gained 4 pounds in a week??!

FaryRochester
FaryRochester Posts: 21 Member
in Goal: Maintaining Weight
so last week I didn't count calories for 4 days and I know I probably ate a little more than usual and i ate unhealthy foods instead of the really healthy foods that I normally eat. I didn't gorge myself in those 4 days though, so I don't understand why I gained 4 pounds. I haven't been working out in a couple months so it cant be muscle gain or anything. its not really TOM but my hormones are all over the place because I got my period 3 times this month, with the last one ending a couple days ago.
i'm freaking out a little! why do you guys think I gained? is it 4 pounds of fat that I would have to work for weeks to lose?

edit: I have gone back to counting calories and have been within my range since saturday which was my last not counting day.
by unhealthy I mean mostly sugary stuff like Nutella. also, I ate bread which I usually don't eat much of.

Replies

  • socajam
    socajam Posts: 2,530 Member
    so last week I didn't count calories for 4 days and I know I probably ate a little more than usual and i ate unhealthy foods instead of the really healthy foods that I normally eat. I didn't gorge myself in those 4 days though, so I don't understand why I gained 4 pounds. I haven't been working out in a couple months so it cant be muscle gain or anything. its not really TOM but my hormones are all over the place because I got my period 3 times this month, with the last one ending a couple days ago.
    i'm freaking out a little! why do you guys think I gained? is it 4 pounds of fat that I would have to work for weeks to lose?

    Not seeing the diary, the only thing I would say is that you may have consumed too much sodium. But if you want honest answers, open your diary.
  • skinnybythanksgiving
    skinnybythanksgiving Posts: 159 Member
    I did the exact same thing. I started tracking again two days ago and was down 2.2 yesterday, 1.2 today. Reach out to your support group on here, they will cheer you on. My week was pretty salty, lots of chips, Chinese and Mexican food. I figure half of it is salt, half weight. The thing to do is to not give up! Drink a lot of water, make sure you get cardio in and avoid salty food. It will come back off in no time.
  • skinnybythanksgiving
    skinnybythanksgiving Posts: 159 Member
    so last week I didn't count calories for 4 days and I know I probably ate a little more than usual and i ate unhealthy foods instead of the really healthy foods that I normally eat. I didn't gorge myself in those 4 days though, so I don't understand why I gained 4 pounds. I haven't been working out in a couple months so it cant be muscle gain or anything. its not really TOM but my hormones are all over the place because I got my period 3 times this month, with the last one ending a couple days ago.
    i'm freaking out a little! why do you guys think I gained? is it 4 pounds of fat that I would have to work for weeks to lose?

    Not seeing the diary, the only thing I would say is that you may have consumed too much sodium. But if you want honest answers, open your diary.

    She didn't count for 4 days.
  • sfbaumgarten
    sfbaumgarten Posts: 912 Member
    so last week I didn't count calories for 4 days and I know I probably ate a little more than usual and i ate unhealthy foods instead of the really healthy foods that I normally eat. I didn't gorge myself in those 4 days though, so I don't understand why I gained 4 pounds. I haven't been working out in a couple months so it cant be muscle gain or anything. its not really TOM but my hormones are all over the place because I got my period 3 times this month, with the last one ending a couple days ago.
    i'm freaking out a little! why do you guys think I gained? is it 4 pounds of fat that I would have to work for weeks to lose?

    Not seeing the diary, the only thing I would say is that you may have consumed too much sodium. But if you want honest answers, open your diary.

    She didn't count for 4 days.

    This. OP, I think you gained because you didn't count. Start logging your food again.
  • socajam
    socajam Posts: 2,530 Member
    so last week I didn't count calories for 4 days and I know I probably ate a little more than usual and i ate unhealthy foods instead of the really healthy foods that I normally eat. I didn't gorge myself in those 4 days though, so I don't understand why I gained 4 pounds. I haven't been working out in a couple months so it cant be muscle gain or anything. its not really TOM but my hormones are all over the place because I got my period 3 times this month, with the last one ending a couple days ago.
    i'm freaking out a little! why do you guys think I gained? is it 4 pounds of fat that I would have to work for weeks to lose?

