bouncing weight

Options
ProfW65
ProfW65 Posts: 4
in Motivation and Support
So I've been trying to lose weight for over two months now. Cutting calories, increasing cardio, decreasing carbs, and so forth. I've gone from about 182 lbs. in early February to 177 in late February, then unaccountably back up to 181. (My goal is 165.)

Frustrated by this bouncing, I figured I'd try a different approach than just cutting calories. So ten days ago I calculated my BMR & TDEE & WTF & all those other fun acronyms and saw that--according to the numbers, anyway--I often had been eating too little for my metabolic needs. So I *increased* my caloric intake and--lo and behold!--I dropped more than four pounds in a week, from 181 to nearly 176.

And then, for the last two days, despite continuing to eat roughly the same amount of daily calories and maintaining my daily exercise expenditure, my weight has increased each day. This morning I'm at 178.

As the prophet said: Aaargh!

I guess I'm just in misery-loves-company mode, so I ask this question: has anyone else experienced this bizarre, apparently causeless weight-bouncing? Thanks.

Replies

  • sarahg148
    sarahg148 Posts: 701 Member
    Options
    That's all I do is bounce...from 175-173. Just lack of consistency for me. :ohwell:
  • scubasuenc
    scubasuenc Posts: 626 Member
    Options
    It is totally normal for you weight to fluctuate daily. The variation can be several pounds. This is due to hydration, water retention, the state of your bowels, etc.

    If you weight yourself daily, then you need to be looking for an overall downward trend. Many people use a 7 day rolling average or similar metric.

    Personally I can't take the ups and downs of weighing daily. I weigh weekly. Even with weekly weighing, I can know I've eaten at a deficit for a greater loss that the scale reports. Other weeks the scale will show more movement than the deficit would predict. It all fits into the normal variation. Over time the deficit calculations have come very close to predicting my actual weight loss.
  • LunaZuriel
    LunaZuriel Posts: 77 Member
    Options
    I used to bounce between 200-205 until I decided to change that. It's slow going. But every body is different.
  • sana1314
    sana1314 Posts: 17 Member
    Options
    My weight goes from 132 to 135 during the day and even during the week if I weight myself in the morning I get a few pounds difference and its normal.
    If you cutting calories - you're losing weight. It's a general rule. But pay attention to what you're eating and dont jump from one thing to another every few days.
    Chose a routine and stick with it.
    And one more thing that I've noticed for myself: if I'm eating junk food and still stay under my calorie goal, my weight loss slows down, so think about what you eat.
  • dopeysmelly
    dopeysmelly Posts: 1,390 Member
    Options
    I've been 160lbs for the last 5 days, which is even more weird than bouncing around a bit. I was starting to think the scale was broken until yesterday was 160.5 lbs..
  • KDar1988
    KDar1988 Posts: 650 Member
    Options
    Having the same problem and very discouraged now. I dropped down 2lbs Tuesday, today I'm back up 3. This is how it is for me and I hate it.
  • rosy_08
    rosy_08 Posts: 51 Member
    Options
    These past 2 weeks I've been bouncing between the same 3 lbs. With some consistency it's slowly going back down. I've noticed it' goes a little faster if I make sure I'm hydrated. I've been drinking a lot of water in the past couple of days and without much exercise my weight is still going down. Just be patient and know that you are doing great! Just keep at it. :)

    I also weigh myself around the same time everyday for consistency.
  • trishs0216
    trishs0216 Posts: 4 Member
    Options
    I wonder if I am not eating enough either. I just redid my profile and went from lightly active to active. I have a desk job but I work from home so I can get up and walk around a lot more than if I was in an office. I workout every day (3 days a week I do kickboxing for 60+ min and the other days I do a dvd, walk, weights, whatever). I drop down a pound or two then go right back up 2 pounds, its a constant up and down. I figured let me try this for a couple weeks and see if it does anything. I know I need to get better about drinking water consistently. I've been on MFP for just over 2 months and have lost 20 lbs so I am not complaining, just feels like I have stopped losing and need to get back over the plateau.
  • ProfW65
    ProfW65 Posts: 4
    Options
    Thank-you all for the input and encouragement!
  • thelastpicked
    thelastpicked Posts: 5
    Options
    I fluctuate between 140 and 150 in the space of a couple of days. I retain water really badly, so not drinking enough has a big impact.

Categories