Please help me! I'm doing as much as I can and nothing!

[chula05]

I've been exercising every other day for a month (an hour of walking, sometimes 2 and Tae-bo) and eating less and more healthy and i've actually gained weight and my clothes fit tighter!!! I lost 36 pounds before prom doing the same, but actually eating less than I should (bad I know) but I kept that weight off for 3 months and went back to eating normal.

 

Then over summer gained 10 pounds cuz I got lazy. So I tried to get back to working out and I've gained 14 pounds and my clothes fit tighter than before and my face is starting to fill out. What's going on!!! Oh and I went to my doctor and he thought I was lying. He was like come onnnn, you can tell me if you didn't really ever exercise, you just better start now (since he saw I gained a lot since my last check up).

[Wonderland]

Its the joys of growing up and being a woman. I lost 20 pounds before prom. I was actually down to about 120lbs by prom. Gained again (despite exercise & whatnot) and ended up being 157lb!! After another diet, I'm now back down to 135lbs. As you get older, your body changes... weight is harder to keep off

[chula05]

I understand that (which is unfortunate for all us girls haha), but I don't know why I gained all that in one month because I started exercising. Is there nothing I can do? My doctor didn't believe me and didn't try to help. My clothes fit tighter in one month like they did before prom which took years to accomplish.

[jna35]

Well.....it could be muscle weight gain if you've been working out, but I would be concerned of the sudden weight gain too and have some bloodwork done to rule out Diabetes or maybe a thyroid problem. A woman's weight can fluctuate by more than 5 pounds on any given day so it could just be you are retaining some water too. Do you drink a lot of water? If not, you should, it can help flush things out, watch your portions, but by all means don't starve yourself! Also, exercise in moderation. YIou don't want to over do it. Too much of anything is not a good idea.

[Jonboy582]

Basicaly you have to have to burn more callories than you eat. That and only that is how u can burn off fat. Try a calory controlled diet eat a minimum of 1900 calories a day (thanks thats right dont hold me to it). And try and burn off like 3000 a day on average, then in no time your weight will have dropped. Eat any less than that and your body will go into starvation mode and u will hold fat easier.

 

edit: Just read your post more thouraly, the reason you gaining weight is cos of the fact YOU DID NOT EAT ENOUGH BEFORE. That means your body conserves every last bit of fat encase you start to starve again, thus you thought you were helping but you broke the golden rule of dieting, "not eating enough". Eventualy with a sensible diet say around 2200 calories your body should bring itself out of the "starvation mode" and then you can loose weight normaly.

[Maria1980]

I know this may sound kinda lame.. but your metabolism is not fast.. I mean as said, this might sound lame.. but drink green tea.. apparently is boosts up your metabolism....

[chula05]

thank you guys so much for the replies! um yeah im thinking i should get bloodwork too, but if my doctor didn't believe me the 1st time, I think i should go to another haha. Yes, i drink A LOT of water. It's my fave drink and i dont drink soda or anything. I watch my portions and eat healthy but im still in the rut.

 

Oh thats the strange thing. When i did eat less than i should i kept that weight off for 3 months and even ate normal again after prom and stayed at that weight so i was happy. it was when i started exercising and eating right that it caught up with me. it is very odd. It's not jus weight gain though, but my clothes fit now like they did before i lost the 36 pounds in the 1st place.

 

Yeah, unfortunately i do have a slow metabolism, how does green tea taste? i might look into it. thanks again for all the suggestions

[chai714]

Consult with a professional regarding your diet and exercise. A nutritionist can help you achieve your nutritional goals, which have a direct effect on your workout results. When you eat is almost as important as what you eat. Of course, each person's metabolism varies according to your genetics but anyone can look good with hard work, dedication, and a somewhat discipline diet. You don't have to live off of brocolli and water to look good. Cheating is also healthy, so long you use cheating as a reward for working out and sticking to a healthier lifestyle. Good luck!

[BellaDonna]

but actually eating less than I should (bad I know) but I kept that weight off for 3 months and went back to eating normal.

 

You're yo-yo dieting. What you did there was you trained your body to think it was starving and put it in starvation mode. When that happens- when you finally do EAT- your body will hold on to the fat and calories (because it's trained to not know when it's next meal is going to be so it holds on to the calories to survive) When you went back to eating normally- you already made your metabolism slower due to the starvation mode- so your body held on to everything. In order to lose weight, you need to EAT. The foods you eat much be healthy and in the correct portions. Meals should be balanced. I used to think eating a fat free yogurt with an orange was a good lunch- but I'd still gain weight #1 because I was not eating enough- and #2 because the meal wasn't balanced- I was missing protien since yogurt and fruit are mainly carbohydrates.

