Question about very small weight fluctuations and calories in/out

typicallyjazzy

So I've been doing great staying below 1200 calories daily as well as doing some sort of exercise daily for the last 2 weeks. Last week, I went from 130 to 127.4 in just 7 days. The past two days instead of losing weight I've been gaining. It has only been a couple ounces though. Yesterday morning upon weighing myself I saw that I was now 127.8. I know it's wrong but on that day I ate around 900 calories and didn't work out but I am a waitress so I burn some calories at work. This morning after weighing myself I see that I'm 128 pounds. 2 ounces up from yesterday. Weird.

Yesterday I ate around 1100 but again I burned some calories at work. That morning I stopped by Sonic before work and got a small cheeseburger and literally 3 onion rings. After work I had a Lean Cuisine. So what's up with the small gain?

I eat Lean Cuisines and maybe have a fiber one bar or two or a smoothie mainly every day. The same foods I ate last week when I was losing a bunch daily.

I know I'm not eating enough but I'm never very hungry. I also know weight fluctuates due to sodium and water weight and that would explain yesterday- maybe the sonic meal? Although it was pretty small. But the day before I had the same old foods I usually have but ate waay LESS. So why the 8 ounce gain in 2 days on a deficit? I don't get it. Also will I still reach my goal anyway with the weird weight fluctuations? How can I tell how much I really weigh if I gain 8 ounces for no good reason from time to time?

I'm afraid I'll keep gaining instead of losing every day when I'm working so hard to eat well below this deficit.

cwolfman13

Eat more firstly...

Secondly, weight loss and weight management in general is about overall trends over time...body weight isn't static...you're not going to have a loss every day. Weight fluctuates NATURALLY for a myriad of reasons. The human body is made up of 50-65% water...that's always going to fluctuate...you're always going to have varying degrees of inherent waste in your system, etc...

typicallyjazzy

cwolfman13 wrote: »

Eat more firstly...

Secondly, weight loss and weight management in general is about overall trends over time...body weight isn't static...you're not going to have a loss every day. Weight fluctuates NATURALLY for a myriad of reasons. The human body is made up of 50-65% water...that's always going to fluctuate...you're always going to have varying degrees of inherent waste in your system, etc...

Thanks! How often do you recommend I weigh myself?

nowine4me

Your going to drive yourself nuts worrying about ounces on a daily basis. Lean Cuisine has tons of sodium.

diannethegeek

Your body doesn't have one true weight. It exists within a weight range and always will, even at maintenance. Not just sodium affects this, but also exercise, the amount of food and waste in our system, hormones, where you are in your menstrual cycle if you have one, hydration levels, and about a dozen other things affect our daily weight. What we're working to do is lower that weight range, so yes you will still reach your goals even with fluctuations. Make friends with the fluctuations. They'll be around for the rest of your life.

ammo7

typicallyjazzy wrote: »

I also know weight fluctuates due to sodium and water weight

You are right that weight fluctuates because of these factors. So even if you were eating the same foods, you could have drunk less water which could make your body may hold onto extra water. Also, another huge factor is your time of the month (if you are a female) as this can make your weight fluctuate too (some people on MFP report fluctuations of up to 5lbs! So don't let a few ounces worry you at all)

Remember that scale weight is not everything. You want fat loss ultimately, and if you stick to your deficit, then that's what you'll get. Don't let water weight worry you. Focus on the overall trend of your weight over the month (if you just focus on week-to-week then it will look like your weight jumps up around your time of the month).

allyphoe

This is a graph of 929 days of calories consumed vs. what the scale did the next morning. My obsessive tendencies really love data! My TDEE is about 2,100.

lumenosis

I stopped weighing myself more than once a week for this exact reason. Water and hormones cause fluctuations day to day.

Mandamanda93

allyphoe wrote: »

This is a graph of 929 days of calories consumed vs. what the scale did the next morning. My obsessive tendencies really love data! My TDEE is about 2,100.

THAT IS INCREDIBLE Lord and above you have certainly sent me spinning off into a world of possibilities =p

kimny72

OP, it's fine to weigh yourself every day as long as you don't worry about every daily fluctuation. For some people, watching their Weight float around like that can be freeing. But if you know you will obsess over that level of detail or feel bad about it, weigh once a week - same scale, same place, same time of day, same level of dressed/ undressed. Some people weigh every day but only record their weight on Sundays. Just have to find what works for you!

My weight pinball around in a 7 lb range every day :drinker: