Question for those who have reached/are close to their goal

jbucci1186
jbucci1186 Posts: 440 Member
edited September 2024 in Health and Weight Loss
Throughout my entire weight loss experience (at least the first 10 months), there was NEVER a time when I would step on the scale and it would say I gained weight or didn't lose at all. I did have times where I didn't lose AS MUCH as I was expecting, but the number was always lower than the last time.

Now, I can't get the scale to even stay the same. Every time I weigh myself, it's different. Sometimes it's what I believe to be my actual weight (170) and other times it's well above that (some times up to 11lbs higher).

My question is have I reached the point where I need to completely lose the scale and go by clothes/mirror? How do I know when I'm retaining water if I haven't had a consistent weight in over a month? I've cut out diet pop and other higher sodium items, though I have low BP and technically don't need to be worrying about my sodium intake.

I guess I'm starting to worry that with all this up and down-ing I've been doing, I'm also slowly gaining weight and not knowing it, which is bad. I'm starting to fear that my real weight may be closer to 175, but I just don't know because I've seen the number as low as 168 (on multiple occasions).

I'm wondering this because, yes, I have been eating more than I was when I was actually really trying to lose weight, but I have NEVER eaten over my limit for the day nor do I eat really unhealthy foods. The projected weight loss MFP has been giving me per day is not accurate anymore? I think it's been telling me that "if everyday were like today, you'd weigh 162lbs in 5 weeks" for OVER 5 weeks and as I mentioned before, the lowest I've seen is 168.

I don't care that I'm not losing, but all of this goddamn fluctuating is starting to get on my nerves, confuse and frustrate the hell out of me. I just want it to be CONSISTENT for at least a few weigh-ins so I have some idea of what I really weigh so I can know what to log into MFP.

I know about water retention and sodium intake and I know it's normal for your weight to fluctuate 3-5lbs a day, and that you're supposed to weigh yourself at the same time every time (which I do as soon as i wake up, after going to the bathroom, naked), but this whole 3-10lb thing is annoying...

I guess what I'm trying to get at is- for those of you who have lost all or most of your weight and are trying to just maintain or slow down for the last few pounds (which is what I've been doing), have you experienced this problem? What do you do about it (on a mental level)? How do you know when you've reached that point where the "muscle weighs more than fat" fact actually matters? Because I've been eating more than I was when I was consistently seeing the numbers decrease on the scale, am I now losing fat at a similar rate to gaining muscle?

I'm very much considering just not weighing myself any more.

I will also say that I have been doing a lot of weight training with P90X+ (a more intense version of P90X) and I have noticed differences mirror wise, but I also know that is is impossible to gain more than 2-3lbs of muscle a MONTH, so I am not counting this as reasons for the fluctuations. I've also been incredibly consistent with my cardio, in fact I probably do a little more than I used to just to compensate for the fact that I burn fewer calories than I used to. My only other thought is that maybe I need to be eating even more? I mean, I'm already taking in around 2300-2500 per day (net calories between 1800-2000), my maintenance limit being 2560 (not including exercise). I changed my activity level from very active to active just so I wasn't overeating and not knowing it, but I just cannot seem to figure this one out on my own... been trying for weeks now. I guess I'm just afraid to up my calories since I've been having such inconsistent readings and I don't know 100% that I'm under-eating (and I think I know my body well enough by now that I would know if I wasn't fueling it properly- I feel FINE).

Sorry this is long, I wanted to be as specific as possible. Any advice is appreciated!!
thanks!

Replies

  • melizerd
    melizerd Posts: 870 Member
    put the scale away for awhile and just measure inches/clothes/mirror view.
  • Avalonis
    Avalonis Posts: 1,540 Member
    So what I do:

    Keep my water intake VERY consistant.
    Log everything
    Use a BodyMedia to measure TOTAL output.

    Then I compare input with output, and make sure I am eating enough, but not too little. Eating too little can actuall slow your metabolism and make you stall/have slight gains.

    Never had a problem with gaining a significant amount of weight back.
  • cardbucfan
    cardbucfan Posts: 10,571 Member
    I agree with melizerd. You are stressing yourself out! Go by how your clothes fit. Try to get a body fat assessment and go by that. I hit my goal weight in April and have fluctuated up to 4 lbs. but know I didn't eat that much. Put the scale away and keep doing what you're doing now. Good luck!
  • rileamoyer
    rileamoyer Posts: 2,412 Member
    Also, when you get the scale back, don't weigh everyday, once a week is probably ok.
  • rmsrws
    rmsrws Posts: 639 Member
    Maybe your scale is broke! You did say you had your sister hide it from you, and maybe in the process and in her care she dropped it or something. Just relax, and breath deep!!! Look at the success you have had!! Maybe you are going to maintain at 170 ish. Just remember You have lost nearly 200 lbs!!! That is definetely worth a virtual high five!!!!
  • bigredhearts
    bigredhearts Posts: 428
    "Several prediction equations exist. Historically most notable was Harris-Benedict equation, which was created in 1919.

    The original equations from Harris and Benedict are:

    for men,
    for women,
    where P is total heat production at complete rest, m is the weight, h is the height, and a is the age, and with the difference in BMR for men and women being mainly due to differences in body weight.[2] For example, a 55 year old woman weighing 130 lb (59 kg) and 5 feet 6 inches (168 cm) tall would have a BMR of 1272 kcal per day or 53 kcal/h (61.3 watts).

