True weight gain vs true weight loss

jayemes

I know people talk about gaining 3 pounds in a day or a weekend and it's really water weight from a variety of reasons and not "true" weight gain.
So what about weight loss? When you have a whoosh, is the new low actually true loss or can you be a lower weight for other non permanent reasons (like being dehydrated as opposed to gaining water weight)?
I tend to stay the same weight for 2 weeks and then have a drop, but I'm never sure whether to celebrate the new low or wait around a few days to see if it "sticks"

try2again

No one has "one true weight". It fluctuates constantly. So yes, a drop on the scale may not necessarily be fat loss, but when you are in a calorie deficit, you will see a reliable trend downward over time. Once at goal, many adopt a 5 lb maintenance range and don't worry about swings on the scale within that range.

That being said, there's nothing wrong with doing a happy dance over a new low on the scale! Water or not, it wouldn't be *that* low unless some fat loss had preceded it. Just don't be disappointed if it bobs back up for a day or two.

jayemes

I use a trending app and totally get that weight loss isn't linear and it fluctuates and all that.
I'm more just curious about people's opinion - if we don't beat ourselves up for a temporary spike because of water weight, should we also not celebrate a whoosh? Or is a whoosh actual weight loss while a spike after a few beers or salty foods or big workout just a temporary thing?

rose2_0

I celebrate a whoosh even though I usually end up being about 1 pound heavier than for a true weigh in. In the end it's still 2lbs lost. By yeah, my whooshes don't usually stick/is not all fat.

PAV8888

When I was actively losing I would consider them "previews" till they became established a week, or two, or four later!

try2again

I don't know the veracity of this, but I have read that, as fat cells are depleted, the empty space is filled with water until the cell basically collapses and releases the water, sometimes resulting in a "whoosh". Maybe that's accompanied by dehydration on your part & the number is enhanced? At any rate, a new low is still evidence that things are moving the right direction, so celebrate it.

CarvedTones

When I was losing and sure I was in a deficit every day, I only recorded new lows instead of worrying about using a trending app to average things out. The rate of loss comes out the same over time.

AnnPT77

jayemes wrote: »

I use a trending app and totally get that weight loss isn't linear and it fluctuates and all that.
I'm more just curious about people's opinion - if we don't beat ourselves up for a temporary spike because of water weight, should we also not celebrate a whoosh? Or is a whoosh actual weight loss while a spike after a few beers or salty foods or big workout just a temporary thing?

Celebration improves my life, and beating myself up doesn't. Therefore, it's good to celebrate a new low (even if it's fakey-fakey) but evil to beat myself up over what is obviously an irrelevant, temporary, ridiculous water weight fluctuation.

Life is short. Maximize the happy: That's my vote.

Lillymoo01

I say celebrate away. A new low is a new low and still an avchievement. For comparison though I'd look at the previous whoosh to see the loss from one whoosh to the next which could give more of an idea of fat loss during that time.

fr33sia12

jayemes wrote: »

I use a trending app and totally get that weight loss isn't linear and it fluctuates and all that.
I'm more just curious about people's opinion - if we don't beat ourselves up for a temporary spike because of water weight, should we also not celebrate a whoosh? Or is a whoosh actual weight loss while a spike after a few beers or salty foods or big workout just a temporary thing?

This is why I only weigh myself once a week, on the same day in the morning. Because I know if I weigh myself every day or multiple times a day the weight will fluctuate because of other factors and not actual weight loss. Weighing myself weekly I have never gained weight during this weight loss journey even during my period (or at least the scales haven't gone up, I know my weight will have gone up and down during that week) every weighing in day I've lost 2lb (the odd time it's been 1lb) but always a loss. And then I can celebrate knowing it's more likely to be an actual weight loss.

I get where you're coming from though, we're quick to celebrate any weight loss for no matter what reason, but any gain, even if it's the same reason as the weight loss (water weight etc) we're told don't worry about it, it'll change, it's just water weight. If it's a big deal when we lose it, then it should be a big deal when we gain it too.

PAV8888

When you have a large deficit and sufficient reserves to fuel it with you may well observe this consistency.

When both the conditions are not met it is far from uncommon for people to experience a greater weekly fluctuation

rheddmobile

CarvedTones wrote: »

When I was losing and sure I was in a deficit every day, I only recorded new lows instead of worrying about using a trending app to average things out. The rate of loss comes out the same over time.

I do the same thing. It's remarkable how linear my weight loss is when I only record lows.

