What could be more frustrating than working out regularly and gaining weight? You strength train and do cardio, but you’re stuck at the same weight week after week. Even worse, you step on the scale, and you’ve gained a few pounds. What gives?
First, understand that not all weight gain is body fat. If you’ve lifted weights for a while, you’ve gained muscle tissue and that will increase your weight. No need to fret since more muscle means a healthier body composition. But what if you’re following your body fat and it’s going up too? Here are some reasons why your weight is going up even if you’re exercising regularly:
You Outeating Your Workouts
You made a smart choice by starting a regular exercise program. But if you’re fueling those sweat sessions with high-calorie, low-nutrition foods to fuel your workouts, you might be defeating the purpose of working out. It’s easy to overindulge in snacks and calories when you’re trying to meet your body’s energy demands but that can lead to weight gain and it doesn’t supply your body with the macronutrients and micronutrients it needs for exercise.
Then there’s the problem of overestimating how many calories you need for a workout. Studies show people think they burn more calories than they do during a sweat session. One study found that subjects thought they burned 150 more calories than they did. If they based their post-workout meal on how many calories they thought they burned, they’ll take in too many.
It’s easy to underestimate the number of calories in the foods you eat too. For example, coffee isn’t just a coffee when it has cream and sugar. Plus, that muffin you’re eating with it is probably more than one serving. It’s easy to get fooled into thinking you’re eating fewer calories than you are.
The solution? Keep a food journal and write down everything you eat for a few weeks. It’s a reality check.
Exercise is Increasing Your Appetite
Another problem is that exercise can increase appetite, especially in women. The effect of exercise on appetite can vary with the intensity and duration of the exercise. Studies are conflicting on the issue, but it’s important to know exercise has the potential to cause you to eat more. For example, researchers found that subjects who exercised each day experienced more hunger and ate more calories than subjects who didn’t exercise. Another study showed that subjects ate more food after exercising than those who didn’t work out. It’s great that you’re burning more calories but don’t assume you can indulge in all the junk food you want because you’re physically active.
You’re Sitting Too Much When You Aren’t Working Out
If you do a 30-minute workout, it’s only a small part of your day. Even if you give it your all, you can only burn so many calories during a single exercise session. What are you doing the other 23.5 hours of the day? A single exercise session won’t make up for sitting at work and parking in front of the television after work. One study found that women who watch more than three hours of TV every day are 51 percent more likely to be overweight than women who watch less.
Focus on what you do between workouts too. Find opportunities to add more motion to your day and take more movement breaks. Stand and walk more and sit less. Standing burns 30 more calories per hour relative to sitting. It’s a small change you can make for better weight control and health. Look for the stairs and climb them at a fast pace. Take walks on your breaks from work. Break up the time that you sit with movement.
You’re Focusing Too Much on Cardio
Too many people think hours of cardio is the solution to losing weight and are surprised when the scale moves in the wrong direction. Cardio is a calorie burner, but strength training builds metabolically active muscle tissue and improves your body composition. With more muscle tissue, you’ll burn modestly more calories at rest. One study found that subjects lost more weight when they did both cardio and strength training.
You’re Not Managing Other Lifestyle Factors
Losing weight is more than what you eat and how much you move. Managing stress and getting enough sleep counts too. When your body is stressed by too little stress or physical or emotional stress, it causes a rise in the stress hormone cortisol. When cortisol goes up, you feel hungrier and crave snacks high in sugar.
Your body needs nutrient-dense foods to stay healthy, not refined carbohydrates and sugar. Make sure you’re managing stress and prioritizing sleep. Most people need at least 7 hours of quality sleep per night. Be sure you’re giving your body enough recovery time between exercise sessions too. Never go more than three days in a row without a rest day where you don’t exercise at all.
The Bottom Line
Now you know why you exercise and gain weight or don’t lose weight. Don’t forget, even if you don’t lose weight, you’re getting stronger and more stamina. That’s worth it too! maintaining or even losing weight is staying consistent with your regular exercise routine, eat healthily, manage stress, and get enough sleep. If you fall short in one area, it makes it more challenging.
References:
- Berthiaume MP, Lalande-Gauthier M, Chrone S, & Karelis AD. Energy expenditure during the group exercise course BodypumpTM in young healthy individuals. J Sports Med Phys Fitness. 2015 Jun; 55(6):563-8.
- Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research: May 27, 2019 – Volume Publish Ahead of Print – Issue – doi: 10.1519/JSC.0000000000003192.
- “How to Reduce Cortisol and Turn Down the Dial on Stress ….” 27 Aug. 2020, health.clevelandclinic.org/how-to-reduce-cortisol-and-turn-down-the-dial-on-stress/.
- “How Exercise Affects Your Appetite | Berkeley Wellness.” 01 Mar. 2011, berkeleywellness.com/fitness/exercise/article/how-exercise-affects-appetite.
- PLoS One. 2013; 8(11): e80000.
- Published online 2013 Nov 13. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0080000.
- Harvard Health Publishing. “Exercising to Relax”
- “Relationship between sleep quality and quantity and weight ….” pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22402738/.
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