Women only: do you gain weight before your period?

HDove92
HDove92 Posts: 27 Member
edited November 22 in Health and Weight Loss
Hi all I'm just wondering if its just me or if its normal to gain 1 or 2 pounds the week before your period? I seem to gain and lose a week after I'm done. If this does happen any tips to prevent it that you know of? Thank you!!
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Replies

  • jemhh
    jemhh Posts: 14,261 Member
    edited October 2017
  • Seffell
    Seffell Posts: 2,244 Member
    Yes but why are you trying to prevent it? It is a normal bodily function. You want your health to be as "ordinary" as possible.
  • HDove92
    HDove92 Posts: 27 Member
    I didn't know it was normal and thought it was just me eating more the week before that's why I was asking thanks for the thread
  • TonyB0588
    TonyB0588 Posts: 9,520 Member
    I'm not a woman, but my wife said that every month when she used to have periods. Looks like that's perfectly normal.
  • Nony_Mouse
    Nony_Mouse Posts: 5,646 Member
    jemhh wrote: »
    I am really surprised every time a woman posts that she doesn't know that this is normal. We need to do a better job of being educated about our bodies. Girls usually start getting periods between ages 9 and 13 and the average age of menopause is 51. That's a good 40 years of menstrual cycles. Take the time to learn what is going on with your body, if you don't know already. And if you have a daughter, make sure she understands it as well.

    My daughter is 10 and we've been discussing this stuff for half of her life already. She's comfortable asking both me and my husband/her dad about it. It's not embarrassing, it's not gross. It's your body. Understand it.

    Was just going to say the exact same thing. Like, how do people not notice blowing up like a wee balloon every month (or twice a month in some cases)? I understand that many people possibly don't weigh themselves regularly until they start trying to lose weight, but there are physical signs (the lacing of my Chuck Taylors is a dead giveaway for me, along with chubby fingers and a puffy belly). Though I guess maybe a kilo or two of water weight isn't so obvious if you're carrying a lot of extra weight?
  • rawrrgenn
    rawrrgenn Posts: 118 Member
    Yes, it happens. I gain about 3lbs at onset and lose that one or two days after it's over
  • Nony_Mouse
    Nony_Mouse Posts: 5,646 Member
    Be thankful you only "gain" 1-2lbs every month, some women can put on 6-7lbs :open_mouth:

    My standard 1 kg is bad enough. I can't even imagine how ridiculous I'd look with 3-3.5 kg!
  • HDove92
    HDove92 Posts: 27 Member
    jemhh wrote: »
    I am really surprised every time a woman posts that she doesn't know that this is normal. We need to do a better job of being educated about our bodies. Girls usually start getting periods between ages 9 and 13 and the average age of menopause is 51. That's a good 40 years of menstrual cycles. Take the time to learn what is going on with your body, if you don't know already. And if you have a daughter, make sure she understands it as well.

    My daughter is 10 and we've been discussing this stuff for half of her life already. She's comfortable asking both me and my husband/her dad about it. It's not embarrassing, it's not gross. It's your body. Understand it.

    I think it depends on the parents you have growing up. My parents are old school and never discussed period anything with me and losing weight was out of the question. I'm only 23 and just now am I really understanding how to lose weight and actually weighing myself.I know perfectly well the body is nothing to be emberrased about or gross. And no I dont have a daughter unfortunately she passed away but if I ever do have another one I will make sure to educate her thanks.
  • HDove92
    HDove92 Posts: 27 Member
    edited October 2017
    Nony_Mouse wrote: »
    jemhh wrote: »
    I am really surprised every time a woman posts that she doesn't know that this is normal. We need to do a better job of being educated about our bodies. Girls usually start getting periods between ages 9 and 13 and the average age of menopause is 51. That's a good 40 years of menstrual cycles. Take the time to learn what is going on with your body, if you don't know already. And if you have a daughter, make sure she understands it as well.

    My daughter is 10 and we've been discussing this stuff for half of her life already. She's comfortable asking both me and my husband/her dad about it. It's not embarrassing, it's not gross. It's your body. Understand it.

