Is it possible to gain 5 lbs in 2 weeks?

ecl265
ecl265 Posts: 16 Member
in Goal: Gaining Weight and Body Building
About two weeks ago, I started eating more and exercising less. I increased my calorie intake from around 1,700/day to a little over 2,000 calories/day. I also reduced my exercise on the elliptical from 60 minutes every day to 45 because I'm trying to put on a little weight. I was also told by my doctor that 1,700 calories combined with 60 minutes of exercise was considered under eating/unhealthy. I've been eating healthy as usual but combining my healthy meals with some foods that are higher in sugar & fat, which I'm not used to. When I weighed myself this morning, I weighed 5 lbs more than I did two weeks ago when I started eating more/exercising less. I'm kind of confused though because after waiting several hours and weighing myself a second time, I only weighed 4 lbs more than I did 2 weeks ago. So I'm just wondering if it's possible to gain 4 or 5 lbs that quickly or if some of it could be water weight? Since I'm not doing as much cardio as I used to, I also started doing a little strength training (not very much and not nearly as often as I do cardio). Could some of the weight be attributed to muscle? I do want to gain weight, but not so much so soon, especially if most of it is from fat. I don't feel like increasing my calorie intake by 300/400 calories/day and decreasing my cardio by 15 minutes would lead to such an increase in my weight, but I don't know for sure. Any insight would be greatly appreciated; thank you!

Replies

  • DopeItUp
    DopeItUp Posts: 18,771 Member
    Of course it is possible. Now, what caused that weight gain is impossible to know. Increased carbs, food volume and new exercise routine can certainly increase water retention and weight.

    What was your weight doing before you changed things up? If you were maintaining, adding 300-400 calories and losing ~100-150 calories via exercise can lead to about a pound a week in actual gains. So figure 2lbs, and the rest is water probably?

    Who knows really, 5lbs is such a small amount. Weight can fluctuate daily 5lbs no problem, so it's impossible to tell. I'd continue with your doctor's advice. Maybe re-assess the situation with your doctor after 4-6 weeks.
  • ayalowich
    ayalowich Posts: 242 Member
    That would be very difficult but certainly possible. Essentially it means you have to add 17,500 calories (give or take) over 14 days, which would mean a net gain of 1,250 per day. Personally, if I did that I'd probably be sick to my stomach from excess eating.

    Now I put on 2 lbs on the scale the last two days, but I know that is just temporary until some of the desserts I've eaten process through my system. One things I've learned over the last 6 months is that scale swings happen dramatically different on given days and are often difficult to interpret. Usually short term weight gains like the 4lbs around Thanksgiving and the 3lbs at Christmas were quickly gone within 3 days after each.
  • joan23_us
    joan23_us Posts: 263 Member
    if i may suggest, to get an accurate weight measurement, weigh yourself EVERYDAY AND RECORD IT.... after 7 days add all up and divide by 7, you should be able to get an AVERAGE weight for that week... REPEAT.... after a month you should be able to tell how much weight you gain/loss for that month you have averaged. Getting one data is not as accurate because as others said weight can fluctuate depending on many variables, averaging this way gives you an idea if your protocol is working or not to your objective... I did mine the same thing from JAN. 1 to now my weight fluctuates bet. 171 lbs to 178 but when i averaged it I FOUND OUT that i only lost 2 lbs last month, conservative if you ask me but im happy with it, see what i mean... goodluck
  • joan23_us
    joan23_us Posts: 263 Member
    forgot to mention i measure first thing in the morning after doing my business in the toilet before consuming anything, and i do the same everyday.
  • Kestrelwings
    Kestrelwings Posts: 238 Member
    My weight can vary by over a kilo in one day, let alone how much it can vary by in two weeks! It is so dependent on the time of day, food eaten, hydration status, amount of salt or carbs eaten that day, and of course time of the month!

    Do not panic. Your weight will swing quite wildly at first whilst your body gets the hang of being given enough nutrition after so long at a deficit.
  • Fithealthyforlife
    Fithealthyforlife Posts: 866 Member
    Since you currently are around/near the low end of the BMI scale, I would say it's certainly possible to put on muscle without strength training if diet is right and there's enough of a stimulus in your exercise. I read a study where people who were not weight training ate 15% or more protein per day with a caloric excess, and gained about 50% muscle and 50% fat. There's certainly a possibility that some of your weight gain was muscle. Though, if I were you I'd certainly want to start weight training and temporarily discontinue cardio...and keep up a caloric excess of at least 200 or so with sufficient protein, fat, and carbs. (Fat is used to make hormones.)

    Chances are though, that your true gain is smaller than what you measured...there is time of day, water, glycogen, etc.
  • ecl265
    ecl265 Posts: 16 Member
    Thank you to everyone who responded! Before I changed my diet/exercise, I was still losing about a pound or so every month. I think a lot of it has to do with the type of foods I've added to my diet. My body isn't used to simple carbs that are higher in sugar content, so they've been making me feel sluggish/bloated. I cut most of them out of my diet again and plan on getting more of my calories from healthy fats, complex carbs, and protein like I used to. I guess I'll just have to eat more of those types of foods than I'm used to in order to meet my new calorie goal. I can tell my body is retaining water though because my face feels/looks puffy, especially around my eyes. Fingers crossed that doesn't last too much longer.
  • Showcase_Brodown
    Showcase_Brodown Posts: 919 Member
    Water weight swings all over the dang place. It's easily possible that can account for it.

