Okay I don't get it. I know I've been kinda crappy about being OP lately but I didn't think I was doing THAT bad. The last couple weeks I've been gaining pounds again, nearly back to where I started...but I've lost inches in most places since the 2nd of Feb. I was down to 214.5 today the scale said 218, which is about where I was at when I came here. It's so freaking frustrating!! Arg, and I'm so over counting calories the last couple days too.

Measurements:
Feb 2nd:
Neck: 14.5
Bicep: 14
Forearm: 10.5
Chest: 50
Waist: 43
Hips: 49
Thigh: 24.5
Calf: 17


Feb: 24th:
Neck: 14
Bicep: 14.5
Forearm:9.5
Chest: 48
Waist: 42
Hips: 48.5
Thigh: 26
Calf: 17.5

that is kinda odd. What kind of exercise have you been doing? Could be muscle mass and some water retention, but i wouldnt expect that to be pounds and pounds though. Are you careful to measure the same spot of each body part each time?

Mostly yoga with some WATP and a bit of ball work. And I do make sure to measure in the same spot. That's why I'm so confused! I thought about water retention too but that much?? I don't feel bloated or anything either, drinking lots of water and green tea too.

you COULD have 3 and a half pounds of water retention, i've heard people having more...I'm tempted to go with this hypothesis, but other people may have better ideas

These are my measurements and I weight more than you.

Chest: 46 1/4
Shoulders: 50 3/4
Bicep: R 15 : 14 3/4
Waist: 44
Hips: 50 1/4
Thigh: R (28) L (27 1/4)
Calf: R 17 1/4 L 17 1/2

This was taken by my trainer on the 21st....

Bodies are funny things Perhaps you are gaining muscle.

I am having the same problem, I was seeing a personal trainer, doing really well and then I lose inches and gained pounds, 5 pounds. If you get any idea what this is all about, please share! Good luck.

Glad to know I'm not alone! It does seem kind of odd for me that it'd be water retention, possible probably but with the amount i've been peeing (tmi i know) i don't see how anything is left! I drink a lot of green tea and water daily now!

THIS IS ME, TOO!

I have worked out with a trainer for six weeks. I run every other day. Track all my calories and am always on plan. And I have gained and lost the same two lbs! But the inches keep flying off... I don't get it. I am fitting into pants that I couldn't fit into before, but the weight remains the same. I'm getting frustrated, but I guess we should all be grateful that we're still shrinking!

Muscle weighs twice as much as fat- I'm not expert but, maybe....just maybe it's muscle gain?

This is happening to me too. I've just tried to stop weighing myself and going by how my clothes fit...it's hard to do though.

you. are. not. alone.

i'm getting SO FRUSTRATED. argh. someone, please find out why this is happening to us!!

There are many possibilities, but personally, I'd much rather lose inches than pounds. You can see inches on your body, you can only see pounds on a scale.

The instructor in one of my gym classes told me yesterday to never step on a scale, to go by the way your clothes feel! I like her advice!!

How often do you weigh yourself? Have you ever weighed yourself every day?

The reason I ask (you don't have to answer) is that for me, 3.5 lbs can be a normal weight fluctuation (I'm assuming it's the weight of water retention and any remnants of undigested food still in the intestines). In fact, I can fluctuate up to 10 lbs. or more (at least when I'm not on bc that eliminates periods). My PMS water retention can easily exceed 10 lbs, even when my eating has been completely on-plan.


There are so many variables, that you can't determine what's going on, but you do have some clues.

If you've been eating off plan, it could be "real" weight (you can gain in different spots, so it might be that the regain settled on a part of your body you haven't been measuring (maybe wrists, ankles, neck, face....).

It could also be water weight, perhaps from extra sodium in your diet, exercising, or your natural hormonal cycle (which is why I asked if you weigh every day). If you record your weight every day for two or three months, you would start to understand your natural patterns of fluctuation, especially if you also recorded everything you ate, so for example you might see that you gain 5 lbs a few days before your period, or that you gain weight after eating chinese food, etc.

Two weeks, and 3.5 lbs, for most people (especially women) just doesn't provide enough information to make any judgements. It's frustrating only because we expect instant results. Imagine if you started a new job and quit on the second day because you hadn't been paid yet. It's a dumb example because "everyone knows" that paychecks generally don't get issued daily (there are exceptions, and a person used to being paid every day might be upset to learn that they're "only" getting paid every other week, or worse once a month).

What makes weight worse than paychecks is that the schedule is rarely predictable, and there's not always a clear association between working harder and getting paid more (not saying the association isn't there, but it's not always easy to see). Imagine taking a job in which your boss tells you that you will get paid, but on a random schedule, it might be every couple days or every couple months (there are jobs, especially commission sales jobs where this is the norm, and most people find those jobs quite stressful).

None of what I've said is meant to discourage you. On the contrary, I think as long as you understand the "pay system," you will be able to relax and feel more confident, but you can't read more into the scale or the measuring tape than is there. They're both tools to gauge your progress, but can't really tell you overall how you're doing in a small amount of time (and two weeks is a very small unit of time where weight loss is concerned), only over time, in the long haul can you make the connection between your plan and your success.

It doesn't have to be inherently frustrating. Frustration is a factor of unrealistic expectation, not fact. So you've got to learn to talk yourself down from frustration. Your progress has been great so far (even if the 3.5 gain is "real," which I'm doubting).

kaplods- that was such an inspiring post. I too, am one is is gaining (13 lbs!) while still completely on plan. The thing is I can FEEL that I am healthier, I look healthier, and my clothes are fitting looser and looser. I am starting to feel like maybe I shouldn't weigh until March 1 then April 1.... Is that crazy?