Help! I started working out, and now I’m GAINING weight! (3 Reasons Why)

So you’ve finally made brain space and calendar space in your life to start working out.  You’re all excited about the new you that’s on her way.  You’re a week or two or four into a program, you’re feeling great, decide to step on the scale, curious about your progress, and, gasp!!  You gained weight!  What the heck?  You feel so cheated.  How on earth did this happen?  This is not what was supposed to happen!  Wondering what went wrong?

Here are three reasons why you might be gaining weight after starting a workout plan.

1. You are fueling too much pre-workout, or your recovery meals (OR TREATS!) are too big. 

There are lots and lots of articles about what to eat before and after workouts.  I see lots of people absolutely obsessed with getting their 20-30 grams of protein within 20 minutes of their workouts or gobbling up bagels before a run.  Guess what?  You might not need to do any of that!  Especially if you’re new to working out, your body may do just fine fueling itself on what you ate yesterday.  Going out for a comfortably paced 2-3 mile run?  Guess what?  You don’t need to spike your blood sugar levels with a piece of toast before heading out the door.  Your body probably won’t even tap into that sugar during the time that you’re exercising, so then you’ve just downed a hundred (or maybe more) calories for nothing.  Not going for hypertrophy (in other words, increased size) in your weight training?  You very well may not need to eat anything after that weight workout unless its a normal meal time anyway.

There are some people who tell me that they get light-headed if they don’t eat before a workout or immediately afterwards.  This is, in general, a sign to me that their blood sugar levels are spiking and dipping too much.  You should not need to pump your body full of carbs in order to have energy in the next twenty minutes.  Focusing on getting your blood sugar levels stabilized will be huge for you!  (I get it!  I was totally there, shoveling animal crackers into my mouth immediately after a race because I was so shaky as soon as I finished!)  Drink your ACV (read about that here), and focus on getting plenty of fat into your diet instead of carbs.

Additionally, if you’re using the “I worked out today, so I can have [fill in the blank here]” mentality, you will probably not see the results that you’re looking for.  Consider a workout day a “normal” day.  I’m not saying you can’t ever have treats.  I’m saying, remove the need to earn the treat (and simultaneously, all the guilt associated with treats) from the equation, and just have a treat now and then.  It’s okay!  I find, you will probably eat less treats when you stop having to earn them.  You’ll enjoy them more when you have them, and then you won’t need them as often.

2.  You are stressing out your system with too much cardio!

This one is so common!  A lot of people, deciding they need to exercise more, just hit the cardio.  I get this!  It’s kind of the easy button, right?  “I need to work out!  I can run around the block a few times and be done or head to the gym and sit on the elliptical while I watch TV and flip through a magazine.”  Hey, I get that!!  There are plenty of times where I don’t want to think about it, and I just lace up my running shoes and head out.  I’m not saying you can’t ever do that.  All I’m saying is that if you’re attempting to lose fat, you may be sabotaging yourself.

It is entirely possible that your body will perceive all this new found activity as just exactly what it is: stress.  And so, your body, prepares itself.  “Something stressful is about to happen!  I gotta hold on to fat because I might need it for fuel soon!”  So, your cortisol (stress hormone) levels raise, making it nearly impossible to lose fat and get where you’re trying to go, fitness-wise.

My advice is simple (and borrowed from Mark Sisson).  Sprint, lift, and move!  Make your cardio workouts interval-based rather than just long, slow, easy cardio.  Lift (even if it’s just your body weight), but the heavier the better!  And add activity into your normal day (take walks, stand, take the stairs, etc.).

3.  You’re right on track! You’ve just gained a bit of muscle while simultaneously losing fat.

This is my favorite reason why the scale hasn’t moved and also why I hate the scale as an indicator of health and fitness.  That number may or may not tell you a single thing!  I have personally seen the number on my scale stay just about the same while I dropped one or two pant sizes!  You guys!!  That’s a big deal!  Because you at the same weight might be a more compact, stronger version (most people are kinda’ surprised when they found out how much I weigh…it’s usually more than they think).

More importantly than even body fat percentages, how do you feel?  Do you have more energy?  Are you eating more nutrient-dense foods?  Do you have less aches and pains?  Sleeping better at night?  If so, your fitness plan is working!

Sometimes you’ve got to fix a few things hormonally before you drop fat.  Guess what?  That’s okay, too!  Focus on getting the inside working well, and the outside will follow!  I truly believe this!

What’s your story?  Have you ever been discouraged by the scale amidst a workout plan?  What did (or didn’t!) you need to change?