    Not seeing the diary, the only thing I would say is that you may have consumed too much sodium. But if you want honest answers, open your diary.

    She didn't count for 4 days.

    Am I missing something here. The OP said: She did not count calories for 4 days and I know I probably ate a little more than usual and i ate unhealthy foods instead of the really healthy foods.

    What does unhealthy foods mean to you. To me that means all the high sodium crap that is sold as food.
  • nomad1000
    nomad1000 Posts: 206 Member
    Another vote for maybe much sodium because a true gain of 4 lbs would mean consumption of 14,000 extra calories (if you agree that 3,500 cals = 1 lb). That is a hella lot of calories to miss even if you aren't logging every day.
  • husseycd
    husseycd Posts: 814 Member
    I "gain" three pounds every weekend. By Wednesday it's gone. Usually it's just water weight.
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 49,030 Member
    4lbs of fat would equal 14,000 calories of surplus. So did you consume that? If not, then chaulk it up to retained water.

    A.C.E. Certified Personal/Group FitnessTrainer
    IDEA Fitness member
    Kickboxing Certified Instructor
    Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
  • omatga
    omatga Posts: 56 Member
    so last week I didn't count calories for 4 days and I know I probably ate a little more than usual and i ate unhealthy foods instead of the really healthy foods that I normally eat. I didn't gorge myself in those 4 days though, so I don't understand why I gained 4 pounds. I haven't been working out in a couple months so it cant be muscle gain or anything. its not really TOM but my hormones are all over the place because I got my period 3 times this month, with the last one ending a couple days ago.
    i'm freaking out a little! why do you guys think I gained? is it 4 pounds of fat that I would have to work for weeks to lose?

    edit: I have gone back to counting calories and have been within my range since saturday which was my last not counting day.
    by unhealthy I mean mostly sugary stuff like Nutella. also, I ate bread which I usually don't eat much of.

    I notice that I always put on a couple of pounds right before and during my periods. Since your hormones are all screwed up right now, I would imagine that is a big part of it so I wouldn't really stress too much about it. That being said however, in order to maintain what you've gained, you really should be incorporating some exercise into your weekly routines or that weight will slowly start creeping back up on ya!
  • einzweidrei
    einzweidrei Posts: 381 Member
    4lbs of fat would equal 14,000 calories of surplus. So did you consume that? If not, then chaulk it up to retained water.

    ^This.

    Also, if you're not regular, it can make a big difference. Unfortunately, these are things I know.
  • LassoOfTruth
    LassoOfTruth Posts: 735 Member
    Sodium.
  • dshalbert
    dshalbert Posts: 677 Member
    I remember last fall I went on a road trip to my cosuins opening of his new BBQ restaurant . . .sounds like a disaster from the start doesn't it? Anyway, between thoses fesitvites and highway food, I had managed to put on 5lbs over the weekend. It was sodium. It came fell off pretty quickly, I think within a week. Maybe about 1 lbs was legititimale fat gain, but I got rid of it. . .at least before the Holidays, and that, my friend is another story.