Since typically my previous lows were under optimal conditions (just peed, plenty of sleep, not retaining water, etc.) the new lows usually represent a real fat loss. The only exception would be if I were sick or something which caused me to be dehydrated. For example, I once had a stomach flu which caused me to lose several pounds, and once I was rehydrated I regained the weight and it took several weeks to get down to the same weight again.

Running_and_Coffee

I do once a week, same time, because the ups and downs of “ate Chinese food last night, gained 3 lbs,” “ran 5 miles in 88 degree heat, lost 2 lbs” make me a little batty. Not sure whether my Wednesday 7 am weigh ins are always “true,” but the pattern over time is legit.

Seffell

When I was losing I used to consider my new lows as the real weight which I used to track my loss rate. It doesnt really matter if it is the lows or the average so long as it is a consistent choice.
My new lows used to only show once (at most twice) a month in a big woosh.

try2again

fr33sia12 wrote: »

jayemes wrote: »

I use a trending app and totally get that weight loss isn't linear and it fluctuates and all that.
I'm more just curious about people's opinion - if we don't beat ourselves up for a temporary spike because of water weight, should we also not celebrate a whoosh? Or is a whoosh actual weight loss while a spike after a few beers or salty foods or big workout just a temporary thing?

This is why I only weigh myself once a week, on the same day in the morning. Because I know if I weigh myself every day or multiple times a day the weight will fluctuate because of other factors and not actual weight loss. Weighing myself weekly I have never gained weight during this weight loss journey even during my period (or at least the scales haven't gone up, I know my weight will have gone up and down during that week) every weighing in day I've lost 2lb (the odd time it's been 1lb) but always a loss. And then I can celebrate knowing it's more likely to be an actual weight loss.

That's good that you've only seen losses doing it this way, but often a person who weighs weekly has the misfortune of their weigh-in day being the high day of the week... and then (theoretically), they have to wait around all week for better data. By weighing once a day, under the same conditions, it's usually easier to see the big picture and thus be able to tell if any one day is an unusual spike.

takemetosingapore19

I think 5+ lb is more than water so any time I see a drop or gain that big I know it’s more than a normal fluctuation.

amusedmonkey

I notice both my highs and my lows. If my highest highs this month are lower than my highest highs last month I'm happy. If my lowest low gets lower, I'm happy. If my highest high gets higher, I record it as a new highest high and look forward to seeing what it would look like next month.

I don't really think there is a "true weight". My highest and lowest weight and anything in between are all true weights. My weight is true whether it's my liver or my kidneys doing more water weight work. All of these states are natural and real.

mmapags

PAV8888 wrote: »

When I was actively losing I would consider them "previews" till they became established a week, or two, or four later!

This^^ I never trust them unless they stick around for a couple of weeks. Sometime though, I know I'm due. I haven't seen the scale move in something like 3 weeks and I know I'm in deficit. Then one day, I just can't be that far from a bathroom for a few hours. I think, "finally!"

Deluzionz

When we lose water weight is actually all 100% water?? I see big flucation from my morning weigh in to mid morning weigh in after my morning run.. Is actually pure water? I have this theroy that probably 80 - 90% is just water but if we are hydrating huge with water then sweating it out during activity how can none of it be fat? Even if its just a small percent of fat.. Please help

AnnPT77

Deluzionz wrote: »

When we lose water weight is actually all 100% water?? I see big flucation from my morning weigh in to mid morning weigh in after my morning run.. Is actually pure water? I have this theroy that probably 80 - 90% is just water but if we are hydrating huge with water then sweating it out during activity how can none of it be fat? Even if its just a small percent of fat.. Please help

Water in our tissues, water in our stomach/bladder and points between, food partway through our digestive system: Within a day, even a few days, those are the major variations.

Does fat change within a day? Sure, but the amounts are tiny compared to those other factors, so there's no way to know how much.

Rational strategy: Don't worry about it, trust the process.

Look for changes in fat month to month, maybe week to week when a fast loss rate is still healthy.

We don't have a true scale weight, nor a true fat store. There's just a current range, and a long term trend.

try2again

Deluzionz wrote: »

When we lose water weight is actually all 100% water?? I see big flucation from my morning weigh in to mid morning weigh in after my morning run.. Is actually pure water? I have this theroy that probably 80 - 90% is just water but if we are hydrating huge with water then sweating it out during activity how can none of it be fat? Even if its just a small percent of fat.. Please help

No one should be jumping on the scale multiple times a day looking for meaning in the changing numbers (there isn't any). If you find yourself obsessing over these sorts of things, you need to take a step back & possibly seek some help.