Exercise and Weight Loss Lesson of the Week: You Might Gain Weight...Temporarily

Exercise and Weight Loss Lesson of the Week: You Might Gain Weight...Temporarily:

If someone suggested you might actually gain weight when starting an exercise program, what would you do? Scream? Cry? Quit? All of the above?

Unfortunately, temporary weight gain (yes, temporary) is common during the first few weeks of exercise, especially if you're doing strength training. The thing is, there are secret things happening inside your muscles and cells when you start exercising, things that are good, even though they can make you think you're not making progress.

I talk about some of these culprits in my article, I just started exercising...why am I gaining weight? One reason, of course, could be that you're eating too much. We do sometimes compensate for exercise by eating more calories or we follow the rule that exercising means we can eat anything we want and that could lead to weight gain.

However, if you're watching your calories and are pretty sure you're burning more than you're eating, that weight gain isn't fat. It's likely a combination of things - Putting on more muscle faster than you're losing fat and/or water retention, which may be part of the body's healing process as well as a way to get fuel (mostly glycogen, which is stored in the cells along with extra water) more efficiently to the body.

The important point is that there could be a little temporary weight gain as your body responds to your new workout program, but it doesn't mean you're doing something wrong. The key is to assess your situation to make sure you're not eating to much or that you're not losing inches, even if your weight is going up or staying the same, which is a sign of progress. Give your body time to respond to what you're doing and if you don't see a change within a few more weeks or, worse, your weight is going up without explanation, see your doctor to rule out any medical conditions.

Thinking about your own weight loss (or gain) experiences, did you ever gain weight unexpectedly? How did you deal with it? Were you able to keep going and eventually see some changes? Leave a comment and tell us about your experiences.