Disheartened: 8lb gain in 2 weeks!
 

I weighed myself yesterday after 2 rough weeks and found that I've gained nearly 4kg! I have been having a lot of difficulty staying on plan due to stress in my personal life and at work, now this just compounds the issue and makes me think "why bother"? It's taken me perhaps 3 months to lose that 4kg and only 2 weeks to gain it back!

Has anyone else come back from such a self-induced setback?

Oh yes. I just think of worse case scenario - that it is all real weight and not like water weight or anything. Even then, it is not so bad because the REAL key is that the "weight loss mindset" has kicked in. The worst is if you are unsure if you feel like losing weight, think that the gain is "no biggie" but the thing is you are taking it seriously, so as long as it is important for you to get back on track, then that is really the most important thing - you have the greatest "tool" (determination and desire).

It happens! Take heart in knowing that if it comes on really fast that it goes off really fast too. They always say that you lose the weight at the rate you gained it. Don't think of it as permanent yet, besides, you could be bloated and carrying water weight to or it's around the time of your monthly cycle - a lot goes into that 8lbs that's out of your control!

Stress is a terrible terrible thing, our bodies are not equipped to deal with this much stress in our lives on a daily basis. What has been really helpful for me is to aleviate that stress, and doing so lessens my anxieties around food. controlling stress is helping me control my appetite. I relieve stress through exercise, journaling, and chi gong. Lots of stretching too.

So sorry!!! You probably did not gain 4 kg of real weight. get back OP and water should escape your body in a week or so.

:hug:

I bet it's not all a real gain, some very well may be water. Keep going!!

Back in 2003 I lost all but 5p of pregnancy weight. I landed a desk job and gained back almost 35 pounds fast...of real weight. So from 182 to 140 then back up to 174. I was so pissed. I eventually got down to 150 and that's where I stayed for years until I found 3FC and then I lost the rest.

Don't give up.

I hit a 2 month plateau! Honestly my weight even went up! It's been so hard but I stuck to what I was doing (eating right and exercising) and kept moving forward. I also took some time, reevaluated what I was eating and realized I was sorely lacking in fiber and that I really needed to switch up my exercise route, and I FINALLY, after all this time, I dropped 6 lbs.

As others have said this is most likely water weight gain. We've all had those times where we had to set a new "starting point" and just like you it was normally associated with stresses in our lives. The fact that you were hear posting this sounds like you're ready to begin again! You can do it!

This happens to me frequently if I suffer through a couple weeks of binging or otherwise being widely off plan. It turns out that a significant fraction of the gain is some kind of fluid bloat that comes off within the first week of being back on plan. Depending upon how widely off plan you were, 2-3 pounds of that gain might be actual fat gain but I bet that you can shed most of the rest of it quickly by getting back on plan and sticking to it.

Hi everyone, thanks so much for your advice and support! I really hope most of this is water weight... I guess the next week will tell!

So true that I need to control my stress to be able to control my eating... I really need to get back into some of my hobbies but feel I just don't have time at the moment :-/

Word. I've gained up to 10 lbs of FAT in a month-and more than once. It sucks so bad, but what happens is the weight loss mindset kicks in and my motivation comes roaring back. It usually takes about 6-8 weeks, but I do get that weight back off!

And as long as you catch it and don't keep gaining, you are in control. When I put on a lot of weight quickly, once I start facing the scale again I'm happy with even the most minor losses...and am thrilled to at least no longer be gaining.

Don't worry, I lose and gain back weight all the time in the past. I once lost 12 pounds and I gained 20 back, the best you can do is pick yourself up, and finish what you started.