Do you gain when you go to maintenance?
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Plutodreams wrote: »Plutodreams wrote: »
Nope, not at all.Do you gain when you go to maintenance?
I didn't go low carb and had a small deficit to lose the last few pounds. I also started to lose again a few weeks into maintenance, my calorie allowance turned out to be higher than expected.
Thoughts....
You really shouldn't let a tiny change of under a pound affect you, it's far too small a change and far too soon to draw conclusions. That's the equivalent of a big glass of water - remember weight changes aren't just related to fat.
At maintenance you have to keep a long term view of scale changes or it will drive you mad and make maintenance an unhappy experience - just when you should be celebrating your success.
Everything you say is very reasonable. I just need to figure out what is going on. I know it's possibly water...But the thought that it's also possibly fat is bothering me. I wish I knew. Why is it they can build a quantum computer but not make something that would tell people what maintenance definitely is? I think if I can go a bit under maintenance, I might be better at not caring about these inevitable fluctuations.
Three things are working pretty well in combination for me:- While losing, I logged meticulously, and eventually was typically able to predict, with fair accuracy, what the water weight and actual gain (or delay in loss) would be if I chose to eat over maintenance one one (or two) days. This also meant I could estimate my maintenance calories with fair accuracy by using my weight loss, eating and exercise data.
- When I was getting close to maintenance, I gradually slowed my loss by eating more. At the very last stages, I began adding 100 daily calories once a week or so . . . waiting after each add to see what the impact was, after things settled down from any random fluctuations. (This meant longer waits each time I added, for obvious arithmetic/practical reasons). As an aside, this process kind of naturally resulted in me dropping a little bit below goal weight, because I was reverse dieting my way up to it.
- I set a maintenance weight range to guide me. For me, it was goal weight plus or minus 3 pounds, because experience told me that that range would encompass my usual daily fluctuations. If I drop below the bottom end for more than a day or two, I do some extra eating (within reason). If I go above the top end for more than a few days in a row, I cut back for a while until I drop below goal weight again.
I've only been in maintenance for 6 months or so, but things have been going pretty well.
Truly inspirational. Did you do daily weighing? I feel like that would make things easier to predict, but my problem is that daily weighing makes me loco. I like how you found a way to make it fun/interesting as opposed to maddening. I'm going to try to do it this way, when I decide to maintain. Today I've eaten 250 cals less than yesterday, and oddly hunger levels have been less than on the 1800 or so I've been eating all week. This is all interesting and a learning experience, and you just reminded me of that. Thanks for sharing
I did (and do) weigh daily. But I've weighed myself daily (and recorded the result) for years, even before trying to lose weight. It really helped me understand my own weight fluctuations, and what causes them, which in turn helps me accept them without stress. I like data; I track a lot of workout data, too.
For some people, the weight trending apps (Trendweight, Happy Scale, Libra, others) help with the emotional response to daily weighing, because they sort of smooth out the fluctuations & estimate overall direction of progress. Me, I'm just not an emotional person.
As a data lover, I deeply understand that not knowing a number doesn't do anything to change reality, and that knowing can confer power.2 -
I went from around 1600 calories a day to 2500-2600 calories a day in about two months when I hit maintenance. I dropped myself 5 lbs below my goal before adding 250ish calories a week. That way, I figured, if I went back up 5 lbs I would still be below my goal. It worked for me, I gained about 4 lbs in a few weeks but never went above my goal. I kept up my exercise levels the same as they were before, and even added in a bit extra body weight training because the extra calories would allow me to build a bit more muscle. I now weigh in about every two weeks and find myself at times slowly losing weight still, but noticeably gaining muscle (in the mirror). So I figure I'll stay where I am for recomp for up to a year and see where it gets me. I can easily drop 20 lbs if I wanted and still be in a "normal" BMI range, but I don't want to. Right now I stay about 10 lbs below "overweight" on the BMI scales and I'm pretty happy with it. Any time I see myself creeping back up to my goal weight of 190 I watch the sodium for a week and re-weigh. It always drops back off. So swings of around 5lbs, sometimes a hair more, are not uncommon. I'm 6'2" tall and weigh about 183 right now, and I exercise 6 days a week for up to 90 minutes a day. Been trying to limit that to 60 minutes though, but it sometimes takes longer to accomplish what I want. But I wouldn't worry, just don't weigh in every day and freak out about a small gain. It's going to take time for your body to adjust.2
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Plutodreams wrote: »Plutodreams wrote: »
Nope, not at all.Do you gain when you go to maintenance?