    Bottom line, dont worry about it. Just get back on the program and things will be fine. Oh and drink a lot of water and eat a banana.
  • jmath911
    jmath911 Posts: 57 Member
    Salt!
  • pinaypanda87
    pinaypanda87 Posts: 20 Member
    Hands down, id say youre mostly just retaining water. You'd have to consumer 14k calories to gain 4 lbs in the short time frame. Hydrate hydrate hydrate and give it a couple days. Chin up, just get back on track. Sometimes if i dont log for a couple days, i write down everything i remember eating and then do a rough diary entry so at least you can get an idea of what you consumed.
  • weightxlossjourney
    weightxlossjourney Posts: 46 Member
    It could be that you're retaining water or your body responded to your unhealthy choices dramatically since you haven't ate like that in a while start counting again and watch what you eat, maybe incorporate exercising again to get it off.
  • lavaughan69
    lavaughan69 Posts: 459 Member
    I went away on business last week and I know I ate/drank more than I should have, and I decided to not even try and log my food as it wasn't going to be accurate. I was up three pounds and as I know it takes being 3500 cals to equal a pound I know that it's just water weight. I might have gained one actual pound. Either way, I got right back on track and I'm sure when I weigh in on Friday I will be down a couple pounds. No biggie, life happens.
  • popshoveit
    popshoveit Posts: 42
    Sodium. It's not hard to gain 4 lbs from several days of slacking off - happens to me quite easily. The scale will soar up about 3-5 lbs if I let loose for one weekend. The majority of it will be retained water.
  • Mcgrawhaha
    Mcgrawhaha Posts: 1,596 Member
    i bet all you need is a good magazine, a phone with floppy bird installed, and 30 minutes to spend in the bathroom...
  • fallingtrees
    fallingtrees Posts: 220 Member
    Restaurant food will do it every time. WAY too much sodium. I can guarantee you, if we go out for Thai lunch today, my scale will be up 2 pounds tomorrow!

    Hormones and meds can also affect weight.

    Also, if you've done some unusual training, muscles will hold water while they're building/healing. It's fun when they let go of that water a few days later!
  • jkestens63
    jkestens63 Posts: 1,164 Member
    Obviously you know what you did wrong.

    I can gain 10 lbs during one week of not tracking & poor choices. It's water but still a shock to see it. And it still makes my clothing snugger, and I feel like crap.

    Every once in a while have to relearn that lesson.
  • JewelsinBigD
    JewelsinBigD Posts: 661 Member
    I can gain 4 pounds in a weekend counting calories- the moment I drink a glass of wine here comes 3 - another glass the next day - another 2...alcohol makes my scale go crazy even within my calories. I may try to quit alcohol for lent just to see what happens...
  • ndj1979
    ndj1979 Posts: 29,136 Member
    water retention ...

    unless of course you really ate 3500 calories over maintenance for four days straight..

    assuming your maintenance level is 1500 that would mean that you consumed 5000 (1500 + 3500) calories a day, or 20,000 calories over a four day period, which I doubt...

    so its not fat...just drink a lot of water, get your eating back under control, and relax.
  • Sarah4fitness
    Sarah4fitness Posts: 437 Member
    I lose/gain 4lbs in a day. Two days of a gallon of water plus lemon juice and you should shed that waterweight right out. But don't weigh so frequently, it messes with your head.
  • ashleyisgreat
    ashleyisgreat Posts: 586 Member
    I "gain" and "lose" three pounds in a single day. No biggie. Usually it's water retention from sodium, as everyone has mentioned. If it stays that way for a week or two, then yeah, you probably gained a bit. Otherwise it's not a true gain, just a fluctuation on the scale.
  • ashleyisgreat
    ashleyisgreat Posts: 586 Member
    I lose/gain 4lbs in a day. Two days of a gallon of water plus lemon juice and you should shed that waterweight right out. But don't weigh so frequently, it messes with your head.

    Haha beat me to it. Great minds think alike.
  • Supertact
    Supertact Posts: 466 Member
    So you ate 14,000 calories over maintenance in a week?
  • Jennisin1
    Jennisin1 Posts: 574 Member
    We were snowed in for 4 days last week and I survived by cooking and eating... mostly healthy stuff but more than usual and no real exercises (some snow activities and a little dance video action)... I gained 5 lbs... lost it the day after I was back to normal. It isn't fat unless you went CRAZY..... just some extra water weight and whatnot.
  • Heather68462
    Heather68462 Posts: 49 Member
    I gain/lose 3-4 pounds every few days. Im perplexed too. Its not water, Im on HCTZ

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