Can someone explain "noob gains"

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Replies

  • dbmata
    dbmata Posts: 12,950 Member
    well, you alluded to a concern about increase in mass.

    You might be following a regimen focused on mass increase. (hypertrophy)
  • LavenderLeaves
    LavenderLeaves Posts: 195 Member
    In order to really understand how many calories you're consuming, you really, really need to be using a food scale. Also, start weighing yourself less, at least until you can learn to not be so phased by the numbers that come up with it. I've lost 26 pounds in the last couple months(I'm 400lbs, though, this isn't typical but normal for people as obese as I am,) but the last few weeks, my weight was fluctuating up and down a LOT on a daily basis. I really, really have come to realize that what's going to matter the most is 1) How do I feel since I've been eating better and 2) How do I feel since I've been making the effort to be more fit and active.

    I know you want to lose weight, and this may sound contrary, but I hear a lot of myself in your post and really want to encourage you try to separate working out from losing weight. Try to focus on how being more active makes your BODY and MIND feel. When I move more - I just feel better, all around. That in turn has an effect on what I eat, because it lowers the chances of me emotionally eating or binging, I end up eating far more balanced.

    Don't lose hope, and please remember - this is a lifetime change. Don't let the scale dictate what's making you feel better. If you need to weigh yourself once a month to be able to focus on your eating and being more active, then do that. Don't let the scale derail progress you make, and *be patient!*
  • leggup
    leggup Posts: 2,942 Member
    chrysalis2015 wrote: »
    britishbroccoli wrote: »

    I bolded all of the text I wanted to respond to.
    -Unless you ate 10,500 calories over your maintenance, you did not gain 3 lbs of fat since last Friday. It's possible your first weigh in was low/dehydrated, that you need to poop, that your muscles are retaining water, that you didn't pee as much before this weigh in, that any number of things. Weight loss is not linear. I have noticed that the scale goes up about 1-3 lbs right before it goes down for me. So I could be at weight X on Monday, X+2 lbs on Wednesday, and then X-1 on Friday. It's all fluctuations.

    -Logging your food: Do you use a food scale?

    -If you are this emotionally unstable, you need to focus on your mental health and put away the scale for now. My weight fluctuates as much as 5 lbs in one week. Your weight is not a judgement; it's just data. Until you can register that, I think you need to focus on your mental health.

    -Noob gains are NOT noob weight gains. Your 3 lbs up are not "noob gains." When people talk about noob/newbie gains, they're talking about strength gains while eating in a deficit. When you first start out lifting after not lifting for a while, your strength can progress quickly. You can build SOME muscle, even while eating at a deficit. Over time it becomes harder and harder to progress while eating at a deficit.

    -There is no reason to fear anything. 5X5 is great. I found 5X3 even better. 3X15 is entering into the cardio range. I don't understand the fear. That you'll become bulky? 99% of women who TRY to become bulky have a really hard time doing so. If you were to "accidentally" become bulky (not how it happens. it's hard work), all you would have to do to undo it is ease back on the lifting.

    I don't use a food scale all the time but I use things like single portion chicken breasts (they're prepackaged) from Wegmans and count the portions I'm using, or I use a measuring cup...or if it's a prepackaged meal then I don't have to really measure - I just scan the code.

    And yes, I am aware that I'm very emotionally unstable...and you're absolutely right (along with a previous poster) that I should just put away the scale and focus on how I feel versus the number.

    As I said to a prior poster, I went to a trainer at the gym, explained what I was looking to do, and based on his recommendations that's the program I picked online. Even ran it by him once I had it printed out and he said it would be a good program for me. Now I'm feeling maybe his advice might've been off with some of the reactions I'm seeing to the layout?

    I highly recommend using a food scale for everything that you're currently measuring with cups. You would be shocked. It's possible that you're not eating enough of a deficit to lose weight. It's hard to say since you only have 2 weigh-ins and your diary is closed.