    Was just going to say the exact same thing. Like, how do people not notice blowing up like a wee balloon every month (or twice a month in some cases)? I understand that many people possibly don't weigh themselves regularly until they start trying to lose weight, but there are physical signs (the lacing of my Chuck Taylors is a dead giveaway for me, along with chubby fingers and a puffy belly). Though I guess maybe a kilo or two of water weight isn't so obvious if you're carrying a lot of extra weight?

    Gaining 1 or 2 lbs is not that obvious in my opinion but I guess the shape of the body matters and every woman expierences pms differently I only know because I weigh myself.
  • SCoil123
    SCoil123 Posts: 2,111 Member
    I can gain up to 10lb at ovulation and right before my period
  • jemhh
    jemhh Posts: 14,261 Member
    hpaloma92 wrote: »
    jemhh wrote: »
    I am really surprised every time a woman posts that she doesn't know that this is normal. We need to do a better job of being educated about our bodies. Girls usually start getting periods between ages 9 and 13 and the average age of menopause is 51. That's a good 40 years of menstrual cycles. Take the time to learn what is going on with your body, if you don't know already. And if you have a daughter, make sure she understands it as well.

    My daughter is 10 and we've been discussing this stuff for half of her life already. She's comfortable asking both me and my husband/her dad about it. It's not embarrassing, it's not gross. It's your body. Understand it.

    I think it depends on the parents you have growing up. My parents are old school and never discussed period anything with me and losing weight was out of the question. I'm only 23 and just now am I really understanding how to lose weight and actually weighing myself.I know perfectly well the body is nothing to be emberrased about or gross. And no I dont have a daughter unfortunately she passed away but if I ever do have another one I will make sure to educate her thanks.

    I'm very sorry to read that your daughter passed away. Losing a child is a terrible thing.

    I agree that growing up with parents who do not discuss this stuff can be limiting. We are fortunate to have so many resources online now. I can remember my mom leaving a book on my bed and telling me to read it but not really discussing it at all. Thank goodness for my older sister :)
  • Nony_Mouse
    Nony_Mouse Posts: 5,646 Member
    SCoil123 wrote: »
    I can gain up to 10lb at ovulation and right before my period

    OMG you poor thing :( That's gotta be all kinds of uncomfortable. I will stop whining about my 1 kg.
  • Christine_72
    Christine_72 Posts: 16,049 Member
    Nony_Mouse wrote: »
    Be thankful you only "gain" 1-2lbs every month, some women can put on 6-7lbs :open_mouth:

    My standard 1 kg is bad enough. I can't even imagine how ridiculous I'd look with 3-3.5 kg!

    I can be anywhere between the those 2 weights, and some months i don't see a gain at all. My body loves surprising me :confounded: I just don't bother weighing the week before anymore, it's too higgelty piggelty!!
  • Nony_Mouse
    Nony_Mouse Posts: 5,646 Member
    Nony_Mouse wrote: »
    Be thankful you only "gain" 1-2lbs every month, some women can put on 6-7lbs :open_mouth:

    My standard 1 kg is bad enough. I can't even imagine how ridiculous I'd look with 3-3.5 kg!

    I can be anywhere between the those 2 weights, and some months i don't see a gain at all. My body loves surprising me :confounded: I just don't bother weighing the week before anymore, it's too higgelty piggelty!!

    My body has taken to pinging up its kg a full week before both ovulation and TOM and then just sitting there. I could probably blow it up a bit more with sodium, but so not gonna try that!
  • mlsh1969
    mlsh1969 Posts: 138 Member
    Definitely, l do
  • maybyn
    maybyn Posts: 233 Member
    Nony_Mouse wrote: »
    jemhh wrote: »
    I am really surprised every time a woman posts that she doesn't know that this is normal. We need to do a better job of being educated about our bodies. Girls usually start getting periods between ages 9 and 13 and the average age of menopause is 51. That's a good 40 years of menstrual cycles. Take the time to learn what is going on with your body, if you don't know already. And if you have a daughter, make sure she understands it as well.

