Can someone please explain why I'm gaining weight??

[okilydokily]

I made a few diet and lifestyle changes on Jan 3rd (OK, so maybe I haven't been doing it long enough to see results, but usually with diets like 5:2 or WW I lose weight quickly!). I used to take 2.5 sugars in my tea - I've cut that out. I've also axed chocolate, cakes, biscuits, puddings etc. I've reduced, but not eliminated, things like pasta and bread. I've cut out alcohol. I have been running between 8 and 10 miles a week. I am trying to eat more fresh fruit and vegetables, and I cook things from scratch. I've also cut out processed meat like ham and bacon.

I've gained 2 lbs. I am starting to get pissed off!! Friends have said "it's not about weight - it's how your clothes fit". Well, my jeans are noticeably tighter, and my tummy is just as flabby and bloated as ever. Any advice, anyone??

Portion control

Even if you are eating "healthy" food, too much of it will unbalance the calories in/out thing

I can't recommend the Myfitnesspal App enough- it got me to really get to grips with portion size during last year (shocked me a bit!). It's a pain measuring things etc but after a while you can judge by eye what is a suitable portion. It also makes "forgetting" the odd snack harder! I lost 10lbs just by eating less (I exercise quite a bit anyway).

Also bear in mind that any gain due to Xmas excess is subject to a bit of delay so your gain may be down to that. Keep going! Muscle dies weigh more than fat so inches lost should also be your goal. Mix up the exercise too so you are working all bits and not putting your knees through too much trauma with the running

Two weeks isn't that long... What you are doing sounds really tough good, carry on another couple of weeks?

The only thing I can think of is that you are gaining some muscle from the running.

How are your portion sizes?

How old are you? Weight just sticks a lot longer past 40 IMO.

TBH I can gain weight on fruit very easily, apples are a bit of a trigger food for me.

I was also going to suggest My Fitness Pal. It really does help you see where exactly you could be eating stealth calories.

It's too hard to gain muscle that quickly, more likely you are holding more water - is your period due? Ovulating? Sometimes even exercise can make you gain water as the muscle draws more water towards it to help with the tiny tears caused by new exercise, this is all temporary and will not impede your fat loss. Try recording your weight on a daily basis to get an idea of how your weight naturally fluctuates due to water retention.

As you've cut out most weight, why not try swapping the bread and pasta for rice cakes and rice.

I would try that for a week and eat more protein.

Otherwise it sounds like you are doing everything right.

Edwina currie lost a stone in the two weeks she had in the jungle. I don't think they had any wheat products , just rice, beans and a bit of protein. Bit extreme I know. They were very hungry.

Thanks very much, everyone, for all your input! I'm 34, but I seem to be finding it much harder to get down to my ideal weight after having my second child! I managed fine when I only had one.
I think portion size might be the problem. I'm not letting myself go hungry. If I've felt hungry, I've been having a few nuts/seeds or gluten free crackers with peanut butter. I'm quite possibly eating just as many calories as before, but drastically less sugar!! I do feel better - more full of energy and my skin has improved. I might try doing the 5:2 again, but sticking to no sugar and no alcohol anyway. I'm on the pill so I'm not sure if my weight is as likely to fluctuate throughout the month as if I weren't on the pill. I know I'm being impatient - it's just annoying to think that I weighed less when I was having regular treats of cake, flapjack, chocolate, sugary tea and wine!! I'm going to persevere until mid February at least.

Tea is horrible without sugar :-(

Nuts are very healthy but high in calories. I'd try to find a different snack or if you want the taste of nuts nakd cashew bars are yummy and have about 130 calories.

So don't drink tea!! I strongly believe that if you persist in something that is not giving you joy you will give up! I'm totally against cutting anything completely out- for a start what happens when you stop your "diet" and start eating "normally" again? You know the answer to that! So little things like don't have a bickie with -every- hot drink during the day but really savour one on -one- tea break. It's good to feel a bit rumbly before a main meal- you enjoy it more, and you will get used to smaller portions very quickly.

I think I will end up just not bothering with tea - I keep waiting for it to start tasting nice without sugar, but it ain't happening yet! I'm not trying to do anything too extreme, because I know I won't be able to maintain it. I'm just trying to reduce all the obviously unnecessary things. If I end up eating something sweet once or twice a week, that'd be fine. And I'm not cutting out alcohol forever - just for January. I've tried to come up with something that I'll manage long - term. I'm not struggling with it - not really missing all the sweet things to be honest. I just thought I'd see results more quickly! Nuts might be my problem though! I'll do MyFitnessPal and will find out where I'm going wrong!

