water weight or fat?

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aniqa109
aniqa109 Posts: 364 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Hiiiiii all
Just a quick question. How do I know if im losing water weight or actual fat? I'm asking this as my scale fluctuates so much daily and I do log on libra everyday and the trend is going down but I wanted to know if im really burning fat if that makes sense?

Replies

  • ultrahoon
    ultrahoon Posts: 467 Member
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    Time will make it clear, If the number on the scale continues to go down and you're being consistent with your logging, you're headed to the right place. That said since 3500 calories roughly = one pound, if you see the scale drop by 3lbs in two days while you're still eating, it's probably water weight.
  • Mondoweft
    Mondoweft Posts: 49 Member
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    Look at the overall trend and the pace of loss. For example, when I started, I lost 3 kg in the first week and a half. Most of that was probably water weight. Since then, I have been losing steadily as I should based on my calorie deficit. This is more likely to be fat.

    Ignore the daily fluctuations and look at what is happening over time. You can do this by either weighing less frequently or using a graphing tool like trendweight, happy scales or a spreadsheet.
  • Yi5hedr3
    Yi5hedr3 Posts: 2,696 Member
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    Get a scale that shows percent of body fat. Weight watchers makes one...at Walmart.
  • aniqa109
    aniqa109 Posts: 364 Member
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    I did weigh weekly but I've started to weigh daily now and the scale went down but then around my time of the month it went back up and it's been a week after my time of month and it's gone down but not to the number I was originally. Do you think eating at maintenance for a week would help me determine if im doing it right and see what number the scales at? I get confused as halfway in the week I'll get a low number so I went from 76.6kg beginning of week down to 75.7kh and then today I was 76.3kg and today's 6th day so not sure what tomorrow will read so I don't know:( not sure if I'm even making sense! It is partly my fault because I eat at maintenance sometimes so I think that slows down my progress
  • Sued0nim
    Sued0nim Posts: 17,456 Member
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    You can't judge weight over a week ..you have to take an average over 6-8 weeks

    I'm in maintenance

    If you look at my trend over a couple of weeks it looks bananas

  • Sued0nim
    Sued0nim Posts: 17,456 Member
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    So this is over 3 months, you can take any shorter period and get a totally different picture

    Fluctuations are normal

    lszxgd8xa8k9.jpg
  • aniqa109
    aniqa109 Posts: 364 Member
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    Yeah that looks similar to mine I guess I need to stick to it. I just get abit scared when the line goes up a bit!
    Thankyou for your help
  • starwhisperer6
    starwhisperer6 Posts: 402 Member
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    But yes, eating at maintenance is going to slow your progress. You just have to decide if it's worth it.
  • nutmegoreo
    nutmegoreo Posts: 15,532 Member
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    Here's my MFP daily weights for the last two months. Notice the overall trend. I think it's safe to say the trend tells the story. It helps when your clothes start getting baggy too, but that may take some time, depending on how far you have to go, and how tight you clothes were when you started (I was stuffed in my pants tighter than sausage casing, so it took about 30lbs).

    76e36dx5st55.png
  • mylittlerainbow
    mylittlerainbow Posts: 822 Member
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    Seems like it's more likely water when you first start eating healthfully and exercising. If the scale eventually goes down 1 - 2 pounds most weeks, that's fat and not water weight, especially if you make a point of drinking all (or most) of your required water every day.
  • aniqa109
    aniqa109 Posts: 364 Member
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    Thanks for your replies. I think it's partly my own fault as I eat at maintenance one or 2 days and that negates my deficit . I will keep plodding on and hopefully will work it out. People have commented that my face looks slimmer so maybe I am losing will just need to be patient. I took measurements and I lost half an inch on hip and that was about it. I did take pictures from weeks ago will try taking more pics and comparing!
  • nutmegoreo
    nutmegoreo Posts: 15,532 Member
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    aniqa109 wrote: »
    Thanks for your replies. I think it's partly my own fault as I eat at maintenance one or 2 days and that negates my deficit . I will keep plodding on and hopefully will work it out. People have commented that my face looks slimmer so maybe I am losing will just need to be patient. I took measurements and I lost half an inch on hip and that was about it. I did take pictures from weeks ago will try taking more pics and comparing!

    Maintenance won't negate, but it can certainly slow your progress. If you are happy with that, there's nothing wrong with it. You need to find a way to balance your goals with your life.

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