 

I'm going to give you a few "golden rules" of lifestyle changes that have worked for me. I lost over 35 pounds and have kept if of for over a year. I tried everything before from shakes to quick fixes...to weight watchers.... Here's the only thing that worked

 

*Instead of eating 3 big meals a day- eat 6 smaller ones...about every 3 hours. These meals should be low in bad fats, high in fiber, and balanced with both proteins and carbohydrates. Servings of meat should be the size of your palm...and carbohydrates should be no larger than the size of your clenched fist- green veggies are unlimited.

 

Sample Day of Eating for me:

 

Meal 1: Wheat English Muffin with 1tsp natural peanut butter, orange, chocolate whey protein shake. Multivitamin.

 

Meal 2: Reduced fat 2% string cheese with an apple

 

Meal 3: 1 cup fat free cottage cheese- 1 cup fat free yogurt

 

Meal 4: Turkey on whole wheat bread with lettuce and tomato- (no mayo!) Spinach

 

Meal 5: Lean beef (size of plam) with small baked potato with fat free butter spray on it. Broccoli, green beans

 

Meal 6: Small pizza made with 100% whole wheat flour, fat free mozzarella cheese and marinated chicken breast. Romaine salad- 1tsp extra virgin olive oil & vinegar for dressing.

 

*Meal 6 should not be within 2 hours before going to bed

 

*drink at least 8-10 glasses of water per day- drink them BEFORE each meal....you get full easier

 

*Do cardio 3 days a week, first thing in the morning on an empty stomach- for 20-30 mintutes you will burn more calories. Cardio that worked best for me: Taebo Advanced video, treadmill, bellydancing, stationary bike. Switch it up often- your body easily gets used to exercise and it loses it's effect. Keep shocking your system by alternting different different cardio weekly so you don't plateau.

 

*weight train for the other 3 days of the week alternating between upper and lower body. Upper body: triceps, biceps, shoulders, back, pectorals - lower body: claves, quads, hamstrings, abs. Lifting weights will not make you bulk up. That's a fallacy. 99% of women on this earth do not produce nearly enough testosterone to bulk up. Instead you'll just tone and tighten your body and create sexy curves. When you weight train- your muscles must re-build themselves after- this process of muscle recovery allows you to burn calories when you're at rest. It also boosts your metabolism.

 

*Exercise 6 days a week (3 cardio days, and 3 weight training days-as stated earlier) on the 7th day you should REST. You should also allow yourself a cheat meal on that rest day- like your favorite food- anything is allowed in a cheat meal, in any portion: brownie sundaes, french fries, whatever you want. Do it guiltlessly- it's you're reward for being good for the whole week. Believe it or not - a cheat meal is actually GOOD for your metabolism once a week. It tricks your body into thinking it can eat whatever it wants and avoids the dreaded starvation mode.

 

*Check your bodyfat percentage- not just the scale. The scale doesn't tell you everything. A pound of muscle takes up much less space in the body than pound of fat. There's a huge difference between a muscular woman who weighs 150 and wears and size 6, and a woman who has a high bodyfat percentage who weighs 150 and wears a size 12.

 

This is a lifestyle change- not a diet that you go on and off of. I have a very stubborn genes and it's the only thing that ever worked for me. I go the principles of it from combining 2 programs: Body For Life link removed (got the book on e-bay for way cheaper then what it sells for) and Burn the Fat Feed the Muscle link removed which comes in the form of an e-book.

 

It also can't hurt to have bloodwork done because a thyroid condition can cause you to gain weight no matter what you do.

 

However in this case, I think this happened due to the yo-yo dieting.

 

I hope I didn't put you to sleep,

 

BellaDonna

[Maria1980]

I dont like the taste of green tea, I think it tastes horrible.. lol but I have been driking it for a month and what can I say.. I got "used" to the taste.. but some ppl like the taste of it.. Im very picky when it comes to food but for my health, I do it

anyway you should really try it.. hey you never know! It gets rid of the "bad" stuff in your body

[BellaDonna]

I dont like the taste of green tea, I think it tastes horrible

 

I drink green teas also. It has a very strong grassy taste. I like it- but you can get flavored kinds. The peppermint flavored kind masks the taste quite well.

 

 

BellaDonna