Weight gain after multiple rounds of P90X3

smittay15 · August 2016

I just finished my fourth round of P90X3 and am frustrated by the results. After doing a round of classic, followed by lean, then two rounds of classic, over the past 18 months, I have gained 5 pounds & lost no inches since my starting point. While I am most certainly stronger, and my endurance has increased dramatically, I didn't get the results I was looking for on the scale or with the measuring tape. I'm a 27 year old female, 5'6", and now 150 pounds, (which is up 10 from my lowest weight during the course of the program) with an average choleric intake of 2000/day, but fluctuates depending on the days workout. I have a gluten allergy, so I stay away from any wheat carbs and processed foods, and eat a diet heavy in fruits and vegetables. Has anyone else struggled with this, and if so, do you have any advice? I love my workouts, but I'm ready to give them away in defeat!

MiMi_5151 · August 2016

I'm new to this site and saw this link the other day. Some really good information!

acaloriecounter.com/blog/why-am-i-not-losing-weight/

irishmisst · August 2016

Hiya I struggle with my weight during workouts. I have a four finger separation due to pregnancy so I get hammered with any wee bit of weight gain it goes straight to my stomach. May I ask are you eye balling calories or weighing? Get some scales and weight what you eat and also look at your portion sizes. Also what about drink alcoholic and other how much of that do you consume? Remember it's 70% food only 30% exercise!!! Don't give up you've seen improvement in some areas and while it is disheartening ( I've done insanity, insanity max 30 and asylum and due to separation still have a flabby tummy and no six pack )

TavistockToad · August 2016

You're eating too much

almostanangel21 · August 2016

MiMi_5151 wrote: »

I'm new to this site and saw this link the other day. Some really good information!

acaloriecounter.com/blog/why-am-i-not-losing-weight/

This article makes a very good, true point that you may be eating more calories than you think, but it also furthers a dangerous attitude. Try cutting back to 1500-1800, weighed and measured, for about a month. However, here's where I digress from the article - if you cut calories, track faithfully, and are honest with yourself and your weight still doesn't drop, print out your food and exercise log and see a doctor.

People like the author of that article who don't have medical problems (or who have borderline eating-disordered attitudes) tend to get a drill-sergeant mentality and roundly condemn people who aren't losing weight as "making excuses." Difficulty in losing weight can be the first sign of other problems that have far more serious effects than not fitting into your favorite jeans. I bought into the "thyroid problems/medication side effects are MYTHS and DON'T MATTER and YOU'RE JUST LAZY," accepted the weight gain, condemned myself, and didn't think to look deeper at the less-publicized issues that can accompany a glandular problem, like cognitive side effects. If I'd insisted on a full thyroid panel when I was thin but at your stage (not losing weight despite heavy workouts and careful eating), I might not have gotten to the point I did last year, when I was so exhausted I literally could not read - imagine being so exhausted and foggy-brained that letters on a page are no more than squiggles, like they were when you were 2. In my case, the cognitive problems were far worse than the weight problems. I take pride in my intelligence, and I'd earned a full scholarship to law school, but my thyroid had me so exhausted that I couldn't get through the day without a long nap (cutting into study time) and got into two car wrecks because I couldn't concentrate on driving. Once I finally caved, ignored the people who insisted that weight gain is sheer lack of discipline and not a possible medical red flag, and went to an endocrinologist, I got my mind back and managed to pull my class rank up to the top 15% - but I lost my scholarship. Over the summer, I've lost about 15 pounds, but no amount of weight loss will ever recoup that blow to my confidence; I wish I'd never listened to the people who automatically discounted medical issues. To recap, cut your cals below 2000, measure using a food scale and measuring cups, and make a doctor's appointment if things don't change.

