Help! I started running and GAINED weight!
Dear Monica,
Recently I started running about 35 to 40 minutes a day. I usually run 4 to 5 times a week but I have gained weight in the process. I gained 4 lbs. I wanted to know whether this was muscle weight or is it because I have been eating a bit more carbs than normally?
A. Congratulations on your new healthy habit! But if one of your goals for your new exercise program was to lose weight, I can imagine how frustrating it would be to see the scale going UP instead of down. Let's see if we can get to the bottom of things.
Running burns a lot of calories. Depending on your speed and body size, running for 40 minutes a day will burn around 500 calories. If you're burning 2000 to 2500 extra calories per week and everything else stays the same, you should see a weight loss of 2/3 to 3/4 of a pound a week. However, if you have also increased your intake of calories (regardless of whether those calories are from carbohydrates, proteins or fats), you may be taking in more than you're burning...and gaining weight.
As far as muscle gain goes, I think your training schedule is unlikely to be the source of significant weight gain due to increased muscle mass. To gain serious muscle mass you would likely need to be doing some sort of weight or strength training. But if some of your weight gain were due to muscle gain, you would probably notice your clothes fitting a little looser even though you weigh more.
Use our Daily Needs Calculator to estimate how many calories you burn every day. Then, match your calorie intake to your goals. If your goal is to lose weight, eat fewer calories than you burn. If your goal is simply to maintain your weight but increase your fitness, you can increase your calorie intake to match the extra calories you're burning through running.
But don't you need extra carbohydrates to fuel your exercise? Not really. I wouldn't recommend a very low-carb diet for you because carbohydrates are good fuel for exercise and energy. But carb loading is for marathoners (and even for them, its controversial)! Once you've established how many calories you want to eat each day, aim for a diet that is approximately 50% high-quality carbohydrates, 20-25% protein, and 25-30% fats. Our Caloric Ratio Pyramid can help you fine tune the balance.
Keep up the good work!
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Posted by: Annie | Aug 8, 2009 9:28:07 AM
I'm obese and I had been going to the gym for a while, lost like 30 pounds, and some stuff came up and I wasn't able to go to the gym for a few months, I gained back alot of what I lost, but a few days ago I started going back to the gym. Dispite my size, 5'10", but 200+ pounds, I'm actually surprisingly fit and active.
Thing is, two days ago, was the second time I've been to the gym since returning to my diet, and I did 30 minutes of joggin in the afternoon at home, then later I went to the gym a did 20 minutes of light exercise on the treadmill, a 5k run on the elliptical in 36 minutes, 15 minutes on the bicycle, and an extra 30 minutes on the elliptical again up higher resistance walking (about 4.0 m.p.h at lvl 12 resistance out o f 20) because I was waiting for my ride to get there.
Now yesterday I didn't go to the gym, because I wanted to give my body a bit of break, because my legs were VERY sore, so I did about 2 sessions of 20 minute light step aerobics, once my legs weren't hurting as much.
This morning my legs are still stiff and in a little pain, and when I weighed in, I was about 2 pounds heavier than yesterday, I attribute some of this to the high sodium from the Chinese food my parents wanted, even though I a ate very controlled amount, there was still a lot of sodium.
But I was wondering if I would also be holding water weight from my leg muscles being so sore, as 2 pounds seems like alot to gain from sodium in one meal.
I ask because I am a little disappointed, as most people would be after putting in so much effort to work out, but would like to get some input from others.
Posted by: Jennifer | Sep 23, 2008 10:55:28 AM
I have the same issue. I did aerobic activity 30-60 min/day for about a year while eating low-carb and lost about 20 lbs. I am 5'6" and weighed about 118 lbs. I started running about a year ago and am up to running about 15 miles/week. I now weigh 125 lbs. I notice my clothes are tighter around my hips and thighs (precisely the area I want to be THIN). I have maintained my same diet (low-carb) and do not consume any excess calories than I did before to maintain my 118 lb. frame. Yes, it is incredibly frustrating to work out so hard and see the scale going UP!
Posted by: Claire | Aug 4, 2008 12:29:45 AM
Help! I've been running for 30 mins every other day for a month, whilst following a healthy eating plan. I've not only gained weight but my clothes are feeling tighter than ever! I want to know how I can slim down whilst running and toning. It's incredibly frustrating - I eat plenty of fruit and veg and am having protein at every meal. What do I need to do?...
