Fluctuating Weight... 5lbs in one day?!

bandenna
bandenna Posts: 89 Member
edited November 12 in Health and Weight Loss
:happy: Hey everyone

So I was really bad... I usually weight myself once a week in the mornings. But today, I wanted to weigh myself again. So in the morning, I was 209! I had lost 4 pounds since my last weight in. Feeling good about myself, I weighed myself again tonight... it was up to 214. :noway: I used the same scale with the same clothes.Is it really possible that I gained 5 pounds in one day?! I know I shouldnt have done that, and should have just let it go untill next week, but I was curious. Whats the deal!? :sad:
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Replies

  • happyfeetrebel1
    happyfeetrebel1 Posts: 1,005 Member
    Bodies naturally vary from one day to the next, and even in the same day. Water retention can be a big cause. Absolutely don't worry about it. You can't gain 5 lbs in one day. :)
  • spammyanna
    spammyanna Posts: 871 Member
    Yes, it is possible. Everything you ate/drank today is in your body.

    I bet it will be gone in the morning.
  • JBott84
    JBott84 Posts: 268 Member
    I go up and down a lot in a day too....A few months ago I weighed myself several times throughout the day for a week or so, and realized the time of day that I weigh the least is about an hour or so before I have lunch. I weigh the most first thing in the morning and at night....so your not alone...
  • Sabine_Stroehm
    Sabine_Stroehm Posts: 19,263 Member
    Did you eat an additional 17 THOUSAND calories? :smile: Of course the answer is no.

    Weighing at a different time (morning versus night)
    weighing when you're ovulation
    weighing when you have PMS
    weighing when you have a big lunch
    weighing after you've had a lot of salt

    ALL are more likely answers to the scale showing 5LBS different

    I typically show 2-3 LBS different between morning and night. REGARDLESS. ADD PMS, salt, ovulation and BAM I'm 6LBS up.
  • mmarin81
    mmarin81 Posts: 241
    I did that for a few days and every day I weighed 5 more lbs at night than I did in the morning. I thought it was just me being crazy. It was exactly 5 lbs more every night.

    Glad I am not the only one here. I thought there was something wrong with me. LOL

    Now I weigh every other day but only log official weigh in on sunday morning before I eat anything.
  • andreacord
    andreacord Posts: 928
    I go up and down alot too, my normal range is within 5 lbs .. If i'm eating badly during my period it's been up to 10 lbs.
  • taratam83
    taratam83 Posts: 88 Member
    You said yesterday you weighed in the morning and today you weighed at night. That is not consistent at all. You should weigh in the morning, you'll be closer to the lower weight range. You have to take in account all the food you've eaten today... never weigh yourself at night :) Try again tomorrow morning and don't stress about it too much, our bodies fluctuate weight daily it depends on everything in your system nutrients, hormones, and otherwise.
  • marycmeadows
    marycmeadows Posts: 1,691 Member
    don't weigh in the evening. that's after you've eaten and drank all day - not your true weight. plus as women our weight fluctuates almost hourly!! damn hormones. if you can't handle the fluctuations, don't weigh often, weigh once a week.
  • korsicash
    korsicash Posts: 770 Member
    Yup I have done it too. I never weigh after I eat. I want to know what I weigh empty not what me and my food weighs. If I eat too salty or I don't drink enough water I always am up 5 lbs at the end of the day. Too truly gain a pound of fat you need to eat 3500 calories above your total daily expected expenditure. So if you gained 5 pounds of actual weight in one day you went to the county hot dog eating contest.
  • Lolli1986
    Lolli1986 Posts: 500 Member
    In good news, if you are anything like me you are probably always 5lb heavier at night than you are in the morning.
  • tropaze
    tropaze Posts: 317 Member
    My weight fluctuates around 5 lbs through out the day, I honestly wouldn't worry about it.
  • jentarver
    jentarver Posts: 192
    um no lol. Its called being a female we fluctuate all the time. Always weigh yourself in the morning and rely on that weight. No others throughout the day.
    Unless you ate over 17500 cals in one day. Which I am sure you didn't.
    No worries hun!
  • Enigmatica
    Enigmatica Posts: 879 Member
    Not unusual at all =)
  • MandaJean83
    MandaJean83 Posts: 675 Member
    I weigh myself before bed sometimes...and I'm routinely up 2-3 lbs...more than that if I had a big dinner! Don't fret...it'll be gone in the morning!
  • juliegin
    juliegin Posts: 77 Member
    In one day, yes this is normal. What always messes with me is one day to the next, or within a couple of days, if I ate bad one of those days, and go up 5 lbs. But think of all the water you drink (hopefully a lot) in one day, water is heavy! You'll be lighter in the morning, and don't weigh at night anymore! :)
  • graelwyn
    graelwyn Posts: 1,340 Member
    How can you expect to be drinking and eating, putting things into your digestive system that have physical weight, and expect it to not show on the scale? That would defy logic totally. My boyfriend often gets on the scale before and after dinner out of curiosity, and sometimes he is 3Ibs up just from having that one meal. He is back down the next evening, or even lighter, so your evening weight really has no bearing as it depends on so many factors, including the weight of the foods you eat, how much you have drunk, time of the month, salt levels, exercise you have done and what is still sitting in your digestive tract waiting to be eliminated.
  • Rickly
    Rickly Posts: 10 Member
    I don't think it's really possible to weigh a human being exactly, with everything that can change, but think of exactly what it is that you're weighing. I try to weigh myself naked, empty, and fasting in the morning, but I still have unknown amounts of substance in my colon and unknown amounts of water retained compared to the day before. My weight varies +/- 5 pounds easily from just those factors. Don't sweat it! Just try to weigh yourself at the same time every day and make sure the general trend is in the right direction.
  • christenwypy
    christenwypy Posts: 335 Member
    Happens to me too and then I feel like the weight I lost was back and I really did not lose anything. And even though a lot of people are sayign you weigh less in the morning, I don't. I weigh more in the morning until about noon or so. And then later on at night I weigh more again.
  • susannamarie
    susannamarie Posts: 2,148 Member
    Heh, I managed to put ten on over the weekend (lots of restaurant food, probably retaining water).

