Weight Gain!

[Alisa25]

Today is Day 31.  I did not want to get on the scales but I did.. gained 3.5 lbs.  Very disappointed.  However, I know what I did wrong and would like to share with all the over 50 ladies out there.  Do not do this if you really do not want to exercise.  For years I was really good at exercising 4-5 days a week.  I had to let go of my gym membership after a move.  For a while I was really good at just getting out on my own, walking/running. But slowly I have become just plain lazy..   that WILL change!   Three years ago by choice, I had a complete hysterectomy, (Mother died of Ovarian Cancer) so I also have menopausal issues.  I really think this should be taken into consideration for women.  I have to believe out bodies just don't react the same.  About half way through I posted and listed what I was eating.  I got positive feed back that was on the right track so I really think I was eating good...  just maybe too much! Of course if I had added some exercise..  ?? 

 

So, with all that being said, I am coming away from this we some positives.  I have given up my 2 a day diet coke habit!  I do not miss dairy at all.  I do believe that grains are not needed in our diet. My almost daily bout of gas pains has completely disappeared!

 

 I have to admit that most women out there would be happy with my weight.  But for me a 3lb gain is unsettling.  I started this really wanting to see a 4-5lb drop!  I do realize I have to take the blame for the weight gain. So for all us over 50 women...   EXERCISE IS SO IMPORTANT!  Currently I'm in search of a really good exercise DVD!  any suggestions would be appreciated! 

[GFChris]

I'm happy that you got several positive benefits from the Whole30. I'm curious: did you measure yourself with a tape measure before and after?

[Alisa25]

Chris..  no I did not take any measurements.  But, I know I have not lost inches.. I can tell in my clothes.. Tummy is definitely an issue!  when I decide to try this again, I'll measure. 

[WunderHase]

To be fair, this isn't supposed to be a weight loss plan, but a health plan. Low body weight, or low body fat isn't something our bodies strive for. Stubborn body fat is stubborn for a reason.

Also, in my humble opinion, weight is an incredibly arbitrary number to measure anything outside medication or selecting downhill skis. Especially with women, as our water weight will fluctuate throughout the month. So many women stare at this one number and obsess, and guess what causes the weight loss to plateau? Obsessing and stressing (cortisol). By the way, excessive cardio does that as well when combined with calorie restriction.

Not saying you do this, but I've seen it so many times and it's so pointless. Weight says absolutely nothing about body composition.

[Tallulah Wolf-Angel]

Alisa, sometimes for us post-menopausal ladies it takes longer than 30 days to see results. My room mate and I (I'm 60, she's 59) both started Whole30 in mid-June. I have RA and am hoping to get off meds; she wanted to lose weight. By the end of the first 30 days I lost 15 pounds, which was likely the result of inflammation leaving my body. She has no real health issues, and lost 0 pounds and 0 inches.

 

Now we're early in Month 5 of compliant eating. She still has not lost weight, but the inches are really disappearing quickly for her now! She's wearing clothes that have been in the back of her closet for years, and all her underwear is too big.  I am also losing inches, especially in legs and hips, which have always been oversized, but I have GAINED 3 pounds in the last month. I'm pretty sure the gain is in lean muscle mass since I am still getting smaller.

 

I disagree with you about exercise. I hardly get any beyond walking 30 minutes 2-3 times a week, and standing up at work as much as I can (I can only manage about 45 minutes at a time). The thing is to get your body to make that switch to fat-burning. Once you get that going, you will lose inches, if not pounds. But it can take a while for older ladies.

[Alisa25]

I do understand that this is not about weight loss..  And I suppose if I would have weighed the same this morning as I did 30 days ago I would have been OK.  Its just a disappointment to get on the scales and see 3.5lbs more! And feel like my pants are tighter!   I do love this way of eating and I will try again, . probably just keep at it.  I haven't done anything different today.  I don't like that I have not been getting any exercise and I need to get back to it.  Guess I'm looking for something to really get me moving!  

 

I love the encouragement!!   thanks! 

[Karen]

Weight gain isn't always about calories in/calories out.  There are some good thoughts above, but one that I think we often forget about.  For me, I can gain 4 pounds of water weight just by ingesting a food that is fully compliant BUT my body really doesn't like.  Citrus, for example.  Great on a Whole30, unless you're sensitive to it like me.  Compliant hot dogs did it to me, too.  When you ingest something your body thinks might be harmful or it can't break down properly, it tries to dilute it so it's less toxic to the body.  Thus, weight gain and bloating.  