    My daughter is 10 and we've been discussing this stuff for half of her life already. She's comfortable asking both me and my husband/her dad about it. It's not embarrassing, it's not gross. It's your body. Understand it.

    Was just going to say the exact same thing. Like, how do people not notice blowing up like a wee balloon every month (or twice a month in some cases)? I understand that many people possibly don't weigh themselves regularly until they start trying to lose weight, but there are physical signs (the lacing of my Chuck Taylors is a dead giveaway for me, along with chubby fingers and a puffy belly). Though I guess maybe a kilo or two of water weight isn't so obvious if you're carrying a lot of extra weight?

    Or the alternative - if you get water retention all the time like me so no, I have never noticed any specific water retention before or during my period. I'm not overweight (5'6", 120 lbs) but edema's always been a problem for me and I get it a lot e.g. day after eating out, during hiking, on the plane etc. In fact, I actually learnt about weight gain during periods via this forum!
  • stephanne13
    stephanne13 Posts: 212 Member
    Oddly, I weigh my lowest in the days leading up to my period. I have for years.
  • Nony_Mouse
    Nony_Mouse Posts: 5,646 Member
    maybyn wrote: »
    Nony_Mouse wrote: »
    jemhh wrote: »
    I am really surprised every time a woman posts that she doesn't know that this is normal. We need to do a better job of being educated about our bodies. Girls usually start getting periods between ages 9 and 13 and the average age of menopause is 51. That's a good 40 years of menstrual cycles. Take the time to learn what is going on with your body, if you don't know already. And if you have a daughter, make sure she understands it as well.

    My daughter is 10 and we've been discussing this stuff for half of her life already. She's comfortable asking both me and my husband/her dad about it. It's not embarrassing, it's not gross. It's your body. Understand it.

    Was just going to say the exact same thing. Like, how do people not notice blowing up like a wee balloon every month (or twice a month in some cases)? I understand that many people possibly don't weigh themselves regularly until they start trying to lose weight, but there are physical signs (the lacing of my Chuck Taylors is a dead giveaway for me, along with chubby fingers and a puffy belly). Though I guess maybe a kilo or two of water weight isn't so obvious if you're carrying a lot of extra weight?

    Or the alternative - if you get water retention all the time like me so no, I have never noticed any specific water retention before or during my period. I'm not overweight (5'6", 120 lbs) but edema's always been a problem for me and I get it a lot e.g. day after eating out, during hiking, on the plane etc. In fact, I actually learnt about weight gain during periods via this forum!

    I am also the queen of water retention, but I can absolutely tell when I'm retaining (and can usually pinpoint the culprit).
  • tinkerbellang83
    tinkerbellang83 Posts: 9,140 Member
    edited October 2017
    I just posted to my feed on the very same matter because I know originally I didn't realise quite how much weight I was gaining from hormonal swings and although I often feel bloaty around my period and ovulation, I'm a broad shouldered, broad hipped lass and it doesn't show so much in the mirror and I would never have guessed it was around 5-7lbs

    Back in the days when I used to use MFP without using the forums, eat The 1200 and weigh weekly I would rage quit, thinking whatever I was doing wasn't working. When actually my initial losses were just masked by water retention and I usually experience a whoosh the day after my period.

    As an example my weights for the last week were as follows (finished period Sunday morning):

    Tuesday: 100.5kg
    Wednesday: 101.1kg
    Thuesday: 100.3kg
    Friday: 100.6kg
    Saturday: 100.9kg
    Sunday: 100.7kg
    Monday: 98.3kg
  • iraspiritia
    iraspiritia Posts: 4 Member
    Nony_Mouse wrote: »
    Be thankful you only "gain" 1-2lbs every month, some women can put on 6-7lbs :open_mouth:

    My standard 1 kg is bad enough. I can't even imagine how ridiculous I'd look with 3-3.5 kg!

