Rapid Weight Gain

[mickc1965]

Back Story - Going back a few years (2011) I was approx 220lbs but with a high body fat % and was not training so fast forward to today I tend to stay leanish (10-15% and currently weigh 170 and maintain at ~2600 kcals) but during festive periods / holidays I pretty much eat what I feel like but I tend to put on a lot more weight than the additional caloric intake, for instance

Xmas 2016 - 19lbs increase in 7 days (from 25/12 to 01/01) with caloric intake on 3 days in excess of 6k with remainder at 2-3k per day

10-13 March (Weekend away) - 12lbs increase with average caloric intake ~6k per day

Easter 2017 - again 12lbs from the Saturday morning to Tuesday morning with caloric intake on average over 3 days ~6k kcals

I know some of this would be due to water retention from increase in carbs and some moderate alcohol consumption but 3lbs+ per day!!

Are these large increases due to additional fat cells gained in my former fatty days that are now able to retain the additional calories consumed in binge periods and therefore I am destined for the remainder of my days to be at risk of an easy return to being fat?

 

[john.patterson]

If your maintenance is 2600, and you decide to eat 6k for 3 days straight, you're consuming a surplus of roughly 10k calories. In plain math and numbers, this would equate to about 3 pounds of body weight gained, and depending on your bodies response to the food and what types of food you ate your body could hold and store more than that.

What does your body weight do after 5-6 days after getting back on track? Typically when you binge or eat at such a high surplus, your body weight will spike due to water retention and digestion as it works to process all of that food. If you get back on track with your 2600 diet you should see that number come down significantly; but I would expect that you would gain at least a few pounds of body weight/body fat while doing this.

If this is a concern, have you considered a more controlled approach to eating during the holidays? I understand that its nice to eat more food while you're together with friends and family, but consuming 6k for 3-4 consecutive days can put a dent in your physique and progress.

 

[mickc1965]

Generally the weight drops off again, weight gained on a 3 day binge would take approx 9 days to come back off so it's not like I cannot lose it again just wondered if the main cause of weight gain is the previously acquired additional fat cells holding onto water / fat etc.

I do need to learn not to binge on chocolate / sweets, I blame the missus as she is the one who buys it and puts it out for guests / takes it to give to the host etc and my inability to stop one I start!!!