Weight notches up the day after exercise
AliceNov2011
Posts: 471 Member
Have you noticed? Regardless of calories, my weight seems to trend up a pound or two the day after I do pilates, then back down a couple of days later.
I think it's water retention.
Any insights? Any tricks to mitigate?
I think it's water retention.
Any insights? Any tricks to mitigate?
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Replies
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Um, don't weigh the next day? I read that when the muscles are worked they retain a little water in the rebuilding process, so certainly could be that. I frankly don't know what causes most of my ups and downs, but I'm tracking the trend and not the day to day changes.
As far as mitigating, I think it's a bad idea to drink less water when you work out hard, so whatever you do, don't do that.
Have you looked at Trendweight.com or the Hacker's diet? Both have a method to track your weight as a trend which helps me concentrate more on the direction I'm going and not the day to day ups and downs.0 -
When you exercise, you stress your muscles, which means you created micro tears in the muscle tissue. They flood with fluids for 24-48 hours afterwards to repair themselves. That's also why you feel stiff and sore after an intense workout, or doing something that causes you to use muscles you have ignored. Keep moving, stretch, and drink plenty of water.0
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Article from a Beachbody trainer.
Probably the most common question I get when I release a new exercise program is, "Help! I'm gaining weight! Am I doing something wrong?" This is a common phenomenon with any new exercise program.
However, what most personal trainers know--and most at-home exercisers do not--is that a new exercise program often can cause an immediate (and temporary) increase on the scale. (Notice I didn't say weight gain! I'll explain.) The temporary weight gain explained: When someone starts a new exercise program, they often experience muscle soreness. The more intense and "unfamiliar" the program, the more intense the muscle soreness. This soreness is most prevalent 24 to 48 hours after each workout. In the first few weeks of a new program, soreness is the body trying to "protect and defend" the effected or targeted tissue. Exercise physiologists refer to this as delayed-onset muscle soreness, or DOMS. This type of soreness is thought to be caused by tissue breakdown or microscopic tears in muscle tissue. When this happens, the body protects the tissue. The muscle becomes inflamed and slightly swollen due to fluid retention. This temporary retention of fluid can result in a 3- to 4-pound weight gain within a few weeks of a new program. Keep in mind that muscle soreness is not necessarily a reflection of how hard you worked. In fact, some people feel no signs of muscle soreness, yet will experience the muscle protection mechanisms of water retention and slight swelling. Most people are motivated enough to put up with this temporary muscle soreness.0 -
Here's an article I came across awhile ago.
Why the Scale Goes Up When You Start a New Workout Plan
By Chalene Johnson
Probably the most common question I get when I release a new exercise program is, "Help! I'm gaining weight! Am I doing something wrong?" This is a common phenomenon with any new exercise program, such as Turbo Kick, Turbo Jam, Hip Hop Hustle, or others! It's especially common (and temporary) with intense strength training programs like ChaLEAN Extreme or Tony Horton's P90X.
The motivation to start a new exercise program is almost always to lose weight. However, what most personal trainers know--and most at-home exercisers do not--is that a new exercise program often can cause an immediate (and temporary) increase on the scale. (Notice I didn't say weight gain! I'll explain.) This common increase in the scale is also the reason why perhaps millions of people start and then quickly quit their resolution to get fit.
The temporary weight gain explained:
When someone starts a new exercise program, they often experience muscle soreness. The more intense and "unfamiliar" the program, the more intense the muscle soreness. This soreness is most prevalent 24 to 48 hours after each workout. In the first few weeks of a new program, soreness is the body trying to "protect and defend" the effected or targeted tissue. Exercise physiologists refer to this as delayed-onset muscle soreness, or DOMS.
This type of soreness is thought to be caused by tissue breakdown or microscopic tears in muscle tissue. When this happens, the body protects the tissue. The muscle becomes inflamed and slightly swollen due to fluid retention. This temporary retention of fluid can result in a 3- to 4-pound weight gain within a few weeks of a new program. Keep in mind that muscle soreness is not necessarily a reflection of how hard you worked. In fact, some people feel no signs of muscle soreness, yet will experience the muscle protection mechanisms of water retention and slight swelling.
Most people are motivated enough to put up with this temporary muscle soreness. Yet, many, especially those who really need immediate weight loss to keep them motivated, become discouraged and quit!
When I worked with a group of 70 test participants during the development stages of ChaLEAN Extreme, this happened. Who was the most upset and discouraged? You guessed it... the women! I'm happy to report absolutely for every single woman (and man) in our group, the weight increase was temporary and never lasted more than two weeks before they started to see a major drop in the scale. However, these people had the advantage of working with someone who was able to explain to them why this was happening and assure them the weight would come off if they stuck to the nutrition plan and stayed true to the program.
If you follow a multi-phase exercise plan, such as ChaLEAN Extreme, keep in mind that when you start each phase, your body will be "in shock" again. Don't be surprised or discouraged if you experience a temporary gain on the scale the first week of each phase.
My own personal example of this is running 10Ks. I don't do it very often, maybe once or twice a year. Even though I run on a regular basis, when you run a race, you push much harder. It's natural for me to be insanely sore the next day. It’s also very common for me to see the scale jump 4 pounds the next day from forcing fluids post race and the resulting DOMS. Even though I know the cause of it, it's still a bummer. We're all human and hard work should mean results. Hard work equals results, but our bodies are amazing machines and they know how to protect us from hurting ourselves. Soreness forces you to give those muscles a break. Ultimately you will lose the weight and you will change your metabolism in the process.
The key is understanding that this is a normal and temporary and stick with the program!0 -
I would look at your salt/sodium. I looked at your diary and you look like you stay under 2000 but then there are a few 2500 and even one day you did over 4K. Basically, I've noticed spikes in my weight for days if I go over 2K even for just a few days. It'll go away but you'll definitely need to increase water on days where you had that much sodium. I would go back and compare the exercise days to the days you had too much sodium and see if they match up. If yes, than it was Mr. Sodium in the Gym Room that did it.
Monica0 -
It may not be salt. It may actually be the lengthy explanation given. My sodium intake is well under 1000mg a day and I notice the same weight gain after a workout. I expect it, and I know it will go away in a day or so, but just didn't know why. When my sodium levels hit above 1000mg on a "bad" day, I see it in my face, swollen eyes, aching joints, but not in weight gain. So this makes sense to me. I'm not sure I'll remember how to explain it to anyone, but it makes sense while I'm reading it, so thanks for the explanation.0
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Thanks for the explanation! I struggle with seeing the weight gain after working out and never stick to it because of that. I've stuck with my logging this far, I need to just do the exercise consistently and not worry about the scales for a couple of weeks. HARD for me to do, but I know it will be better for me in the long run. I sooo wish I lived in a flat neighborhood or on a flat place in the country, I would be walking everyday!!! Can't walk up hills with my stupid ankle and my neighborhood and driveway are steep hills - UGH!!!!0
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When you exercise, you stress your muscles, which means you created micro tears in the muscle tissue. They flood with fluids for 24-48 hours afterwards to repair themselves. That's also why you feel stiff and sore after an intense workout, or doing something that causes you to use muscles you have ignored. Keep moving, stretch, and drink plenty of water.
AGREE 100%!!!0
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