Why do I gain weight?

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Replies

  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    Your metabolism could be in starvation mode if you are eating below your calorie limit. This can cause your body to create fat stores because it is in defense mode. I advise that you up your cals.....

    Are you serious? In what universe does eating too little make one GAIN weight? This is ridiculous.

    OP - You are likely not tracking your intake correctly or you are overestimating your calorie burn. You didn't give us much information about your situation, but my suggestion would be to begin weighing your food with a food scale, be completely honest with your diary, and if you are eating back your exercise calories, perhaps only eat back 75% of them instead of 100%. The simple answer is: you are probably not losing weight because you are not currently eating at a deficit.

    I thought that we were all adults here. If you don't agree with my advice, OK. How about just give your own advice instead of bashing mine. Thanks.

    Eat more to lose has nothing to do with "starvation mode"...eat more to lose is all about dietary adherence and maintaining as much LBM as possible during the cutting process. You can crash your metabolism with VLCD but not to the point that you would stop losing weight or start gaining...you will surely lose more LBM on a VLCD and will likely run into nutritional deficienceies...there are numerous reasons why people should not be doing VLCD...but "starvation mode" as presented is inaccurate.
  • Mcgrawhaha
    Mcgrawhaha Posts: 1,596 Member
    Your metabolism could be in starvation mode if you are eating below your calorie limit. This can cause your body to create fat stores because it is in defense mode. I advise that you up your cals, workout at least 3-5 days a week and watch your sodium in take as well. Sodium in high quantity causes water weight gain. I also suggest weighing yourself once a week at the same time...like may be every Friday or something. Good luck to you and I hope that you find something that works for you!

    no. you dont even know her history, her ACTUAL calorie intake, her calorie burn, her length of time watching calories... how can you "diagnose" her with starvation mode? besides the fact that the way mfp throws around the term starvation mode is completely false and un true, you dont even have enough information to even consider such an off the wall idea. starvation mode as your using it, is a myth. plain and simple. i wish you starvation mode people would stop giving bad advise, like to up her calories, when you dont even know what her calorie intake is...
  • Mr_Knight
    Mr_Knight Posts: 9,532 Member
    I eat under my calorie limit, i workout and everyday when i go on the scale i've been gaining weight!
    why?

    If you are gaining weight, and this is confirmed over a reasonable amount of time, then you are simply eating more than your activity level allows for.
  • Mr_Knight
    Mr_Knight Posts: 9,532 Member
    Your metabolism could be in starvation mode if you are eating below your calorie limit. This can cause your body to create fat stores because it is in defense mode.

    Absolutely guaranteed that is NOT happening.
  • 1princesswarrior
    1princesswarrior Posts: 1,242 Member
    Before you eat MORE I suggest the following:

    1. Get a food scale and weigh everything, no more measuring cups or spoons they are off
    2. Log everything
    3. Eat more fat - your body needs fats, use 2% or whole fat dairy or add some almonds/nut butter to your diet, it will not add a lot of calories
    4. Get a heart rate monitor or fitbit to track your exercise, online trackers and MFP are usually much higher than the actual burn
    5. Eat more fruits and vegetables as your source of carbs
    6. Don't skip meals or if you do be sure you have plenty of snacks that day

    According to your ticker you only have about 20 lbs to lose, your goal should only be 0.5 lbs/week or 1 lb at the most or you will have trouble maintaining. I would suggest going back into your settings and changing that. If the calorie change is huge, slowly increase your intake after you are confident you are eating the right amount by 50-100 cal/day each week to give your body time to adjust.

    Keep your protein high to help maintain your lean body mass.
  • mdev1
    mdev1 Posts: 18 Member
    The simple, and most overlooked option, is to greatly increase physical activity. Eating more often, and healthy, whilst excising will help increase your metabolism. This will, a) allow you to eat more, b) burn off more calories, and c) prevent your body from slowing the burn rate due to a lack of fuel.

    I personally do NOT track how much Pam I spray, or butter that I use, but I do measure the principal items I eat (meat, veggies, peanuts etc.). I simply generalize the oil, butter, and spray calories (which granted, are significant). On the other hand, I might burn 1,000 or more calories while working out so I can afford to be slightly inaccurate in that area. In general, I aim for a small deficit on the days I work out, and I am conservative on the days I don't. That means I eat like a horse on the days I do workout.

    They key is to keep your metabolism high and you can't do that through diet alone. Get a FitBit, or something similar, and aim to increase your activity in conjunction with eating regularly throughout the day. Of course, do not munch down the preponderance of your calorie intake 30 minutes before bedtime. In fact, try to eat about 30% of your daily intake in the morning. That will also help to stoke the furnace. If you are working out regularly, and eating healthy and balanced foods, then you should have no problem shedding the extra lbs.

    A brief review of your diary tells me you are eating too little and not burning anything. This will serve to slow the metabolism and thereby slow weight loss. What will happen, with a diet like yours, is that you will loose lean mass. The lean mass (muscle) is what is needed to burn calories. The more lean mass you have, the more calories you need to maintain it. Exercise will build that mass and increase the body's burn rate to support it. Eating like you are currently logging, will weaken your entire system including your bone tissue. Doing something as simple as walking 10,000 steps a day will have a measurable impact. Some strength training will also help tremendously (pushups, situps, etc.). You don't have to be a gym rat for this to work.

    Good luck!

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