Posted by: Jessie | Aug 2, 2008 5:06:23 AM
Dear Monica,
I am a 5'4" 39 year old woman. I had lost 30 lbs with out excercising and was 116. I gained back 6 lbs so I was up to 122 and decided to start excercising to try and lose that weight. I started alternating Taebo (60 minutes) & light weight training. I excercise 6x's a week. My diet consists of 2 eggs and 2 pieces of canadian bacon in the morning, a handful of almonds as a mid morn snack, a protein bar for Lunch and salad and skinless chicken breast for dinner. Sometimes I do have sugar free pops as a snack. I drink sugar free tea or water. I have gained another 8 lbs. I look bigger and cannot fit into my clothing it seems as if I am gaining muscle under the fat I want to lose. This is very frustrating. It makes me want to quit excercising. HELP!
Posted by: Stelios | Jun 2, 2008 6:11:50 PM
Dear Monica,
i ve read about the new version of cratine that is in the market in the last year ''creatine ethyl ester''.The manufacturers assert that the addition of esters make it more easily absorbed by the body, and ease uptake by the cells. In addition because it already is more readily fat soluble than other versions, it does not need to be consumed with a high sugar drink like Creatine Monohydrate.(no insulin is needed to pass the cells membranes).
The theory sounds good, there is no research though. However I would like to know if that version of creatine can metabolise in the liver and if the addition of the ester on the creatine can make it toxic to the liver.
Posted by: shellP | Apr 22, 2008 12:55:34 PM
First how you perseve yourself can be off. Even though I've lost 60+ lbs. I still 'see' a FAT person. Make sure your scale is set acuarately. Drop by your Dr.s office weigh & then go home & compare the differences.
Inches difference still mean more to me. As we all are shaped differently & distribute fat or muscle? Which do you honestly feel & see you have?
170 still puts you in 'obesity' category for your height. So don't give up.
Posted by: confused about the whole muscle vs. fat stuff!! | Mar 7, 2008 12:15:02 PM
Hi, please help me get this stuff straight. I've been running about 4kms. every other day for about a yr. now and 8 wks. ago started using dumbells for my arms, chest and bk. also an 3 diff. ab excercies every 2nd day. so I work out 6 days per wk. I noticed a difference in my clothes, but I got on a scale this morning for the first time and it said I weighted 170 lbs. i'm 5'2" tall. Now i'm so confused because everyone keeps telling me how good I look and that they can notice my weight loss. I thought I weighed about 145 cause that's what I weighed before my weight gain 2 yrs. ago (I had a baby)and i'm fitting into those clothes. Is that possible? Please help cause i'm really confused about this.
Posted by: Michael K | Feb 26, 2008 8:11:36 PM
I have a related question that touches upon the marathon tangent. I hear that leg muscles that are fully rested and "carb loaded" can hold up to 2,000 calories in carbohydrate energy. If the legs become depleted of energy (like in a marathon race), can you weigh less from loss of carbohydrate in the body?
Posted by: mike ciaccio | Feb 5, 2008 8:49:11 AM
100% normal ... you WILL lose weight. Keep running and stay away from the scale. Just focus on running and you'll lose 5-10 lbs per year. good luck. mike c
Posted by: x | Oct 22, 2007 10:54:16 AM
Dear Monica,
I have noticed that your site here is probably the only place in the web where detailed information about different sugars (fructose, glucose) is readily available (USDA has only total sugars on pdf and tool - details are hidden in their access database). You may know that about 1/3 of the population has a diminished ability to absorb fructose, not all of clinical relevance - but there are many - and for those information is hard to get by. A table showing (fructose-glucose - note sorted by fructose surplus), fructose and glucose would be of invaluable help to millions and imho would justify then setting a link from the fructose malabsobtion entry in wikipedia to your site driving up traffic.
Yours sincerely,
Gunther
Posted by: dmitchell | Oct 19, 2007 12:39:36 PM
I want to find out how to analyze a recipe for nutritional information. I have been trying to develop recipes for myself using whole ingredients instead of processed ones and I want to know how they stack up nutritionally and what the calorie content is. Where can I post a recipe and get this information?
Posted by: Mike Nedeau | Sep 24, 2007 3:40:57 PM
I started running alot to lose a little weight as well. OF course, I thought the same thing, don't I need carbs for my runs? So, I ate much more than usual until I started seeing the scale with the same number on it. Monica is right, for weight loss and general fitness one does not need extra carbs, unless your running 26.2 which I just did and highly recommend the challenge for others! Also, thank go for olive garden!
