is it normal for weight to fluctuate so dramatically??!

itsskyhigh
itsskyhigh Posts: 33
in Health and Weight Loss
Weighed myself 2 weeks ago was 172lbs, didnt start my 1200 calorie diet or exercise routines yet. im 5'3 18 female if that matters lol. Rest are after starting diet + exercise Weighed myself last Friday was 167lbs weighed myself yesterday was 165lbs weighed myself today and am 167lbs again. Sooo idk. I wear the same clothes when I weigh myself. Anyone know an optimum time for weighing?

Replies

  • jstout365
    jstout365 Posts: 1,686 Member
    Yes. It is normal to go up or down 5 lbs in a day. Pick one day as a "weigh-in" day. Write down that number and track it each week. Even week to week will go up and down, but probably not as much as day to day. Weight loss is not a linear process. Tracking the trends will be the best way to see progress. 4 weeks worth of weigh in data will give you a better idea if your plan is working or not.

    ETA: Optimum time is whenever you can be consistent about it. I prefer morning, just after waking up, and sans clothing.
  • Kr1ptonite
    Kr1ptonite Posts: 789 Member
    To me best time to weigh is first thing in the morning before you have eat or drank anything. And only once a week. On the same day, wearing similar clothing
  • lambchristie
    lambchristie Posts: 552 Member
    Most people, myself included, weigh first thing in the morning, and they weigh with no clothes on.
    Also someone mentioned to pick a day and weigh the same day every week. I chose Monday because that is the day that MFP starts a new week in tracking.
  • JMel86
    JMel86 Posts: 124 Member
    To me best time to weigh is first thing in the morning before you have eat or drank anything. And only once a week. On the same day, wearing similar clothing

    This, but instead of the same clothes, weigh yourself naked. Works great for me! :)
  • Warchortle
    Warchortle Posts: 2,197 Member
    To me best time to weigh is first thing in the morning before you have eat or drank anything. And only once a week. On the same day, wearing similar clothing

    This, but instead of the same clothes, weigh yourself naked. Works great for me! :)
    group weigh in? ;)
  • acogg
    acogg Posts: 1,870 Member
    If you are weighing with clothes and during the day, then yes, you will see big changes. I remember a thread where a woman complained that she gained five pounds just going to work. It turned out that she would weigh at home, then would weigh again at work. She wore steel toed boots at work. That explained it all! :laugh:

    I weigh every morning after I pee, before I even have a sip of coffee. That's my lightest moment, unless I decide to go back to bed and sleep some more. I have lost as much as another two pounds just sleeping another hour and repeating. Of course I usually gain it all back over the course of the day.
  • NaomiJFoster
    NaomiJFoster Posts: 1,450 Member
    So dramatically? That's not really very dramatic at all. That's normal and how most people's bodies work. For me, personally, three pounds day-to-day is just me being regular.
  • raindawg
    raindawg Posts: 348 Member
    I weigh myself once a week on Friday mornings right before I step in the shower. A few years ago I weighed myself every morning but the results jumped all over the place up or down 2 to 3 lbs. It drove me nuts.
  • 12skipafew99100
    12skipafew99100 Posts: 1,669 Member
    5 to 7 pound loss in the first two weeks of a 1200 calorie diet is what I would expect. Cycles can play a big part as well as the salty food we eat, just temporary gain. You're doing great! Keep it up!
    What is your goal?
  • Ortax
    Ortax Posts: 98
    A few days ago I was 178 lbs. Today I weighed in at 186 lbs. So yes I fluctuate very dramatically. It's just water weight.
  • SrJoben
    SrJoben Posts: 484 Member
    Weighed myself 2 weeks ago was 172lbs, didnt start my 1200 calorie diet or exercise routines yet. im 5'3 18 female if that matters lol. Rest are after starting diet + exercise Weighed myself last Friday was 167lbs weighed myself yesterday was 165lbs weighed myself today and am 167lbs again. Sooo idk. I wear the same clothes when I weigh myself. Anyone know an optimum time for weighing?

    Yes.

    It's mostly fluctuating water retention levels due to various factors like salt intake, and glycogen stores in your muscles.

    If we can assume people to have a 'true' weight, that's their fat, muscle, bone etc, and some average level of hydration and food in the gut than you can expect your scale weight on any given day to be about +/- 3% of that.

    Going from 165 to 167 in a day is a 1.5% change. Quite tiny. Could be anything really, except fat. It's not more fat.

    A lot of people weigh in the morning after using the toilet, and before breakfast if possible. The idea is that this takes out or minimizes several potential variables. But the main point is to pick a time and always do it then. And make sure you're wearing the same thing, or if possible, nothing. Because if you weigh in at random times relative to your eating, drinking, restroom use, exercise etc you'll see less consistent and meaningful results.



    I use an Android app called Libra, that creates an averaged trend line that smooths away the multi pound variations day to day and makes it easier to see where my weight is really headed.
  • itsskyhigh
    itsskyhigh Posts: 33
    5 to 7 pound loss in the first two weeks of a 1200 calorie diet is what I would expect. Cycles can play a big part as well as the salty food we eat, just temporary gain. You're doing great! Keep it up!
    What is your goal?
    Short term goal - 145
    long term goal- 120 - 130
  • SouthGaPeach
    SouthGaPeach Posts: 43 Member
    I have seen myself gain as many as 7 lbs. over the course of a day (morning to night) and as many as 2.5 from morning to morning. My weight so heavily fluctuates that I weigh myself on a daily basis (I know people are going to say its a bad idea to weigh daily but it helps me to pick up better on trends on how my weight fluctuates) I weigh naked every morning after I pee and shower. Fluctuating like that is quite normal :)

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