I don't understand my body at all

Perriwen
Perriwen Posts: 32 Member
edited November 2021 in Health and Weight Loss
Ever since I started to lose weight, I notice I'll suddenly drop five or more pounds within a week...plateau off that may last a month or more, then almost out of nowhere start shedding a pound a day or so overnight. And while I am still doing my best to eat healthy, I see no real change in what/how I eat. Like, I started last weekend at about 281. Now I'm down to 277.

Is this just part of losing a lot of weight, or should I consider seeing a doctor? Because while I really enjoy the fact that I am losing....the idea that at the exact same time I really try to eat right and get the weight off, something goes wrong with me that causes me to lose due to a medical issue just sounds like the ultimate cruel trick.

Replies

  • NYPhotographer2021
    NYPhotographer2021 Posts: 510 Member
    It sounds fairly common. I weigh every day, and I am either down, the same or up. I wouldn't worry too much about it.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    That's fairly normal.
  • HollyPFlax
    HollyPFlax Posts: 79 Member
    Are you a woman? I only ask because my cycle controls what I weigh. I steadily go back up for about a week before my period. A week after I start my period, my weight is at its lowest. I weigh daily and have to compare high and low points month to month in order to see progress.
  • wunderkindking
    wunderkindking Posts: 1,615 Member
    Yep exactly what everyone else said. My weight drops once a month and then it's everything my deficit says I should have been losing all along.
  • Perriwen
    Perriwen Posts: 32 Member
    HollyPFlax wrote: »
    Are you a woman? I only ask because my cycle controls what I weigh. I steadily go back up for about a week before my period. A week after I start my period, my weight is at its lowest. I weigh daily and have to compare high and low points month to month in order to see progress.

    I am not, I'm a guy.
  • wunderkindking
    wunderkindking Posts: 1,615 Member
    Perriwen wrote: »
    HollyPFlax wrote: »
    Are you a woman? I only ask because my cycle controls what I weigh. I steadily go back up for about a week before my period. A week after I start my period, my weight is at its lowest. I weigh daily and have to compare high and low points month to month in order to see progress.

    I am not, I'm a guy.

    It's still not terribly unusual, I think it's just a different sort of cycle. I think sometimes the 'fat' gets replaced by water weight almost for a bit, and then allt he water weight gets dropped in a short period.

    Wouldn't hurt to check with your doctor if you're concerned though.
  • Strudders67
    Strudders67 Posts: 989 Member
    edited November 2021
    It's a common theme on this forum; so much so that, in the Most Helpful Posts 'stickies' at the top of this board, there's a thread about the weird and annoying world of scale fluctuations and another about how weight loss isn't linear. It may be worth reading those as they may put your mind at ease.

    Even if you eat exactly the same thing, every day, there may be more salt one day or slightly less carbs another etc etc, that causes fluctuations or your body to hold water weight or whatever.

    Over the period that you've been losing weight, is your average rate of weight loss roughly in line with the rate that you're aiming to lose at? How does your current weight compare to what you weighed 8 weeks ago?

    (ETA the names of the helpful posts)
  • dralicephd
    dralicephd Posts: 402 Member
    Totally normal. :smile:

    You might benefit from reading this site:
    http://physiqonomics.com/the-weird-and-highly-annoying-world-of-scale-weight-and-fluctuations/

    And this thread that discusses this:
    https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10683010/the-weird-and-highly-annoying-world-of-scale-fluctuations


  • dralicephd
    dralicephd Posts: 402 Member
    Also, you might benefit from using a weight trending app like Trend Weight or Happy Scale.
  • Lietchi
    Lietchi Posts: 6,828 Member
    dralicephd wrote: »
    Also, you might benefit from using a weight trending app like Trend Weight or Happy Scale.

    Or Libra (for Android) 🙂
  • Perriwen
    Perriwen Posts: 32 Member
    Strudders67 wrote: »

    Over the period that you've been losing weight, is your average rate of weight loss roughly in line with the rate that you're aiming to lose at? How does your current weight compare to what you weighed 8 weeks ago?

    I guesstimate there's about a 10-ish pound difference about eight weeks ago? I've been hovering in the lower 280s for awhile, but exactly how long I do not know. Ideally, I'd want to lose two pounds per week, but my body's been far from consistent. I know at the beginning of October I hit 280, then spent a period of time kind of going up then down, up then down.

    One thing I know that might be screwing me over is the fact that I can't seem to keep a consistent sleep schedule. Every time I start to find a decent sleep time, one or two bad nights and it's all thrown out of whack and gradually gets more and more off.
  • Noreenmarie1234
    Noreenmarie1234 Posts: 7,492 Member
    When I lose I plateau for like 4 weeks then have a few lb drop. I've never lost steadily week to week. It's normal. That is why I look over trends from month to month.
  • Strudders67
    Strudders67 Posts: 989 Member
    So you've lost 10lbs in 8 weeks. Not the 2lb a week you'd like, but you're still averaging at more than 1lb a week which is a solid achievement. You also weigh 10lb less than you did two months ago - Congratulations.

    Read through the two threads that I mentioned previously and, as suggested by others above, perhaps get a trending app. Your weight will go up and down - it's normal - but what you want to know is whether it is trending downwards.

    Also, if you haven't done so for a while, go back to the Guided Set Up and re-save. If you've lost weight, your body needs fewer calories, but MFP won't auto-adjust. The suggestion seems to be to do this roughly every 10lb lost.

    And, if you enter your weight in to MFP each day / each week / every time you weigh yourself (via the Check In page), you can go to Reports and see a graph of what your weight has been doing over a period of time. It's not as fancy as a trending app, but it can be useful to see where you were in the last few months if you're getting disheartened.
  • Pablosammy82
    Pablosammy82 Posts: 22 Member
    Yeah, totally normal. Trendweight and my body fat scales have kept me sane. My water weight varies by a kilo or more day to day, especially if you've started exercising where your weight will be all over the place as your body adapts.

    Fat percentage as measured by my BF scales seems a far more dependable yardstick than actual weight - even if it isn't an accurate measure, it is great for trending purposes.

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  • springlering62
    springlering62 Posts: 8,451 Member
    I often experienced a happy phenomenon called a “whoosh”.

    That’s where little or nothing happens for days or even weeks, and you suddenly lose several pounds.

    Bodies are wierd.

    I had a morning I woke up and my butt had collapsed and another I had shocking cellulite all over my thighs. Those were a re-shifting. They resolved within days. Expect the unexpected with weight loss.

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