This is when I normally get discouraged...

bananabeannn · July 2016

So I've been pretty good with my calories, and even yesterday when I was a little high, nothing I ate was really excessive. I have gone to the gym two days in a row. I woke up feeling puffy and bloaty, and sure enough I'm up 2 pounds. I know I didn't gain two pounds overnight, but it's still discouraging. Like, sure I can try to convince myself its water. But I hate seeing those numbers and feeling it on my body.

The thought that comes into my head is that "this isn't working. you will only lose weight by skipping meals and eating as little as possible".

Can you guys tell me that my thought isn't true? That even though I only have a bit to lose, that slow and steady does win the race? I can't imagine I'm eating for maintenance...1400ish calories or more than that and exercise. I already know I can't manage on 1200 a day. I die. Maybe it should be more stepwise? Try to stick it around 1400 (which I have been, except yesterday), and move it down if necessary? I'm not sure.

Any words of advice are appreciated. It's just a number on the scale, right?

BB

Unknown · July 2016

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hmotis · July 2016

Couple reasons why you could be bloated: you ate more salt that normal, you didn't drink enough water the day before (at LEAST two liters a day), you drank alcohol and your body retains water, or your body is still evening out from the days you didn't work out. I recommend weighing once a week, in the morning, after you go to the bathroom and in as few clothes as possible. I am a constant "false" gainer. I regularly weigh 5 pounds more than I actually am. Depending on your weight and activity level, I find eating too little stalls out over time (seems counterintuitive but it's true). Check out IIFYM to find a program to help you get your macros in check. Good luck!!

cee134 · July 2016

Try this. This is how I lost the last 20 lbs (Before I gained it all back, long story). I focused so much on eating fruit and vegetables, my calorie goal filled up and I was full and losing weight.

Look up the DASH diet for what makes a serving.

Number of servings for 1600 Calorie diets

Fruits
4

Vegetables
4

Low fat and nonfat dairy
2

Beans and nuts
3 per week

Lean meats, fish, poultry
1½ or less

Grains ( at least 3 whole grains per day)
6

Fats and sweets
2

lorrpb · July 2016

The weather isn't sunny & our favorite temperature everyday, but life goes on. We know some days we'll like the weather and some we won't. The scale and weight loss is the same way. We just need to educate ourselves, accept the facts, and stick with our plan! You know it's water, not fat. You know that weight loss is not linear. You know that fluctuations are reality. You know you shouldn't starve yourself. These are FACTS. Stick with the plan and keep it going!

bananabeannn · July 2016

okay guys...thanks...i haven't eaten a real meal yet today and I know this sets me up for failure. but i am legit not hungry right now, probably because I just had a coffee. but i will eat my lunch soon. thanks for reminding me of he facts. it's just the scale, it's just a number, it is a tool useful for determining a trend. not a daily measure of my success. i guess that's how i use it...as a daily measure of success. i think that might be the fatal flaw...

katielynn107 · July 2016

Also- not sure where you are in your cycle, but it could just be good 'ol fashion lady bloat. It's been an issue for me before I realized there is nothing I can do or that nothing I had done that contributed to the "false" gain.

I workout, keep to about 1100-1300 calories- but some days the "feed bag" is on (i'm not even really sure what that means – but I've heard it before in context that you eat anything and everything that isn't nailed down).

Some days you're just elbow deep into a box of Scooby snacks – embrace it, and keep going. Don't let it derail your train because then you're really not gonna get to where you want to go.

AllOutof_Bubblegum · July 2016

Stop weighing yourself every day. Don't even look at the scale. Take out the batteries and put it away for a minimum or three weeks. If daily fluctuations are freaking you out, stop looking at them. Space out your weigh-ins to give your body actual time to adjust and change.

jdhcm2006 · July 2016

Also as a woman, your hormones are going to play a role. Are you ovulating? Is it the week before your period? Those a both times that I "gain."

Also, agreed with the sodium. I had Chinese food today, so I'm expecting a 2-3lb weight gain tomorrow. I know it's nothing but water weight so I'm not worried about it.

Weighing daily or weekly doesn't matter. The only thing that matters is the overall trend. As long as the trend is going down, then a few spots of gain here and there aren't an issue.

AllOutof_Bubblegum · July 2016

oh, hey I'm in Phx too! *waves*

bananabeannn · July 2016

Thanks again everyone. I always struggle with how often to weigh. I had stopped weighing for a while, but I felt like I have the scale so much power that way. Like ohhh I can't look at the big bad scary scale. I wanted to weigh myself to I dunno...I guess get comfortable with the reality that there are and always will be fluctuations. And that it's nothing. They are just fluctuations and it's my body being a living thing. It's dynamic.

I logically know I didn't gain two pounds. I can chalk this up to a lesson in curiosity. Isn't it interesting how my living dynamic organism of a body is slightly heavier today than yesterday. I wonder why that could be. Isn't it cool how my blood might be more voluminous? I wonder how else that effects my ecosystem.

Hmm.

bananabeannn · July 2016

AllOutof_Bubblegum wrote: »

oh, hey I'm in Phx too! *waves*

Hey! Where do you workout? What part of the city are you in?

This is when I normally get discouraged...

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