Why am I gaining weight while eating healthy and exercising?

A new exercise regimen puts stress on your muscle fibers. This causes small micro tears, also known as micro trauma, and some inflammation. Those two conditions in your muscle fibers are the reason you may gain some weight.

health.clevelandclinic.org - I Just Started Exercising — Why Am I Gaining Weight? – Cleveland Clinic

How many slices of beetroot should I eat a day?

The oxalates found in beets can increase your uric acid level, meaning that too many beets can lead to gout. To avoid this, stick to no more than a...

Last updated Dec 3, 2018

Can I get slim in 7 days?

While you cannot reduce fat, you can lose belly fat by decreasing your total body fat percentage. And you don't have to completely alter your daily...

Last updated Nov 10, 2019

Traditional “juice” activates 24/7 fat-burning

A potent powdered supplement blended right into water or your favored beverage to be appreciated as a scrumptious morning smoothy.

Learn More »

Promotion

You may start exercising for a lot of different reasons: You need to lose weight for your health. You plan to run a 5K or marathon. You want to enhance your fitness for cross country skiing or to impress at the beach. Advertising Policy Cleveland Clinic is a non-profit academic medical center. Advertising on our site helps support our mission. We do not endorse non-Cleveland Clinic products or services. Policy Whatever your motivation, expect to gain a few pounds at first. But don’t panic. The pounds won’t hang around if you keep at it. “The key point here is that weight and muscle mass changes will occur,” says physical therapist Gary Calabrese, DPT. “Initially, they aren’t all what some people may perceive as headed in a positive direction ― because you may gain a little weight at first.”

Why the initial weight gain?

When you start an exercise program, your body naturally goes through several changes in the first couple months. A new exercise regimen puts stress on your muscle fibers. This causes small micro tears, also known as micro trauma, and some inflammation. Those two conditions in your muscle fibers are the reason you may gain some weight. Your body responds to the micro tears and inflammation in two ways that cause temporary water weight gain.

The first is a healing response.

“That stress and micro-tearing damage to the muscle fibers induces water retention in the body,” Dr. Calabrese explains. “There may be a small amount of inflammation around the micro tear, and your body retains fluid there to try to heal it.” These are short lived changes in the muscle. You will also most likely experience delayed onset muscle soreness in the 24 to 36 hours after exercising. That is your body’s natural response to those micro muscle tears and the breakdown in muscle tissue. So, don’t overdo. Eat properly and give your muscles the proper amount of rest so they can heal and rebuild, Dr. Calabrese says.

Increased muscle fuel also adds a little weight

The way your body provides energy to the muscles also can add weight at first. Glycogen or sugar that your muscle cells convert to glucose is the energy source for your muscles. When you exercise regularly, your body stores more glycogen to fuel that exercise. Stored in water, glycogen has to bind with water as part of the process to fuel the muscle. That water adds a small amount of weight, too.

What is the number 1 healthiest diet?

Mediterranean Diet Mediterranean Diet, DASH Diet, and Flexitarian Diets Remain the Best Diets of 2022. All three diets are also highly recommended...

Last updated Sep 3, 2018

Are smoothies better than juicing?

The final verdict is that both juicing and smoothies can be beneficial if done in moderation with a balanced diet. However, smoothies come out on...

Last updated Sep 16, 2020

7-second natural hack eats through 64lbs of belly flab

This effective juice jolts the metabolism, boosts energy and burns fat all day.

Learn More »

Promotion

“As your muscles become more accustomed to the exercise and more efficient, however, they begin to need less glycogen to maintain the same level of energy output,” Dr. Calabrese says. “Thus, your water retention becomes less, so your weight will start to go down.” You will start to lose that initial water weight gain (of roughly one to three pounds) a few weeks or a month after starting an exercise program, he says.

Secondary weight gain from new lean muscle mass

There is another source of weight gain that people often misunderstand, Dr. Calabrese says. You will gain weight from lean muscle mass that you add by building your muscles with exercise or weightlifting. But this won’t happen right away. It will take you at least a month or two to add any lean muscle mass that would show up in your weight. By that point, you will probably be experiencing a good weight-loss trend because of the exercise. “Again, people may not consider the early changes to their bodies as positive,” Dr. Calabrese says. “But there will be good changes later, so you have to stick with your exercise program.”

Get informed guidance before you start

Before you add any exercise to your routine, talk to your doctor to make sure your body is healthy enough for exercise. Next, sit down with a medically based physiologist, physical therapist or athletic trainer who is well-versed in the effects of exercise. They can help you map out your exercise program, learn about the proper nutrition and rest you will need, and discuss the changes your body will experience as a result of your training.

Then, get on with your program.

And look forward to the final step — when you take that new body of yours out to enjoy the ski slopes or a sunny, sandy beach.

health.clevelandclinic.org - I Just Started Exercising — Why Am I Gaining Weight? – Cleveland Clinic

What are the three body types for losing weight?

There are three metabolism types: mesomorph, ectomorph, and endomorph. ... Awareness of these metabolism categories essentially gives you better...

Last updated Sep 23, 2022

Can a hot shower lower your blood pressure?

If the doc says it's OK, then it's a great way of bringing down your blood pressure. Relieves muscle tension. Hot showers can relieve tension and...

Last updated Mar 4, 2022

Purple mojito “devours” 57lbs of flab?

This effective juice jolts the metabolism, boosts energy and burns fat all day.

Learn More »

Promotion

What happens to your body when you start eating oatmeal?

Oats are incredibly good for you Benefits include lower blood sugar and cholesterol levels, protection against skin irritation, and reduced...

Last updated Jan 18, 2019

Common yard weed melts 60lbs of fat?

Made into a potent powdered supplement blended right into water or your favorite beverage to be appreciated as a scrumptious morning smoothy.

Learn More »

Promotion

What drink brings heart rate down?

A 2017 study found that a 335-milliliter drink of water could reduce resting heart rate over a 30-minute period. This decline continued for another...

Last updated May 12, 2020