I am eating 1300 cals and exercising but am putting on weigh

kirstiey
kirstiey Posts: 243
edited September 27 in Motivation and Support
I am eating 1300 cals and exercising (my fitness Pal weights and cardio 250 cals per day every other day) but am putting on weight!!...any ideas? (4 weeks now)

So demotivated and fed up.

Replies

  • chevy88grl
    chevy88grl Posts: 3,937 Member
    Are you sure you're eating enough? Are you drinking enough water? If something isn't working -- it's time to tweak it. Try eating more calories for a week and see if that helps. I know it goes against what you've been taught, but our bodies NEED food in order to lose weight in a healthy way (and to keep it off).
  • Nharah
    Nharah Posts: 42 Member
    Looks like you are not eating your exercise calories and may be netting too low.
  • Shed_Em
    Shed_Em Posts: 7 Member
    If you started lifting weights and started your weight loss at the same time, it might be that you are gaining muscle as fast as you are losing fat (and muscle weighs more, so..)

    Try taking your measurements weekly, and if you are losing inches at the waist and other problem areas and gaining size in arms/legs, that's probably what is going on.

    If that is what's happening, you can either: 1) Stop lifting weights and lose the weight first so you can actually see numeric progress or, 2) Continue what you are doing, and just realize you likely will continue to look better even if the scale doesn't drop all that much.

    Hope that helps!
  • talysshade
    talysshade Posts: 273 Member
    Another thing that might help you is to drink more. I'm not sure if you log all your water intake, but i found (i used to hate water and never drink it) that when i really did start to drink about 6-8 glasses of water each day and 1-2 glasses of light soda, i really started to lose weight. The first few days i really had to force the water down my throat.. but now i do it and don't mind the taste anymore.

    Also, I second the idea of eating a bit more for a while.. or try zigzagging. This is where you eat low calories one day, high the other and alternate it in such a way that over the whole week you still get the same amount of calories as your goal, just different each day to confuse your body. (if this is too vague, look up zigzagging on the forums)
  • Crystal817
    Crystal817 Posts: 2,021 Member
    it might be that you are gaining muscle as fast as you are losing fat (and muscle weighs more, so..)

    :huh:
  • GremlinJenny
    GremlinJenny Posts: 151
    hey kirstiey, good work on staying on track thus far. it takes a lot of dedication!

    you're gonna wanna start tracking your sodium and sugar. i can tell right away that you're definitely over on your sugar. that might help.

    good luck!! xoxo!
  • natskedat
    natskedat Posts: 570 Member
    I suspect that you're not eating enough. Sometimes MFP underestimates our true caloric needs. It puts me around 400 calories less than I need for maintenance. Make sure you're eating back all of your exercise calories and drink your water. Also, look under "goals" and be sure your activity level is an honest assessment of your daily activities. People who run after toddlers, waitresses, and carpenters have higher caloric needs than people who sit at a desk or drive cars.

    Good luck!
  • musica814
    musica814 Posts: 301 Member
    First of all, to whoever said that it's muscle gain...you can't gain that much muscle in such a short time. It takes a very long time to build muscle. Read this http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/234432-if-you-think-you-gained-muscle-read-this?hl=gaining+muscle

    Second, I agree with what above posters said. I haven't looked at your diary, but make sure you are getting enough water every day. It helps to flush out extra water....really. Also maybe 1300 calories is too low for you, so try eating more. But don't eat more sugar/snacks. Eat protein and healthy foods that will keep you full.
  • chillijam1
    chillijam1 Posts: 62 Member
    hi ive just had a look at your food diary ,just check your calories some of the food thats entered seems very low for the items,ive found on here some things are correct ,so ive started entering my own off the packets so i know these are right.watch your postion sizes to are you only putting that amount out are you weighing it or are you just guessing? i noticed on for example the corn on cob it hadnt calculate the carbs on it and it is highly loaded on sweetcorn ,it things like this you may be eating more carbs than you think ,just have a look at it for a week .i know its a pain entering new things on but at least you know this will be correct for you,because dont forget ppl who ve entered things on MFP on food data are just guessing and not checking on internet for proper calories.if you go on line there are companies that have web pages for free giving you correct calories already done so all you have to do is copy them.
    good luck :smile:
  • Elleinnz
    Elleinnz Posts: 1,661 Member
    Had a quick look at your food diary - I agree - your nett seems to be too low - you need to eat back some of your excercise calories....

    I also agree you should switch on your sugar and sodium tracking - You seem to be eating quite a bit of pre-packaged food - I dont know all the brands - but I think it might be an eye opener to see how much sodium you are eating..... most of these foods are loaded with sodium, and when I am "standing still" if I bring my sodium down (and drink lots of water) I normally see some sort of downward movement...
  • chevy88grl
    chevy88grl Posts: 3,937 Member
    I suspect that you're not eating enough. Sometimes MFP underestimates our true caloric needs. It puts me around 400 calories less than I need for maintenance. Make sure you're eating back all of your exercise calories and drink your water. Also, look under "goals" and be sure your activity level is an honest assessment of your daily activities. People who run after toddlers, waitresses, and carpenters have higher caloric needs than people who sit at a desk or drive cars.

