Water weight

Options
TravellerRay
TravellerRay Posts: 94 Member
I need to learn more about this. Scales were their usual insane self. Friday I was up 4 pounds. Saturday morning up 1 pound. 2 hours later after boxing I am down 2 pounds? I can only think these are water differences?

Yes I am measuring and the inches are going down steadily ☺️

Replies

  • ccrdragon
    ccrdragon Posts: 3,370 Member
    Options
    Water weight fluctuates greatly depending on carb loads, electrolytes and hydration. I have had my weight swing as much as 6 lbs in a day because I either ate too many carbs or got dehydrated.

    For your example - after the boxing, you had been sweating, so you were probably slightly dehydrated which caused the 2 lb loss.

    I recommend keeping a chart of your weights and just to watch the trend - as long as the trend is going down (for losing weight), you are in a good zone and should keep doing what works. If the general trend is going up, then you can make changes. Also, you should watch the trend based on several days values and not on daily fluctuations. There are several apps that you can use on your phone to track the weight and all of them provide graphs that allow you to see trends and patterns over a period of time.
  • mmultanen
    mmultanen Posts: 1,029 Member
    Options
    I can very easily put on 5 lbs of water weight in a single day, and have it magically disappear the next day. The idea of linear scale decreases or increases is nonsensical. The body is not a closed loop machine. Tracking my weight daily, but only "logging" it weekly has helped me determine what is "water" and what is not. Being up and down throughout the day is likely not fat loss or muscle gain etc but is simply the scale's reflection of all the things going on inside your body.

    For what the anecdotal story is worth, when my father was diagnosed with cardiomyopathy, his dr at the time wanted him to weigh him self daily, and said that 3 "pound" fluctuation are normal and to be expected with daily rhythms. anything more than that meant he was likely retaining water and needed to be seen to adjust his meds etc. Water retention was a big deal for him at the time.
  • LowCarb4Me2016
    LowCarb4Me2016 Posts: 575 Member
    Options
    I've been tracking my weight daily using a pocket calendar that I also use to track FBS. It helps me see more of a pattern, or lack thereof, and keeps me from getting to frustrated. As long as the overall trend is going downward I'll keep doing what I'm doing. Doing this also helps me see why it happens sometimes. Did I do a ton of exercise the day before? Did I eat something extra salty or go over on carbs? Sometimes there is no discernible reason, though.
  • gracerichter3213
    gracerichter3213 Posts: 50 Member
    Options
    I'm wondering myself because since last Monday I'm down 6lbs. I hope it's a little water weight plus my hard work!