Frustrated and losing interest

verybusybee

I set a goal of 2lbs per week to start on 1/1/12. On 1/7/12 I met that first goal, a day early, when I weighed this morning, the day of reckoning I had gained 4lbs. I didn't binge last night and haven't binged all week. I didn't go over my calories, I did go over in protein which I don't consider terrible and i went over in fat which is bad but again not enough to gain 4lbs in one night. Any ideas what this could be. I am hoping it's just water weight for some reason and it will go away but I cna't reach my goals if I am gaining overnight like that.

Blueberry09

I think you need to give it more time. Don't weigh yourself again until the end of Jan - I'll bet you see results!

kirstysnan

Don't worry, it may well have gone by tomorrow. Scales are funny things - many diet gurus tell you to go by the tape measure instead. Sometimes there's a few days or a week's lapse between doing well/badly - the main thing is not to let it throw you, just carry on withe the good work.

kylakesgal

Seriously you did not gain 4 pounds overnight! A woman's weight flucuates so much!! It could be water weight, TOM or maybe sodium retention. I know my weight can flucuate as much as 4-5 lbs overnight sometimes. Just keep doing what you are doing and the scale will be right back down:) Good luck to you!

LMHinson15

You can't gain that much overnight, it's physically impossible. Unless you actually consumed 14,000 calories more than your daily intake.

I would bet a lot of money that it's water!!

MelissaL582

I agree with kylakesgal. You have to be patient with losing weight.

chevy88grl

You did not gain 4lbs overnight unless you consumed 14,000 calories OVER your maintenance calories (and I'm guessing this isn't the case.. lol). Our bodies are funny things and the scale is only one way of gauging our efforts. Don't panic. Don't worry. It is likely water retention and it will disappear as quickly as it appeared.

That being said, I would reconsider weighing yourself so much. Perhaps you'll do better only weighing in once a week. I weigh every morning, but a lot of people don't like to do it. I do it because it has taught me a lot about my body - what foods affect my weight, time of the month, etc.

Make sure you're drinking enough water.

hjmeyer2012

The scale is evil, I don't like to use them myself. I like to judge by how I feel and how my clothes fit. Do not weigh yourself every day, maybe not even every week. Try every two weeks or once a month. Keep up the good work of eating right.

Please add me as a friend!:flowerforyou:

NashvilleShelley

Add a sodium column to your diary. Hang in there and keep drinking all that water! : )

Laura_Ivy

I understand the frustration but seriously,unless you were going over your calories everyday by thousands, then those 4 lbs aren't real.

Maybe,fix your food diary settings to where you only lose 1 lb. a week instead. Perhaps,the calorie restriction was too extreme. I understand the frustration completely. This is happening to me right now. Just keep at it!

TheAncientMariner

I set a goal of 2lbs per week to start on 1/1/12. On 1/7/12 I met that first goal, a day early, when I weighed this morning, the day of reckoning I had gained 4lbs. I didn't binge last night and haven't binged all week. I didn't go over my calories, I did go over in protein which I don't consider terrible and i went over in fat which is bad but again not enough to gain 4lbs in one night. Any ideas what this could be. I am hoping it's just water weight for some reason and it will go away but I cna't reach my goals if I am gaining overnight like that.

That's probably just water weight. That is why weighing yourself too often is discouraged. It can cause you to not believe in yourself. You are on a journey to which the destination is not always black and white. I often tell my friends to trust in their journey. You know what to do and if you are doing that then there won't be a problem. It's okay to be frustrated, but don't ever give up because of what some stupid scale says. My scale hasn't moved an inch since last November and I'm still being as awesome as ever because I am doing SOMETHING. Pick yourself up and keep being awesome, the rest will work itself out. If the scale is discouraging you that much, then simply get rid of it. There should be nothing in your life that is distracting you from your journey. Redefine the nature of your association with your metrics. Good luck!

purpleipod

Why are you weighing yourself so often?

