Need Some Scale Flucuation Advice

LioshaM
LioshaM Posts: 129 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
OK, so I know the scale is not EVERYTHING... But I just need some advice on what's going on.
Ok, starting from 2/22 here is my weight every Friday
Official starting weight 196.6
2/22-196.6
2/28---Increased my calories from 1450 to 1898 to coincide with TDEE 15% cut.
3/8- 194.2 Lost a WHOLE 2 pounds.. HUH?????????
3/15 -197.2 Up 3 pounds
3/22 - 196.6 Down 1 pound
3/29 - 199.6 UP 3 pounds

TOM started 3/27 and I have been having symptoms long before that date, tired, no energy, didn't work out... started craving crazy crap...
I'm finally back to my normal self, but am concerned with all the flucuations. I did not do VLCDs and did not do crazy cardio either... What the heck is going on...
I do Interval training on the treadmill about 15-20 minutes 2 times per week . 3.8 to 4.4 60 sec intervals,
I do some weights, 2 times per week.. not very heavy though and it's the machines, not free weights. How do you know when you are gaining weight it's FAT versus WATER?

Replies

  • nickpdesign
    nickpdesign Posts: 7 Member
    Hi Ricjos0101,

    Please watch this 2 video series on how to weigh yourself. It covers a lot of myths, common problems, and answers a lot of questions. Pretty much the holy grail of the science behind weighing yourself. You'll learn a lot and thank me later :P

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cYMNPP2ZR1U
  • Mokey41
    Mokey41 Posts: 5,769 Member
    Possibly you have your TDEE too high to start with? I have to stick to using sedentary and logging intentional exercise. Even then I rarely eat it back unless I do a 10K run or a 3 hr ride. Some people just need less than others so you have to play with the numbers to find your happy place.
  • nxd10
    nxd10 Posts: 4,570 Member
    Scales - especially mechanical scales - bounce around. So does your weight - especially if you're quite overweight. 5 pounds is 2.5% of 200 pounds and 5% of 100. It makes a difference. And (pardon me), fat holds water more than muscle. And TOM - forget it.

    When I went from a mechanical to digital scale, it did help.

    All that being said, I step on the scale every morning. It moves around +/- 2 pounds. What I'm looking to see over the course of a week is that the lows and highs keep getting lower. So I used to go between 188 and 187. Then 170 and 172. Now 157 and 155. If you graph it, it will tend to cycle a bit over two weeks, but the trend is clear. Right now I'm spending more and more time at 155 and I expect I will eventually hit 154 and that will be my new low and I'll stop going over 156 or 7.
  • Cassierocksalot
    Cassierocksalot Posts: 266 Member
    Don't worry about the scale, seriously. I know it's a hard thing to do, but if you put too much emphasis on what you see on the scale then you'll drive yourself crazy! I used to do it and it was always what lead me to giving up. Let me explain what JUST happened to me, 15 minutes ago:

    We have a Wellness program at work and as part of that we can weigh ourselves on a digital scale here at the office and, if we're logged in, it will help us track our weight. So I went and stepped on it just to see where I was today. It said 183.5. I liked that number so I stepped off, logged in (when you do that the scale resets itself), stepped on the scale and it said 182.5. In a matter of 10 seconds I "lost" a pound.

    Focus on how you feel (I fit into a size 10 today for the first time in 2 years) and don't worry so much about the scale. You'll thank me later.

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