Too much salt?

pbandz
pbandz Posts: 128 Member
edited November 26 in Health and Weight Loss
This may just be me being paranoid but I have weighed myself both this morning and this evening and I'm up 4 pounds! I know it's not fat but I do this every day just because I like trying to keep it low. Makes me feel good. Usually it's about a pound difference at night but today I went 112-116! I want to know why? Because I know come morning it'll still be up relatively high.
Today I had much more salt than usual because I got Chinese takeout for lunch. I watch my portion and didn't stuff myself and my calories seemed to be around 500 or so. Later this evening I didn't have any meal but I had samples of beverages all night (work at Starbucks. So like lattes and frappucinos). I also had a 140 calorie breakfast. I calculated out my calories to be ~1450 but I assume they may be higher.
I've also walked 9 miles today so my question is,
Is this due to all the salt I had? (I even doused the high sodium meal in hot sauce).
Or is there another culprit I should be made aware of?
Thanks .
Please be kind

Replies

  • queenliz99
    queenliz99 Posts: 15,317 Member
    It's the sodium
  • RodaRose
    RodaRose Posts: 9,562 Member
    edited November 2015
    Yes to the salt. There is a ton in Chinese food. Also to any sugar in the drinks.
    Be patient about the scale.
  • Iron_Feline
    Iron_Feline Posts: 10,750 Member
    So you walked 9 miles and only ate 650 calories of actual food.

    Ok then.
  • Maxematics
    Maxematics Posts: 2,287 Member
    Ah, I remember you from the Risperdal thread a few weeks ago where you said you were 115 to 116 and could not lose weight no matter what you did. I guess you figured something out now that you've lost 4 pounds since then. I'm happy you got that settled. That being said, it's just the sodium, so please don't worry about it. In order to gain 4 pounds, you would have had to eat 14,000 extra calories yesterday, which we both know it's possible. It will pass in a few days and your body will be back to normal.
  • MorganMoreaux
    MorganMoreaux Posts: 691 Member
    Chinese food is high in both salt and sugar. I have yet to find a decent Chinese restaurant where I live and started cooking my own and was stunned at how much sugar (talking cups) goes into many of their sauces. Both of these will cause water retention. I know I hold on to about 3 pounds of water weight after eating one serving of my general tso's chicken. Also, depending on how many samples of Starbucks you've had, you could be getting a decent sugar dose from those as well. I retain about a pound of water after I have a large peppermint mocha. Drink more water today and it should help with the water retention, but the scale may be higher for the next few days. Good luck!
  • Yi5hedr3
    Yi5hedr3 Posts: 2,696 Member
    It's normal to gain several pounds during the day. That's why you should ONLY weigh yourself first thing in morning, after going pee.
  • rankinsect
    rankinsect Posts: 2,238 Member
    It's the salt retaining the fluid you drank. Eight 8-ounce glasses of fluid weigh four pounds combined. Because of the sodium, your kidneys will produce less urine as your body needs water to dilute the salt.
  • pbandz
    pbandz Posts: 128 Member
    synacious wrote: »
    Ah, I remember you from the Risperdal thread a few weeks ago where you said you were 115 to 116 and could not lose weight no matter what you did. I guess you figured something out now that you've lost 4 pounds since then. I'm happy you got that settled. That being said, it's just the sodium, so please don't worry about it. In order to gain 4 pounds, you would have had to eat 14,000 extra calories yesterday, which we both know it's possible. It will pass in a few days and your body will be back to normal.

    I've started keeping track of food and exercise better and it's helping motivate me more to watch my portions and eat clean (minus Chinese). So I guess it's not impossible after all. Just not easy, obviously

  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member
    synacious wrote: »
    Ah, I remember you from the Risperdal thread a few weeks ago where you said you were 115 to 116 and could not lose weight no matter what you did. I guess you figured something out now that you've lost 4 pounds since then. I'm happy you got that settled. That being said, it's just the sodium, so please don't worry about it. In order to gain 4 pounds, you would have had to eat 14,000 extra calories yesterday, which we both know it's possible. It will pass in a few days and your body will be back to normal.

    You're glad someone exhibiting disordered eating behaviour has lost more weight?
  • MondayJune22nd2015
    MondayJune22nd2015 Posts: 876 Member
    edited November 2015
    You might also have water retention before & during your TOM (time of month), I myself gain 5 pounds of water weight then; some women gain even more. So for approximately 2 weeks, every month; my weight isn't accurate.
  • Kalikel
    Kalikel Posts: 9,603 Member
    I gain a couple pounds through the day, every day, even without tons of salt. It's just how it goes. That's why it's best to weigh yourself in the morning and be done with the scale.

    If you continue to weigh yourself throughout the day, you will notice that your weight goes up every day and goes back down in the mornings.

    Too much salt will also cause the body to add water. It's not going to let you hurt yourself if it can help it, so it fights the excess salt with water. It's a common theme in your body: Where salt goes, water follows. If you ever study how your body works, that's going to come up a lot, lol. Where salt goes, water follows. :)
  • pbandz
    pbandz Posts: 128 Member
    Thank you everyone :)
  • Maxematics
    Maxematics Posts: 2,287 Member
    TavistockToad wrote: »
    synacious wrote: »
    Ah, I remember you from the Risperdal thread a few weeks ago where you said you were 115 to 116 and could not lose weight no matter what you did. I guess you figured something out now that you've lost 4 pounds since then. I'm happy you got that settled. That being said, it's just the sodium, so please don't worry about it. In order to gain 4 pounds, you would have had to eat 14,000 extra calories yesterday, which we both know it's possible. It will pass in a few days and your body will be back to normal.

    You're glad someone exhibiting disordered eating behaviour has lost more weight?

    Not at all. If you read the prior thread we all told her she was eating too much to return to her old size and she refused to believe it. Obviously something changed and I'm willing to bet it was because we were right. I commented to highlight the fact I knew where she was from and I'm choosing to be nice here because I don't want her freaking out about water weight. Her eating isn't that disordered if she's letting herself consume Chinese food and Starbucks samples. Her approximate calorie count was 1450 which is fine. She lost 4 pounds in 21 days; that's 1.3 pounds per week and some of that was probably water weight.
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