Why am I putting ON weight?

[Daffodilpup]

Can anyone help? I read all this stuff about what you should eat and do and what you shouldn’t and it all mixes up in my head so I decided to go simple.

I did a calorie counter and worked out to lose a pound a week I needed to eat 1700 calories. (I’m 14 stone and 5ft 3)

I did this the first week and lost a pound. Week 2 ,3 and 4 I have regained that oound and another 3!

I have started doing weights too so have heard the theory that while I might be loosing fat I will be gaining muscle but don’t think that’s the case when I’m bigger that when I started? Would understand if I was the same. Also I’m only lifting 2kg and 4kg weights as I’m a beginner.

just getting fed up that I’m eating healthily and in a deficit and exercising (walking too) and I’m bigger than when I started.

Simplistically, calories in is currently greater than calories burned.

Well, you're going to get a lot of arguing and conflict on here around what constitutes healthy eating, but if you want to share what an average day's meals look like, then I'm sure people will try to help.

Alternatively, Dr Jason Fung does an excellent podcast available free on Spotify called The Obesity Code, which challenges a lot of current ideas about 'healthy eating' and might help.

(Including the simple calories in calories out model).

Also a lot of information about how the body actually processes food.

I did the bmr calculator and only require 1200 cals per day. You could try that. The majority of people underestimate the cals, not counting things like sauce, salad dressings and the like.

Are you adding on calories for your exercise? It's notoriously difficult to accurately work out how many calories you burn when you exercise so you shouldn't add 'exercise calories' on.

The other thing that strikes me is you're only talking about the difference of a few pounds here which could just be normal fluctuation. It sounds counter intuitive but it can be good to weigh every day. You'll be amazed how much your weight fluctuates day to day but you should see a downward trend.

I don’t think I’d survive on 1200 a day but may have to see if it helps.

so breakfast is usually bran flakes with milk and a banana. All weighed out. Lunch is a salad - tuna or chicken with a little mayo - again measured out or if I’m really hungry I’ll have a fresh soup and seeded bread. Dinner varies - jacket potato and salad, last night was chicken potatoes and peas, sometimes pasta. All weighed and calculated. I walk 10k steps most days and do 20 mins of weights 3-4 times a week.

I feel so fed up gaining weight. Wouldn’t even mind if I was staying the same but gaining! Might as well
go back to little exercise and snacks again as getting nowhere!

If the only exercise you’re doing is those weights, I’d be surprised if your maintenance calories is 2200 and therefore 1700 to lose 1lb a week. Or are you doing other exercise? How old are you?

You're not going to be building much muscle from weights that size I'm afraid, particularly not to gain 4lb in a couple of weeks. It could be fluid retention if you're new to exercising, or quite simply, you're eating too much.
Are you tracking calories and weighing everything you eat?
Are you drinking more water than before?
If you have periods then you may get a monthly pattern of fluid retention too. I never lost weight the week before my period was due.

I don’t add on exercise calories. I’m 45 and do around 10k steps a day too.

Calorie counting is dubious. It makes you obsessive, and not all calories are equal. Not to mention the fact that many food labels aren’t accurate.

are you eating mostly veg, a bit of meat, and no sugar?

Exactly. I don’t see how the weights can make me gain 4lbs when they are small weights as im just starting out. But at the same time im
eating a lot less food that normal so really think I should be loosing and not gaining.

Are you weighing every day of the week and then averaging it each week to see if there's a decline that's the best way. If you only weigh one day you won't get a true number, you could need the toilet, be holding more fluid due to sodium intake, could be hormonal.

I don't think 1700 is the right amount of calories for you to lose a pound a week.

Especially as you are a short woman.

I'm the same height and weight as you. I'm five foot three and fourteen stone one pound.

The calculator I used told me that to lose one pound a week , I need to eat 1400 calories a day.

1700 calories is not right if you want to lose weight. You'll maintain weight eating that amount.

Use another weight loss calculator.

Walking is better than nothing for your heart but absolutely useless for losing weight. It’s 95% diet and 5% rigorous exercise

I wouldn't jump down to 1200 but maybe drop a hundred and see where that gets you.

You're not a nibbler are you?! I'm a terrible nibbler, little corner off this, a couple of pieces of that and before you know it I've nibbled through 200 calories.

No im weighing once a week. I don’t want to become to obsessed but I really do need to lose weight. I make sure I weigh first thing in the morning after going to the toilet to make it as accurate as possible.

I don't think 1700 calories is right.

Online weight loss calculators don't factor in people's height properly.

If you're short and five foot 3 is short, you need to eat less calories to lose weight.

I'm eating 1400 calories at five foot 3. And I've been losing weight.

How often are you weighing yourself and what time of day are you weighing yourself?

Weighing in the morning after going to the loo is best for consistency. If I weigh myself in the even it can vary by a lot depending on what I have eaten or drunk that day.

It can still vary a fair bit in the morning. I weighed a pound more this morning than yesterday but I am not concerned as the overall trend is that my weight is going down.

You may still be eating too much to lose and just be gaining slower that you were previously.

Walking and those weights won’t be doing much for weight loss.

1300/1400 is more realistic to lose 1lb a week at your age, weight and exercise level.

No not a nibbler. Im really being careful at the moment. I might try a new calorie calculator. Any recs? Can’t remember which one I used. Tempted to go back to slimming world as lost weight in that before and this time never give it up!

I disagree that walking is useless for losing weight..the more active you are the more calories you'll burn. I lost some weight with a PT last year and when I stalled a couple of weeks , she'd drop the calories and up the steps and that tended to get things moving again.

I use my fitness pal and find it really good.

Weigh every day and note the trend over time, you can fluctuate massively day to day depending on lots of factors, particularly hormonally. Manage your expectations, 3 weeks is not really long enough to see a significant difference, especially if you’re not weighing daily. Also do photos/measurements as the scales are not the only marker of progress.

If you’re on IG follow someone like ESGfitness, I’ve learnt so much.

Ok I will try 1400 calories and will stop the exercise. I just can’t get any bigger!

This is not true. Walking is good exercise and any exercise will contribute to weight loss, as long as you aren’t eating way more than you should.

I’m currently losing weight and my food intake is under control, but I notice a difference in how much is coming off whether I do more walking or not.

Don’t stop the exercise, it’s still good for you!