Running and gaining weight

I tend to not drop weight during training, due to high mileage and the high calories needed to fuel the runs, but I would note that you shouldn't weigh after a long run. Your muscles will hold water for repair. Plus I tend to crave salty things while running a lot of miles, which adds to the 'gain'. During my last round of training, I 'apparently' gained 8 pounds, but when my taper started they went away. After the my weight re-stabilized.

Without your diary open, its tough to say anything more, other than the standard 'go by inches not pounds' rule.

I tend to eat more on the days I do my long runs. Are you a new runner? How old are you? I am not certain that 5 1/2 marthons in a year is a good choice. Break it up a bit maybe and do some 10K's or 5K's. I think you need to give your body some "recoop" time and mix things up. I have made your mistake and when I took the approach of "less is more, I did lose weight." Just my two cents worth.

I have jokingly said that I am probably the only person I know of that can run 13 miles and gain weight. I am almost 51, maybe it is a metabolism issue?

I am not eating excessively or bad ... the only change is that I am running now ...

If you are gaining weight, you are eating excessively. (Re)Start logging your food.

I am not eating excessively or bad ...

this seems vague. excessively vague

I don't have my diary open because I'm not logging right now. Kind of foolish maybe, but when I had dropped the weight, I wanted to see if I could maintain without logging, and I was doing fairly well until I started running.

.....i think we've located the problem. everyone underestimates how many calories they consume. studies have shown that overweight people underestimate calories by 40-60% and people that are in great shape underestimate by around 15% or so. NO ONE overestimates.

Start logging

I am not eating excessively or bad ...

this seems vague. excessively vague

I don't have my diary open because I'm not logging right now. Kind of foolish maybe, but when I had dropped the weight, I wanted to see if I could maintain without logging, and I was doing fairly well until I started running.

.....i think we've located the problem. everyone underestimates how many calories they consume. studies have shown that overweight people underestimate calories by 40-60% and people that are in great shape underestimate by around 15% or so. NO ONE overestimates.

Start logging

Listen to this guy. You're gaining because you're eating too much (aside from any water retention in your muscles). It's very, very easy to do - even if you think you're eating at a maintenance level, if you've put on weight - you're not.

I don't have my diary open because I'm not logging right now. Kind of foolish maybe, but when I had dropped the weight, I wanted to see if I could maintain without logging, and I was doing fairly well until I started running.

If you aren't logging then how do you know that you haven't gone over your calories? I just finished my first half and I logged all through my training, but upped my calorie intake to 2000 on my long run days. Looks like you need to start logging again and see where the problem is. I have a feeling that the calorie intake is the problem.

I've just gotten used to maintaining over the last year that I know what I can and can't eat and calories in what I do eat. I'm a very picky eater so am limited in my food choices which makes it easy to track calories in your head.

Okay...look at it from my point of view on what you have just said here:

~You stated you haven't been logging or tracking your calories
~You have gained weight, and even yourself said that you probably should be logging
~When I pointed out, hey if you aren't logging then how do you know you aren't going over? You shot this down with, I count in my head.

So basically you are looking for a, "You are doing everything right, keep doing what you are doing and don't suggest areas that might be the problem even though I admitted they might be the problem" supportive type of person. Yeah, not me. Not trying to be rude here, but blunt as that is what it seems like to me.

I try to be supportive but I have to agree with this. I run a lot and when I run I either lose weight or maintain but I continually log because when I run especially long runs I tend to get very hungry so if I am not careful I can eat way too much. You dont gain weight unless you are eating too much, only exception would be if you are holding water and if so that should be 2-3 pounds which should go away in a couple days

I don't have my diary open because I'm not logging right now. Kind of foolish maybe, but when I had dropped the weight, I wanted to see if I could maintain without logging, and I was doing fairly well until I started running.

Aha!

When I increase running mileage, I instinctively eat more food...far more than the additional calories from the increased mileage. Actually, I don't just eat *more* food, I EAT ALL TEH FOODZ!!!1!!eleven!!1. It's one of the main reasons I use MFP...because even though I've never been significantly overweight, I start down that path when I increase my activity level.

I don't have my diary open because I'm not logging right now. Kind of foolish maybe, but when I had dropped the weight, I wanted to see if I could maintain without logging, and I was doing fairly well until I started running.

Aha!

When I increase running mileage, I instinctively eat more food...far more than the additional calories from the increased mileage. Actually, I don't just eat *more* food, I EAT ALL TEH FOODZ!!!1!!eleven!!1. It's one of the main reasons I use MFP...because even though I've never been significantly overweight, I start down that path when I increase my activity level.

I'm actually the opposite though. When I do a long run ... I am doing a long run training run of about 20k every saturday or sunday, when I get back the last thing I want to think about is food. It actually makes me sick if I eat so I might have a banana or something and some water but other than that, I eat incredibly light on my long run days so I'm not throwing it all back up.

Just because you're not eating more that day, doesn't mean you're not eating more overall to compensate.

If you're gaining, you're eating more than you need. That's math. To lose/stop gaining, track everything and eat at a deficit. Also math.

As a former marathoner and multiple half-er, I'm thinking that you're training at too high of a heart rate. If you want to do the distance thing, the best thing for your body is gonna be to keep your heart rate between 50% and 75% of your max. If you're at 75% or above for all those hours you're running during the week, you're putting a HUGE stress on your whole ecosystem.

Some of the things I experienced when I was doing just that- running 20-30 miles a week with my HR at like 75-80% the entire time- include (but are not limited to)

Crazy carb cravings. Even eating at maintenance, I was RAVENOUS all the time. And then miserable when I couldn't eat how much I wanted to without gaining weight. That's actually how I ended up here. After my last marathon, I said *kitten* it I'm HUNGRY and went to town for a good couple months, running 5-15 miles a week and also eating whatever I wanted without tracking. 10lbs heavier, I realized that wasn't working out too well for me.

Injuries- ITBS, etc.

URI's- was definitely way more susceptible to anything and everything illness-related that was going around

Fatigue- on off days, all I wanted to do was lay around and be a piece.

My reccomendations- get yourself a heart rate monitor, and slow down if you have to. The easiest way to get that HR in the right range is to slow down your running pace.

You might also have to decide what you want more- a healthy, fit body, or a certain time on the clock on those races :-)