weight gain?????

T

teppy

Active Member
I have been preparing for the STS. I have started my 1RM's and to do so, I had to order a bit more equipment such as a new barbell, hand weights. I have really upped my weight training as a result of this too.

I am not trying to lose weight, but I notice that I have gained a few pounds since intensifying my strength training. Its a bit upsetting even though my clothes fit the same, although a few pounds should not change the fit of my clothes any.

I just really want to know it this is normal? I know that I should not put alot of emphasis on what the scale says, but I do. I weigh myself everyday. This is the only way that I will never let myself get out of control.

I am 44 and 5'5" and was weighing 129-132, and now in the last couple of weeks, its risen to 133-135. I am starting to get concerned now. I am eating the same amount of calories everyday(1200-1500) and actually have been really hitting myself harder on the cardio. I do atleast 40 minutes of cardio everyday except for Sundays on top of the weight lifting.
I ususally laugh to myself when someone who doesn't do any form of excercise tells me, "you shouldn't lift all of that weight, you are going to gain weight by doing that."

Please give me some advice here.
 
Hi Teppy,

I don't have an answer for you, but I'd just like to say that I can relate. I'm training for a marathon right now and burning crazy amounts of calories (on my 16-mile run last week, I burned 2000 calories!!), but even though I'm eating just the "right" number of calories to keep my weight stable (I went to a nutritionist to figure out the right number), I'm gaining 1/2 lb to 1 lb every week. I'm 5'5 as well and have gone from 127 to 129/130 in the last few weeks. I wasn't concerned at first because I thought fluctuations of 1/2 lb to 1 lb were normal, but now I see that over the last 4-5 weeks I've basically been creeping up, so I'm not really liking this trend LOL.

I've also been measuring myself and have gained 1/2 inch in my waist over the last few weeks, something that I didn't think would happen.

Not sure why the trends are going in the wrong direction for me, but I have to say it's every bit as frustrating as it is baffling. I've been careful to eat fairly clean since I upped my calories from a "normal" (1600-1700) level to my training level (1800-1900), so it's not as though I'm stuffing myself with Doritos and fried chicken and cookies or anything; I'm eating lots of fruits and veggies and whole grains and lean protein.

As I said, it's all a mystery to me and I'm a little discouraged, though hesitant to change up too much, since as the runs get longer, the more important it'll be for me to keep properly fueled. I'm scared to cut calories too much, lest I screw with my training, but I'm definitely not happy to see both the scale and the measurements creep up little by little :(.

Hoping Cathe or others can have some advice!
 
I'm not alone. I hate to hear about whats happening to you too, but I'm not the only one. The more that I work out, especially weight training, the hungrier I get it seems. It feels like a 'hole' in my stomach sometimes if I don't get that snack in between meals which is usually a protein bar. I eat healthy too. I have a crazy mindset, my kids will tell you that anyway, that Burger kIng, mcdonalds, chips and dip, etc... are poison, and shame on you if you eat that. Its just the way we live. I'm getting my required calorie count from the workout manager nutrition program that i signed up for a 1 month period to see if I like it. It told me 1200-1500 calories a day. I just finished an hour of Rhythmic step. I made it into a circuit workout by using my bowflex in between each cardio section. I like to change up cathes cardio workouts like that sometimes using the bowflex. So, that made my total workout time this morning a hour and a half.

This is nuts to be gaining the pounds after all of this everyday! I have been killing myself for the past two weeks doing this trying to take the weight back off and it will move a lb. or two every few days, but it seems like it goes right back to 134-135.

I hope that someone chimes in soon here with a possible answer for both of us.
 
I know for me, I didn't loose any weight, but everyone asked me if I lost weight. I just toned up:) I'm 46 years old and weigh around 132-135. I'm actually a size smaller, though my weight didn't change, I'll take it:) Kay
 
Kay,
I can realate to that too somewhat. I am a size 2, but I know that if I didn't have muscle tone, I would not be at around 130 lbs.. For most of my life before I ever started working out, I was usually around 140 or so, not much more than i weigh now, but always a larger size.

I guess I'm just kind of freaking out now because I have been pretty stable as far as my weight, size with the my workout regime. Now, for some reason I've gained a few lbs.

I figure its either due to harmones(age) or from adding the extra weight to my workouts lately. I do have alot more muscle tone lately. Even I can notice myself. Sometimes I get so used to seeing myself everyday that I dont really notice subltle changes to my body. But, I do see changes in my upper body mostly. My legs and my butt have changed a good bit too.
 
I think hormones play a big role in this. I've also read that fluid shifts and weight gains can be seasonal as well.

