Weight Gain Need Help With Diet

[billybobjimbojr]

I obviously don't know what the heck I'm doing in goal to lose weight and get in shape.

I've been going to the gym for almost 6 months doing cardio (bike) because I have bad knees and weight training to build a little muscle. I've been progressing with the weights not bulking up or anything just getting stronger with small increases in how much I'm lifting. I work extremely hard three days a week almost having to crawl out of the gym in exhaustion. I've changed diet several times increasing and/or decreasing calories trying to figure out what works best for weight loss. I've tried restricting calories for several weeks and gain weight and I've increased calories and gain weight. I just don't know what to do.

Here is a sample meal I'll eat in a day.

Breakfast: Raisin Bran cereal with Skim milk
Lunch: Tuna on 15 grain bread with zip lock size bag of mixed vegetables (carrots, Cali-flower, and broccoli)
Snack: Apple or Banana
Dinner: Baked chicken breast with baked beans or potatoes

I'll drink a protein shake (muscle milk whey protein) on days I workout.

This past Saturday I went to the gym and had a great workout. I get home shower and weigh 170lbs. Sunday morning I get up and shower and check weight and I'm 176lbs so I restrict diet even more the rest of the day. Today I'm 173lbs. and I've only ate what I listed above up to the snack part and plan to eat the same thing listed for dinner.

Please help! I'm lost and confused on how to lose weight.

[Boss Man]

Breakfast: Raisin Bran cereal with Skim milk

(You could add other things in here like ham, eggs, beef, turkey or chicken to increase the protein)

(Add another snack in here, like low fat cheese, a sandwich, some peanuts with fruit etc)

Lunch: Tuna on 15 grain bread with zip lock size bag of mixed vegetables (carrots, Cali-flower, and broccoli)

(This is fine, but beware of the metals in fish. Tuna especially is reccomended at three portions a week these days, so consider rotating the fish with animal and bird protein through the week.)

Snack: Apple or Banana

(Add more protein in here. You could also increase the healthy fats with a small amount of nuts, flaxseeds or some avocado as examples)

Dinner: Baked chicken breast with baked beans or potatoes

(That's fine)

I'll drink a protein shake (muscle milk whey protein) on days I workout.

[billybobjimbojr]

How will adding more calories help with weight loss? I'm already having a problem gaining weight with what I'm eating.

[Boss Man]

Muscle gain promotes fat loss by burning an additional 45-50 calories a day, subsequantly the reverse can be true of muscle loss.

Also eating less than is desirable can cause something called a starvation mode, where the body clings onto fat thinking it is being starved.

Weight increases could be down to small amounts of muscle gain too, bone density increase and water retention which can be caused by excessive salt intake, so don't be too hasty to hold calories to ransom for weight gain.

The body will go through some state of flux as it tries to settle into a rhythmn, based on all the changes you have implemented.

The added calories could be useful in giving you more energy, more protein to gain muscle with and more reason for the body to reduce fat stores, so the suggestions won't be encouraging hefty daily increases per day.

If you give any changes time, so the body can adjust properly to them, like say 3-4 weeks at least, I am hopeful you will start to see the kind of change(s), you're hoping for.

Hopefully that all makes sense .

[ultimatehlth]

First thing is change from Muscle Milk to Muscle Milk Light. I agree with Boss Man and the addition of healthy snacks. On days you workout keep calories to around 10 per pound of body weight and 9 per pound on days you don't, further restriction will slow your metabolism too far. I use a 40% carbohydrate, 30% lean protein and 30% fat(healthy fats) diet on clients to great result. Keep a food journal and note that days that the weight fluctuates 2-3 or more pounds is likely water retention...watch your salt.
Best,

Personal Trainer Los Angeles

[billybobjimbojr]

Since I posted last week I have added in more calories having a snack between breakfast and lunch and another snack after lunch. Granola Bar for first snack and and apple before I leave work and I have a hand full of Walnuts when I get home (hour commute).

