Weigh In & Exercise???

KariOrtiz2014
KariOrtiz2014 Posts: 343 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
Ok I need help..

So this month I started C25K and a 30 day Squat Challenge. The muscles in my legs feel sore :). My only concern is that when I go to weigh in on April 30th, I'll be retaining water due to sore muscles. I don't want to get discouraged after a month long of exercise and commitment. So should I wait a few days or a week after the 30th to weigh in? Do you have any suggestions or tips regarding water retention and/or bloating??

Thanks guys!! ????????????

Replies

  • badbcatha05
    badbcatha05 Posts: 200 Member
    I have been training for a half marathon for over two months now and i also do plenty of squats, dead lifts, and kettle bell work. My muscles still retain water water after my long run for a day or so. Try to time your weigh in for a day or two after a hard workout or acknowledge that's what's happening, and always do your weigh in the same time after a hard workout where you might be afraid of that happening. Maybe then you should see your weight go down compared to the previous weigh in because both were weighing some extra water weight.

    Don't get discouraged, your body is making important changes that can't be measured on a scale!
  • KariOrtiz2014
    KariOrtiz2014 Posts: 343 Member
    [/quote]
    If you want to be that obsessive over it .............just weigh yourself every day and monitor it.
    [/quote]

    Jesus! I'm just asking! If I was that "obsessive" then I'd weigh myself everyday. I'm waiting an entire month to do so. I don't think that's obsession. Plus, I can be concerned about my body! Thanks for responding anyway! ????
  • KariOrtiz2014
    KariOrtiz2014 Posts: 343 Member
    I have been training for a half marathon for over two months now and i also do plenty of squats, dead lifts, and kettle bell work. My muscles still retain water water after my long run for a day or so. Try to time your weigh in for a day or two after a hard workout or acknowledge that's what's happening, and always do your weigh in the same time after a hard workout where you might be afraid of that happening. Maybe then you should see your weight go down compared to the previous weigh in because both were weighing some extra water weight.

    Don't get discouraged, your body is making important changes that can't be measured on a scale!

    Thanks ????
  • robabob3
    robabob3 Posts: 79 Member
    I weigh every day and track my weight trends in an app lol, call it obsessive or whatever i just love all that data haha. For myself I always record a lower weight the day after a rest day. I lift 6 days a week so i only rest one day a week for example i lift weights mon-sat i take sunday completely off doing very little exercise. Then on monday morning my weight is usually considerably less then the weigh ins on saturday and sunday, even though all i do on sunday is chill in the hammock :happy:
  • districtsoul
    districtsoul Posts: 6
    I echo the idea that you should give yourself at least 3-4 days before your weigh in to do your hard workouts. As an avid runner, the days I do 2-4 hour runs, my weigh ins the next day are definitely elevated. It takes a couple days for the weight to normalize.
  • MinnieInMaine
    MinnieInMaine Posts: 6,400 Member
    The last time I had a set weigh in day was when I was still a WW member. The way I'd handle it was to take a rest day the day before my weigh-in, drink plenty of water that day to help with flushing the excess and make sure to leave exercise until after weigh-in. That was usually enough time to let things settle. But not always - there were still a couple weeks where I stalled or didn't lose as much as I thought I would and I was pretty sure it was due to muscle water retention.

    Three things..

    1) You should take at least one rest day a week anyway to let your body recover. If you feel like you can't totally skip the workout, just do something very low key like an easy walk instead of your run.

    2) I agree with more frequent weigh-ins so you get a better feel of how your body reacts to certain conditions. Weighing every day helps put things in perspective so you can view the fluctuations logically instead of emotionally. "Hm, I'm up half a pound - well that's probably because I had a hard workout yesterday (or had too much sodium or it's TOM), I'm sure it'll be better tomorrow." rather than "WTF! I gained?! Geez, I'm a total failure!". Not saying that's how you are OP, just that this is how a lot of people react.

    3) You're making healthy changes, getting fit, etc. If you stall or gain a bit, you know why it's happening so just accept it as part of the process and know that the next one will be better. Be patient.
  • RunBakeLove
    RunBakeLove Posts: 101 Member
    If you want to be that obsessive over it .............just weigh yourself every day and monitor it.

    Jesus! I'm just asking! If I was that "obsessive" then I'd weigh myself everyday. I'm waiting an entire month to do so. I don't think that's obsession. Plus, I can be concerned about my body! Thanks for responding anyway! ????

    I weigh myself everyday but I don't consider it obsessive. On days that I'm heavier it can actually help me with more motivation to eat within my calories and not go over. Plus, I record it in an excel spreadsheet so that I can graph it. The more data you have the better you can see trends and such. (I know, nerd alert.) Do what works for you but don't attack what works for others.

    Edited because the quote wasn't working.
  • districtsoul
    districtsoul Posts: 6
    I, too, weight myself every day for multiple reasons. First, it shows me how my body reacts throughout the week due to various conditions. Second, it helps keep me focus on my weight loss goal. If I see a couple days trending in the wrong direction, the likelihood of me slipping or choosing a high calorie dessert go way down. Third, I just like the honesty in it. I know exactly where my progress is every day.
  • BigGuy47
    BigGuy47 Posts: 1,768 Member
    I don't want to get discouraged after a month long of exercise and commitment.
    You may want to focus on long term goals rather than short term goals. In the big picture 30 days isn't much time. Give yourself 60 or 90 days and then re-evaluate your progress.

    Long Term view: Work on long term goals. Where do you want to be 1 year from now? Practice patience and self discipline. The results will follow.

    Short term view: Target the next weigh in (the Biggest Loser TV show uses this formula). Do whatever it takes to move the number on the scale. The contestants on the show often dehydrate themselves prior to weigh in in order to hit their numbers. This is a unsafe and unhealthy approach. Using this strategy, fitness is of no importance. The only thing that matters is the number on the scale.
    I'll be retaining water due to sore muscles.
    Yup. That's part of the process. Accept it and know that you will continue to improve in the months ahead. Keep up the good work and keep going!
  • MagnumBurrito
    MagnumBurrito Posts: 1,070 Member
    Do you have any suggestions or tips regarding water retention and/or bloating??

    Weigh yourself first thing in the morning after you handle your business.

    The scale means nothing anyway. Since you've been squatting everyday, you should of put on some muscle. I hope you took before pics. That's where you'll see how much you've truly progressed.
  • RunBakeLove
    RunBakeLove Posts: 101 Member

    The scale means nothing anyway. Since you've been squatting everyday, you should of put on some muscle. I hope you took before pics. That's where you'll see how much you've truly progressed.

    This. I'm 20 days into the 30 Day Shred and I haven't lost as much as I had hoped the difference is very noticeable in pictures. It helps me from getting discouraged by the number.
  • GillianMcK
    GillianMcK Posts: 401 Member
    Hydration will also help with the retaining water, make sure you stay hydrated whilst working out.

    My weigh in day has always been the day after a long run day anyway so whilst my weight might have been higher on the 1st weigh in, it's also been on the same basis ever since so I see that I'm losing weight and the weeks when I get my Body Fat Assessment done is the same, I can shift 1.5kg a day if I weigh myself every day so i just weigh the same day every week and take it at an average, there'll be weeks where I haven't lost as much or stayed the same but as long as I continuing watching what I eat and maintain my exercise the scale will move in the right direction over the year.

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