Losing weight overnight?
shanikashavon
Posts: 9 Member
So I just bought a scale and am trying to figure out whether or not I will be weighing daily. This morning's weigh in was a full pound less than yesterday's. All things the same, should I see such a big change from one day to the next?
I know there will be those that argue against weighing daily, and maybe simply because I will drive myself crazy I won't, but I was just wondering if anyone had seen this before...
I know there will be those that argue against weighing daily, and maybe simply because I will drive myself crazy I won't, but I was just wondering if anyone had seen this before...
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Replies
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It's normal to see fluctuations due to hydration, time of day, whether or not you've eaten (or used the toilet--TMI, I know). Many people's weight fluctuates +/- 2 pounds or so over the course of a day. It's unlikely that you lost a pound of fat in one day.0
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Body weight fluctuates all over the place...the actual weigh in to weigh in numbers aren't overly important...the overall trend is what is important.
You're going to see it go up and down and all around.2 -
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Thanks, folks. I'll just log them and watch the trend.2
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I weigh every day. I also weigh all the food I eat every day. It's the only way for me to keep a handle on my eating. I agree with the above, my body weight can go up or down 2+ pounds on any given day, not reliant on food/sleep/exercise or any other (known to me) factor.
Just think of it as a data point that is useful but not gospel. If the weight "sticks" for a week, I consider it accomplished.1 -
shanikashavon wrote: »Thanks, folks. I'll just log them and watch the trend.
There's an app called Happy Scale that will plot the trend lines for you.
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I weigh daily and it is not unusual at all to see a 1 pound gain or loss each day. It is the water fluctuations. I'm up a pound today and I know from my trend that it is because I'm ovulating. If you want to weigh daily then use a trending app like Libra for Android or Happy Scale for IOS. You will be able to see the ups and downs as just minor fluctuations and as long as you see the overall trend going down you will know that you are on track. I am glad that I don't weigh weekly. If I did then I would think that I had gained .6 pounds since last Friday and that could have ruined my whole day, maybe my whole week. But since I see the daily fluctuations I know that it is just water weight, not fat gains.1
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If you got a great night's sleep, it's possible to see bigger drops than on nights you have less sleep. Sleep is an important part of weight loss, and I find when I get less than my 7 hours, I tend to retain more water and feel bloated and often see increases on the scale. When I get a full 8 hours or more, I'm usually feeling pretty good and it shows with losses on the scale (some minor, some major depending on other factors like how well I'm also doing with my calorie deficit and workout schedule).
I personally like to weigh daily, and I check in with my weight on MFP so I can track it...however, I do a 'for record' weigh in weekly for the various challenges that I've joined here. I like to do my 'for record' weigh in on Fridays so that I have some freedom in what I'm eating, and not fret if I have a less than stellar day because I have to worry about a Monday weigh in. And everyone is right, be prepared for fluctuations. If you panic easily because of a gain, I'd say it might be easier to weigh yourself weekly...but I personally like to see the differences to track what I'm doing right and wrong with my eating and exercise and sleep.
The biggest thing is to be consistent with the scale since it is a relative measuring tool rather than an absolute one. Use the same scale, at the same time of day (I prefer mornings), in the same location (different surfaces can affect the measure), after the same routine (ex: after going to the bathroom and before eating). If you change any of these, be prepared for the measures to be inconsistent. I often will jump on the scale around three times to be sure the measure is more accurate. Even with a digital scale, some mornings, I can get three different readings of over a pound apart in the span of 5-10 minutes. I typically log the reading when I get three consistent numbers rather than averaging, but some prefer to average.
I also like to take tape measurements to get a better feel for my body composition. I like to do neck, shoulders, chest, waist, hips, biceps, thighs and calves, but you may have different areas of your body to track. I often find when I don't have a great scale loss, I can have some inches lost and vice versa. Most places recommend you only tape every couple of weeks, but like the scale, I like to track more closely, so I typically tape myself weekly on my record weigh in day. Even with tape measurements, you need to watch the trend rather than the minor fluctuations.1 -
I weigh daily because I feel like it keeps me on track. I'm not going to eat this whole pizza even though I want to, because I have to step on the scale in 10 hours! But you're totally right about just watching the trends. You're going to fluctuate a lot from day to day, so don't get too caught up in the number.1
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