I'm honestly going crazy.. Help me please?

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mariamwhatandwhy
mariamwhatandwhy Posts: 59 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
I've been working out and logging for two months. I work out 5 days a week, strength training and cardio every day or every other day. This is the first time for me to workout, and eat this clean. I lost about 10 kgs in the past, but mainly by starvation, eating like one meal a day. Now, I eat 3 meals and snacks like fruits and veggies, and I never go over my calories goal. My family is even calling me crazy cause I weigh anything I eat, to be more accurate. And somehow, I've gained 2 kgs, I don't know what I'm doing wrong. Help me?

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  • seska422
    seska422 Posts: 3,217 Member
    edited January 2016
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    Are you choosing accurate entries from the database? Double-check them.

    Otherwise, you are somehow consuming more calories than you think you are or else you are burning fewer calories than you think you are and need to eat back fewer exercise calories.

    Read through this flowchart by lemonlionheart:

    woh6vakur669.jpg

    ETA: 2 kg could be a water-weight swing rather than actual weight gain.
  • mariamwhatandwhy
    mariamwhatandwhy Posts: 59 Member
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    Ps: I'm 58 kg right now, and I'm 5'1.
  • RuNaRoUnDaFiEld
    RuNaRoUnDaFiEld Posts: 5,864 Member
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    Is it your TOTM? Have you recently changed your exercise routine? Have you eaten foods that contain more salt/carbs?
  • hbrittingham
    hbrittingham Posts: 2,518 Member
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    At your height and weight, you don't have much, if any, weight to lose.
  • Tulipa
    Tulipa Posts: 3 Member
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    You could have gained muscle , you mentioned that your exercising 5 times a week strength and cardio and this would result in gain in muscle which inch for inch weighs more than fat.
    Have you access to a scales that measures fat, bmi, water etc? It might be more reflective of your efforts if you checked % fat and bmi and with the exercising your doing they could both be reducing but your weight increasing.
  • mariamwhatandwhy
    mariamwhatandwhy Posts: 59 Member
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    4h7g4ufm62ww.png
    That was my first body composition test about 2 weeks ago. I haven't gotten a second one yet.
  • RuNaRoUnDaFiEld
    RuNaRoUnDaFiEld Posts: 5,864 Member
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    You really can't measure body fat% without getting a dexa scan done. The scale types give very unreliable readings.
  • mariamwhatandwhy
    mariamwhatandwhy Posts: 59 Member
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    How can I know for sure if it's actual weight gain or muscle mass or water weight? I'm really confused I'm considering stopping working out if it's making me gain weight.
  • Zellyrus
    Zellyrus Posts: 33 Member
    edited January 2016
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    hbrittingham wrote: »
    At your height and weight, you don't have much, if any, weight to lose.

    This was my first thought. Also you appear to be in the optimal ranges so.....

    Personally I wouldn't be too concerned about the 2kg over 2 weeks, that's still in a normal flux range.
  • schibsted750
    schibsted750 Posts: 355 Member
    edited January 2016
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    mariamwhatandwhy wrote: »
    How can I know for sure if it's actual weight gain or muscle mass or water weight? I'm really confused I'm considering stopping working out if it's making me gain weight.

    Measure your body fat using calipers and measuring tape. If you're losing fat and gaining muscle, then your scale weight will go up, but your clothing size will go down. If you decide to cut back on exercise, stop the cardio, and keep doing the strength training. It does seem like some people are predisposed to gaining fat from cardio, but resistance training shouldn't ever cause fat gain.

    Also, what is your calorie goal, and how far is it below your energy requirements? A large cut can actually slow weight loss, especially if you're working out really hard while cutting. For example, I do lots of cardio now, but only because I'm maintaining. While I was cutting (-800 calories a day), I didn't do any cardio at all. If I had been doing cardio I would have gone with a much gentler cut, maybe a 200 or 300 calorie deficit. Your body needs calories. especially carbs, to recover from cardio, and if you're not recovering from the exercise, it becomes counterproductive.
  • RuNaRoUnDaFiEld
    RuNaRoUnDaFiEld Posts: 5,864 Member
    edited January 2016
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    mariamwhatandwhy wrote: »
    How can I know for sure if it's actual weight gain or muscle mass or water weight? I'm really confused I'm considering stopping working out if it's making me gain weight.

    Why? The number on the scale means nothing. By working out more you can look and be a full dress size less yet weigh more.

    Time will tell you if it is weight gain or if it is hormonal gain or water gain or normal fluctuation.

    If you answer the questions I previously posted it will help to arrow down the options of your weight gain.
  • mariamwhatandwhy
    mariamwhatandwhy Posts: 59 Member
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    It's my totm yes but I don't usually gain weight around that time, so I guessed why would this time be any different? I ruled it out.
    And no, same eating habits since I started and same exercises.
  • RuNaRoUnDaFiEld
    RuNaRoUnDaFiEld Posts: 5,864 Member
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    mariamwhatandwhy wrote: »
    It's my totm yes but I don't usually gain weight around that time, so I guessed why would this time be any different? I ruled it out.
    And no, same eating habits since I started and same exercises.

    Thanks for answering. TOTM is so un plottable. I realise that isn't a true word ;)

    Most months I gain 1lb or even lose 1lb but some months I can gain as much as 6lb. Give it a week and see where your weight stands. Please don't stop working out.
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 27,950 Member
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    mariamwhatandwhy wrote: »
    It's my totm yes but I don't usually gain weight around that time, so I guessed why would this time be any different? I ruled it out.
    And no, same eating habits since I started and same exercises.

    1. What percentage of the calories you earn from exercise are you eating back?

    2. Up until this week, over the two months you've had this routine, are the same jeans or other non-stretchy pants fitting differently?

    3. My TOM has changed again and again in the 36 years I've had it. I wouldn't be surprised if your 2 kg gain is a combination of TOM and the holidays. Report back in a week.
  • davert123
    davert123 Posts: 1,568 Member
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    I weigh myself daily and my weight can go up and down by more than 2Kg. A lot depends on how much water/glycogen is in my body through exercise, food and salt and how my GIT is working.
  • vaguelyvegan
    vaguelyvegan Posts: 45 Member
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    mariamwhatandwhy wrote: »
    How can I know for sure if it's actual weight gain or muscle mass or water weight? I'm really confused I'm considering stopping working out if it's making me gain weight.

    This defies common sense. Exercise is always better than no exercise. Whatever small fluctuations in weight you may experience, don't let them derail what you know to be true: Healthy eating plus regular exercise equals fitness. Just keep doing what you're doing and don't let yourself slither out of a good habit by pretending that it's actually bad for you. You know it's not.
  • Psychgrrl
    Psychgrrl Posts: 3,177 Member
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    If OP's been working out for two months and eating at a deficit, it's unlikely she's gained a lot of muscle. Maybe a little, but the weight fluctuation is probably due to water retention.

    OP, you're at a healthy weight. Maybe focus on other goals instead of the scale. How much more you can lift or increase in cardio capacity. Or get a decade scan and work on body fat reduction (within healthy limits for women).

    Weight loss is 't linear--it's not realistic to expect the scale to go down every time.

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