I wouldn't be surprised if an increase in training and/or intensity throws the body into some kind of adjustment period. This is one of the reasons why I don't pay much attention to the scale number. I keep an eye on it out of curiosity, but I've watched the number bounce back and forth so much (while my jeans continue to feel like they're falling off of me), I'm convinced there's more going on inside me than I'll ever know.

If you're lookin' good, don't worry about it. :D
 
I can totally relate. I'm up about 3 pounds since I started lifting with Cathe. It also freaks me out, although it doesn't sound like much. Like you, my weight had stabilized at around 121 and I was loving it. I keep telling myself that it doesn't matter because my clothes still feel the same, and maybe even a little looser. It's just hard to know whether I need to keep on this course and not worry about it or change some things around. I've read past threads saying that Cathe has mentioned that she weighs more than you would think because of all her lean muscle mass. I hate being a slave to the scale, but after losing 40 pounds, and promising myself I would never re-gain it, it's hard to not be concerned.
 
Weight gain due to muscle gain

I'm not sure if this is the case for your weight gain, but I have found out for myself that because muscle weighs more than fat. So if you up the weights you are training with, then you are builing more muscle, even if it is lean muscle, which is what happens for us girls, we don't really bulk up, but the muscle gets stronger and heavier, even if it takes up less space than fat. It is a funny little mindgame to me.
Before I worked out I was a six in my best days and weighed about 120lbs. Once I started working out, I noticed that my body kept shrinking beyond what I ever thought my body could and yet I weigh 126lbs now and a size 2/4 depending on the cut.

The heavier I lifted for legs, the skinnier my legs got but I didn't loose any weight.

I hope this helps you understand what may be going on.

But then, I'm no professional, I'm just sharing what I have noticed in my own weight journey.

But I agree with the other poster who said, if you look good, don't worry about it.
 
It's TOTALLY due to muscle gain - I guarantee it. If your measurements aren't changing, and your clothes fit (or are even looser in some cases) - then ignore the scale. I still weigh myself regularly, but put more stock in measurements and the way my clothes fit.
 
I gained at LEAST 5 pounds after starting with Cathe. Before that, I used to run 6 days/week and weighed 86 lbs (I'm only 5'0 tall). Now that I cut some of the cardio and have added weights I can fill out my jeans and actually had to get bigger sizes to accomadate my thighs and butt! I probably look healthier, but it was really tough mentally to have to go UP a size. My theory is - if you don't have much fat to lose, then you may gain muscle faster from weight training rather than losing weight like someone who may not be as fit to begin with.

Bethany
 
From what I've read and heard thru the grapevine...don't sweat the scale. I don't even own one, I go by how the clothes fit. I get weighed at the Dr.'s. In the last 5 years, I've gained 4 lbs. Not bad. I've been doing Cathe for 3 years, I "blame" it on muscle gain. If the clothes fit,...:) Kay
 
In responsr to the hungry part, I'm hungriest AFTER dinner. I tend to graze. I TRY NOT to eat after7pm. Not always succsessful, but at least I try:) And I try to keep healthy snacks, which is hard w/ 3 kids who always say there'e nothing good to eat around here! Then my middle DD started working at Dairy Queen, need I say more. KAY
 
I can't speak for teppy, but I know my own micro weight gain is definitely not because of gaining muscle. My measurements are changing, too--albeit little by little, but they are changing, and in the wrong direction :(. My clothes are feeling a wee bit tighter (which makes sense, since my waist, especially, has gotten 1/2'" thicker in the last 6-7 weeks) and I look at photos of myself and I look "puffy" and not as lean and slim as I used to.

Which leads me to believe this really is fat gain, and it is puzzling because I'm supposedly eating fewer calories than I need to maintain at this high of an activity level (my nutritionist said I should be eating ~2200, but I'm eating at 1800-1900).

Sigh.
 
I am so happy to hear others talking about this! As much as I want to say that my 4-5lbs is muscle after losing 20lbs and keeping it off for the past 6 years I don't want to ignore it and then 5 becomes 10 or even worse!

i feel like I exercise like a nut! Sometimes I wonder if it's too much and not enough rest? As far as eating goes my problem I think is getting enough calories. I have been used to eating about 1200 and I think my metabolism is stalled. So my plan is to measure and weigh myself when I start STS and to be REALLY good with getting enough calories and sleep and then to hopefully watch the progress and understand it. I think since STS is really designed to be used in a progressive fashion we will all have good results! Now when's it coming???

Lets keep our fingers crossed!
Elena
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Our Newsletter

Get awesome content delivered straight to your inbox.

Top