    Good luck!

    I agree! It puts me under what I really need to maintain my current weight. The number it gives you isn't a set in stone number - play with the numbers some until you find what works for you. Since this is a very basic system that doesn't know how each one of our bodies works -- it is all a guessing game until you can master your own body. It'll take some time - trust me. It took me quite awhile to figure out what in the heck it wanted!
  • significance
    significance Posts: 436 Member
    Are you weighing everything you eat? Eyeballing food can be very inaccurate, and published weights on bought food can be up to 25% under the actual weight (producers aren't allowed to go under the weight on the label, but can go over).
  • DustinReiner
    DustinReiner Posts: 157 Member
    At 1300 calories your body is going into conserve mode. Where it doesn't want to burn any calories, it actually is eating at muscle tissue. Which is not what you want.

    You should be eating at least 1300-1500 a day, especially if your working out hard. (P90X) counts as a hard workout. So I'd say increase your GOOD caloric intake to at least 1400, if not 1500. Make sure they are good calories(fruit, veggies) [Not fried food, or processed]

    Wait about a week and you should see a change.

    Been there done that! You have to give the body some fuel to work with.

    Good luck in your goals!

    Dustin Reiner

    4822665.png
    Created by MyFitnessPal.com - Free Calorie Counter
  • xraychick77
    xraychick77 Posts: 1,775 Member
    you cant not put on weight/fat by eating below BMR. ugh people.

    its you never said how much you gained..i bet its like 2lbs huh..ya its probably water or bloat weight.

    your body wont eat muscle if you are eating..you'd have to eat at a VERY low calorie deficit for that to happen..PLUS you wont lose muscle mass if you are lifting or doing resistance type exercises...you can look up these facts in the Journal of Nutrition.

    plus..there is no such thing as 'starvation mode'. its a popular myth..but its a myth. techincally if you are eating below BMR you are 'starving' your body. when we plateau or stop losing..its because our bodies become used to what we are doing to it at that time..meaning we adjust and adapt easily. if you dont change up your diet, and/or exercise routine every few months you'll stall. it has NOTHING to do with 'starvation'
  • kirstiey
    kirstiey Posts: 243
    Blimey, thanks everyone. Lots of food for thought here hahahah

    I am weighing and measuring EVERYTHING! and I thought my diet was low on sugar and fats! And didn't think it was pre-packaged, compared to what some people are eating and are still losing ;o(

    Maybe I need to rethink... The water thing might be a trick as I never drink water, I hate it. I will try this for a week and keep up the exercise...Agree there is no muscle yet ;o) so I don't think it is that.

    Before 35 I could dip to 1300 and lose a 6 lbs in a couple of weeks, maybe it is age.

    Thanks guys xxxx
  • sarapulsifer
    sarapulsifer Posts: 70
    Could be that ur gaining muscle right now instead of loosing fat?? :)
  • Rae9911
    Rae9911 Posts: 200 Member
    I found I was losing 1lb one week but putting it back on the next, this has happend for the last 4 weeks, so I took a look at my diet and found I was not drinking enough water. I have upped my water to 8 glasses a day plus my needed 4 cups of tea a day (can't help it I am a Brit) and this week I have lost 2lb. To me losing that 2lb felt better than when I lost my first stone as I thought I was going to be stuck at 18lb loss for ever.
  • beccarockslife
    beccarockslife Posts: 816 Member
    Just had a quick look at your diary and for example on tuesday you didn't eat nearly enough. Take it easy on yourself, sometimes you add muscle before you burn fat so you are carrying both at the same time and then the fat will start falling off.
  • amccrazgrl
    amccrazgrl Posts: 315 Member
    Don't worry slow and steady is the way to go. No loose skin that way.
    I have been doing this since the last week in October and only down 14.4 lbs from 169-154. The most I lost in one month was 6lbs and that was when I changed gyms.

    I have had my goal calories at 1200,1250,1275,1300,1320 and zig-zaged calories. As of Monday I have started my calories at 1400 and with my excersice calories that means I'm eating 1,500 calories or so to NET that 1,200.
    I have done more exercise and less exercise. It really drives me crazy sometimes. I ONLY have 40lbs or so to lose so I'm thinking since I'm already that not as overweight as a lot of people on here it should take me longer to lose.
  • kirstiey
    kirstiey Posts: 243
    Really helpful, thanks I will try this ;o)
  • smilebhappy
    smilebhappy Posts: 811 Member
    I'd say try upping your calorie intake for the day.....
    see if this helps in a weeks time if not up alittle more
    What kind of exercises are you doing??
    You could be retaining water from muscle build-up
    Don't forget to drink water
    Hope this helps some......Good luck to you ;)
  • Shed_Em
    Shed_Em Posts: 7 Member
    it might be that you are gaining muscle as fast as you are losing fat (and muscle weighs more, so..)

    :huh:

    I misspoke there..obviously muscle and fat weight the same, what I meant is muscle is more dense.

    Still, it is entirely possible to gain muscle while losing fat and not see a change on the scales - I've experienced it myself, which is why I suggested it as a possibility (and the linked post above notwithstanding).
This discussion has been closed.

Categories