WHY?????

KristensMom314
KristensMom314 Posts: 76 Member
edited October 1 in Motivation and Support
I don't know if there is something wrong with my scale or something wrong with me, but what the heck--WHY AM I GAINING WEIGHT?????

I'm doing the 30DS--on Day 9 of Level 2. I drink 6-8 glasses of water a day. I always eat within 100-200 calories of my calorie goal (including exercise calories--I never eat under my regular calorie goal, but I never go over by much). I've been making healthier food choices...

I'm not a good judge of my size--I don't feel like I'm losing inches (and if I take them myself I never get them right/nothing changes). What am I doing wrong???

Replies

  • Izable2011
    Izable2011 Posts: 755 Member
    Must be muscle?
  • sarah307
    sarah307 Posts: 1,363 Member
    nothing is wrong with you!!

    you are probably gaining muscle mass from 30DS! you said you never get the measurements right?? how come? how long have you been gaining? was it a few days of weight gain or consistently gaining over several weeks? if it's the first, you are just probably fluctuating! if it's the second, then you may have to re-evaluate other factors going on :)
  • ering
    ering Posts: 183 Member
    Sometimes in the first few weeks of a new routine you can gain weight. For me at least by the third or fourth week those pounds plus a few will come right off.
  • _GlaDOS_
    _GlaDOS_ Posts: 1,520 Member
    What do you have your net calories set at? It is possible you may not be eating enough.
  • dezedeze
    dezedeze Posts: 96 Member
    My guess is you're gaining muscle...as annoying as it is by the scale numbers, it's a great thing in the long run!! Take it to mean your body is getting stronger and becoming a "better butter burner!"

    If it is muscle, you should see the numbers level off and then start dropping, as long as you're keeping with your calorie goals and eating healthy foods.
  • mathlete99
    mathlete99 Posts: 133 Member
    I am no expert, but I did just do the 30DS with a group here on MFP. Some of the ladies in the group actually gained during the shred. They stayed within their calories and drank water just like you are saying. They thought maybe after the shred they would start to lose. The ladies did lose inches by the end of the 30 days though. Hang in there!
  • KristensMom314
    KristensMom314 Posts: 76 Member
    What do you have your net calories set at? It is possible you may not be eating enough.

    MFP has me set to 1200 net. I don't know that I would know what other amount is good...
  • KristensMom314
    KristensMom314 Posts: 76 Member
    nothing is wrong with you!!

    you are probably gaining muscle mass from 30DS! you said you never get the measurements right?? how come? how long have you been gaining? was it a few days of weight gain or consistently gaining over several weeks? if it's the first, you are just probably fluctuating! if it's the second, then you may have to re-evaluate other factors going on :)

    It's just a few days (this time). A week or so I gained a couple of pounds but lost them again, and now they're back... as for measurements, I don't know what I'm doing, but they never seem to change! The best measurement I do is whether or not my belt fits--ha!
  • TheShelterCat
    TheShelterCat Posts: 160
    I'm on day 2 of level 2 and the scale has been stuck and fluctuating up and down to 148 for the past couple weeks. It is a little frustrating that I'm not losing any weight but I have seen a little more definition everywhere which is helping me to keep with it. Hang in there at least until the end and see if anything changed!! The workouts are awesome and it's gotta be doing something good! :smile:
  • kwest_4_fitness
    kwest_4_fitness Posts: 820 Member
    In addition to muscle, there's probably some water retention as well. I worked out for three weeks straight circuit training and strength training and no loss. I rested for 4 full days, peed like a demon, and the scale finally moved 4-1/2 lbs.
  • TheShelterCat
    TheShelterCat Posts: 160
    Also- a good judge of whether or not you're losing inches (if you dont want to measure) is just the fit of your clothes! Before you know it, you're pants may be falling down... :tongue:
  • ahavoc
    ahavoc Posts: 464 Member
    Did you eat something salty ? Could be water.
  • mrstribbs
    mrstribbs Posts: 5
    You're building muscle! =)
  • _GlaDOS_
    _GlaDOS_ Posts: 1,520 Member
    What do you have your net calories set at? It is possible you may not be eating enough.

    MFP has me set to 1200 net. I don't know that I would know what other amount is good...

    This is much too low. I had mine set to 1200 for a while, I stayed at the same weight and then gained back 4-5 pounds. I started eating more, based on my BMR, and I started losing weight again. You need to eat more.

