Sodium

belladiva47

I want to start out by saying how glad I am that people allow their diaries to be viewed. There is so much to be learned if you view them not to judge what others are eating but to see patterns that lead to success in losing weight.
Like everyone else I have my health issues but a big one for me is water retention. Recently I gained 8 pounds in 3 days and it was all water. Yes I am under a doctor's care and most of it is gone now. There are a couple of reasons why this is happening and I was warned about the amount of sodium that I consume.

So how am I to know what that is unless I am tracking. I noticed that most of the time I go over my daily allotment. I started comparing my sodium intake to what others are consuming and there is quite a difference. So I am making better choices by eating less processed food and cooking from scratch. I am going to focus more on this area and still keep up on the rest. I'm tired of my ankles being as fat as my knees. Hopefully, this will help me to start losing again cause it's been awhile.

I would be interested in hearing from you if any of you struggle with water gain- more than the usual- and how you handle it. Thank you my friends. Ann:flowerforyou:

gramanana

I tried tracking sodium, but it was too hard to measure what I used from the salt shaker and I was always over. My borderline high BP came down to normal levels, but I was also exercising regularly which I think has a lot to do with it. After this experiment, when I went to the doctor I was told that I didn't have enough sodium in my system. So I started using salt again, but really tried to control it and my BP has stayed in the normal range. Will find out in another 3 months whether it's the salt or the exercise. LOL

Joe_Atlanta

I do track my sodium intake and I get big weight swings (5+ lbs in 24 hours) depending on my salt intake. By eating more raw and home prepared food I generally stay under the RDR. However, I do eat out a lot ,(part of playing music at restaurants is that you get to eat) and I don't always choose the healthiest items. So I have days where I am up to 2-3,000 mg over. I have found that any weight gained from high sodium is generally pretty easy to lose by simply returning to my regular, healthy diet for a few days. Although swollen ankles may look bad, the water weight doesn't magically turn into fat and the weight gain is temporary.

In the long run, if you eat healthy and burn more calories than you consume, you WILL lose weight and feel better. The real problem from water weight gain is when it discourages you and makes you feel like the diet is not "working". The tendency is to give up and eat Ben And Jerry's and Chips Ahoy for supper. A couple of days later when you start to get with the program again you've already consumed an extra 2-3,000 calories a day and that will turn into fat that has be burned.

My advice is weigh once a week, don't worry about temporary set backs, stick with the program. It works. For more info on cutting down on salt check out http://www.lowsaltfoods.com/.

carriepbm

I don't worry overmuch about a temporary gain from sodium, but I do try to keep it low. My issue is controlling BP and the sodium definitely affects those readings. I NEVER add salt from a shaker. If it's added to a recipe I measure it like all the other ingredients and MFP will calculate it if I've entered the recipe.

Most of the time I try to make good choices when eating out, but some favorites (pizza, Chinese food) are high. I follow the 5:2 modified fasting plan and those days are naturally low in sodium, which helps to release the water gain from a previous indulgence. My best BP readings are usually the day following a fast.

southerngramma

I just realized that you can enter a menu and they will calculate the figures...wow I've been sort of guesstimating!

dianefisher47

I also have a hard time with my sodium intake, seldom eat out but love my cheese and eat Ham for proteines but they are high in sodium...now a days everything has sodium..I do try to watch out:blushing:

walkswithart

If you want to lower sodium intake, be sure to look at the labels of the processed food you buy. I found (for instance) that the sliced turkey for sandwiches - the one marked less sodium actually had the same or more than other brands. Sometimes I buy the more expensive brand because of the sodium on the label.