5 Weight Gain Truths You Need to Hear Right Now

 

Today’s episode is here to help you breathe a little easier. If the scale has shifted or your clothes feel different after the holidays, it can bring up worry or pressure. But your body responds to changes in sleep, stress, meals, travel, and routines, and that response is normal. This episode gives you five simple reminders that bring everything back into perspective so you can move into your week feeling calm, supported, and confident again.

Inside this episode, you will learn:

• Why most weight fluctuations are water, not fat
• How many calories it actually takes to gain one pound of body fat
• Why one meal or weekend cannot undo months of consistency
• How hormones, digestion, sodium, soreness, and sleep impact the scale
• Why your body naturally settles again when your routines return
• The habits that help your body feel steady and supported

If you want a routine that helps you stay consistent without all-or-nothing thinking, the Movement With Julie app gives you balanced, structured workouts you can follow week after week without guesswork. And if you want to learn how to fuel your body in a way that feels sustainable and supportive, Macro Counting Made Simple walks you through the exact approach I teach to help you feel confident with your nutrition.

If this episode encouraged you, you might also enjoy: Episode 148: So You’ve Gained Weight… Now What?

If you want more from me, be sure to check out… 

Transcript

 (0:00) Hey, hey, beautiful human. Can I steal five minutes of your time? I have something (0:04) super important to share with you, but I promise I'll be really quick. (0:08) You're listening to my weekly bonus episode of Embrace Your Real with me, Julie Leadbetter.

(0:12) I'm about to give you a quick tip for building your confidence, honoring your body, and (0:17) unconditionally loving your authentic self. Stay tuned if you're ready to embrace your real. (0:22) Let's get in.

Let's go. Hello, and welcome back to another bonus episode on the Embrace Real (0:35) podcast. I'm so grateful that you are here spending some time with me today.

(0:39) If you've stepped on the scale recently and just felt this wave of worry or pressure come over you, (0:43) or maybe you've noticed that your clothes are fitting differently, you felt unsure about it, (0:47) you are not alone. The holiday season can really shift routines, meals, sleep, (0:50) stress levels, and your body does respond to those changes. And that response is normal.

(0:54) It's human. And so in today's episode, I want to share five comforting truths about (0:58) waking that will help you release that stress, get back to balance and step into the rest of (1:02) your week and this holiday season feeling grounded and empowered. Before I dive in, (1:07) though, I want to share this review.

It comes from Mrs. Carrie K. She gave a five-star review and (1:11) said, amazing, awesome, and oh, so much truth. Listen, a friend referred Julie's podcast to me (1:16) a long time ago and backstory. I'm a serial dieter, a former workoutaholic, and just have (1:21) totally messed up my view of eating and body image.

I've decided after going from one extreme (1:26) of being super thin to a total anti-diet gal that this summer I'd commit to macro counting. (1:31) I've dabbled with it before, but ultimately gave up. I decided to give Julie's podcast a listen (1:36) since I see it in my library every day.

And oh me, oh my, I've listened to so many episodes in (1:42) the last two days. She just gets it. I'm excited for this macro counting journey for a new mindset (1:47) and for a shift with my dieting life.

Every episode has a little or a lot of nuggets of pure gold. (1:54) Thank you, Julie. I'm so grateful.

Thank you so much for taking time out of your day to send in (1:59) this review. It really does mean the world to me and our team. And I am so pumped for your macro (2:03) counting journey.

Listen, I know that so many people have experience with dieting and some people, (2:09) they hear the word macro counting and they're like, no, I can't do it. And I just want you to know (2:13) that macro counting has so many different approaches to it. Whether that's just you counting (2:19) the amount of protein that you're eating on a daily basis or just the overall calories in your (2:24) maybe counting all three macronutrients sounds super overwhelming.

I totally get that. And I just (2:29) want you to know that there are so many different approaches to macro counting that you can take, (2:33) depending on where you're at and what your lifestyle is. So I have an episode for that.

(2:37) If you just scroll through my episodes, trust me when I tell you, I literally have an episode for (2:42) everything. So if you have a question about macro counting, I guarantee it's in one of my episodes, (2:47) I've done over 550 now. And so just scroll through all of those.

