 hour run...lol! I do hav ea Garmin Forerunner 205 that estimates my calories. My last 14 mile run, it estimated my calories burned at 1890. So, that's why I usually go with about 100 calories per mile...to go a bit lower than what the Garmin says...simply b/c I don't have a HRM.

    Thanks for all the advice and suggestions. Keep 'em coming!
  • SHBoss1673
    SHBoss1673 Posts: 7,161 Member
    Right, that's the biggest hurdle on MFP, people thinking that their weight is stationary. The human body fluctuates daily, today you could be 3 lbs under your "actual" weight, and tomorrow you could be 3 pounds over. That's why most of us who've been at it for a while caution not to worry about week over week weight, you should focus on longer term trends, I.E. if over six weeks your weight has gone down steadily, then you're doing it right.

    Put it this way, logically, you have to realize that unless you EAT 3500 calories worth of food, then it is physically impossible to put on 1 lb of fat. Thus, unless you went over your maintenance calories by what your weight up is, then you cannot have gained that much true weight. Water is heavy, and depending on hydration levels, urine levels, and solid waste levels, your weight can fluctuate by as much as 5 lbs daily. that's 5 pounds UP or 5 pounds DOWN, to create a 10 lb swing. if you are within that range day over day (even week over week) then you need to brush it off as a false reading.

    Now, the one thing people don't take into account is the possibility that you don't have your maintenance calories set correctly (due to starvation, or some small bio-chemical differences from the averages in your body, or some other medical reasoning). MFP uses averages based on some assumptions, granted those assumptions are usually close to correct, they aren't always right, or you might have made the wrong choices when putting in your statistics (I.E. wrong activity level...etc.). If you're not correct with your maintenance calories, your deficit will be wrong, and you won't lose weight as predicted. It's something to keep in mind. If, after a few months, MFP isn't working like you think it should, one of the first things you should do is go to a metabolic lab and have your ACTUAL maintenance calories checked (metabolic rate), that way you can customize your goals and put in the actual maintenance calories instead of using MFP's assumptions.
  • rml_16
    rml_16 Posts: 16,414 Member
    As for water retention, I typically try to drink at least a gallon of water per day. Sometimes I'm just under that, sometimes I'm over. So, I would hope that I am drinking enough to compensate.

    As for "that time of the month," that's really hard to guage. I have the Mirena IUD and I don't get periods anymore. However, I do notice that at least once to twice a month, I go through really bloated/crampy times, just like I would be getting a period.

    Yes, I know I should only weigh once a week, but to do nothing crazy and out of the realm of my caloric intake and STILL gain, that's what I don't understand! I don't want to make excuses, just trying to find some answers.

    I do only having about 10-12 more lbs that I want to lose. Trying to get back to 158....and yes, sometimes I am entirely too hard on myself. But, I also feel that busting my butt running and eating healthy...I should see some reward! It aws NEVER this hard before I had 3 kids and turned 30...lol! I just feel like I shouldn't have to work THIS hard and see negative results. I mean, I'm in the best shape of my life right now, I should be enjoying it!

    Right now I'm at 1400 calories (pre-exercise)...I have it set to be losing 1 lb per week (want to do it slow and steady), but I'm sick of gaining!

    I really don't want to get a HRM. I know it's the most efficient way of knowing but I just can't fathom wrapping that around me for a 3 hour run...lol! I do hav ea Garmin Forerunner 205 that estimates my calories. My last 14 mile run, it estimated my calories burned at 1890. So, that's why I usually go with about 100 calories per mile...to go a bit lower than what the Garmin says...simply b/c I don't have a HRM.

    Thanks for all the advice and suggestions. Keep 'em coming!

    I have Mirena, too, and it's horrible for hormonal changes! I go through periods where I'm STARVING TO DEATH no matter what I eat and periods where I have no appetite. A couple months ago, I could have sworn I was pregnant -- I had all the symptoms. (I wasn't.)

    And no matter how much water you drink, exercise and hormones can still cause water retention that will show on the scale.
  • leggymomma64
    leggymomma64 Posts: 66 Member
    If it makes you feel any better, I weighed in at the halfway point of last week. I was on week 2, I lost 10 lbs on week one...then gained back SEVEN freakin pounds!!! I was working out 60-90 minutes a day and not "eating back" all the extra calories. I am trying to eat more of the calories i am burning, but long story short, I weighed back in yesterday and lost back the 7 plus 1 extra pound. But I was totally freaked out for a couple of days. I am going to try to scale back to only a weekly weigh in, not twice a week. Good luck though, keep up the hard work!!
  • kelsully
    kelsully Posts: 1,008 Member
    I have a Garmin too and I wear my HRM while I run. It is no more uncomfortable IMO than my bra. The better shape I get into I have found that I only burn about 90 cals per mile but I am also only 5 ft tall so I am pretty small.

