BTW I'm still gaining weight page

[trikate]

I know I'm going to get eye rollers here but its honestly bothering me that the more strict I become with PB the more weight I gain. I am gaining muscle, yes, but with it come inches that makes me think there is more than muscle that meets the eye here. I have gained inches all over my body. I'm not thrilled about it. It makes me feel (okay this is so girly) FATTTTTT.

I've gone back to the book. Looked over the "rules". Tried to figure out where my issues are. I can't figure it out! the only vice I have is coffee-which last I heard is NOT off limits! Whats the deal! Its making me want to "quit" because really this is hard for me to keep up if I'm going to get forced out of a wardrobe right before summer!

I appreciate the effects of PB. The joints feel great, energy is awesome, I'm stronger and powerful and I'm sleeping great. "Whats the problem then?" the problem is I'm really torn because I don't like this kind of change. errrr

go ahead...bring the flames...I can take it

[Stabby]

How's your nutrient intake? It takes micronutrients to burn macronutrients. Are you getting optimal amounts of them all? Also how much omega 6 fatty acids are you taking in and how much animal-based omega 3? How much total fat, protein and carbs are you eating?

Answer me these questions three! And I shall try to help thee.

[cillakat]

I've gone back to the book. Looked over the "rules". Tried to figure out where my issues are. I can't figure it out! the only vice I have is coffee-which last I heard is NOT off limits!

Some things that come to mind:
• [edited for clarity] are you eating mostly non-starchy produce? not mostly non-starchy v. starchy (that's a given) but is non-starchy produce the basis of your meals and snacks? many folks find it so easy and yummy to go for the protein and fat that sufficient potassium, micronutrients and fiber from non-starchy produce falls by the wayside. while fat is incredibly important, for some it's easy to overdo. While Grok would eat everybit of fat he could, every chance he could, there simply wasn't a tremendous amont of fat available in an evolutionary diet. Wild game is considerably lower in fat than just about any meat we can get our hands on....wild fish is lower in fat than most of it's farmed counterparts.

• are you getting sufficient D to maintain 25(OH)D levels in the middle of the reference range via labcorp or zrt? without writing a tome, vitamin d insufficiency encourages weight gain in a variety of ways.... if you're doing principle #8 daily, it's possible to get there with sun alone - though only in a few months of the year in most of the US and only midday and only with most skin exposed. I avoid midday exposure for a variety of reasons and get little exposure otherwise (sunscreen....shade) and am requiring 1000 IU of d3 per 25 lbs body weight per day to maintain my 25(OH)D levels at 64ish ng/mL via labcorp and zrt (problems with Quest's test bring their results into question....mercola, cannell and several others recommend dividing quest results by 1.3 - or preferably avoiding quest altogether)

• how much coffee? a little/some is allowed but significant amounts are hard on your adrenals....boosts cortisol levels and sets the stage for fat storage...

You'll get there!


K

[oyezoyez]

I think posting a list of the sorts of things you'd eat on a typical day would help, along with your exercise routine. And to second the previous posters, don't underestimate the power of Omega-3 and Vitamin D supplementation.

[oyezoyez]

Hey--so i looked over some of your previous posts and saw that you've done that before. Have you ever tried working in some intermittant fasting and/or fasted workouts?

[Lillian]

I've had a somewhat similar experience when I first started PB. This is only my experience, so remember that it's different for everyone. When I started PB, I had very low LBM, probably ~25%BF (guesstimate). During the first week of VLC I dropped water weight and bloat, but then my weight started to increase. This is probably because I started strength training and building muscle, but IMO, the reason the inches increased was because I was not losing fat. And the thing is, with PB, a lot of people get the impression that you can eat VLC and as much as you want and you "can't" get fat. But if you're building muscle and you're not losing fat simultaneously, you will seem bigger. I think you have to look at what you eat and your lifestyle. Are you eating too much? Ask yourself if you're eating til you're not longer hungry or if you're eating until you're stuffed. Are you eating when you are not hungry? True, it might be harder to gain weight, but you certainly won't lose if you keep bypassing your hunger mechanisms. After I evaluated my eating habits (I used to eat like 5x a day--2 meals with snacking) I started paying attention to when I was eating and if it was hunger or not. Nowadays I only eat 2 meals. Brunch and dinner, sometimes a snack in between, but usually not.

Basically, I'm just saying that a lot of people get this idea that Grok ate as much fat and protein as he could because he never knew when he was going to get his next meal, and while that makes sense from an evolutionary standpoint, we are now evolved to the point where we don't have to worry about food because the availability has greatly increased. And if this part doesn't apply to you, then sorry, skip it

Since I started really focusing on only eating when I am hungry, I've done a rough measurement of my BF now and it is ~19% .. and I weigh MORE than I did since beginning, but my waist is smaller, arms are leaner, and gams are toned just my 2 cents.

[trikate]

awww thanks for being gentle with me everyone.

So here it is in a nutshell since everyone asked it at one point or another. I am a swim coach. I'm out in the sun a LOT. Vitamin D is not a problem. I drink 1-2 cups of coffee a day. STRONG coffee. Its just a morning thing. I track my "stuff" on thedailyplate.com and cronometer. the first for the macros, the second for the micros and lipids. my ratio of omega 3:6 is typically around 1:4 its really hard to get lower just because I can't buy grass fed beef (cost) or special eggs. I do what I can with what i have. I do sup with omega 3 and get about 2.5g in the form of sardine oil. I also take a magnesium sup. I am sometimes lacking in Vit C, E, B vitamins (40%),and potassium.. I do not eat too much-I often find it hard to eat enough. I don't have a strong appetite even with all my activity. I'm an extremely active female. I do triathlons and distance running events. If there was a problem with quantity of food it would be that I possibly eat too little (typically 1400 ish when i track without premeditating my meals). My ratios usually fall about 55-60% fat, 25-30 protein, 10-20% carbs, it just depends. I am a huge veggie eater. I eat tons of them and always have. I don't eat starchy veg. Just a quick question....should I take a quality multi until I figure some of this out?

[MikeEnRegalia]

^ how often and how hard do you exercise? Maybe you are suffering from chronic cardio, and the constant stress you put on your body interferes with your fat metabolism.

[mcasse]

Measure your body fat percentage. Monitor it over a few weeks. That's is the best objective measure of success. But if you're gaining muscle (and fat), you're in energy surplus and you can't lose weight in energy surplus. Cut calories.

[john_e_turner_ii]

I agree with with the other comments. I too was excited when I heard about PB, thinking that I could eat all I wanted as long as I kept my carbs low. That's not the case. My opinion is a person is able to eat more filling and satisfying meals, but not more calories overall. If you are eating above maintenance, then you will likely continue to gain fat.

I use Dailyplate.com also. Make sure you are accurately selecting the closest matching serving sizes to what you are actually eating. You may be eating more calories than you are recording.

By the way, how tall are you and how much do you weight?