Every single one of those episodes (2:53) is free. I pray. And I hope that it's good information for you.

I pray that it empowers you, (2:58) it educates you in some way, shape or form. So thank you again, Ms. Carrie Kay for sending in (3:03) that review. All right, let's just dive right into it.

So truth number one is that water weight is (3:08) not real weight gain. So when you eat more salt or more carbs, or just have a few fun holiday meals, (3:14) your body's naturally going to hold onto more water and that's all happening. It's all temporary (3:19) carbs are stored in your body as glycogen and glycogen holds water.

So when your glycogen (3:24) store fills back up, your body's going to hold extra water along with it. And that's why the (3:30) scale might go up, you know, one pound, two pound, or even five pounds overnight. Trust me when I (3:35) tell you that is not fat gain.

Your body did not create five pounds of fat in 24 hours. It's just (3:41) simply holding onto more hydration or more food in your system. But when you go back to your normal (3:46) routines, you're drinking water, you're moving your body, you're sleeping well, and you're eating (3:50) how you normally do, your weight is going to settle back down within a couple of days, no (3:54) restrictions, no makeup workouts, just letting your body to rebalance.

Truth number two is that (4:00) it takes 3,500 extra calories to gain one pound of fat. So to gain actually one pound of fat, again, (4:08) that's 3,500 extra calories beyond what it uses. And that's not something that happens (4:17) from one holiday dinner or one fun weekend.

That takes consistent overeating over time to get your (4:23) body to store fat. So when the scale jumps up the next day, again, that does not mean that you've (4:28) gained weight in the way that we usually think about it. What you're seeing is that your body (4:33) is holding on to more water, more food still in your system, maybe more sodium, maybe a change (4:37) in carbs, or even where you're at in terms of your cycle on a monthly basis.

Those are all (4:43) temporary shifts. But once your routine again, settles back into place, you're staying hydrated, (4:48) you're moving your body, you're eating normally, you're sleeping well, that is going to come back (4:53) down. And I just want you to know that it is going to happen and your body knows exactly what it (5:00) needs to do.

Truth number three is that one off night or weekend does not undo months of progress, (5:06) your results are simply shaped by what you do most, not the one meal that you enjoyed, (5:11) not the weekend that where you rested more, not the single workout that you skipped, (5:14) because life was full and your schedule was just busy. When you are consistent overall, (5:19) your progress does not disappear because of a moment your body responds to patterns, (5:23) not isolated choices. Let me say that again, your body responds to patterns, (5:28) not isolated choices.

So when you've been showing up for yourself regularly, (5:32) one relaxed day or one celebration will not take that away from you. But I also want you to know (5:39) that staying consistent can really feel hard when you're trying to figure everything out, right? (5:44) When you don't have a plan, it's easy to second guess yourself to start over each week or to (5:48) simply slip into this all or nothing thinking. And that is where structure really does become (5:53) supportive because it gives you something to lean on.

This is exactly why I created my (5:57) workouts. These workouts are already planned for you in a balanced and thoughtful way. (6:03) Literally, you open the app and you see what you're doing today.

You pick a workout, (6:07) no guessing, no trying to remember what muscle group you should train, (6:10) no pressure, pressure to start fresh every Monday. It really does help you to stay steady (6:15) and consistent by simply just giving you a clear path to follow so that your routines (6:20) feel doable and grounded in your life. Truth number four is that digestion, (6:25) inflammation, and your cycle do all affect your weight.

And here's what most women don't realize (6:31) is that your weight can literally fluctuate daily anywhere from two to seven pounds, (6:35) depending on where you're at with your cycle, how well you're sleeping, how much fiber or sodium (6:39) you've eaten, how sore your muscles are, what your water intake has been. Lifting weights (6:44) creates these tiny amounts of inflammation, which means more water retention while your muscles heal. (6:50) And yes, you can weigh more the day after a hard workout, even though you're building lean muscle.

(6:56) And if you're in your luteal phase, that bloating and heaviness that you are experiencing right now, (7:00) that's totally normal. Your hormones do affect your water balance, your digestion, your appetite, (7:05) not your worth and not your willpower. Truth number five, you can trust your body to come (7:11) back to balance.