I am still gaining weight eating exactly what I posted in the first post plus the added snacks, now up to 176lbs. weight increases in tiny increments daily.

Last week when I started eating the snacks between meals weight gain seemed to slow down and I lost a pound by Friday. Over the weekend I gained the pound back and have gained to current weight of 176lbs.

At this point I'm so frustrated because I'm doing everything right that I'm aware of and still gaining weight. Where I notice it the most is in stomach area.

I'm only 5'7 so I'm not a big guy by any stretch of the imagination. After high school I was in the 145-150 range until I was 25. Until that point I could literally eat anything I wanted and never gained anything. I never went to the gym or anything. Now at 37, I can't eat anything without gaining weight. Hell, I can just about starve myself fat it seems.

I thought by going to the gym that metabolism would reignite and I would be able to drop weight fairly easily but it seems like that's not going to happen.

Any other ideas I can try?

[Boss Man]

Maybe you gained some water weight. perhaps some of the snacks or added foods were a little salty, as too much salt could do it.

Also you might find having around 300 calories less on non-workout days may help, as you would not be burning added calories.

You could also try a simple technique where you reduce your carbs by 10g per meal and replace them with fat carbs.

You maintain calories but the carb deficeit would force the body to look elsewhere for it's remaining energy needs which fat, being a secondary energy source should provide.

If you're carbs are around 30g a meal right now, then you could do this if you're comfortable with it, but I would say no if the carbs are 20g a meal, as you could affect brain function, sleep, blood sugar and moods having just 10g a meal, bearing in mind that cooking carbs causes a percentage level of reduction in edible end carbs.

For example 60g of rice carbs in a bag, wouldn't be 60g when cooked. I can't give you percentages or specific number relating to this, but it wouldn't be beneficial if for example, you cut to 10g per meal and possibly only ate a roughly estimated 60-80% of that, depending on the amount and duration of heat exposure to the food.

Cayenne pepper has also been sounded out as having thermogenic properties, which would make it beneficial for weight loss, I think because it raises core temperature a bit, but obviously there is a taste factor to consider

[splashangel]

Hey there Billy Bob! I'm glad you found this site and hoping you are still around.

First off,
you have received some really good advice here and if you don't understand something( carbs, fats etc.) Just ask.
It can seem daunting when you first begin . I know. I really do. This is not an over night cure. DON'T let it frustrate you though.
Restricting your calories too much will bring you problems you Don't want. Long term. Do this right. Nice and steady. Read up.
Next,
Scales were best friend. I weighed everything. Or measured. I knew that I knew that I knew I was getting exactly what I should.
And,
Don't live and breath those scales. Just Don't. They fudge. Fib. Blur the truth ,if you will.
You could, as Boss mentioned, be swollen some. You could gain muscle that weighs more than fat. Your muscles retain water when you tear them working out so...
Instead,
Use a measuring tape. One day you might notice your chest is bigger but waist is smaller. No weight loss. Get it?
Look, you may have some rare, genetic thing or thyroid something interfering with weight loss. Ya know...
But that's really not likely. I'm a calorie in, calorie out believer. Take in too many and gain weight. I ate more when I worked our
Less when I didn't. Cheated from time to time and I lost mine. I have been holding steady for what? A couple years now I guess..
Pills and powders are gimics. Just letting you know.
Eat right. Work out. Sleep good and take rest days. And focus on that, you are doing the right thing for you and it WILL pay off, instead of getting frustrated. Frustration can lead you right back to your old habits.
I wish you success.
Angel..

[CleanScience]

I would suggest buying a tape measure. The flexible kind in a roll. I would measure all parts of your body. If a week later you are gaining weight but loosing inches, then your weight gain is muscle. Be happy. The scale is a tool, a poor one in opinion to judge success. There are many other tools to measure success.

[Alinshop]

Hello!

You mentioned progressing with your lifting but have you been able to increase your cardio at all?