Put on 3.6 lbs since yesterday? Please help

goatelope

Hi. I started at 182.6, i was doing really well and seeing a steady decrease. Yesterday I was 179
I weighed myself just now, no clothes on, same as usual and it says 183.6
I checked twice
What’s happening? I’m trrrified, guys
How could I have gained so much????
Omg

MikePTY

Did you eat 12000 calories above your maintenance weight yesterday (this is rhetorical, that'd be almost impossible)? If not, it's not fat. Your body regularly fluctuates your water weight. It is quite possible to go up and down several pounds day to day based on fluctuations.

Weight loss is a long term process. It will not happen in a few days. You need to give your body time to lose the fat. Weighing daily can be helpful for some because it helps you see bigger trend-lines, but it can also be harmful to others if the scale fluctuations are going to cause stress. It may be better for you not to weigh yourself so frequently, at least in the beginning.

TheMrWobbly

Firstly don't weigh yourself everyday, once a week, at the same time of day. preferably first thing in the morning. Weigh in more than one spot in case of an uneven floor. You haven't put on 3.6lbs in a day, it is just the scales.

goatelope

But it’s saying I weigh more now than when I started?? So I started at 182.6, went down to 179 and now I am 183.6 - that is 4.6 pounds heavier than one week ago and I have had no more than 12-1400 calories per day. It seems a lot for water weight?

goatelope

I feel so confused. How can I know what I actually weigh?

MikePTY

goatelope wrote: »

I feel so confused. How can I know what I actually weigh?

You know from your long term trends. This is why you can't get an accurate picture in a day or a week. There are a lot of things that can cause the scale to fluctuate a few pounds and hide your fat loss. But overtime it all evens out, and if you are in a calorie deficit, it will continue to trend downwards, even though there are fluctuations.

Panini911

goatelope wrote: »

I feel so confused. How can I know what I actually weigh?

trend over time. weight at any given day/time is simply a datapoint of all the things that contribute to your weight (fat, muscle, water, food waste, ect.) - at THAT specific moment.

putting these datapoints on a graph will give you a trend/idea of your weight range (we are never, even at maintenance, any ONE singular number)

goatelope

I wish I could just know accurately. My biggest fear was that I wouldn’t lose weight. I’m happy sticking to the calorie controlled diet etc but this evening I thought I would weigh in just to check and keep my motivation up - but this has devastated me

kimny72

In your thread on the 4th you said you just had surgery, and the advice was that your body can play around with water weight while you are healing so you should focus on eating well and letting your body heal. It is only 5 days later. You need to let your recovery finish and your body to settle back into it's healthier routine.

Is there anyone you can talk to, and be honest about your feelings about your weight? Being terrified of 4 lbs, even if you weren't recovering from surgery, is not a healthy headspace to be in. Please take care of yourself.

smoofinator

Read this. It will help you understand scale fluctuations and make you feel better: http://physiqonomics.com/the-weird-and-highly-annoying-world-of-scale-weight-and-fluctuations/

Trust the process. This is not an overnight thing. There will be good days, great days, bad days, and really bad days, but the trend over time is what matters. And by over time, I mean several weeks, not just a few days.

ETA: Don't weigh yourself later in the day after you've eaten, exercised, etc. Weigh at the same time of day in the same spot, ideally naked so different clothing weights don't mess up the reading. Best to weigh first thing in the morning, after you pee/poop, and before you eat or drink anything.

goatelope

Thank you. You’re right it’s not a good space, but losing has been a total battle and I finally got in control of the eating and so this was the last thing I needed. I guess I just need to feel that this is working - I’ve tried a lot and this felt like such progress, because I haven’t over eaten and it’s helped me to stay accountable to myself etc
I was so happy it seemed to be working and then I stepped on the scale and saw that and I felt devastated. Do I weight nearer what I weighed yesterday do you think? Or is the higher amount more accurate? So confusing. I will read the article now.

Terytha

Yesterday for fun, I weighed myself first thing in the morning and right before bed. I was 240 in the morning. I was 246 before bed.

Water weight can swing you as much as 10 pounds in a day. Also if you ate in the last few hours, or you need to poop, or if you've had salty snacks lately or did more exercise than usual. All of those things increase your weight.

But weight isn't what most people care about, its body fat. So if you want a good idea where you're at, take measurements of your waist, arms and legs. If those measurements drop, then you are losing fat even if you seem to gain weight.

