Sodium, Anyone?

dare2love81

Wasn't sure which board to post this in, so I went with this one. Sorry in advance if anyone feels this is the *wrong* board.

Anyways, is anyone else crazy sensitive to sodium? And by sensitive, I mean does your weight fluctuate a lot from it? It seems like if I exceed my sodium intake by even 100 or so, my weight goes up. (And yes, I know I shouldn't focus on the number). I also seem to swell up like crazy. It's annoying to put on 6-8 pounds from a few slices of pizza.

I'm not complaining or crying that the scale goes up...I know full well that it'll come back off again within a few days. I'm just curious if anyone else seems to be as sensitive to sodium as I am?

AllonsYtotheTardis

I'm notice strong fluctuations in water weight when I have high-sodium foods, but not to the extent you describe.

SF2514

I'm the same way. I have medical problems though so it's super irritating. I can easily lose/gain 5-11lbs in one day if my sodiums off.

AJ_Pete

Yep. I blow up like a dead horse in summer if I have too much. Plus it makes me cranky.

I try to keep mine below 1500 on most days. Especially closer to weigh-in days.

Drinking a lot of water helps.

EmilyOfTheSun

Drinking a lot of water helps.

Getting in a workout that makes you sweat helps too. Sweat it out!
At least it seems that way for me. Maybe in reality it has nothing to do with it, idk. I like to tell myself it does lol.

MinnieInMaine

:raises hand: Seriously, this drives me nuts because even if my calories are good, if my sodium is high, my weight can be up for almost a week! Drinking plenty of water and lots of walking (for some reason I can't figure out) seems to help. Glad you have a good attitude about it! I weigh every day but only log my weight about once a month because it's all over the place with water retention.

ldrosophila

Doesnt affect mine, as of yet, but sure salt sensitivity is a very real thing. Especially if it causes hypertension.

Bronx_Montgomery

You know what...I think that was my problem on Saturday. In a span of 24 hours I gained 15lbs and lost 15lbs. Freaking Nuts!

dare2love81

Drinking a lot of water helps.

Getting in a workout that makes you sweat helps too. Sweat it out!
At least it seems that way for me. Maybe in reality it has nothing to do with it, idk. I like to tell myself it does lol.

Yeah, I drink a ton of water every day (I just never log it, not sure why). And I also exercise pretty strenuously most days with lifting heavy, boxing and running. I've also been known to gain up to 6 pounds after a heavy leg day when muscles are trying to repair themselves. :drinker:

dare2love81

You know what...I think that was my problem on Saturday. In a span of 24 hours I gained 15lbs and lost 15lbs. Freaking Nuts!

:noway: Wow, that's crazy! Glad to know I'm not the only one out there though. I do wish mine came back off in a day as opposed to taking 3-4 to get rid of it. Bah well....#firstworldproblems

tapdance66

I'm really sensitive to sodium. Try to stay low sodium, work out a lot, drink lots of water. But I'm like you. Had 2 slices of pizza for dinner last night and on my weigh-in this morning, had gained almost 5 pounds from last week. But I know that's from last night. I snuck & weighed myself Monday and I had actually lost a pound from last week so I really "gained" 6 pounds from 2 slices in one day. I know it's a fake gain b/c my clothes all fix exactly the same. Planning to talk to my doctor about it at my physical in 2 weeks and see what she recommends. I've been on a low sodium diet for over a year for this exact reason but it hasn't seemed to help at all. Maybe something else is going on (shudder).
Anyway - you are not alone!!

dare2love81

I'm really sensitive to sodium. Try to stay low sodium, work out a lot, drink lots of water. But I'm like you. Had 2 slices of pizza for dinner last night and on my weigh-in this morning, had gained almost 5 pounds from last week. But I know that's from last night. I snuck & weighed myself Monday and I had actually lost a pound from last week so I really "gained" 6 pounds from 2 slices in one day. I know it's a fake gain b/c my clothes all fix exactly the same. Planning to talk to my doctor about it at my physical in 2 weeks and see what she recommends. I've been on a low sodium diet for over a year for this exact reason but it hasn't seemed to help at all. Maybe something else is going on (shudder).
Anyway - you are not alone!!

I wonder if staying low sodium is actually counterproductive? I mean maybe our bodies get used to the lower sodium so when we up it even a little bit, the body is like "what's going on here" and holds on to it?

KathleenSweetie

My metabolism can't process sodium well either. I now consciously eat low in sodium to avoid problems. It hasn't been easy. I read kidneys can weaken from too much salt and diabetes II can be exasperated. My veins genetically pump a little weak in the legs so sodium/water retention tends to pool there, causing swelling. My solution is take (short) walks daily, elevate my feet when possible, and wear supportive socks often. This helps to pumps the fluid back up to the core where it can be relieved of easier. I also read a body carries more salt proportionally than an ocean. That's okay. But too much salt is dangerous (hypertension, etc.). And high levels can take a good amount of time to work out the body. - A fellow Problematic Salt Intaker

majope

I have the opposite problem. If I start limiting sodium, I do shed water weight fairly quickly, but I also get head rushes when I stand up too quickly--after I almost passed out one day at work when I stood up after being crouched down to look for something on a low shelf, I decided a little water retention wasn't so bad after all.

That's not from drastically low sodium, either, just trying to stay within recommended guidelines.

dare2love81

I have the opposite problem. If I start limiting sodium, I do shed water weight fairly quickly, but I also get head rushes when I stand up too quickly--after I almost passed out one day at work when I stood up after being crouched down to look for something on a low shelf, I decided a little water retention wasn't so bad after all.

That's not from drastically low sodium, either, just trying to stay within recommended guidelines.

Now that's interesting. Hmm...could explain my lightheadedness in boxing class a few weeks ago when I was trying to keep my sodium intake under 1,700mg per day.