    I did, during my last period I gain 3.5 kg, during my period, not before. It's really frustrating. Last monday I weighed 117.8 kg, the next morning I had my period and boom, just like that I gained 3 kg, I weighed 120.7 kg. This morning I'm back to 117.5 kg. Just to make it worse, I always have bad cramps during my period, so I can't workout, even if it's just leisurely walk.
  • hesn92
    hesn92 Posts: 5,966 Member
    Yes my weight goes up a couple lbs the few days leading into my period and then drops back off after I start.
  • kayla25mfp
    kayla25mfp Posts: 17 Member
    Glad I read this thread. I mean, I know that I gain weight before my period, but this is my first month on here consistently and I've been doing good so far. It would be easy to forget just how much of a difference that can make. I don't want to get frustrated OR end up restricting my calorie intake more the week afterwards because I don't think I'm doing enough.
    It's a good reminder that I should give myself a few weeks before assuming what the scale says means that I need to start changing my diet again.
  • SafioraLinnea
    SafioraLinnea Posts: 628 Member
    Of course. It's water weight related to hormone changes. If you don't overeat during your period, the water weight and weight you would have lost during that time will all go away following your period. It's normal and not preventable.
  • amusedmonkey
    amusedmonkey Posts: 10,330 Member
    Every single time. Anywhere from 1 lb to 6. It's annoying because if the gain is on the higher end it messes up my moving average a bit, but that's all it is, annoying. Nothing to be worried about.
  • whosshe
    whosshe Posts: 597 Member
    jemhh wrote: »
    I am really surprised every time a woman posts that she doesn't know that this is normal. We need to do a better job of being educated about our bodies. Girls usually start getting periods between ages 9 and 13 and the average age of menopause is 51. That's a good 40 years of menstrual cycles. Take the time to learn what is going on with your body, if you don't know already. And if you have a daughter, make sure she understands it as well.

    My daughter is 10 and we've been discussing this stuff for half of her life already. She's comfortable asking both me and my husband/her dad about it. It's not embarrassing, it's not gross. It's your body. Understand it.

    It's actually quite sad. My mom did a great job teaching me about the things I'll go through as a woman. My daughter is 5 and already knows all about the stuff.

    To O/P, it's totally normal as everyone else has said. For me it really depends. One month I might go up a few pounds on the scale and the next month the scale won't go up at all.
  • EatingAndKnitting
    EatingAndKnitting Posts: 531 Member
    Nony_Mouse wrote: »
    jemhh wrote: »
    I am really surprised every time a woman posts that she doesn't know that this is normal. We need to do a better job of being educated about our bodies. Girls usually start getting periods between ages 9 and 13 and the average age of menopause is 51. That's a good 40 years of menstrual cycles. Take the time to learn what is going on with your body, if you don't know already. And if you have a daughter, make sure she understands it as well.

    My daughter is 10 and we've been discussing this stuff for half of her life already. She's comfortable asking both me and my husband/her dad about it. It's not embarrassing, it's not gross. It's your body. Understand it.

    Was just going to say the exact same thing. Like, how do people not notice blowing up like a wee balloon every month (or twice a month in some cases)? I understand that many people possibly don't weigh themselves regularly until they start trying to lose weight, but there are physical signs (the lacing of my Chuck Taylors is a dead giveaway for me, along with chubby fingers and a puffy belly). Though I guess maybe a kilo or two of water weight isn't so obvious if you're carrying a lot of extra weight?

    I weighed 150 pounds overweight when I started and I'm now about 105 pounds overweight. I can't tell a difference in how my clothes fit or how my body feels when I'm retaining water.

    I had no idea I gained two pounds of water weight a few days before my period and lost it the day it started until I started tracking my weight daily for a couple months.

    I knew most women bloated beforehand, but I didn't know that I did too.

    I'm carrying a few pounds of water weight right now from starting an exercise program. Can't tell. I never know when I have a "food baby" either. I never knew if a body part was swollen from injuries either (not usually the case, but happened a couple times). Now that I've slimmed down some I can notice swelling in my arms in legs, which still doesn't happen often thankfully!

    I'm just too fat to notice small changes in my body. I look forward to the day when I know my period is due because my pants don't fit right. I forget otherwise and have to look at my husband's computer projected date.

