to cheat or not to cheat that is the question.... - 3 Fat Chicks on a Diet Weight Loss Community

mariamherrera · 04-14-2009, 06:33 PM

Obviously I shouldn't however... for the past 2 weeks I have gone to the gym 6 days a week! worked very hard doing at least 30- an hour of cardio and I am gaining weight!!! every day the scale goes up!!! I'm so over it! ugh I'm staying on plan averaging between 1400-1700 cals a day just like I was eating prior to working out. I have been eating closer to 1600-1700 more lately though just because the intense exercising gets me more hungry but still I'm with in range... and I'm not eating empty cals I'm eating good nutritious cals!

so for the last two days I thought I 'll stay at the lower end so I've eaten 1400 cals for the last two days and still the scale goes up!!! ugh.. I figure If I am going to gain weight I might as well eat the foods I want!

I don't get how when I was not exercising I was losing at a great pace and now that I am I'm gaining! I have been struggling to break outta the 270's for a month in a half now and I'm just losing my motivation... grrr

here's a sample menu this is what I ate yesterday please tell me if you see anything wrong with how I ate
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breakfast- one serving special k cereal one serving lite soy milk
banana, and a light yogurt

snack- apple slices one serving of wheat thins with one wedge laughing cow cheese

lunch- salad with grilled chicken breast cucumbers, carrots, grape tomatoes, one serving of croutons one serving of light blue cheese . and a cup of fresh pineapple

snack -one cup of cantaloupe and a small handful of mixed nuts no salt added, few baby carrots

Dinner 1 -4 ounce grilled chicken breast, with a cup of peas, one cup of pinapple

I feel like if I'm going to gain I might as well eat the big mac instead of the healthy stuff it's getting me the same results!

just as side notes I weigh in every morning at the exact same time wearing NO clothes AFTER I have gone to the bathroom... I have not been lifting weights I'm just starting with cardio so I don't' thin k I'm building muscle... however I have been very sore basically for 2 weeks straight! because I have only not worked out on Sundays since i started! and I'm no where near starting my period.. I don't get it... I just cant seem to shake this!

I posted a thread similar to this a few days ago I tihnk .. but it's not gotten any better

frustrated mom · 04-14-2009, 06:52 PM

Just by looking at your meals, it looks like you eat a lot of fruit. I would cut the fruit back and eat more veggies. Maybe try only eating 2 servings of fruit, and then fill in the rest of the fruit with veggies. It took me about 6 weeks to get use to my workout. Hang in there.

Misora · 04-14-2009, 06:53 PM

... this might be a kind of gross question but how much are you going to the bathroom? For the past week I had worked my hiney off and my weight just stayed the same or went up a little bit. I had been sticking to 1500 a day but mostly fruit or carbs and not a lot of fat or vegetables. Day before yesterday I had some healthy fats (I usually eat pretty low fat) and a lot of vegetables then I spent most of yesterday visiting the lady's room as it were. Today I found weighed myself and had lost 3.5 pounds. Yikes! Not to say that you should do something to promote this but I was really relieved to figure that several pounds of that was just hanging out and not there to stay. :P

happeningf · 04-14-2009, 06:57 PM

Just keep doing what you're doing for one more week, then see what happens. You never know with your body.

WarMaiden · 04-14-2009, 07:00 PM

I suspect you are way underestimating your calories. You are measuring rather than weighing your food, and from what it looks like you've got there--it could be more like 2000 calories, not the 1400 you think it is.

mariamherrera · 04-14-2009, 07:22 PM

no I do weigh my food.. and measure it... I make sure that it is true to an actual serving size but with the fruit chunks like pineapple on the daily plate it doesn't give the calories in ounces it gives it by cups so that's why I measure it that way

mariamherrera · 04-14-2009, 07:25 PM

I haven't been going to the bathroom as much as I normally do...maybe i will add some more fats in tonight like cook my chicken with olive oil instead of pam and put some avocado on my salad

I'll try it out one more week...

