I've been doing an hour of cardio a night, and eating pretty healthy, and I gained weight?!?!

Ok, so I have been doing an hour of cardio a night basically on the elliptical and the machine that is like sliding stairs, burning about 600 calories. I have been making sure I do not go over my food intake along with sugars and fats. I weighed myself Friday, and then I weighed in today and had gained 1.5 pounds! Why?!?!?! Has this happened to anyone? and if so when did you start losing instead?!
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Replies

  • ppersaud67
    ppersaud67 Posts: 5 Member
    Try doing some resistance training you body make react differently
  • KarenJanine
    KarenJanine Posts: 3,497 Member
    When did you start this exercise regime? New exercise programmes often result in water retention, which can lead to a higher number on the scale. It does not mean you have gained fat.

    Give it more time and if you are eating at a calorie deficit then you will lose weight.
  • queenliz99
    queenliz99 Posts: 15,317 Member
    twarden9 wrote: »
    Ok, so I have been doing an hour of cardio a night basically on the elliptical and the machine that is like sliding stairs, burning about 600 calories. I have been making sure I do not go over my food intake along with sugars and fats. I weighed myself Friday, and then I weighed in today and had gained 1.5 pounds! Why?!?!?! Has this happened to anyone? and if so when did you start losing instead?!

    Also, be careful, you may be overestimating your calorie burn
  • terricherry2
    terricherry2 Posts: 222 Member
    Stop... wait a minute. (so tempting to sing the rest in the office)

    No you didn't gain 1.5lb in a week from counting cals and working out more. Think logically about it. If you just started a new workout regime, your body needs a second to get used to it. Keep it up and weigh again next week.

    Also, why are you hating on sugar and fat? They're 2 of my best friends!
  • ashbash830
    ashbash830 Posts: 19 Member
    Your body doesn't like change.
    Your body is constantly trying to maintain homeostasis, so when you're trying to change things your body is going to try to go back to its "normal"
    Say you eat 3,000 calories a day and go down to 2,000. You are changing something and that is no longer "normal" so your body, in this case, is basically saying you're not giving me what I want (calories) so I'm going to store this food as fat.

    Just keep going, you will start losing weight.
  • twarden9
    twarden9 Posts: 22 Member
    Thanks everyone. I started 2 weeks ago. I go to Florida in the end of March and was hoping to lose 15 lbs (and continue being healthy to keep it off!). I have a polar heart rate thing so that I know my calorie burn very precise. I also am trying my hardest to not go over the 1200 calories I am alloted even if I am burning 600 in extra food. I have been living off of chicken, tuna, whole grains, spinach, green beans, and eggs. I will treat myself to an oreo of something but I always log it. I'm just so discouraged I guess. But I guess I will have to just wait a week or two and weigh again. I felt great this morning when I woke up, like my body looked a little better, and then weighed and just wanted to go to sleep and pretend I didn't.
  • smittybuilt19
    smittybuilt19 Posts: 955 Member
    Your goal is not sensible, plan to continue being discouraged. 15 lbs is no small feat. I would give yourself at least 4 months to accomplish that loss.
  • queenliz99
    queenliz99 Posts: 15,317 Member
    You need to eat most of your calories back because what you are doing is not healthy.
  • Freedm16
    Freedm16 Posts: 14 Member
    I am an personal trainer/coach and I always recommend, especially at the start of a new diet and exercise plan to pay more attention to how your clothes fit than the number on the scale. Try taking measurements of your body instead of weighing yourself often. I would say weigh yourself once a week and no more. If you notice clothes are fitting better and you feel better overall, than that's a good starting point.
  • krysmuree
    krysmuree Posts: 326 Member
    edited January 2015
    --

  • jpaulie
    jpaulie Posts: 917 Member
    twarden9 wrote: »
    Thanks everyone. I started 2 weeks ago. I go to Florida in the end of March and was hoping to lose 15 lbs (and continue being healthy to keep it off!). I have a polar heart rate thing so that I know my calorie burn very precise. I also am trying my hardest to not go over the 1200 calories I am alloted even if I am burning 600 in extra food. I have been living off of chicken, tuna, whole grains, spinach, green beans, and eggs. I will treat myself to an oreo of something but I always log it. I'm just so discouraged I guess. But I guess I will have to just wait a week or two and weigh again. I felt great this morning when I woke up, like my body looked a little better, and then weighed and just wanted to go to sleep and pretend I didn't.

