This question has probably been asked a MILLION times...

You're right...it's been asked a LOT. However, each person is different.
Opinions are like belly buttons, everybody has one so...enjoy the responses.

This is great, and so true. :bigsmile:

Hi ZB,

If you are gaining weight, you are eating too much. I would not up my calories any more.

You said you gained weight after a month of eating "about 1700" calories a day. Does this mean you did a lot of guessing on calories in/calories out?

Do you weigh all solid food and measure liquids?

Do you log everything you eat?

Do you log exercise?

Do you ensure your calorie counts are correct by reading packages and looking up nutrition information?

Where do you get your calorie estimations from?

Hi ZB,

If you are gaining weight, you are eating too much. I would not up my calories any more.

You said you gained weight after a month of eating "about 1700" calories a day. Does this mean you did a lot of guessing on calories in/calories out?

Do you weigh all solid food and measure liquids?

Do you log everything you eat?

Do you log exercise?

Do you ensure your calorie counts are correct by reading packages and looking up nutrition information?

Where do you get your calorie estimations from?

You are either eating too much or over estimating your burn, or a combination of both.

What is your deficit at? how much more weight do you have to lose? Are you eating you exercise calories?

If you are not eating enough you would still lose weight.

2 lbs is not a lot in the long wrong, could just be normal weight fluctuations, (can be any where from 2-10 lbs during the month)

have your body measurements changed at all?

Are you actually gaining fat?

I wouldn't worry about it unless it continues over an upward trend over a few monts

I'd recommend getting a hydrostatic bodyfat test. Getting one for myself basically cracked the code for me! I got mine through through a mobile testing unit that sets up at various locations (like gym, medical facilities) and you can check their calendar and see if there is one in your area.

http://www.bodyfattest.com/


I just had mine done this month and basically the instant report gave me my calorie computations based on my specific actual lean body mass and body fat information. Every person is different and have a different composition. So 2 people weighing 150 pounds and same height can have drastic different calorie needs based on the amount of lean mass vs. bodyfat each may have.

The test is so easy, you just submerge in a tank of water which is a scale. They weigh your body in water which will give the weight of you lean mass (muscles, bones, organs etc.) because bodyfat floats so therefore however many pounds lighter you are in water is the pounds of fat you have helping you float basically haha. So they take the weight of the your body in the water and subtract that from your dry out-of-the-water weight. The difference is the amount of pounds of fat! Then from there they generate how much your resting metabolic rate is.

For example according to the hydrostatic bodyfat test, my resting rate (so if I was completely inactive all day) is 1349 calories a day.

My stats: 35 female, 5'0, 123.8 pounds (during time of bodyfat testing)

But if I use other calorie counters, like what you'd find on http://www.freedieting.com/tools/calorie_calculator.htm for example. It tells me maintenance calories is 1616, fat loss would be 1293 and extreme fat loss would be 984. Calorie calculators based simply on height, weight and age do not account for muscles and bodyfat! Someone could be the same height, weight and age as me but they have all muscle and hardly any bodyfat...their caloric needs will be different than my composition of 30% bodyfat.

Which leads me to the next issue. My body fat is approx. 30% (because my lean mass weight is 86.2 lbs, bodyfat is 37.6 lbs, total weight therefore is 123.8). According to the bodyfat report (citing source as Dr Kenneth Cooper's Institute for Aerobics Research), 30% bodyfat is a rating of "Poor" with obesity defined as greater than 32%.

The tech testing me looked at me and said immediately, "You skip meals don't you. Do you fast?"

GUILTY. In fact, extremely guilty. I either skip meals then binge or I was experimenting with Intermittent Fasting. Either way, he explained that fasting or skipping meals causes the body to burn both fat AND muscle. So if I lost a pound from fasting...that pound isn't all fat pounds, it includes wasting away on my precious lean mass. Why is lean mass precious? Lean mass burns calories!

Therefore, looking at me, I wasn't huge, I was only 123 pounds, but I had a lot of bodyfat and not enough muscle which equates to a higher bodyfat to lean mass ratio and this composition is primarily due to skipping of meals. I was the epitome of the "fit fat" or skinny fat person (although definitely no skinny in my waist).

Oh and if I entered in my stats in a BMI calculator such as http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/guidelines/obesity/BMI/bmicalc.htm which uses only your height and weight (remember this weight means total weight of bodyfat and lean mass), I receive a BMI rating of 24 which is categorized as the top end of Normal Weight. 25 would begin overweith. 30+ would be obesity. There is no discretion between someone full of muscles and no bodyfat and someone opposite, both who could weight the same.

Sorry so wordy. But to summarize, I believe counting calories and geting a handle on how much a person's specific body needs, and therefore how much calorie reduction is needed to lose weight, a hydrostatic bodyfat test is the only way to go because it will give you calculations based on YOU, not the general person of a certain height and weight and age, but of your specific lean mass and bodyfat composition.

My take-away from my bodyfat test was that I do need to be sure I am eating frequently, the correct portions/calories and dial in my focus on my amount of protein and fats. I cut out sugar and lowered my fat intake, watch my calories per meal and increased my protein WAY up, all the while eating 6 times a day and dropped 8 pounds in 17 days. Now, I haven't had my bodyfat re-tested to see if I've just burned through my lean mass & bodyfat or if I am effectively burning fat and retaining or building muscle. We will see in about 6 weeks when I take a bodyfast re-test.

Hi ZB,

If you are gaining weight, you are eating too much. I would not up my calories any more.

This.

Weight loss only occurs when calories out are greater than calories in. You say you're weighing your food and keeping close count of your calories, so that would indicate that 1500 calories a day is simply not enough of a deficit for you to be able to lose weight. Cut back a bit, maybe to 1300 calories a day and you might see your weight start dropping again.

Something is not right honestly. You must be miscalculating something. You should lose easily at 1700, if your workouts are really 400 calories. Heck you should lose at 1800. When is your period due? If it's soon, you're probably just retaining water and it should go away then.