I'm gaining weight!

[Steven2023]

Well I'll start by saying I hit an all-time low on my diet of 264 last Tuesday. However, I have gained 4 pounds since then! I have had fluctuations, but the trend was always down.

So, I am wondering what I am doing wrong, if anything. I've noticed in some of the other threads the mention of calories. I didn't think we had to worry about calories on this diet. I thought it was a non-issue if it is an issue. Perhaps I'm supposed to have an exercise regimen to burn off the pounds? I know that will aid in losing weight, but I didn't think it was a requirement for this diet. Am I wrong?

I'm reading the labels of everything I consume to make sure there are no hidden devils in the ingredients. I can't imagine why I'm on this gaining trend.

Thoughts, anyone?

[Orweller]

1 hour ago, Steven2023 said:

Well I'll start by saying I hit an all-time low on my diet of 264 last Tuesday. However, I have gained 4 pounds since then! I have had fluctuations, but the trend was always down.

So, I am wondering what I am doing wrong, if anything. I've noticed in some of the other threads the mention of calories. I didn't think we had to worry about calories on this diet. I thought it was a non-issue if it is an issue. Perhaps I'm supposed to have an exercise regimen to burn off the pounds? I know that will aid in losing weight, but I didn't think it was a requirement for this diet. Am I wrong?

I'm reading the labels of everything I consume to make sure there are no hidden devils in the ingredients. I can't imagine why I'm on this gaining trend.

Thoughts, anyone?

While you don't have to worry about counting calories in general. Calories in, calories out is still of importance. It depends if you exercise or not. On a meat diet you are more satiated and are likely to consume less calories. But this is not always the case, and especially when you're inactive, that may become an issue. 

If you reached a plateau, or even a setback, it's time to use an app like Myfitnesspal to see what calories you take in. Do this for a week or two, and you'll find the issue. If you eat more calories than you burn, you will STILL add weight. 

And no, exercise is not optimal to lose weight, it's there so your heart keeps happy, and you like what you see when you lost that weight. Another thing is, at a later age we lose muscle mass, that is not good for health, we are always working on keeping our muscles for joint function, stability, and they are great fat burners. But at the end of the day, it's what and how we eat, that is going to make us lose pounds. 

Don't use the scale as a stresser, or as a perfection tool either, use it as data, and put in that data in Myfitnesspal (which is free and my fav cause you see fat intake, etc as well). 

Again exercise gives you an advantage with weight-loss, but is a small percentage. You cant outrun a bad diet. A chocolate cookie equates to 20 minutes of running. COunt your calories and make your calories count. DO that for 2 weeks and you will learn how you respond to food (hormonally, inflammatory, etc).

 

Edited December 29, 2023 by Orweller

[Geezy]

My weight goes up and down all the time. Fluctuations are normal. If you’re doing nothing different than what got you where you are now then I wouldn’t be concerned. It should take care of itself.
If it keeps going up then you may need to reevaluate what your doing but give it plenty of time to adjust. This isn’t a race.


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[Bob]

There is admittedly some mixed signals when it comes to calories.

When someone is starting out, we don't want them fixated on calories. Just eat a proper human diet, 3 meals a day until you are comfortably stuffed (but not painfully stuffed) with no snacking in-between. In time, your proper hunger signals will start working properly. With carnivore or strict keto, the food you eat is satiating. Before long, you might quite naturally and without much effort move into an intermittent fasting eating schedule, eating the same amount of food, or just about, across 2 meals instead of three. This gives your body more time to break down and use up those nutrients and energy.

But calories is still a metric that can be referenced. For example, I am 2 meals a day. This works for me most of the time but I occasionally have a major hunger day and I will have a big breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and I might be heavier on the scale the next day as a result. If I have thirsty days and drink a lot, same thing. If I eat and then go to sleep, definitely.

My weight has been oscillating rather wildly between 174 and 177 for the last month+ and my progress has stalled. I've stalled before and I know just to wait it out. If I get tired of waiting I will do an extended fast. Currently I think I am stalling because it's the dark days of winter and I am not as active as I usually am.

