Can 1 day ruin all your hard work?

Options
ABHY7
ABHY7 Posts: 70 Member
edited March 2016 in Health and Weight Loss
Yes as the title says, seems yesterday I've put up nearly 4 lbs according to today's scales!
Grrrrrrrrrr so much for having a day off for mothers day - there goes all my hard work! #frustrating
«1

Replies

  • CollieFit
    CollieFit Posts: 1,683 Member
    Options
    Unless you actually overate by approximately 14,000 calories, which I doubt, then I would say no. ;-)
    This is likely to be a standard water fluctuation, which could be from salty food, or pending TOTM or such. It perfectly normal. Weight loss isn't linear. You will get these ups and downs.
  • nm3862
    nm3862 Posts: 1 Member
    Options
    1 lb of fat is 3,500 calories - so yes, if you ate an extra 14,000 calories yesterday?

    Otherwise, it's more likely it's just fluctuations in the amount of water in your body and other factors. If you weigh yourself daily allow for a variations of up to 4/5 lbs higher than you lowest weight
  • HStheBusyBee
    HStheBusyBee Posts: 1,366 Member
    Options
    Download the happy scale app. You put your weight in every day and then it basically averages out your weight to give you a better overview of your weight loss.
  • endlesspower
    endlesspower Posts: 2 Member
    Options
    Ask yourself this: "Did 'all my hard work' take just one day?"
  • StealthHealth
    StealthHealth Posts: 2,417 Member
    Options
    Yes and no.

    Eat on track of a month and have one day where it all goes wrong and you massively overeat - No, you've not ruined everything. Sure, you will see an increase on the scale the next day but that is mainly, in transient food and water weight.

    But, if each week you eat, say, a 500 calorie deficit and then on Saturday you "eat what you want", you (well I at least) could, theoretically wipe out that cumulative 6000 calorie deficit and put myself back at maintenance for the week - but it would be an epic day of overeating.

    TL;DR - probably not.
  • Machka9
    Machka9 Posts: 24,951 Member
    Options
    Can 1 day ruin all your hard work?

    Nope.
  • Dreven1989
    Dreven1989 Posts: 17 Member
    Options
    I've just come of a 3 day food bender. I can honestly say those 3 days will not undo the month of good behaviour before it. Don't sweat daily fluctuations.
  • Lounmoun
    Lounmoun Posts: 8,426 Member
    Options
    No, one day won't ruin everything. It is probably water retention.
    Just get back to your normal eating and exercise.

    If you don't like seeing the temporary bump in the scale number then be more careful the next holiday, event, vacation where you are tempted to take the day off.
  • cityruss
    cityruss Posts: 2,493 Member
    Options
    No.
  • MommyMeggo
    MommyMeggo Posts: 1,222 Member
    Options
    No.
    I had a hell of a day at the rodeo on sat. Big breakfast taco, a corn dog <mostly just for the bread>, fried oreos, half of a fried snickers bar, split a turkey leg with my kiddos, a large margarita and then about 200 cals when I got home. Had a loss of 3.1lb today. My biggest loss yet.

    However If I eat pizza or shrimp fried rice <my bugaboos> on Monday and get on the scale on Tuesday I am EASILY 3-4lb heavier than the previous day. But it goes back down about 2-3 days after that.

    I also have a very strict day after a very "bad" day. Was my day worth it? Hell yes, cuz, FRIED OREOS! :)
    Just keep going.
  • coreyreichle
    coreyreichle Posts: 1,039 Member
    Options
    No. At most, you'll probably set back a week's worth of work, but even that is unlikely.
  • queenliz99
    queenliz99 Posts: 15,317 Member
    Options
    MommyMeggo wrote: »
    No.
    I had a hell of a day at the rodeo on sat. Big breakfast taco, a corn dog <mostly just for the bread>, fried oreos, half of a fried snickers bar, split a turkey leg with my kiddos, a large margarita and then about 200 cals when I got home. Had a loss of 3.1lb today. My biggest loss yet.

