What'd I do wrong???

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  • Cyndieann
    Cyndieann Posts: 152 Member
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    Alot of good information here on Sodium. To simplify; lots of sodium in the body, lots of water retained. Flush the sodium out by drinking water. Less sodium in the body, less water retained. When ever I eat a high sodium food, I always drink an extra glass of water. This helps me to avoid the up & down weight from bloating. Good luck to you!
  • mfpcopine
    mfpcopine Posts: 3,093 Member
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    In addition to other possible factors, you have to be absolutely accurate with the tracking. It's also a good idea to assume that the calories stated labels understate the true amount.
  • jlbeals
    jlbeals Posts: 65 Member
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    I noticed no one has brought this up yet, but where you're at in your monthly cycle can have a big effect on your water weight too. I sometimes "gain" the week before/during, then lose a HUGE chunk afterwards.
  • Lesa_Sass
    Lesa_Sass Posts: 2,213 Member
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    I doubt you gained 2 lbs in a week. I have weighed myself the morning after eating sushi and gained 4 POUNDS! It was all the water I drank due to the sodium in my soy/wasabi. I drank lots of water and flushed it out of my system and was back to normal in a few days.

    Do not forget that our monthly visitor brings a couple pounds of baggage with it, so do not be surprised if you gain anywhere between 3 and 5 lbs that week. Just another cruel joke played on women by mother nature.

    Hang in there, you are doing great! :flowerforyou:
  • wswilliams67
    wswilliams67 Posts: 938 Member
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    It's all about calories in vs calories out. I know I'm doing good on calories. I'm just going to drink way more water to see if that helps.

    Well that's the basics but there's a lot more to it than just reduced calories. I could eat 1800 calories of pure cane sugar vs 1800 calories of grilled chicken and it DOES make a difference. It's not just how much you eat, but WHAT you eat and how often as well. Try to eat 'cleaner', meaning eat food as close to it's natural state as possible. Anything in a plastic bag or wrapper or prepared at a restaurant is going to have massive amounts of sodium. High sodium = water retention = the appearance of weight gain. Remember the old adage, "A pint's a pound the world around". So if you are retaining 2 pints of water (completely reasonable) that's 2lbs of water weight. P.S. You will save money if you eat clean and eat at home.

    Also remember your weight can fluctuate 3-5lbs daily just based on water. Be consistent with your weigh-in day/time. Also be sure to use the same scale.
    I would still like an answer to my question about why the body doesn't keep retaining water if you give it more water though...

    Your body has a point of optimal hydration. That's where you want to stay. The way you get there is to drink water continuously. If you want a quick way to see how much water you should drink for you personally go here: http://www.csgnetwork.com/humanh2owater.html

    Once your body is hydrated properly it will simply take what it needs from what you are drinking and process the rest through normally (read as peeing). Urination is also a quick way to tell if you are dehydrated. When properly hydrated, urine is usually clear. The darker yellow it is the more dehydrated you are. BTW if it heads toward the brown end of the scale you need to get to the hospital immediately for severe dehydration. Anyway, now that the gross part is over... water is your friend. it will keep you from cravings, keep you from feeling hungry and will make the machine run efficiently. It will flush all the sodium out as well.

    EDIT: Oh When you calculate how much water you need to drink, then spread it out over your waking day. Too much water too quickly can have adverse effects. (i.e. Water Intoxication)
  • Code7526
    Code7526 Posts: 52
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    I meant no refined sugar in any form.

    Breafast: Big Bowl of oats with milk but no sugar.

    Snack: 1 fruit

    Lunch: Protein(eggs, chicken or tuna) + salad

    Snack: 1 fruit

    Supper: Protein(eggs, chicken or tuna) + dark green vegetables

    Drink 2 litres of water
    No sugar in any form
    No refined carbs
  • JTick
    JTick Posts: 2,131 Member
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    How long have you been tracking now? (sorry if I missed it)

    I ask because it took me about 70 days of tracking to nail my body's weight loss pattern. I will drop about 3 lbs every other week in a big chunk (average 1.5/week). If I then weight myself a week later, I will be back up two lbs, and then the next week down those two plus another 3. In other words, weight loss is not linear, and these spikes will occur, sometimes for absolutely no rhyme or reason.

    I also agree with others that it is probably sodium. A mix between a spike in sodium, and your bodies natural weight loss pattern
  • Klopford
    Klopford Posts: 129
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    How long have you been tracking now? (sorry if I missed it)

    I ask because it took me about 70 days of tracking to nail my body's weight loss pattern. I will drop about 3 lbs every other week in a big chunk (average 1.5/week). If I then weight myself a week later, I will be back up two lbs, and then the next week down those two plus another 3. In other words, weight loss is not linear, and these spikes will occur, sometimes for absolutely no rhyme or reason.

    I also agree with others that it is probably sodium. A mix between a spike in sodium, and your bodies natural weight loss pattern

    Been tracking for a month now. I started at SparkPeople then moved here.

    I do eat things that are high in sodium out of convenience (I eat breakfast and lunch at the cafeteria at work and dinner is usually up to my parents) and personal preference (I like salty things!) Until we go to the grocery store, or I move out of the house (and by necessity would have to do things on my own), and I finally figure out where on earth the workplace refridgerator is so I can even store a packed lunch... preparing my own meals is kind of a no-go. I'll at least start tracking my sodium as well to see where I'm at.

    I bought some strawberry/watermelon Mio and some blue raspberry walmart generic version of Mio as well yesterday (the blue raspberry one is absolutely yummy) and I'm sipping on it right now from my nalgene bottle. In fact, I now need a refill. :wink:
  • JTick
    JTick Posts: 2,131 Member
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    I agree with tracking sodium. It will probably shock you at first how it creeps into EVERYTHING. Even if you don't necessarily try to lower it, you will at least be able to look back and say "oh yeah, I had a lot of sodium yesterday, so that's why the scale didn't drop". It definately helps save your sanity!
  • Lesa_Sass
    Lesa_Sass Posts: 2,213 Member
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    I know advice on your diet seems to be a touchy subject with you but I am going to say this any way. I am not wanting to offend you by any means and am surly not trying to hurt your feelings, but sweet heart, your diet is horrible.

    Do you eat out every night? Why, at 24, are you not able to purchase your own food and prepare your own meals? There are better options at Pizza Hut and Taco Bell than the ones you are making. This has nothing at all to do with what the scale says and how much you weight, but what is your quality of life going to be like later in life? I hope and pray that after you get over being upset with me that you will reach out to someone that can help you with a diet plan that will work for you.

    Feel free to check out my diary to get tips on better foods to eat. You will see cookies, scones, cheesepuffs and things of that nature in it, but the rest of what I put into my body balances it out, and all if it is in moderation.

    Good luck and God bless with your journey.

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