Most importantly though, weight/fat loss is measured in months, not days. You'll never know what you "really" weigh, because you'll never know what your body is hanging onto at any given moment. You can only watch trends over months to make sure the number drops over time.

cwolfman13

goatelope wrote: »

I feel so confused. How can I know what I actually weigh?

You don't have an exact weight. Bodyweight fluctuates...it isn't static. Your body is comprised of roughly 55-65% water and that is always going to be in flux...you're always going to have varying degrees of waste in your system, etc.

goatelope wrote: »

I wish I could just know accurately. My biggest fear was that I wouldn’t lose weight. I’m happy sticking to the calorie controlled diet etc but this evening I thought I would weigh in just to check and keep my motivation up - but this has devastated me

If you're weighing in in the evening, you are also weighing everything you've put in your body during the day. The food you eat and the beverages you drink have mass and thus weight and that will show on the scale. It is most common to weigh first thing in the morning after using the toilette, and unclothed.

Even so, your weight isn't static and it's going to fluctuate...ultimately you have to look at trends over time, not weigh in to weigh in numbers. This is what weight loss looks like plotted on a graph.



You will notice that the red (actual) is up and down and all around...but the overall trend over time is down. That's what weight loss looks like...it's not a linear process.

You also have to give the process time...weight loss is slow...it's not an overnight thing. You have to be in it for the long haul and can't live or die by each weigh in or you'll go crazy.

Rammer123

goatelope wrote: »

I wish I could just know accurately. My biggest fear was that I wouldn’t lose weight. I’m happy sticking to the calorie controlled diet etc but this evening I thought I would weigh in just to check and keep my motivation up - but this has devastated me

Are you comparing a morning starting weight with a evening weight?

Weight can drastically change throughout the day.

And yes, water weight can change 4.6 pounds very easily. Some are different and 4.6 pounds may be alot but for others it is not.

In the morning I generally weigh between 215 and 218. I workout first thing in the morning. Post workout, my weight is generally between 210-213. I pretty consistently lose about 5lbs during my workout. Don't know for sure, but I can only assume, if I weighed myself before bed, or after eating my food and drinking water for the day, I'd likely weigh around 218-220. My weight fluctuates ATLEAST 5-6 pounds throughout the day, if not more.

The best way to track your progress is weigh yourself daily, first thing in the morning after using the restroom. Taking an average weight for the week and comparing the weekly average weights. If your average weekly weight stalls for more than 3 weeks, then may look to re-assess what you are doing.

LyndaBSS

goatelope wrote: »

I wish I could just know accurately. My biggest fear was that I wouldn’t lose weight. I’m happy sticking to the calorie controlled diet etc but this evening I thought I would weigh in just to check and keep my motivation up - but this has devastated me

So, you weighed yourself after a complete day of eating? Of course the weight is going to be higher.

I weigh daily, first thing in the morning, after using bathroom, naked. But here's the thing. I'm ok with whatever number the scale gives me. I've been up some days, down some days. After 30 days on MFP, I've lost 7.5 inches and 10 pounds.

There is my motivation. Calorie deficit works. ☺

kimny72

goatelope wrote: »

Thank you. You’re right it’s not a good space, but losing has been a total battle and I finally got in control of the eating and so this was the last thing I needed. I guess I just need to feel that this is working - I’ve tried a lot and this felt like such progress, because I haven’t over eaten and it’s helped me to stay accountable to myself etc
I was so happy it seemed to be working and then I stepped on the scale and saw that and I felt devastated. Do I weight nearer what I weighed yesterday do you think? Or is the higher amount more accurate? So confusing. I will read the article now.

As @Terytha said, you are never one "real" weight. The scale measures everything in your body - fat, muscle, organs, water, bones, skin, digestive contents, everything. There is literally no way you will ever know exactly how much fat you've lost per day. You just won't. That's why you track over weeks and months. My daily weights during the week can easily look like this - 135.2, 132.1, 136.4, 135.9, 135.8, 131.0, 134.5. On any of those days, I could think "yay, I'm losing weight!" or "boo, I'm gaining weight!". But in the end, I went from 135 - 134 and will look to a week from now and 2 weeks from now to start to get an idea of what my weight is doing.

You can't live and die by what the scale says every morning and stay sane.

goatelope

Everyone, thank you.
I don’t know how to respond to individual comments but I can tell you this has helped me - a lot.
This is early days for me, I’m really worried about losing weight and I just panicked. You are all correct, of course. Thanks for taking the time to respond to me with all this helpful information - seriously, it means a lot. Many, many thanks!

LyndaBSS

I'm glad to see you had your "aha" moment. ❤