I didn't go low carb and had a small deficit to lose the last few pounds. I also started to lose again a few weeks into maintenance, my calorie allowance turned out to be higher than expected.
Thoughts....
You really shouldn't let a tiny change of under a pound affect you, it's far too small a change and far too soon to draw conclusions. That's the equivalent of a big glass of water - remember weight changes aren't just related to fat.
At maintenance you have to keep a long term view of scale changes or it will drive you mad and make maintenance an unhappy experience - just when you should be celebrating your success.
Everything you say is very reasonable. I just need to figure out what is going on. I know it's possibly water...But the thought that it's also possibly fat is bothering me. I wish I knew. Why is it they can build a quantum computer but not make something that would tell people what maintenance definitely is? I think if I can go a bit under maintenance, I might be better at not caring about these inevitable fluctuations.
Three things are working pretty well in combination for me:- While losing, I logged meticulously, and eventually was typically able to predict, with fair accuracy, what the water weight and actual gain (or delay in loss) would be if I chose to eat over maintenance one one (or two) days. This also meant I could estimate my maintenance calories with fair accuracy by using my weight loss, eating and exercise data.
- When I was getting close to maintenance, I gradually slowed my loss by eating more. At the very last stages, I began adding 100 daily calories once a week or so . . . waiting after each add to see what the impact was, after things settled down from any random fluctuations. (This meant longer waits each time I added, for obvious arithmetic/practical reasons). As an aside, this process kind of naturally resulted in me dropping a little bit below goal weight, because I was reverse dieting my way up to it.
- I set a maintenance weight range to guide me. For me, it was goal weight plus or minus 3 pounds, because experience told me that that range would encompass my usual daily fluctuations. If I drop below the bottom end for more than a day or two, I do some extra eating (within reason). If I go above the top end for more than a few days in a row, I cut back for a while until I drop below goal weight again.
I've only been in maintenance for 6 months or so, but things have been going pretty well.
Truly inspirational. Did you do daily weighing? I feel like that would make things easier to predict, but my problem is that daily weighing makes me loco. I like how you found a way to make it fun/interesting as opposed to maddening. I'm going to try to do it this way, when I decide to maintain. Today I've eaten 250 cals less than yesterday, and oddly hunger levels have been less than on the 1800 or so I've been eating all week. This is all interesting and a learning experience, and you just reminded me of that. Thanks for sharing
I did (and do) weigh daily. But I've weighed myself daily (and recorded the result) for years, even before trying to lose weight. It really helped me understand my own weight fluctuations, and what causes them, which in turn helps me accept them without stress. I like data; I track a lot of workout data, too.
For some people, the weight trending apps (Trendweight, Happy Scale, Libra, others) help with the emotional response to daily weighing, because they sort of smooth out the fluctuations & estimate overall direction of progress. Me, I'm just not an emotional person.
As a data lover, I deeply understand that not knowing a number doesn't do anything to change reality, and that knowing can confer power.
