Why am I gaining weight?

Options
13»

Replies

  • glenelliott5872
    glenelliott5872 Posts: 150 Member
    Options
    Barring inaccuracies in logging (we all have slips here and there. Sometimes significant, sometimes not), it's easy to gain weight when you eat something high in electrolytes (increased water retention), more carbs than usual after a depletion phase (glycogen storage), or simply lots of fiber in the intestinal tract.

    I can easily fluctuate 4 lb. in a single day if I ate lots of carb in preparation for a long ride. And I used to freak out the day after having Chinese food (Sodium). I now use trends as opposed to points to track my weight.
    I have noticed the same re Chinese but did not put 2 and 2 together until just now
  • pkteen
    pkteen Posts: 121 Member
    Options
    Barring inaccuracies in logging (we all have slips here and there. Sometimes significant, sometimes not), it's easy to gain weight when you eat something high in electrolytes (increased water retention), more carbs than usual after a depletion phase (glycogen storage), or simply lots of fiber in the intestinal tract.

    I can easily fluctuate 4 lb. in a single day if I ate lots of carb in preparation for a long ride. And I used to freak out the day after having Chinese food (Sodium). I now use trends as opposed to points to track my weight.
    I have noticed the same re Chinese but did not put 2 and 2 together until just now

    Yeah. This was a total eureka for me too.
  • earlnabby
    earlnabby Posts: 8,171 Member
    Options
    To keep some perspective: the most common size bottle of water is usually 16 oz (just under 1/2 liter). Water weighs the same as its volume so 16 oz of water is 1 lb. This time of year as the weather changes from cold winter to warm summer it is not uncommon for your body to temporarily retain more water as it starts regulating itself to make sure you have enough fluid for the extra sweating you may be doing. If you have spring hay fever, your allergies and/or allergy medication may also cause you to retain water.

    1 lb. or 1/2 kilo is not that big of a deal and a retention of that amount is not uncommon, especially this time of year or during the first days of a heat wave. Just keep doing what you are doing and maybe up your fluid intake a little.
  • SLLRunner
    SLLRunner Posts: 12,942 Member
    Options
    muscle ways more than fat of course!!! youre getting stronger now :)
    Nah. It doesn't., it's just more dense and takes up less space.
  • pkteen
    pkteen Posts: 121 Member
    Options
    muscle ways more than fat of course!!! youre getting stronger now :)
    Nah. It doesn't., it's just more dense and takes up less space.
    I'm curious to see if she comes back to respond.

    Also waiting patiently to see if cjholla even bothers to come back and respond after her attempt to call me out. Probably not though.

    HAHAHA
  • collingmommy
    collingmommy Posts: 456 Member
    Options
    Thanks stef!
    Ok to recap (and clarify), I'm ok and not panicky at all. This was only to gain knowledge of the reasons for something like this.
    I will be upping my calories for sure and I won't be weighing myself more than bimonthly to have a better view of my general weight loss trend.
    I'm upping my cals to 1800 a day btw (I need a deficit as well you know. Can't eat my maintenance can I)

    Your BMR is not your maintenance. Your TDEE (total daily energy expenditure) is. You need to eat at least your BMR. I do TDEE - 20%, which puts me a bit above my BMR. Here's a good basic tutorial on calorie counting and nutrition. http://www.reddit.com/r/xxfitness/wiki/faq#wiki_12._what_are_the_basics_of_calorie_counting_and_nutrition.3F Even though it is from a women's site, it stays true for men.

    A possible culpret for your weight gain that no one seems to have mentioned- muscle. Muscle weighs more than fat. If you're putting on muscle, the scale will reflect that. I lift, and I've been taping (using a measuring tape to measure waist, chest, legs) instead of using a scale and it shows my results far better as you can be losing fat but staying the same weight.
    No he's not putting on muscle.
    No muscle does not weigh more than fat.

    OP, yes I could easily be water fluctuations but no don't ignore the people that tell you it could be miscalculations in your logging. That's always a possibility. Monitor you weight trends for the next couple of weeks to get a better idea of what's going on.

    What planet are you from? Muscle absolutely weighs more than fat- a pound of muscle is far less, in terms of mass, than a pound of fat. This is a biological fact. Furthermore, as a 19 year old male lifting, he is most likely putting on muscle.


    No, he's holding water from not eating enough. He's below his b.m.r. .. And at a deficit, it's dang near impossible to gain muscle on a deficit.
  • 12by311
    12by311 Posts: 1,716 Member
    Options
    Then I'll start eating in caloric excess to gain muscle.
    I agree with MrM27 about the muscle though.

