Losing an inch, not gaining muscle - but gaining weight?

[Chrilynhawk]

I had my daughter in September, in January I bought some new clothes including some size 13 pants that were TIGHT. I knew I would fit in them soon enough so I bought them anyways. I wasn't able to get to the gym for this whole month since then because I had wrecked my car, and I just can't seem to get myself to work out at home (I admit it, I'm a gym rat!). So that means I haven't gained muscle mass.

My size 13 pants are so big on me now that I can pull them off without unbuttoning them. My measurements show me that I've lost almost an inch since I bought them a month ago.

But here's where I get confused. I had a doctor's appointment this week and was so excited to get weighed because I KNEW I had lost weight.
I GAINED TEN POUNDS (in about 3 months).

So I just don't understand how this works...how did I NOT gain muscle mass, LOSE almost an inch but yet gain ten pounds?

Any ideas? I've just never heard of this happening without gaining muscle mass.
Thanks!

[Risker]

How do you know that you haven't gained muscle mass? Is it measured by some sort of machine? Maybe it's not accurate if it is.

[Chrilynhawk]

How do you know that you haven't gained muscle mass? Is it measured by some sort of machine? Maybe it's not accurate if it is.

I'm a huge fitness person and keep track of everything like my bodyfat (I even have calipers at my home). I've been doing this for so long I can generally know if I've gained muscle, plus if I've lost bodyfat but haven't lost weight it's usually a sure sign of increased muscle mass.

But there's absolutely no way I gained muscle during this time, when I say I haven't worked out...I mean not AT ALL. Not so much as a pushup. The most I've done is picking up my daughter, but that wouldn't change things since I already have another child that gets picked up too...plus you'd have to pick up a kid A LOT (probably actually use them as exercise tools) to put on muscle mass.

[herbwormwood]

Muscle weighs more than fat so if you gain muscle you will weigh more.
Its more healthy to be more muscular because as well as strength and looking good its more healthy for the cardio vascular system.
There is also bone density to consider. People with denser stronger bones weigh more.
Exercise and building muscle leads to increased bone density.
So don't need to weigh yourself so often!

[herbwormwood]

You say you haven't exercised, but you had your baby so I expect you've been working hard at those strenuous mother's duties!
Also just naturally the passage of time since you gave birth will allow your wastline to go down.

[Ruby Rose]

Could your doctor's scales just have been wrong?

[cookey]

Is this your first baby and are you still breastfeeding?
Your body can change in unusual ways after having a baby. Perhaps you have lost weight on your waist but your breasts are bigger?
The other thing is that unless you were weighed on the same scales at the same time of day, its hard to make an accurate comparison.

[Chrilynhawk]

Sorry I didn't get to respond to this earlier, I'll try to make comments and answer questions.

You say you haven't exercised, but you had your baby so I expect you've been working hard at those strenuous mother's duties!
Also just naturally the passage of time since you gave birth will allow your wastline to go down.

Although this is true, it doesn't change the fact that I gained 10 pounds PRIOR to giving birth. I was down to my pre-pregnancy weight two months after my daughter was born (as I said, I'm a gym rat lol). The weight gain has happened in the past couple of months *after* getting my weight down. Also, there's just no way it's all muscle even if I HAD been working out. A female putting on 10 pounds of muscle within just a couple of months or less (Even an avid gym goer such as myself) is basically impossible. Gaining that much muscle sitting at home? Not happening.

So don't need to weigh yourself so often!

LOL I don't even own a scale! I haven't gotten weighed in over two months, the only way I even know I gained 10 pounds is that at my last doctor appointment I was 134, and I'm now 144 at the same doctors office. I've never been a weigh-me kind of person, mostly because when I AM getting to work out I gain muscle quickly and learned super quick that numbers are quite decieving.

Could your doctor's scales just have been wrong?

This is what my husband said. He's going out later today to buy a home scale. I really hate the thought of having a scale at home so I may just swing by the gym now that I have my car and use theirs instead.

Is this your first baby and are you still breastfeeding?
Your body can change in unusual ways after having a baby. Perhaps you have lost weight on your waist but your breasts are bigger?
The other thing is that unless you were weighed on the same scales at the same time of day, its hard to make an accurate comparison.

Second child, not still breastfeeding (son breastfed over a year, my daughter had some issues around 3 months with latching). Nothing on me is bigger, everything is smaller . I've went down from a 36B to a 34B, I went yesterday to try on pants and I'm fitting in a NINE (whereas in early january I was fitting TIGHT in a 13). I take my measurements for keeping track of my fitness goals and I'm smaller all over...I just gained ten pounds.

It's just the weirdest thing. If I had been exercising AT ALL this would make sense, I have literally done nothing exercise-ish except walking to check my mail (like 80 feet) and then taking care of my kids...and I already was taking care of one before she was born, and I was taking care of them both for a few months before this happened.
It's so weird!

[Risker]

I think it's unexplainable with science and therefore must be magic.

[Marrers]

If you really are sure it is unexplainable perhaps you should mention it to your doctor - just in case it may be an indication of some health issue.

[Chrilynhawk]

If you really are sure it is unexplainable perhaps you should mention it to your doctor - just in case it may be an indication of some health issue.

I mentioned it at my last appointment, which is when I got weighed and was confused. She didn't really talk to me about it much because I was in there about some issues with my foot and the weight thing was just kind of secondary. I have another appointment next week to finish some bloodwork so I think I'll call tomorrow and make sure they add the weight issue to the file of what I need to come in about. Hopefully they'll be able to explain something. I may also ask to see the attending doctor rather than one of the residents, not because I don't trust the residents (in fact our family doctor who was my OB is one and I love him to death!) but I think maybe the attending doctor could figure things out a bit quicker if that makes sense.