Sodium... should I be concerned?

princessleiannie
princessleiannie Posts: 6
edited September 28 in Food and Nutrition
Hello-
New to MFP- have been stalled on Weight Watchers for quite some time. Have noticed while entering my foods on MFP I am WAY over on Sodium. I suspect this is a big reason why I have been stuck at the same weight for so long. I feel like i eat healthy, but alot of the recipes etc that I use have high sodium, but i don't eat frozen dinners and try to stay away from prepackaged snacks/ junk food. One of the big things i've noticed being a problem for me is ingredients like black beans and chili powder. Should this be a concern? Is this why i've been stuck? What are your favorite foods that are low in sodium?
Thanks for the help!

Replies

  • mexiana
    mexiana Posts: 77 Member
    Sodium can make a HUGE difference. I weigh every morning and a high sodium day can make a 5lb. gain overnight! Eat lots of dark leafy greens to counteract the sodium if you have trouble giving it up :)
  • TheKitsune6
    TheKitsune6 Posts: 5,798 Member
    Be concerned about sodium if it's something you are going to be concerned about for the rest of your life.

    Having high blood pressure is the biggest reason to be worrying out sodium - if you are sensitive to it then watch out. Other people will tell you that sodium = bloating and when they cut sodium they lost weight. Well, the weight they lost was from water weight, since that's all that sodium will retain. You won't be losing fat, you'll be losing water. This also means that if you have a "cheat" day and have a lot of sodium you will be FAR more sensitive to it and can see massive gains from just water weight since your body is not accustomed to that being in your body. Personally I don't have high blood pressure and since I'm trying to lose fat and not water I'm not going to, nor have I, cut sodium from my diet. I'm losing weight fine and if I have a cheat day I don't gain massive amounts of "weight".

    I would recommend zig zagging over cutting anything from your diet (unless it medically necessary of course)
  • oxavecamourxo
    oxavecamourxo Posts: 270 Member
    Instead of canned black beans, try dried ones & cooking them yourself. It saves A LOT of sodium. Also, try to up your potassium intake to make for the high sodium. A 2:1 ratio of potassium to sodium is usually best. :)
  • kacarter1017
    kacarter1017 Posts: 651 Member
    Using canned foods can be very tough on sodium. If you can't used dried beans, rinse the canned ones several times and that will help get rid of some of the sodium. High sodium will stall weight loss.
  • 90210UK
    90210UK Posts: 81
    I was stuck at a plateau for 2 weeks and added the sodium column to my counter and I realised I was wayyyyyy over, sometimes in the 1000's :( I totally cut back on this and lost 2lbs last week which is alot for me as I am near my goal weight...

    I totally recommend you cutting down on sodium... It just holds onto all your water and you will be bloated. If you do happen to go over on a certain day drink drink drink! The more water you drink the quicker you can flush it out...

    Sodium is really a no-no :(

    Best of luck xx
  • anulle2009
    anulle2009 Posts: 580 Member
    Sodium can cause an increase in your water rate. The more sodium you eat the more water you retain. I am normally pretty good with my sodium, if i stay away from my "cheating days" and stay away from fast food. Normally when I cook, even if i used processed things it isnt nearly as bad as it could be eating fast food.
  • jbucci1186
    jbucci1186 Posts: 440 Member
    i agree-
    you should be concerned if you NEED to be. i went to my doctor and am lucky (or unlucky?) enough to have low blood pressure that allows me to basically eat a crap load of sodium a day (and i still have low BP).

    It does make you retain water if you eat too much of it (pickles..........).

    if you eat a ton of it, counter it by drinking a lot of water. that's what i do. though i sometimes wonder what i'd weigh if i really tried to eat less for a couple days. oh well, that's why i stopped weighing myself!
  • niste_ketlin
    niste_ketlin Posts: 73
    Yeah.. Watch the sodium.. I had one day loaded with it and was up by 5 pounds the next day.. My rings were even tighter because my fingers were swollen.. It's ok sometimes (a cookout did it for me) but if it is a daily thing it could eventually cause problems
  • Meggie_pooh
    Meggie_pooh Posts: 316 Member
    when I first joined, i didn't even think about how much of a part sodium plays in weightloss. I kept plateauing and couldn't figure out why, until someone pointed out to me that I had been over in my sodium everyday for 2 months! So I started watching it like a hawk and now I have been steadily losing! I also upped my water intake. I used to drink 6 glasses of water a day, now I can drink anywhere from 13-16 glasses a day. Drinking lots of water really helps with weightloss. When I have particularly high sodium days (like cookouts or eating out) I tend to drink more water to flush the system out!
  • natskedat
    natskedat Posts: 570 Member
    The importance of sodium is way over-rated on MFP! Sodium does not impact your metabolism, which is responsible for weight loss. As long as you are eating whole foods (limited packaging and processing) and drinking a lot of water, and do not have a medical condition like hypertension, sodium should not be a concern.

    I don't even keep track of it in my food log. Carbohydrates, fat, protein, fiber and iron (because I've had a history of anemia) are what I track. Sodium is important for daily body functions, but it's not a maker-or-breaker in weight loss when you're consuming a diet of whole, unprocessed foods.

    If you eat a lot of beans, drain and rinse them first, or boil them yourself. But don't stress about your sodium!
  • cckeimig
    cckeimig Posts: 194 Member
    Sodium is definitely something to watch out for. If you are generally within tolerable ranges, then if you go over once in a while it's no biggie, but the thing is, the recommended amount that MFP sets for us (2500 in my case) is like 1000 mg above what the US RDA is for Sodium for women (1500 mg). You need to drink at LEAST the 8 glasses of water mfp recommends per day to flush out their recommended intake amount. If you go over, you should drink a bit more.

