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“I’m Working So Hard, but Gaining Weight. Why?”
The Reasons Explained…
This is an unfortunate question that I get all the time from some of my hardest working clients so I’m going to answer it by getting straight to the main points.
First, try NOT to freak out when this first happens, especially if you have seen good progress prior to noticing the increase on the scale. Second, we all know the scale is not the BEST way to measure progress, but I do know it is the most common, unfortunately. Too many times the scale has shattered the self esteem of some my hardest working clients. Too many times the scale has been the cause of defeat. Lets talk about the reasons why our weight may be up at certain times.
- MUSCLE SWELLING– This is often seen when you are a beginner starting a training program for the first time or when you are a seasoned lifter going through an extreme change in your programming. For example, changing from a Power Lifting Program to a High Intensity Interval Training Program. But, whether you are Strength Training or Endurance Training either way you are putting a certain amount of stress on your body which will cause a break down of your muscle fibers. The good news is that they will rebuild- better and stronger than before. To repair torn muscle fibers your body will naturally retain water to aid in the repair process, causing swelling. If you are a seasoned lifter then you may have heard of DOMS (Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness) which is common to occur after an intense training session. If you are having intense training sessions day after day then the stress on your body will re-occur before ever fully recovering. Your body CAN adjust though so don’t be discouraged. Your body will need time to adjust to this way of training, but when the swelling and water reduces then the muscle will be more prominent.
- DEHYDRATION– So, we discussed muscle swelling and water retention in my first bullet, but dehydration goes right along with it. Dehydration occurs when you do not have enough water in your body for it to function 100%. When your body in dehydrated then it will naturally try to retain every bit of water it has to function- often causing a spike in weight. If your training hard every single day, having sweaty sessions, eating healthy, but gaining weight then you may want to start logging your water intake. It is very important to always set a daily water intake goal, especially when changing your style of training because when you change the intensity of your training sessions then you are also changing the amount of water your body will need to push through it.
- CARBOHYDRATES– If you have ever been a client of mine then you know that I do not encourage any type of elimination diet for a healthy individual. Too often clients come to me with weight fluctuations and trouble losing weight after many years of crash dieting (or eliminating Carbs on and off). Carbohydrates are your bodies primary source of energy and after years of eliminating them on and off then your body will start to develop inconsistency with processing them normally which results in damaging your metabolism. Lets compare it to someone who has been VEGAN for years then they eat an entire steak. I don’t think that’s going to go very well with their body. But, the point being that your body needs Carbohydrates to use as fuel, but they can also cause water retention. This is especially true for someone who has been guilty of crash dieting in the past. The only way to re-adjust your body and work on fixing your metabolism is to re-introduce Carbs slowly- usually starting with adding them in after a workout so your body can immediately start processing the glycogen during recovery. Please know that Carbs are going to cause some water retention no matter what and when you try to eliminate them to lose weight quickly then you are going to lose a ton of water retention quickly. This is not a TRUE FAT LOSS. This is only a temporary fix to a problem that will be back as soon as you add Carbs back into your diet.
- BUILDING MUSCLE MASS– This is a little more exciting than the last 3 bullets because the number on the scale rising (or staying the same) could actually be encouraging. When working towards specific fitness goals like gaining muscle mass, muscle definition or toning up then a weight increase is often a positive outcome. The reason this is a good thing is because muscle actually takes up less space than fat. So, if you lose 5 pounds of fat, but gain 5 pounds of muscle then your body composition will change, often resulting in definition of your muscles. Maybe a picture will make it clear. This picture was taken 1 month apart. The picture on the left was taken first. After a month of training he weighed in four pounds heavier in the picture on the right. Obviously, he had some muscle gain.
- HORMONE FLUCTUATIONS– Okay, well I saved this bad boy for last because unlike the others it’s a little more complicated. To state the most obvious hormone fluctuation we will acknowledge the fact that us lucky ladies get to experience this once a month. This is when bullet 1 though 3 work all together as 1 to really try to defeat us. During this time we will have muscle cramping that causes water retention, dehydration causing water retention and often increased carbs causing water retention. So, yes a spike in weight is normal for a few days. But, its not normal for it to stick around. If you are male or female and you have been actively trying to hit a fitness goal without any success I encourage you to talk to your doctor about checking your hormone levels. Some symptoms to look out for are: constant fatigue, hot flashes, trouble sleeping, sudden weight gain, hair loss and the list goes on… Checking your hormone levels can also put your mind at ease so I encourage men and women to do this regularly.
TADAAAA!!!
I’ve explained your temporary weight gain. I hope this helps to ease your mind and encourages you to keep pushing towards your goals!!
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Awesome article and inspirational to eat the right foods and keep moving forward regardless of what the scales say