Steep weight gain, gets worse the more water I try to drink

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Russandol
Russandol Posts: 71 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Ok, I know this is a noob question and an over-long one, but. :expressionless:
I've gained 5 lb in 6 days, which is a very sharp spike for me. Normally I fluctuate 0.2-0.4 lb from day to day (I weigh myself every day because apparently I enjoy hating myself a lot). Last Saturday, I went for a very sweaty run first thing in the morning and ended up with ugly DOMS for a day or so. (I hate running and haven't done it for ages, hence the out-of-shape punishment pains. :disappointed: )

Last Saturday, I weighed in at 175. Sunday, exactly the same. Then I started gaining a full pound a day and it hasn't stopped. I'm panicking. I'm now at 178.8 which is the highest weight I've EVER been. I'm not even kidding when I say I almost cried this morning. 176 is my "Don't ever cross this line" weight (I'm 5'8"-ish.) and I've blundered right across it and beyond. I feel angry and worried and I want to punish myself.

Earlier this week, I thought it was my aching muscles retaining water, but I normally shed it much, MUCH faster. I thought I was retaining water so I drank more. This only made me gain. I've been taking magnesium+potassium to shift it, but to no avail.
I'm not tracking what I eat (which is why opening my diary would be useless, I haven't tracked in it for ages), but I've been eating more or less the same amount as last week and the weeks before so I should be around the same weight-wise. Actually, for the last three days I've been eating less (bulk-wise and calorie-wise). I haven't done any strenuous exercise, just my regular 2 mile ride to work (so 4 miles in a day). I know I can't have taken in 21000 extra calories in a week, so wtf is this weight?

Before you suggest TOM: I don't gain in any significant way on it, I never have. It's not due. I'm not pregnant nor is there a chance I might be. I weigh on the same scale in the same level place at the same time (morning, nude, before eating and after necessary bathroom stuff). The battery in the scale is fresh. My measurements are basically the same, the only extremely slight increase is around my bust (wtf). I don't wear rings so I can't tell if my fingers are swollen. They don't seem to be.

What fresh hell is this and why doesn't rehydration help?

Replies

  • mlinci
    mlinci Posts: 403 Member
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    I gained weight a while ago when I started running and didn't track my food. This is because running was making me hungrier, and I ate more without realising - an extra slice of bread here, an extra snack there - all adds up. I didn't think I was eating more, but I was. So it might be a good idea to track your eating to be sure how much you are putting in.
  • EvgeniZyntx
    EvgeniZyntx Posts: 24,208 Member
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    Just a perfect storm? TOM + Exercise + salts (magnesium and potassium) (Increase around bust is hormonal driven) and stress response.

    Macros can create shifts in water retention too.

    Keep drinking water. It should go away. Strop stressing about it.
    Don't take things to try to shift water weight that's a great way to screw with your kidneys.
    Relax and wait.
  • Machka9
    Machka9 Posts: 25,121 Member
    edited June 2016
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    Russandol wrote: »
    ... because apparently I enjoy hating myself a lot ... ... hence the out-of-shape punishment pains .... and I want to punish myself ...

    Um.

    Russandol wrote: »
    Earlier this week, I thought it was my aching muscles retaining water, but I normally shed it much, MUCH faster. I thought I was retaining water so I drank more. This only made me gain. I've been taking magnesium+potassium to shift it, but to no avail.

    I'm not tracking what I eat (which is why opening my diary would be useless, I haven't tracked in it for ages) ...

    ... I haven't done any strenuous exercise, just my regular 2 mile ride to work (so 4 miles in a day)

    1. How much are you drinking? Water does have weight.

    2. Start tracking what you eat. You say it is the same as always ... is it really? Often those portion sizes can gradually increase so subtly that you hardly notice.

    3. I don't know if you're tracking your exercise, but cycling 4 miles in a day might burn about 100 calories, so you don't need to eat anything extra to compensate for that.

  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member
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    If you're not tracking what you eat then no one can say it's definitely only water... it's probably a mixture of a bit too much food, water retention and possibly the need to poop!

    Personally though I would work on the self esteem issues before any more weight loss. Losing 20lbs won't suddenly make everything better.
  • Orphia
    Orphia Posts: 7,097 Member
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    A normal weight fluctuates at plus or minus 5 pounds. You're still within that.

    If you're really eating at a deficit, the weight will drop.
  • charlieandcarol
    charlieandcarol Posts: 302 Member
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    If you are taking potassium and magnesium supplements that you don't really need (which is most people) and that haven't been prescribed/suggested by a doctor on the basis of blood tests you can actually retain more water not less. If you are taking a fair amount of them, the body will dilute your blood to try to maintain normal concentrations of these electrolytes, hence an apparent increase in weight.
  • Russandol
    Russandol Posts: 71 Member
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    Thanks for the replies, everyone. Looking back over the post, I see a lot of my early morning frustration had spilled into it, making me sound rather nervy and obsessed. (I won't deny my self esteem is very low, however. I'm trying to work on it.)

    I'll take logging into consideration, since it'd let me see if I'm just imagining eating the same instead of more; I'll also try to calm the hell down. :wink:

    (Also, since Machka asked: I don't track my exercise, since the burns are negligible at present.)

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