Baffled by weight gain

[formicalinoleum]

I'm a little confused by my weight situation. I'm 5'5" and apparently 150 pounds right now. For most of my adult life, I've been about 140, but I have been gaining a bit over the past 2 years or so. I stopped weighing myself about 2 months ago, and at that point I was around 146. Out of curiosity, I got on the scale today and found myself at the new high previously mentioned.

Now, I have recently been using fitday.com to track my intake. It estimates that I burn about 2,000 calories a day. I'm trying to be very good about entering everything I eat. On most days, it give me estimates ranging from about 1400 to 1700, maybe 1800 on a rare day. This is during the time I went from 146 to 150. So why am I gaining weight? I haven't been getting much exercise, but that's reflected in the estimate of calories burned. Do I perhaps have such slow metabolism that the estimate of what I'm burning, which is based on average people, is way off for me? Am I doing a poor job of entering my food intake?

I am now going to join a cycling club, with the goal of working up to racing, so I'll soon be much more active and that should help me lose weight. But it's kind of depressing to keep on gaining weight when it seems like I shouldn't be. Plus, I just don't understand what's going on here.

[bluegrrrl79]

How old are you? Also, perhaps you're accidently consuming more calories then you realize? Exercising is a great idea, and I'm sure you'll become much more fit :) Plus, the more muscle you get, the faster your metabolism!

[imagine]

Water retention? Just a thought.

[beforewisdom]

Those calorie need formulas are way off for many people for many reasons.

You are already doing the correct thing, tracking your calories against your weight and arriving at your own tailor made figure. You have something superior to the formulas.

If you exercise some of those 4 pounds could be new muscle. If your critical measurements are the same ( or slimmer ) that is probably what is going on.

That or water retention.

[Jinga]

Not to insult your intelligence, but is it possible that you are underestimating your caloric intake? It is a common problem for people to overlook 'nibbles' here and there ( a few pcs of candy, a couple chips), not add in extra ingredients used in preparation (sugar in tea, oil in veggies), or be consuming more than the actual serving size (especially salad dressing, nuts, grains, sweets). I would also not rely too much on fitdays 'calories burned'. I find the site to be a good record keeping tool, but not extremely accurate.

[clickman]

Are you on any meds? I know mine make me retain water apparently, because I stopped them for two days and I dropped 4lb., obviously not real weight though.

[katmango]

If you are burning that many calories..and only eating 1400-1700 cals..you can actually gain weight,b/c your body is holding onto your food for energy. I would actually try upping for a week and see if that makes a difference. I started eating 1800+ a day..and I only do the occasional pilates lesson,and I started to loose. Just make sure your cals are coming from whole foods rather than junk.

[formicalinoleum]

The mystery deepens...

Just over a week ago, I started riding my bike regularly (just about every day) and started to be very, very careful in tracking my food. I got the PC version of fitday, which has more functions than the online one.

After the first 5 days or so, I had gone down 1 or 2 pounds. Now, one full week after that second weighing, I am back up to 150. During this full week, I did a total of 5.5 hours of biking, either on the trainer or outside. And according to my tracking, I have taken in less than I have burned every single day, by at least 450 calories.

Okay, so I'm exercising regularly. And I have a daily calorie deficit of around 500 calories per day, on average. So why did I go back up instead of down? Even assuming the drop of 1 or 2 pounds and then the bounce back up was just error and I've basically remained the same weight over the 2 weeks, why haven't I lost?

I mean, I can understand that I may be off on my calorie estimates, even though I think I am logging everything, from a single cookie in the afternoon to the sugar and creamer in my coffee. But I have a 500 calorie deficit, so if I'm actually breaking even, I'd have to be off by 500 calories every single day, and that's a huge amount to be wrong by.

Is is just going to take some time for the weight loss to start? Or am I stuck at 150 for the rest of my life??

[katmango]

It could be water weight..don't get obsessive and weigh yourself everyday..it will drive you crazy..thats how my past ed started. There is a thing as excercising to much,and I know I stated it before but if you don't fuel your body w/ enough calories it will hang onto the pounds....and I think a deficit of 500 cals per day is too much..just slow down,permanent weightloss takes time.Second option could be that maybe your body is comftorable at your current weight..don't push your body,treat it well...if your not overweight just accept yourself.

[Seadolphin]

I've heard from a number of people that often times when you start a new exercise program you actually gain some weight at first due to adding muscle. Then after a couple of weeks is when you start seeing the positive results. Maybe this is the case w/you. Good luck!

[bstutzma]

Agreed, a lot of people gain weight due to muscle formation. I think 2000 calories a day is a LOT. Are you male or female? In either case, that sounds like too many calories for a 150lb person to me. I weight about 120 and I take in about 1200-1300 a day. And I excersize about 30 minutes a day on an eliptical.

[Jinga]

Agreed, a lot of people gain weight due to muscle formation. I think 2000 calories a day is a LOT. Are you male or female? In either case, that sounds like too many calories for a 150lb person to me. I weight about 120 and I take in about 1200-1300 a day. And I excersize about 30 minutes a day on an eliptical.


Just to be more confusing ...

I maintain a weight of 120 with little exercise and over 2000 cals a day. At one point I tried eating 1200-1300 and I kept losing weight and became somewhat emaciated. 1200 calories is really not much unless a person is used to eating very little.

The OPs 1400-1700 cal range sounds perfect for someone trying to lose weight with an 'average' metabolism.

[Azalea]

I agree that 12-1300 is very little. Not nearly enough, actually.

[Katt Fink]

If you think your body is a mystery, have a go at what happened to me. Last year, I joined a gym. My first week there, a trainer gave me a personal assesment/weight management program that was tailored specifically for me, based on my age, weight, height, measurements, BMI, body fat %, lean mass %, diet, lifestyle, etc. My exercise regimine suggested that I work out 3-5 days a week for approx. 1.5 hours a day (8-10 min. cardio warmup + 30-45 min circuit training + 30-40 min cardio & 5-10 min cool down.) Anyway, for 4 months, I followed my regimine to the letter and had absolutely no results, negative or positive according to my "check-in" with the trainer. Since the gym is not exactly free, I complained and went back for a reassessment that was a little more rigorous and detailed than the first. I adhered strictly to my revised regimine for another 3-4 months and when it was time for my second "check-in", I had lost 1, that's ONE, pound total, my body fat percentage went UP a few and my lean muscle mass DECREASED a few. I guess basing a weight loss program on cold hard facts supplied by your own body apparently isn't good enough. If that's not a mystery, I'll eat my hat.. if I had one... Sorry I couldn't be much help as far as advice goes, but at least you're not alone! ;)

[formicalinoleum]

Thanks for the feedback everyone!

I actually have now been losing a pound a week, which is great. I'm about 146 now (from 150 when I started this thread).

I've kept up my biking at least 6 days a week. My intake is a little higher to allow for the increased activity. I'm eating 1600-1900 per day, depending in part on how long I'm riding the bike that day. According to my calculations, I am burning more than that, and given that I am losing weight, I guess I really am.

So everything seems to be on track now. Thanks again!

[bstutzma]

I guess I'm not a growing kid anymore, haha ;-) It works for me. I can eat more and not really gain weight, but I find at this range I do pretty well.