    gotta eat those cals back and get you net cals back to 1200 or more. 600 net cals is not good for the body. Also are you weighing in the am? Or evening after eating food and water all day?
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  • imacrazycatlady
    imacrazycatlady Posts: 6 Member
    Machines GROSSLY overestimate calories burned. Do not believe what the machine tells you.
  • ThePoeToaster
    ThePoeToaster Posts: 1,681 Member

    Heart rate monitors are only accurate if you're doing a "steady-state" cardio, meaning running, walking, biking - that sort of thing. If you're doing hefty cardio like Zumba, a fitness DVD, HIIT training, anything like that, your burn is not accurate because the HRM cannot properly track the rapid rising and falling (varying) heart rate, whereas when you're doing a steady state cardio, it generally remains in the same ball park if your pace is the same.

    [/quote]

    Who told you this? This is total bollocks! I've been using Polar hr monitors for 20 years. they have settings on them which allow for interval training! Where did you get this information. Somebody is feeding you a line of bull!

    Now to the OP, you're not getting enough food, your goal is too much, and you need to add resistance training. You're body is going to continue to hold on to the weight as a protection mechanism because you are going into starvation mode with such a huge calorie deficit.
  • msdavonnadenise
    msdavonnadenise Posts: 12
    edited January 2015
    Good advice, Freedm16. In the beginning, I was working very hard and eating right and lost very little and then I gained some of it back. I was pissed. My face started breaking out (not cute for a 40+ year old) and I got frustrated and stopped weighing myself, but I kept on with the program anyway. And then after about a month or so, I had lost an amazing amount of weight. I also noticed my hair grew and my skin cleared up and I started fitting my shirts better (one of my primary personal issues in life). It just takes time for your body to get through it.

    Especially for women. The other reason I think it seemed like I gained weight was because I started my program about two weeks before my cycle (sorry, TMI, but we're all grown here, get over it). And all women know that during that time (or for me, during PMS), we have to deal with "phantom weight" and not fitting our clothes and just feeling all-round bogus. And thennnnnn, we have to worry about pre-menopause, too (depending on your age). So we have to take that into consideration as well. We just have to be realistic and patient with ourselves.

    Based on my past and present weight loss experiences, I'm finding that once I get into a groove where my good eating habits have become a lifestyle that I don't have to think about (like now), everything starts falling into place for me.
  • bos10fit
    bos10fit Posts: 80 Member
    Keep doing what you're doing. It will come.

    I see this problem all the time with my clients.

    If you're not eating enough, your metabolism will halt aka adaptive thermogenesis. Bump your calories up again.

    Use Harris Benedict formula to calculate what you should be eating to maintain your current weight. Then deduct 10-15% and this is what you should be eating AFTER exercise :)
  • earlnabby
    earlnabby Posts: 8,171 Member
    1) It is very likely the muscles retaining water, which happens when you start a new workout or increase your exercise. They need the extra fluids to repair

    2) 600 net calories is too low for anyone. 1200 net may be too low for some people. What is your height, current weight, and age?
  • I am having the SAME issue and was just getting ready to google it. I've been running 4 miles a day for 2 weeks, at least 4 times per week and I have gained 2 lbs. I wouldn't stress over it and it is definitely water retention, but continue drinking lots of water!! My goal is 15 lbs by end of April.
  • yopeeps025
    yopeeps025 Posts: 8,680 Member
    underestimate calories in overestimate calories out can = not losing weight.
  • auddii
    auddii Posts: 15,357 Member
    {quote]
    Heart rate monitors are only accurate if you're doing a "steady-state" cardio, meaning running, walking, biking - that sort of thing. If you're doing hefty cardio like Zumba, a fitness DVD, HIIT training, anything like that, your burn is not accurate because the HRM cannot properly track the rapid rising and falling (varying) heart rate, whereas when you're doing a steady state cardio, it generally remains in the same ball park if your pace is the same.

    Who told you this? This is total bollocks! I've been using Polar hr monitors for 20 years. they have settings on them which allow for interval training! Where did you get this information. Somebody is feeding you a line of bull!

    Now to the OP, you're not getting enough food, your goal is too much, and you need to add resistance training. You're body is going to continue to hold on to the weight as a protection mechanism because you are going into starvation mode with such a huge calorie deficit.[/quote]

    Some people don't use the HRM correctly, and I'm guessing some cheap ones may not have the different settings (although I would assume that would be phased out as HIIT is more and more popular).

