what's wrong with me?

Recently I gained like 5 lbs overnight, seriously. Okay fine, I can deal with that, even though I've always been within 5 lbs of my ideal weight. BUT, lately I have been working my butt off. I decided to quit drinking, something I love. I got back into the gym and reduced my calories. As far as I can see, I am creating 1000 cal per day deficit. Well, it's been a week and not only did I NOT lose a lb, I gained a lb.

Argghh!! Makes me want to go drink and have a big **** bowl of icecream. WTF?

If it's over night, it's water weight. Chill out. :)

And, in the big picture, 5 pounds within your ideal weight, I doubt it'll make that big of a difference physically.

ok first of all calm down and stay away from the ice cream.

Body weight changes like 10000000 times during the day. There is no popssible way you could've gained 5 lbs overnight unless you stayed up all night eating serious amounts of pure fat.

3500 caloires makes a pound. SO you would've had to eaten 5 x 3500 = 17500 calories overnight to have gained 5 pounds. Kinda impossible for anybody to do.

SO most likely it's the dreaded water weight. Of the fact that you been exercising so hard. When I have a really hard day of working out my weight usually goes up 3 or 4 pounds overnight but I know it's most likely water weight cause my body is trying to hold onto it's reserves cause of the lost from all the sweating during the workout.'

read this link to see what happened to you.

http://primusweb.com/fitnesspartner/library/w eight/scale.htm

Okay, so I realize I should have been more specific. No I didn't literally gain it over night but it sure did feel like it. I gained it over a month. I DO know for sure that I've recently undergone some female related issues so I'm willing to blame most of it on water weight gain BUT I've really been working hard at it for more like 2 weeks, (1 week of creating a 1000 cal deficit), and haven't seen a single lb drop.

I'm mainly frustrated now because Monday is hubbys Bday and I can't fit in anything to wear out and I just don't want to ruin his goodtime because I'm obsessed with feeling like a slob!!!

Although I am willing to bet it's hormonal and water- I'm still not willing to sit back and hope that things are going to change overnight. And I wasn't exactly kidding about the alcohol & ice cream thing. Why work so hard to see nothing happen? And for those of you that don't know, when you are a small framed person 5 lbs CAN put you in or out of your clothes therefore it is actually worth mentioning.

FYI- I thought I'd give you guys my stats just to clear things up...

38 yrs old

5'2"

currently 120

always been 115 ish or below, and just above that when i didn't work out at all and really wasn't trying.

current work outs- 60 mins of cardio 5-6 times per week

weight lifting 2-3 times per week.

I just don't see where else I can change things. I'm thinking of resorting to one of those low carb diets that we all know you gain back immediately, just to feel better by monday. :(

I'm really hoping and looking for some scientific or medical input on how and why this is happening. Is it my age? Is it hormonal? Has my metabolism just recently gone down because I'm almost approaching my 39th Bday? Please help!! It doesn't make sense to me!!!

There could be a million reasons why you gained weight over a short period of time and another hundred for why its so hard for you to lose it.  ....

Hormones can definitely make you pack on the lbs. at a rapid rate.  If you are having other symptoms like mood swings, depression, water weight, fatigue, etc., then it's most likely hormonal.  I'm dealing with those issues now.  It took me 3.5 months to lose 10 lbs.  However, it only took 3 months to gain 29 lbs.  Not to mention I was working out 5-6 days a week and lifting weights 2-3 times.  I even did either yoga or pilates twice a week on top of other workouts.  I felt  as if I was at war w/ my own body.  I was working out, counting calories and my body just did the opposite (kinda sounds like the Nutty Professor)........the most important thing is to continue what you are doing because doing nothing can get you 5 more lbs.....

You have been at it for 2 weeks.  W/ a 1000 kcal deficit per week, you can't really expect to get results until 3.5 weeks because every lb lost takes a deficit of 3500 kcal.   The normal deficit for most diets is 500 per day. That's 3500 kcal -  (1lb) a week - 3.5 times the amount that you chose.  As you can see your pace is set low. Just be patient.  You have to do what works for you. 

Also------------- calories are very important, but the nutritional value as well as meal balance is too.  Especially, since you have a small frame.  Make sure that you are eating from all of the food groups.  You may be eating 1250 kcal ( just an example ) which is a really great number, but if the grams of protein you take in exceed the amount that your body require then the excess amount will still convert to fat regardless of your caloric intake.  The same thing apply for carbs and fat. 

