Is it normal to gain 3 to5lbs when...

joeherbert48
joeherbert48 Posts: 47 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I've hit a plateau where I gain 3 to 5lbs one week and then lose it again the next week and then gain it back again the next and so on and so forth. Is that normal? I'm not trying to lose a lot of weight more like 1/2lb a week if/when I stay on my diet. But, some days I just overeat but only a couple 100 calories and well within the limits to maintain my weight. So why am I gaining 3 to 5lbs?

Replies

  • Aikigoth
    Aikigoth Posts: 40 Member
    Do you change your eating habits between these weeks? (Ie eat more sugar/ carbs and gain then cut and lose?)

    What is your exercise like?

    Are you trending downwards at least?

    Edit: If you are trying to lose 1/2 lb a week and food isn't working for you, have you considered exercising it off instead? 1750 calories over a week isn't too hard to hit. One zumba class and a visit to the skate rink would do it. :)
  • StaciMarie1974
    StaciMarie1974 Posts: 4,138 Member
    If over time you're not trending upward or downward (losing and gaining the same 3-5 pounds) then you're overall eating at maintenance and the 3-5 pound variance is water weight. Could be from sodium, time of the month, stress, etc.

    If your general goal is for 1/2 pound per week then that's a goal of 250 deficit per day. And routinely eating over by a couple hundred calories will zap that deficit, especially if there is any estimation in your logging.

    Weigh everything, log everything. And perhaps add some extra activity to your routine as well.
  • acpgee
    acpgee Posts: 8,023 Member
    Weight will fluctuate with level of glycogen stores. Nice explanation of what is going here.

    http://justinowings.com/understanding-bodyweight-and-glycogen-de/
  • BRobertson23
    BRobertson23 Posts: 150 Member
    You need to take and honest assessment of your food intake and exercise output. You need a deficit each week to lose weight. For example, if you have a deficit of 800 calories today, that doesn't mean you should eat a large shake and/or fast food hamburger the next day. Even if you're whittling off 200-400 calories each day, then at the end of each week, you should see a weight loss.

    If you feel the "need" to eat something that's higher in calories during your week, allow yourself to do that once a week. If that's too challenging to start, then maybe portion out what you want to eat. For example, when my husband and I started our weight loss, we wanted a fast food meal. We went online, calculated out a meal that wouldn't go too crazy on calories, but that would allow us to have the fast food. It ended up being an "okay" meal, but we realized it wasn't very satisfying. However, when we are really craving something, we will splurge, but take the time to figure out if we should take some of it home by only eating half of the meal, or subbing in a salad with the burger instead of the fries.

    I think you need to be honest about your calories. MFP does the work for you, so track it for a week with how you've normally been eating and exercising. If you're still losing and gaining....it might be a sodium issue, where you're retaining more water or bloating from certain foods.

    Hope that helps!
  • joeherbert48
    joeherbert48 Posts: 47 Member
    I don't have any problem losing the 3 to 5 lbs but I don't really lose anything beyond that and I'm eating about 200 calories a day below my maint level. But one in awhile I just gotta have a nice BIGGGG buffet with everything. :)) Chinese and Ryans get me about once a week until I see weight gain like I've stated then I get back on the 1700 cal a day diet for a week and off it goes. Amazes me that one can put on 3 to 5lbs in ONE day and it takes a week or two to take it off again. lol

    It's not something I'm worried about unless it gets to 7 to 10lbs then I'm messing up my diet plan. I just wondered if it was normal for weight to fluctuate just because I overate ONE day. I'm not in a hurry to lose a lot of weight I just want to keep losing. I've had a stoke so I can't do much exercise other than walk. Balance an all that is involved, plus loss of reflexes and can't lift my left arm very high.

    Thanks for the help though. :))

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