FRUSTRATED!!

I feel your pain...got on the scale today and sure enough UP.... well same as yesterday , but thats up from Monday. Errrrrrrrr....
Im going to try flooding my body w/ water- haha

The roller coaster is one of the most frustrating things to see.
Be sure to keep track of your weight and see if you are losing weight over time.
Things like salt can keep you from shedding water weight. If you are tracking your food carefully, check to see if you had high amounts of sodium yesterday.

Don't be discouraged by a single day "bump", as long as your overall graph points down

Hm...

You said, "today I gained 2 pounds", which tells me that you probably weight yourself daily or fairly often. Therefore, the weight gain is most likely water retention. However, it could also be a variant of your last meals "sticking around" and causing the extra faux weight. Also. Even if you are eating under your calorie goal, you need to pick nutrient dense foods that will help flush out your system. Think of your body like a garden hose. Over time, minerals can build up from unbalanced water filtering through. The water is the food and drink that you choose to take, the mineral buildup is the additional weight you have or a body fat percentage. By putting balance to the water, (or your diet, with lots of fruit, veggies, and protein; while avoiding styro carbohydrates), you can begin to wear down the mineralization. However, if you work the hose around with your hands you can knock loose some of the buildup even faster. Bending the hose and moving it around is equivalent to exercise.

Through this confusing analogy, I'm trying to say that, in order to steadily lose weight efficiently, you must have a nutrient dense diet with equal exercise where you eat back your calories, drink more than plenty of water, and do not weigh yourself daily.

I can't see your diary, so I can't give you too accurate of an answer as to your hiccup in weight loss.

~AV

Did you gain the 2 pounds over the week or in a day or so? Sometimes body weight naturally fluctuates. It may be something you ate in the morning. The water or tea that you drank at lunch time or for woman TTOTM. There are many factors that can affect the number on the scale. That's why the scales aren't always the best tool for measurement. Measuring with a tape measure or a pair of pants can sometimes give a better indication of weigh loss.

I always try to eat less carbs in the evenings and I must confess, that the night before my weigh (I weigh myself Friday mornings), I eat a light dinner.

Don't get discouraged. Just stick to it and the number WILL fall.

Oops....just reread your comments and they covered my question. :flowerforyou:

Ditto what other folks said - weight fluctuations do happen (if you eat lots of salty Chinese food, have your period, etc.) I would defintiely say to only weigh in once per week: same time, same day - totally in the nude :laugh:

However, I've also started to notice a difference when I cut out more carbs. I'm not paying a whole lot of attention to calories anymore, but focusing on cutting my carbs in half...if you're up for an experiment, I'd say try that for a week and see how you do. Best of luck!!

The human body consists, more than any other single thing, of water.

If you measure on a day-to-day basis, the thing you are weighing more than anything else, is how much water you are. If you weigh yourself, then drink a pint of water, then get back on the scale, you will have "gained" a pound. We all know that drinking a pound of water is a net-plus health-wise, but it temporarily adds a pound.

It works in the other direction, too. If you do an hour of hard cardio work in hot weather, you can easily shed several pounds of water weight. But just like the gain, sweating-it-out is only temporary.

If you eat things that cause water retention, your weight will go up in the short term. Salt does this, I am sure there are others.

Keep track of the big picture. If you burn more calories than you consume, you WILL lose weight. Period.

Everything is interconnected, your body is a big bag of chemicals that are constantly interacting with each other, sometimes in ways you don't expect. I would never weigh myself more often than once a week, because there are so many little things that can make a big difference in that scale. You'll just drive yourself crazy if you check every day.

A list of some of the things that can affect your weight:
Reproductive hormones (male or female, this applies; you go through cycles where your body will hold on to fat and/or water)
The weather (higher temps & humidity will make your body want to retain water)
How long ago you've had a bowel movement (the contents of your bowels can add up to four pounds)
How long ago you've exercised (recent exercise will make your muscles retain water)
How much sleep you've gotten (not getting enough sleep throws off your brain chemistry, and that in turn can throw off your metabolism)
Sodium levels (too much, and you retain water)
Stress (again with the hormones that affect your body's fat & water storage mechanisms)

stay strong the scale is not nice to me either. but i hope i am losin inches and gaining muscles. i workout 6 days a week and eat well. keep your head high and don't give up.

Everything is interconnected, your body is a big bag of chemicals that are constantly interacting with each other, sometimes in ways you don't expect. I would never weigh myself more often than once a week, because there are so many little things that can make a big difference in that scale. You'll just drive yourself crazy if you check every day.

A list of some of the things that can affect your weight:
Reproductive hormones (male or female, this applies; you go through cycles where your body will hold on to fat and/or water)
The weather (higher temps & humidity will make your body want to retain water)
How long ago you've had a bowel movement (the contents of your bowels can add up to four pounds)
How long ago you've exercised (recent exercise will make your muscles retain water)
How much sleep you've gotten (not getting enough sleep throws off your brain chemistry, and that in turn can throw off your metabolism)
Sodium levels (too much, and you retain water)
Stress (again with the hormones that affect your body's fat & water storage mechanisms)

Thank you for the long list of why!

I do like to weigh in every day and realize there will be some fluctuations. This week i have 4 days going up in a row, but lost 2.4 pounds on my weekly weigh in. So like the stock market, I think the big losses/gains will even themselves out over the week and my next weekly weigh in day will be more reflective of actual weight loss. Also by weighing in daily it reminds me to flush with water, check my sodium (eating too many concocted meals, and bits of white flour here and there) and protein levels (I have a tendency to want to skip the meat), and general dietary content (eating a bit of cheese here and there too often!), etc.

But I also know the first month we really want to see the progress, but our body is making so many chemical adjustments to our new exercise/dietary plans that it needs time to realize things are "okay". Keep doing the right things and I believe you will lose again soon. Give yourself a good month though to "settle in". Believe with the faith of a child!

Watch your sodium. I had a friend who also had problem. Now she watches her sodium and has lost 10lbs.... Soda was her biggie... She noticed that everytime she drinks a soda she gains 2lbs... This might be you. Good luck..