Mainah · 04-14-2009, 07:26 PM

But she has been using this method of counting her calories all along (I assume?) and it has been working. On The Daily Plate, I looked at each of her items, and using the highest values I found, she came in around 1600 calories for yesterday - right within the range she said she was at.

Also - and Maria, you know from another thread we are on that exercise is not my forte...lol! - but I believe I read that when you have worked your muscles to the point where you are sore, your muscles will retain water. I think the person who suggested waiting another week or so to see what happens was on to something. *shrug* I hear you though, it's frustrating when you do everything right and don't get results! Hang in there, friend!

gaarmywife2007 · 04-14-2009, 07:34 PM

I had that problem. I was exercising my tail off for about a month and a half and hadn't lost a single pound. Then, I switched my menu up and voila! eight pounds slid right off. The body is an amazing (and tricky!) thing. It gets used to your routine, and , when it does, the weight loss halts. Hang in there, girl! You've done so well, and it's totally worth it!

Rowenna · 04-14-2009, 07:51 PM

Don't eat something you know is bad for you just because you're not seeing results. Weight loss has a lot to do with your attitude toward food, and if nutritious food is only a means to an end for you, it'll be much harder to maintain your weight loss. It's important to think about being healthy, not just seeing the numbers you want. When you reach your goal, even though you'll stop losing weight, you'll need to keep up the good nutrition to stay where you want to. It's better to make good habits for yourself than to let your cravings control you. I know it's hard when you should be seeing results, but I bet if you are patient for a little while like was suggested, you will begin to see results. And think how much better you'll feel knowing you are filling your body with nutrients instead of junk.

mariamherrera · 04-14-2009, 07:55 PM

thanks mainah and army wife! exercise is not my forte either! i Still dread it and my muscles have been VERY sore for the past two weeks!

and yes this is way the way I have been counting my cals the entire time.. I have changed nothing with the exception of adding in exercise! and I was always under the impression you did need more cals on days you exercise anyways....

my trainer told me not to weigh my self for about a month after I started exercising anyways because the scale might do weird things.. but he never said it would just keep going up and up and up

perhaps I should have listened and not stepped on.... I can't stay away from it. and I'd figure with in 2 weeks I could at least have maintained! not gained... grr... anyways..

I think I'm going to try calorie cycling for the next week.... does any one know what the difference of the days should be how big should the space be between the calories day to day...? example I'd like to average 1500 a day so that would be 10,500 a week... how should I divide that up?

3Beans · 04-14-2009, 08:01 PM

It's possible no one will agree with me, but based on your stats it looks like you're not eating enough. If you really get stuck try bumping up your calories to 1800-2000.

Check out this calorie counter to see where I'm getting this.

willow650 · 04-14-2009, 08:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mariamherrera

no I do weigh my food.. and measure it... I make sure that it is true to an actual serving size but with the fruit chunks like pineapple on the daily plate it doesn't give the calories in ounces it gives it by cups so that's why I measure it that way

There is an App on Facebook called My Diet, it gives the option to give all fruits and veggies in grams. maybe you can find another place to log that gives the same option.

willow650 · 04-14-2009, 08:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mariamherrera

thanks mainah and army wife! exercise is not my forte either! i Still dread it and my muscles have been VERY sore for the past two weeks!

I could be wrong here, but I think if your muscles are sore, they could still be retaining water? Keep at it, get past the soreness, stay hydrated, the results will come.

primaballerina · 04-14-2009, 08:31 PM

Hi Maria,

When this happened to me, my ww leader suggested that I needed to eat more to make up for the extra exercise. I tried it, even though I was convinced that it wouldn't work....and it did! You might want to try calculating how many calories you're burning with your workouts and adding up to 200 calories to your daily intake (200 cals based on the WW points formula- they say you can eat up to 4 activity points in a day, and a point generally =about 50 cals.). I know it sounds counter-intuitive, but it got my metabolism moving again. I've given this advice to a few other ladies on 3FC and it's also worked for them..it may be worth a try!

I'm really sorry you're struggling with this! I know how frustrating it can be...your body WILL clue in soon. Don't give in to the big mac