gained weight back

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christinaosanders
christinaosanders Posts: 3
in Goal: Gaining Weight and Body Building
Hi All. I am on week 2 of starting to watch my calories and starting exercising. During my first week, I lost 4 pounds. I thought....FANTASTIC! I am still exercising and have increased the amount of exercise I am doing and still staying well under my daily calories but I have gained those 4 lbs back. I will say, however, that I am noticing that I am losing inches. I know in the long run, it is the inches that matter but when I step on that scale, it has become very discouraging.

Any help/suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Replies

  • diannethegeek
    diannethegeek Posts: 14,776 Member
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    When you start a new exercise program or increase an old one it's not unusual to see a slight gain on the scale. Our bodies flood sore muscles with water to help cushion and repair them, which can mask any fat loss that's happening.

    Losing inches is great! Try to focus on that instead of worrying about the fluctuations on the scale. Unfortunately, they're just a part of the whole weight loss journey.
  • LyroJoseph
    LyroJoseph Posts: 2
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    I also have been really frustrated...
    I dont seem to be loosing weight but i'm under my calorie allowance and i go to gym(just walking and jogging)

    I dont know what to do...
  • pikkies23
    pikkies23 Posts: 12
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    Hi LyroJospeph!

    I assume that your walking and jogging is referring to your cardio workout at the gym?

    if this is the case, you should be looking at maybe doing some different types of interval training as cardio. you will notice in the first 2 - 3 weeks some gain but this is due to water in the muscles. when we do some forms of strenuous training with weights we get microscopic tears in the muscles (you need to break down to build up) these tears need h2o to repair themselves and protect them from futher damage.

    we need muscles as it is more dense and takes up less space (you'll get smaller) and big bonus is that you will need more calories to function as muscles need a lot of energy to move! :) - THE HUMAN BODY IS FASINATING RIGHT?

    if you like you could IM me and I would be happy to assist and give you some great examples of beginner interval training that will def kick start the fat burning power :)
  • stefne101
    stefne101 Posts: 5 Member
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    I have been having the same problem, you have to remember that muscle weighs more than fat so, whilst u may be losing that horrible fat you could be toning muscle therefore tipping the scales, just because you've put on weight doesn't mean that the extra weight is fat. :) okie dokie Good Luck! hope this helps.
  • klwmom
    klwmom Posts: 3
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    Hi, I am new to posting and am wondering about the muscle weight. I was on Ideal Protein for 7 months and lost 72 lbs. Since then I have been using MFP to monitor calories and to allow my body to adjust (lost a lot of inches and muscle tone). It took about 6 weeks to get my glycogen stores back (about 4 lbs), but since then I have gained about 10 lbs over the last 4 months. I have been walking 2.5-3 miles 3x a week and doing some light dumbell workouts to get the tone back. Could the 10 lbs still be my body adjusting?? I have had a lot of frustration with needed calories due to the continuous gain. My stats are: age 53, female, ht. 5'8", 31%bf. I consider myself sedentary and try to eat back about 1/2 exercise calories. Right now I am set at 1400 cal. Anyone have any ideas??
  • MityMax96
    MityMax96 Posts: 5,778 Member
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    Hi, I am new to posting and am wondering about the muscle weight. I was on Ideal Protein for 7 months and lost 72 lbs. Since then I have been using MFP to monitor calories and to allow my body to adjust (lost a lot of inches and muscle tone). It took about 6 weeks to get my glycogen stores back (about 4 lbs), but since then I have gained about 10 lbs over the last 4 months. I have been walking 2.5-3 miles 3x a week and doing some light dumbell workouts to get the tone back. Could the 10 lbs still be my body adjusting?? I have had a lot of frustration with needed calories due to the continuous gain. My stats are: age 53, female, ht. 5'8", 31%bf. I consider myself sedentary and try to eat back about 1/2 exercise calories. Right now I am set at 1400 cal. Anyone have any ideas??

    Have you been tracking your food correctly?
    What has been your macro break down during this time?
    You did not list your current bodyweight, so I will assume 150 lbs.
    And 3 days worth of exercise.

    Based on what you provided, your TDEE should be ~1800 - 1900
    Protein/day should be ~105 gr
    Fat/day should be ~60 gr
    Carbs/day should be ~238 gr -- this macro you can slide up or down depending if you want more or less calories.

    But it seems to me that if you have stayed at 1400 cal/day for a while now, and you are not going in the right direction....
    Then my first thought is, it is too low
    Your macros may need to be re-adjusted.
  • annakow
    annakow Posts: 385 Member
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    losing weight takes time...months...it wont happen over the week. I lost nothing in first 2 months (8lbs)..keep your diet and wait
  • MityMax96
    MityMax96 Posts: 5,778 Member
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    Hi All. I am on week 2 of starting to watch my calories and starting exercising. During my first week, I lost 4 pounds. I thought....FANTASTIC! I am still exercising and have increased the amount of exercise I am doing and still staying well under my daily calories but I have gained those 4 lbs back. I will say, however, that I am noticing that I am losing inches. I know in the long run, it is the inches that matter but when I step on that scale, it has become very discouraging.

