Weight loss girls . . . need encouragement

[peach]

I have aparently gained 6 pounds in 3 days. WTF.

And I have been eating egg whites with cheese for breakfast, salad for lunch ( and homemade, not loaded with dressing or nuts or anything...literally a giant bowl of kale and veggies.) healthy snacks and small portions at supper.

I did give in and eat a couple of chocolate chip cookies last night but it's not like I binged on them.

And my pants are tight.  And it's not that time of the month so it's not bloating. And I am drinking water, although probably not enough.

[demandypants]

Are you counting calories at all? Because I agree if you are not eating enough you will have problems loosing and then it could lead to eating bad snacks because you are really too hungry. But you can't actually gain 3lbs of fat over 3 days, unless you eat like 10500 calories in those three days. It is most likely a difference in water in your body. My weight differs through the day by around 3 lbs. And over the course of a week I can see the scale fluctuate over 5lbs. But I make one day my official weigh in day. and I weigh myself at the same time (after my morning trip to the bathroom). I am not saying I don't step on the scale more often, but the official day is the only one that really matters and I try to remember how crazy it fluctuates.

Don't be discouraged! This is pretty normal and just keep sticking with your plan!

[MrsMB]

Exactly what demanypants said.

Also if you are eating things high in sodium, that could be causing some additional water retention.

I look at fitness and weight reduction as a marathon. You just gotta keep going one step-at-a-time. It's hard for me to see results on weight reduction because I pack on muscle so easily.....I get frustrated for sure. It sounds like you're doing great.

I agree with counting the calories too even just to make sure you're eating ENOUGH to be able to burn. "My Fitness Pal" is a good one.

[Deleted]

Track your calories and workouts. It doesn't appear you are eating enough. Also, around AF I gain 3-5 pounds and am severely bloated. I also notice dairy makes me bloated as well as sugar/too many carbs. There is no way you ate 21,000 extra calories (if you are eating what you mentioned) in 3 days to gain 6 pounds.

It usually takes me about 3-4 weeks into a diet and exercise routine to see results.

[emoflamingo]

I am not the best at it, but I think using MFP is a great resource. It's free, there's an app for your phone (I have an android, so yay for them doing android apps too!) so you can do it on the go.

I avoid it on days I know I'm going to be awful (like on weekends or days when I just need to have a huge ass cookie) but I try to look at what I'm eating during the week days because I will snack like no one is watching if I'm at work.

Make sure your getting enough protein too. I know eggs have plenty so your morning is probably fine, but I'd add some grilled chicken to your salad. Not a lot, just a little.

[treedimensional]

Apr 17, 2013 10:04:33 GMT -5 peach said:

I have aparently gained 6 pounds in 3 days.

And my pants are tight.  And it's not that time of the month so it's not bloating. And I am drinking water, although probably not enough.

It in NOT fat, it IS water. Your pants are tight because it IS water bloat. It has nothing to do with your menstrual cycle.
1 lb = 3500 calories. 
6 lbs = 10500 calories. 
Did you eat an EXTRA 7000 calories a day on each of those 3 days? That's 7000 over and above what you burn. No? I didn't think so. You'd have to pig out all day, every day.

Now lets do some WATER math.
2 glasses of water = 1 lb.
4 glasses = 2 lbs.
6 glasses = 3 lbs.
8 glasses = 4 lbs.
12 glasses = 6 lbs.

You're body is about 98% water. On a hot day, I can lose 7 lbs in one afternoon. I don't get excited because I know that I will gain it all back the next day.

Please calm down.

[emjacobs]

Also I remember seeing in the other post that you did a "cleanse" over the weekend. Don't bother with that shit again. They don't work (proof given by the weight gain). Your body doesn't need a cleanse, you have wonderful organs that do that for you. So unless you are in organ system failure and your not pooping your body is doing it's job and cleansing.

Start tracking your calories and your water intake. Look at the foods you are eating, are they high in sodium? Plan your rough daily eating, all meals + two snacks. Throw a baggie of nuts / seeds / dried fruit into your purse and the diaper bag so that if you need something to eat you have it. My biggest problem is portion control, I get the "american" sized meal and I feel obligated to eat it all in one sitting because it's there. Slow down while you are eating, take breaks, you will find yourself not eating until you are stuffed and still feeling satisfied.

