Confusing weight gain after diet and exercise??

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oldfieldct
oldfieldct Posts: 7 Member
in Getting Started
Hey friends!
I am wondering about a weird problem I discovered yesterday. My initial weight at the beginning of January was 145 (I am 5’4”). I’ve always worked out but now I do HIIT/cardio/barre/yoga 6 days a week, switching up workouts and increasing intensity as I go. I also keep a food journal and have been eating much better, almost always less than 1800 calories a day (even if I work off 500).
But I weighed myself yesterday and I’m at 161!! What is going on? I feel smaller and in better shape but still have a ways to go and I can’t make sense of how 15-20 lbs showed up...any ideas/suggestions?

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  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
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    Was it the same scale? Increasing intensity/duration of exercise can lead to temporary water weight gain (to help with muscle recovery), but 16 pounds is a lot.

    The other potential issue is logging accuracy. I can't see your diary, but if you open it we may be able to help troubleshoot.
  • oldfieldct
    oldfieldct Posts: 7 Member
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    Hey! I did use the same scale but to be fair I used it in the evening yesterday. I try to keep meals as healthy as possible and I don’t have cheat “days” so much as a once a week cheat meal, and I don’t go all-out on it, either. I could eat a little better probably but it still seems really drastic to me
  • oldfieldct
    oldfieldct Posts: 7 Member
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    And I did make it public, thank you! Good idea
  • deannalfisher
    deannalfisher Posts: 5,600 Member
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    weigh yourself at the same time of day for consistency - 16lbs is a lot, but i can easily be up 5-6lbs at the end of the day; so you have probably gained some weight

    healthy don't mean jack if you are eating more than you are burning
  • aeloine
    aeloine Posts: 2,163 Member
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    oldfieldct wrote: »
    Hey! I did use the same scale but to be fair I used it in the evening yesterday. I try to keep meals as healthy as possible and I don’t have cheat “days” so much as a once a week cheat meal, and I don’t go all-out on it, either. I could eat a little better probably but it still seems really drastic to me

    A gallon of water is over 8lbs. If you're staying hydrated, eating food, and maybe not eating enough fiber, you could be up quite a bit over the course of a day. Weigh under the same conditions.

  • oldfieldct
    oldfieldct Posts: 7 Member
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    I’m working off an average of 500 calories a day and eating about 1800 each time so netting about 1300. Do you mean I’d have to burn off 1500 a day to see a difference, or are you including avg calories you burn just going through a regular day?
  • deannalfisher
    deannalfisher Posts: 5,600 Member
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    you have a lot of cup and tsp measurements - so your logging could be inaccurate - recommend you get a food scale and weigh in g/oz all your food - it will be eye opening for you
  • aeloine
    aeloine Posts: 2,163 Member
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  • ceiswyn
    ceiswyn Posts: 2,256 Member
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    Are you eating back ALL your exercise calories? If so, be aware that MFP’s burn values may be overestimates. Maybe try eating back 50%-75% for a while and see if that helps.
  • oldfieldct
    oldfieldct Posts: 7 Member
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    No, definitely not all! And I spent some time reading up on calories burned in the classes I was doing so I enter calories burned manually. My calorie limit is set to 1470 so after burning 300-500 or so I try to make sure there are still about 200 leftover most days.
  • deannalfisher
    deannalfisher Posts: 5,600 Member
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    even a fitbit or similar can overestimate calories burned - they typically use HR technology but that can be highly variable depending on someones fitness level

    500cal in a class is a fairly significant burn - that is equal to about 6 miles running for me
  • AliceDark
    AliceDark Posts: 3,886 Member
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    Some fluctuation on the scale is totally normal, especially when you're weighing at a different time of day. However, gaining 16 pounds in 8 weeks sounds like actual gain and not just fluctuation. What method are you using to measure your food? (Food scale, measuring cups/spoons, eyeballing?)
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,867 Member
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    Check the batteries on your scale.

    Even with normal fluctuations, 16 Lbs in 8 weeks would be actual gain, not fluctuations...if it's not your batteries, you're eating a lot more than you think you are.
  • oldfieldct
    oldfieldct Posts: 7 Member
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    What’s weird is that I’ve been going by how my clothes fit, which is better than they used to. I use a food scale and measuring spoons/cups.

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