    You also could have consumed about 5 x 3500 calories extra. :)
  • thomasjankowski397
    thomasjankowski397 Posts: 1 Member
    A gallon of water weighs 8.34 lbs. So one 16.9 bottle of water weighs 1.1 lbs. So your weight can vary 4 or 5 pounds a day depending on how hydrated or dehydrated you are. Salt intake can also make a big difference on water retention.
  • EpsilonGamma
    EpsilonGamma Posts: 96
    A lot of people have already answered your question in my opinion, except I want to comment on this quote from your doctor.

    "I was also told by my doctor that 1,700 calories combined with 60 minutes of exercise was considered under eating/unhealthy."

    That is a bunch of broscience right there. I am 5'7", my normal day is 1650 calories as I am on a cut. I exercise 3-4 times a week and sometimes I usually don't eat the first 200 calories that my exercise gains me.

    I have a friend who is vegan and she eats 1200 a day (she is 5'2").

    So unless you are 6 foot + I don't think your doctor is correct
  • ecl265
    ecl265 Posts: 16 Member
    Thanks for the responses, everyone :) I tend to agree that my doctor doesn't really know what she's talking about. I'm 5'5" and weighed around 113 a couple weeks ago; I'm consistently at 115 now, so I think I've gained about 2 lbs. I don't have a very high BF%, so I guess I may look a little underweight, but my BMI is still in the normal range, especially now that I've gained 2 lbs. I don't understand why I can't keep exercising for 60 minutes/day and just slightly increase my caloric intake to better maintain my weight. I don't want to lose anymore weight; that's not my goal. And since I was barely maintaining my weight before (losing about a pound every month), it probably wouldn't hurt to eat more. But I don't understand why I would need to gain weight if my BMI is normal? Exercising is my go-to for de-stressing, so cutting back by even 15 minutes may not seem like much, but it makes a difference to me. It doesn't have to do with burning calories. Like I said, my goal isn't to lose weight. I would just like to keep my 60 minutes of cardio and don't really understand why I can't just eat a little more to maintain my weight. I have thyroid issues that caused me to put on a lot of weight, and over the last couples years, I've lost about 80 lbs by working out and making healthier eating choices. I don't mind working my way to a healthy weight if I need to, but I also don't want to put a bunch of weight back on. And to be honest I don't really see what's wrong with my current weight.
  • Fithealthyforlife
    Fithealthyforlife Posts: 866 Member
    Thanks for the responses, everyone :) I tend to agree that my doctor doesn't really know what she's talking about. I'm 5'5" and weighed around 113 a couple weeks ago; I'm consistently at 115 now, so I think I've gained about 2 lbs. I don't have a very high BF%, so I guess I may look a little underweight, but my BMI is still in the normal range, especially now that I've gained 2 lbs. I don't understand why I can't keep exercising for 60 minutes/day and just slightly increase my caloric intake to better maintain my weight. I don't want to lose anymore weight; that's not my goal. And since I was barely maintaining my weight before (losing about a pound every month), it probably wouldn't hurt to eat more. But I don't understand why I would need to gain weight if my BMI is normal? Exercising is my go-to for de-stressing, so cutting back by even 15 minutes may not seem like much, but it makes a difference to me. It doesn't have to do with burning calories. Like I said, my goal isn't to lose weight. I would just like to keep my 60 minutes of cardio and don't really understand why I can't just eat a little more to maintain my weight. I have thyroid issues that caused me to put on a lot of weight, and over the last couples years, I've lost about 80 lbs by working out and making healthier eating choices. I don't mind working my way to a healthy weight if I need to, but I also don't want to put a bunch of weight back on. And to be honest I don't really see what's wrong with my current weight.

    You can still exercise. I asked a bunch of the women on my friends list, and they said don't stop exercising totally. But the consensus was to cut cardio to a minimum and focus on weight lifting. That way you're not burning up as many calories and have a better chance at getting your period back. If you want to keep doing as much cardio as you're doing, you will have to eat more calories.

    Low normal BMI is correlated with increased odds of certain negative health issues over time, especially over a lifetime. I've seen studies that say high normal BMI is probably healthier than low normal. (Reduced risk of osteoporosis, etc.)

    If you want to increase calories more, just take it slow. Wait at least 2 weeks, if not more, to see what happens after each 100-200 calorie increase.
  • WheezyFbb
    WheezyFbb Posts: 41 Member
    Pretty much what the above poster said. For a lot of health issues, being on the heavier end of normal BMI, or even overweight, is associated with better outcomes. Basically, your body will have more energy stored in the form of muscle/adipose tissue compared to someone who's underweight, providing you more "wiggle" room were you to be in a state of cachexia (i.e. from cancer, respiratory distress, hormonal deficiency, etc).

    I'd definitely listen to your doctor.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    You're going to have to look at this as a general trend over time. I can be up or down 5 Lbs in a single day depending on water retention/release, excess waste in my system, etc.

    Yesterday I weighed in at 178 Lbs...this morning I was 184.6...Sunday I went on a fairly longish bike ride thus the 178 Lb weigh in yesterday morning...I had a rest day yesterday ate well and replenished my glycogen stores and water so not surprisingly up this morning. I'm maintaining and my 9 month average is around 183 Lbs.

    Your actual gains will be a general trend over time, not a linear function.
  • TEMMEAlexa
    TEMMEAlexa Posts: 79 Member
    I believe you already have an answer to your question now. But, a small piece of advice. Do not rush in weight gain. It would be better if you focus on muscle weight gain rather than fat weight gain. If you rush, and gain fat weight, then you may have to go for a month to loosen it. It's better to have muscle weight. There are protein supplements and mass gainers available for this. Choose carefully,

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