I am constantly over on sodium.

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PurplePoloPlayer
PurplePoloPlayer Posts: 11 Member
edited February 2016 in Health and Weight Loss
Hello all,

I am posting this while lying in bed. I can't sleep because I feel bloated and I have a bit of a headache. I am a 40 year old male working on weight loss and so far I'm having an excellent month. I weighed in this morning at 255 lbs. which is 12 lbs. down in the past 3 weeks. I had an excellent workout this morning.

For lunch I opted for some chinese food. Eating out always puts me over on sodium for the day but I'm hitting my calorie goals. I noticed tonight that I don't feel well and I hopped on the scale. I came in at 259.2! That's a 4.2 lb. increase in 12 hours.

I know this is not fat increase, but an increase in water weight. Still, I feel terrible. I think I need to give up eating in restaurants completely because even the low calorie meals are chock full of salt.

I workout in the morning and I make lunch my biggest meal of the day. My breakfast and dinner are always quite moderate and I do healthy small snacks otherwise (fruit, almonds, etc.)

What can I do tomorrow to get rid of this excess water retention in a healthy way? I almost want to go sit in the sauna like a wrestler trying to make weight.

I need to get some recipie ideas for preparing low sodium, low carb lunches. I eat out because of a busy schedule but I'm tired of feeling awful after eating 'healthy' fast food.

Anybody else struggleing with staying under daily sodium levels?

Replies

  • Mavrick_RN
    Mavrick_RN Posts: 439 Member
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    Yeah, I adjusted my sodium to 4gm. Now I never/rarely go over. The light Balsamic Vinegrette does me in most of the time.

    Don't wet your pants.The water weight comes off in your urine in a couple of days. If a sauna feels good, do it. It's just water redistribution.

    If you just feel bad after eating Chinese food, might look at the MSG.
  • positivepowers
    positivepowers Posts: 902 Member
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    I go over on my sodium every single day. If I eat nothing but fruits and vegetables my sodium is low but the carbs go way over and my protein amount suffers. If I increase my protein my sodium goes too high even if I use low or no salt alternatives.

    The water retention can be a problem. Swelling shouldn't happen that rapidly or drastically. You might want to have a physical to ensure your heart and kidneys are working properly.
  • Orphia
    Orphia Posts: 7,097 Member
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    Mavrick_RN wrote: »
    Yeah, I adjusted my sodium to 4gm. Now I never/rarely go over. The light Balsamic Vinegrette does me in most of the time.

    Don't wet your pants.The water weight comes off in your urine in a couple of days. If a sauna feels good, do it. It's just water redistribution.

    Yes, this. Don't worry about it unless you've got heart problems and get checked out by a doctor.

    If you're constantly retaining water but losing fat, the scale will still be going down. Though I don't think you're eating THAT much sodium.
    Mavrick_RN wrote: »
    If you just feel bad after eating Chinese food, might look at the MSG.

    Nah, MSG has been victim of unwarranted hysteria. It's fine.

    https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/how-msg-got-a-bad-rap-flawed-science-and-xenophobia/
  • PurplePoloPlayer
    PurplePoloPlayer Posts: 11 Member
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    I did just have a physical and my blood work is normal. I think the shock of seeing a 4 pound increase in 12 hours and feeling bad is keeping me worried. I can still taste the salt from today's lunch.

    Anyways. No more Chinese food or take away for a while.
  • RodaRose
    RodaRose Posts: 9,562 Member
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    If you feel you need to go low salt for lunch, you can cook some meals on the weekends. Cook several pork chops or a whole chicken over the weekend. Freeze the meat in 6 ounce (or whatever) portions so that you can have the meat for lunches with fresh or cooked veggies.
  • pineygirl
    pineygirl Posts: 322 Member
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    I wouldn't stress too much about one meal out. I used to have a kidney problem and once gained 8 lbs overnight from a trip to Olive Garden. I did see the nutritional info for what I ordered. But one breads stick and the damn salad did me in. I woke up with a puffy face and had cankles. My friend thought I was having an allergic reaction.