    One solution for the scale conundrum: weigh yourself 1X a week but don't look at the number. Have your husband record it for you. It's good to have the data over time so that you can adjust your plan if you're not hitting your goals. Exercise and medicine are ways of helping with depression, but I notice that you didn't mention speaking to a professional. Something to consider.
  • heabear
    heabear Posts: 23 Member
    Take selfies of front side and back in a sports bra and shorts and take a new one every two weeks that will help keep you motivated cause those show a better picture than the scale
  • sjohnson__1
    sjohnson__1 Posts: 405 Member
    edited February 2015
    you've already received all the advice I would give, but I can offer some more encouragement! You have to be consistent to reach your goals. Little by little, sometimes not even measurable by a scale, you'll make progress and you may not even notice it. But, if you look back to 1 month, 3 months, 6 months prior, you'll see it. Take pictures. Do body measurements. And forget the ebbs and flows on the scale. It's not a bad thing to weigh urself, but make sure ur doing it consistently and around the same time each day (it's best to do this completely fasted, maybe right when u wake up but after u've used the restroom as most do in the morning). Pay attention to the 2 week trend on the scale, not the day-to-day.

    Other than that, stick to ur goals, workout, LIFT WEIGHTS, and continue to watch urself transform! You're your own worst nightmare, don't let yourself get in the way!
  • aubyshortcake
    aubyshortcake Posts: 796 Member
    chrysalis2015 wrote: »
    After years of trying to get in shape then falling off due to health issues or just life in general, I'm nearly ready to accept that maybe I'm not meant to be in shape.

    Stop it. Don't be ridiculous. Everyone is "meant", and deserves, to be in shape. Do NOT let negative thinking leave you feeling defeated. I don't in any way mean that to sound rude, I struggle with thoughts like that as well, and you need to remember that regardless of the challenges you face, you deserve this and it IS possible. Hang in there. :smile:
  • chrysalis2015
    chrysalis2015 Posts: 212 Member
    Checking in during my lunch...I think you guys are right and will start weighing myself once a week only. I have to see which day because I work off-hours...so first thing in the morning would mean my turning on the lights and waking my husband up at 3 a.m. But if it's at the same time it should at least show a pattern.

    I can't do pictures. That's a trigger for me because I start comparing myself to what I looked like before. I do like the measurements idea and I can find someone at the gym to take my measurements and jot them down in my notebook.

    I never thought that a measuring cup wouldn't be adequate! Plus I have one of those old-fashioned spring food scales, not an electronic one. I wonder if I really AM overeating after all??

    As far as talking to someone, I have tried. 4 times. Each time it was "take this drug and you should leave your spouse." Neither of those were constructive nor feasible. I won't leave my family and the drugs...well I already explained so that's a no. Sounds cliché but frankly crying it out and then praying about it helps...but unfortunately the third crutch has been the food. I'm trying to replace that particular crutch with the working out, but seeing those numbers go up just hit all the buttons at that moment. I will take the advice and not look at that scale.

    As for the program, I'll go through this site and look at what others are doing. Now I'm really questioning my choice of a program and if I'm going to change it, it might be best now when I've just started another one. If this type of program (3x10/12) is counter productive then I'll just get more frustrated.

    Thank you all :smile:
  • chrysalis2015
    chrysalis2015 Posts: 212 Member
    aubyshortcake wrote: »
    chrysalis2015 wrote: »
    After years of trying to get in shape then falling off due to health issues or just life in general, I'm nearly ready to accept that maybe I'm not meant to be in shape.

    Stop it. Don't be ridiculous. Everyone is "meant", and deserves, to be in shape. Do NOT let negative thinking leave you feeling defeated. I don't in any way mean that to sound rude, I struggle with thoughts like that as well, and you need to remember that regardless of the challenges you face, you deserve this and it IS possible. Hang in there. :smile:

    It doesn't sound rude. Reading everyone's replies have helped me out a lot today and I needed the wake-up call and the assurance that this will likely be a temporary thing...though the program thing does have me worried but that's a separate issue.
  • AliceDark
    AliceDark Posts: 3,886 Member
    edited February 2015
    One thing you really have to remember is that nobody has an exact weight. You have a weight range, and your scale weight changes every day. Most people don't realize this, because they don't weigh themselves regularly before they start trying to lose weight.

