please critique me-- exercise and healthy food.. but weight GAIN :(

i dont' understand why i'm gaining weight, and it's really starting to take a toll on the way i feel about myself. i do intense cardio about 4 days a week, which is typically 45-60 minutes split between running and the elliptical machine. i also do weights about once or twice a week. my typical day of eating is the following : before work: piece of 35 cal bread with low fat margarine with a handful of fiber-one cereal couple hours later: large bowl of oatmeal with pumpkin, splenda, and cinnamon lunch: tuna sandwich made with 35 cal bread, tuna, small amount of miracle whip, and relish; very small salad with lettuce, beans, olives, peas.. dressed with vinegar (no dressing); about 1/4 cup of cottage cheese before my workout: teaspoon of peanut butter, two pieces of low cal bread, handful of fiber-one cereal after workout: stir-fry vegetables cooked in no-cal cooking spray with soy sauce before bed: a teaspoon of peanut butter, usually a snack (couple oreos), and a couple cups of air popped popcorn sprayed with no-cal butter and sprinkled with salt, dill, and parmesan cheese i am 5'7.5". before the summer, i weight between 135 and 140. now my weight is up between 140 and 145. i'm getting very frustrated. any suggestions? also, i drink a lot of water throughout the day. thanks everyone!

How many calories are you eating per day? How many calories are you buring with your workouts?

well i estimate i have about 2000 calories a day... and burn around 500..

If you are burning more than you are eating, then you should lose weight, but there are SO many reasons your weight could be fluctuating.

Your typical day looks like it is VERY high in sodium. Even if you drink a lot of water, you could be retaining it from the high sodium. Try to cut back on that...

You could also be replacing fat with muscle, so while the scale is not reflecting that, you are getting leaner and more toned.

Have you had your body fat % taken?

Have your clothes been looser?

Have you ruled out any medical issues?

Is it TTOM?

Your diet looks like it relies a bit heavily on the carbs, with few fruits and only a few veggies. If I were you I would cut out the evening snack, espeically the oreos! Not only are they caloric---they also have trans fat (at least they used to, they might not anymore). Like Nicole said, also try to limit sodium. Maybe try to focus a bit more on lean protein and fruits and veggies (start the day off with an egg and some berries or somrething). Instead of snacking on popcorn and peanut butter (which is very caloric) you could try cut veggies, (a few) almonds, yogurt, etc....

Also, how long have you been doing your workout routine? It could be that your body has gotten used to running and the elliptical. You might want to try some new forms of cardio, or incorporate intervals. You could try spinning (I love it!), swimming, running stairs, jump rope, etc.... Try to get 2-3 weight lifting sessions in if you can. I know how frustrating it can be, but you can do it!

dowlcao and nicole:  thanks you so much for your insight!  this is why i love CC so much--because of the smart, friendly people who offer their advice.  i'm definitely going to try cutting back on the sodium and carbs, and add in some more lean meat, veggies, and fruit.  also.. i was talking to a friend of mine, and he suggested lowering my cardio to about 30 minutes of intense cardio during my workout, and do 30 minutes of weight training.  he told me that doing long bouts of intense cardio can make your body actually reserve fat.  any thoughts on this?

thanks again!

Original Post by nwoodrum:

 long bouts of intense cardio can make your body actually reserve fat.  any thoughts on this?

thanks again!

 That plus calorie restriction/undereating could make your body try to conserve calories stored in fat--that's why the combination of eating and exercise has to be right. I'm not sure that cardio alone would make your body try to conserve fat . . . any studies on it? I've never had trouble with gaining weight in periods where i was at a normal weight and cardio was part of my daily life; everything seemed to balance out just fine. But my experience is anecdotal so it's not "proof" of anything.

I was having a similar problem, and my culprit was not enough protein.  Try eating protein at every meal/snack.  Cottage cheese, yogurt (the Greek kind in particular is REALLY high in protein), eggs/egg whites.  You get the idea.  I actually went to a nutritionist because I was constantly hungry and never lost any weight (although I tried!) and now realize it was because I wasn't eating the right things.  Some simple changes would be to drink milk with your oatmeal, eat an apple with your cottage cheese, have berries and yogurt.  I really have noticed a difference doing that, and also find that if I stick to that routine and have small portions that it's much easier to lose weight (and feel satisfied too!).