There's one more option - have you considered that maybe you're at an optimal healthy weight for you? True, you might be able to get to a lower weight or lower measurements if you work out more and cut calories, but that lower weight may not be what your body is meant for. It sounds like you're admirably healthy and strong already, and if you're a muscle-dense 150 pounds at 5'6, it's likely you're trim and muscular instead of being "skinny," which is no bad thing. Being willing to cut calories to any point that causes you to lose weight, as the article's author suggests, has a cost both nutritionally and emotionally. Would it really make you happy to eat 1200 calories a day, 800, 600, 400, just to get to that 'magic' number on the scale? I think you're a rock star already, and you don't need to go there, but my opinion of your body is nowhere near as important as your own.

lindseycallihan · August 2016

Throw your scale away and don't get a new one. Try to eliminate the idea of being a certain weight, especially since you are weight training. Having a weight goal when you weight train (unless it's higher than your current) can bring you down (and even set you back) and it may not be a good representation of the immense effort and improvement of your overall physical condition. You are seeing results, which you described (strength and endurance). Instead of using the scale or measuring tape to determine progress, you may think about using before and after pictures to show yourself the progress you're making in your overall physique. Building muscle can cause weight gain as muscle is more dense than fat. If you are seeing improvements in strength and endurance then you are improving your overall health. Be proud of yourself! (Source: Registered Dietitian)

michellebailey715 · August 2016

I keep hearing & reading that it's calorie intake, but I'm having a hard time going with that. I have a similar problem. I have been doing 9 round workouts 6/week wearing heart rate monitor & tracking what I eat. During the last 7 weeks I have only lost 3.5 lbs. I have been working way too hard for that. I have not gone down in size either. I am less flabby & more toned, but in clothes, no difference is noticeable. If it were calories alone, I would have weighed way more when I started because I would have been gaining a 3-5 lbs a week. I have drastically changed my eating & am having 2 meal replacement shakes a day. I can guarantee it's not simple calories. I did weight watchers some 15 years ago & was easily able to drop 1-2 lbs a week. There's something else that has to be in play & I haven't figured it out yet.

almostanangel21 · August 2016

michellebailey715 wrote: »

I keep hearing & reading that it's calorie intake, but I'm having a hard time going with that. I have a similar problem. I have been doing 9 round workouts 6/week wearing heart rate monitor & tracking what I eat. During the last 7 weeks I have only lost 3.5 lbs. I have been working way too hard for that. I have not gone down in size either. I am less flabby & more toned, but in clothes, no difference is noticeable. If it were calories alone, I would have weighed way more when I started because I would have been gaining a 3-5 lbs a week. I have drastically changed my eating & am having 2 meal replacement shakes a day. I can guarantee it's not simple calories. I did weight watchers some 15 years ago & was easily able to drop 1-2 lbs a week. There's something else that has to be in play & I haven't figured it out yet.

Weigh, measure, and log faithfully, use MET to calculate calorie burn instead of trusting the machine's or MFP's count, and if that doesn't make a difference within a month, print out your logs and see a doctor STAT. See my cautionary tale above.

SLLRunner · August 2016

smittay15 wrote: »

I just finished my fourth round of P90X3 and am frustrated by the results. After doing a round of classic, followed by lean, then two rounds of classic, over the past 18 months, I have gained 5 pounds & lost no inches since my starting point. While I am most certainly stronger, and my endurance has increased dramatically, I didn't get the results I was looking for on the scale or with the measuring tape. I'm a 27 year old female, 5'6", and now 150 pounds, (which is up 10 from my lowest weight during the course of the program) with an average choleric intake of 2000/day, but fluctuates depending on the days workout. I have a gluten allergy, so I stay away from any wheat carbs and processed foods, and eat a diet heavy in fruits and vegetables. Has anyone else struggled with this, and if so, do you have any advice? I love my workouts, but I'm ready to give them away in defeat!

You can exercise all you want but if you eat too much you will gain weight.

Do you weigh your food? Log everything you eat? What about exercise calories--do you eat those back? If so, where do you get the burns from?

