Is it normal to gain a quarter of weight after starting a lifting program... (carbs, pounds)
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No, you just ate more. 18 pounds in a month is a 2,000 calorie/day surplus. Your hypothyroidism did not stop you from using any calories for a month. The only way to do that is by dying which apparently you did not do. Definitely things like Hashimoto's can screw with your hormone levels, but it's always as simple as calories in/calories out. Thyroid just controls a lot of the hormones which have a large impact on the calories out side of that equation
Nope, I didn't eat 2000 calories a day more. I ate exactly the same amount of stuff save a few a few extra coffees during the week. So not a big difference in food intake.
Calories in/calories out is not a simple formula. I get really frustrated when people claim that if you eat calories x a predictable change can happen. There are more variables.
Of course. Calories out is the other half of the simple equation.
The exception to that simple formula is water retention. Lots of things can affect that, diet, medication, disease, hormones, standing all day. One does not magically put on 16 pounds of fat, however, in a month without putting in 56,000 more calories in than they burn. The body is incapable of creating fat from aether. In most cases water retention is short-term. Stop eating crap, stop being ill, get hormones back in balance (eg menstrual cycle results in regular water retention for some women), stop taking medication. Other times it's not so simple. For that reason it's usually discounted. A woman who regularly gains and loses 5 pounds through her menstrual cycle, for example, would likely be aware of that and ignore the typical premenstrual weight gain from fluid retention rather than cutting calories and then gorging as the excess water weight was passed to maintain a constant weight on the scale through her menstrual cycle. None the less, over that example taken over a menstrual cycle it is just as simple as calories in/calories out. Day to day the numbers may vary with water retention. Over the long-term they do not.
In my observation, anyone who truly gains 15 pounds in one week has a kidney issue and isn't passing fluids. It's a true health crisis. No one packs on 15 pounds of extra weight by over eating junk food in one week. I would suspect your scales are off.
OP - I suspect you're like me. When I exercise HARD I have a stress reaction that shuts down my metabolism. When I work out in a gym and don't eat extra, I pack on fat. It's not pretty muscle, it's ugly fat. It's a cortisol stress reaction where my brain tells my body "something is horribly wrong, stop metabolizing food". I don't know what percentage of people pack on fat when they work out hard, but my trainer said I'm one of those. In private he said that, so other people sweating away at the gym and paying big bucks for the privilege didn't overhear it. ;D I can maintain a slim body by just doing fun recreational things - hiking, kayaking, gardening, etc. But when I work out hard on gym machines here comes fat.
Yes, people need to understand how cortisol rises when working out.
OP, if you just started the lifting program, muscles will often hold a lot of water for a short time, causing a weight gain. This happened to me a few years ago. Eventually it releases. Another option could be that you are actually not eating ENOUGH for the regimen you are on. I pretty much feel its the water retention, tho'.
Are you taking creatine or anything? I think that makes you retain water. Not sure, I don't take it but DH does.
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OP, if you just started the lifting program, muscles will often hold a lot of water for a short time, causing a weight gain. This happened to me a few years ago. Eventually it releases. Another option could be that you are actually not eating ENOUGH for the regimen you are on. I pretty much feel its the water retention, tho'.
When you read articles on Livestrong.com, please take a look at who is writing the articles. For example, that first article was written by Pam Murphy whose background is:
Quote:
Pam Murphy is a writer specializing in fitness, childcare and business-related topics. She is a member of the National Association for Family Child Care and contributes to various websites. Murphy is a licensed childcare professional and holds a Bachelor of Arts in English from the University of West Georgia.
I'm always skeptical of these articles because I rarely find them to be credible.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Mikala43
Are you taking creatine or anything? I think that makes you retain water. Not sure, I don't take it but DH does.
I've read that creatine can possibly cause you to retain water and that can contribute to a "pumped" effect when lifting and taking it. I've taken it for years and only noticed a slight weight gain while on it and lifting hard.
I've read that creatine can possibly cause you to retain water and that can contribute to a "pumped" effect when lifting and taking it. I've taken it for years and only noticed a slight weight gain while on it and lifting hard.
That reminded me that just last week DH asked me to check if our scale is accurate because his weight did a pretty big jump, and it showed my weight the same.
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When you read articles on Livestrong.com, please take a look at who is writing the articles. For example, that first article was written by Pam Murphy whose background is:
I'm always skeptical of these articles because I rarely find them to be credible.
Note the difference in low hydration (1:3 gylcogen/water ratio by weight) and high hydration (1:17) on muscle biopsy. Basically echoes other studies that while there's definitely water retention in exercise post exercise, it's not well understood or the 1:2.7 ratio, of course that's been know for a while now but interesting to see actual muscle biopsies in a fairly controlled environment.
Note the difference in low hydration (1:3 gylcogen/water ratio by weight) and high hydration (1:17) on muscle biopsy. Basically echoes other studies that while there's definitely water retention in exercise post exercise, it's not well understood or the 1:2.7 ratio, of course that's been know for a while now but interesting to see actual muscle biopsies in a fairly controlled environment.
That study looked at biopsy samples during recovery from prolonged exercise in the heat. Where in this discussion did anyone mention prolonged exercise in the heat? The OP stated that he started a new lifting program where he lifts 3 days a week for an hour or more. That is not prolonged exercise in the heat unless he turns the heat up to 105 degrees.
Nope, I didn't eat 2000 calories a day more. I ate exactly the same amount of stuff save a few a few extra coffees during the week. So not a big difference in food intake.
Calories in/calories out is not a simple formula. I get really frustrated when people claim that if you eat calories x a predictable change can happen. There are more variables.
I disagree, it is a simple formula. It may not be an exact science (most people are probably over/under by 100-200 calories per day in estimating their burn rate) but its reliable.
I've been working with someone who has studied the science of weight management for more than a decade and has debunked every popular myth about how it works. Unless you're a medical outlier experiencing a rare condition, if you're gaining weight it's because you're consuming more calories than you're burning and there's a logical reason why. People are notoriously bad at tracking what they eat and what the associated calorie impact is. If there are unexplained gains or losses, it's almost always going to be explained by analyzing consumed calories.
I'm sorry, I don't mean to be argumentative. It's just that I've hidden behind so many of the popular excuses and allowed myself to maintain an unacceptable fitness level for most of my life, even when not particularly overweight. It was only when I started realizing my colleague was right and embraced his approach to calorie management that I achieved my goals.
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