A question about weight fluctuation

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staceylcash
staceylcash Posts: 71
in Health and Weight Loss
My weight will fluctuate from time to time. I know people say "do not weigh yourself everyday" but a study done determined those who weighed themselves once a day lost more weight than those who weighed once a week or never weighed themselves at all. So i do weigh once a day in the morning. I dont do it during the day because i know water weight and food and all those things make you weigh more. Well my weight will fluctuate from 120 to 117 some days. I dont know what my weight is. I dont know if im losing fat or not. I have been working my butt off trying to lose my last bit of fat and its really annoying that i cant even firgure out what my weight is, and if im losing fat or not losing anything at all. Why does my weight fluctuate from day to day? I really wish i knew how long its going to take to get the last bit of fat off. Im not talking a little handful of fat, im small but im chunky all over(no one can tell unless im in a swim suit, but i can tell). Im 5'3 too

Replies

  • SirBonerFart
    SirBonerFart Posts: 1,185 Member
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    Sounds like quite the pickle

    I'm sorry your weight fluctuates
  • khannickwechanged
    khannickwechanged Posts: 77 Member
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    I've been trying to cut back to weekly weighing just because it's so easy to get obsessive about just this kind of thing. Everyone's weight fluctuates, depending on so many factors. Taking measurements or going by the fit of your clothes can be other ways of gauging your success.
  • helenrosemay
    helenrosemay Posts: 375 Member
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    I weighed myself at 3am after getting up to go to the bathroom and I'd put on 2lb, I weighed myself 6hrs later I'd lost the 2lb. That's why I don't weigh myself everyday. I do it every Monday morning after going to the bathroom and before eating or drinking.
  • j6o4
    j6o4 Posts: 871 Member
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    you weigh 117-120, so i would say you loss a pound when you weigh 116-119.
  • MoreBean13
    MoreBean13 Posts: 8,701 Member
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    A 3# fluctuation is totally normal. If you want to weigh yourself everyday, so it first thing in the morning after you use the bathroom, naked preferably. Take note of the weight and keep track of it, and watch the TREND. If you're just looking to lose a few lbs, 1/2# a week should be your goal, which means it will take several weeks of tracking daily to really see if changes are working....further complicating the issue will be that every 4th week is probably your menstrual cycle, so that time is to be ignored. Chill out and check back in 6 weeks.
  • RobynLB83
    RobynLB83 Posts: 626 Member
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    This drove me nuts for years. Now I just look at my weight as a 5 lb range rather than a fixed point, and I make my goal a range rather than a fixed point. When the highest point on my range goes down, I know I'm losing weight, when the highest point goes up, I know I'm gaining weight.
  • elyelyse
    elyelyse Posts: 1,454 Member
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    One strategy is to weigh every day for your own reference, but only really keep track/write down one day a week (like pick one day and it's always that day). The daily weigh in will keep you aware, but the weekly "official" weigh in may make it easier for you to see a trend without the distraction of all that fluctuation.
  • Stay2theC
    Stay2theC Posts: 22 Member
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    I officially weigh myself twice a week. I am in a group called "Lose 30lbs by Sept 20", I weigh myself on Tuesday & use this weight for that group only. I also weigh myself on Thursdays that I will actually account for in MFP & other weight loss tracking apps that I use. I will weigh myself at other times just to see what the scale will say, but I don't let those scale readings play apart on my emotions or motivation.

    If you want to weigh yourself everyday & record it, I would only compare it to the same day of the previous week. Trying to keep the time you weigh yourself around the same time for each day.
  • Aylawade
    Aylawade Posts: 22
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    Keep yourself well hydrated and weigh yourself in the morning- naked. The weight of your clothes will vary. You need to stay well hydrated so that you don't retain water weight. And always use the same scale. Works well for me.
  • jwdieter
    jwdieter Posts: 2,582 Member
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    Have you tried a weight trend app like Libra? Deals with the fluctuations and looks long term.
  • stealthq
    stealthq Posts: 4,298 Member
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    Yeah, fluctuation is totally normal even if you do it at the same time of day wearing the same thing, etc. If you want to keep it simple, just keep track of the lowest number you've been, it'll keep track of the trend. Just plan on going a lb or so under your goal weight with that measurement, since it's leading the trend.

    If you're like me, I'll get an unusually low measurement, pop up a lb or so for 3-4 days and then the low measurement becomes the new normal.

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