    In addition, I've seen people who wear a heart rate monitor all day and think that it gives an accurate calorie burn including when they are sitting at their desk. It's definitely not made for that. The easy solution is to just read the instructions for your model.

    OP, I agree that you are likely seeing water retention from starting a workout regimen. In addition, you are netting very few calories as someone else pointed out, which will put stress on your body, increase cortisol levels, and also lead to weight gain. I'd look into changing your goal (maybe half a pound or a pound a week) and eating back at least half of your workout calories. There's no reason to starve yourself, and the MFP deficit works if you log accurately and stick with it.
  • mlckeon
    mlckeon Posts: 5 Member
    it probably can be water weight but don't discourage
  • leggup
    leggup Posts: 2,942 Member
    That 1.5 lb "gain" could be a gain from last week, before you started working out. Or it could be water retention. Or it could be poop. One weigh-in isn't a gain. You have to have more data and track your weight over time to guarantee you're losing (or gaining) weight.

    Also- it's possible you're eating more than you realize. A food scale can help you know for sure.

    End of march is 10 weeks from now. Your profile says you want to lose 20 lbs total.
    If you have 75+ lbs to lose 2 lbs/week is ideal,
    If you have 40-75 lbs to lose 1.5 lbs/week is ideal,
    If you have 25-40 lbs to lose 1 lbs/week is ideal,
    If you have 15 -25 lbs to lose 0.5 to 1.0 lbs/week is ideal, and
    If you have less than 15 lbs to lose 0.5 lbs/week is ideal.

    You should only be aiming to lose .5-1 lbs per week for sustainable weight loss (that you won't gain right back after). That means that your goal of 1,200 (which I hope is net) is probably too low and too aggressive. No one is going to weigh you in Miami. If you focus on losing weight in a healthy way, you may weigh more for FL, but you'll look better because you'll retain more of your muscles. Muscle takes up less space and jiggles less than fat. Worth it.
  • bos10fit
    bos10fit Posts: 80 Member
    twarden9 wrote: »
    Thanks everyone. I started 2 weeks ago. I go to Florida in the end of March and was hoping to lose 15 lbs (and continue being healthy to keep it off!). I have a polar heart rate thing so that I know my calorie burn very precise. I also am trying my hardest to not go over the 1200 calories I am alloted even if I am burning 600 in extra food. I have been living off of chicken, tuna, whole grains, spinach, green beans, and eggs. I will treat myself to an oreo of something but I always log it. I'm just so discouraged I guess. But I guess I will have to just wait a week or two and weigh again. I felt great this morning when I woke up, like my body looked a little better, and then weighed and just wanted to go to sleep and pretend I didn't.

    Heart rate monitors are only accurate if you're doing a "steady-state" cardio, meaning running, walking, biking - that sort of thing. If you're doing hefty cardio like Zumba, a fitness DVD, HIIT training, anything like that, your burn is not accurate because the HRM cannot properly track the rapid rising and falling (varying) heart rate, whereas when you're doing a steady state cardio, it generally remains in the same ball park if your pace is the same.

    I just found this out myself. :)
    Just give it time. Our bodies need time to adjust to new exercise/eating routines.

    Interval Training With Polar Heart Rate Monitors




    For many of us, treadmills and stationary bikes are a necessity, not a want – we need to use them when it’s raining buckets outside, when the temperatures are a bit too frosty for us to hit that pavement, or if we live in an area that unfortunately isn’t running and biking-friendly. Interval training is a great way to increase fat burn and beat that dreaded treadmill and training bike boredom. Heart rate monitoring is at the core of interval training, and we have some tried and true interval training tips using Polar Heart Rate Monitors, one of the top heart rate monitors on our website.

    Tip 1: Find your maximum heart rate.
    Finding your max heart rate is actually surprisingly simple: simply subtract your age from 220. This your anaerobic heart rate – your maximum heart rate. Then, subtract about 25 beats, and you’ll have your approximate aerobic heart rate. Take note of these, as you’ll want to carefully monitor them with one of our Polar Heart Rate Monitors.

    Tip 2: Plan your interval schedule.
    If you do a Google search for “interval running plans” or “interval biking plans” you’ll find a ton of interval training ideas, ranging from the easy to the I-need-to-print-this-out-and-bring-with-me plans. We have a stunningly simple one for you:

    • (1) five minute run/bike at a slow, warm-up speed

    • (8) sets of:

    º (1) two minute run/bike in your anaerobic heart rate zone, then

    º (1) one minute run/bike in your aerobic heart rate zone

    º Repeat seven more times, increasing your speed with each set

    • (1) five minute run/bike at a slow, cool-down speed


    http://www.heartratemonitorsusa.com/polar-heart-rate-monitors-interval-training.html

    RC3 works fine for intervals.

