Am I the enemy, or is the scale? :P

Ashonym
Ashonym Posts: 172 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Just a quick question, not really an incredible discussion. I'm just curious. (My diary SHOULD be public but if it's not I'll make it so.) I've been switching to much healthier choices than I was previously giving myself, sticking to a 1200 calorie regimen (apart from last night), but... After weighing myself this morning after peeing and before eating anything and whilst naked, I weighed the EXACT same as before.

Contrary to what you might think, I'm not upset and it won't by any means deter me from my new, better lifestyle. However, considering I am well aware of the copious amounts of sodium intake I've been getting, it begged the question, to me, of how in the hell I am not up a ridiculous few pounds of water weight.

Any thoughts?

[EDIT] I know it's a weird question but it is a serious one. Basically I'm curious whether I'm actually losing weight and the water weight is just making it appear the same, or not.

Replies

  • kelseey73x
    kelseey73x Posts: 65 Member
    Water weight could do it, but your body does shift weight about two pounds a day. Thats why i recommend only weighing yourself once or twice a week.
  • sarahrbraun
    sarahrbraun Posts: 2,261 Member
    The scale is a fickle witch and will tell you things that are not true ( IE you gained 6 lbs over night..or you haven't lost weight in a month). The best thing to do is to take measurements and to go by how your clothes fit. Also keep in mind that if you are exercising, you may be undergoing some body recomposition. You might be losing fat and gaining a little muscle at the same time.

    this is me in 2009 at about 195lbs
    8193374926_e25182cc2b_q.jpg
    0120100909 by crochetmom2010, on Flickr

    this is me last week at 196lbs
    8193379046_12510bafc2_q.jpg
    IMG00817-20121113-0848 by crochetmom2010, on Flickr

    the pants I was wearing in the first picture started falling off me 6-8 months ago. I can wear the shirt, but it is not nearly as tight.


    As for your question...you might be down a pound or so, but the salt is hiding it. Make sure to keep your sodium low until your next weigh in, and drink at least your 64oz of water a day. if it IS bloat, you should lose it within the week
  • Tunia85
    Tunia85 Posts: 212 Member
    Also, make sure you are only supposed to eat 1200 cals a day. MFP calculated 1200 for me, but I recently checked again and rechecked with another app, and it was supposed to be higher. As I made the change, the weight came off faster.
  • invisibubble
    invisibubble Posts: 662 Member
    For starters you should be eating more than that. Go here and read the first post.
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/654536-in-place-of-a-road-map-2-0-revised-7-2-12
    Personally I went with Scooby instead of Fat2Fit for calorie calcs, but that's not important really. Fact is, you should be fuelling your body, not starving it.
  • anifani4
    anifani4 Posts: 457 Member
    I looked at your diary for the past week. If this is an improvement then I give you a lot of credit but you have a long way to go before you are actually eating healthy. Other than lettuce there are no vegetables. Are you poor? Is there a reason you have so little variety ?

    You don't say how long since you last weighed so it is a impossible to comment on you weighing the same today.
  • ihateroses
    ihateroses Posts: 893 Member
    Them dressings girl. There's your problem. Dat sodium!

    Salads do not automatically equal healthy. Try steaming carrots and broccoli and such instead, you can even safely dress it in butter and season it and itll still be much better than the bottled salad dressing.
  • wswilliams67
    wswilliams67 Posts: 938 Member
    1200 calories is like rock bottom, the bare minimum you should eat and stay out of starvation mode. But if you are exercising with any regularity 1200 may not be enough and your metabolism can shut down stalling your weight loss or even worse... making you gain weight. Dialing in your caloric intake vs. output can take a couple of weeks.

    I dropped to a 1500 cal/day intake, but was doing weight lifting 2 days on, 1 day off AND 50-60 minutes of cardio/day (7 days a week). Needless to say my metabolism stalled and I lost nothing for 2 weeks. I've just now got it humming again and found my balance of training vs. calories.