    While you may be drinking enough fluids I wonder if there isn't a small electrolyte balance issue after long runs...ie drank a ton of water but didn't replace all the salts etc you lost sweating and thus your body responds by holding on to water?....please note I am just asking this as a question not from any research etc. Do you throw a sports drink etc into the mix on longer days? I HATE GATORADE but always run with it if doing more than 10 miles to replace calories and other "good" things that I just can't get from water alone.
  • jkohan
    jkohan Posts: 184 Member
    I am very wary about the Garmin calorie estimates--it's purely a formula and I've found that to be wildly inaccurate--but I am a HRM nazi because I was so off using those calculations it was ridiculous.

    The HRM chest strap is the only way to go, IMO and I workout up to 3 hours doing cardio and don't notice it in the least.

    However, all that being said--you are an awesome runner and burning tons of calories and you would benefit from fueling the body a bit more and weighing in less for peace of mind.

    You've done amazing!
  • twingirls05
    twingirls05 Posts: 52
    I have a Garmin too and I wear my HRM while I run. It is no more uncomfortable IMO than my bra. The better shape I get into I have found that I only burn about 90 cals per mile but I am also only 5 ft tall so I am pretty small.

    While you may be drinking enough fluids I wonder if there isn't a small electrolyte balance issue after long runs...ie drank a ton of water but didn't replace all the salts etc you lost sweating and thus your body responds by holding on to water?....please note I am just asking this as a question not from any research etc. Do you throw a sports drink etc into the mix on longer days? I HATE GATORADE but always run with it if doing more than 10 miles to replace calories and other "good" things that I just can't get from water alone.

    I don't track calories from my electrolytes b/c I use the Nuun hydration tabs which are 0 calorie. Sometimes, I use G2 (but it makes me burp a lot when I'm out running). On my long runs, I take 32 oz of electrolytes with me and typically have another 24 oz in the car waiting on me for when I'm finished. If I'm just doing a shorter run 8 miles or less, I usually have 16-24 oz of the Nuun when I get home.
  • Connie48
    Connie48 Posts: 190 Member
    Just to throw something different in the mix, I read the book Body Fat Solution by Tom Venuto and its very eye opening in regards to calories/exercise/food. I personally don't agree with MFP "eat your exercise calories" (at least for me,) everyone is different though.
    I do think in your case it may be water retention. I can gain 3lbs overnight, but lose it 2 days later, escpecially if I"ve been training hard or switched up my routine.
  • rml_16
    rml_16 Posts: 16,414 Member
    Just to throw something different in the mix, I read the book Body Fat Solution by Tom Venuto and its very eye opening in regards to calories/exercise/food. I personally don't agree with MFP "eat your exercise calories" (at least for me,) everyone is different though.
    I do think in your case it may be water retention. I can gain 3lbs overnight, but lose it 2 days later, escpecially if I"ve been training hard or switched up my routine.

    So, say you are at 1,200 calories and you burn 1,000 (which I often do -- 1,400 this past Saturday), you don't think it's right to eat any of those exercise calories?
  • TateFTW
    TateFTW Posts: 658 Member
    Lots of reasons this could be the case, but you need to do what works. If that is eating more, then just consider yourself lucky.

    Personally, I think it all has to do with metabolism. If you're burning that many calories and not eating enough back, then your body is starved for nutrients and energy and senses that, slowing the metabolism. You have to keep that metabolism burning hot to keep the fat burning off.

    I also think people throw around the idea of water retention a little too much. I know when I had my big weight loss at my fastest I was losing around 1 lb./day. Trust me, it wasn't water. It was fat and it was falling off.
  • SHBoss1673
    SHBoss1673 Posts: 7,161 Member
    Lots of reasons this could be the case, but you need to do what works. If that is eating more, then just consider yourself lucky.

    Personally, I think it all has to do with metabolism. If you're burning that many calories and not eating enough back, then your body is starved for nutrients and energy and senses that, slowing the metabolism. You have to keep that metabolism burning hot to keep the fat burning off.