So---------------- if your body require no more than 10% of your kcal to be from protein and 33% of your caloric intake is from protein -- quess what --- 23% of your calories are going to storage because the body dont use it.........I'm not going to get into nutritional value that much.  I know I dont have to tell you to eat baked fish instead of fried fish, replace simple carbohydrates w/ more complex carbs,  drink water instead of soda, blah blah blah.  I will tell you that it makes a huge difference.  Since nutrient rich foods are less in calories, you can eat more often throughout the day.  This will eliminate the risk of letting your metabolism drop in between meals.  When you eat foods with a low nutrient density and high calorie count, you end up hungry in between meals and not enough calories left in the day to snack.  So, in turn we either go over the amount of calories or starve our bodies in between meals....I'm not sure what you are eating or exactly how many calories you take in a day.  If you do eat high calorie-low nutrient dense foods, exchanging just half of your meals for nutrient rich foods should give you results.

I know this is getting long but one more thing to look out for is ---not eating enough.  It take money to make money.  Just like it take calories (energy) to burn those unwanted lbs (calories).

Sorry, so long. Hope that it help.  If, not I have plenty more.

i lost 5 lbs from waking up 3 hours ago til now, my secret? i did a big poo.

but anyway, these things take time.

and we do not know the ins and outs of your diet/exercise,

but i am sure you will see change soon =)

big poos do help ;)

petite people, correct me if I am wrong, but when you are already starting at a low weight like 120... does it take a little longer to start loosing?

Assuming you are doing everything right - just be patient.  Some people lose a few pounds right off - some it takes a little longer.  Especially if you are just coming off your period.  Exercise you are not used to can also make you hold water weight.  So - it will take some time.  make sure you are not eating a ton of added salt in your diet, drink a lot of water and be patient.

Of course it never hurts to recheck your diet and make sure you are counting correctly - weigh your food - dont measure.  Doing that alone can save you a few hundred calories a day.

Original Post by tortoisewins:

petite people, correct me if I am wrong, but when you are already starting at a low weight like 120... does it take a little longer to start loosing?

I agree - with the OPs stats, I don't think 1000 cal deficit is reasonable. Not that it explains gaining weight, but I'd cut it down to a 500 deficit max.

khandik011 - Just to clear things up that was 1000 cal deficit per day, not week. However, I liked/loved the rest of what you had to say as well as many others. I just don't think it's what I'm eating OR portions. I also do calorie shifting. I'm a master at playing tricks on my body's metabolism. Lol. I've actually been a member here for a couple of years and have gained and lost those same damn 5 lbs atleast 5 times now, with the help of all of u. It's just never been as hard until now. Simple math, u know? The reason for the 1000 cal deficit was obviously hubby's upcoming Birthday. I'm just NOT happy at 120 and it puts me out of my clothes, but it always sneaks back up on me.

I am definetely going through some hormonal changes. I recently had my IUD, (Mirena), taken out after 5 years of not having a period. It's got to be that. It was nice to read some things on here from all of you that I had either forgotton or was ignoring. But I'm sure if I just relax a little and give my body time it will all catch up with me. I just want and I want it now. Lol.

Best wishes to all of u!!

Yeah, but sweetie, if you are working your butt off, and going to the gym, chances are, the weight you saw on your scales, is muscle you have built.  Muscle weighs more than fat, I think, so you may have gained 5 pounds of muscle, which is not a bad thing.   

I have over 100 lbs to lose, and I have found that if I do not weigh too often, maybe once a month or once every two weeks, I do not get as discouraged.  Don't give up and give in to that ice cream, we can do this, we just have to have a little patience with ourselves.

hope this helps.

forevermejb,

JAN

Lol. I wish it were muscle. It takes a lot of intense training to gain 5 lbs of muscle and for a woman that's probably not going to happen in a months time without a hard core PT. However, I'd love that. No it's def all in my stomach, which is not usually where I carry my weight even when I do gain a few. I'm really leaning towards a medical issue at this point.

Anyway, thanks for all the help. I think it will just come one day. There's no way persistence and hard work could possibly not pay off eventually. For now I will stay at it and seek medical attention.