  • Nony_Mouse
    Nony_Mouse Posts: 5,646 Member
    jesslla wrote: »
    Nony_Mouse wrote: »
    jemhh wrote: »
    I am really surprised every time a woman posts that she doesn't know that this is normal. We need to do a better job of being educated about our bodies. Girls usually start getting periods between ages 9 and 13 and the average age of menopause is 51. That's a good 40 years of menstrual cycles. Take the time to learn what is going on with your body, if you don't know already. And if you have a daughter, make sure she understands it as well.

    My daughter is 10 and we've been discussing this stuff for half of her life already. She's comfortable asking both me and my husband/her dad about it. It's not embarrassing, it's not gross. It's your body. Understand it.

    Was just going to say the exact same thing. Like, how do people not notice blowing up like a wee balloon every month (or twice a month in some cases)? I understand that many people possibly don't weigh themselves regularly until they start trying to lose weight, but there are physical signs (the lacing of my Chuck Taylors is a dead giveaway for me, along with chubby fingers and a puffy belly). Though I guess maybe a kilo or two of water weight isn't so obvious if you're carrying a lot of extra weight?

    I weighed 150 pounds overweight when I started and I'm now about 105 pounds overweight. I can't tell a difference in how my clothes fit or how my body feels when I'm retaining water.

    I had no idea I gained two pounds of water weight a few days before my period and lost it the day it started until I started tracking my weight daily for a couple months.

    I knew most women bloated beforehand, but I didn't know that I did too.

    I'm carrying a few pounds of water weight right now from starting an exercise program. Can't tell. I never know when I have a "food baby" either. I never knew if a body part was swollen from injuries either (not usually the case, but happened a couple times). Now that I've slimmed down some I can notice swelling in my arms in legs, which still doesn't happen often thankfully!

    I'm just too fat to notice small changes in my body. I look forward to the day when I know my period is due because my pants don't fit right. I forget otherwise and have to look at my husband's computer projected date.

    Thank you for this. I will remember to be more mindful of that in future :)
  • EatingAndKnitting
    EatingAndKnitting Posts: 531 Member
    Nony_Mouse wrote: »
    jesslla wrote: »
    Nony_Mouse wrote: »
    jemhh wrote: »
    I am really surprised every time a woman posts that she doesn't know that this is normal. We need to do a better job of being educated about our bodies. Girls usually start getting periods between ages 9 and 13 and the average age of menopause is 51. That's a good 40 years of menstrual cycles. Take the time to learn what is going on with your body, if you don't know already. And if you have a daughter, make sure she understands it as well.

    My daughter is 10 and we've been discussing this stuff for half of her life already. She's comfortable asking both me and my husband/her dad about it. It's not embarrassing, it's not gross. It's your body. Understand it.

    Was just going to say the exact same thing. Like, how do people not notice blowing up like a wee balloon every month (or twice a month in some cases)? I understand that many people possibly don't weigh themselves regularly until they start trying to lose weight, but there are physical signs (the lacing of my Chuck Taylors is a dead giveaway for me, along with chubby fingers and a puffy belly). Though I guess maybe a kilo or two of water weight isn't so obvious if you're carrying a lot of extra weight?

    I weighed 150 pounds overweight when I started and I'm now about 105 pounds overweight. I can't tell a difference in how my clothes fit or how my body feels when I'm retaining water.

    I had no idea I gained two pounds of water weight a few days before my period and lost it the day it started until I started tracking my weight daily for a couple months.

    I knew most women bloated beforehand, but I didn't know that I did too.

    I'm carrying a few pounds of water weight right now from starting an exercise program. Can't tell. I never know when I have a "food baby" either. I never knew if a body part was swollen from injuries either (not usually the case, but happened a couple times). Now that I've slimmed down some I can notice swelling in my arms in legs, which still doesn't happen often thankfully!

    I'm just too fat to notice small changes in my body. I look forward to the day when I know my period is due because my pants don't fit right. I forget otherwise and have to look at my husband's computer projected date.

    Thank you for this. I will remember to be more mindful of that in future :)

    No worries. Just thought I'd chime in with my experience. This is just an ancedote of course, other large women may very well have different experiences. I can't speak for us all! :)
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