I wish the number would confer power for me. I guess it's all a matter of perception, having to do mainly with personality. When I stopped weighing daily, I felt more powerful because the number would always inevitably end up occupying some space in the stage of my mind, for better or worse. But I am an emotional person! This still happens when I weigh weekly, but because it is not such a frequent measurement the number loses most of its power over me. At any rate, thank you for sharing. I would like to make this more fun and enjoy the learning/experimental aspect of it more, as you have been able to do.0 -
Spliner1969 wrote: »I went from around 1600 calories a day to 2500-2600 calories a day in about two months when I hit maintenance. I dropped myself 5 lbs below my goal before adding 250ish calories a week. That way, I figured, if I went back up 5 lbs I would still be below my goal. It worked for me, I gained about 4 lbs in a few weeks but never went above my goal. I kept up my exercise levels the same as they were before, and even added in a bit extra body weight training because the extra calories would allow me to build a bit more muscle. I now weigh in about every two weeks and find myself at times slowly losing weight still, but noticeably gaining muscle (in the mirror). So I figure I'll stay where I am for recomp for up to a year and see where it gets me. I can easily drop 20 lbs if I wanted and still be in a "normal" BMI range, but I don't want to. Right now I stay about 10 lbs below "overweight" on the BMI scales and I'm pretty happy with it. Any time I see myself creeping back up to my goal weight of 190 I watch the sodium for a week and re-weigh. It always drops back off. So swings of around 5lbs, sometimes a hair more, are not uncommon. I'm 6'2" tall and weigh about 183 right now, and I exercise 6 days a week for up to 90 minutes a day. Been trying to limit that to 60 minutes though, but it sometimes takes longer to accomplish what I want. But I wouldn't worry, just don't weigh in every day and freak out about a small gain. It's going to take time for your body to adjust.
I really like your approach. I might do this.0 -
I would imagine your weight would go up slightly just due to the fact that youre eating more (more food, will weigh more than less food regardless of the calorie content, the actual weight of the food in general will have a small effect.). I would keep on eating what you think is maintenance and keep an eye on the weight so it doesn't keep going up. You may have to pay with your numbers a bit coming down a little at a time etc, to get your actual maintenance intake.0
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From your initial post I see that you are claiming to have increased your calorie intake by 200 per day for 7 days, which is 1400 calories. If your prior 1600 range of intake was losing weight and reached the level of maintenance, it's slightly possible that the +200 calories have exceeded maintenance and gone into surplus, but I greatly doubt that any weight you've gained can be attributed to the extra 1400 calories, as it could at most be responsible for less than half a pound. Stay at your present range for a month and see if you actually gain for 4 weeks. If so, drop it back to the 1700 range for a month and re-evaluate.1
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RebeccaNaegle wrote: »I would imagine your weight would go up slightly just due to the fact that youre eating more (more food, will weigh more than less food regardless of the calorie content, the actual weight of the food in general will have a small effect.). I would keep on eating what you think is maintenance and keep an eye on the weight so it doesn't keep going up. You may have to pay with your numbers a bit coming down a little at a time etc, to get your actual maintenance intake.
Very sensible advice. When I go into maintenance I'm going to come back here and read all these posts to keep me sane.2 -
So an update : I mostly took everyone's advice to stay where I'm at calorie wise, and only very slightly decreased my intake to around 1550-1700 on short run days and 1800-1850 on long run days. That's basically around 700ish less for the entire week. And the result? I gained another .8 pounds for a total gain of 1.6. I know if I lost .8 pounds per week, people would say I was losing fat, so if I'm gaining that much per week, why wouldn't you say I am gaining fat? And everyone else in here has said they didn't gain when going into maintenance? I guess now that I think about it, I decided to start eating maintenance because I plateaued while losing on 1300....I figured I was happy enough with my body, this isn't working, time to just maintain. So since I'm now gaining steadily on 1700ish maybe my maintenance is actually 1300? Idk but I only originally lost like 7 pounds, so if I gain anymore it feels like all that work was for nothing. So I don't wanna gain anymore. So I guess I'm gonna go down to 1300 again and I guess maintain there?? This is so frustrating. Sorry for rant...0
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Until you start to think much longer term - at least a month, you will stay in a state of anxiety and stress.
Simply don't react to changes under a pound or you will never be happy. A pound is a decent sized glass of water!0 -
Until you start to think much longer term - at least a month, you will stay in a state of anxiety and stress.
Simply don't react to changes under a pound or you will never be happy. A pound is a decent sized glass of water!
Ok but I've actually gained more than a pound, and I'm gaining every week now.0 -
Plutodreams wrote: »Until you start to think much longer term - at least a month, you will stay in a state of anxiety and stress.
Simply don't react to changes under a pound or you will never be happy. A pound is a decent sized glass of water!
Ok but I've actually gained more than a pound, and I'm gaining every week now.