If you are celiac, good thing you stay away from gluten, but that has nothing to do with weight loss. In fact, food type has zilch to do with weight loss, as it's all about calories in/calorie out. Also, it seems to me 2000 plus calories a day for someone your height and weight for weight loss is a little high.

Setting aside normal water retention from exercise and natural fluctuations, it seems to me a ten pound gain in 18 months is most likely mostly fat gain.

SLLRunner · August 2016

lindseycallihan wrote: »

Throw your scale away and don't get a new one. Try to eliminate the idea of being a certain weight, especially since you are weight training. Having a weight goal when you weight train (unless it's higher than your current) can bring you down (and even set you back) and it may not be a good representation of the immense effort and improvement of your overall physical condition. You are seeing results, which you described (strength and endurance). Instead of using the scale or measuring tape to determine progress, you may think about using before and after pictures to show yourself the progress you're making in your overall physique. Building muscle can cause weight gain as muscle is more dense than fat. If you are seeing improvements in strength and endurance then you are improving your overall health. Be proud of yourself! (Source: Registered Dietitian)

Muscle gain is very difficult for women to achieve, and it does not happen by accident. You have to eat quite a bit protein and intentionally work toward building muscle.

The situation here is that the OP is eating too much.

I agree with using a measuring tape as one of the tools for gauging success, but the scale is also another useful tool.

SLLRunner · August 2016

michellebailey715 wrote: »

I keep hearing & reading that it's calorie intake, but I'm having a hard time going with that. I have a similar problem. I have been doing 9 round workouts 6/week wearing heart rate monitor & tracking what I eat. During the last 7 weeks I have only lost 3.5 lbs. I have been working way too hard for that. I have not gone down in size either. I am less flabby & more toned, but in clothes, no difference is noticeable. If it were calories alone, I would have weighed way more when I started because I would have been gaining a 3-5 lbs a week. I have drastically changed my eating & am having 2 meal replacement shakes a day. I can guarantee it's not simple calories. I did weight watchers some 15 years ago & was easily able to drop 1-2 lbs a week. There's something else that has to be in play & I haven't figured it out yet.

Wait a minute....you are complaining because you lost only 3.5 pounds in the last seven weeks? Chin up, that is quite the accomplishment!

Slow and sustainable wins the race!

The reason you would gain weight on calories alone is because you would not be decreasing calories. You have created a deficit by adding in exercise. Weight loss is indeed about calories in/calories out. An example: years ago my uncle started running 30 miles a week and didn't decrease his calories but lost about 40 pounds over a course of several months. However, when life got too busy and he decided to not run anymore, he gained all his weight back in about the same amount of time as it took him to lose it. Why? Because he never changed how many calories he was consuming.

Weight loss is 100% about creating and maintaining a calorie deficit, exercise is just an added plus and contributes to endurance and overall health.

smittay15 · August 2016

Thank you everyone for your advice & support! I appreciate the suggestions. I realized in reading the comments that context is key, and being my first post, I left out critical information to support my question. I've been tracking calories since 2010, with a goal of 1310 calories/day, and fluctuated between 145-150. When I started P90X3 I was still maintaining that caloric intake, and truly struggled with the level of endurance that it required. I was dizzy, lightheaded, and extremely lethargic. I almost gave up until I was advised to increase my calories to account for my activity level. My lowest weight (140) was after a 2 week vacation for my wedding & honeymoon, where I did not maintain my normal fitness level (and naturally my stress level reduced post wedding). Upon returning, I started my most recent rounds of P90X3 Classic, and the advice was to do caloric cycling, with 1700 calories for cardio days, 1900 for rest days, and 2200 for strength training, which is why I previously said an average of 2000 calories/day depending on workout. My body composition has changed, and the weight gain isn't completely attributed to fat as I've become more defined. I'll try reducing calories again & refrain from the caloric cycling to see if that helps the numbers on the scale. But to many of the points, it's not all about numbers on the scale, but the way you feel! Thanks all!

Weight gain after multiple rounds of P90X3

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