    It was the best prediction equation until 1990, when Mifflin et. al. [3] introduced the equation:

    , where s is +5 for males and −161 for females.
    According to this formula, the woman in the example above has a BMR of 1204 kcal per day. During the last 100 years, lifestyles have changed and [4] showed it to be about 5% more accurate.

    These formulae are based on body weight, which does not take into account the difference in metabolic activity between lean body mass and body fat. Other formulas exist which take into account lean body mass, two of which are the Katch-McArdle formula, and Cunningham formula. It should be noted, however, that the Cunningham formula is used to predict RMR instead of BMR.

    The Katch-McArdle Formula (BMR):

    , where LBM is the lean body mass in kg.[5]
    According to this formula, if the woman in the example has a body fat percentage of 30%, her BMR would be 1263 kcal per day.

    The Cunningham Formula (RMR):

    , where LBM is the lean body mass in kg
    Since lean body mass is metabolically active vs. fat cells which need very few calories to be sustained, these formula tend to be more accurate, especially with athletes who have above average lean mass and little body fat.

    To calculate daily calorie needs, the BMR value is multiplied by a factor with a value between 1.2 and 1.9, depending on the person's activity level." - Wikipedia

    your post got me thinking, so i googled it. bmr came up on wikipedia so i started to read, came across this and found it quite intriguing. seems like if you have a lower percent body fat you may need to up your calories, i did both the LBM equations and according to them my maintence level is between 2500 and 2600, without counting exercise. if you know your body fat %, it might be something worth trying... hope this helps!
  • bigredhearts
    bigredhearts Posts: 428
    http://www.threecoaching.com/2010/09/free-cunningham-equation-calorie-calculator/ download this as a good guideline :)
  • jbucci1186
    jbucci1186 Posts: 440 Member
    well that's the other thing, my stupid scale is DEFINITELY inaccurate with the BF% (so I am going to call my dr tomorrow about a physical, closed now).

    some days it says it's 17% but today it said 20% and then dropped to 19% (when I first got the scale long after i started, it said it was 33%, so at least it's gone down). it's so stupid that it says my BF changes in one day so i just ignore it. I also forgot to mention that I do have a decent amount of excess skin that I am sure contributes to this percentage (and is the reason why I didn't buy the BF% pinching thing I saw at the store) as well as the reason why I look in the mirror and get pissed off.

    I need this damn skin cut off and then i will actually know what I'm SUPPOSED to look like!
    i also think i'm going to get one of those Body Media Fits.
    thanks!
  • sh0ck
    sh0ck Posts: 168 Member
    A few possible recommendations:

    1) Double check that your scale is working correctly. Weigh something that you know how much it is supposed to weigh.
    2) Pay attention to when you weigh yourself. Has it been awhile since you have been to the bathroom? Have you drank a lot of water in the past few hours? Have you just recently eaten? Have you eaten a lot of sodium in the past few hours? Water weight is a pretty common reason for weight fluctuations.
    3) Try to weigh yourself at the same time every week (or day, or whatever you want to do). Chances are you can (and will) weigh differently based on what time of day it is (related to 2 above).
    4) I generally try to weigh myself AFTER a workout that way I have sweated out quite a bit of my water weight. There are days that I can weigh up to 3 lbs less AFTER my workout than I did BEFORE my workout.
    5) Try not to weigh yourself very often. Weight fluctuations are very common due to extraneous factors and if you weigh yourself mutiple times a day and take that number as fact it can get frustrating.
    6) Chuck the scale and start measuring. This is something that I have yet to start doing but taking your body measurements is a much better way to gauge your weight/fat loss and muscle gain.



    Great work on your current success though! 191 lbs is a HUGE feat and is very commendable!
  • bigredhearts
    bigredhearts Posts: 428
    what scale do you have? i ownt he biggest loser taylor version and its so inaccurate, id been tryin this whole time to be a certain percent fat, bought calipers, and BOOM! i was 3% lower body fat then i had originally intended to be. where as my body fat changed every day on my scale as my wieght changed. And even with excess skin the calipers can measure accurately. If you visit the accu measure website they explain how it works :) and those body media fit things look GREAT! i want one sooooo bad!
  • jbucci1186
    jbucci1186 Posts: 440 Member
    oooh, maybe i WILL go buy that thing then (the caliper). I also have a Taylor but it's not the biggest loser version or anything (though I bet we have the same exact scale!). i had to put in my height, sex, and age. it is a sucky scale when it comes to the BF% (i say that bc of how it's different every time you get on the scale, even if it's 5 times in one day lol).

    i don't think my scale is broken, though. it will tell me the same weight if i step on it 5 times in a row, it's ME. lol i am definitely getting a bodymeda fit tomorrow
  • grimnir
    grimnir Posts: 61 Member
    Don't bother with any sort of body fat % measurement device, get it professionally done. Pinchers obviously aren't gonna do anything for you if you've lost more than 30-40 lbs, because your skin is still there. The ones that measure electrical conductivity (like the handheld ones and the ones built into the scale) are almost useless, they're so inaccurate. It's probably not that your particular scale sucks for BF%, but that the way it measures is inherently faulty. If you want to find out if your scale is any good for weight, take 5-10 readings and see what the range it gives you is. Might surprise you how inaccurate the scale is. Tim Ferriss' 4HB has some good info on the different ways to measure body fat, their cost and accuracy, and where to find a place to do it right.

    As for the rest, I dunno, I'm nowhere near my goal yet. Congrats again on your epic loss.
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