Again, totally within the normal fluctuations for women... My weight fluctuates 2 lbs from Thurs - Monday every single week.0 -
Plutodreams wrote: »For the past week, I've been eating 1600-1800, mostly at the upper end, and so far I've gained .8 pounds. I run 2.3 miles 5 days a week, and 4.6 the other 2 days. I'm 5'9, female and 132 pounds. Wondering if this means I'm gaining or if it's like adjusting to more calories as I was previously eating 1400-1600. It seems odd that I would actually gain on 1800 but maybe that is possible. Also I've been eating more carbs. I don't really count macros I just weigh food and count calories. Per day, I eat mostly whole foods, protein at every meal (5-8 servings), a few servings of fruit and I've increased my fat to 2-4 servings a day, 2-3 carbs per day in addition to fruit. For dessert a lot of times I will have greek yogurt, fruit or the low cal arctic ice ice cream. Thoughts?
When you go to maintenance you will put on some weight due to glycogen replenishment and water...if you were lower carb and now you're eating more carbs you will see a bigger jump than someone who wasn't doing low carb. You also have to account for more inherent waste in your system.
Most people also up their calories slowly over a few weeks to let their bodies adjust.0 -
cwolfman13 wrote: »Plutodreams wrote: »For the past week, I've been eating 1600-1800, mostly at the upper end, and so far I've gained .8 pounds. I run 2.3 miles 5 days a week, and 4.6 the other 2 days. I'm 5'9, female and 132 pounds. Wondering if this means I'm gaining or if it's like adjusting to more calories as I was previously eating 1400-1600. It seems odd that I would actually gain on 1800 but maybe that is possible. Also I've been eating more carbs. I don't really count macros I just weigh food and count calories. Per day, I eat mostly whole foods, protein at every meal (5-8 servings), a few servings of fruit and I've increased my fat to 2-4 servings a day, 2-3 carbs per day in addition to fruit. For dessert a lot of times I will have greek yogurt, fruit or the low cal arctic ice ice cream. Thoughts?
When you go to maintenance you will put on some weight due to glycogen replenishment and water...if you were lower carb and now you're eating more carbs you will see a bigger jump than someone who wasn't doing low carb. You also have to account for more inherent waste in your system.
Most people also up their calories slowly over a few weeks to let their bodies adjust.
How much weight? Wouldn't it come on all at once, and not creep up the way mine is?0 -
WinoGelato wrote: »Plutodreams wrote: »Until you start to think much longer term - at least a month, you will stay in a state of anxiety and stress.
Simply don't react to changes under a pound or you will never be happy. A pound is a decent sized glass of water!
Ok but I've actually gained more than a pound, and I'm gaining every week now.
Again, totally within the normal fluctuations for women... My weight fluctuates 2 lbs from Thurs - Monday every single week.
But my weight really isn't fluctuating... It's just consistently increasing. If I lost .8 pounds 2 weeks in a row, most people would say I'm losing, I know I would?1 -
Plutodreams wrote: »cwolfman13 wrote: »Plutodreams wrote: »For the past week, I've been eating 1600-1800, mostly at the upper end, and so far I've gained .8 pounds. I run 2.3 miles 5 days a week, and 4.6 the other 2 days. I'm 5'9, female and 132 pounds. Wondering if this means I'm gaining or if it's like adjusting to more calories as I was previously eating 1400-1600. It seems odd that I would actually gain on 1800 but maybe that is possible. Also I've been eating more carbs. I don't really count macros I just weigh food and count calories. Per day, I eat mostly whole foods, protein at every meal (5-8 servings), a few servings of fruit and I've increased my fat to 2-4 servings a day, 2-3 carbs per day in addition to fruit. For dessert a lot of times I will have greek yogurt, fruit or the low cal arctic ice ice cream. Thoughts?
When you go to maintenance you will put on some weight due to glycogen replenishment and water...if you were lower carb and now you're eating more carbs you will see a bigger jump than someone who wasn't doing low carb. You also have to account for more inherent waste in your system.
Most people also up their calories slowly over a few weeks to let their bodies adjust.
How much weight? Wouldn't it come on all at once, and not creep up the way mine is?