    Oh thank goodness.

    I was getting ready to suggest you go to bb.com's forum and post that you were eating way below maintenance and gaining muscle and see what kind of response you get over there.
  • LunaStar2008
    LunaStar2008 Posts: 155 Member
    Options
    What is up with the thought I read all the time that muscle weights more then fat????

    A pound is a pound-period! The difference between fat and muscles are a pound of muscles has less volume then a pound of fat. So, if you gain 2 pounds of muscles, you may be heavier then before but may have still less inches.

    Please, don't tell people that muscles weight more then fat. It just shows you didn't pay attention in school.
  • earlnabby
    earlnabby Posts: 8,171 Member
    Options
    What is up with the thought I read all the time that muscle weights more then fat????

    A pound is a pound-period! The difference between fat and muscles are a pound of muscles has less volume then a pound of fat. So, if you gain 2 pounds of muscles, you may be heavier then before but may have still less inches.

    Please, don't tell people that muscles weight more then fat. It just shows you didn't pay attention in school.

    Most people understand this correctly even though it doesn't always come out right in explanations.. If your thigh is 22" but fat, it will weigh less than if it is 22" of muscle. Also, someone who is 6' and 200 lb with a BF% of 10 will look slimmer than the same size and weight with a BF of 20%. That is what people mean when they say that muscle weighs more than fat.
  • brower47
    brower47 Posts: 16,356 Member
    Options
    Thanks stef!
    Ok to recap (and clarify), I'm ok and not panicky at all. This was only to gain knowledge of the reasons for something like this.
    I will be upping my calories for sure and I won't be weighing myself more than bimonthly to have a better view of my general weight loss trend.
    I'm upping my cals to 1800 a day btw (I need a deficit as well you know. Can't eat my maintenance can I)

    Your BMR is not your maintenance. Your TDEE (total daily energy expenditure) is. You need to eat at least your BMR. I do TDEE - 20%, which puts me a bit above my BMR. Here's a good basic tutorial on calorie counting and nutrition. http://www.reddit.com/r/xxfitness/wiki/faq#wiki_12._what_are_the_basics_of_calorie_counting_and_nutrition.3F Even though it is from a women's site, it stays true for men.

    A possible culpret for your weight gain that no one seems to have mentioned- muscle. Muscle weighs more than fat. If you're putting on muscle, the scale will reflect that. I lift, and I've been taping (using a measuring tape to measure waist, chest, legs) instead of using a scale and it shows my results far better as you can be losing fat but staying the same weight.
    No he's not putting on muscle.
    No muscle does not weigh more than fat.

    OP, yes I could easily be water fluctuations but no don't ignore the people that tell you it could be miscalculations in your logging. That's always a possibility. Monitor you weight trends for the next couple of weeks to get a better idea of what's going on.

    What planet are you from? Muscle absolutely weighs more than fat- a pound of muscle is far less, in terms of mass, than a pound of fat. This is a biological fact. Furthermore, as a 19 year old male lifting, he is most likely putting on muscle.

    He's eating at a massive deficit. The body requires a caloric surplus to build muscle.

    Think of a house under construction, an addition, you need lumber (the calories) in order to build the house. You can't build the addition to the house if you're actually removing lumber from it.
  • QuietBloom
    QuietBloom Posts: 5,413 Member
    Options
    Guys! I just got the tape measure out and I've definitely not gained anything measurement wise. It's definitely water retention.
    Also, I am definitely gaining muscle. Lots of visible growth there's literally no denying that.
    About the portions, yes I am weighing my food! These entires are my own recipes that I've saved in the app's settings so when it comes to macro and calorie accuracy, my diary's on point for sure.
    And again guys, this isn't something that was particularly worrying me. Sheer curiosity was the reason for this thread.
    And again, for the people saying I'm not gaining muscle and far weighs more than muscle, you're wrong on both points lol

    If you truly are gaining muscle, than you are in a calorie surplus, not a deficit.
  • Brett_Mason
    Brett_Mason Posts: 16 Member
    Options
    Eating that few calories does explain your weight gain. If I thought I might be starving I would cling to every ounce of energy I could too. And your body is way smarter than I. Feed your body.
  • pkteen
    pkteen Posts: 121 Member
    Options
    I understand guys :D
    I'm ok at the 1500 calories I'm consuming. This is only for another month of cutting.
    Also, I understand that it's impossible to build muscle like this. I agree with everything MrM27 has said. I'm focusing on weight loss for now.

Categories