    Enough about me....you don't have a kidney disease, so don't worry about it. Drink more water today and have less sodium and high potassium (potatoes, avacado, bananas, squash, tomatoes are great sources). The extra weight will be gone in a day or two.

    You can still have Chinese food, or any restaurant food, just drink way more water that day and the next day and try to get enough potassium.

    You also gained 4lbs from morning to night. That's a normal daily fluctuation. I'm a small person (108lbs), and I can weigh 107.6 in the morning and 109.7 before bed. Because food in my GI tract, water weight from weightlifting, water retention from sodium, whatever. And you are twice my size....so a 4lbs difference isn't unusual.

    I weight myself in the morning after I pee. That way it's consistent.
  • Marcus_2015
    Marcus_2015 Posts: 119 Member
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    Eat clean when you can.. The answer is kind of obvious...don't eat too much salty food such as lunch meat, chinese food, salted nuts, etc.

    If you eat processed foods more than clean stuff, you will often be over on sodium and sugar....

    I found eating spicier stuff and using Siracha sauce etc., helped me avoid salt more...

    R
  • Lounmoun
    Lounmoun Posts: 8,426 Member
    edited February 2016
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    I do watch it and try not to go over my reccomended sodium goal. Prelogging my food helps me make food choices that fit my goals. When I do go over I noticed that I feel better when I don't eat more than 500-1,000 mg over the sodium goal.

    You can prepare food at home more. Make a big batch of something one day a week and then you have it ready to heat and eat for days when you are busy.
    http://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/nutrition-and-healthy-eating/in-depth/sodium/art-20045479/
  • zyxst
    zyxst Posts: 9,136 Member
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    How much are you drinking? I mean to keep yourself hydrated, not the rum & Coke, lel. Water weight comes off when it wants to, but you can help it out by drinking more water or coffee or tea or Gatorade or what have you.
  • guslandrum
    guslandrum Posts: 27 Member
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    +1 pineygirl.... Drink lots of water and keep your potassium in check. I had similar issues. I now drink 140-200 oz of water per day. I know it sounds counter productive, but it works.
  • Psychgrrl
    Psychgrrl Posts: 3,177 Member
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    I have good blood pressure, but have a family history. I try to be very careful and not go over. But that's me. How's the blood pressure?
  • alphastarz
    alphastarz Posts: 55 Member
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    I just wanted to second what others said here: no panic button needed over 4lb water weight gain. As a percentage of your total body weight that's a relatively normal fluctuation. I fluctuated the same amount frequently when I was at your same weight, the fluctuation has naturally gone down some as my total weight decreased. My sodium intake also naturally decreased though without specific effort as, over time, I picked up more healthy recipes generally or make-my-own alternatives to my prior take out or fast food favorites. You're doing great, just keep making one little change at a time. Maybe a great place to start would be choosing one new Asian dish to try off skinnytaste.com recipe database.
  • PurplePoloPlayer
    PurplePoloPlayer Posts: 11 Member
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    I appreciate all the replies folks.

    I had a much nicer menu today and I am well under my sodium goal. Combined with a good workout, I feel much better today. I know the water weight is temporary, but I still don't like the bloated feeling. Whenever I am under my sodium goal, I generally feel better.

    I am going to eliminate most restaurant food and try to cook more. Unfortunately restaurants feel they have to make their food flavorful with salt in order to be competitive, even the 'healthy' ones like Chipolte.
  • jackielou867
    jackielou867 Posts: 422 Member
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    I have found in a lot of places I can order grilled chicken and salad or veggies hold the chips and sauces. 2 years ago I would have said eugggh bland. But this is how I eat now and a lot of restaurants are happy to accomodate.
  • rosemaiden1995
    rosemaiden1995 Posts: 1 Member
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    4 lbs isn't a big deal especially if you weighed at night. I learned best time to weigh is in the morning before you eat anything. Like others said water and coffee and tea that kind of things help. Water weight will go eventually don't worry too much you're doing great :)

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