Sodium

bringingsexyback2007
bringingsexyback2007 Posts: 79 Member
edited November 18 in Health and Weight Loss
I hear a lot of people say that you shouldn't count sodium unless you have a medical reason. I see a difference on the scale when I don't count sodium though. Will this water weight that I am holding from the sodium eventually come off? I just don't want to retain weight because of it.

Replies

  • landshark28
    landshark28 Posts: 9 Member
    That weight is temporary, sodium holds water and causes bloat but it's not fat. This is why reading the number is so unreliable. You can just drink more water and eventually pee out the sodium and/or sweat it out if it bothers you.
  • ccsernica
    ccsernica Posts: 1,040 Member
    "Shouldn't" puts it too strongly. It's just not all that necessary to worry about it unless you have a medical reason. Yes, a surplus of sodium can indeed make you retain water. Just drink more water. That helps your system flush the excess sodium out.
  • mca90guitar
    mca90guitar Posts: 289 Member
    I only watch it because my last physical showed I'm at the high end of average.

    So just trying to keep it in the range for a little at least.
  • Jadedinosaur
    Jadedinosaur Posts: 41 Member
    I had a really high salt day yesterday compared to my norm and am up 3lbs today - it will hold some extra water but I'm trying to lose fat so I'm not fussed. As long as my calories are right I'm still losing fat and so are you :)
  • TimothyFish
    TimothyFish Posts: 4,925 Member
    If you have high sodium levels that are causing you to retain water because the food you eat is high in sodium then you can expect to have that extra weight for as long as your diet is high in sodium.
  • psuLemon
    psuLemon Posts: 38,432 MFP Moderator
    I am only concerned with fat loss. I look at my weight daily and monitor trends over several weeks. If you are concerned about the impact of sodium, then increase potassium/magnesium consumption and drink plenty of water.

    To add perspective, there are a lot of things that cause water retention: exercise, TOM, carbs, infections/sickness, and general changes in diet. So how important is it to you to manage all things that can alter the scale a bit.
  • bringingsexyback2007
    bringingsexyback2007 Posts: 79 Member
    Thanks everyone! I feel like I am always stressing over every aspect, macros, calories, sodium!
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