Let me ask you a question, did you notice a sudden, unexplained increase in your weight lately? Specifically, have you noticed an increase of about 1lb, 2lbs, 3lbs, 4lbs, 5lbs or even as much as 10lbs? And do you think this weight gain is all due to fat? Well, I’m here to tell you that it’s definitely NOT fat.
Here’s why you might think you’ve gained fat:
You might have had a few days or a week of overindulging in foods you shouldn’t have, or gone over your calorie limit, or maybe you relaxed your diet for a short period of time due to a special occasion. But now, you get on the scale and see that you’ve gained weight and assume it’s body fat. This is a common misconception, but let me explain why it’s not entirely true.
Yes, you have gained weight and it might be reflected in your body as well. However, just gaining weight does not signify fat. Weight can be attributed to different things like muscle, water, content in your stomach waiting to be digested, and glycogen. These factors can cause your body weight to fluctuate from one day to the next. So, the weight gain may not necessarily be fat.
To prove that you didn’t gain fat, let’s talk about calories. There about 3,500 calories stored in a pound of body fat. Therefore, every additional 3,500 calories you eat above your maintenance level, you will gain 1 pound of body fat. If you could eat enough to gain this amount in a short period of time, it might be possible that it’s body fat. But, realistically, this amount of extra calorie intake is highly unlikely and the weight gained would likely be attributed to water, glycogen, and stomach content, all of which will be lost as soon as your diet returns to normal.
Therefore, if you find yourself in a similar situation, you have the following options available:
1) You can incorrectly assume that you’ve gained a bunch of fat and then feel unhappy, mad, guilty, depressed, frustrated, etc. This response would be very wrong.
2) Incorrectly assume that you’ve gained a bunch of fat and then unnecessarily force yourself to do a ton of cardio or eat a lot less during the next day(s) to “make up for it.” This would be very wrong.
3) You can incorrectly assume you’ve gained a bunch of fat and let this thought turn into the “screw it” mentality, where you tell yourself that you’ve already failed, so you might as well continue eating like crap.
So, rest assured, the weight gained is not all fat and can be lost with a consistent diet and exercise routine.
