Big weight loss overnight?

cloza12
cloza12 Posts: 68 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
On Saturday, my weigh in day, I weighed 257.8. last night I made some not healthy choice in dessert so I figured today I would weigh a bit more but when I weighed myself it was 256.6. How is it possible that I lost 1.2 lbs in 2 days?

Replies

  • Hendrix7
    Hendrix7 Posts: 1,903 Member
    water
  • dwh77tx
    dwh77tx Posts: 513 Member
    Your weight fluctuated. It's normal. I am maintaining and my weight fluctuates daily between around 2.5 lbs.
  • rileysowner
    rileysowner Posts: 8,330 Member
    Your weight fluctuated. It's normal. I am maintaining and my weight fluctuates daily between around 2.5 lbs.

    Weight can fluctuate even up to 4-5 pounds due to various factors that have nothing to do with fat loss. That is why the scale is not really the best measure of progress. Measurements are better (chest, waist, hips). Even then there are things that can effect those measurements that are not fat related (eg. bloating). This is one of the reasons that daily measurements are not really ideal. Some people find them motivating (I am one of them), but you must approach them realizing they are not truly indicating what is happening with the fat. Only longer periods of time can indicate that.
  • GomesDavid
    GomesDavid Posts: 149
    Our bodies don’t normally gain or lose significant amounts of fat or muscle overnight. Instead, when the scale shows a gain or loss of half pound or more from the previous day, the cause is instead likely to be the amount of water your body is retaining.
  • icimani
    icimani Posts: 1,454 Member
    I weigh myself morning and night - I usually "lose" 2-3 pounds overnight.
    It's pretty normal.
  • taso42
    taso42 Posts: 8,980 Member
    water
  • MoreBean13
    MoreBean13 Posts: 8,701 Member
    I don't even bat an eye at 1.2 lbs. It's def. water.
  • DontStopB_Leakin
    DontStopB_Leakin Posts: 3,863 Member
    On Saturday, my weigh in day, I weighed 257.8. last night I made some not healthy choice in dessert so I figured today I would weigh a bit more but when I weighed myself it was 256.6. How is it possible that I lost 1.2 lbs in 2 days?
    You didn't.

    Your weight can fluctuate as much as 5 lbs during the day...hell, I've seen it jump up 7 lbs before.

    Why are you weighing yourself so frequently? Put the scale away. Only bring it out once a week, preferably the same time each week.
  • joejccva71
    joejccva71 Posts: 2,985 Member
    water
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    water

    Yup...water
  • kdeaux1959
    kdeaux1959 Posts: 2,675 Member
    1. Water fluctuation (most likely)
    2. May have made up for it with the rest of your day
    3. May have just been a day your body decided to adjust (Mine does that sometimes).. I went 1300 cals over the other day and did not gain according to the scale... If I were to do that daily, of course I would gain...
  • Pepper2185
    Pepper2185 Posts: 994 Member
    Water weight.

    Or big morning poop :)
  • mgobluetx12
    mgobluetx12 Posts: 1,326 Member
    I lost 6lbs overnight once. It just happens.
  • honeyallen
    honeyallen Posts: 13
    Weight fluctuation overnight is not a good sign though. It might be a case of T3/T4 hormonal dis balance which may lead to thyroidal disorders in near future. You need not worry for that, first check your weighing machine parameters and then if everything is fine then consult an endocrinologist for that. He may ask you to go for a pathological tests. Get them done and you will get to know if there is any complication or not. However keep up your workout sessions to maintain the body.
  • BondBomb
    BondBomb Posts: 1,781 Member
    Weight fluctuation overnight is not a good sign though. It might be a case of T3/T4 hormonal dis balance which may lead to thyroidal disorders in near future. You need not worry for that, first check your weighing machine parameters and then if everything is fine then consult an endocrinologist for that. He may ask you to go for a pathological tests. Get them done and you will get to know if there is any complication or not. However keep up your workout sessions to maintain the body.
    Smdh
  • jimmmer
    jimmmer Posts: 3,515 Member
    Weight fluctuation overnight is not a good sign though. It might be a case of T3/T4 hormonal dis balance which may lead to thyroidal disorders in near future. You need not worry for that, first check your weighing machine parameters and then if everything is fine then consult an endocrinologist for that. He may ask you to go for a pathological tests. Get them done and you will get to know if there is any complication or not. However keep up your workout sessions to maintain the body.

    Guess I'm f*cked then 'cause I fluctuate 4-6 lbs a day and always have. I await the impending (well impending for 20+ years, anyway) thyroid failure with great anticipation!

