water weight

If you get scale obsessed, you are setting yourself up for disappointment. Weight fluctuates to an extent daily so You don't want to hound the scale searching for each pound lost (speaking from experience) I literally have to struggle to walk past the scale like I have to struggle to walk past some of my favorite food lol. Water will help you flush your system. Don't be scared of it.

That's a lot of water. You're not forcing yourself to drink, are you?
There's no rule in any medical textbook that says you NEED to drink 8 glasses or more of water a day, that's just a trick to make yourself feel more full so you won't eat as much. It's good for you, but you don't NEED to drink water unless you're thirsty.

If you're forcing yourself to drink water when you're not thirsty and you don't like gaining from it, stop doing it. Start drinking water only when you're actually thirsty. *no, I'm not saying STOP drinking water.. just that you don't need to drink large amounts if you're not super-thirsty. if you ARE really thirsty from your working out, go ahead and drink away *

And yes, you shouldn't weigh yourself all the time.. try to weigh yourself once a week at exactly the same time (I weigh myself on monday mornings after waking up and using the bathroom). Your weight naturally fluctuates throughout the week and each day from things like water and the type of food you're eating. Checking your weight every day can give you the wrong ideas.

Yes, I hate water weight! I try to only weight myself once a week, same day and same clothes.

That's a lot of water. You're not forcing yourself to drink, are you?
There's no rule in any medical textbook that says you NEED to drink 8 glasses or more of water a day, that's just a trick to make yourself feel more full so you won't eat as much. It's good for you, but you don't NEED to drink water unless you're thirsty.

If you're forcing yourself to drink water when you're not thirsty and you don't like gaining from it, stop doing it. Start drinking water only when you're actually thirsty. *no, I'm not saying STOP drinking water.. just that you don't need to drink large amounts if you're not super-thirsty. if you ARE really thirsty from your working out, go ahead and drink away *

And yes, you shouldn't weigh yourself all the time.. try to weigh yourself once a week at exactly the same time (I weigh myself on monday mornings after waking up and using the bathroom). Your weight naturally fluctuates throughout the week and each day from things like water and the type of food you're eating. Checking your weight every day can give you the wrong ideas.

Actually, I believe that once you're thirsty it means you are already dehydrated.

You should also take into account the fat and sodium content of your food because even if you meet the daily calorie goal still there is a possibility that you gain weight if you eat foods rich in sodium or fat such as those in the fast foods and it just not limit to salty foods. Chocolate cakes for example has a high sodium content. Foods rich in trans fat can also lead to weight gain. Sodium is the leading cause of water retention in our body.

Absolutely!! I work out 4-5 days a week, Tae bo, yoga, circuit training, water aerobics and occasionally I do JM ripped in 30. Weighing myself in the past has always frustrated me which resulted in giving up. This time I have committed to not weighing myself for a few months. I have to really think before I weigh in. Do I have a realistic loss # in mind? What do I really expect? What amout of loss would make me happy? Did I work long and hard enough for it? Its working for me so far. My clothes are lose and things fit that havent in years. The most important thing is committing to a lifestyle change. Consistency will pay off! Best of luck to you ape087!

In my 20s I successfully lost 65 lbs on Weight Watchers. When I reached my goal the leader had me stand up and give the group ONE tip to my success. I said: WATER. In fact, I think I said it with passion and fervor. On the days when I ate over my points for a few days in a row and was scared to go weigh in, but had kept up on my water, I still lost!!! On the days where I ate my points exactly, worked out and did everything right, but didn't drink much water I either plateaued or noticed a slight gain.

From this experience of mine (it took me 1.5 years to lose those 65 lbs), I really learned the value of water.

I have also heard what a girl in an above comment said about not needing to drink 8 servings of water a day. I agree with her. It really depends on the individual's body need and activity level. I have also heard that for every 30 minutes you exercise, you need an additional 8oz of water on top of your 8 servings. I also agree with that.

How can I agree with two contradicting philosophies? Well, 1) because I'm not a scientific expert in the field and it's well known that a woman can multitask her opinions, and 2) because it just makes sense. If you exercise, then you need to drink more than you normally do. If a person is limiting their soda or juice intake and increasing their water, then their body will naturally start running more smoothly.

At first you're ridding your body of waste material. This is day 2 of your workout? So when you are contracting your muscles, think of all the junk you're squeezing out like wet rag. That greasy burger from last week, the pizze from whenever. Now that you squeezed it out, how is it going to GET OUT? Through urination and feces. Water increases your ability to BM and urinate.

Whenever I increase my water consumption, it always increases my trips to the ladies' room. I just imagine myself releasing lipids and then go refill by drinking another glass of water. Once the water flushes out the excess salt in your body, you'll stop retaining water and you'll just be releasing fat. Yeay for water!!!! (p.s. it also give you pretty skin).