    Honestly the scale sucks as a measurement tool. It doesn't give you a complete picture of your body composition. I only use my scale so I have a weight I can plug into my treadmill and Omron Body Meter. Other than that I go by my clothes, the mirror and my body fat %.

    As far as water weight remember these things:

    1. Watch your sodium intake. No more than 1500mg/day. The more sodium you eat, the more water you will retain.

    2. Never weigh yourself after a lifting day of a major muscle group like say upper legs. While repairing, your muscles tend to retain more water than usual. Since the upper legs are one of the biggest muscle groups you can actually gain anywhere from 3-4 pounds of just water weight after a heavy leg workout.

    3. Never eat red meat 2 days before a weigh-in day. Red meat tends to take much longer to completely digest. It can make you retain water so your system can more effectively digest it and can take as long as 2 days depending on how much of it you eat.

    4. You have to account for your monthly cycle as well. Sorry, but it's just a fact.

    Hope this helps.
  • 000Helen000
    000Helen000 Posts: 4 Member
    I agree with ihateroses and anifani4. There's a lot of bad stuff and not a lot of fruit and veg. Tuna's good but try tuna in water or brine not in oil. I saw lots of salad dressing and on one day a whole cup of cheese in one meal. Try a couple of ounces of cheese instead. Top up with lots of steamed veg and fruit.

    Back to the weight thing - just weigh in once a week. All kinds of stuff happens overnight and from day to day. And long term is what matters.
  • wswilliams67
    wswilliams67 Posts: 938 Member
    Wow yeah, I just looked at your diary from just yesterday. Your sodium is WAY WAY too high for the amount of water you are drinking. The diet soda is really a waste. You just add more sodium to your system.

    I would recommend the following:

    1. Try just drinking water or green tea with Truvia or Stevia as a sweetener. Avoid the 'diet' drinks. If you really want some flavor try some MiO. 8 cups/day is the minimum. Divide your weight by 2. Then divide that number by 8 and that's how many cups of water you should try and drink daily to stay hydrated. If the number is below 8 then drink 8. Personally I try and hit 17 cups/day.

    2. You MUST lower that sodium. Even the MFP recommendation is way too high.

    3. Try giving 'clean eating' a try for a week or two and see how that goes. It's tough at first, but if you stick with it you can see major results. You can eat a LOT more clean food on 1200-1500 calories than you would think. You can Google clean eating for more info.
  • Ashonym
    Ashonym Posts: 172 Member
    Thanks everyone for your responses! Mind you this was my first attempt at grocery shopping on a healthier category. This is, in fact, an improvement in my diet because prior, I was consuming 2-3 boxes of mac and cheese in one sitting, plus sodas, plus basically whatever I wanted to shove into my face otherwise.

    To reply to one individual in particular, yes, I am poor. (Like, about to have to get foodstamps may not have grocery money at all next payday poor.) My fiance and I are doing this together and I go shopping once every two weeks. We don't have a car and can barely afford the taxi trip for that matter (I walk to the store just not back with everything). We live in a very small room that we rent with roommates and lack adequate freezer space due to our living arrangement. I'd love to hear alternatives to not having a lot of space to work with, that does not include daily store trips preferably.

    When I was picking up the tuna I didn't read it properly and thought I had gotten water when in fact I had gotten oil. I drain it as much as possible.

    For me the hardest thing in the world is to go ALL IN all the time automatically. So I THOUGHT I was taking appropriate baby steps. But I'm not going to allow excuses to stop me. I'm just stating the facts of my situation.

    I will take every single post into consideration. I'm serious about losing the weight, so thank you.

    [EDIT] Also last night's steak was my Thanksgiving binge.
  • 000Helen000
    000Helen000 Posts: 4 Member
    Well it sounds like you are doing a great job so far. It's early days and you are learning as you go (like all of us). Well done on your efforts. Keep up the good work.
  • Ashonym
    Ashonym Posts: 172 Member
    Well it sounds like you are doing a great job so far. It's early days and you are learning as you go (like all of us). Well done on your efforts. Keep up the good work.

