Unexplainable weight gain after starting strength training

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joelleskaf903
joelleskaf903 Posts: 2
in Fitness and Exercise
Hi everyone,
I am hoping someone here has experienced what I've been through and can help me make sense of all this. I am extremely discouraged at this point and am considering dropping the gym altogether.

I have always always stuck to a low-carb diet. End of september, I was at 124 lbs. I decided it was time to tone up because my skin was flabby in some areas. I started going to the gym 4x a week (60 mins workout). I usually do Bodypump, the class at Goodlife. My eating has remained the same: no sugary treats, no bread, lots of protein and veggies. Carb intake is usually Under 50g a day and calories range between 1000 to 1200.

I started to feel my clothes get a bit snug on the quads and butt area as well as in the biceps, but I assumed it was because of the working out as I felt my muscle become more firm in those areas.

Out of curiousity, I step on the scale yesterday and I'm 138 lbs! how in the world did that gain that much weight in Under 2 months? My clothes still fit but are a bit tighter and apparently it's not noticeable to my friends and family. It would seem to me that gaining almost 15 pounds would be noticeable!

I know it's very hard to gain muscle mass and I doubt the gain is from that. But with no change in dieting and increased workouts, how is this explainable??

Replies

  • rybo
    rybo Posts: 5,424 Member
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    Fluid retention in your muscles or you have been eating more than you think.
  • JoRocka
    JoRocka Posts: 17,525 Member
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    1.) you will have water retention with weight lifting
    2.) with over 10 pounds of gain- odds are you are eating more than you think.
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 48,535 Member
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    Eating low carb reduces glycogen in the cells. Now that you've worked out, the cells NEED glycogen for Kreb's cycle, so they are "filling" back up. Water is needed for this so you've more than likely gained a lot of water weight, which isn't uncommon when someone takes up exercise after doing none previously.
    Look at it logically though...................if you looked the way you want, fit the clothes you like, and people congratulate you on how you look, does it REALLY matter to you that much about what the scale says?

    A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
    IDEA Fitness member
    Kickboxing Certified Instructor
    Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
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  • DopeItUp
    DopeItUp Posts: 18,771 Member
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    Assuming you haven't started eating everything in sight, it's just water. Quitting the gym is exactly the opposite of what you want to do.
  • yoovie
    yoovie Posts: 17,121 Member
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    It isn't so much unexplainable so much as you should really look into educating yourself about what this will do to your body and what to expect :bigsmile:
  • joelleskaf903
    joelleskaf903 Posts: 2
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    I am trying to educate myself and I've even asked a personal trainer about this, but he said that 15 lbs of water weight is almost impossible...
  • JoRocka
    JoRocka Posts: 17,525 Member
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    I mean it could be- but 15 pounds IS a lot- just go back and re-*kitten* your calories and double check.

    But really it boils down to
    if you're gaining- you're eating in a surplus
    if you aren't gaining/aren't losing you're at maintance
    if you're losing - you're at a deficit.

    None of them are bad- or good- it's just the feed back to tell you where you are. If you're trying to gain- and you're losing- then your intake is wrong.

    If you're trying to lose and you're gaining- your intake is wrong.

    So- NEET and TDEE which ever you chose to use are estimates- go back and look at what's ACTUALLY happening to your body over the course of the several weeks- in this case you have 2 months- if you really gained- and have enough data points to support that-then you can make a choice ot change or not.

    But if really you only have two data points that aren't accurate- kind of like I weighed once after dehydrating myself for 2 days prior to weight lifting and then once again two months later after getting waste and then drinking gallons of Gatorade AND you're weight training- yeah you're probably not going to get an accurate representation. Then you're best bet is riding it out and collecting more data points to see what trial and error is saying.

    Really you have three choices.
    1.) Stop weight lifting
    2.) cut some calories- or really make sure you're 100% accurate/precise with what you're eating.
    3.) wait out another 3-4 weeks and see if you iron out the water weight gain.

    1.) really isn't an option- so don't consider it.
    2.) it's an option- you can shave off 100-200 calories and see what happens after 2-4 weeks.
    3.) is a great option because really there is no rush one way or the other and giving yourself another month will allow you to take more data points (Scale and tape measure) see what those say- then adjust again.

  • hmmar
    hmmar Posts: 2
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    I'm experiencing this after beginning a running routine to work out. I have gained 17 pounds in a month and a half. My clothes still fit and I don't feel bloated. It is just very discouraging. I've been on Weight Watchers but came back to My Fitness Pal because I'm curious if my macros are off.
  • blb85
    blb85 Posts: 187 Member
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    Have you weighed yourself on a different day again to make sure this one day that you weighed yourself wasn't just an abnormal day? I know I weigh myself every day, and I will say that my weight fluctuates a LOT. I would say to increase your water intake and weigh yourself again on another day. Everyone above here is right, muscle will weigh more, but shouldn't add up that fast. If what you are saying is correct in that you haven't changed anything else about your diet, I would think there is definitely something else going on. Maybe even see a doctor to have your thyroid checked as well, if this continues.
  • dbmata
    dbmata Posts: 12,951 Member
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    15 pounds is not impossible, it's just shy of two gallons. I have some low level pro boxer friends who can do that on weigh in day.
  • osothefinn
    osothefinn Posts: 163 Member
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    I'm confused why the number on the scale matters if you look good, feel good, and you're wearing the size clothes you want to wear.

    That said, as a bigger guy my weight on the scale can move like 10 pounds overnight based on how much I drank, how much sodium I ate the day before, etc, so take a single datapoint on a scale with a huge grain of salt.
  • maoribadger
    maoribadger Posts: 1,837 Member
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    What are your measurements saying?
  • rainbowbow
    rainbowbow Posts: 7,490 Member
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    if you looked the way you want, fit the clothes you like, and people congratulate you on how you look, does it REALLY matter to you that much about what the scale says?

    This.
  • 19wilson88
    19wilson88 Posts: 30 Member
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    I see that you say you are eating 1000-1200 cal/day, and working out 60 min times per week. If you are truly eating that few calories, then I do not see how you could gain any body mass--only water weight. So keep weighing regularly, and in the same state (say, first thing in the morning wearing minimal clothing), and you should get a better idea of what your real weight is. Back to the calories: if you are that active, 1200 calories is definitely a minimum. You are eating to fuel activity, so don't punish yourself by denying your body important nutrients.

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