Why does my weight drop after I eat more?

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  • WendyTerry420
    WendyTerry420 Posts: 13,274 Member
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    Ya I plan on having quite a high calorie day today. I will be having BBQ and lots of easter chocolate.

    I'll just consider it an experiment for, you know....science!

    HA! Ditto! (except we made sugar cookies and decorated them with buttercream icing in lieu of chocolate - we'll buy some chocolate bunnies and Reeses eggs tomorrow when they are half price)

    OP -- this seems to happen to me as well. I have my deficit set to lose a pound per week, but I don't stick to it strictly. Some days I eat 1900ish and others I eat closer to 2300. It has been averaging together such that I am losing about 3/4 a pound per week. But as an example, on Friday, I ate 2339 and Saturday I ate 2285. This morning when I woke up, I was down two pounds. Over the course of the two days, 1300 of that has been sugar calories, so I expected to be up from the water weight. But no, I'm down. So weird.
  • khall86790
    khall86790 Posts: 1,100 Member
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    Mine has done this on a few occasions.
    2 weeks ago I upped my calories and whereas before I'd lost 1lb per week, I lost 4lbs in 2 weeks after upping.
    I also went home for 10 days and didn't keep within my calories (went waaay over on some days) and came back having lost 1lb.
    I don't know whether it has anything to do with your metabolism. For example from exercise and eating the right foods, if that boosts your metabolism then you could be burning off more calories from every day activities? But that's just an idea, I'm no expert!
  • ILiftHeavyAcrylics
    ILiftHeavyAcrylics Posts: 27,732 Member
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    The same thing happens to me. What I was told over in the Eat Train Progress group is that when you eat at a deficit it stresses your body, which causes a bit of water retention, and then when you eat at maintenance or above it regulates your hormones and releases some water weight. Here's the article that was linked in my thread:

    http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/of-whooshes-and-squishy-fat.html

    And this one too:

    http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/the-ltdfle.html

    ETA: I see you already posted that first link. Whoops. :blushing:
  • CactusF1ower
    CactusF1ower Posts: 174 Member
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    I eat 5-6 meals every day. (Usually a lean protein, low glycemic carb, low fat). I strive to NEVER eat/snack in between those meals, not even the smallest tidbit. Down about 21 pounds since the middle of December (and a few pounds in the last few weeks since I joined MFP). Idea is constant fuel keeps my metabolism boosted all day.

    If 5-6 meals seems like a lot, consider someone who eats breakfast, has a donut in the break room at 10, goes to lunch, has a candy bar or bag of chips from the vending machine in the later afternoon, eats dinner, and has a bag of popcorn while watching late night TV. That is 6 meals, with at least 3 of them (depending on what they eat for the 3 standard meals) being complete garbage.

    Working out 6 days a week too of course which helps.
    I understand this concept, however, I don't understand how it relates to the OP's question?
  • krhn
    krhn Posts: 781 Member
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    By eat just 500 calories a day you are putting your body into starvation mode. Women need at least 1200 calorie and men 1500 calorie just for the body to function.

    ahahhaah, you must of interpretted that question so so SO wrong!!! :laugh:
  • rduhlir
    rduhlir Posts: 3,550 Member
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    OP: Don't know the scientific answer for it. Just know that it happens to me sometimes too.
  • jestersand
    jestersand Posts: 61 Member
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    That used to happen to me too. You can overeat and you can also under eat. Both will have similar consequences on the scale.
    Most people think that if they stick to the standard 1,200 cal per day routine they will lose weight, but we are not all the same, and we don't all have the same metabolism. I used to be on that 1,200 calorie diet, but as soon as the holidays came, I ate. I didn't overdo it because I practice moderation, but I found that I would go weeks with a .2lb lose and if I was lucky a 1lb lose. Right after Thanksgiving I would drop 5-7lbs. I kept my exercise routine normal. All I did was eat more. I think I need 2,350cals these days. So, you may want to rethink your calorie intake. You may be starving yourself.
  • krhn
    krhn Posts: 781 Member
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    Its only a temporary thing because its largely believed to be your own metabolism being "woken up" from its hibernative state, once you drop your calories for a certain period of time, your body may turn into a low energy usage system whereby your body adapts and doesn't need your usual BMR calories, but instead it latches on to your bodily fluids, fat and muscle hence, you may in fact gain weight by having a deficit in calories. However, once you bump back up the calories, for the time being, your body goes on overdrive and the metabolism is raised through the roof for only a few weeks, if not only a few days (varies from person to person).

    This is why people may try this method of tricking the body to kick start the metabolism in your system but soon afterwards drop back the calories to keep the body weight off and continue shedding!
    A clear example would be driving down a motorway in a car, you step on the throttle till you reach the speed limit then, you may let it coast a while so you loosen off the throttle until your car slows down where you would have to apply more throttle to keep the speed going - now interpret the car as your body and the throttle as the food - principles are the same! :drinker:

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