    Any help/suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

    Sounds like water weight to me.

    If you are losing inches, then that is prolly the better option.
    The scale should be one form of measurement for progress, and even then I would make it low on my list.
    I would focus on things like inches....so inches in waist, arms, legs, chest....
    Fluctuations in BW of ~5 lbs, will most likely be due to water weight......so something to watch, yes.
    To get upset over? no I don't think so, as long as your other measurements are moving in the direction you want.
  • DevotedOne9
    DevotedOne9 Posts: 92 Member
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    Wow...thanks for that great information/pep talk! I am frustrated with the rate that I'm losing, because I always seem to lose faster than this when I first start dieting (again!). This time, though, I've started a different workout, one that involves some muscle-building. Helps to know this may be the reason my start is slow this time!
    Hi LyroJospeph!

    I assume that your walking and jogging is referring to your cardio workout at the gym?

    if this is the case, you should be looking at maybe doing some different types of interval training as cardio. you will notice in the first 2 - 3 weeks some gain but this is due to water in the muscles. when we do some forms of strenuous training with weights we get microscopic tears in the muscles (you need to break down to build up) these tears need h2o to repair themselves and protect them from futher damage.

    we need muscles as it is more dense and takes up less space (you'll get smaller) and big bonus is that you will need more calories to function as muscles need a lot of energy to move! :) - THE HUMAN BODY IS FASINATING RIGHT?

    if you like you could IM me and I would be happy to assist and give you some great examples of beginner interval training that will def kick start the fat burning power :)
  • cjhex
    cjhex Posts: 10 Member
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    I suspect the answers already provided are all that's needed but one question to ask that fully explained my weight loss being followed by a weight gain, are your scales reliable?
    Our reliable scales broke and were replaced by a cheaper set, these were later replaced by better scales more like our original ones. The first and last scales showed regular falls in weight; the cheap ones were inconsistent but ALWAYS weighed us above what we believed we were.
  • MityMax96
    MityMax96 Posts: 5,778 Member
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    I also have been really frustrated...
    I dont seem to be loosing weight but i'm under my calorie allowance and i go to gym(just walking and jogging)

    I dont know what to do...

    When at the gym, try to incorporate some weight lifting.
  • roniredd
    roniredd Posts: 48
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    I know for me personally, it takes several weeks after starting to eat well and exercise to see a lose on the scale. I think your body is just adjusting to the changes. It's hard, but just know you are heading in the right direction. Good luck.
  • klwmom
    klwmom Posts: 3
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    I am at 190 right now. I am aiming for 165. My macros are 40/30/30 (carb/prot/fat). I weigh and report everything. I have given up my daily Coke Zero (now only 1-2 times a week) and drinking 80-100 oz of water a day. I wonder about the accuracy of the BMR for me since I was on the IP diet for so long. I lost 70 in, so my body has taken time to adjust skin, muscle, everything else. Clothes still fit pretty well, a little snugger in waist - which is where my weight tends to fall. I was wondering if I am too low on calories, but I can't stand the climbing numbers. Just frustration.
  • MityMax96
    MityMax96 Posts: 5,778 Member
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    I am at 190 right now. I am aiming for 165. My macros are 40/30/30 (carb/prot/fat). I weigh and report everything. I have given up my daily Coke Zero (now only 1-2 times a week) and drinking 80-100 oz of water a day. I wonder about the accuracy of the BMR for me since I was on the IP diet for so long. I lost 70 in, so my body has taken time to adjust skin, muscle, everything else. Clothes still fit pretty well, a little snugger in waist - which is where my weight tends to fall. I was wondering if I am too low on calories, but I can't stand the climbing numbers. Just frustration.

    Ok, I would say don't do ratios.
    Set up your diet based around protein and fat macros, and then adjust your carb intake to either increase or decrease your calories.

    So again.
    We will say ~150gr of protein = 600 cal
    Fat ~60 gr = 540 cal
    For a BW of 190 pounds and 3 days of exercise, you are looking at a TDEE around 2200 - 2300
    So lets say you go with a 1900 - 2000 caloric goal ( I will use 2000 cal)
    That means your carb intake will be around 860 calories == 215 gr.
    So you can adjust the carb intake up or down.
  • bacitracin
    bacitracin Posts: 921 Member
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    Scales lie. Go by how your clothes fit.
  • haymancm
    haymancm Posts: 280 Member
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    I know you are discouraged, but just change some things up a little. Eat more bunny food (veggies & salads) for a day or two to offset the sodium/water retention for foods &/or sore muscles, drink more water than half your body weight in oz, & create a bigger deficit for your calories again by eating less &/or burning more calories. Play with the numbers & do something different! I lost about 12 lbs (out of 16 ) my first month before things slowed down. I was mad & started doing some HIIT cardio at my gym & used a heart rate monitor to correctly track my burned calories. While you are in transition, weigh yourself more to make sure you are on the same track & adjust your diary accordingly the next day.

    You can follow my progress & see my diary, by adding me. :)
  • klwmom
    klwmom Posts: 3
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    Thanks for the input - I'll give it a try. :smile:

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