'Rollercoaster' weightloss... Does this happen to anyone?

divacat80

Hi!

I started my journey on june last year. I was losing 10 pounds per month (partly due to thyroid medication) steadily until late january. That's when my progress stalled for a couple of months, and since then my weightloss chart looks like a rollercoaster (try not to look at my MFP since i got away from it for a few months, since i was getting a bit obsessed). I've been having progress, but it looks quite weird because i only seem to be losing weight at random days of the month. I lose like 2 pounds every fifteen days (for instance), and then a few days later i put them back on for another week, and then i lose them for good and the scale goes down for like two extra pounds. And it goes and olike this every single month.

And of course some months those pounds I regain come back just before my period, but I don't know, I'm still puzzled at the way my body loses weight, because it doesn't seem directly related to my monthly cycles, not every month at least.

I just wanted to know if this happens to anyone else, just not to feel so weird.

I workout 5 days a week from monday to friday. I do body combat, body pump, body balance or pilates, spinning and i lift weights. So I work out quite a lot, two hours per day total. I leave saturday and sunday to rest and my cheat days are sundays and thursdays.
I truly don't know if I eat back my exercise calories but my nutritionist told me not to worry about that much, she just told me not to eat less than 1,500 calories per day. I made my own menu to know exactly what I eat and not have to log everythingbut I sort of cycle my calories, I don't always eat exactly the same amount.

My lab levels are ok, and due to my hypothyrodism my period cycles are irregular, but I don't know if it has anything to do with it or not. My doctor doesn't pay much attention to it.

So... Just that. I wanted to know your opinion, should I feel truly weird?

I had stopped weighing myself every day because of this but only got discouraged even more because some weeks i lose weight on monday and i keep the weightloss until sunday, and it peaks again right before i have to weigh myself on monday so i started weighing myself every day or every other day again to get less discouraged.

At least I know I'm making progress but it's driving me crazy! The other day we were having a toast (with orange juice!) because i had lost 90 pounds and the following day i had put on weight XD and i hadn't eaten anything fatty,i had followed just my everyday menu and exercise routine, as always.


Thanks for reading and sorry for my bad English

Ainar

I lose some pounds one day and gain some back next day as well. It's kinda same to me, and I'm sure to everybody. There are many factors what can effect your weight. For example:
A water amount you drink in that particular day, when you weight yourself. Was it just as much in the last day?
Do you do it at mornings when you are dehydrated and haven't eaten or drink anything after you take a toilet (when you obviously will be the most lighter) or at evenings or any other time of day when you drink and ate? Did you weighted yourself in exact same time lest day? .
Also, as you prolly know, females tend to retain some water weight during period. That can easily add 2 pounds. It's normal. And you should not worry about it cos it's only water... not fat. You blow up like a sponge with water and get heavy, that does not mean a sponge itself actually gets bigger, hehe. That combined with normal water weight what is not cos of your period as well as food weight and other little things like closing you wear when weighting yourself, time you weight yourself, foods you ate and drink, how accurate your scale is, are you using the same one every day, if it's digital is it in same room temperature, etc can make a quite a big difference.

It's completely unnecessary to follow every pound you lose. Just look at them in long run. Like you were 181 and now u are around 132, so it works. It all that matters. It doesn't really matter that you went to 180 then to 182 ,then to 179, then to 180, then to 175, etc...

It's about distance we travel now how smooth the rode is! ^^

alwayskungfu

You're doing a of a lot of exercise, remember primarily we exercise to maintain our health, huge calorie deficits are not gained in work outs, calorie intake balance is the key to weight loss, we need well balanced junk free good food for fuel. Rest and sleep are a very important thing. You could be stressing your body too much and giving you're body starvation mode signals causing your metabolism to switch in to store mode, ask you're PT or nutritionist. Ask yourself what you're training for (a marathon or steady weight loss?)? do you need to push yourself so hard? how are you affecting your joints long term through ware an tear? you do still want sound knees and hips at age 50 - 60 Im sure, so aim for a slow weight loss 0.5-1lb a week is fine, whats the hurry, think long term don't stress about fluctuations we all have good and bad weeks think gradual lifestyle change and pace yourself. I wish you all the best of luck on your journey

divacat80

Thank you both!

I feel less freaky now!

I do work out two hours per day because that's what i was told. I usually do body combat and body pump on mondays and wednesday, and aerodance (or spinning, depends) and pilates on tuesdays and thursdays, and aerodance and body balance on fridays. Some fridays i just do weight training instead of those classes.

I don't know,two hours is really that much? Maybe i got too used to the exercise?
I usually take a week off during my periods, as i have a truly heavy flow and i can't wear tampons. So i do get some rest... But maybe you're right and i should do less exercise.

It can't be the scale but maybe i do go to sleep dehydrated some evenings as Ainar says.

Thank you both again!

JesterMFP

It's very normal for your weight to go up and down like that - weight loss is not linear. So, don't worry about that.

2 hours of exercise every day is a lot really. Who's told you that you need to do that much?

divacat80

Actually it was my family doctor. She told me to do one hour cardio per day (she's probably thinking that I'm only walking, though i told her repeatedly that I'm doing body combat), and i mentioned weight training because i read everywhere that you have to do weights or you'll turn into a walking skeleton or a skinny fatty, so she told me i could do weights. And that's why I'm doing the weights three days a week. The added cardio on those days is because i just love dancing and i have a lot of fun. It's not a demanding class (at least not for me) so I don't feel it's exercising much but you all have to be right.
What puzzled me wasn't the fact that my weightloss isn't linear, (i already knew that is normal) but the fact that even with all the exercise and dieting i only seem to be losing weight two or three days a month, and in those two or three days the weightloss is considerable. My English is not that good and maybe I didn't express myself right, so sorry!

Since I'm still losing weight I'm trying not to pay much attention to it but still... It does feel weird. Probably because in earlier weightloss battles i have lost weight in a more linear way but none of those battles have lasted this long i have to say, as i didn't have as much weight to lose as this one (and hopefully last) time.

Thanks a lot for taking the time to read my posts and for your help everyone!