    I also think people throw around the idea of water retention a little too much. I know when I had my big weight loss at my fastest I was losing around 1 lb./day. Trust me, it wasn't water. It was fat and it was falling off.

    maybe, maybe not, that's a 3500 calorie difference. But a 6 lb swing in a week, for someone with her stats, is virtually impossible, considering that she's already in pretty good shape (she runs daily), and doesn't have a ton of weight to lose, a 1 lb per day loss is not generally in the cards. When you have an extreme amount to lose (say somewhere in the neighborhood of 75 lbs or more) then maybe for the first few weeks or months it's possible, considering the amount of fat available to burn, but not for someone looking to lose 15 lbs. Not fat weight at least.
  • rml_16
    rml_16 Posts: 16,414 Member
    Tate, I assume you're a man?
  • KarenBorter
    KarenBorter Posts: 1,157 Member
    really good info in this threat. I worry about this too ... and yes, men lose differently then women due to a lot of things :) I have a male friend at the gym and he is constantly reporting to me "oh, I lost 5lbs last week" i am like WTF dude ... you suck! LOL and I have male friends on my list here who are doing the same thing.

    As far as the increase in weight, yeah, I wouldn't sweat it ... give your body a rest and try weighing again in a couple of days I bet that weight comes off.
  • TateFTW
    TateFTW Posts: 658 Member
    Tate, I assume you're a man?

    Yep.

    For the record, the statement I made about water weight was meant in a very general sense, and not gender specific. People tend to throw the idea of water weight at anything they can't explain. Personally, I just accept that I don't know nearly enough to explain most fluctuations in weight, and in the end I just want to keep trending downwards. Also, I certainly agree that losing 1 lb/day is abnormal and will probably be atributable to something other then pure fat loss.
  • kennedar
    kennedar Posts: 306 Member
    I weigh myself daily - I know it is not recommended here, but otherwise I would eat like a pig at the start of the week and then not eat at all at the end, so it helps me - and I have found that certain days I tend to weigh more than others. I tend to lose weight in large amounts (1 - 2 pounds) from monday morning till thursday morning and then have small gains friday morning until sunday morning. I am sure it has something to do with how I am eating those days and the amount of water I consume on the weekends (not nearly enough). Anyways, my point was that our bodies do things in funny ways and we might not always understand them. As long as you are trending down, that is what matters. Small gains are frusterating, especially when you are that close to your goal, but you know you are doing everything right or else you would not have lost the 87 pounds you already have. Which by the way, is pretty freaking amazing!
  • rml_16
    rml_16 Posts: 16,414 Member
    Tate, I assume you're a man?

    Yep.

    For the record, the statement I made about water weight was meant in a very general sense, and not gender specific. People tend to throw the idea of water weight at anything they can't explain. Personally, I just accept that I don't know nearly enough to explain most fluctuations in weight, and in the end I just want to keep trending downwards. Also, I certainly agree that losing 1 lb/day is abnormal and will probably be atributable to something other then pure fat loss.
    Well, the OP is on the same birth control I'm on, so I can speak pretty knowledgably about the fluctuations is causes. It's a bear!

    I agree sometimes water weight is blamed when it shouldn't be, but there are times it really is the case. This week, I gained 2 pounds despite eating very carefully and exercising. I can honestly say, my food intake did not cause a 2-pound gain. And although I'm drinking as much water as usual, I'm not needing the bathroom nearly as often, so it's going somewhere. ;-)

    Plus, one week I did not exceed my calories and the scale was showing down all week. Then I had dinner at Panera. The calories were reasonable, but check the sodium in their food. The next morning, I was up 5 pounds! It went away, though. Definitely water weight from too much sodium.

    So, it definitely happens.

    And, keep in mind that men lose more quickly than women in general because of several factors, from more muscle mass to the fact that women have a built-in fat layer that allows us to healthily carry a baby to term.
  • Connie48
    Connie48 Posts: 190 Member
    Just to throw something different in the mix, I read the book Body Fat Solution by Tom Venuto and its very eye opening in regards to calories/exercise/food. I personally don't agree with MFP "eat your exercise calories" (at least for me,) everyone is different though.
    I do think in your case it may be water retention. I can gain 3lbs overnight, but lose it 2 days later, escpecially if I"ve been training hard or switched up my routine.

