Weight gain while weight lifting

OP I was in exactly your position in December. I started following a structured plan in October, pretty much banished UPFs and my weight crept up to over 11 stone (I’m 5ft 9). It was definitely water weight (confirmed on the body analysis scales at the gym, which I take with a pinch of salt but they’re a decent enough indicator). Kept consistent (even over Christmas) and lo and behold I’m down to 10 stone 9 and steady losing here and there. More importantly I feel great, I feel better in my clothes, and I’m starting to see definition. Keep going, most people would give up at this point. The results are worth it I promise!

Here’s my observations from years of stop starting exercise and diet.

exercise drives my appetite. I can’t diet and start a new exercise plan. It doesn’t work.

so, the choice is cut calories and no exercise, or walking/general NEAT. This means I can reduce what I eat and lose weight.

or, start exercising, and eat as well as I can. 3 meals, one snack. No messing with IF, low carb etc, a balanced diet to fuel the exercise. If I cut something out like carbs it will all go to shit as when I exercise I need carbs. Same with IF, I’m fine until I’m “allowed” to eat, then I can easily overeat because I’m so hungry.

accept I will gain weight because my appetite will increase. Eat meals, don’t try to skip or cut down.

then after about 3 months on a new exercise plan everything stabilises. Appetite drops, and I can start reducing portion sizes, upping veg to protein/carb ratio etc, and generally lowering calories. This is when the weight starts to come off.

stick with it. Build new habits, get them established, then tweak one thing at a time. Tweak calories, or leave them alone and increase exercise. Find that balance that suits you and your lifestyle.

I've tried intermittent fasting, low carb and the NHS app. Low carb combined with weight training was the most successful for me, but that was more than 20 years ago... It took me about 3 yrs, however, to get down from 15st 4 to 10st 12...and I put it all on again once I had to stop going to the gym.

In the end, my own illness, full-time working and caring duties did for me. That's my excuse, anyway. Now trying to get back on track.

Get tape measure out. The loss might show on measuring rather than weighing

Sadly, raw nuts, double portions of avocado, unlimited 'local real sourdough from the posh bakery' and larger portions of salmon, as UPF free as they are, all contain calories and they all add up.

I second the posters above. Tracking is the only thing that works.

And FWIW I am very muscly and have predominantly used 5kg dumbells along with a 12kg kettle bell for swings, for 6yrs since I last had a gym membership. And I have very shapely arms, visible quads and that weight is absolutely adequate. Consistency is the key really. Don't just do this for 6 weeks and then stop.

I've been doing weights 3 or more times a week for 10yrs. I've been know to take my weights with us on UK holidays. And if we rent a house abroad i do bodyweight. On family holidays in hotels, I use the gym while my family are still sleeping.

Never give in! You are eating too much if you are not losing weight.

I am 5ft6 and during lockdown lost 8lb that I put on in the heady days of the first three weeks of staying in the house and eating too much. I was doing a weighted HIIT routine 5 days a week (pma fitness) with 5kg weights and walking 6 miles a day.

But the thing that made me lose the weight was the 1200 calories I was eating. The weights just made me look good.

I am firmly in peri meno, aged 47 and been on HRT for over two years.

I weigh the same as I have done for many years, about ten stone ( usually just under).

DO NOT GIVE UP.

Another thing to add: Be careful of overeating due to exercise. I’m really bad with this. ‘Oh, I can eat these extra things because I did a workout’. That’s definitely a mentality that will derail your progress.

e.g. I did a 45 intense training on the bike last night, and I only burned 310 calories. I could eat 310 calories in about 30 seconds if I’m not paying attention!! Even my post-workout protein yoghurt has 220 calories, which is more than half of what I burned!

Thats why, as tedious as it is, you need to track your food, at least in the beginning. You can ease up once you’re confident in how much you’re eating.

Firstly, track your calories and make sure you’re getting enough protein. It’s really hard to eat enough protein unless you’re really diligent about 20-30g minimum at each meal and snack. How many grams is your goal per day?

Secondly, if money allows get a scale that measures body fat and muscle. My overall kilos fluctuate quite a lot based on whether I’ve been to the toilet, am on my period, had a high-sodium meal the night before etc. I pay more attention to the body fat % and muscle weight. If they are trending in the right direction then I don’t worry too much about the overall weight.

Finally, like pp have said, other measures like how tired you feel, how your clothes fit, how strong you are, how much energy you have etc. are really important and you shouldn’t stress about your weight at the expense of those.

Just wanna say: well done being consistent! It’s really hard and you’re doing great. It’s very inspiring to me.

What about your clothes? When I do more weights o start looking better in my clothes long before I see it on the scales.

Don’t be fooled into thinking that eating more protein automatically makes you gain muscle and/or lose weight. Excess calories from protein get turned into fat the same as from any other food. You have to be working really hard to need extra protein for muscle growth and most people get sufficient protein from a normal balanced diet.

I've been exercising for about a year, but with some breaks for illness, etc.

I've only lost 17lbs. (Started out at 16st4. I'm nearly 65 and 5ft 9.)

My weight loss has slowed down to a minimal level, but my GP says she's noticed the difference and I've dropped a dress size.

5kg dumbells won't make much difference to muscle but it's great that you have made a start. I would focus on eating lean protein and veg at every meal (or fruit if you can't face veg at breakfast!) and not too many carbs/fat. Take photos of what you eat in a day and look them at the end of a day/ week so you can be honest with yourself about overall consumption. Include drinks. Look up portion sizes so you don't over eat. You can do it!

People always talk about weight gain when exercising being muscle and I looked this up once to find that it takes professional body builders, months and months to actually put on a few lbs of pure muscle on its own

When I exercise I put on weight on the scales, some of it is water, I get quite swollen for some reason, Im only a walker, nothing else. But I know I eat more, I get ravenous and eat more than I burn off. Im getting fit, healthy, emotional better, better balance and strength etc but it puts weight on me.

This happened to me when I started also. I remembering googling and lots of websites talked about the fact that when you start, your body may hold onto excess water - something about tearing muscles etc (I am no scientist) Anyway, over the months, I have lost weight but also, my body shape has changed and people have commented on it. So keep going!

It's only 6 weeks, you expect some fluctuations in that time.

I'd still say track your calories, protein can still amount to a high amount of calories depending on quantity, are you in a deficit?

I’ve been weightlifting since I was 30 ( now 41)

It’s actually quite hard to gain weight /muscle. That’s noticeable on the scales. You’d have to be lifting a lot more than that to gain muscle mass and weight. And eating a lot of extra protein.
For example. Based on myself.

At age 41, 5ft 2 and 58 kilos. I should eat around 100grams of protein a day to build.

Google what that looks like! It’s a lot.

Are you tracking your calories?

I've gained roughly 3lb since starting to heavier about 9 months ago. No other change to diet or exercise. Tape measure says limbs getting bigger (they feel firmer) and waist getting smaller.

It's just a shame that on paper it tips me to BMI 25 🙄

I'll stick with gaining the muscle though.

As you say, it is trial and error. You mention trying to eat more protein. Do you mean you have added proteins to your diet or removed something in favour of proteins? Is it a shake or real food? It is possible, you calories intake went up and this is why you are not losing weight.