I would think it would be variable depending on the individual. I put on about 5 Lbs when I went to maintenance...I don't remember if it was gradual or not...it was almost 3.5 years ago...but I went to maintenance at 178 and hold maintenance at 183 on average +/- fluctuations.0 -
I can appreciate that to others I for some reason seem ridiculous but I am genuinely, seriously concerned and depressed at the prospect of 1300ish maintenance calorie levels. The only way I can know is to eat at that level and see if I lose or maintain. Because I sure as heck am not finding out the other way, I'm completely tired of seeing the scale go up.
I thank you all for not attacking me and being kind and reasonable.1 -
Plutodreams wrote: »WinoGelato wrote: »Plutodreams wrote: »Until you start to think much longer term - at least a month, you will stay in a state of anxiety and stress.
Simply don't react to changes under a pound or you will never be happy. A pound is a decent sized glass of water!
Ok but I've actually gained more than a pound, and I'm gaining every week now.
Again, totally within the normal fluctuations for women... My weight fluctuates 2 lbs from Thurs - Monday every single week.
But my weight really isn't fluctuating... It's just consistently increasing. If I lost .8 pounds 2 weeks in a row, most people would say I'm losing, I know I would?
You seem determined to believe that this is a sign of imminent weight gain and want to go back to reducing your calories again, no matter how many comments you've gotten in this thread that it is normal to see some weight gain shifting into maintenance especially if you had previously been eating reduced carbs. If that is what you really want to do, then go ahead and drop your calories down, but as I've pointed out repeatedly in this thread, you are already at the lower end of the healthy weight range for your height. There is no reason to believe that an active individual who is 5'9 and 132 lbs would gain weight at 1800 cals/day if you are logging accurately.0 -
cwolfman13 wrote: »Plutodreams wrote: »cwolfman13 wrote: »Plutodreams wrote: »For the past week, I've been eating 1600-1800, mostly at the upper end, and so far I've gained .8 pounds. I run 2.3 miles 5 days a week, and 4.6 the other 2 days. I'm 5'9, female and 132 pounds. Wondering if this means I'm gaining or if it's like adjusting to more calories as I was previously eating 1400-1600. It seems odd that I would actually gain on 1800 but maybe that is possible. Also I've been eating more carbs. I don't really count macros I just weigh food and count calories. Per day, I eat mostly whole foods, protein at every meal (5-8 servings), a few servings of fruit and I've increased my fat to 2-4 servings a day, 2-3 carbs per day in addition to fruit. For dessert a lot of times I will have greek yogurt, fruit or the low cal arctic ice ice cream. Thoughts?
When you go to maintenance you will put on some weight due to glycogen replenishment and water...if you were lower carb and now you're eating more carbs you will see a bigger jump than someone who wasn't doing low carb. You also have to account for more inherent waste in your system.
Most people also up their calories slowly over a few weeks to let their bodies adjust.
How much weight? Wouldn't it come on all at once, and not creep up the way mine is?
I would think it would be variable depending on the individual. I put on about 5 Lbs when I went to maintenance...I don't remember if it was gradual or not...it was almost 3.5 years ago...but I went to maintenance at 178 and hold maintenance at 183 on average +/- fluctuations.
That's actually comforting. I think you're the first person who has told me that in this thread.0 -
Plutodreams wrote: »Until you start to think much longer term - at least a month, you will stay in a state of anxiety and stress.
Simply don't react to changes under a pound or you will never be happy. A pound is a decent sized glass of water!
Ok but I've actually gained more than a pound, and I'm gaining every week now.
Again - Too small a change to confirm anything. Too short a time period to confirm a trend.
Talking of period.... It's not an uncommon recommendation for women to compare their weight for the same week in their cycle month on month to exclude hormonal swings.
BTW - no I don't think you are ridiculous but I do think you need to try to treat information just as data and not in emotional terms of failure or success (I know, easier said than done!). It really does get easier but you need to give it time.3 -
WinoGelato wrote: »Plutodreams wrote: »WinoGelato wrote: »Plutodreams wrote: »Until you start to think much longer term - at least a month, you will stay in a state of anxiety and stress.
Simply don't react to changes under a pound or you will never be happy. A pound is a decent sized glass of water!
Ok but I've actually gained more than a pound, and I'm gaining every week now.
