Gained weight freaking out

amirookes6489
amirookes6489 Posts: 10 Member
in Motivation and Support
So to cut a long story short I’m battling with myself I’ve been on a weight loss journey for two year I managed to get rid of 5 stone but in the process became very obsessed with wanting to weigh Less and less I focused on the scales weighing daily and cut my calories to no more than 900 a day while training 6 days a week and after a night shift I’ve seemed help and am waiting on the help to talk to someone on it but It’s all taking time and even longer with Covid.
I’ve been along advice and through my anxiety started a new programme stayed off the scales and increased calories to 2000 a day for the last few weeks but tonight I stupidly jumped on the scales and BAM I don’t know what to do I’ve gain 8lbs I’m so gutted please please please tell me this is normal I know I shouldn’t weight at night I’m hoping it’s a lot of water but please tell me it’s ok cause I’m freaking out big time now I don’t want to undo all the hard work I have been doing I also decreased my training to 4 days a week to help with getting around work etc before and after I’ve posted so far

Replies

  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 34,166 Member
    edited October 2020
    Very fast gain is typically water and/or additional digestive system contents that are on their way to becoming waste. It's normal to see a scale jump from a combination of those two things when increasing calories, especially if it's a multi-hundred calorie increase all at once.

    Some of the increase may be permanent (because, for example, if you continue eating 2000 calories of food vs. 900 calories of food, the average weight of food in your body is higher, and there's water retained when metabolizing any carbs/sodium amongst the food that had those calories). Try not to worry about it, it's not fat, it's just part of how a healthy body handles food.

    Give it a month or so, and you'll mostly likely settle into a few pound up/down maintenance range. That's how "normal" works. Take some nice, calming, deep breaths, and hang in there!
  • Noodlesprout
    Noodlesprout Posts: 15 Member
    Sounds too much to have gained as fat that quickly. Almost definitely water retention. I have eaten a salty meal and seen gains of 7lbs but then gradually came off and more the following week when I ate healthy again.
    Your diet before sounded far too restrictive need to find a middle ground.
  • snowflake954
    snowflake954 Posts: 8,399 Member
    edited October 2020
    Restricting you calorie intake to 900 a day is unhealthy and may have consequences. Now, that you've realized that you need to up your calories, I would ask where you got the 2000 cal a day figure? Did you plug your stats into MFP and get that number to maintain? If so, you're good to go. If you didn't, do it now, and see how many daily calories it gives you. Then you're going to have to be patient and evaluate monthly. Wishing you the best of luck, and please eat enough.
  • amirookes6489
    amirookes6489 Posts: 10 Member
    100% I was doing it right until the last few months when lockdown happened and it sent me wild and panicked then I realised there was a problem completely and am trying to fix it I know it will be more mentally tough then anything like it’s been in the past but I will get there
  • NovusDies
    NovusDies Posts: 8,940 Member
    snowflake954 wrote: »
    Restricting you calorie intake to 900 a day is unhealthy and may have consequences. Now, that you've realized that you need to up your calories, I would ask where you got the 2000 cal a day figure? Did you plug your stats into MFP and get that number to maintain? If so, you're good to go. If you didn't, do it now, and see how many daily calories it gives you. Then you're going to have to be patient and evaluate monthly. Wishing you the best of luck, and please eat enough.

    I am guessing the calorie amount and the rule about staying off the scale came from someone trying to treat the OP for some obsessive/disordered issues.

    If so, OP, eat the 2k and please stay off the scale.
  • dorianblach
    dorianblach Posts: 15 Member
    amirookes6489 wrote: »
    100% I was doing it right until the last few months when lockdown happened and it sent me wild and panicked then I realised there was a problem completely and am trying to fix it I know it will be more mentally tough then anything like it’s been in the past but I will get there

    Hi, great job on the progress. I know it doesn’t feel like that right now. I was in a similar situation not too long ago. I had been really committed to losing weight. I was intermittent fasting and trying to stay away from “bad” foods as much as possible. I went from 240lbs to 210lbs in about a year. When Covid hit, I went into a a month binge or spiral if you will. Even though I was still intermittent fasting, I started eating a lot of sugar and fat. In those four weeks I gained close to 15 pounds! I was terrified because I felt my goal of reaching 205lbs slipping away.

    Needless to say, I had to accept and admit that my month long binge was my responsibility and it was also my responsibility to get back on track. Since late April, I have dropped down to 192lbs and gained more muscle and stamina. So I learned from that mistake and I used it as fuel, to help me get to a better place. It forced me to start thinking outside of what I had already tried and that made all the difference.

    So don’t let this speed bump slow you down, it was probably just what you needed to help get you to the next level.

    All the best!

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