BUT... one thing I do notice is that even during a stall I might drop a notch on my belt, etc. I think that when stalls are happening, the body is working on other things such as healing and body recomposition. Then, when those tasks are done, it returns to weight loss and I will have another sudden drop. And that is they way it is for me. Drop. Stop. Drop. Stop. Slight gain. Stop. Drop. Up. Down. Down. Up. Plateau. Down. Up. lol

[Geezy]

There is admittedly some mixed signals when it comes to calories.
When someone is starting out, we don't want them fixated on calories. Just eat a proper human diet, 3 meals a day until you are comfortably stuffed (but not painfully stuffed) with no snacking in-between. In time, your proper hunger signals will start working properly. With carnivore or strict keto, the food you eat is satiating. Before long, you might quite naturally and without much effort move into an intermittent fasting eating schedule, eating the same amount of food, or just about, across 2 meals instead of three. This gives your body more time to break down and use up those nutrients and energy.
But calories is still a metric that can be referenced. For example, I am 2 meals a day. This works for me most of the time but I occasionally have a major hunger day and I will have a big breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and I might be heavier on the scale the next day as a result. If I have thirsty days and drink a lot, same thing. If I eat and then go to sleep, definitely.
My weight has been oscillating rather wildly between 174 and 177 for the last month+ and my progress has stalled. I've stalled before and I know just to wait it out. If I get tired of waiting I will do an extended fast. Currently I think I am stalling because it's the dark days of winter and I am not as active as I usually am.
BUT... one thing I do notice is that even during a stall I might drop a notch on my belt, etc. I think that when stalls are happening, the body is working on other things such as healing and body recomposition. Then, when those tasks are done, it returns to weight loss and I will have another sudden drop. And that is they way it is for me. Drop. Stop. Drop. Stop. Slight gain. Stop. Drop. Up. Down. Down. Up. Plateau. Down. Up. lol

Spot on Bob.
Question for you though, at what point would you stop calling it a stall and decide that you’ve just reached your optimal weight?
When I first started 8 months ago I thought that between 180 and 183 would be a good weight for me. Then when I got down to 175 I was ecstatic. Wow, my high school weight. Haven’t seen that since high school.
After a month of fluctuating between 175 and 177 all of a sudden I’ve dropped 3 more pounds.
I’ve never really set a goal because it’s always been my understanding that this being a optimization diet, that my weight will eventually become what’s optimal for me.
No matter how much I lose I’ll still treat it that way.


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[Orweller]

1 hour ago, Geezy said:

Spot on Bob.
Question for you though, at what point would you stop calling it a stall and decide that you’ve just reached your optimal weight?
When I first started 8 months ago I thought that between 180 and 183 would be a good weight for me. Then when I got down to 175 I was ecstatic. Wow, my high school weight. Haven’t seen that since high school.
After a month of fluctuating between 175 and 177 all of a sudden I’ve dropped 3 more pounds.
I’ve never really set a goal because it’s always been my understanding that this being a optimization diet, that my weight will eventually become what’s optimal for me.
No matter how much I lose I’ll still treat it that way.


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High school weight is in most cases an excellent place to be. As we mostly gain the weight after high school. 

[Geezy]

High school weight is in most cases an excellent place to be. As we mostly gain the weight after high school. 

Yes sir, I agree. That was 49 years ago. When I went into the Army I gained a few pounds of muscle and didn’t see 175 again until just recently.


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[Orweller]

8 hours ago, Geezy said:

Yes sir, I agree. That was 49 years ago. When I went into the Army I gained a few pounds of muscle and didn’t see 175 again until just recently.


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I hear a lot of people mentioning their high school weight. At that age we also had healthy muscle development, and it's likely that we had still a quite active life and somewhat normal diet. I often mention muscle, but it's aan absolute must to keep training muscles with weights. They control your blood sugar, they help retain bone density, impacts sleep quality, improve mood, increase mobility, etc. If one eats for health one must also act for health. Losing weight is just a minor consequence of going to the gym, it's all those invisible things that help a diet such as keto or carnivore. I say this as somebody who once walked with a cane. Take care of your muscles and thus your bones, especially after 40. I cannot stress this enough. It's been a life long battle for me, since I have Ankylosing Spondylitis, a quite debilitating form of Arthritis. I am in the good shape that I am by 30 years of experimenting and being health focused, I had no other choice. I have been on so many different diets, etc. It's why I am so impressed with carnivore. I do not come form an unhealthy lifestyle, always disciplined, and on healthy weight. Even then, I am also approaching my army weight. 

[Geezy]

Absolutely.