    However If I eat pizza or shrimp fried rice <my bugaboos> on Monday and get on the scale on Tuesday I am EASILY 3-4lb heavier than the previous day. But it goes back down about 2-3 days after that.

    I also have a very strict day after a very "bad" day. Was my day worth it? Hell yes, cuz, FRIED OREOS! :)
    Just keep going.

    I want to hang out with you!
  • 20yearsyounger
    20yearsyounger Posts: 1,643 Member
    Options
    It can, if you focus on just that one day.
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 48,580 Member
    Options
    Not really IF you're consistent. I had a client tell me that they had an off day every couple of days and was wondering why is weight loss is so slow. He loved to go to baseball games where beer and hot dogs rule.

    A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
    IDEA Fitness member
    Kickboxing Certified Instructor
    Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
    9285851.png
  • majigurl
    majigurl Posts: 660 Member
    Options
    endlesspower wrote: »
    Ask yourself this: "Did 'all my hard work' take just one day?"

    ^^^ I like this :) It's a good way of looking at it.


  • sonjavon
    sonjavon Posts: 1,019 Member
    Options
    The only one day can ruin your hard work is if you've only been working hard for one day. I have over 100 pounds to lose. Eating better is a new lifestyle choice for me... you can't "cheat" on life... so, you made less than optimal choices one day, brush yourself off and make better choices the next. The increase in weight is likely due to water retention from a larger amount of sodium intake. I go against all that I've heard and weight myself several times a day... it makes me comfortable to know that from first thing in the morning until the time that I go to bed, it's not unusual for my bodyweight to fluctuate 5 lbs.
    Logging what you ate though is important - I had a couple days where I really felt like I had been out of control and was amazed to learn that I didn't eat as many calories as I thought I did!
  • T1DCarnivoreRunner
    T1DCarnivoreRunner Posts: 11,502 Member
    Options
    Yes, it can. That's why I stopped giving myself cheat days... I could erase months of progress in a single high calorie day.

    That doesn't mean it did in your case. It's entirely possible that 4 lbs. is just water weight / normal fluctuations. I once gained 9 lbs. in just a few hours during a time when I was in a plateau (plateau meaning I was eating in a way that should have caused weight change, but instead I just fluctuated around the same base weight for months until a sudden "whoosh" of several lbs. of sustained weight loss in a few days).

    Get back with a deficit program and see if it goes away over the next week or so.
  • 7elizamae
    7elizamae Posts: 758 Member
    Options
    Depends on how much you ate.

    If you sat around and ate bacon and pancakes and coffeecake and croissants for breakfast, then pizza and cheesecake and a loaf of garlic bread and a gallon of ice cream and a six-pack of coke, then a costco-sized bag of chips and a pack of fun-size snickers, and a pack of tortillas, and then a pound of pasta with butter and cheese, yes, you might be able to.
  • successgal1
    successgal1 Posts: 996 Member
    Options
    One day a month usually won't, if you're spending the rest of the month in decent deficit.

    One day a week, and yes.

    I have 3-4 such days coming up this month. I'm preloading spare calories (with exercise) and being fairly stricter with myself. Most of my indulgences will be alcohol though (AC/DC, George Thorogood, Universal Studios and St Patrick's day) related.

    April is clear of indulgence at least until the last week of the month, and then just one day coming up. I don't really gain weight just by alcohol alone, but it definitely slows weight loss for me. So I'll possibly see a 2 week stall. Possibly not if I exercise asap the day after and abstain from alcohol the rest of the time.
  • Ninkyou
    Ninkyou Posts: 6,666 Member
    Options
    No, one day doesn't ruin anything. If anything you can use it as a learning experience.

    For example, learning that weight fluctuates. That things like sodium, carbs, hormones, ovulation, period, sunburn, injury, etc can all influence your weight and/or cause temporary weight gain.

Categories