Weight the same for a week +, then a sudden drop.

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Sherbear1109
Sherbear1109 Posts: 155 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
So, I've been weighing myself daily since actually bought a scale and realized (in horror) that I weighed more than I initially thought. I am about halfway to my goal currently and have noticed this phenomenon over the last month or so. My weight will stay the same for a week or more. Then over 2 - 3 days, I'll drop like 3 or 4 pounds. This seems so weird to me. Is that a normal occurrence? Does anyone know why it works like that? Just curious.

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  • darkbrownsuga
    darkbrownsuga Posts: 11
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    No idea, but that's great.
  • spectralmoon
    spectralmoon Posts: 1,230 Member
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    You've got a lot of factors in play with that one. Water intake can sometimes display as a slightly higher fat percentage on scales that measure bodyfat, and saltier foods can make you hold onto more water. Some days it seems my body wants to hold onto everything and then say "JUST KIDDING!" the next morning. Inflammation from that time of the month (i.e. cramps) can hold excess water...

    Just a few thoughts.
  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
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    Mine doesn't do that, but I've seen a lot of people describe a similar thing (varying in the extent of the drop and how long it takes)--it seems like it's a common weight loss pattern.
  • SueInAz
    SueInAz Posts: 6,592 Member
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    My understanding is that fat cells and glycogen both have a certain ratio of water associated with them. When you lose fat, or deplete glycogen, you will lose that water, too. There was a group I belonged to in the forums awhile back and we'd call that effect "getting a visit from the Woosh Fairy". Glad to see she came to visit you, too.
  • bergpa
    bergpa Posts: 148 Member
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    I tend to hold stay for 2 or even 3 weeks and then lose a couple of pounds within a few days. My weight loss chart looks like it has a lot of plateaus because of this pattern.
  • JTick
    JTick Posts: 2,131 Member
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    My understanding is that fat cells and glycogen both have a certain ratio of water associated with them. When you lose fat, or deplete glycogen, you will lose that water, too. There was a group I belonged to in the forums awhile back and we'd call that effect "getting a visit from the Woosh Fairy". Glad to see she came to visit you, too.

    This. There are a couple of theories about the whoosh effect...it is totally normal to lose weight like this.
  • Sherbear1109
    Sherbear1109 Posts: 155 Member
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    Thanks for the info. :happy: I was really baffled as to the how of the matter. Makes sense now, knowing that the fat cells are holding water. Now if I could just figure out where they came from, since the tape measure has stalled out as well. :huh: Sometimes it just doesn't pay to be curious. Lol

    Thanks for the congrats, as well.
  • azwen
    azwen Posts: 237 Member
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    That's typical for me, too.
  • psych101
    psych101 Posts: 1,842 Member
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    Typical for me and is tied in with my cycle - the week before TOM is WHOOOOOSH weight goes down then stalls for the next 3 weeks or so
  • WalkingAlong
    WalkingAlong Posts: 4,926 Member
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    I'm that way but on a smaller scale. I always liked this theory-

    http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/of-whooshes-and-squishy-fat.html

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