Weight fluctuating

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mudkiwi
mudkiwi Posts: 6 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I started using myfitnesspal about 2 weeks ago and my weight has been fluctuating a lot. It's really..unmotivating :(

Here's what my weight has been (I've weighed myself every morning after using the restroom and before eating)
163
161.4
162.4
161
160.4
160
159.8 <-- At this point I was super happy cause I thought I was losing weight.
159.8
160.8
And today - 162.8, I feel like I've made zero progress in 2 weeks even though I've completely turned around my lifestyle.

What's normal for weight to fluctuating? Should I just weigh myself once a week?

Replies

  • angelicdisgrace
    angelicdisgrace Posts: 2,071 Member
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    Don't Fret MFP friend. It will happen gradually. I was so impatient myself for awhile but all of sudden from one day to the next BAM! I dropped. Your body is just readjusting. If I remember right, when I began I had the same thing happen to me. How's your exercise, what type of foods have you omitted from your diet, and how often do you eat?
  • bethvandenberg
    bethvandenberg Posts: 1,496 Member
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    The scale is the enemy in my book. I weigh every other week min. I go mostly on measurements now. Can't stand to see the scale not move. I'm two sizes down (at least) and so I don't trust the scale.
  • Sunshine_Girlie
    Sunshine_Girlie Posts: 618 Member
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    It's your preference when you would like to weigh. Many people do it everyday just to see where they are and how their eating makes their weight fluctuate. I weigh everyday. I like to see if I'm on the right track. Just remember if you don't drink enough water, drink too much of it, have too much sodium, it will all mess up your weight.

    Just take it one day at a time and realize that it WILL come off.
  • chevy88grl
    chevy88grl Posts: 3,937 Member
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    Weight loss fluctuations are completely and totally normal.

    The biggest reason for weight gain like you're experiencing is water retention. Make sure you drink lotsa water and watch your sodium intake.

    Oh and try to not stress too much about it.
  • shale367
    shale367 Posts: 14 Member
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    Friend,
    Don't worry! It WILL happen! I also find that if you weigh every single day, you will become disappointed! So pick a day to weigh and stick with it! Weigh the same time on the same day, say Monday morning @ 7am....then you will see a difference. Also, if you are moving....measure yourself. Sometimes you lose inches and that can be more motivating than smaller numbers on the scales! Good luck!
  • borealistx
    borealistx Posts: 2 Member
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    I agree, mudkiwi. Don't worry too much about it. And I would suggest weighing yourself once a week. I weigh every Saturday morning as soon as I get up. I have a friend who is on MFP and he weighs every morning and he gets so frustrated, just like you. Try weighing yourself weekly rather than daily and see if you aren't more encouraged by what you see! Also, as angelic asked, what kind of exercise are you doing, how often, are you staying in your calorie goals each day, etc.?

    Also, you didn't say what your age, height, activity level, etc. is. What is your goal weight?
  • suzooz
    suzooz Posts: 720 Member
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    Your weight fluctuations are totally normal. If it drives you too crazy, then I would suggest you weigh in only once a week.

    I weigh at least daily, but I don't let the variances bother me. I look at the trend -- is the weight coming down gradually week to week? If not, I change what I'm doing.

    There's a really good post out there on "why the scale lies". It explains about water weight, the actual weight of the food you eat, glycogin stores, etc. You might want to give that a quick review -- it explains alot!
  • mialsya
    mialsya Posts: 188 Member
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    It's absolutely normal. I'm 3 weeks into my lifestyle change and for the past week and a half I was going up and down and then back up. I'm starting to go down again. My doctor told me that when you make a drastic change like this (and anytime you change your eating habits, it's a drastic change to your body), your body goes into shock and has to catch up to your new habits. Your body will retain water, retain, um, other things, and will basically try to fight what you are doing because it was comfortable with your old ways. It can take a few days, a week, or sometimes even longer for your body to adjust. Once it does, you will see the scale start to move again.

    Also, I'm like you. I tend to weigh myself every day. If I don't I stress about it. Once I know a number, either gain or loss, I feel better. I noticed that the first week, I lost a lot of weight (10 or 12 pounds) and over the past two weeks I've only lost 4 pounds, which is healthy and normal.

