Gaining weight in a deficit. Please help.
Tetrelle
Posts: 75 Member
I'm genuinely frustrated. I know it's only been three days. I know I shouldn't weigh myself daily. I acknowledge this. But, I am one of those people that just has to know.
I started to log my food three days ago. First day was around (approx) 1500 calories, 2nd 1250, yesterday 1350. I need 2,350 to maintain my body weight. In this time I've gained nearly a pound. Yes, I was honest with what I ate. I'd go to bed hungry and tell myself the hunger pain will be worth it to get my life back under control. Yet, I wake up gaining weight. I have been 100% honest with what I've ate. No unrecorded snacking. Plenty of water.
I'm not weight training, I did do one day of cardio in those three days and I've been sore since.
Please, why am I gaining weight eating in a deficit for three days running?
I started to log my food three days ago. First day was around (approx) 1500 calories, 2nd 1250, yesterday 1350. I need 2,350 to maintain my body weight. In this time I've gained nearly a pound. Yes, I was honest with what I ate. I'd go to bed hungry and tell myself the hunger pain will be worth it to get my life back under control. Yet, I wake up gaining weight. I have been 100% honest with what I've ate. No unrecorded snacking. Plenty of water.
I'm not weight training, I did do one day of cardio in those three days and I've been sore since.
Please, why am I gaining weight eating in a deficit for three days running?
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Replies
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First off - STOP UNDER EATING. it is in zero way to say you need to feel hunger pains to lose weight. Select a more appropriate calorie goal and eat all the calories recommended PLUS exercise calories.
your weight fluctuates daily and within any day. I can go up and down yes up to 3pds myself which is all about water fluctuation not weight gain or loss. time of day is a huge factor on your weight too.
three days is also much too soon to know if anything is working regardless.
it's ok to weigh yourself daily but you need to understand that dya to day may give you bad news :P it sucks but it is what it is.
but in other aspects, are you using a food scale?
what are your stats? (height, gender, how much do you weigh and how much do you want to lose)?12 -
I'm genuinely frustrated. I know it's only been three days. I know I shouldn't weigh myself daily. I acknowledge this. But, I am one of those people that just has to know.
I started to log my food three days ago. First day was around (approx) 1500 calories, 2nd 1250, yesterday 1350. I need 2,350 to maintain my body weight. In this time I've gained nearly a pound. Yes, I was honest with what I ate. I'd go to bed hungry and tell myself the hunger pain will be worth it to get my life back under control. Yet, I wake up gaining weight. I have been 100% honest with what I've ate. No unrecorded snacking. Plenty of water.
I'm not weight training, I did do one day of cardio in those three days and I've been sore since.
Please, why am I gaining weight eating in a deficit for three days running?
Your weight naturally fluctuates all the time, every day, sometimes by several lbs. When you step on the scale, you are not just weighing your fat. You are weighing your fat, bones, muscles, organs, digesting foods, and mostly your water weight. All of these things fluctuate as a normal part of a healthily functioning body.
It is so important that you not live and die by the daily scale reading. If you can't change your mindset to see the number on the scale as a small piece of data that will not make sense from day to day, but needs weeks to be put in proper context, you might want to stay off the scale and only weigh once a week.
Check out the Most Helpful Posts threads pinned to the top of each forum, and good luck.5 -
but in other aspects, are you using a food scale?
what are your stats? (height, gender, how much do you weigh and how much do you want to lose)?
Yes, I am using a food scale. I'm 100% sure my food is accurate as I have been very ocd about it. The other info I don't mind providing, but could we discuss it in a private message?
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Three days worth of data tells you nothing. Even three weeks does not tell you much. Weight naturally fluctuates even on a deficit and when the trend is going down.
Usually, it’s water. Occasionally it is also food the body has not processed.
People will advise you to use a food scale to weigh all solids. That is excellent advice. Also be mindful that some of the estimates used in MFP are pretty inaccurate. Some people eat back only around half their exercise calories at first.
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but in other aspects, are you using a food scale?
what are your stats? (height, gender, how much do you weigh and how much do you want to lose)?
Yes, I am using a food scale. I'm 100% sure my food is accurate as I have been very ocd about it. The other info I don't mind providing, but could we discuss it in a private message?
Looking at your diary, you need to eat. eat all the 1500 it says to eat. every day. plus exercise calories. stop going to bed with hunger pains.
if you are going to freak out at daily scale readings then you may be best to stop weighing daily. I weigh daily and while I get annoyed and frustrated I don't let it bother me for more than 1 minute than move on. it's just a number, a data point. it doesn't say anything in an of itself.13 -
Three days isn't enough time to decide anything is working or not working.8
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Read this article, OP.
http://physiqonomics.com/the-weird-and-highly-annoying-world-of-scale-weight-and-fluctuations/4 -
janejellyroll wrote: »Three days isn't enough time to decide anything is working or not working.
Not only that, but three weeks may not be enough either.6 -
quiksylver296 wrote: »
That was a pretty decent read. I'm naturally an obsessive and anxious person. I suppose what I really need, are people to help keep me motivated.3 -
Three days is not enough time. You have to be patient. There is nothing wrong with weighing daily. Many people do it and for me it is the most helpful way. But you have to realize that your weight will go up and down and that is ok. You can use a trending app like Libra (for Android) and Happy Scale (for iphone). This will show you if your trend is going down and even if your weight is up one day you will know that you are not gaining weight, it is just water fluctuations. But you will have to get a few weeks data in there before you will be able to see a trend. Three days is just not enough time. You also need to be aware that women tend to have lots of water fluctuations related to their menstrual cycles so that can affect your day to day weigh in as well. Some women retain water before or during menstruation and some also retain water during ovulation. A trending app will help you understand your own fluctuations and hopefully you won't be as bothered by them.4
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quiksylver296 wrote: »
That was a pretty decent read. I'm naturally an obsessive and anxious person. I suppose what I really need, are people to help keep me motivated.
