I lost 5.5 pounds in one day!

But it was not a good thing. I didn't intend to.

I needed to trim my hedges. I did the sides with regular trimmer, but still need to do the top, which I hadn't done for a couple of years, because I need to rent a special long reach trimmer. So I rented a Stihl extended reach hedge trimmer for 4 hours, because I'd done it before and it was a half-day job. However subtracting driving time, left me 3 hours to get the job done before I had to return it.

It was a nice summer day, 80 degrees, not too hot. However, my hedges had grown out of control on the top and the branches were thick. So it turned out to be very heavy work. The trimmer is 7.5 feet long and you have to lift it in the air and wrestle with it at a distance. The joint angle of the clippers kept getting hung up in the branches, which meant I was wrestling and pulling and grunting to get it out. I was sweating profusely and my heart was pounding. It was like weight lifting. (which it was.)

After an hour I was so worn out I drank and rested and started again. Same after next 30 minutes. And next 30 minutes. By the time I was done I was completely exhausted, I had really pushed to get it all done in 3 hours. But when I was done I really didn't feel well and asked my husband to drive it back to the rental center, because I felt nauseous and weak and thought maybe it wasn't a good idea to drive. He was muttering about being in the middle of his projects. Then I turned and just started retching and vomiting on the lawn. He realized I really was not doing well and took it back for me.

I went inside to sip water and sit in the shower. Before I got in the shower I got on the scale and was SHOCKED to see I was down 5.5 pounds since the morning weigh in. Actually I was kind of scared. I've never lost more than 3 pounds in a WEEK, so I knew I was terribly dehydrated. I've never gotten dehydrated before, even in running marathons, ultras, etc. I was fooled by the comfortable temperature and ignoring my physical distress because I only had 3 hours.

But for all of you who want "quick weight loss" here's one way. But I don't recommend it. It was just water weight, and will be right back.

So be careful out there! Stay hydrated!