Running 3 miles, eating small fruit meals. Gaining weight??

2

Replies

  • azbarrelracer1323
    azbarrelracer1323 Posts: 26 Member
    OK. Can you give me your height, age, weight and how much you exercise (i.e. what you do and how many hours a week you spend doing it). Also, what weight do you want to be? I'm no expert but I can probably help a bit.

    5"8' 137lbs 24 years old. Sit at an office job for 8hrs, then run my 3 miles. I also rodeo so after I run I am excerising my horses for about 1.5 hours (daily). Also I should rephrase my question. I am not looking to lose any more lbs (but also not wanting to gain lbs) I am wanting to lose or tone up the "not so tone" around my body. I feel like I am getting in great shape but kinda hit a brick wall. The sodium suggestion was interesting because I feel SOO BLOATED. Uck. Thanks for the help.
  • yarwell
    yarwell Posts: 10,477 Member
    Carbohydrates cause retention of sodium and water, so your fruit based = carb based diet doesn't help in that regard.
  • azbarrelracer1323
    azbarrelracer1323 Posts: 26 Member
    I drink my coffee in the morning, eat an apple at 9am, eat an orange at 11, another snack at 1pm, and then my dinner (with low carbs and fats) about 6pm... And I run about 3 miles a day, plus about 10 mins strength training.... Why am I GAINING weight???? I also have a glass of wine in the evening ;)

    Are you kidding? Or is this a joke? Eat more. Your body is more than likely clinging to every morsel that goes into your mouth and storing it. Eat more.

    Dear goodness! I am sorry body! It's prbbly flipping me a big ol bird right now. Glad I posted this, will fix my diet ASAP. I didn't know it was that bad, why do I feel full and not starving if I am eating so little? I have always been a small eater, but have never been this active, besides riding the horses.
  • azbarrelracer1323
    azbarrelracer1323 Posts: 26 Member
    I drink my coffee in the morning, eat an apple at 9am, eat an orange at 11, another snack at 1pm, and then my dinner (with low carbs and fats) about 6pm... And I run about 3 miles a day, plus about 10 mins strength training.... Why am I GAINING weight???? I also have a glass of wine in the evening ;)

    Are you kidding? Or is this a joke? Eat more. Your body is more than likely clinging to every morsel that goes into your mouth and storing it. Eat more.

    Dear goodness! I am sorry body! It's prbbly flipping me a big ol bird right now. Glad I posted this, will fix my diet ASAP. I didn't know it was that bad, why do I feel full and not starving if I am eating so little? I have always been a small eater, but have never been this active, besides riding the horses.
  • ChelseaM18
    ChelseaM18 Posts: 303
    Switch up your macros often (every 2-3 days) to spur some more fat loss, I'm using that now and I definitely see a difference! I go high protein high healthy fat for two days in a caloric deficit then the third day I go equal carbs equal protein and very low fats still in a deficit and repeat. It's something you can stick to :) plus it's helping so much with water retention. Drink LOTS of water.

    Good Luck :D
  • Meganalva
    Meganalva Posts: 282 Member
    Not eating enough! Less calories actually make you gain, believe it or not!
  • jenlarz
    jenlarz Posts: 813 Member
    Will someone layout what is a good daily diet? I work an office job do I sit on my bum all day till my run :/

    I also work a desk job. I eat around 1400 cals a day, lots of variation. Sometimes I go over, others under. I have lost 26 lbs since January. Exercise varies also, some DVD's, working on Cto 5K, bikes, walks. I am 32, 5'6" or so. So more calories, esp from protein would be great.
  • Yeah, you're definitely not eating enough. When our bodies don't get enough calories, especially when burning calories with exercise, our metabolism can slow down to the point where it will practically stop. This is when the body goes into starvation mode — meaning it doesn't know when the next source of energy (food) will come from and will begin storing it instead of burning it.