Posting and sharing on the boards can keep you engaged and level but motivation isn't something that comes from anywhere but you. You and only you are responsible, putting that onus on an external force or quality that's not yours to control is building in a reason to fail in my opinion. Mildly obsessive can work in terms of staying in charge of your diet but it has to work in a targeted way, not just in a less is more way.14 -
MelanieCN77 wrote: »Posting and sharing on the boards can keep you engaged and level but motivation isn't something that comes from anywhere but you. You and only you are responsible, putting that onus on an external force or quality that's not yours to control is building in a reason to fail in my opinion. Mildly obsessive can work in terms of staying in charge of your diet but it has to work in a targeted way, not just in a less is more way.
I chose to start this journey on my own without outside interference. Is wanting some sort of a support system online since I don't have one irl really that bad? I'm not trying to put anyone in charge of my eating or fitness, I just want some motivation by seeing others progress and networking. I don't think that's such a bad thing.
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"Seeing others and networking" reads different to me than "people to help keep me motivated" so if I got the wrong end of the stick there, my bad.9
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MelanieCN77 wrote: »"Seeing others and networking" reads different to me than "people to help keep me motivated" so if I got the wrong end of the stick there, my bad.
No worries
Thank you for letting me clarify. 1 -
Maybe you will find motivation on the Success Stories or Motivation & Support threads. That would be great. But I totally agree with MelanieCN77.... motivation comes and goes. Discipline and good habits are much more reliable than motivation. I also appreciated the nuanced comment re: "mildly obsessive" attitudes.5
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MelanieCN77 wrote: »Posting and sharing on the boards can keep you engaged and level but motivation isn't something that comes from anywhere but you. You and only you are responsible, putting that onus on an external force or quality that's not yours to control is building in a reason to fail in my opinion. Mildly obsessive can work in terms of staying in charge of your diet but it has to work in a targeted way, not just in a less is more way.
I chose to start this journey on my own without outside interference. Is wanting some sort of a support system online since I don't have one irl really that bad? I'm not trying to put anyone in charge of my eating or fitness, I just want some motivation by seeing others progress and networking. I don't think that's such a bad thing.
Have you checked out the Challenges section? Other community members post challenges you can join for accountability, support, and motivation. It's very helpful if you're someone who likes to be able to check-in with others and support each other through the ups and downs.
Some of the challenges are longer and can be pretty involved (the Harry Potter group runs really great challenges if you like that series), and others can be shorter and can just focus on things like logging food and exercise. There's nothing wrong with preferring a group or support system approach rather than trying to go it alone.4 -
My scale is ALWAYS up when my muscles are sore. When the muscles are sore they are holding water and it can make even a 2 lb difference. Even with cardio. I do all my weights sat, sun, mon and cardio the rest of the week. If i can take a rest day thursday (my weigh in is on friday) i don't do anything other than walking and drink lots of water. I would try as hard as you can to not weigh in every day. i get it, i am the type that has to know as well, but the scale goes up and down. It's fact. And if you continue to look every day it could frustrate you to the point that you just give up entirely. Your calorie counts sound pretty good, but you can always add in a fruit or protein drink at night so you are not going to bed hungry. It's hard in the beginning, stick with it as long as you can. YOU WILL SEE RESULTS4
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danigirl1011 wrote: »My scale is ALWAYS up when my muscles are sore. When the muscles are sore they are holding water and it can make even a 2 lb difference. Even with cardio. I do all my weights sat, sun, mon and cardio the rest of the week. If i can take a rest day thursday (my weigh in is on friday) i don't do anything other than walking and drink lots of water. I would try as hard as you can to not weigh in every day. i get it, i am the type that has to know as well, but the scale goes up and down. It's fact. And if you continue to look every day it could frustrate you to the point that you just give up entirely. Your calorie counts sound pretty good, but you can always add in a fruit or protein drink at night so you are not going to bed hungry. It's hard in the beginning, stick with it as long as you can. YOU WILL SEE RESULTS
This, I think, is exactly what I needed to hear. Thank you, that made me smile and gave me some motivation! ♥ It also explains why I've been so sore.4 -
Here's one other thought. I skimmed the above answers so forgive me if I am repeating. Often people start a diet like this and include lots of healthy veggies and high fibre foods they don't normally eat. That adds bulk to the digestive tract. In three days it may not have moved on if you catch my drift. The water thing is likely true as well from increased exercise. Trust the process. You will see the weight come down eventually. Hang in there.1
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The only way to gain weight is to eat at a surplus. So, you are eating more than you think you are and are not actually eating in a deficit.0
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danigirl1011 wrote: »My scale is ALWAYS up when my muscles are sore. When the muscles are sore they are holding water and it can make even a 2 lb difference. Even with cardio. I do all my weights sat, sun, mon and cardio the rest of the week. If i can take a rest day thursday (my weigh in is on friday) i don't do anything other than walking and drink lots of water. I would try as hard as you can to not weigh in every day. i get it, i am the type that has to know as well, but the scale goes up and down. It's fact. And if you continue to look every day it could frustrate you to the point that you just give up entirely. Your calorie counts sound pretty good, but you can always add in a fruit or protein drink at night so you are not going to bed hungry. It's hard in the beginning, stick with it as long as you can. YOU WILL SEE RESULTS
In addition to water retention from increased exercise, I also retain at ovulation and premenstrually, and after eating Chinese food.2 -
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