Low Carb Backfire?

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sheryl792
sheryl792 Posts: 19 Member
in Goal: Maintaining Weight
Hi
I could use some help. I thought I was decent with knowing what to eat to have a somewhat 'clean' diet. I've been back on the wagon for a month and going strong, I lost 7 lbs and went away over the weekend. I didn't eat horrible but ate some things (hamburger vs turkey burger) that I've been staying away from. I get home and see on Mon I've gained everything back. I do realize I've been gaining some muscle and can see myself toning up. I've been doing 30 min cardio in the AM and boot camp or weights at night for an hour.
This happened to me last year when I was working out, I gained 10 lbs in about 2 weeks and I never lost it.

I cant figure out what is going on with my body. I had my thyroid checked last year and it was fine.
I did read that a low carb diet can cause glycogen starved muscles which hold onto normal food causing weight gain when you eat it.

I dont know what to do. Am I not eating enough? Not enough of the right foods? Not the right combinations at certain times of the day? Help I'm at a loss. :neutral:

Thanks in advance
Sheryl
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Replies

  • IsaackGMOON
    IsaackGMOON Posts: 3,358 Member
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    You've been gaining muscle? How much in a certain time period?

    If you went back to eating carbohydrates, it's likely that you are retaining water. Going back to low carb will probably get rid of the water weight as carbs hold water.
  • Ang108
    Ang108 Posts: 1,711 Member
    edited August 2015
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    sheryl792 wrote: »
    Hi
    I could use some help. I thought I was decent with knowing what to eat to have a somewhat 'clean' diet. I've been back on the wagon for a month and going strong, I lost 7 lbs and went away over the weekend. I didn't eat horrible but ate some things (hamburger vs turkey burger) that I've been staying away from. I get home and see on Mon I've gained everything back. I do realize I've been gaining some muscle and can see myself toning up. I've been doing 30 min cardio in the AM and boot camp or weights at night for an hour.
    This happened to me last year when I was working out, I gained 10 lbs in about 2 weeks and I never lost it.

    I cant figure out what is going on with my body. I had my thyroid checked last year and it was fine.
    I did read that a low carb diet can cause glycogen starved muscles which hold onto normal food causing weight gain when you eat it.

    I dont know what to do. Am I not eating enough? Not enough of the right foods? Not the right combinations at certain times of the day? Help I'm at a loss. :neutral:

    Thanks in advance
    Sheryl

    Don't worry. It it hard to imagine that you ate 24 500 extra calories ONTOP of your maintenance to really gain seven pounds.
    It is a combination of different food ( especially carbs, if before you ate low carb ), more salt, maybe a few drinks you usually would not have, maybe some activities that caused your body to hold on to water.
    Just continue with what you did before, drink some extra water and be a bit patient. I bet in a few days you will be back to normal.
    Good Luck !
  • Francl27
    Francl27 Posts: 26,371 Member
    edited August 2015
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    You don't gain muscle eating at a deficit.

    You just ate too much this week end and are probably retaining water (although some of it is probably fat too).

    And for what it's worth, the calorie difference between a turkey burger and a hamburger can be minimal, depending on the fat % of the meat used...
  • kimny72
    kimny72 Posts: 16,013 Member
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    OP, do you know how many calories you are eating?? Low carb, food combinations or timing, etc are all personal preference. If you eat less calories than you burn, you lose weight. Regardless of how many carbs or how clean.
  • Kimo159
    Kimo159 Posts: 508 Member
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    How do your clothes fit? I'd imagine probably much the same right? A good chunk of that is probably water weight and bloat due to eating foods you usually don't. Probably higher carb and higher sodium. I wouldn't worry about it...I know that's not exactly easy to do. I went from low carb to a fairly normal, macro balanced diet and the weekend that I transitioned I ate a few more carb heavy things than I had intended (I didn't stuff my face though) and gained 14 lbs in a weekend. That weight never really went away (except for 5 lbs that I fluctuate all the time). But my clothes fit the same so after my initial freakout/breakdown I just forgot about it.
  • Ang108
    Ang108 Posts: 1,711 Member
    edited August 2015
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    IsaackGMOON wrote: »
    You've been gaining muscle? How much in a certain time period?

    If you went back to eating carbohydrates, it's likely that you are retaining water. Going back to low carb will probably get rid of the water weight as carbs hold water.

    Gaining muscle while eating at a deficit is apart from a few oz of beiginner's gain impossible. You can't make something ( muscle ) out of nothing ( deficit ).

  • jennifer_417
    jennifer_417 Posts: 12,344 Member
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    I'm really curious what makes a turkey burger a 'clean' food as opposed to a hamburger?
  • sheryl792
    sheryl792 Posts: 19 Member
    edited August 2015
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    Kim, that is what happened to me last year. I've worked out my entire life and 4 years ago dropped from a size 8 to a 4 in 2 months doing kettle bell workouts. Last year I was in PT after knee surgery and had some limitations but gained 10lbs and never lost it. I've now gone to a size 8 and my pants are really tight. My clothes are definitely tighter I feel like I'm about to rip my pants. :(

    I know you cant really gain 10 lbs in a weekend and keep it on, though I have done it before over 2 weeks. I dont eat junk foods but I really feel like something else is going on and I'm out of balance with eating. And yes though I am at a low caloric intake I am weight lifting and gaining back muscle tone.
  • sijomial
    sijomial Posts: 19,811 Member
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    Ang108 wrote: »
    IsaackGMOON wrote: »
    You've been gaining muscle? How much in a certain time period?