    By the description of your food, you might want to try adding vegetables and healthy fats (olive oil, fish, flax seed, etc.) to help increase your calorie intake and provide energy.
  • skbohanon
    skbohanon Posts: 15 Member
    Figure out how many calories you NEED from here:

    http://www.fat2fitradio.com/tools/bmr/

    or

    http://scoobysworkshop.com/calorie-calculator/

    And then don't eat below that.

    I went to both of these sites and did the calculations... there was a 481 calorie variance and 286 BMR variance between the 2 sites (using the exact same stats). So frustrating.
  • Smuterella
    Smuterella Posts: 1,623 Member
    OK. Can you give me your height, age, weight and how much you exercise (i.e. what you do and how many hours a week you spend doing it). Also, what weight do you want to be? I'm no expert but I can probably help a bit.

    5"8' 137lbs 24 years old. Sit at an office job for 8hrs, then run my 3 miles. I also rodeo so after I run I am excerising my horses for about 1.5 hours (daily). Also I should rephrase my question. I am not looking to lose any more lbs (but also not wanting to gain lbs) I am wanting to lose or tone up the "not so tone" around my body. I feel like I am getting in great shape but kinda hit a brick wall. The sodium suggestion was interesting because I feel SOO BLOATED. Uck. Thanks for the help.

    I think you sound quite active. Basing you as "lightly active" though you could well be higher than that, I make your calories to maintain weight around 2000.

    If you are interested in recompositioning your body you may want to eat at this level while switching out some of that running your are doing for some weightlifting.

    If you do still want to lose fat you could eat at 1800, but i would not recommend going much below this with the amount of activity you do. also, this would stall muscle development.
  • Gwoman2012
    Gwoman2012 Posts: 163 Member
    The fact that you are not overweight or even at the high end if a normal weight is going to make weightloss extremely difficult.


    Add a couple eggs at breakfast and string cheese and a handful of nuts as snacks. Don't worry about carbs and fats at dinner as long as you are staying within your calorie goal.
  • dsjohndrow
    dsjohndrow Posts: 1,821 Member
    MFP is set up to help you succeed. What is MFP telling you to eat in terms of calories? If you are way under without exercise, that is a good reason.

    Personally I DO NOT eat my exercise calories back. I tried for 3 months and gained 10 hard lost pounds. I run 3-5 times a week. I eat 6 times a day: 3 meals and 3 snacks. I try to keep my carbs and proteins even - about 100 each.

    I suggest setting MFP to lose a pound a week and just do that for a month. If you are not motivated to eat all your calories, you can add things like olive oil and nuts which are higher in calories but not as filling to help you reach your goal.
  • Smuterella
    Smuterella Posts: 1,623 Member
    Figure out how many calories you NEED from here:

    http://www.fat2fitradio.com/tools/bmr/

    or

    http://scoobysworkshop.com/calorie-calculator/

    And then don't eat below that.

    I went to both of these sites and did the calculations... there was a 481 calorie variance and 286 BMR variance between the 2 sites (using the exact same stats). So frustrating.

    different sites use different BMR calculations, I'm afraid, there are so many different formulas out there.

    I use this site for my TDEE as it matches my FitBit and therefore I can only assume it is more accurate

    http://www.health-calc.com/diet/energy-expenditure-advanced
  • chachita7
    chachita7 Posts: 996 Member
    I would suggest you check this group out - lots of really good info

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/groups/home/3817-eat-more-to-weigh-less
  • graytfull1
    graytfull1 Posts: 1
    Hello

    Here is my guess....
    Muscle weighs more than fat.....
    Stop running and just walk at a fast pace.

    As for strength training.....What are you doing?

    Add more lean chicken and reduce your fruit intake and replace with vegetables.