 

I'd encourage you to take a closer look at what you're eating and consider a food log to see if you can narrow something down.  Nuts are a big one for a lot of people, nightshades for others.  That might not be your problem, but it very well might be.  And eating a lower volume and working out more won't do a thing to counter that...  Trust me, I've tried! 

[Alisa25]

Karen,

 

You  might be on to something.  I ate a complicate sausage last night???  and nothing else except some mustard with it.   I came home tonight and did a 15 min tabata workout, have some brussel sprouts roasting in the oven.  I'm going to continue on for another 14 days and see how it goes.  My boyfriend just came home and after I told him I was going to continue on he said something about portion control!  OH wow..  I just have to let it go.  I know he's not on board with this and is one of those people that just doesn't want to believe.   I know this can work, and really want to prove it to him! 

[Alisa25]

So..  got on the scales this morning..  and wow.. the 3.5 lbs I saw the day before are gone!  I'll stay away from the scales and just know that yes.. your weight will fluctuate wildly at times. 

[WunderHase]

Let me tell you a little story about weight fluctuation :-)

 

I was on a very low carb diet, but to "reset" the hormones, I was supposed to do a "carb load" once per week. So I did my carb load, and by the next morning, I had gained 7-8lbs. I was just laughing at my scale. It didn't freak me out, because I knew what was happening: carbs store water, which is why people on low carb diets lose a ton of water weight in the beginning (and then later on much less). I was just thinking that if that happened to someone who was religiously staring at the number in the scale, they would have had a stroke at that point :-)

 

I'm actually seriously considering not taking my scale back to use. It's such a horrid device to have. I gain nothing from knowing how much I weigh. I'll just be comparing it to something else and be miserable, and there is no way I can directly and accurately influence that number.

[ChickenNoodle]

Hey Alisa, I am 45 and have always been slender. There have been many points, with a SAD way of eating, that I have been skinny-fat.

When I was younger if I felt I was puffing up too much I would just cut out sweets and the weight would fall off. Now I find that exercise is a must! How I eat seems to affect my mood and how I feel physically, but my waistline seems to have a direct connection to my workout routine.

I find that 30-60. Mins per day 6x a week is what it takes for me to look the way I want. I mostly swim and run with a little biking thrown in here and there. I highly suggest that all of us find the time to raise out heart rate for at leat 30 mins3x per week. Strength training is especially important for us 'older' gals. Even body weight exercises can do the job, I admit that I am not diligent about that but recognize the value in them.

[MeadowLily]

Reduced thyroid hormone leads to blunted fat loss.   When real food carbs are too low - cortisol is released to free stored energy to provide glucose to keep you going.  Having elevated cortisol all of the time causes more inflammation, adrenal fatigue and eventually metabolic problems.

 

Increase real food carbs (root vegetables).  They provide fiber and eating alot of vege is a must.  Eat 2-3 cups at every meal.

 

Women are more susceptible to problems from real low carb eating because cortisol is chronically elevated.  The body turns pregnenolone into progesterone.   Progesterone then makes cortisol and aldosterone.

 

Together they lead to more fat storage and fluid retention....and the metabolism does not work properly anymore.  If you've tried VLC and have plateaued for months, it's time to switch everything up.   Eat your root vegetables, green vegetables and fruits in moderation...especially if you're a woman.  Remember the good dietary fats.  Try more compliant olives, too.

 

Are you familiar with the HCG (human chorionic gonadotropin - pregnancy hormone) diet?  This crazy fad is still around in some places.   HCG shots and drops were used with a 500 calorie aday diet.    Weight loss was crazy pants fast.  Why men would need a pregnancy hormone to lose weight is fruitcake nutty to me.

Most believe it was simply the 500 calories aday that caused extreme weight loss.

 

If you know anyone who's tried this, the rebound weight gain came back with a vengeance.  Most of it was  in the form of belly fat and the depression that followed after gaining everything back is way beyond SAD.    To say a VLC (very low carb) diet of 500 calories is extreme is an understatement.

 

I am riding a Velocipide.  That's an early bicycle that is propelled by pushing the feet along the ground.