    Also, don't stress it. If you see the scale go up, just brush it off. Any additional stress can also cause your body to retain water and other things which will cause the scale to continue going up. Celebrate the scale going down.
  • n2bnmom
    n2bnmom Posts: 2 Member
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    OMG. I thought I was the only one who did this. I gave my scale away and am reconsidering getting it back as I fell off the wagon and want to know my new starting point. It IS misleading, at best, especially if you retain water easily. And if you have started working out, it seems like your body has a natural tendency to "gain weight" on the scale while it adjusts. I am nearly OCD about the scale, so I know how you feel. Stick it out, journal your food, and believethat you are doing the right thing and it will eventually happen the way y ou want it to. You are DEFINITELY not alone!
  • ginmo333
    ginmo333 Posts: 100 Member
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    I hear ya!! that is the most frustrating/ discouraging thing! It has definitley happened to me before and I know how hard that is! you just have to keep going! it will fluctuate...but overall you will see a downward trend :) Good luck!
  • jennahiggins
    jennahiggins Posts: 56 Member
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    I agree with everyone who says to weigh once a week. I have gained three pounds in a 24 hour period before (it was all water weight) but had I not been familiar with my body I would have flipped out. Pick a day and weigh and measure. I have done good so far, but I wouldn't realize how good if I wouldn't be measuring every week or two. Good Luck, and don't get frustrated.
  • mudkiwi
    mudkiwi Posts: 6 Member
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    I was a moderately active person before I decided to change my lifestyle so my exercise might seem a little...much haha. I usually bike 12-15mph for an hour everyday and go to the gym and walk/jog for 20 minutes, then lift weights for 30 minutes. Generally I have whole wheat toast with natural peanut butter, a hard-boiled egg white, a piece of fruit, and a cup of coffee for breakfast. Usually no mid-morning snack. Lunch I have some kind of sandwich with lots of veggies on whole wheat. Dinner I have a lean protein, cooked veggies, some kind of grain, and milk. Mid-afternoon snack is something like fruit, veggies, or a couple hard-boiled egg-whites. And I drink, to be honest, about 6 glasses of water everyday. I've omitted sodas, fried foods, fast food, and as much processed food as I can from what my previous diet was.
  • mudkiwi
    mudkiwi Posts: 6 Member
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    I agree, mudkiwi. Don't worry too much about it. And I would suggest weighing yourself once a week. I weigh every Saturday morning as soon as I get up. I have a friend who is on MFP and he weighs every morning and he gets so frustrated, just like you. Try weighing yourself weekly rather than daily and see if you aren't more encouraged by what you see! Also, as angelic asked, what kind of exercise are you doing, how often, are you staying in your calorie goals each day, etc.?

    Also, you didn't say what your age, height, activity level, etc. is. What is your goal weight?

    I was a moderately active person before I decided to change my lifestyle so my exercise might seem a little...much haha. I usually bike 12-15mph for an hour everyday and go to the gym and walk/jog for 20 minutes, then lift weights for 30 minutes. Generally I have whole wheat toast with natural peanut butter, a hard-boiled egg white, a piece of fruit, and a cup of coffee for breakfast. Usually no mid-morning snack. Lunch I have some kind of sandwich with lots of veggies on whole wheat. Dinner I have a lean protein, cooked veggies, some kind of grain, and milk. Mid-afternoon snack is something like fruit, veggies, or a couple hard-boiled egg-whites. And I drink, to be honest, about 6 glasses of water everyday. I've omitted sodas, fried foods, fast food, and as much processed food as I can from what my previous diet was.

    I'm 18, 5' 10". My goal weight is to be 145 lbs. I haven't set a date I'd like to be 145 lbs. by. I just want to lose 1-2 lbs. a week.
  • georgiag111
    georgiag111 Posts: 424
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    I feel the EXACT same way and its only week 1 LOL I see my self ALWAYS stepping keep thinking lower already I am the MOST inpatient person ever - I decided I wont weigh my self anymore except once a week Thursday morning at same time around 9 Am my time and go by that
  • mudkiwi
    mudkiwi Posts: 6 Member
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    Thank you for the support everyone! :)
    I will definitely start weighing myself only once a week. It'll be tempting to see how I'm doing, but I'll stick to that haha.

    Do you recommend only doing measurements once a week, too? Or should I measure myself more or less often?
  • breezybaby30
    breezybaby30 Posts: 1 Member
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    I'm going through the same thing with my weight fluctuating. It's very frustrating! I'm went from very little activity (5000 steps 5 days a week at work per my pedometer) to exercising 3-4 days a week for 30 minutes to an hour with exercise tapes on top of walking 9000-10000 a day. I've cut back from a probably a 2000-2500 calorie diet & very little exercise. Honestly. I'm having some trouble with staying within my calorie allowance daily. Seems without exercise, I go over 50-100 calories. I count everything even sugarless gum, but my weight is consistently climbing
  • kklindsey
    kklindsey Posts: 382 Member
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    yep, weighing every day is NOT for everyone. If you find yourself grabbing for the cookies after a "bad" weigh best to leave it to once a week. I have been doing fabulous on my food and my workouts and Saturday morning woke up with a one pound gain. I ate later in the evening than I normally do and I ate frozen egg rolls. I didn't like to see the gain and liked it even less when it was still there Sunday morning but I knew that i was on track with my food and workouts so I ignored it. Today, i dropped a 1/2 pound of it and expect the rest to be gone tomorrow. If I only weighed once a week I might never have seen it at all, but if I weighed once a week maybe the increase would have been all i saw for a week. It can work both ways good and bad, you just have to decide which way of weighing is going to work for you.
  • coolsmartygirl
    coolsmartygirl Posts: 299 Member
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    I weigh myself almost daily, but I don't let it affect me, because it will do that. I do measurements every five weeks to see what is happening. I just work hard every day and hope for the best.
  • aaaaaamyyyyyyy
    aaaaaamyyyyyyy Posts: 69
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    I always like to think of it as having just eaten, not drinking enough water, etc, might ADD weight, but the scales will never say I weigh LESS than I do - that's impossible! So take the days with the lower weights as encouragement, and if it goes up, remember there's a bunch of reasons that may be :)
  • MamaByGrace8
    MamaByGrace8 Posts: 11 Member
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    My weight fluctuates, too. I only log my weight in when I am lower than I've been before. Then I go into "Edit Previous Entries" and see how my weight has gone down steadily. It's a lot more encouraging than seeing the up & down measurements! :)

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