Again, totally within the normal fluctuations for women... My weight fluctuates 2 lbs from Thurs - Monday every single week.
But my weight really isn't fluctuating... It's just consistently increasing. If I lost .8 pounds 2 weeks in a row, most people would say I'm losing, I know I would?
You seem determined to believe that this is a sign of imminent weight gain and want to go back to reducing your calories again, no matter how many comments you've gotten in this thread that it is normal to see some weight gain shifting into maintenance especially if you had previously been eating reduced carbs. If that is what you really want to do, then go ahead and drop your calories down, but as I've pointed out repeatedly in this thread, you are already at the lower end of the healthy weight range for your height. There is no reason to believe that an active individual who is 5'9 and 132 lbs would gain weight at 1800 cals/day if you are logging accurately.
I can understand what you are saying here. I want to tell you I really appreciate your input and so am sorry if I am frustrating. I'm not trying to defy people's sound advice, but at the same time I have my own emotional/confused/questioning perspective which I am making no effort to hide... I don't really want to be much thinner but I do want to find out the truth, without destroying my efforts. I am just trying to figure it out.
I also agree 1800 would seem reasonable for my size. But I do think it's possible I have a super slow metabolism.
At any rate thanks for your advice throughout this thread. I hope you know it is heard and appreciated.0 -
Plutodreams wrote: »Until you start to think much longer term - at least a month, you will stay in a state of anxiety and stress.
Simply don't react to changes under a pound or you will never be happy. A pound is a decent sized glass of water!
Ok but I've actually gained more than a pound, and I'm gaining every week now.
Again - Too small a change to confirm anything. Too short a time period to confirm a trend.
Talking of period.... It's not an uncommon recommendation for women to compare their weight for the same week in their cycle month on month to exclude hormonal swings.
BTW - no I don't think you are ridiculous but I do think you need to try to treat information just as data and not in emotional terms of failure or success (I know, easier said than done!). It really does get easier but you need to give it time.
Thank you again for your encouragement and voice of reason. How did you get so smart? Definitely easier said than done but the attitude you've described is my ultimate goal. I think getting my head right will be more challenging than getting my body right. Or maybe the two are interdependent.
Also my cycle is like 40 days late at this point so you could be right about that.0 -
Well I really didn't want to post this because honestly it is embarrassing, but I think anyone who tried to enlighten me here deserves this... I feel so dumb. I decided to step on scale today (so 2 days in a row, which I try not to do) and it was all gone...so it has to be water. I don't think I could lose 1.8 pounds of fat overnight, unless some aliens snuck in my house and gave me lipo while I was asleep. Anyway, lesson learned. I think I need to try to track a trend or something, maybe weigh daily idk. WinoGelato, I am sorry, you were right.5
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Plutodreams wrote: »Well I really didn't want to post this because honestly it is embarrassing, but I think anyone who tried to enlighten me here deserves this... I feel so dumb. I decided to step on scale today (so 2 days in a row, which I try not to do) and it was all gone...so it has to be water. I don't think I could lose 1.8 pounds of fat overnight, unless some aliens snuck in my house and gave me lipo while I was asleep. Anyway, lesson learned. I think I need to try to track a trend or something, maybe weigh daily idk. WinoGelato, I am sorry, you were right.
Well I'm always happy to be right but especially when it means good news for other people! I know it's hard to not freak out at these changes but weight loss and especially maintaining is about knowing that there are going to be fluctuations that are not necessarily a sign of imminent doom...I think the trendweight app would be a good thing for you.
Enjoy the extra calories!1 -
WinoGelato wrote: »Plutodreams wrote: »Well I really didn't want to post this because honestly it is embarrassing, but I think anyone who tried to enlighten me here deserves this... I feel so dumb. I decided to step on scale today (so 2 days in a row, which I try not to do) and it was all gone...so it has to be water. I don't think I could lose 1.8 pounds of fat overnight, unless some aliens snuck in my house and gave me lipo while I was asleep. Anyway, lesson learned. I think I need to try to track a trend or something, maybe weigh daily idk. WinoGelato, I am sorry, you were right.
