Water Weight?

NuttyforHealth
NuttyforHealth Posts: 40 Member
edited February 7 in Health and Weight Loss
Hi there,
Just some background: I am 5'3" and 120 lbs. I am looking to lose the last 5. I eat 1500 calories per day plus whatever I exercise, I seem to be losing slowly at this amount (TOTALLY FINE THAT). BUT... In the last three days I have been under my calorie goal by a total of 300. However, the scale said I "gained weight." I have not been going over on sodium and I generally drink about 8-13 glasses of water per day.

Any thoughts?

Replies

  • 2013sk
    2013sk Posts: 1,318 Member
    Your not eating enough calories, Body is storing onto it!

    Eat your exercise calories back
  • arrseegee
    arrseegee Posts: 575 Member
    Your weight fluctuates a lot over the course of a day and even over a week. Things like your menstrual cycle and whether you are going to the toilet regularly can also affect it a lot. Give it another few days and I'm sure it'll come down, and if not then perhaps (depending on your daily energy expenditure) reduce your calorie goal by 100.

    Re the post above - she said she is eating her exercise calories and she is eating a base of 1500 calories a day. Your comment that 'body is storing it' suggests you are thinking 'starvation'. I really don't think that is the issue here.
  • bingefreeaubree
    bingefreeaubree Posts: 219 Member
    I definitely don't think it's because you're eating too much. Okay, so some possibilities:
    -Did you have a harsh workout yesterday? Even if you didn't have a lot of sodium our muscles retain water to recover after working hard.
    - How much did you gain? If not too much, perhaps you just need to go to the bathroom, if you know what I mean.
    - Is it nearing your TOM? People tend to temporarily gain weight because of that.

    Hm, well weigh yourself again tomorrow, and if the scale still says you're gaining, post back! If not, we know it's nothing to worry about. :smile:
  • NuttyforHealth
    NuttyforHealth Posts: 40 Member
    Your not eating enough calories, Body is storing onto it!

    Eat your exercise calories back

    I thought I made it clear that I was eating them back! I have not been hungry the last two days, so I only had 300 less over the last three days.
  • NuttyforHealth
    NuttyforHealth Posts: 40 Member
    I definitely don't think it's because you're eating too much. Okay, so some possibilities:
    -Did you have a harsh workout yesterday? Even if you didn't have a lot of sodium our muscles retain water to recover after working hard.
    - How much did you gain? If not too much, perhaps you just need to go to the bathroom, if you know what I mean.
    - Is it nearing your TOM? People tend to temporarily gain weight because of that.

    Hm, well weigh yourself again tomorrow, and if the scale still says you're gaining, post back! If not, we know it's nothing to worry about. :smile:

    Thanks dear, for the response! I did workout for one hour running (30), and elliptical (30), and then intramural volleyball for about 30 minutes (playing). Maybe it was just too much! I guess I did not realize my workout could impact my weight?
  • bingefreeaubree
    bingefreeaubree Posts: 219 Member
    I definitely don't think it's because you're eating too much. Okay, so some possibilities:
    -Did you have a harsh workout yesterday? Even if you didn't have a lot of sodium our muscles retain water to recover after working hard.
    - How much did you gain? If not too much, perhaps you just need to go to the bathroom, if you know what I mean.
    - Is it nearing your TOM? People tend to temporarily gain weight because of that.

    Hm, well weigh yourself again tomorrow, and if the scale still says you're gaining, post back! If not, we know it's nothing to worry about. :smile:

    Thanks dear, for the response! I did workout for one hour running (30), and elliptical (30), and then intramural volleyball for about 30 minutes (playing). Maybe it was just too much! I guess I did not realize my workout could impact my weight?
    No problem! Yup, it definitely does, and is actually a common problem. You weigh more after exercising because there's fluid retention to help your body recover from vigorous activity. If you read number two on this website it explains it a little better. http://www.shape.com/weight-loss/weight-loss-strategies/help-why-does-my-workout-cause-weight-gain
  • Carol_L
    Carol_L Posts: 296 Member
    The better question is how are your clothes fitting? Weight is a black box measurement - you know what the package weighs, but not what's in it.

