Unexplained Weight Gain

[SteferstheGreat]

I am getting so confused / discouraged, and I can't make sense of my weird weight gain / loss over the last week or so. First, let me give you the stats.

7/15 - 241.3

7/16 - did not weigh

7/17 - did not weigh

7/18 - 260.5 - private fitness lesson with a trainer (pilates)

7/19 - did not weigh

7/20 - 258.5

7/21 - 255.3

7/22 - kickboxing class / did not weigh

7/23 - did not weigh

7/24 - did not weigh

7/25 - 235.9 - kickboxing class

7/26 - 234 - kickboxing class

7/27 - 258.6

NOTE: I weight at pretty much the same time each day (between 6-7am) not counting weekends. My diet has not changed except for lowering my soda intake substantially, and my bowel movements have been regular and usually occur in the afternoon on a daily basis. I'm not on any medication, don't have food allergies, am not gluten intolerant, and nothing has changed about my daily routine except for my monthly cycle and adding exercise. Also, I drink around 2-3 liters of water per day.

As you can see, there is a 20+-lb drop and subsequent gain, and I seem to be fluctuating pretty wildly. I have no idea what's going on, and today's seeming 24.6lb weight gain (I weighed twice on my Aria just to make sure and got the same exact results) is leaving me feel completely lost.

Now, my period began today, which would make sense for maybe 10 lbs of that, but 24 lbs???? I typically gain 2-3 lbs during my cycle, my clothes are fitting the same, and I don't feel poorly. The only thing I can think of that might have had some sort of effect is that I've been taking kickboxing classes (have taken 3 classes and worked up one hell of a sweat / muscle soreness over the last week), but I can't figure out why that would attribute to weight gain instead of loss.

If you have any words of wisdom or encouragement, that would be greatly appreciated, because I'm about ready to throw in the towel and resign to being a fatass for the rest of my life.

Peace.

Stef.

[Cushman68]

Hi Stef!

First, don't you dare throw in the towel! We all know this is a process not a race. Yes, that much of a weight gain/loss in just a few days seems excessive but I am sure there is a reasonable explanation for it. I am not a doctor so I don't really have much to say on this but it could be a combo of your TOM, plus maybe water weight... have you eaten a high amount of sodium lately?  I know you said your diet hasn't changed so maybe not.  Do you track your muscle mass? I know the day after I lift heavy I could be several LBs heavier since muscles retain water for repair.  I would say it's a combination of a few things happening at the same time... Maybe go a week with no muscle work for max repair time, low sodium, a lot of water and weight again. If you're still getting these wild flucuations I'd say go and see your doctor.

[Ukase]

My best guess - your scale is broken. 

Can you weigh yourself on a different scale? Maybe borrow a friends just for a week? 

If I were you, I'd buy another one, keep the receipt and use both scales to see if this variation occurs with both. 

Even if that 20# were water - that would be about 20 pints (a pint is a pound) or 2.5 gallons. Unlikely that you're drinking that much. 

The only thing that makes sense in my mind is your scale is garbage - like a lot of Fitbit products - which are great, but the quality control is lacking in many cases (in my experience with the One) 

Also - try this: get on the scale, weigh yourself. Find a 10 pound weight, or 5 pound weight, whatever you might have laying around - and then get on the scale again and see if the scale reflects the additional weight correctly. 

Just to be real sure - make sure your scale is not on carpet, but a hard surface, like a tiled floor. You also want to be sure the scale is mostly level - if one corner is lower than the rest, that could impact the reading, depending on how the scale was manufactured. 

[Dominique]

When reporting what you’ve been doing for the past 12 days, I see you’re putting a lot of emphasis on the physical activity (kickboxing and all). All you’re saying about your eating is your diet hasn’t changed. However, weight loss is typically 80% about nutrition and 20% about exercising. Some people say you cannot "out-exercise" a poor diet, and I believe it is often true. My advice would therefore to focus more about what (and how much) you are eating, and less on exercising. Exercising is important, but it’s going to support your efforts with nutrition (not the other way round).

Another thing is there are only so many calories you can burn during high-intensity exercise like kickboxing, because no matter how intense it is, you can only sustain it for relatively short period of time, especially if you are overweight and out of shape. I would therefore suggest you focus (at this stage) on low-intensity / low-impact exercise that you can sustain for a longer period at a time and more often. For instance, walking 1.5 hours 5-6 days a week.

Finally, 12 days is a very short period of time to draw any meaningful conclusions about the way your weight is going (whether it’s up or down). Weight loss is more like a long-distance run than a sprint. Also, weight loss is not necessarily linear, and doing great on one day (or even two days in a row), whether with eating and/or exercising, will not necessarily show immediately on the scale.

[dogenzenji]

Exercise is great. I think you need to look at controlling calorie intake as well. If you are doing HIT like kick boxing you will build muscle mass which weighs more than fat. If you can get hold of a scale that measures fat and muscle mass as well as weight it might hold the answer.

[shipo]

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@dogenzenji wrote:
...build muscle mass which weighs more than fat.

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While technically true, the difference isn't as much as you might think.  Consider the following:

• Average weight of 1 liter of human fat: 0.96 kg
• Average weight of 1 liter of human muscle: 1.06 kg

Said another way, fat weighs only about 10% less by volume compared to muscle.

[Dominique]

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@dogenzenji wrote:
If you are doing HIT like kick boxing you will build muscle mass which weighs more than fat.

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I know it is very tempting to think you could be losing fat, but building even more muscle at the same time, which would explain a net weight gain. Unfortunately, it is very unlikely to happen, especially over a short period of time, for a woman and with high-intensity/mostly aerobic activity like kickboxing, Besides losing fat requires you are in a caloric deficit, whereas you need to be in a caloric surplus for optimal muscle gains. "Unexplained" short-term weight gains are usually caused by water weight.

[emili]

@SteferstheGreat- if I were you, I would do things in this order: 1) check the scale to make sure it is accurate as @Ukase suggested. 2) follow the advice on nutrition and points to remember that @Dominique mentioned.

Unless you are building muscle and didn't mention it in this post, it is not the fat/muscle argument. Its impossible. If you are retaining water, you would feel like you are retaining water -especially during your time, so I agree with you that there might be a two pound difference but not the number you shared.

More important don't throw in the towel. Honestly there is always a very good explanation why people gain or stay the same. It just takes patience, self honesty and a little detective work to figure it out.

[Bobbinyc]

You've gotten some great advice so far.  Do you feel like you have gained weight?  Are your clothes fitting differently?  I can't imagine it not being the scale.  That said, if you really are eating the same (and I assume it is healthy) and your scale is working, get to a doctor.  Something isn't right and you need to be a great detective and find out what it is.  

[kittyhuckster]

Get thee to a doctor to have your thyroid tested! I was in ballet training 17 hours a week minimum, not overeating or eating junk, and gained 10 unexplained pounds in just two weeks.

Because of my age, I went to the doctor and asked for a test for menopause, thinking that might be causing it. In the course of the massive bloodwork he did, he found I had acquired hypothyroidism. It's been a few years of working with the meds to get the correct dosage, and when I step up exercise, I have to re-do the bloodwork and get adjusted to counter the extra load.

Unexplained weight gain such as yours could be the red flag for this. Make sure the doc takes TSH, Free T3, T4, testosterone (yes, this is important!!), and progesterone, at the minimum.