    If you went back to eating carbohydrates, it's likely that you are retaining water. Going back to low carb will probably get rid of the water weight as carbs hold water.

    Gaining muscle while eating at a deficit is apart from a few oz of beiginner's gain impossible. You can't make something ( muscle ) out of nothing ( deficit ).
    @Ang108
    You seem to equate a calorie deficit with eating nothing!
    OP could be new to training, with an adequate protein intake and a plentiful supply of energy (fat) to make up for a modest calorie deficit for all you know,

    Saying gains are limited to a few ounces is based on what exactly?
  • sheryl792
    sheryl792 Posts: 19 Member
    edited August 2015
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    I'm getting 100g+ of protein a day. Last year I was doing 150g+ and thought that was the issue for gaining weight even though I know protein burns fat. So I've stayed around 100g the last month.

    MFP tracking ....
    Calorie avg 1100-1300
    Protein avg: 95-145g
    Carb avg: 90-120g
    Fat avg: 25-45g
    AND a gallon of water a day
  • CSARdiver
    CSARdiver Posts: 6,252 Member
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    Sound like water weight. Wait 5-7 days and see if this disappears.
  • Traveler120
    Traveler120 Posts: 712 Member
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    sheryl792 wrote: »
    I'm getting 100g+ of protein a day. Last year I was doing 150g+ and thought that was the issue for gaining weight even though I know protein burns fat. So I've stayed around 100g the last month.

    MFP tracking ....
    Calorie avg 1100-1300
    Protein avg: 95-145g
    Carb avg: 90-120g
    Fat avg: 25-45g
    AND a gallon of water a day
    No, protein does NOT burn fat. There's no such thing. The only way your body burns fat is by expending more energy than it consumes regardless of your macros.

    So if you ate a higher amount of carbs than you're used to, automatically you'd gain water weight. That's normal.

    If you're exercising 1.5 hrs a day (bootcamp+cardio) and eating 1300 calories and gaining weight, then you're NOT eating 1300 calories.

    If your weight is staying the same, then it means you're eating at maintenance calories (whatever the real # is). Solution is to double check calories in.

    BUT, it's possible to be doing everything right (calorie deficit) and still not lose scale weight. This could be explained by water retention which can mask fat loss depending on where you are on your menstrual cycle. For me, that's the week before and during. I don't even bother to weigh myself during these 2 weeks.
  • mwyvr
    mwyvr Posts: 1,883 Member
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    I can drop 2kg of water during a long run. That's 4.5 pounds. Likewise I can gain quite a bit of water / glucose related water binding when off my regular eating due to a special event, an IV drip (recent experience), or travel.

    "Protein burns fat"? Nope. Eat the protein you need, or what's tasty, don't over do it with notions of micro-optimizing calorie burn.

    Your macro breakdown looks similar to mine. I'm lower carb, not low-carb, and I'm a distance runner. I try to keep my carbs below 35%, get sufficient protein (0.65g-0.85g/lb of lean mass), and let fats float where they will. This seems to work for me. I'm down 78 pounds since last September.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,874 Member
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    jennifer_417 wrote: »
    I'm really curious what makes a turkey burger a 'clean' food as opposed to a hamburger?

    this one always gets me too...

    my preferred grocery sells both 85% and 93% ground turkey and ground beef...nutritional profiles are pretty much identical for each...I think it's hilarious that so many people think ground turkey is so much healthier or whatever. 85% fat is 85% fat is 85% fat....
  • dmt4641
    dmt4641 Posts: 409 Member
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    It sounds like mostly water weight (with some fat if went over your calories) from going off low carb and eating higher sodium. For a women to gain 10 lbs of muscle would take a good year of lifting very heavy weights.
  • rsclause
    rsclause Posts: 3,103 Member
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    When you started a sentence with "no one can gain 10 pounds in a weekend...." I had to laugh. I just got back from a long weekend in Chicago and gained ten pounds in four days. Boy I had a lot of beer too. Five have come off this week already so yes its water. The worst part is my Aria scale when I stepped on it did't say "YOU" it said "GUEST" because I gained so fast.
  • sheryl792
    sheryl792 Posts: 19 Member
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    jennifer_417 wrote: »
    I'm really curious what makes a turkey burger a 'clean' food as opposed to a hamburger?

    Really? Turkey has less fat overall and is leaner
  • PikaKnight
    PikaKnight Posts: 34,971 Member
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    sheryl792 wrote: »
    jennifer_417 wrote: »
    I'm really curious what makes a turkey burger a 'clean' food as opposed to a hamburger?

    Really? Turkey has less fat overall and is leaner

    That doesn't explain how one is clean and the other is not.
  • LivingtheLeanDream
    LivingtheLeanDream Posts: 13,342 Member
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    CSARdiver wrote: »
    Sound like water weight. Wait 5-7 days and see if this disappears.

    ^^ this
  • LivingtheLeanDream
    LivingtheLeanDream Posts: 13,342 Member
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    sheryl792 wrote: »
    jennifer_417 wrote: »
    I'm really curious what makes a turkey burger a 'clean' food as opposed to a hamburger?

    Really? Turkey has less fat overall and is leaner

    and unless you actually ground the pure turkey breast yourself then you don't even know thats 'clean' .... just saying.

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