Have you tried fruit tea or mint tea?

Or the other alternative is still having sugar just not as much in Jan, then reduce it a bit more for Feb and a bit more for March etc until there will be no sugar.

I think it's really difficult to set your own diet. How long since you had your baby? Speaking for myself it took a good year for my metabolism to get back to normal. The issue about posting on here is that everyone has different ideas. Personally I disagree with too much portion control because no one can cope long term with being hungry all the time. For me after dd2 ww healthy and filling worked for me as for most meals I could basically stick to it long term without feeling I was missing out.

I suspect you are eating too many calories! Snacking on nuts and peanut butter will up your calories really quickly. You really need to calorie count if you are serious and you may need to accept that losing weight means allowing yourself to get hungry between meals.

Snack on veg if you feel hungry. Portion size do need to be reasonable and eat slowly, finish with a large glass of water. And give it another week before deciding it's not working. You can lose 5lbs of water overnight, it would be a real shame if you gave up due to water retention.

Thanks again, everyone. I'm now pretty sure my total daily calories have stayed roughly the same - all I've done is to eat less sugary food and introduce more fruit and veg (and nuts!). So it makes sense that I'm feeling healthier but staying at the same weight.
Tobysmum - my baby is now 22 months, so my metabolism should probably have recovered by now. I don't need to lose that much - 7 lbs would be great. I'm going to carry on but watch my calorie intake. How do you know how many calories to have in a day?! Is it 1500 or so, to lose weight gradually? I have a very sedentary job Mon - Wed, and i run around after 2 kids Thur - Sun! And I'm running twice a week and doing one yoga or pilates session.

Hi OP sorry not read all the posts but could you consider eating more protein?

Before I got pregnant I used to eat lots of boiled eggs, chicken breasts and tinned/fresh mackeral.

Protein keeps you fuller for longer. I also used to use an amazing diet protein milkshake (sorry I can't remember what it was called).

If you go to My Fitness Pal, it will ask you some questions on height, weight, how many lbs do you want to lose etc

It will then work out what amount you should be looking at

I agree re the protein. I also think lean protein where possible, so all that is suggested above. But also eat pulses where possible instead of bread. I think it takes more work for your body to run off protein rather than fat/ sugar so you dont get hungry as quickly plus it's good for your metabolism. There's a bit of an obsession on mn atm with 'fat doesn't matter', it may not be as bad as sugar but that isn't really the same thing.

I originally set out to lose a stone after dd2 and ended up losing not far off two stone. It's stabilised now.... bmi of 21 and with the same figure as that age!

My doctor told me when hungry to snack on protein. It does keep you fuller for longer.

Yes I do get hungry between meals also.

I think if you haven't actually reduced the number of calories you are eating, then you have your answer.

I would definitely cut out the peanut butter for a start. Even the sugar free versions have a crap ton of calories in them.

Really you need to work out your BMR and then cut a few hundred calories off of it if you want to see any weight loss.

But overall it's a great step to have improved the overall quality of your diet.

What about sweeteners in your tea? I know they're not the best for you, but may help a bit.

Are you on any medication?

I've dieted successfully once before, lost over 2 stone on WW.

Then I had kids, put on weight and for various reasons ended up on ADs. Nothing I did would shift the weight, WW didn't work, my fitness pal didn't work, I dieted/worked out for 7yrs without shifting a single pound.
Only stopping the ADs worked. god knows what was in those tablets!

Just a quick update for anyone who might be interested (I'm not assuming anyone is!) - I've signed up to MyFitnessPal and in order to lose 1 lb a week, I should be eating 1200 cals a day. I've been eating more protein (tuna, chicken, eggs) and really trying to avoid bread and pasta. I'm feeling less hungry, so maybe I'm getting used to post-festive season amounts of food, or maybe it's the protein filling me up. I'm 2 lbs lighter than my starting weight, and 4 lbs lighter to what I shot up to on my peanut butter based diet of a couple of weeks ago!! I'm enjoying eating new and different things, like pomegranate and puy lentils (not together!) and as a family we're snacking less and eating fewer processed foods. So it's all good! Thanks for the advice. Spidey66 I can't stand the taste of sweetener, unfortunately. And I'm not on any medication, sanquhar, apart from inhalers for asthma.

Excellent news okilydokily

That is definitely brilliant news well done. Really nice to come back with an update, thanks

Brilliant! Keep it up