    Your basal metabolic rate (BMR) is basically the calories your body needs to survive-- doing just about nothing. Based on the information from your signature, and using a BMR calculator (http://www.bmi-calculator.net/bmr-calculator/), you should be around 1600 calories (net) AT LEAST.

    Also, it is unlikely that you are building much muscle at such a low amount of calories. And contrary to what some think, muscle does not weigh more than fat. They weigh the same, and if you were gaining more muscle than you've lost in fat, you would notice.
  • april1lowe
    april1lowe Posts: 202 Member
    LOVE 30DS. I've run through the dvd probably 3 times now (tho I'm currently taking a break for a couple weeks to do more cardio) and I wasn't loosing the lbs very fast AT ALL. But the inches were flying off! With 30DS you build muscle mass. Don't worry, you are doing everything right.

    Make sure you are NETTING 1200 a day. I wasn't eating 1200 NET calories and I was gaining. I was in starvation mode. BUT, like another MFP member said, you may need to increase your calories. Maybe by just a couple hundred. But eat SUPER healthy with those extra calories, veggies/fruits/grains.
  • WifeMomDVM
    WifeMomDVM Posts: 1,025 Member
    I can't see your diary, but I have a guess.

    You are probably not eating as clean or healthy as you think you are (again just a guess). As to those who say you are building muscle - I hate to burst your (and their) bubble, BUT it is really difficult to gain muscle. Believe me, I'm trying. I have a woman professional body builder friend on MFP. She has informed me that a woman who lifts very heavy weights and eats a proper diet for muscle gain will, at best, gain on average about 5 pounds of muscle in one year. So, all of these people who think you are gaining muscle are being optimistic.

    Now, it's no fun for me to come on here and be a kill joy so let me tell you if you are seeing fluctuations of 1-2 lbs, that's normal. And likely water. Especially if you're working out like you say you are. 30 DS is TOUGH, if you're challenging your muscles, they are likely to retain some water here and there from time to time. Your sodium will also BIG TIME affect how much water you retain as well as your potassium

    Speaking of water - sounds like you may not be drinking enough. You need to drink a minimum of EIGHT 8 oz glasses a day, PLUS 8 oz for each cup of tea, coffee, or soda you drink, PLUS 8 oz for each 30 minutes of cardio you do.

    Think of your body as a giant toilet. After you eat, you have to flush all of the toxins, salts, general garbage, etc... out of your body. It's hard to flush a toilet that doesn't have any water in it, so drink up! If you're running to the potty all day, then you might be drinking enough. :)

    As far as food, keep sugar and sodium low and aim for fiber and protein to be high.

    My recommendations are no more than 10% of your calories from sugar (including fruit), sodium under 1500 mg a day or less, and get at least 26 grams of fiber a day. You need roughly 1 gram of protein per lb of body weight. This usually ends up being close to 30% of your calories coming from protein.

    In the mean time, eat clean, drink lots of water, keep exercising and your body will get there! You just have to be CONSISTENT. :)

    Edited to add - I also think you should up your calories. Try 1400-1600 and see how that works for you. :)
  • KristensMom314
    KristensMom314 Posts: 76 Member
    What do you have your net calories set at? It is possible you may not be eating enough.

    MFP has me set to 1200 net. I don't know that I would know what other amount is good...

    This is much too low. I had mine set to 1200 for a while, I stayed at the same weight and then gained back 4-5 pounds. I started eating more, based on my BMR, and I started losing weight again. You need to eat more.

    Your basal metabolic rate (BMR) is basically the calories your body needs to survive-- doing just about nothing. Based on the information from your signature, and using a BMR calculator (http://www.bmi-calculator.net/bmr-calculator/), you should be eating around 1600 calories (net) AT LEAST + your exercise calories.

    I thought MFP calculated it to my lifestyle/weight loss goals?
  • sarah307
    sarah307 Posts: 1,363 Member
    What do you have your net calories set at? It is possible you may not be eating enough.

    MFP has me set to 1200 net. I don't know that I would know what other amount is good...

    This is much too low. I had mine set to 1200 for a while, I stayed at the same weight and then gained back 4-5 pounds. I started eating more, based on my BMR, and I started losing weight again. You need to eat more.

    Your basal metabolic rate (BMR) is basically the calories your body needs to survive-- doing just about nothing. Based on the information from your signature, and using a BMR calculator (http://www.bmi-calculator.net/bmr-calculator/), you should be around 1600 calories (net) AT LEAST.

