Whoa! Weight Fluctuations!

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crista317
crista317 Posts: 22 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I've been very consistent with MFP for 21 days today. Boy, my weight has been all over the place. The first week I weighed, I lost 7.4 lbs. I am very aware that most of that was water weight and I expected a bigger loss the first week. The second week I weighed, I gained .6lbs. I was a little frustrated because I thought I would see a small loss, not a gain, since I ran my half marathon that week and had a pretty high mileage week (bigger calorie deficit.). Oh well, I didn't let it bother me too much. Now, this week, I just weighed and I lost 2.4 lbs.

I'm not complaining about any of this. In fact, I'm extremely happy with my progress so far, as I really didn't expect to see a 9 pound-ish weight loss on the scale in 3 weeks. I am going to just keep at it and see what happens. My question is, does everyone's weight fluctuate this much? Will I start to see it become more steady the longer I continue?

Replies

  • _HeartsOnFire_
    _HeartsOnFire_ Posts: 5,304 Member
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    Unfortunately weight loss isn't linear. Some weeks you'll lose a lot, then a little, then none, then more...
    Your body can actually fluctuate +/- 5 lbs a day. Just keep with it.
  • _Zardoz_
    _Zardoz_ Posts: 3,987 Member
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    You can fluctuate up to 5 pounds during the day. So expect lots of them. The best thing is to weigh yourself in the same situation (clothes, time after toilet etc) even then it's only a guide. Just follow the overall trend if it's going downwards your doing the right thing. After a while you can judge what your body does and you can work out what is real gain or just a daily fluctuation
  • crista317
    crista317 Posts: 22 Member
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    What a crazy ride.. but it's been a good one so far. I'm ok with the fluctuations and know if I keep doing this my weight will go down. I also took measurements when I started this and will measure once a month. I already feel 1000% better and lighter not carrying water and bloat around with me. So even losing water weight is ok by me. Thanks for the encouragement. Can't wait to keep progressing!!
  • ImaWaterBender
    ImaWaterBender Posts: 516 Member
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    I went on vacation and got sick while I was there (skin infection and a sinus infection). My weight went up by 18 pounds due to inflammation. It went down in three days, but I found that my feet felt like they were flapping from the fluid retention. My ankles were denting from my socks and my rings would not budge.

    Now I am back to normal and two pounds lower than when I left.

    This may be extreme, but to me it shows what the body is capable of. Soldier on!
  • dlionsmane
    dlionsmane Posts: 672 Member
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    Look closely at my ticker pic... that is my weight loss chart over the past year.... ups downs and a lot of straight lines... yup weight loss not linear at all. Good to learn this right out of the gate so the numbers on the scale don't freak you out! Just keep going! Good job!
  • STrooper
    STrooper Posts: 659 Member
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    Please note that when you run, particularly longish and hard runs (but any one run that really stresses the body) can first show a weight loss (clearly water) and then weight gain as the muscles do their initial repair. My last half marathon, I came back about the same weight as when I left earlier that morning. But a couple of days later I was 8 pounds heavier. In the past two weeks, most of that weight has come off and I'm back into the normal daily swings of around two pounds.

    There is nothing really linear about the weight loss, but other effects do reveal themselves over time.
  • sllm1
    sllm1 Posts: 2,114 Member
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    Sounds absolutely normal - big (water weight) loss the first week, body catches up the second week, somewhat normal weight loss the third week. It will even out some but you will still have fluctuations due to sodium and hormonal issues that can't be controlled.
  • Nedra19455
    Nedra19455 Posts: 241 Member
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    This sounds normal. You might want to weigh everyday (if it wouldn't freak you out) so that you have more data to put with your weight loss. A lot of people on here do an average of all their weights for the week, and track that average from week to week. If you do it that way, you'll smooth out those fluctuations and get a better picture of what your weight is doing than just the once-a-week snapshots.

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