Gaining several pounds in a day

“Criticism may not be agreeable, but it is necessary. It fulfils the same function as pain in the human body. It calls attention to an unhealthy state of things.” ---Winston Churchill.

“He has a right to criticize, who has a heart to help.”---Abraham Lincoln.

Criticism is part of life. Good luck to you as well.

So I'm about ready to give up. I have been exercising 3 to 4 times per week minimum. Depending on my schedule a minimum of 30 minutes or up to an hour. I eat one full meal a day except on the weekends, then I might eat two (please do not lecture me about starvation mode I don't believe it I've been this way for years).

I have not lost a single pound in the month or so I've been doing MFP. I am 300 to 400 calories under my calorie goal pretty much every day.

My biggest frustration is the fact that I can get on the scale and gain anywhere from 2 to 4 pounds overnight! I don't understand this, once or twice I have actually lost a couple of pounds from my starting weight, but then BAM, on the scale the next day and have gained even though I was under my calorie goal and exercised. Yes, I do drink water.

Anyone else have a problem with this?

not going to lecture you about starvation mode but my guess is you are:

http://www.hussmanfitness.org/html/TPAdaptation.html

The law of unintended consequences

Your body is an amazing feedback system aimed at balance and survival. Humans are at the top of the food chain because they are able to adapt to their environment. Every action produces a reaction. Every change in its environment triggers a survival response. It's important to keep that in mind when you plan your fitness program. If you treat your body as an enemy to be conquered, you'll produce unintended results.

For example, if you severely cut off the supply of food to your body, it will defend itself by slowing down its metabolism to survive starvation. The body will shed muscle mass the same way that you would throw cargo from a plane that was low on fuel, and it will reduce its thyroid activity to conserve energy. The body will also actually defend its fat stores. In anorexia, muscle loss can be so profound that fat as a percentage of body weight actually rises. Extreme carbohydrate restriction also causes muscle loss, dehydration, and slower metabolism, which is why even successful Atkins dieters can have a significant rebound in weight after they stop the diet (don't worry – the advice on this site will prevent that from happening).

As another example, if you put your body under stress through overexertion and lack of sleep, it will respond by slowing down, reducing muscle growth, and increasing your appetite for junk food, carbohydrates and fat. If you feed your body excessive amounts of sugar and quickly digested carbohydrates, and it will shut off its ability to burn fat until those sugars are taken out of the bloodstream.

This website will show you how to work with your body to quickly produce the changes you want. In order to do that, you need to take actions that push your body to adapt – to build strength, burn fat, and increase fitness. You need a training program, not an exercise routine. You need a nutrition plan, not a diet. You need a challenge, not a few good habits you usually try to follow except when you don't.
Setting the right goal

John Dewey once said that a problem well-stated is half-solved. If you want to reach your goal, you have to define it correctly. See, a lot of people say “I want to lose weight.” Well, if losing weight is your goal, go on a no-carb diet. You'll lose a lot of weight – some of it will be fat, a lot of it will be water, and a dangerous amount will be muscle tissue. You'll lose weight quickly, but you'll slow your metabolism and gain fat more quickly once you go off the diet. Trust me on this. I've been there, done that.

The problem is that you've set the wrong goal. If you want to look better, have more energy and enjoy better health, the goal is not simply to “lose weight.” The goal is to improve your fitness level and body composition. That means losing fat, improving your aerobic capacity, training your strength and defending your muscle tissue. You can't do that with a no-carb diet. You will do it using the approach you'll learn on this website. Trust me on this one too. I know what it's like to feel fat, tired and helplessly out of shape. The whole point of this site is to help others avoid that, by sharing lessons that I had to learn the hard way.
Ready to change?

Right this minute, your body is the way it is because it has adapted to the lifestyle you've thrown at it, in an attempt to survive. Ever seen the directory at the mall with the little red arrow that says “you are here”? Well, fitness is the same way. You are here. You can't start anywhere else. So be kind to yourself. Don't beat yourself up. Don't worry about how much there is to do. Change your self-talk from “My body is my enemy” to “My body is my partner.” Accept where you are right now as the starting point, and start moving.

Changing your body requires more than just “going on a diet” for a few weeks. If you want to change your body, you have to make some changes to your lifestyle (which requires some discipline, but isn't as hard as it sounds). If you create the right environment, your body will adapt to it by becoming leaner, stronger, and more energetic. You can do this.



The words "starvation mode" have been taken a little too literally. Start doing some research on "Adaptive Thermogenesis". This is the scientific term for it. It is real and you are there.

Also read this:

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/3047-700-calories-a-day-and-not-losing

Therapistmama I am not against opening my heart, but calling someone insane, lazy or implying other such things is not the way to give support or advice. I will not open my diary yet. My son spent the month of March in the hospital and it was hard for me to log in what I ate since there was really no good way to judge the calorie content (which I asked, they only provide that for patients and his menu was different), I will not be blasted for the piece of pizza I ended up eating one day because I needed something other than salad. Nor will I be accused of being dishonest because it has been hard to log in every day during April and fill out my diary. May will be better (Lord willing) and I may open it then.

I really just wanted to know if others had the same problem with the scale fluctuating up and down so drastically even though I do not overeat.

Juliehh I have had my thyroid tested and I am on the absolute bottom of "normal", therefore I am "normal" and the physicians say I am fine.