So just remember that your body is always working to support you. When you give (7:16) it enough protein, it has the building blocks to repair the muscles, steady your blood sugar (7:20) support your hormones. Hydration is going to help your cells move nutrients where they need to go, (7:26) which can ease the bloating and help your energy feel more stable.

Quality sleep, you guys, this is (7:31) so important. This allows your nervous system the chance to reset so that you can wake up feeling (7:36) grounded instead of depleted. And when you move in a thoughtful, intentional way, your body has (7:41) space to get stronger without feeling overwhelmed.

Your system knows how to find its rhythm again. (7:46) It responds to nourishment, rest, consistency. And when those pieces are present, your digestion (7:51) feels smoother, your energy lifts, your mood studies, your body begins to feel like it's at (7:56) home again.

And progress grows from support, not pressure. If you are unsure how to fuel your body (8:03) in a way that is supportive and steady, this is why I created my Macro County Made Simple Online (8:07) Academy. And it can be a really useful tool.

You're going to learn how to nourish your body in a way (8:12) that feels doable, that aligns with your real life, not restrictive, not overwhelming. It really (8:17) does create that balance that lasts even during fuller seasons like the holidays. But before we (8:23) wrap up today's bonus episode, again, I just want to remind you that your body isn't fragile, (8:28) it's adaptive, it's forgiving, and it's designed to help you thrive even when life gets messy.

(8:33) All right, let's quickly recap the five truths that we covered today. Number one, (8:37) weight fluctuations after holiday or special meals are often just water retention, not fat gain. (8:42) Number two, it takes significantly more food than people assume to gain actual body fat.

(8:48) Number three, one weekend, one meal, or one day off cannot erase the progress that you have built (8:53) over time. Number four, your hormones, your digestion, your sodium, your sleep, and muscle (8:58) recovery all influence the number on the scale. And last but not least, number five, your body (9:02) knows how to return to balance when it's nourished, when it's hydrated, and when it's supported.

(9:07) These truths are here to remind you that your body is not fragile, it is capable, it is adaptive, (9:12) and it is designed to find that equilibrium when you give it what it needs. And if you want to (9:17) study a routine that helps you feel grounded throughout the holidays and into the new year, (9:22) My Movement with Julie Dumbbell Only Workouts can guide you. Again, these workouts are structured, (9:26) balanced, and made to fit real life so that consistency can feel achievable rather than (9:31) stressful.

And if you need or want support with how to fuel your body in a way that feels (9:36) nourishing instead of restricting, it's exactly what we walk in through inside my Macro County (9:41) Meat Simple Online Academy. You're going to learn how to support your energy, your metabolism, (9:45) and strength without second guessing your food choices. You can learn more about that (9:49) at macrocountymeatsimple.com. Again, that's macrocountymeatsimple.com. And if what we (9:54) talked about today made sense to you, you might also love kind of an OG episode, episode 148.

(10:00) So you've gained weight. Now what? I will go ahead and link that in the show notes below (10:04) so that you can easily go check that out. But if you have a moment, if you could leave a rating (10:08) interview, that really does help this podcast reach more women who might need these reminders (10:13) as well.

I just want to encourage you that you are doing better than you think. I love you so (10:18) dang much. I really pray and hope that you enjoy this holiday season.

And I will talk to you in (10:23) the next episode. All right, sister, that's all I got for you today. But I have two things that (10:39) I need you to do.

First thing, if you are not already following me on the gram, be sure to do (10:43) so. Julie A Ledbetter. Yes, it's with an A in the middle for that daily post-workout real talk, (10:49) healthy tips and tricks and honest accountability to keep your mind and heart in check.

The second (10:55) thing, be sure to subscribe to Apple podcast to never miss an episode. Thank you so much for (11:02) joining me. It means the absolute world.

And I'm going to leave you with one last thought. (11:06) The most beautiful women that I have met in my life are the ones who are completely confident (11:11) and secure in being authentically themselves. Remember that beauty goes so much deeper than (11:18) the surface.

So go out there and embrace your room because you're worth it.

 
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