Things I still don't understand . . .
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nxd10
Posts: 4,570 Member
I've been maintaining a few years. One thing I still do NOT understand. I'll be at a stable weight, probably slightly at the high end of my range. I'll have a high calorie day - yesterday I was hungry and went 500 over the day (I'm fine for the week). And the next day my weight will DROP. Like drop 4 pounds. It happens consistently and, no, I'm not pooping it out. It must cause me to drop water.
Oddities you've noticed?
Oddities you've noticed?
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Replies
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That's happened to me a lot. I think I might have heard people refer to it as a "whoosh". Sometimes too, when I'm actively trying to lose but I have a whole week or two of zero progress, then I'll binge a bit for a day and next day, bam 2 lbs down.0
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Same thing has happend to me... Thought I was the only one lol.. it's just WEIRD.0
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I can't say I get this.
If I eat takeaway Chinese my weight will show 2lbs higher for 3 days but that's sodium. ...
I would have loved a whoosh of several pounds when i was in lose mode though. ..with me it was slow and slower and stop lol0 -
Happens to me too. If I eat huge one day, the next day I'm down. Even if its carbs and sodium. Would love to know the science behind it.0
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Calorie cycling! No brainier!0
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MonkeyMel21 wrote: »That's happened to me a lot. I think I might have heard people refer to it as a "whoosh". Sometimes too, when I'm actively trying to lose but I have a whole week or two of zero progress, then I'll binge a bit for a day and next day, bam 2 lbs down.
Yes, the whoosh effect. It generally happens with those who’ve been in a deficit for a while, causing a rise in cortisol, which increases water retention. When you then eat a lot, cortisol levels drop and water retention drops. You wake up the next day several pounds lighter.
Unfortunately, it’s not a good long term weight loss plan. You can’t overeat to lose weight.0 -
MonkeyMel21 wrote: »That's happened to me a lot. I think I might have heard people refer to it as a "whoosh". Sometimes too, when I'm actively trying to lose but I have a whole week or two of zero progress, then I'll binge a bit for a day and next day, bam 2 lbs down.
Yes, the whoosh effect. It generally happens with those who’ve been in a deficit for a while, causing a rise in cortisol, which increases water retention. When you then eat a lot, cortisol levels drop and water retention drops. You wake up the next day several pounds lighter.
Unfortunately, it’s not a good long term weight loss plan. You can’t overeat to lose weight.
For a brief moment there i thought hhhhhmmmm Lets overeat so i can see the scale go down the next day.... But it was just a wonderful daydream
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MonkeyMel21 wrote: »That's happened to me a lot. I think I might have heard people refer to it as a "whoosh". Sometimes too, when I'm actively trying to lose but I have a whole week or two of zero progress, then I'll binge a bit for a day and next day, bam 2 lbs down.
Yes, the whoosh effect. It generally happens with those who’ve been in a deficit for a while, causing a rise in cortisol, which increases water retention. When you then eat a lot, cortisol levels drop and water retention drops. You wake up the next day several pounds lighter.
Unfortunately, it’s not a good long term weight loss plan. You can’t overeat to lose weight.
Even that has never happened to me, lol.0 -
MonkeyMel21 wrote: »That's happened to me a lot. I think I might have heard people refer to it as a "whoosh". Sometimes too, when I'm actively trying to lose but I have a whole week or two of zero progress, then I'll binge a bit for a day and next day, bam 2 lbs down.
Yes, the whoosh effect. It generally happens with those who’ve been in a deficit for a while, causing a rise in cortisol, which increases water retention. When you then eat a lot, cortisol levels drop and water retention drops. You wake up the next day several pounds lighter.
Unfortunately, it’s not a good long term weight loss plan. You can’t overeat to lose weight.
Even that has never happened to me, lol.
Ha - me neither!0 -
It happens to me too. Interesting to read the reason, thanks @jim1801550
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MonkeyMel21 wrote: »That's happened to me a lot. I think I might have heard people refer to it as a "whoosh". Sometimes too, when I'm actively trying to lose but I have a whole week or two of zero progress, then I'll binge a bit for a day and next day, bam 2 lbs down.
Yes, the whoosh effect. It generally happens with those who’ve been in a deficit for a while, causing a rise in cortisol, which increases water retention. When you then eat a lot, cortisol levels drop and water retention drops. You wake up the next day several pounds lighter.
Unfortunately, it’s not a good long term weight loss plan. You can’t overeat to lose weight.
Yeah, I get that in a deficit too. But why do you think it would happen in maintenance?
