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How could I have gained 5 lbs in one week? I’m not pmsing, I don’t have my period, I’m not “backed up” and I couldn’t have eaten an extra 15,000 calories in a week. I’m not someone who “needed” weight gain either. I started out 5’3″ 151 lbs and am now 167. I have gained 16 lbs since mid January and am ready to vomit with frustration! Everything I own is tight and uncomfortable. My husband is unemployed so shopping is out. It would be much cheaper to just quit eating sugar and go back to still being fat but fitting into my clothes. I don’t even want to leave the house as I am so ashamed of the way that I look. I’m the only one working so that’s not possible so I cry on the way to work every day now. I am freaking out my son as he doesn’t understand why mommy is so sad all of the time. i try to get exercise but I don’t sleep well. I honestly don’t know what to do.
Deanns, if one’s metabolism is low, or enough calories are eaten, it is possible to put on weight that rapidly. Sometimes it can simply be water weigt (especially if you were doing low-carb before). How have you been approaching RRARF? Can you give some more details? Are you coming from a low-carb background? Why are you doing the program? We may be able to help if there are some more details.
I was no carb/sugar from Sept-Oct having been told I was leptin resistant. I lost 12 lbs and stopped due to holidays, birthdays, anniversaries etc…Stayed even with my weight. In January I did the Joel Furhman 2 lbs of veg and 5 fruits etc. thing for 2 weeks and was constipated and freezing, body temp was usually 96.5. Previous to all of that I was an at home vegan. That started 5 years ago and I did the 2 lbs of veg to get started and lost 20 lbs. After 6 mo that wasn’t do-able as I really just couldn’t eat enough to stay full so I just did regular vegan. When I was pregnant (my son is almost 3) I fed my cravings, only gained 31 lbs and have not been able to lose 21 lbs of baby weight. My son is now weaning himself and I know that might be what’s making things rough for me. This past summer I was the green smoothie queen (no protein, just fruit and veg) and gained 12 lbs. The only time I didn’t gain weight was when we were in TX and AR eating bbq everyday. Hmmm…So I started Eat for Heat in mid January and gained 12 lbs but then this last week I gained another 5. Can’t figure that part out. Thank you for any help that you can offer. I know all of my previous restrictions are what led to this!
Thanks for the extra info. I think there are a few things going on:
1) You had a lot of restricting in different ways, and I can only imagine some nutritional deficiencies.
2)Being vegan in and of itself can lead to some deficiencies longterm (such as zinc, B12, iron, protein, etc) but dieting on top of that even more so.
3) Pregnancy and breast feeding pull a lot of nutrients from the body (and calories). Also now if you are weaning your son, you are not discharging some calories that he was taking in. There are also some hormonal things going on probably.
4) Your metabolism must have been very low if you gained weight on a green smoothie diet.
5) A low-carb diet makes you even more susceptible to weight gain when you reintroduce carbs.
(You didn’t mention medications, so I assume that’s not a factor, but if you are on any meds you should make sure they don’t cause weight gain, because that + RRARF will cause massive gain every time.)
So you have a lot going on! Which makes sense that you gained weight so fast, and a good amount of it probably is water weight. Your body has been deprived for a long time and it needs to heal now. The bad news is, some weight gain is probably inevitable, unfortunately. I think the best thing to do is make sure you are really nourishing your body. Which would mean: eating 3 balanced and healthy meals per day (with protein, carbs and some fat – such as toast with scrambled eggs, or a turkey and cheese sandwich with fruit and a yogurt, or roasted chicken with boiled potatoes and a little butter and roasted veggies and fruit for dessert. Basically like what your grandma would have considered a “square”.) and 1-2 small snacks per day (like a cheese stick and a few crackers) on a very regular schedule (meals at roughly same time every day, no skipped meals, similar amounts each day) to show your body it is no longer starving. Personally I think taking prenatal vitamins might be a good idea, or a good multi, since you are probably very depleted.
Matt may disagree, but I wouldn’t recommend junk food, except on occasion. Since you were vegan for so long, I suspect you have a high need for protein and meat, but if you were low-carb for awhile your body may have gotten its fill of meat. But if you are craving meat, load up on it at meals. What were you eating in TX and AR at the BBQs? Lots of meat? If that was during the Green Smoothie phase that makes sense as your body was totally protein deprived.
I know a lot of people start just eating whatever on RRARF, but that is a good way to gain weight fast. Putting some regimentation, balance and moderation in will probably help, and it will make your body happier. It likes routine.
I would not recommend exercising much right now, except for things like walking, stretching, light yoga. Things that make you feel good. When you come out of starvation mode, you can add in more.
It sounds like you are very stressed out and have a lot on your shoulders right now, so anything you can do to make yourself feel better and sleep better would be a good thing.
I hope this helps. Please let me know how it goes.
Thanks for the response. Glad I read I read it before putting in the Jillian Michaels yoga DVD! Opted for a much more soothing Denise Austin. I did get 7 uninterrupted hours of sleep last night so that was pretty epic. I will take all of your suggestions and I am really working on the sleep thing, crossing my fingers my toddler will cooperate!
It looks like you got some great advice, so I’ll just add, as a fellow nursing mom, be greedy and self-indulgent about your sleep. For me, sometimes this means putting up the safety gate and taking a nap on the floor while the baby crawls over and around me. I am not above going to sleep on the couch if I think DH won’t leave me alone ;). I’m still a newbie, but I think sleep is the key for a lot of us who are struggling.
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