Gaining weight while working out

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Kess31
Kess31 Posts: 27 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
Is it me or has anyone else gained weight while they workout my first 2 weeks of working out I have gained 4lbs. I know they say you gain muscle and retain water. But has this happened to anyone else and if so how long did it take before you started to lose. And yes I understand everyone is different... Thanks in advance for your help

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  • mshanepace
    mshanepace Posts: 23 Member
    edited June 2015
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    This is one of the reasons I always say watch the mirror not the scale. Don't get me wrong, the scale IS a tool but who cares as long as you look great and feel great? Let's be real.
  • Justthisgirl1994
    Justthisgirl1994 Posts: 226 Member
    edited June 2015
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    4 lbs in 2 weeks is too much to be all muscle. It could be water weight. Do you have a high sodium diet? Do you drink a lot of water? Did you recently increase your fiber a lot? You might also be burning less than you think you are and thus aren't in a deficit.

    I felt bloated my 3rd week of working out. It lasted about 5 days. Turned out it was just a pre period water weight gain haha
  • Nixynix87
    Nixynix87 Posts: 3 Member
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    What sort of workouts are you doing and are you making sure that your intake is lower than ur output. Eg to lose weight eat 500 calories less than normal and burn 500 calories in exercise a day. Will lose approx 0.5lb a week this way.
  • lishie_rebooted
    lishie_rebooted Posts: 2,973 Member
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    If you're in a deficit, it's not muscle at all.
    it's water retention
  • professionalHobbyist
    professionalHobbyist Posts: 1,316 Member
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    Sore muscles usually are holding water

    I had a hard leg day yesterday and ate maintain level calories only, drank a few Poweraide Zero bottles.

    I weight a little over 4 pounds more this morning. It will be gone in 2 days. If I add 1/8 pound of muscle that is good.

    Gaining actual muscle tissue is work...

  • ladymiseryali
    ladymiseryali Posts: 2,555 Member
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    Tis only water to aid in sore muscles. Just drink water and chill.
  • Andy625uk
    Andy625uk Posts: 2 Member
    edited June 2015
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    Kess31 wrote: »
    Is it me or has anyone else gained weight while they workout my first 2 weeks of working out I have gained 4lbs. I know they say you gain muscle and retain water. But has this happened to anyone else and if so how long did it take before you started to lose. And yes I understand everyone is different... Thanks in advance for your help

    Kess, what type of exercise do you do for a workout? Weights or cardio? I've been monitoring my weight and calories using Myfitnesspal for the last 2-3 yrs. My weight has been fairly constant for the last year or so. I've been working out with dumbells during that time, but recently gained some space in the house to be able to get my bench and barbell out again. Within a couple of weeks of bench pressing about 75lb 3x a week, my weight has also gone up by 3-4lbs. My calories haven't really changed much.
  • Kess31
    Kess31 Posts: 27 Member
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    Thank you all.... and yes I do drink a good amount of water ... I just started to track my food this week but I go at least 39 min cardio always the Eliptical and weights... I alternate between legs stomach and arm each day and I work out 4x a week.... thank you all for the help and it's very true I should base it on measurements and feel cause the scale is torture.... so I'm hoping water weight and bloating
  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member
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    Kess31 wrote: »
    Is it me or has anyone else gained weight while they workout my first 2 weeks of working out I have gained 4lbs. I know they say you gain muscle and retain water. But has this happened to anyone else and if so how long did it take before you started to lose. And yes I understand everyone is different... Thanks in advance for your help

    You haven't gained muscle, but you are retaining water
  • natlierees
    natlierees Posts: 31 Member
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    Don't weigh do body fat instead I gained but lost a half kg of body fat
  • colors_fade
    colors_fade Posts: 464 Member
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    natlierees wrote: »
    Don't weigh do body fat instead I gained but lost a half kg of body fat

    Agreed.

    The scale can (and will) fluctuate quite a bit from day-to-day and week-to-week. It can be a very aggravating metric for a lot of people. Don't get wrapped up in it. Just be consistent with your goals and understand that this process takes time.

    Get a bodyfat measurement done. I know there are a lot of people who will say, "calipers aren't accurate". But I say if you get it done by the same person each time, it's a far more accurate assessment of your progress than anything else.

    After all, what you're really trying to achieve isn't just straight weight-loss. You want to lose the fat and keep your lean muscle.

    Don't sweat the small weight gains at the beginning of a program. Happens to a lot of people. Water retention and all of that.

  • Kess31
    Kess31 Posts: 27 Member
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    I will definitely look into body fat..... thanks I never thought about that... I appreciate all your help and advice I feel alot better I'm keep working on it and take measurement and check on my body fat...
  • Kess31
    Kess31 Posts: 27 Member
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    No I need to get this water weight off hahahahah
  • oilphins
    oilphins Posts: 240 Member
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    The big question is what are you eating on a daily basis? How many calories a day are you intaking? You can do as much cardio as you want but if your intaking more calories than your burning, you will gain weight. And you can't gain muscle that quickly. Log everyday on mfp for the next few weeks EVERYDAY and it should help you. And drink LOTS of water daily as well. Good luck.
  • Kess31
    Kess31 Posts: 27 Member
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    I eat about 1300 to 1500 Calories a day the most I have burned in one day is 700... I will have to build up to burning more then 1500 calories in a day and eating less them 700 will kill me.. but i do drink lots of water


    oilphins wrote: »
    The big question is what are you eating on a daily basis? How many calories a day are you intaking? You can do as much cardio as you want but if your intaking more calories than your burning, you will gain weight. And you can't gain muscle that quickly. Log everyday on mfp for the next few weeks EVERYDAY and it should help you. And drink LOTS of water daily as well. Good luck.

  • oilphins
    oilphins Posts: 240 Member
    edited June 2015
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    Just wondering if you eat back any of your exercise calories? It never hurts to dip into them a little bit but some people eat back a lot of them. Burning 700 calories a day is really good and should be more than enough not to gain weight. I eat 1600 cals a day and burn between 700 and 800 a day but never dip into my exercise calories. But again everyone is different especially between men and women. Some weeks I might gain a pound and other weeks I'll lose 1 or 2. It fluxuates quite a bit. Don't get frustrated and keep it up. The weight will come off.

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