I'm curious about this too.0 -
I also wonder if the scales take a few days to show a high calorie day?0
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arditarose wrote: »MonkeyMel21 wrote: »That's happened to me a lot. I think I might have heard people refer to it as a "whoosh". Sometimes too, when I'm actively trying to lose but I have a whole week or two of zero progress, then I'll binge a bit for a day and next day, bam 2 lbs down.
Yes, the whoosh effect. It generally happens with those who’ve been in a deficit for a while, causing a rise in cortisol, which increases water retention. When you then eat a lot, cortisol levels drop and water retention drops. You wake up the next day several pounds lighter.
Unfortunately, it’s not a good long term weight loss plan. You can’t overeat to lose weight.
Yeah, I get that in a deficit too. But why do you think it would happen in maintenance?
I'm curious about this too.
I don’t know the answer to that. I mean, we know that there are other factors that influence water retention, like sodium intake. And other factors, like stress, can influence cortisol levels. And then just to make sure no one knows what’s going on, women have their own fluid retention issues with menstrual cycles.
So the shortest and most accurate answer is I don’t know.
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arditarose wrote: »MonkeyMel21 wrote: »That's happened to me a lot. I think I might have heard people refer to it as a "whoosh". Sometimes too, when I'm actively trying to lose but I have a whole week or two of zero progress, then I'll binge a bit for a day and next day, bam 2 lbs down.
Yes, the whoosh effect. It generally happens with those who’ve been in a deficit for a while, causing a rise in cortisol, which increases water retention. When you then eat a lot, cortisol levels drop and water retention drops. You wake up the next day several pounds lighter.
Unfortunately, it’s not a good long term weight loss plan. You can’t overeat to lose weight.
Yeah, I get that in a deficit too. But why do you think it would happen in maintenance?
I'm curious about this too.
I don’t know the answer to that. I mean, we know that there are other factors that influence water retention, like sodium intake. And other factors, like stress, can influence cortisol levels. And then just to make sure no one knows what’s going on, women have their own fluid retention issues with menstrual cycles.
So the shortest and most accurate answer is I don’t know.
lol. Me either.0 -
Our bodies are a complex system - our weight isn't defined by a perfectly linear function of calories consumed over the short term. There are too many systems with too many short term fluctuations that are not a direct result of calories (as pointed out above, things like sodium content, TOM, etc)
Over the longer term, these fluctuations tend to flatten out, creating a much more linear correlation between calories and weight.0 -
Some people eat this way on purpose it's called calorie cycling. It's supposed to help with breaking a plateau, losing fat or giving your metabolism a kick in the head..
More info here: http://www.builtdaily.com/power-of-calorie-cycling/
I inadvertently tried calorie cycling on Thanksgiving. I ate like a boss. I tried to count calories in my head, but lost track after the fourth glass of wine and second slice of pie. This "calorie cycling" thing did not work for me. I put on a couple of pounds.0 -
juggernaut1974 wrote: »Our bodies are a complex system - our weight isn't defined by a perfectly linear function of calories consumed over the short term. There are too many systems with too many short term fluctuations that are not a direct result of calories (as pointed out above, things like sodium content, TOM, etc)
Over the longer term, these fluctuations tend to flatten out, creating a much more linear correlation between calories and weight.
i was going to say pretty much this...0 -
And I always hit my numbers over time and never worry about daily fluctuations. I just find it odd that I will consistently get a drop after a big day of eating. Just like a consistently get a gain with a big day of salt (especially if I'm also flying).
Since my weight is stable within a small range over time, I don't think it is the metabolism boost you're supposed to get from calorie cycling. It could be that needing to metabolize that much changes retained water - always the easiest way to dump weight.0 -
arditarose wrote: »MonkeyMel21 wrote: »That's happened to me a lot. I think I might have heard people refer to it as a "whoosh". Sometimes too, when I'm actively trying to lose but I have a whole week or two of zero progress, then I'll binge a bit for a day and next day, bam 2 lbs down.
Yes, the whoosh effect. It generally happens with those who’ve been in a deficit for a while, causing a rise in cortisol, which increases water retention. When you then eat a lot, cortisol levels drop and water retention drops. You wake up the next day several pounds lighter.
Unfortunately, it’s not a good long term weight loss plan. You can’t overeat to lose weight.
Yeah, I get that in a deficit too. But why do you think it would happen in maintenance?
I'm curious about this too.
I was going to say the same. Never happens to me in maintenance. Only in a deficit.0 -
When I take a break from the gym (at least a week off) I ALWAYS lose several pounds. Then it comes back when I get back into my workout schedule. I assume that it's water weight that my muscles when recovering from lifting?0
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