MummyHungry

My weight variance is 6 lbs...during the same day, the scale might show me two numbers 6 lbs apart! I bet it's the same for you. Drink plenty of water, don't go more than 200 lower than your calorie goal, and don't get discouraged when the scale says funny things. As long as you're following your plan, the fat will be going, even if the scale occasionally lies. ^_^

jabky2011

I find myself in the same situation. I am following the caloried intake to the letter, I am exercising and even trying not to eat after 7:00pm. I have steadily gained 4lbs in the last 3 days. I am so ready to give up. If I could just get some good results sometimes instead of always bad maybe I could do this. I just can't figure out what I'm doing wrong.

TourThePast

2lb a week is a lot, but you should be able to achieve it.

You should have seen a loss by now, do check that you're weighing / measuring your food and not estimating it. With the sort of high calorie foods you're eating, just a bit over can make a big difference. If it seems like it's getting hard work, do consider eating more vegetables and lean chicken and fish, you'll find it far more filling.

Also, if you're eating exercise calories, be aware that estimates of calories burned can be a bit over-generous.

engineman312

just read this. and watch that video at the bottom. http://nerdfitness.com/blog/2011/08/31/is-it-really-worth-it/

when you really want to drop the weight and get healthy and be fit, you will be.

kt2007

Not trying to sound like a smart *kitten* but check the batts in your scale if it has them and than I agree with the person that says dont weigh again till the end of the month. Watching the scale I have found to be the worst thing I used to do. Keep up what you been doing and it will work. This guy once told me during a RACE I was running in to keep me motivated to finish. If it was that easy to do it, everyone would be doing it.

gonzalezmona

It's important to choose the same weigh in date every week or every other week. Example: every Sunday. Weigh in at the same time, or as close to the same time each time. What you are attempting to do is to create the same situation/environment each & every time to help avoid discrepencies. So you want to emulate everything you do like it was the first time you weighed in. Also, try to keep your scale in the same location at all times: flat, level surface. If you have young children, it becomes a new toy...lol!! And believe me, they find those lil buttons.

Sounds like you are on the right track. Stick to what you are doing: good eating & excercise. The scale will reflect your hard work even if it takes a lil longer for the #'s to go down.

fitterpam

In order to gain 4lbs of fat overnight you'd have had to eaten 14,000 calories over what you burned.......it's not fat.

I do weigh every day (or I should to keep myself on track - when I was consistently losing weekly). I didn't care so much about the fluctations. If you do, don't weigh daily - weekly is the most you should do.

Here are some questions I have:
1. Did you weigh in at the same time, with an empty stomach after using the bathroom, wearing similar clothes? This one helps eliminate all the external factors of weight change......
2. Did you meet your water goals yesterday? Did you meet your sodium goals yesterday? Did you have alcholic beverages yesterday? If you didn't meet one or both of these, you could be retaining some serious water - I can jump 5-8lbs overnight after a night of take out and poor drink choices. Dehydration will be the cause of all of these water retention reasons. You should be drinking half your body weight in ounces of water daily to really control dehydration.
3. Did you get 8 hours of sleep? Your body is likely to have fluctuations if it is not performing optimally. Since you have just started, you can expect that it is not. Sleep is one of the easiest things to do to start it in the right direction.
4. Are you expecting to start your monthly cycle anytime soon? Sounds crazy, but progesterone (the one that is high right before TOM) causes weight retention....expect your TOM to impact your weight over the course of about 5 days a month by 2-5 lbs.....it'll come on overnight and will go away just as quickly.

You're just starting the journey - no point in getting frustrated at this point - you're not even aware of your reactions to certain foods, activities and regular changes.......just track the changes, keep to your diary and exercise and you'll see an overall change over the course of a month. If after 6 weeks, you're still not seeing the results and you're properly hydrated, rested and eating nutrittious foods, you may want to check with your doctor to see if you have a medical issue.....

Right now though - best guess is water retention and those three things will help take care of it - hydration, rest & proper nutrition!

TourThePast

I am exercising and even trying not to eat after 7:00pm. I have steadily gained 4lbs in the last 3 days.

If you're exercising hard, your muscles temporarily hold onto fluid while they're repairing. Plus if you've eaten a load more fresh veg than you're used to, you will have more food in your digestive system, and it could also be the time of the month.

