Muscles Retaining Water - Affecting Scale?

laurenbastug

hi all! so i know how the scale really isn't the best indicator for our success but i still like to keep tabs of where i'm at weight wise. last saturday i binged and on my tuesday check in i was up 118 from 115.

i've been on point with my macros other than my saturday night slip up. i figured the 3 pounds was just water weight/bloating. i stepped on the scale today and still saw 118 !

i've increased my cardio this week (something i was planning to do before i even stepped on the scale) so i was curious if the increased exercise has any correlation? when i stepped on the scale i felt heavy but more in like my muscle feel so dense sort of way. i know a pound is a pound and muscle doesn't weigh more than fat but im just trying to find some kind of justification lol.

if it is true weight gain i'll be pretty sad as i already feel pretty hungry on my current macros lol but cut them i will if i must

Ironandwine69

I myself don't start to panic until 5 lbs gain. 3 pounds is normal for me when I'm getting my period or have increased my lifting. But I also weigh way more than 115.
Also cardio doesn't increase water weight. I would give it a CPL more days and see what happens. But if it doesn't go away in a couple of days it means it's real gain.

laurenbastug

Ironandwine69 wrote: »

I myself don't start to panic until 5 lbs gain. 3 pounds is normal for me when I'm getting my period or have increased my lifting. But I also weigh way more than 115.
Also cardio doesn't increase water weight. I would give it a CPL more days and see what happens. But if it doesn't go away in a couple of days it means it's real gain.

got it - thank you so much! trying not to get so hung up over it. i am due next week for my time of the month so it seems there are a lot of variables that i need to consider may be playing a role in the gain. thanks again

medic2038

Honestly I've given up daily weigh ins a long time ago. Usually now I just hop on once a week or two, My diet is (mostly) on point so I know I'm getting towards what I'm trying to do.

So depending on WHAT you actually ate, could definitely take a few days for water weight to come off. Lots of carbs, and/or lots of salt can definitely cause a few lb swing due to fluid.

Upping your exercise can also do that too. You mentioned feeling heavier, basically some inflammation is part of how you heal (so that could definitely be part of it too).

vismal

How often are you weighing in? Try weighing in daily and tracking the results @ trendweight.com. It creates a rolling average and totally eliminates worring about the variance from day to day and week to week. It calculates all the fluctuations and gives you much better insight into what your weight is really doing.

kayeroze

For me, a day with increased sodium, fat, and carbs makes me gain and slowly decrease back so to before the food day. It usually takes me around 5ish days to go back to normal. Inflamation can cause the weight gain or maybe something changed in your diet as well. I would worry more of you started to gain more weight versus stay about the same.

earlnabby

For me, water weight from eating too much tends to take about 5 days to come off. Water weight from doing more than my normal exercise or starting a new exercise takes closer to a week to 10 days to leave. When I know I have gained water weight, I stay off the scale for about a week and concentrate on hitting my calorie, macro, and exercise targets.

STEVE142142

what year experience sing is a temporary water weight or due to the change of your diet and if you want to refer to it as a binge. For you to gain 3 pounds of actual weight means that you would have to eat 10500 extra calories sat night.

Definitely don't get fixated on the scale it could be your best friend or your worst enemy. What you have to do is track over time and see what kind of pattern develops.

Thursday before Easter I weighed myself my weight was 208. Over the 3-day weekend I ate out I had potato chips salty food and beers. Monday I weighed myself my weight was 215. Tuesday my weight was 210 period Friday my weight was back to approximately 208. I was just surprised how much extra water weight my body could retain due to the change in the diet especially the salty food.

laurenbastug

hi everyone - thank you all for your feedback. definitely going to try and use the scale less frequently since it seems to be more of a source of stress. i finally came back down to my normal weight after a week. appreciate all the advice and suggestions

Orphia

Ironandwine69 wrote: »

Also cardio doesn't increase water weight.

Wrong. My weight jumped 1 kg since yesterday's 17km mountain hike.

It has jumped 2 kg in a day after a half marathon.

Happens all the time, and is totally normal.

Your muscles retain water after exercise to help the repair process. It's part of the phenomenon known as "Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness" (DOMS).

http://www.livestrong.com/article/393797-water-retention-after-resistance-training/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delayed_onset_muscle_soreness

PAV8888

vismal wrote: »

How often are you weighing in? Try weighing in daily and tracking the results @ trendweight.com. It creates a rolling average and totally eliminates worring about the variance from day to day and week to week. It calculates all the fluctuations and gives you much better insight into what your weight is really doing.

This is the correct answer!

Reducing your sampling rate does not guarantee that you won't stumble on either a high day or a low day.

Daily measurements over time ensure a more complete picture.

The mental aspect is a different story...