    The issue with using weight is that it can fluctuate as much as 5 lbs in a day for a wide variety of reasons: hormonal, damage repair after a particularly tough workout, getting out of the shower, what time of day you weigh yourself, changes in medication.

    Barring any of the above, I would suggest carrying on as you're doing - its obviously been working - and making use of a tape measure and any pair of pants or skirt you might have with a fixed (i.e. no elastic) waistband as guages for your progress. I do weigh myself, infrequently and only when I've noted a major change in clothes fit.
  • susannamarie
    susannamarie Posts: 2,148 Member
    I definitely don't think it's because you're eating too much. Okay, so some possibilities:
    -Did you have a harsh workout yesterday? Even if you didn't have a lot of sodium our muscles retain water to recover after working hard.
    - How much did you gain? If not too much, perhaps you just need to go to the bathroom, if you know what I mean.
    - Is it nearing your TOM? People tend to temporarily gain weight because of that.

    Hm, well weigh yourself again tomorrow, and if the scale still says you're gaining, post back! If not, we know it's nothing to worry about. :smile:

    Thanks dear, for the response! I did workout for one hour running (30), and elliptical (30), and then intramural volleyball for about 30 minutes (playing). Maybe it was just too much! I guess I did not realize my workout could impact my weight?

    Yep.

    Don't freak out over a brief gain. Keep doing what you've been doing.
  • BossLadyDSimp
    BossLadyDSimp Posts: 257 Member
    I definitely don't think it's because you're eating too much. Okay, so some possibilities:
    -Did you have a harsh workout yesterday? Even if you didn't have a lot of sodium our muscles retain water to recover after working hard.
    - How much did you gain? If not too much, perhaps you just need to go to the bathroom, if you know what I mean.
    - Is it nearing your TOM? People tend to temporarily gain weight because of that.

    Hm, well weigh yourself again tomorrow, and if the scale still says you're gaining, post back! If not, we know it's nothing to worry about. :smile:

    Thanks dear, for the response! I did workout for one hour running (30), and elliptical (30), and then intramural volleyball for about 30 minutes (playing). Maybe it was just too much! I guess I did not realize my workout could impact my weight?
    No problem! Yup, it definitely does, and is actually a common problem. You weigh more after exercising because there's fluid retention to help your body recover from vigorous activity. If you read number two on this website it explains it a little better. http://www.shape.com/weight-loss/weight-loss-strategies/help-why-does-my-workout-cause-weight-gain

    Article is def helpful ... I would just keep doing what you are doing for the next 30 days, stay off the scale and just enjoy the process. I am always telling myself the scale will catch up!

    50540473.png
  • firstsip
    firstsip Posts: 8,399 Member
    I definitely don't think it's because you're eating too much. Okay, so some possibilities:
    -Did you have a harsh workout yesterday? Even if you didn't have a lot of sodium our muscles retain water to recover after working hard.
    - How much did you gain? If not too much, perhaps you just need to go to the bathroom, if you know what I mean.
    - Is it nearing your TOM? People tend to temporarily gain weight because of that.

    Hm, well weigh yourself again tomorrow, and if the scale still says you're gaining, post back! If not, we know it's nothing to worry about. :smile:

    Thanks dear, for the response! I did workout for one hour running (30), and elliptical (30), and then intramural volleyball for about 30 minutes (playing). Maybe it was just too much! I guess I did not realize my workout could impact my weight?

    This easily could explain the extra "weight"; it's not permanent, it's just your body essentially trying to repair itself.

    To give you a personal example: I backpacked not too long ago. Despite trying to fuel myself well, I literally netted -1000 calories one day (bad of me). I was up on the scale 3-4 lbs for several days before I dropped not only the water weight, but also an additional 1.5~ lbs.

    Give yourself a few days and you'll be back to whatever scale weight--maybe even lower. I try to never weigh myself after a day of unusually heavy exertion.
This discussion has been closed.

Categories