    So, say you are at 1,200 calories and you burn 1,000 (which I often do -- 1,400 this past Saturday), you don't think it's right to eat any of those exercise calories?

    Just saying I think MFP should be used as a "guild line", not a be all/do all of calories burned/consumed. JMO of course, and we all know if one wants to lose wt you have to create a calorie deficiet(sp?) IMO adding back calories burned kinda defeats the purpose, of course one could argue that it all depends on how many calories you're burning. Bottom line everyone has to do what they think is right. The only reason I responded to the OP was because she seemed so frustrated. I usually keep my diet/calorie opinions to myself because it can be a touchy subject
  • clipsychic
    clipsychic Posts: 99
    My concerns too.

    Bumping to revisit later.
  • rml_16
    rml_16 Posts: 16,414 Member
    Just to throw something different in the mix, I read the book Body Fat Solution by Tom Venuto and its very eye opening in regards to calories/exercise/food. I personally don't agree with MFP "eat your exercise calories" (at least for me,) everyone is different though.
    I do think in your case it may be water retention. I can gain 3lbs overnight, but lose it 2 days later, escpecially if I"ve been training hard or switched up my routine.

    So, say you are at 1,200 calories and you burn 1,000 (which I often do -- 1,400 this past Saturday), you don't think it's right to eat any of those exercise calories?

    Just saying I think MFP should be used as a "guild line", not a be all/do all of calories burned/consumed. JMO of course, and we all know if one wants to lose wt you have to create a calorie deficiet(sp?) IMO adding back calories burned kinda defeats the purpose, of course one could argue that it all depends on how many calories you're burning. Bottom line everyone has to do what they think is right. The only reason I responded to the OP was because she seemed so frustrated. I usually keep my diet/calorie opinions to myself because it can be a touchy subject

    I don't go out of my way to eat them back, but if I'm hungry, I eat them. The daily calories are already a significant deficit, so eating them back is still a deficit.

    Anyway, I tend to lose more most weeks when I eat more. Example: One week, counting my calories burned and daily allowance, I had about 1,800 calories left over on WI day. I lost .5 pounds. The next week, I actually went over by 400 (still a deficit, mind you, but a smaller one) and lost 1.5. I've been on WW and counting calories long enough to tell you that is definitely a pattern for me and has been my experience for a long time.

    Of course, everyone will have a different experience, but eating the exercise calories is not necessarily going to result in a smaller loss for everyone. People need to see what works for them.
  • H_82
    H_82 Posts: 418 Member
    Just in the regards to the HRM, I didn't want one w/ a chest strap either b/c I thought it would just get in the way or be uncomfortable. I'm a runner & do a lot (or what I think is a lot) of cardio. I don't even notice the chest strap. Also found that the treadmill was 100 calories too high compared to what I was really burning... which, of course everyone knows that machines aren't accurate when it comes to that, since everyone is different. I've only had my HRM for a short time, but I love it & think it was a great investment!
    Good luck!
  • abi_bennett
    abi_bennett Posts: 8 Member
    Maybe it's the muscles that you're gaining? Obviously, that counts as weight.

    But other than that, i'm not sure :S

    x
  • twingirls05
    twingirls05 Posts: 52
    I don't really think I'm gaining muscle b/c I'm not doing strength training and stuff like that. Running doesn't really cause a lot of muscle to form.

    I do think a lot of it is water weight b/c my "real" weight obviously doesn't fluctuate that drastically from eating healthy and exercising. I'm anxious to see where I am on Friday (just to weigh in again and see if it comes back off). Maybe I should just change my weigh in day...lol! I have been able to buy some Medium tops and a few size 8 pants....so I know that I'm losing somehwere! I haven't done measurements in a really long time, maybe I should do that again.

    Honestly, if I don't lose 10 more lbs, I won't be super upset. When I was at my lowest (158), that was 6 years ago and pre-children. If I can run and maintain even where I'm at now, I would be happy. Sometimes I think my body where it is. Before MFP, I had maintained my weight for 9 months (even though I was trying to lose).

    I'm going to play around with my calories this weekend. I'm doing a 16 mile run. I plan on eating an additional 700-900 calories that day...first off all, I'm starving ALL day long after those runs and my 300 calorie banana chocolate smoothie from Starbucks is always a yummy treat after almost 3 hours of working out! Ha! But, my legs will likely be a bit sore from that run too. So, we'll see how I do next week!

    Thanks for the all the input. Looks like a lot of people benefitted from this thread!
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