    But thanks for the scary post!
  • nexangelus
    nexangelus Posts: 2,080 Member
    Oh man! How many times do I have to do the "when I go to the toilet I can lose a couple of pounds" post?! *sigh*

    Why do people even weigh themselves everyday?! Excessive or what, the natural weight of a human body fluctuates up to 6 pounds per day (for me anyway) so weighing daily would freak me out, let alone anyone else. Also having been VERY obsessive (I am a recovering anorexic/bulimic), I can safely say that chilling out on the scales and even the calorie counting can be beneficial...it will save your sanity!
  • jimmmer
    jimmmer Posts: 3,515 Member
    On Saturday, my weigh in day, I weighed 257.8. last night I made some not healthy choice in dessert so I figured today I would weigh a bit more but when I weighed myself it was 256.6. How is it possible that I lost 1.2 lbs in 2 days?

    In regards to the "not healthy choice in dessert" bit: you do realise that you'd have to go roughly 3500 over your cals to pack on a lb, so having a bit of cheese cake won't really pack on any lb's. Now if you ate enough dessert to put you over your TDEE by 500 a day (your TDEE NOT your MFP net calories) and your activity level and exercise and food logging are all accurate then you would start putting on the lb's. Even then, if your exercise routine has enough heavy stress in it, some of that weight would be bone density/muscle/etc as well as fat tissue.

    Long story short: weigh yourself once a week/fortnight. Always at the same time first thing in the morning. Keep consistent with your logging and don't worry about it!
  • Dave198lbs
    Dave198lbs Posts: 8,810 Member
    On Saturday, my weigh in day, I weighed 257.8. last night I made some not healthy choice in dessert so I figured today I would weigh a bit more but when I weighed myself it was 256.6. How is it possible that I lost 1.2 lbs in 2 days?

    weigh yourself three times a day for 7 days

    you will see fluctuations down and up by as much as 5-6 pounds

    and...............you will go insane
  • jimmmer
    jimmmer Posts: 3,515 Member
    On Saturday, my weigh in day, I weighed 257.8. last night I made some not healthy choice in dessert so I figured today I would weigh a bit more but when I weighed myself it was 256.6. How is it possible that I lost 1.2 lbs in 2 days?

    weigh yourself three times a day for 7 days

    you will see fluctuations down and up by as much as 5-6 pounds

    and...............you will go insane

    Agreed! That way lies madness.....
  • AntWrig
    AntWrig Posts: 2,273 Member
    Weight fluctuation overnight is not a good sign though. It might be a case of T3/T4 hormonal dis balance which may lead to thyroidal disorders in near future. You need not worry for that, first check your weighing machine parameters and then if everything is fine then consult an endocrinologist for that. He may ask you to go for a pathological tests. Get them done and you will get to know if there is any complication or not. However keep up your workout sessions to maintain the body.
    Someone must have just read an article....



    In short. You don't know what you're talking about.
  • Dave198lbs
    Dave198lbs Posts: 8,810 Member
    Weight fluctuation overnight is not a good sign though. It might be a case of T3/T4 hormonal dis balance which may lead to thyroidal disorders in near future. You need not worry for that, first check your weighing machine parameters and then if everything is fine then consult an endocrinologist for that. He may ask you to go for a pathological tests. Get them done and you will get to know if there is any complication or not. However keep up your workout sessions to maintain the body.

    they walk among us
  • Amberonamission
    Amberonamission Posts: 836 Member
    Getting on the scale everyday makes me crazy. I only weigh when I have that moment of feeling like something is smaller. Then bam I show a loss. It is good for my psyche. The "bad" dessert choice will balance with all the good choices you make. Forget that scale and just keep moving forward.
  • Squeeks70
    Squeeks70 Posts: 157 Member
    Water weight.

    Or big morning poop :)

    This:wink:
  • deksgrl
    deksgrl Posts: 7,237 Member
    Agree with those who said put the scale away.
  • drgndancer
    drgndancer Posts: 426 Member
    Pick a day, once a week, and a time (probably in the morning right after you've taken care of your bathroom needs, but before you eat or drink anything). Only weigh yourself then. Even this isn't perfect: if you had a salty dinner the night before, or worked out particularly hard, or whatever; there can still be fluctuations, but it's the only weight to not go nuts trying to figure out the scale. Even then, if you've gained week between one week and the next, don't panic. Unless it's a two to three week trend it could be a normal fluctuation.

    Honestly, once you're down to a reasonable weight (something in the "normal" BMI range for most people) the scale becomes a pretty crude tool. You're probably more interested in body fat percentage and measurements at that point.
  • cloza12
    cloza12 Posts: 68 Member
    Thanks to everyone that posted here. I am new to MFP and I'm learning a LOT everyday. Before MFP I had the same mentality about weight loss as many many people out there do. So excuse me if this post has been written before but realize many people join every day and will have repeated questions.
    Thanks again :happy:

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