Original Post by tortoisewins:

big poos do help ;)

petite people, correct me if I am wrong, but when you are already starting at a low weight like 120... does it take a little longer to start loosing?

 

I am 5'2" and small framed and went from 143 to 120 in 3 months.....then it took me a whole month to get to 118.  It's definately slowing down for me.

I aree 5 lbs is a lot of muscle gain in one month.  5 lbs of muscle gain shouldn't put you out of your clothes any way.  If anything it should help to burn more fat and lose inches.....

OMG!!! 1000 kcal deficit a day.  That takes a lot of discipline and determination.  I'm struggling w/ the 500, but I'm learning to say no to my inshape food pushing boyfriend...grrrrh

I took my last deprovera shot on December 8.  I haven't seen a menstrual cycle yet.  My doc said it will be 3 months to a year or more (not happy with the or more part).  I ballooned in the stomach and breast areas.  After increasing my core training to 6 days a week instead of two for just one week, my stomach decreased big time.  I know trainers say that it's drastic and if you condition a group of muscles this day, then rest them the next day.  I found that i get the better results when I exhaust a specific muscle group one week, follow up the next week with strictly aerobics and lots of stretching (usually yoga), and then boom inches are lost in that area.  I do different tehniques and change it up a lot with the physical activity.  What are the techniques to tricking your body's metabolism?  This is my first time not being motivated enough to stick to a low calorie diet.  I am getting better but I also get bored and impatient..............

Oh yeah don't forget that w/out a period you now have an increased blood volume.  This increases the sodium concentration as well as other concentrations in the body.  If you dont get enough iron, water, etc. you'll have an increase in water weight. Hopefully, a cycle will eliminate your problems and mine too.

There are several metabolism boosters and I think I've tried them all. Switching things up with food just like you do in exercise helps a lot. It's a matter of keeping your body guessing what your going to give it next. Our bodies desperately want to hang onto it's fat so we have to trick it into using stored fat for energy. And it also adapts very qucikly to whatever u give it, (your work outs, diet plan etc.) It's almost like u & your bod are trying to outsmart the other and youve just got to stay on top and have the upper hand.

here are just a few and then I will tell you the ones that I swear by and have seen results from. Green tea, cinnamon, cayenne pepper, jalapenos, supplements such as L Carnintine and chromium picolinate, calorie shifting and carb cycling are my faves.

Calorie shifting is when one day you eat (example only- every body's needs are different) 1200, then 1500, then 1100. I think the idea is to only increase to almost maintenance cals like twice a week. I've seen results with this one. Carb cycling is one of my faves and it's dropped lbs off of me in crazy record breaking time. Okay, if you google it you are going to be taken to a website that's for body builders and I follow it almost the same way they do but alter mine just a little. Every third day I eat NO carbs, (Trace carbs only that you get from cheese etc.) I still count calories on those days and try to keep it at least within maintenance cals. On the two days in between I eat what I normally do anyway. Which is complex carbs, yogurt, skim milk, lean meats and fruits and veggies. I just don't do percentages, (example 20% carbs, 30% protein, blah, blah, blah.) I eat what I want when i want it but make sure I'm including a complex carb and a lean protein in every meal. It's worth a try. One time we had two weeks before a special event and I got back on it. I dropped my 5 lb in just two weeks. Unfortunately that's not really working for me now.

But I do think the general idea is to keep your body guessing. No two days back to back should be the same. just like your work outs.

And last but not least before any of you "specialist" that we all love and adore come in and criticize my thinking.... I'm letting you all know know that I am NOT an expert in this whole weight loss thing but have learned a thing or two over the years and alot of it right here on this website. What works for me may not work for all. Obviously it isn't doing crap for me right now. Lol.

Best wishes to all on your long or short journeys of weight loss!!! 

FYI- Depo is the devil!!! I hated that darn thing. I gained 10 lbs the 1st month.

And about the 1000 cal deficit. I do it by burning 500 in cardio. (Which is just over an hour on the eliptical and a very fast pace.) And then continue to eat my 1200 cals. That's not really working for me right now either. I was too hungry. Now I am more or less just trying to create AT LEAST a 500 cal deficit- most of that through my work outs. I like food too much. Lol.

odie03, Thanks a million. I'm trying these techniques.  My diet needs a total make over. Plus, I love green tea and jalepenos ....... So I should be off to a good start.