What's happening with my body?

Last summer I went to one of those extreme weight loss/boot camps in Southern Thailand for about 2 months. While I was there we did hardcore workouts. Out in the sun for 3 or 4 hours a day, running 5 or 6 miles, and hours of pushups and kickboxing style exercises, also weight lifting. Our diet was mostly Thai food, like rice, veg, fruit, and fish. During my time then, I weighed myself about once a week and saw little improvement. Over two months, I only lost like 3 or 4 pounds.



That is until I got back home and back to a normal routine and typical American diet. All of a sudden, the weight fell off of me. I was dropping a pound or two a week and for a while was literally eating a pizza every other day. It just kept coming off until I flattened out... down a whopping 30 lbs from before I went to the camp. I couldn't believe it. I managed to keep most of it off before it started to creep back up again.



Summer is back and I'm back at the weight loss camp, this time for 3 months. But the same thing is happening. I'm eating healthy and working out like a crazy person most days and the scale stays the same. Some days I even add weight. It's so frustrating. I keep telling myself maybe it will be like last time and the weight will come off once I go back home... but why would it do that? What the heck is going on with my body???



Btw, I'm male, 27, about 6' tall and right now about 193 lbs. I was up to about 214 last year and after the camp dropped to 184. I just want to be able to hold steady at 170.What's happening with my body?
At camp you probably put on some muscle compared to when you came back home. I don't know for sure but that's my educated guess. Also, one of the biggest misconceptions people make is that they assume just b/c they're eating healthy, that they will lose weight. Eating the right types of foods is very important no doubt, but portion size and daily calories is what's going to make you gain or lose weight, not just the types of food.



Real quick story. When I was in school, I didn't workout one bit for 6 months (hard for me to do b/c I'm a gym rat but was way too busy). Anyways, I ate like crap and weighed myself. The ironic thing is that after I began working out and eating better, I actually gained a few lbs. But I knew it was muscle b/c I know my body to the tee and knew that I was much leaner now at a higher weight than when I was a student. Plus I felt stronger.



I bring that story up to emphasize not to always use the scale as a gauge to your success. Don't neglect the scale all together but use the mirror and the way your clothes fit. Muscle burns more fat at rest meaning it boosts your BMR (basal metabolic rate).