    Fruit has so much sugar, your body will burn this sugar first,....leading to a stand still.:cry:
  • opaedas
    opaedas Posts: 3 Member
    Hey there,
    You're feeling full probably because of the fiber in the fruit you eat. Also, since your stomach is accustomed to eating so little, it is not large and distended and will fill up quickly. Try only having fruit in the am w/ a portion of lean protein and small slow digesting carb like oatmeal or ezekiel toast or other 100% whole wheat bread (not just one that says Whole wheat, must say 100% for it to be true whole wheat). Then lean protein & veggies at lunch, then again at dinner, snack on whatever healthy stuff you like in between (keep small controlled portions).

    Aim for 20-30g protein at each meal (snacks will probably have less, but thats ok) Make sure to get in those healthy fats here and there, like raw or dry roasted almonds or other nuts, fatty fish like salmon, 2-3 1/4" slices avacado, etc. The combo of lean protein, fat and carb is what you need at every meal. Definitely supplement with a multivitamin to make sure while you're in transition and learning your way around that you are getting the right amount of vitamins/minerals that will fill in the gaps that are lacking from what you do or don't eat.

    Sodium can help to be controlled by drinking lots of water (the more you drink, the less your body has to store, so be prepared you WILL pee a lot), also eating foods high in potassium like dark greens or a small banana a day will help to cancel out the body's reaction to sodium and make you feel less bloated hopefully.

    Might want to shorten your run as well if you feel like you're quite tired or killing yourself to get through it, or just decrease the intensity. Long distance running is going to eat up your muscle if you're not taking in enough protein to maintain it. General rule of thumb is to aim for .8 grams per lb of body weight in protein for maintenance. EX 140lb woman should take in about 112 grams protein/day to keep current muscle. To gain muscle, you must up that and include strength training. Increasing to 1g per lb (140grams/day minimum ) while strength training will yeild best results.

    Any other questions, please feel free to ask!! There are always people on here willing to help..... I wish you success with your goals!

    Mal
  • yoovie
    yoovie Posts: 17,121 Member
    Youre doing it wrong. You're supposed to eat.

    The excess weight is the wood.
    The exercise and burn is the fire.
    The food is the oxygen.

    You're trying to start a fire and burn your wood in a vacuum.
    Your physical science teacher would shake his head at you.

    Silly human, fire needs oxygen to burn all the wood away.
  • yoovie
    yoovie Posts: 17,121 Member
    Hello

    Here is my guess....
    Muscle weighs more than fat.....
    Stop running and just walk at a fast pace.

    As for strength training.....What are you doing?

    Add more lean chicken and reduce your fruit intake and replace with vegetables.

    Fruit has so much sugar, your body will burn this sugar first,....leading to a stand still.:cry:

    tumblr_m4u9iag25t1rxpnhso1_500.jpg

    ....this person is a personal trainer?
  • Sabine_Stroehm
    Sabine_Stroehm Posts: 19,263 Member
    Figure out how many calories you NEED from here:

    http://www.fat2fitradio.com/tools/bmr/

    or

    http://scoobysworkshop.com/calorie-calculator/

    And then don't eat below that.

    I went to both of these sites and did the calculations... there was a 481 calorie variance and 286 BMR variance between the 2 sites (using the exact same stats). So frustrating.

    different sites use different BMR calculations, I'm afraid, there are so many different formulas out there.

    I use this site for my TDEE as it matches my FitBit and therefore I can only assume it is more accurate

    http://www.health-calc.com/diet/energy-expenditure-advanced
    Right, they all have a different number. Some folks average them, some folks choose one. Either way it's gotta be quite a bit more than you're eating now (OP).
    ETA: your site was within 10 calories (BMR) of my site for me. Interesting.
  • Muddy_Yogi
    Muddy_Yogi Posts: 1,459 Member
    Youre doing it wrong. You're supposed to eat.

    The excess weight is the wood.
    The exercise and burn is the fire.
    The food is the oxygen.

    You're trying to start a fire and burn your wood in a vacuum.
    Your physical science teacher would shake his head at you.

    Silly human, fire needs oxygen to burn all the wood away.

    I LOVE THIS!