Well I'm always happy to be right but especially when it means good news for other people! I know it's hard to not freak out at these changes but weight loss and especially maintaining is about knowing that there are going to be fluctuations that are not necessarily a sign of imminent doom...I think the trendweight app would be a good thing for you.
Enjoy the extra calories!
Thank you I will!!! Gonna check out trendweight 1 -
OP, I was going to jump on here to ask if you were trending your weight or treating each data point independently. Also, if your menstrual cycle is pretty consistent at a certain # of days +/-1 or 2, you can also take a rolling average of #days. Looking at an average over the whole cycle corrects for the variations your body specifically has. If it is 40 days late with some regularity, that might not work so well. The point is, though, it takes more than a couple weeks to figure out what's going on.... often a month or two!
So glad what you are doing is working. Keep it up!
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OP, I was going to jump on here to ask if you were trending your weight or treating each data point independently. Also, if your menstrual cycle is pretty consistent at a certain # of days +/-1 or 2, you can also take a rolling average of #days. Looking at an average over the whole cycle corrects for the variations your body specifically has. If it is 40 days late with some regularity, that might not work so well. The point is, though, it takes more than a couple weeks to figure out what's going on.... often a month or two!
So glad what you are doing is working. Keep it up!
That has become all too clear to me. I wish there were some way that people (I say women particularly because I think our weight fluctuates more and we get indoctrinated with more crap about weight) could just really understand this better... the number on the scale can be so crazy convincing. I think your suggestion is that way, but I just wish people could avoid the all too common crazyness that hopefully, eventually leads to that way. I don't know what I'm saying! Anyway I am going to make it my number one mission to get a good reasonable understanding of this and get over the b.s. It's going to take a lot of work. I swear if I ever have a daughter I will do everything I can to make sure she goes as long as possible without even knowing what the word "diet" even means.
Thanks everyone.1 -
Plutodreams wrote: »Well I really didn't want to post this because honestly it is embarrassing, but I think anyone who tried to enlighten me here deserves this... I feel so dumb. I decided to step on scale today (so 2 days in a row, which I try not to do) and it was all gone...so it has to be water. I don't think I could lose 1.8 pounds of fat overnight, unless some aliens snuck in my house and gave me lipo while I was asleep. Anyway, lesson learned. I think I need to try to track a trend or something, maybe weigh daily idk. WinoGelato, I am sorry, you were right.
So how long did it take you for the water weight to drop? About 10 days? That happens to me too. I overate on Saturday and I am still up 3 pounds. I know I didn't gain that much. It will take me over a week to come back down. A lot of people drop back within a few days, but never me. It can be frustrating to wait, but I know that it will eventually drop back. I just want you to know there is no need to be embarrassed. The scale can mess with your head.1 -
leejoyce31 wrote: »Plutodreams wrote: »Well I really didn't want to post this because honestly it is embarrassing, but I think anyone who tried to enlighten me here deserves this... I feel so dumb. I decided to step on scale today (so 2 days in a row, which I try not to do) and it was all gone...so it has to be water. I don't think I could lose 1.8 pounds of fat overnight, unless some aliens snuck in my house and gave me lipo while I was asleep. Anyway, lesson learned. I think I need to try to track a trend or something, maybe weigh daily idk. WinoGelato, I am sorry, you were right.
So how long did it take you for the water weight to drop? About 10 days? That happens to me too. I overate on Saturday and I am still up 3 pounds. I know I didn't gain that much. It will take me over a week to come back down. A lot of people drop back within a few days, but never me. It can be frustrating to wait, but I know that it will eventually drop back. I just want you to know there is no need to be embarrassed. The scale can mess with your head.
Thank you for saying that! Well a week before Monday I was 132, then Monday I was 132.8. I decided to not wait another week and weigh in again Tuesday it was 131. Yesterday 132. Today 131.6. Sunday I had hiked so that might explain the increase? It seems like this is just normal fluctuations. Monday I ate at 1400 so I was *emptier* of food weight and this is probably why Tuesday I had dropped nearly 2 lbs overnight.
