Is this what sodium does?

OAS5

I should know all these answers after losing 72-73 pounds but sodium is a strange one. On Friday I was happy to see 200.2 on the scale. Saturday is a bit of a cheat day for me, not a go bananas day but just let off the gas a bit. I was WAY over on sodium. On Monday I was 203.6. That is all normal and what sodium does right? I was 203.0 exactly today, most likely 202 something tomorrow. 190-185 is the goal. Thanks for any help.

CSARdiver

Yup - water retention. Should even out with proper hydration in 5-7 days.

I once put on ~12 lbs following a high sodium meal and back to back Spartan Races - glycogen + sodium.

MikePTY

Sure. Sodium can be a cause of water retention. So can a whole host of other things not related to sodium. You didn't gain 3 1/2 pounds of fat in 2 days, so the water retention was caused by something. High sodium is as good a bet as any.

LyndaBSS

High sodium foods are evil! 😈

OAS5

CSARdiver wrote: »

Yup - water retention. Should even out with proper hydration in 5-7 days.

I once put on ~12 lbs following a high sodium meal and back to back Spartan Races - glycogen + sodium.

Thanks, my next question was gonna be how long before its out of the system. You answered that. Sodium really sucks.

sardelsa

Yup it can definitely cause water retention. For me it's about a lb on the scale after a high sodium take-out meal, it goes down about two days later.

JeromeBarry1

Carbs retain water at the ratio of 3 grams water per 1 gram carb.

lgfrie

Personally, I find carbs cause waaaaay more water retention than sodium. A heavy salt day can put me up 2-3 pounds, but an excessive carb day can yield +6 to +12 on the scale the next morning, depending on how out of control things got. Also, for me, sodium bloat usually dissipates within 48 hrs, but carb bloat can last 6+ days and take a lot of work (very careful eating, on the low-carb side of things) to obliterate.

CSARdiver

Cavallaro65 wrote: »

CSARdiver wrote: »

Yup - water retention. Should even out with proper hydration in 5-7 days.

I once put on ~12 lbs following a high sodium meal and back to back Spartan Races - glycogen + sodium.

Thanks, my next question was gonna be how long before its out of the system. You answered that. Sodium really sucks.

It's all good - just need to change your perspective and see the bigger picture.

Pretty much the key to life.

AnnPT77

Yeah, sodium, plus the extra water grams for each extra carb gram, plus possibly a little more weight of food in transit in your digestive system, depending on what you ate.

Depending on how much of the scale gain is which, the time until it drops off may differ. Balancing out the sodium might be quick-ish, if you're well (not excessively) hydrated after. Full digestive transit can potentially take 50+ hours, so a couple of days or so. I suspect individuals differ, too.

You can learn a lot about how this works for you by weighing daily, and paying attention.

Get used to it: The effect is larger in maintenance, because the jumps happen against a background of more-or-less steady body fat levels, rather than against a background of gradually dropping body fat levels. :drinker:

AliNouveau

Sodium is the devil.

When retaining water drink lots of water and eat foods high in potassium. Bananas and spinach are great for helping get it out of your system.

I researched it one day after I was bloated from a pizza night and had a skating dress fitting in a couple if days. Also just be patient. It's temporary

Also congrats you are so close to your goal.

OAS5

And this morning 201.8 so I guess the sodium effect is going down. That sodium is a weird one that can annoy with the scale.

NovusDies

What were you doing during the 70ish pounds of weight loss that this is just now becoming noticeable for you? Were you weighing less frequently or eating the same basic food all the time?

OAS5

NovusDies wrote: »

What were you doing during the 70ish pounds of weight loss that this is just now becoming noticeable for you? Were you weighing less frequently or eating the same basic food all the time?

Yes, when I started weighing every day and when I started to notice so this crazy stuff. I didn't start weighing every day till I was down 60 pounds down.

AnnPT77

Cavallaro65 wrote: »

NovusDies wrote: »

What were you doing during the 70ish pounds of weight loss that this is just now becoming noticeable for you? Were you weighing less frequently or eating the same basic food all the time?

Yes, when I started weighing every day and when I started to notice so this crazy stuff. I didn't start weighing every day till I was down 60 pounds down.

In that case, you might like to read this:

https://physiqonomics.com/the-weird-and-highly-annoying-world-of-scale-weight-and-fluctuations/

NovusDies

Cavallaro65 wrote: »

NovusDies wrote: »

What were you doing during the 70ish pounds of weight loss that this is just now becoming noticeable for you? Were you weighing less frequently or eating the same basic food all the time?

Yes, when I started weighing every day and when I started to notice so this crazy stuff. I didn't start weighing every day till I was down 60 pounds down.

That makes sense. Read the article that @AnnPT77 posted. A simple rule is that sudden 24 hour weight changes are almost always mostly unrelated to fat.

heybales

JeromeBarry1 wrote: »

Carbs retain water at the ratio of 3 grams water per 1 gram carb.

Well, that's when they are stored in the muscles they are stored with water, not an exact ratio in the liver though.

But eating carbs can cause other problems for some people, but just eating them doesn't cause a binding like that with water.

OP - to all the comments about sodium being evil and the water it's retaining to be a goal to get rid of....

Sometimes the body is merely trying to have a desired sodium level after being at a reduced below desired level.

It would be like complaining your blood increases water volume in the summer when you start to sweat more - and the solution would be to do some blood letting to fix what isn't even an issue.

OAS5

AnnPT77 wrote: »

Cavallaro65 wrote: »

NovusDies wrote: »

What were you doing during the 70ish pounds of weight loss that this is just now becoming noticeable for you? Were you weighing less frequently or eating the same basic food all the time?

Yes, when I started weighing every day and when I started to notice so this crazy stuff. I didn't start weighing every day till I was down 60 pounds down.

In that case, you might like to read this:

https://physiqonomics.com/the-weird-and-highly-annoying-world-of-scale-weight-and-fluctuations/

Thanks, I will read that. I started reading it and will finish it. Very interesting subject.

rainbow198

Yes. I go out for pizza every Friday night. I'm always up 1 or 2 pounds on Saturday.

Since I'm aware of my calorie intake everyday I know it's just water weight. It takes a couple of days to go away (I don't do anything in particular) and I'm back to normal.

It drove me crazy early on until I learned about the science behind excess sodium/carbs and how both can affect the body with water retention.

LivingtheLeanDream

yep that is what sodium does.

OAS5

Today back down to 200.8 and I hate to say it, I like that much better than seeing 203.2. 😁 I really have to make an effort to take in less sodium on the weekends. That's where your all happens, I watch what I eat but it seems I take in more sodium which messes with the numbers.