    The Potassium comment above is a good recommendation as well, from what I've been able to learn. So is the one about rinsing canned beans several times if you can't use dried. Whether or not it's 'real' (fat, not water) weight, even if high blood pressure doesn't run in your family, that frankly doesn't mean you can't be the first to get it. Better safe than sorry--this program is about making healthier choices in our lives, at least in my opinion. I would definitely track and try to control my Sodium intake were I in your shoes.

    Hope this helps!
  • moriaht
    moriaht Posts: 251 Member
    I was wondering the same thing. I know you hold on to water weight when eating a lot of sodium, but does it actually prevent you from losing fat? That's really all i'm concerned about, I don't care so much if i'm bloated sometimes, but in 2 months i want to look good in my bathing suit and will cut down on sodium the week before my trip. SO confusing!
  • princessleiannie
    princessleiannie Posts: 6
    Fortunately, I have always had very low blood pressure. I will try a combination of trying to cut it down and drinking more water. I usually drink 9 glasses per day, but I will up it to 11-12 I think. So much water!!!!! :)

    Thanks for all the help- i appreciate it.
  • kristie778
    kristie778 Posts: 51
    Sodium will definitely cause water retention and water weight gain, but it won't affect FAT loss, which I assume is what you're going for. However, it's unhealthy, nonetheless, because it can lead to high blood pressure, increased risk of stroke, etc..(if you're sensitive to it)

    Like you, I have noticed that when I put canned beans or seasoning in a recipe it makes my sodium way over, too. It's really hard because food manufacturers put so much sodium in everything! And considering that 1 teaspoon of salt contains 2400 mg of sodium, and we're only supposed to get 2300, it's easy to go over!

    You can rinse beans in a strainer and that actually removes a lot of the sodium, or cook your own dry beans (crockpot is great for this!) Also, try fresh herbs and Mrs. Dash or other mixed salt-free seasoning products instead of other seasonings. You can google the DASH diet - it's for hypertension, and includes lower salt intake, fruits and vegetables, low fat dairy, etc, but it's a healthy diet for everyone.

    Also, be sure and drink plenty of water to flush the sodium out of your body.
  • TheKitsune6
    TheKitsune6 Posts: 5,798 Member
    Whether or not it's 'real' (fat, not water) weight, even if high blood pressure doesn't run in your family, that frankly doesn't mean you can't be the first to get it. Better safe than sorry

    If you don't have high blood pressure then why worry? As long as your keeping track of your body functions you will be able to see when and what your body reacts to - high BP doesn't happen overnight. It was also a completely valid answer to her question about the role sodium plays in weight loss.

    Frankly that argument is weak because it can be used for every disease connected to every type of food EVER. It's like not going skydiving because you are afraid your parachute won't open.
  • deniseg31
    deniseg31 Posts: 667 Member
    I agree with others...try to stay away from canned foods. And having canned food rinse food before eating. Cooking the beans yourself will make a big difference and they'll be way yummier and healthier. :wink: Put a couple cloves of garlic in them while cooking and you'll have some tasty beans. :)
  • Meglm1117
    Meglm1117 Posts: 70
    Okay, here are my thoughts on sodium......for years now I have heard watch the sodium, watch the sodium...basically like sodium was EVIL and to stay away. So for years now, I have completely cut using table salt so much so that I don't have any and now it's just a habit. Of course I know I still get my sodium by eating foods that already have it in them.

    Anyways In the past year I have developed hypothyroidism and I have reasearched this subject sooo much. I find so much on Iodine deficiency and hypothyroidism. I now feel like by my cutting out salt definitely has contributed to my hypothyroidism.

    Now, I do think if your pouring your salt on everything, that probably can become a problem but I definitely feel now that I shouldn't have completely cut out the salt and just used it moderately. I think sodium talk has become a much bigger issue than it really should be or is and that's the media for you. I'm in no way saying you can use as much salt as you want and i'm sure there are some people with health issues that really do need to cut out the salts but I think if you are eating healthy and exercising, sodium is not really something you need to focus on AT ALL!
  • natskedat
    natskedat Posts: 570 Member
    Sodium will definitely cause water retention and water weight gain, but it won't affect FAT loss, which I assume is what you're going for. However, it's unhealthy, nonetheless, because it can lead to high blood pressure, increased risk of stroke, etc..(if you're sensitive to it)


    Sodium is not unhealthy!!! It's absolutely necessary for healthy living! Serious medical conditions occur when we DON'T have enough sodium. This statement is false.

    Eating whole, unprocessed foods and drinking adequate amounts of water should eliminate concerns about sodium.
  • Meglm1117
    Meglm1117 Posts: 70
    Definitely agree with this!
  • princessleiannie
    princessleiannie Posts: 6
    I agree that sodium is safe to eat and I am not trying to eliminate it from my diet at all. I am just more concerned after switching from Weight Watchers to MFP- i now see that my sodium intake is like 1,000g above the recommended amount some days and was wondering if that might be effecting my weight loss- i've been stuck at 155 for quite some time.

    I will drink more water, and steer clear of processed foods. Thanks for all of the help!
  • mexiana
    mexiana Posts: 77 Member
    Definitely agree that it's needed, but there is plenty of it in foods without adding extra! And yes, it's definitely water weight, but when you're trying so hard to lose and eating within those calories and then hop on the scale and see a 2-5 pound GAIN, it's hard to recover from mentally for a lot of people. Especially since a high sodium day can take a week to recover from. I don't completely avoid it, but I don't put it on anything I eat. I still get 1000-2500 mg a day though easily and the only thing I eat processed now is bread.
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