    You start a program, get on the scale and say "I weigh exactly XYZ pounds," but that's not really true. THAT DAY, and that day only, you weighed exactly XYZ pounds. (And really, it's for that moment only, you weighed exactly that much. As soon as you eat or use the restroom, that number will change). In reality, you weigh XYZ +/- up to 10 pounds, depending on how much you fluctuate. Three pounds could be well within your normal fluctuation range, but until you've been tracking your weight for a month or two, you won't know that.

    So don't freak out. You're not doing anything wrong. For the first 6-8 weeks of making changes, do the best you can and just watch how your body responds. I promise you didn't gain 3 pounds of fat since Friday. Be patient, learn your natural fluctuation range and stay calm.
  • Sam_I_Am77
    Sam_I_Am77 Posts: 2,093 Member
    Newbie gains... Basically what is happening is that previously you did not participate in any kind of strength training and now you are. When you start this you're providing your body and primarily your nervous system with a NEW stimulus. Newbie gains are more-or-less the nervous system's way of adapting to this new stimulus which helps you get stronger. During the process your muscles are also adapting and getting stronger. Over time your nervous system adapts and now the strength gains are more muscular adaptation which is kind of a transition away from the so-called "newbie gains."
  • McCloud33
    McCloud33 Posts: 959 Member
    Water retention, water retention, water retention! I can't find the article right now, but I read one not that long ago that quantified just how much water your body will store from day to day. Basically every time you jump on the scale, you're +/- your actual weight because you're either holding a little water or a little dehydrated. It said that, on average, a person's range of water is -2% to +4% of their *actual* weight. So if your *actual* weight is 225, if you were dehydrated you could weigh as little at 220 and depending on your hydration the other way, you could weigh as much as 234. All of which can happen without gaining or losing a single ounce of fat. So just take a deep breath, tell yourself you're doing the right things, keep at it and just keep tracking. Eventually you'll see the trends going down. If not after a month, re-evaluate what you're doing.
  • CaterinaThrace
    CaterinaThrace Posts: 6 Member
    Hiya
    I wouldn't put too much thought into your actual weight - you've only just started, and I am by no means an expert - the complete opposite, but I'm probably about 6 weeks ahead of you in this journey. I started running about 4/5 times a week at the start of January and I want to share with you why I'm still going having only lost 2kilos.

    1. I feel amazing. Not because I've lost so much weight, but because just being on the weight loss and fitness journey makes me feel great. It feels great just KNOWING that I'm persisting with it. I had moments of despair when I was bloody hungry and tired from the exercise and just wanted a burger and some chips, but for the most part I've just felt great about finally doing what I've been considering/thinking about/being sad about for the last five years.

    2. About two weeks ago (so a month in) I put on a pair of shorts that I hadn't worn for ages because they just wouldn't do up comfortably any more. I can't even remember why I put them on - I had just weighed myself and I had still lost no bloody weight, but I put them on and they fit properly!!! I couldn't believe it. I promptly went into my wardrobe and tried on a whole heap of old clothes I'd been avoiding. Not all (definitely not all) fit again, but at least half of them did! So as others have mentioned, I'd probably go more by dress size than weight.

    3. There is a LOT to be said for 'runners high'. You mentioned you were trying to use the exercise to combat your depression - I think that's probably the best idea there is. There's a lot of research on this, but just personally - I think that again, don't concentrate on the weight loss as being what's going to make you happy, but on the fact that you're working towards it. The sticking with it part, along with the natural high you get from exercise, should do you a world of good. I certainly has for me. I feel re-born. Much more positive. It's no magic bullet, but it can't hurt, right?

    Best of luck and hang in there - the hanging in there part is probably what's going to make you the happiest.

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