I also agree with everything dowlcao1 says about carbs, body fat, etc. 

Most importantly, don't fret!  You realized that what you're doing is not working, so it's time to change it.  Just keep tweaking everything (diet and exercise) until you find what works for you. 

are you logging that calorie total or just estimating it?  Seems like a lot less than 2000 calories to me but then again, you don't have your portion sizes in here.

And totally agree with you needing more protein.  Also might not want to limit yourself to small salads because that stuff is good for you (I mean, unless you are putting croutons, bacon bits, and nacho cheese on it)

ehp:  thank you so much for your insignt.  now that i think about it, i really don't get a lot of protein.  i will try to incorporate more of that and see how it works.

danielle:  good idea about the salads.  i will try some variety.. with protein!

thank you for your tips!  i'm excited to see how this goes..

It isn't good to eat anywhere close to bedtime.  This holds even more true for foods high in carbs.  So having Oreos (bad no matter what time you eat them) right before bed is a bad idea.

dakatz:  i've heard that studies suggest otherwise.  in fact, i've heard that it's one of the biggest dieting myths.  it doesn't matter what time of the day you eat your calories, just as long as your expending more than you consume (when trying to lose weight).

also, the whole oreo thing.. they were my favorite "treat" growing up, so sometimes i'll have one or two of the MINI ones.. which is less than fifty calories.. i don't think it's a bad thing to restrict completely from a certain food that you enjoy.

Hmm..  You may hate me but here goes..

olives have 5 calories each

teaspoon of pb? hmm..  maybe heaping?

0 calorie butter..  it has calories. FDA allows anything with less than a certain amount of calories to say 0 calories on the label. Read the ingredients. ( made with vegetable oil) I'd guess 5-10 calories a spray. like cooking spray which is 10-20 calories per second.

What are you drinking?

I think you may be missing about 500 calories a day or so.

ok ..I'll shut my mouth now.  :D

 

i love to put stuff on my salad, sometimes a little low fat cheese (feta and goat cheese are great), i'll do falafel, grilled chicken, but my number one fat is tofu.  special consideration for it tho:

1. rinse it off
2. marinate it in your fav salad dressing (like italian)

tofu takes on the flavor of marinades very nicely.  I like to use firm in my salads, yum!

Original Post by dakatz:

It isn't good to eat anywhere close to bedtime.  This holds even more true for foods high in carbs.  So having Oreos (bad no matter what time you eat them) right before bed is a bad idea.

I have to disagree..  I consume most of my calories before bed. I'm losing weight every time I weigh in. I think it plays on the idea people eating late and not writing it down. It gives you nightmares sometimes eating before bed, lol.

I agree with most of what the other poster's have said but i just want to add

do you weigh your food?? it's very easy to over estimate a portion size... i spent MONTHS getting no-where because my food scales were not very accurate it wasn't untill i bought my digital ones that i realised my old ones wouldn't even register any amount under 20g and the needle didn't move unless the wieght changed dramatically .... by 20g or more.....

Then to add to this the is the whole teaspon issue ... i told my husband (who is also dieting) that in the evening he could have a "teaspoon" of peanut butter on his toast ... then for weeks i calculated this "teaspoon" as about 5g.

it wasn't untill i watched him one night giving himself a teaspoon of peanut butter that i realised how different our teaspoons really where ... his involved a massive heaped lump on the biggest teaspoon he could possibly find probabally amounting to more like 15g .... 

Sounds silly but there is a big difference bettween 5g on peanut butter or 15g and the little things like that mount up  (stupid man seems to think he could cheat the calorie gods because his argument was it still "was just a teaspoon")

thank you all for your replies! i really think i need to keep a food diary for a couple weeks and just analyze exactly what i'm putting into my body. i've heard that can be very effective..