    Also, it is unlikely that you are building much muscle at such a low amount of calories. And contrary to what some think, muscle does not weigh more than fat. They weigh the same, and if you were gaining more muscle than you've lost in fat, you would notice.

    yes!! this is it!! eat more please :):):)
  • Frannieanne61
    Frannieanne61 Posts: 5 Member
    It could be that you are retaining water. Try adding fresh lemon to your water, it is a natural Diuretic. Rembember that every 1lb you lose, is 4 sticks of butter.
  • KristensMom314
    KristensMom314 Posts: 76 Member
    It could be that you are retaining water. Try adding fresh lemon to your water, it is a natural Diuretic. Rembember that every 1lb you lose, is 4 sticks of butter.

    Ew--that butter analogy is incredibly gross. Motivating, yes. But gross. :)
  • KristensMom314
    KristensMom314 Posts: 76 Member
    I can't see your diary, but I have a guess.

    You are probably not eating as clean or healthy as you think you are (again just a guess). As to those who say you are building muscle - I hate to burst your (and their) bubble, BUT it is really difficult to gain muscle. Believe me, I'm trying. I have a woman professional body builder friend on MFP. She has informed me that a woman who lifts very heavy weights and eats a proper diet for muscle gain will, at best, gain on average about 5 pounds of muscle in one year. So, all of these people who think you are gaining muscle are being optimistic.

    Now, it's no fun for me to come on here and be a kill joy so let me tell you if you are seeing fluctuations of 1-2 lbs, that's normal. And likely water. Especially if you're working out like you say you are. 30 DS is TOUGH, if you're challenging your muscles, they are likely to retain some water here and there from time to time. Your sodium will also BIG TIME affect how much water you retain as well as your potassium

    Speaking of water - sounds like you may not be drinking enough. You need to drink a minimum of EIGHT 8 oz glasses a day, PLUS 8 oz for each cup of tea, coffee, or soda you drink, PLUS 8 oz for each 30 minutes of cardio you do.

    Think of your body as a giant toilet. After you eat, you have to flush all of the toxins, salts, general garbage, etc... out of your body. It's hard to flush a toilet that doesn't have any water in it, so drink up! If you're running to the potty all day, then you might be drinking enough. :)

    As far as food, keep sugar and sodium low and aim for fiber and protein to be high.

    My recommendations are no more than 10% of your calories from sugar (including fruit), sodium under 1500 mg a day or less, and get at least 26 grams of fiber a day. You need roughly 1 gram of protein per lb of body weight. This usually ends up being close to 30% of your calories coming from protein.

    In the mean time, eat clean, drink lots of water, keep exercising and your body will get there! You just have to be CONSISTENT. :)

    Edited to add - I also think you should up your calories. Try 1400-1600 and see how that works for you. :)

    Do you have any recommendations for getting more water? It's hard enough to drink 6-8 glasses. I used to drink--maybe--one! What helps you?
  • _GlaDOS_
    _GlaDOS_ Posts: 1,520 Member
    What do you have your net calories set at? It is possible you may not be eating enough.

    MFP has me set to 1200 net. I don't know that I would know what other amount is good...

    This is much too low. I had mine set to 1200 for a while, I stayed at the same weight and then gained back 4-5 pounds. I started eating more, based on my BMR, and I started losing weight again. You need to eat more.

    Your basal metabolic rate (BMR) is basically the calories your body needs to survive-- doing just about nothing. Based on the information from your signature, and using a BMR calculator (http://www.bmi-calculator.net/bmr-calculator/), you should be eating around 1600 calories (net) AT LEAST + your exercise calories.

    I thought MFP calculated it to my lifestyle/weight loss goals?

    True, but it sounds like you have it set to lose more than 1 pound a week, which although would be ideal, is not realistic for most of us. Losing 2 lbs a week is realistic for really obese people, which you clearly aren't. I have mine set to lose 1 pound a week now, and I have lost 4 pounds in the past 2 weeks. So I would seriously consider changing your weight loss goals. I know it may seem like you will lose weight more slowly, but in my opinion, it's worth a try. It sounds like your body is trying to hold on to all the calories it can get, because you're making it think it's not going to get enough.

    You're not losing weight now, so it may be worth it to try and see if that's what is making you gain weight or stay the same.
  • KristensMom314
    KristensMom314 Posts: 76 Member
    Thanks for your help!
This discussion has been closed.

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