    I appreciate this a lot! Thank you!
  • maddiejonich
    maddiejonich Posts: 98
    Well I've just read all the above posts and I just wanted to say that I think you're doing a great job! You have made big changes and you are managing to do so on a budget. It's hard work, I know, as fruit and veg and all the other really healthy nutritious foods are expensive and sometimes ya just can't get them. You know what you have to do and any small steps will contribute to the bigger picture. Good luck! You WILL get there! :-)
  • jofjltncb6
    jofjltncb6 Posts: 34,415 Member
    Water weight could do it, but your body does shift weight about two pounds a day. Thats why i recommend only weighing yourself once or twice a week.


    Argh. Pet peeve of mine.

    How exactly does "weighing yourself once or twice a week" eliminate the wild daily fluctuations of several pounds either direction? Wouldn't it be better to weigh yourself daily so you can witness these wild fluctuations and learn just how volatile your scale weight is? Because the volatility will still be in the data, even if you weigh yourself weekly.

    Myself as an example...same weighing routine every morning for the past 18ish months, and my weight has fluctuated as much as five pounds in a 24 hour period. It isn't uncommon for a 2-3 pound change either direction. However, when you plot the data points, it fits a very smooth curve. Knowing that...which best comes from actually experiencing it...I know not to put any weight (ha ha, I made a pun) into any one or two days and that it will fall back into the line if I continue working my plan.

    Okay, we now return you to your regularly schedule forum post discussion.
  • Ashonym
    Ashonym Posts: 172 Member
    Well I've just read all the above posts and I just wanted to say that I think you're doing a great job! You have made big changes and you are managing to do so on a budget. It's hard work, I know, as fruit and veg and all the other really healthy nutritious foods are expensive and sometimes ya just can't get them. You know what you have to do and any small steps will contribute to the bigger picture. Good luck! You WILL get there! :-)

    Thanks for this! :) Yes I have quickly learned that if I don't eat the 'same' meals daily (so, lack variety for the most part) I simply can't afford it at all. My fiance is having a much harder time than I am, but we are managing as best we can. I guess the sodium monster will be my biggest enemy, but I'm POSITIVE that I can overcome it.

    I've, after reading this thread and thinking about it, decided to give all my remaining 'sodas', albeit diet, to my fiance since he likes them more and there's no use putting them to waste since there are starving people somewhere who would be happy to have EVEN soda... Also I will be religiously watching my sodium intake moreso now, and I'll up my water intake to 16 cups daily.

    I don't have a problem with it taking a while, but I do want to see regular progress. Watching the scale stay the same is borderline discouraging but I at least take heart in knowing I'm not GAINING, which is important as well.

    Anywho. I appreciate the reassurance. It's helpful and keeps me on track. We all need it. Looks like you've had great results yourself so congratulations and well done!
  • JustANumber85
    JustANumber85 Posts: 644 Member
    One idea (and im working on it myself) is when you find a good balance of a meal- repeat it every day. Also I did start measuring things out the day before and that way when i get hungry or snack-ish, its already measured out and i can just grab it.
  • Natihilator
    Natihilator Posts: 1,778 Member
    It's always the scale, that lying *kitten* :grumble:
  • anifani4
    anifani4 Posts: 457 Member
    Thanks everyone for your responses! Mind you this was my first attempt at grocery shopping on a healthier category. This is, in fact, an improvement in my diet because prior, I was consuming 2-3 boxes of mac and cheese in one sitting, plus sodas, plus basically whatever I wanted to shove into my face otherwise.

    To reply to one individual in particular, yes, I am poor. (Like, about to have to get foodstamps may not have grocery money at all next payday poor.) My fiance and I are doing this together and I go shopping once every two weeks. We don't have a car and can barely afford the taxi trip for that matter (I walk to the store just not back with everything). We live in a very small room that we rent with roommates and lack adequate freezer space due to our living arrangement. I'd love to hear alternatives to not having a lot of space to work with, that does not include daily store trips preferably.