I totally (obviously) get why it bugs you, but just know it is not real!! Try to. I promise it will pass. You already know....in no possible universe could one day of overeating make you gain 3 lbs. I doubt you could gain even 1/4 pound...just to gain 1/4 lb you'd have to eat nearly 900 OVER maintenance. And even if you did that, it would be utterly unnoticeable, a piece of cake (or lack thereof) to lose!
The scale is so weird. Why do we place such importance on it? I am a Libra maybe that's why? Lol probably not though can't blame zodiac sign here. Just my general humaness.
At the moment trying to figure out whether I'll be saner weighing once a week or everyday. I had been doing it once a week but since my little "revelation" been experimenting with the daily thing and trying to realize success is more about a number range than an exact number. Isn't that how life is in general?0 -
Plutodreams wrote: »leejoyce31 wrote: »Plutodreams wrote: »Well I really didn't want to post this because honestly it is embarrassing, but I think anyone who tried to enlighten me here deserves this... I feel so dumb. I decided to step on scale today (so 2 days in a row, which I try not to do) and it was all gone...so it has to be water. I don't think I could lose 1.8 pounds of fat overnight, unless some aliens snuck in my house and gave me lipo while I was asleep. Anyway, lesson learned. I think I need to try to track a trend or something, maybe weigh daily idk. WinoGelato, I am sorry, you were right.
So how long did it take you for the water weight to drop? About 10 days? That happens to me too. I overate on Saturday and I am still up 3 pounds. I know I didn't gain that much. It will take me over a week to come back down. A lot of people drop back within a few days, but never me. It can be frustrating to wait, but I know that it will eventually drop back. I just want you to know there is no need to be embarrassed. The scale can mess with your head.
Thank you for saying that! Well a week before Monday I was 132, then Monday I was 132.8. I decided to not wait another week and weigh in again Tuesday it was 131. Yesterday 132. Today 131.6. Sunday I had hiked so that might explain the increase? It seems like this is just normal fluctuations. Monday I ate at 1400 so I was *emptier* of food weight and this is probably why Tuesday I had dropped nearly 2 lbs overnight.
I totally (obviously) get why it bugs you, but just know it is not real!! Try to. I promise it will pass. You already know....in no possible universe could one day of overeating make you gain 3 lbs. I doubt you could gain even 1/4 pound...just to gain 1/4 lb you'd have to eat nearly 900 OVER maintenance. And even if you did that, it would be utterly unnoticeable, a piece of cake (or lack thereof) to lose!
The scale is so weird. Why do we place such importance on it? I am a Libra maybe that's why? Lol probably not though can't blame zodiac sign here. Just my general humaness.
At the moment trying to figure out whether I'll be saner weighing once a week or everyday. I had been doing it once a week but since my little "revelation" been experimenting with the daily thing and trying to realize success is more about a number range than an exact number. Isn't that how life is in general?
Yes I trend my weight. It really helps with daily weighing. I'm really glad you lost the excess water. Knowledge is power. Knowing that I couldn't gain that much helps me not to go nuts while waiting for the weight to drop. Good luck on your journey. 1 -
Glad there are so many posts on this issue. I've been on this MFP cycle for about 5 weeks now. I am an endomorph with very heavy bone and musculature, but I simply hate my weight, cause I was binge eating/purging after I lost my job and marriage. I'm a well controlled Type 2 Diabetic and 63yrs old.
Good news is, is that I lost ten lbs after the first 3 weeks. Which sounds normal. I fitness cycle hard with a very big bridge (The Harbour Bridge in Montreal) to cross I burn 700-800C, I started kettlebell cardio where I burn ~450C for a half hour work out, and I run/walk intervals for about an hour. I swap out routines every other day, sometimes I take a day or two off. Now, I see I've put on 12 lbs, but my clothes are fitting looser. MFP guide is 1600 calories/day and I have cut way way back on carbs. My understanding is that you need to do strength/cardio with weights to burn that fat. That is why I started the kettlebell cardio routine, ~ 1/2hr, hoping that will help. Someone made an interesting comment about water and glycogen contributing to the weight gain, not adipose tissue. That was interesting. Anyway, I'm not going to change. If anyone has an explanation or word of support/encouragement it would be gratefully welcomed. Great success and thanks for all these posts...!! 0
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