  • krysmuree
    krysmuree Posts: 326 Member
    edited January 2015
    I and several others were chastised by at least ten users the other day when discussing Polar vs Fitbit. It was pretty ridiculous. I use my HRM for everything and continue to do so since it is motivating, but was given some sound information and sources to indicate it was true (and what a disappointment it was to hear!) Thank you bos10fit for providing a source supporting that HRMs can be useful for interval.
  • bos10fit
    bos10fit Posts: 80 Member
    edited January 2015
    Hey, no problem!

    I am obsessed with my HR monitor. I wear it for everything including lifting weights. I don't understand the claim of how they cannot be accurate in lifting weights & interval training. If they are accurate in long steady state how could they not be accurate the other way? It doesn't sound logical.

    That's like saying oh my speedometer in my car only works when I am going to steady MPH versus acceleration and deceleration.

    IDK that's just my thought.

    They could be about 5-10 beats off perhaps that's any technology but like you said, it's motivating but also a helpful guideline.
  • krysmuree
    krysmuree Posts: 326 Member
    Right, exactly - I only eat my exercise calories if I'm really hungry and I always make a healthy choice when I do, so for me it's mostly for motivation and a guideline. :) Thank you again.
  • twarden9 wrote: »
    Ok, so I have been doing an hour of cardio a night basically on the elliptical and the machine that is like sliding stairs, burning about 600 calories. I have been making sure I do not go over my food intake along with sugars and fats. I weighed myself Friday, and then I weighed in today and had gained 1.5 pounds! Why?!?!?! Has this happened to anyone? and if so when did you start losing instead?!

    You could be building muscle as well. If you doin what you supposed to do they weight will come off. Don't get down jut means we got to want it more and work harder. I've had those days too and start thinking I'm doing something wrong but at the end of the week it evens out or drops.
    You doing good...!
  • twarden9
    twarden9 Posts: 22 Member
    earlnabby wrote: »
    1) It is very likely the muscles retaining water, which happens when you start a new workout or increase your exercise. They need the extra fluids to repair

    2) 600 net calories is too low for anyone. 1200 net may be too low for some people. What is your height, current weight, and age?

    I am 24, I am 5'6" and I weighed 154.6 today
  • twarden9
    twarden9 Posts: 22 Member
    That 1.5 lb "gain" could be a gain from last week, before you started working out. Or it could be water retention. Or it could be poop. One weigh-in isn't a gain. You have to have more data and track your weight over time to guarantee you're losing (or gaining) weight.

    Also- it's possible you're eating more than you realize. A food scale can help you know for sure.

    End of march is 10 weeks from now. Your profile says you want to lose 20 lbs total.
    If you have 75+ lbs to lose 2 lbs/week is ideal,
    If you have 40-75 lbs to lose 1.5 lbs/week is ideal,
    If you have 25-40 lbs to lose 1 lbs/week is ideal,
    If you have 15 -25 lbs to lose 0.5 to 1.0 lbs/week is ideal, and
    If you have less than 15 lbs to lose 0.5 lbs/week is ideal.

    You should only be aiming to lose .5-1 lbs per week for sustainable weight loss (that you won't gain right back after). That means that your goal of 1,200 (which I hope is net) is probably too low and too aggressive. No one is going to weigh you in Miami. If you focus on losing weight in a healthy way, you may weigh more for FL, but you'll look better because you'll retain more of your muscles. Muscle takes up less space and jiggles less than fat. Worth it.

    Muscle is definitely cuter than the jiggle lol!
  • twarden9
    twarden9 Posts: 22 Member
    twarden9 wrote: »
    Ok, so I have been doing an hour of cardio a night basically on the elliptical and the machine that is like sliding stairs, burning about 600 calories. I have been making sure I do not go over my food intake along with sugars and fats. I weighed myself Friday, and then I weighed in today and had gained 1.5 pounds! Why?!?!?! Has this happened to anyone? and if so when did you start losing instead?!

    You could be building muscle as well. If you doin what you supposed to do they weight will come off. Don't get down jut means we got to want it more and work harder. I've had those days too and start thinking I'm doing something wrong but at the end of the week it evens out or drops.
    You doing good...!

    Thank you!