    When I was picking up the tuna I didn't read it properly and thought I had gotten water when in fact I had gotten oil. I drain it as much as possible.

    For me the hardest thing in the world is to go ALL IN all the time automatically. So I THOUGHT I was taking appropriate baby steps. But I'm not going to allow excuses to stop me. I'm just stating the facts of my situation.

    I will take every single post into consideration. I'm serious about losing the weight, so thank you.

    [EDIT] Also last night's steak was my Thanksgiving binge.

    I just want to say "good job" . You and your guy deserve a lot of credit for wanting to get healthy and taking steps toward that. It has to be very difficult on a small budget to get adequate food let alone healthy stuff that will keep on a shelf vs needing refrigeration. Look for canned vegetables and fruits that have no salt added...they are out there but you have to search. Tuna is a great source of good protein so kudos for getting that. Beans can be your friend....good protein, complex carbs, lots of vitamins and filling/ satifying. Try different ones and hopefully you'll find a favorite. Rice is a great staple to have on hand to combine with almost any meat or veggie to complete a one-dish meal. Maybe with a back pack and setting aside money for the grocery store you can save cab fare by walking both ways. buy only enough on one trip to fit the back pack. Walking is a great exercise, especially for beginning. I'm a great believer is taking small steps at a time. It's part of the formula for success in this game. You can do this. Ani
  • Ashonym
    Ashonym Posts: 172 Member
    I just want to say "good job" . You and your guy deserve a lot of credit for wanting to get healthy and taking steps toward that. It has to be very difficult on a small budget to get adequate food let alone healthy stuff that will keep on a shelf vs needing refrigeration. Look for canned vegetables and fruits that have no salt added...they are out there but you have to search. Tuna is a great source of good protein so kudos for getting that. Beans can be your friend....good protein, complex carbs, lots of vitamins and filling/ satifying. Try different ones and hopefully you'll find a favorite. Rice is a great staple to have on hand to combine with almost any meat or veggie to complete a one-dish meal. Maybe with a back pack and setting aside money for the grocery store you can save cab fare by walking both ways. buy only enough on one trip to fit the back pack. Walking is a great exercise, especially for beginning. I'm a great believer is taking small steps at a time. It's part of the formula for success in this game. You can do this. Ani

    Thank you! And not to necro my own thread BUT as an added update, I hopped on the scale this morning and was down a pound! Very happy! :) I had consumed 14 cups of water yesterday so maybe that had much to do with it, but still. Despite everything, yay!

    And I may very well try the backpack idea. Just see how long I can live off of a backpack's worth. Still wish I had more freezer space, but maybe if I compromise by going to the store once or twice a week, versus every day or every two weeks, I can get some of the perishable things I want as well, and not have to worry about freezer space so much either.
  • HaylzNZ
    HaylzNZ Posts: 15 Member
    Thank you! And not to necro my own thread BUT as an added update, I hopped on the scale this morning and was down a pound! Very happy! :) I had consumed 14 cups of water yesterday so maybe that had much to do with it, but still. Despite everything, yay!

    And I may very well try the backpack idea. Just see how long I can live off of a backpack's worth. Still wish I had more freezer space, but maybe if I compromise by going to the store once or twice a week, versus every day or every two weeks, I can get some of the perishable things I want as well, and not have to worry about freezer space so much either.


    Well done :)

    I just wanted to say good job also. You're making positive steps, aware of their importance, and working through solutions. And the scale has rewarded you ;).

    Just keep going, you CAN do it.

    I second the recommendation of the backpack, and foods like beans really do fill you up. You will also discover some interesting ways to cook em.

    Remember to keep focused, especially in the hard days, and don't be too hard on yourself when things are going astray - just refocus, move forward and keep on going :)

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