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[Steven2023]

11 hours ago, Orweller said:

High school weight is in most cases an excellent place to be. As we mostly gain the weight after high school. 

Wow! Do I have a ways to go. I wrestled 185 in my senior year and was always underweight for my class. I don't think I want to go that low in weight.

[Bob]

High school weight (senior year) can be a good goal, IF you were not overweight in high school. Sometimes I was, and sometimes I wasn't. I can remember being a chunky kid, and leaning towards the obese in junior high. The first time I dieted was in 8th grade, by eliminating diet coke and candy. I really took control of my health in my between my junior and senior years though, because for some reason, out of the blue, I suddenly gained some popularity and attention from girls.

After high school I fattened up again. Then in 1996 when I was 20, I read Dr. Atkins New Diet Revolution and took it all back off, and even got down to my lowest of 162. I am currently 175 which was my initial goal. I now look at 165 as my new goal but I am honestly happy with where I am at so I am not working too hard anymore. I'm just enjoying my healthy 90/7/3 (carnivore/ketovore/animal-based) life. But in early 2024 I think I am going to double down on my efforts and go strict, maybe even lion diet for 30 days or more.

I do think that I am stronger and maybe have more muscle today than I did as a high school senior, from the little working out that I do, and lifting heavy things as part of the tile trade that I work in. Since muscle weights more than fat, getting as low as my exact high school weight might actually translate to less fat than I had then. Today's 170 might be the equivalent of 18 year old me's 165.

[Orweller]

2 hours ago, Steven2023 said:

Wow! Do I have a ways to go. I wrestled 185 in my senior year and was always underweight for my class. I don't think I want to go that low in weight.

You won't know until you get there. You never know what you're capable of when you get there. 10 pounds lighter already makes you a different person. Having a weight-loss goal is not a burden, it's a challenge, and an opportunity. Imagine being 185. But somehow you are 205, wouldn't that still be wonderful? 

[Orweller]

21 minutes ago, Bob said:

High school weight (senior year) can be a good goal, IF you were not overweight in high school. Sometimes I was, and sometimes I wasn't. I can remember being a chunky kid, and leaning towards the obese in junior high. The first time I dieted was in 8th grade, by eliminating diet coke and candy. I really took control of my health in my between my junior and senior years though, because for some reason, out of the blue, I suddenly gained some popularity and attention from girls.

After high school I fattened up again. Then in 1996 when I was 20, I read Dr. Atkins New Diet Revolution and took it all back off, and even got down to my lowest of 162. I am currently 175 which was my initial goal. I now look at 165 as my new goal but I am honestly happy with where I am at so I am not working too hard anymore. I'm just enjoying my healthy 90/7/3 (carnivore/ketovore/animal-based) life. But in early 2024 I think I am going to double down on my efforts and go strict, maybe even lion diet for 30 days or more.

I do think that I am stronger and maybe have more muscle today than I did as a high school senior, from the little working out that I do, and lifting heavy things as part of the tile trade that I work in. Since muscle weights more than fat, getting as low as my exact high school weight might actually translate to less fat than I had then. Today's 170 might be the equivalent of 18 year old me's 165.

It's alright if you're goals continuously change so long they are in the same direction. And as long we don't sell ourselves short. 

[Steven2023]

37 minutes ago, Orweller said:

You won't know until you get there. You never know what you're capable of when you get there. 10 pounds lighter already makes you a different person. Having a weight-loss goal is not a burden, it's a challenge, and an opportunity. Imagine being 185. But somehow you are 205, wouldn't that still be wonderful? 

You are probably right about that. It will be expensive buying a new wardrobe for the newly, thinned down chassis. I am still amazed at how good I am feeling on this diet.

[Steven2023]

17 hours ago, Bob said:

This works for me most of the time but I occasionally have a major hunger day and I will have a big breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and I might be heavier on the scale the next day as a result. If I have thirsty days and drink a lot, same thing. If I eat and then go to sleep, definitely.

You have a point there. Sometimes I eat a bigger meal and many times I am drinking a lot. I will just have to take all that into consideration.

 

17 hours ago, Bob said:

Drop. Stop. Drop. Stop. Slight gain. Stop. Drop. Up. Down. Down. Up. Plateau. Down. Up.

I'll watch out for the same trends as well. My weight this morning was 264.8. I'm not so worried anymore and I'll expect the fluctuations along the way.