[peach]

I don't think I need to calm down...I am just annoyed.

yeah, I tried a cleanse my friend was pushing me to do. there were no products or anthing, it was just that stupid dr oz juicing one where you have smoothies made with veggies, fruit, almond butter, etc. basically all day long. She raved about how it gave her tons of energy and she started sleeping better at night and her skin looked amazing. She kept saying I HAVE to do it so I gave it a go.

I didn't do it to lose weight - it was just like a jump start into eating healthy and forcing myself to cut out sugar, etc. I didn't expect that any weight I lost would stay off...if you read my post about it I gave it a big eye roll. But I do feel better having done it and I notice that it's much easier to get up in the night with the baby and wake up in the morning this week. Whether that's from the cleanse or not I don't know but I wasn't doing some weird lemon water diet or anything.

I gained all the weight I lost from the cleanse back the next day, and then I gained another 2 pounds since then. Every day I get on the scale and it goes up another pound. I weigh in the morning, before I eat every day. I know daily weighing is not the most accurate it's just a bummer when I feel like I am FINALLY getting my shit together in the eating department and I see a gain every day.

I don't think I am eating too few calories. I am tracking at least a few days a week on MFP, and I am usually within or over my goal calories by 100 to 200. yesterday I was over by 250 or so. I don't weigh and measure my food but I try to eyeball portions and I always try to err on the side of recording that I ate larger portions than I did....if I am not sure if it was 3/4 of a cup or 1 cup, I say 1 cup.

For those of you who use MFP - is there a way to enter recipes? I make all our food from scratch so it's hard to calculate. I don't know how many calories are in a 1/2 cup of my homemade spaghetti sauce, and using their generic "Spaghettti sauce, homemade" entry is probably not completely accurate.

[emjacobs]

There is a way to enter recipes, are you using it on the website or on an app?

[MrsMB]

I would also recommend purchasing a food scale to help with portion measurement. I learned I was OFF in what I assumed was the correct oz measurement and such. I bought one for $20-$30 at my grocery store and it's working pretty well.

[peach]

the app

[peach]

I have a food scale, actually. I need to dig that thing out. I have done it in the past, I just find weighing and measuring everything doesn't work long term for me - I am busy busy busy all day, I eat half the time standing up, or I eat two bites and have to abandon my meal and come back to it 2 hours later some days. I need to be able to grab and go, so unless I spend the night before pre-portioning my food I find it hard. And honestly I know I won't stick to preparing everything the night before long term.

But I think even doing it for a week or two would give me a better idea of what proper portions are, if I am underestimating how much I am eating.

[mrs.jacinthe]

You know, I occasionally have this problem, too. I'll be doing everything right and my weekly weigh-in will be up 4-5 pounds. But my next one is down 6 or something like that, so I've learned not to get too excited (or depressed) about any one weigh-in.

How many calories does MFP recommend for your goals?

[emoflamingo]

There is! I am about to log stuff, so let me look for where you go Peach.

Food tab => Recipes => Enter new recipe

I have a link at home that I can dig up that I use as well to find out the breakdown, but I am not home so I'll have to do that tonight.

[MrsMB]

It sounds like you're slammed like me. I don't know if this would help. But I take about 20 minutes each night to cook some chicken to throw in my lunch bag for protein along with some other "quick fix" items. On my way out to work the next morning, I literally run, grab then bag and throw it my car on the way to work. Having it already made has been a saving grace for me because I have zero time to make anything during the day. I would eat something that wasn't super good just because I didn't have the time.

[Deleted]

Have you had the up and down 3lbs in a couple days issue before or is it new?
I was one of the lucky ones who could weigh the same thing consistently for months. Then I had kids. Now my weight is up and down by 5lbs daily. It's annoying as sh*t. No denying that.
My dr. told me that it was basically hormonal fluctuations and it may or not ever really level out with time. I've come to accept it, but it was hard for awhile, esp. when I was trying to drop baby weight.

I also notice if I don't drink the same amount of water everyday, the days I have less I hold on to more of it.