Is it normal to put on 7 pounds after a weeklong vacation?

DupreeTheTRex

I have been dieting for about a year now and have lost close to 80lbs (prior to my “vacation”). One of my goals with my weight loss journey is to learn to adapt to life, recognizing that there’ll be moments in my life where careful scrutinization of my meals won’t be possible.

I found myself without any appliances for a week (no fridge, freezer, stove or microwave) and so I decided this would be a good opportunity for me to attempt taking a “vacation” from counting calories.

Instead of counting calories, I listened to my body and ate when I was hungry. I had been doing physical labour from 7am to 12am daily (taking boxes from the garage to other parts of the house, doing chores that I didn’t have to do previous because I didn’t have a yard, putting together furniture weighting 200+ lbs) getting everything set-up in my new home. Normally I sit at a computer desk all day and get in very little exercise and as a result I felt like I was starving. I ate more than I normally would and decided I would just cut back a few extra calories if I ended up putting on any weight when things settled down.

Fast forward to yesterday, I step on the scale and weigh myself in noticing that I’ve gained 7lbs. I expected a couple of pounds but 7 seems excessive. Did I eat way more than I thought? I skipped lunch and had no snacks during this period, just two meals (breakfast and dinner) at local takeout. What happened?

Now I’ll admit I haven’t weighed myself in properly. I normally fast on Sundays until 4pm and weigh myself in before ending my fast. So I’m wondering if I’ll see a smaller change when the time finally comes. But still, 7lbs for me is 7 weeks of work gone in a week. It’s disheartening.

penguinmama87

Remember that one pound of fat is approximately 3500 calories. Do you think you ate 25,000 extra calories over that week? (You probably didn't, even if you did eat at a surplus.) Most if not all of that 7 lbs is probably excess water retention - from sitting down for long periods of time (car trips can do this as well as airplane rides where elevation plays a role too), eating foods with more sodium (restaurant prepared food usually does), plus just not being in your regular routine.

I wouldn't be surprised if at your next weigh in some or all of that weight has gone, and in a few weeks things should have shifted back to normal.

I had my own experience with this last month when my family went on vacation. I wasn't weighing my food because I didn't bring my food scale, but based on my own estimations I still ate at a slight deficit and I continued much of my regular exercise. The day we came back from vacation, I stepped on the scale and it had gone up 2 lbs. A few days later, back to my regular routine and weigh-in day, I had lost 4. Definitely not fat - just water moving around and doing its thing.

kshama2001

A lot of that is probably water retention from the new exercise and perhaps extra sodium if you don't normally eat takeout. Food could also still be moving through your digestive system.

Also, was it very hot during that week? We've had several threads about outside temperature affecting weight due to water retention from the heat. I'm not sure there was anything conclusive, but it could also be a factor.

DupreeTheTRex

kshama2001 wrote: »

A lot of that is probably water retention from the new exercise and perhaps extra sodium if you don't normally eat takeout. Food could also still be moving through your digestive system.

Also, was it very hot during that week? We've had several threads about outside temperature affecting weight due to water retention from the heat. I'm not sure there was anything conclusive, but it could also be a factor.

It was fairly hot; I was in air conditioning as most of my work was indoors but I guess my garage is pretty steamy since AC doesn’t run into there. It’s probably mostly water retention although I do expect to have gained some weight from eating as well. I forgot that exercise results in water retention to aid muscles in recovery among other things like sodium intake.

neanderthin

Pretty normal really, I wouldn't worry about it.

AnnPT77

I agree with what others said about most if not all of it being water weight or temporarily higher digestive contents on their way to becoming waste, or some combination, not fat gain.

Improbable that you ate 24,500 calories above *maintenance* calories (not just above weight-loss goal calories) - an entire 3500 extra per day on average on top of whatever your maintenance calories would be (with the extra activity considered!). It's possible to eat 3500 over maintenance, but seems unlikely. You probably have some feel for the probability, even if not hard numbers.

If you're going to be discouraged about this, at least wait a week or two before giving in to that discouragement.** I'd predict that if you go straight back to your normal routine, most of all of the extra weight will drop off in a week, maybe two.

** I know that's unrealistic. I'm kind of joking when I say that . . . but figuring out how to accept and roll with these things, recognizing it'll probably work out OK, is a useful skill to develop. (Skills develop by practicing them.)

Discouragement feels unpleasant, and feeling discouraged now will turn out to have been an *unnecessary* unpleasantness - not to mention waste of time and energy - when it turns out that you didn't gain 7 pounds of fat. Part of reaching ability to take it calmly is seeing these pseudo-gains happen, then seeing the drop some days later: Experience that it will work out OK is calming.

I don't know what your normal schedule is - sounds like weekly? - but I'd consider a daily AM weigh-in until the inevitable drop happens. That will give you some good insights about how your personal body handles these things. How and how fast the drop happens is sort of individual, could be gradual, could be sudden, etc. You have a learning opportunity about how it works in your body, right now.

However, if that daily weighing would be super-stressful on top of the initial shock, I'm not saying it's essential to do it. Do what *you* need to take this calmly, to the extent possible.

rosebarnalice

I bounced 8 lbs IN ONE DAY last week. Definitely salt/ water retention and a little bit of constipation.

I was back down two days later.

sijomial

That would be pretty normal for me.
Sun, more food, more food that is salty, more booze, air travel all contribute.

Actual fat gain though is likely to be the minority part of that 7lb gain.
I'd expect most of the water weight gain to have resolved itself within a week of returning home just leaving a bit of genuine surplus to be addressed over the next few weeks.

MercuryForce

rosebarnalice wrote: »

I bounced 8 lbs IN ONE DAY last week. Definitely salt/ water retention and a little bit of constipation.

I was back down two days later.

My personal best was 10 lbs. I went cross-country skiing for the first time that season and went 6 miles, then went home and at a chicken parm sandwich and a beer or two. Between the workout, all the water from the work, the sodium bomb of a sandwich, and the beer my body held onto water like crazy. It was fascinating to see that go up so fast and just plunge over the next 4 or 5 days. That's when I really grasped that daily fluctuations don't mean much, it's the long-term trajectory.

I've also gone on vacations and "gained" several lbs and they are all usually gone within a week, especially if I make sure to stay on top of drinking my water and avoiding salt heavy foods. I don't worry about vacation gain unless it lasts over a week, and it never has. I might lose a week of progress, but I'm going so slow now that losing no weight in a week vs my usual .5lbs or less doesn't really change my progress much.

jdbly3373

Yes, I think so.