Do make sure you are always weighing yourself at the same time first thing in the morning, naked, after going to the lavatory and before eating or drinking anything? That really cuts down the fluctuations.

shuttermom3

When I decided to take time for myself and lose some weight/get in shape, my husband said to me "If you never listen to anything I say, listen to this. Weigh yourself once a week, no more. And use the tape measure as your guide when the scale is depressing. That's where the results are."
I did personal training years ago and after paying out all that money I was so depressed because yes, I was a size smaller, but the scale NEVER changed!! How is that even possible? Muscle gain. Muscle weight. The more you excerise the more muscle you build, a very good thing!! Get out the measuring tape!!
Don't get discouraged. Find an accountability partner to keep you motivated!!

Misty

peggf

Hang in there. I'm in the same situation. Sometimes, depending on where a woman is in her cycle, she may just be retaining water. Could have been the salt that you had in your diet over the past few days that you were not aware of. Also, when we start to lose weight, our body can go into a "starvation mode" and try to conserve calories even though we are eating less. Your body will adjust to this and if you keep of the same diet/exercise pattern that you have established since 1/1, you should lose the weight. The temptation is to throw in the towel, but hang onto your goal and keep up the good work. The weight will come off if your are persistant.

bjfmade

Add a sodium column to your diary. Hang in there and keep drinking all that water! : )

This was a big deal with my weight going up and down. Drink plenty of water and really keep an eye on sodium. Be patient, it will work.

nathaliasmommy

Yeah dont weigh yourself so often, weight fluctuates daily, like for instance i just started this on Friday evening, so my meals and exercise for that day were way over on food and no exercise, then saturday i ate healthier and was under my calorie goal and i did exercise. so today (sunday) is the date i have set to weigh myself every week and from Friday to Sunday i lost 4 pounds, but i dont expect to see that every other day!! it probably as do with water weight etc..

SusanneWhittington

to loose weight your patience has to have a little bigger patience span than 8 days. After looking into your diary you eat a lot out which makes your sodium intake extremely high. Easy to gain water weight with that. It is not only to stay under the calories, it is also what you eat. Being over with Protein is a good thing, never worry about that, the worries have to be, being over with fat, sugar and sodium.

catherine4211

I hide my scale. My trainer forced me to get on his the other night. My weight was actually higher then the last time he forced me on it but all my measurements (except for my waist) were down. So the scale went up but the tape measurements went down. I'm not complaining......that scale is just a tool. Anyone get my joke???

ajbeans

I agree, it's not fat. When you weigh yourself every day, you need to look at the overall trends rather than the day-to-day fluctuations. You could be retaining water due to eating too much sodium, or maybe you need to poop. Did you weigh yourself at the same time, in the same clothes? If you didn't eat or drink before your weigh-in yesterday, and then today you weighed in after breakfast and 2 cups of coffee, that can add a pound or two right there.

candykay0605

I have this huge issue with weighing my self daily!!!! which is horrible it is def not the rigt thing to do!!!! I have stopped doing this after about 3 days ago when I weighed and had gained 3lbs!!! i was Horrified but I refused to give up and have set specifice days every other week to weigh. My new new weigh day is on sunday I weighed this am and "magically" those "extra" lbs I had "gained" were gone!! Just dont give up!!!! it takes time to put the weight on its going to take time to take it off!!!

dcmat

Don't worry, the weight will come off. However, I woud cut down on the fats (cheese etc|) as you are often over your daily max allowance

verybusybee

Thanks for the support. I do drink my water that is one thing that has never been an issue for me. I know you can't gain 4lbs in a day and I am guessing my scale is also a little off it just frustrating because I don't know whether to go with the goal i actually hit yesterday and plan on two lbs from that for 1/15/12 or go by what was actually on the scale today which is my weigh in day but 2lbs heavier than where I started. I am going to go with what I was yesterday as this is probably a fluke, besides when I spoke to the doctor the other day he said that you can't count the week before/or after your cycle due to bloating, probably can't count the week of either so that means only one week a month is accurate. Guess I should weigh only weekly and try other methods to determine my weight loss like measurements and fittness of clothes. Thanks again guys.

fitterpam

Over time, you'll figure out your own personal norms........but it takes time Don't get frustrated off the bat - it takes 6 weeks to really show progress one way or another and by then you'll start picking out trends behaviours and responses......