    Nine of it's gone already and I expect the last one will be gone tomorrow morning :P

    (I just got a new scale and have been playing with it watching my weight vary over the day). :D
  • bandenna
    bandenna Posts: 89 Member
    Yay! You guys were right! lol Had no idea it would fluctuate that much. Now I'm back down since I weighted this morning. Now I must stay away from the scale so I don't discourage myself any more :blushing: I think weighing myself is an addition... Thanks everyone and have a nice day!
  • chevy88grl
    chevy88grl Posts: 3,937 Member
    I can easily fluctuate 5lbs in a day (heck, I can go up and down in a matter of hours!). A lot of people will tell you to only weigh in once a week, at the same time, in the same clothes, etc so you'll get an accurate weight. I personally weigh in everyday (I'm in maintenance and it keeps me on track!) but I don't freak out if I'm up a little bit. I've done the weigh in everyday thing for so long that I can usually pinpoint exactly why my weight is up from one day to the next (right now it is up because I started a new job that required me to completely switch shifts - from 2nd to 1st and I'm having a bit of trouble adjusting and have been using caffeine - namely sugar free energy drinks - to get through the day. These make me retain water - hence the gain). Don't panic. It is completely normal for our bodies to fluctuate. This is the time to decide one of two things: If the gain will make you freak out, only weigh in once a week. If you think it'll help you learn more about how things affect your body, by all means -- weigh everyday. But, remember: Same time. Same clothes (or lack thereof), same scale.
  • abouttime67
    abouttime67 Posts: 1 Member
    Hello all,

    I read all comments, and agree with most of you , not to wiegh yourselves a night. Weigh in should be done in the mornings, and recommended weigh in should be once a week, not everyday.

    Perfect post by another member explaiing how salt, hormones,....contribute to these figures on the scalle. so be aware of them.

    Regards,
    Sarmani11
  • Sabine_Stroehm
    Sabine_Stroehm Posts: 19,263 Member
    Yay! You guys were right! lol Had no idea it would fluctuate that much. Now I'm back down since I weighted this morning. Now I must stay away from the scale so I don't discourage myself any more :blushing: I think weighing myself is an addition... Thanks everyone and have a nice day!
    YAY!
  • RzRzRzR
    RzRzRzR Posts: 72 Member
    I've been weighing on the low side in the morning and on the high side in the afternoon after I get home from work - with about a 4 lb fluctuation! I'm not eating 4 lbs of food so it must be water, juice, tea, etc combined.

    I thought it was the new BMI scale I just got, but now I understand that I should weigh myself at the same time each day.

    Thanks for this discussion - I'm glad I found it.
  • rcthale
    rcthale Posts: 141
    Keep in mind that water is VERY heavy. When you get out of bed, it's a great time to get a consistent weight, but it's also a time when you're nearly dehydrated. By the time you've had a couple glasses of water, you could weigh a few pounds more already. Just stick to your normal weigh-in once per day; don't scare yourself.
  • cheerupemochic
    cheerupemochic Posts: 1
    I always have this concern, myself. I typically go up 2.5 lbs by the end of the day, and the worst part is, it shows!

    But thankfully, I came across this thread, and found the response to the original question invaluable:

    www.peertrainer.com/LoungeCommunityThread.aspx?ForumID=1&ThreadID=15374

    It has just about every piece of information influencing your weight that you might imagine! Good luck, and try not to get discouraged. I'm trying to do the same. :)
  • Vansy
    Vansy Posts: 419 Member
    Totally normal -- in the morning I trust my weight, when I get home from work I weigh again and I'm usually almost always 1-1.5 pounds higher in weight.
  • GabriellaMaria
    GabriellaMaria Posts: 150 Member
    quite normal to fluctuate...hate weighin at night, but my diet class is at night, so i have to just go by same time same clothes to make sure i have not misread the scales...
    i do weigh myslef daily..but thats just me being a control freak!!!
  • lalinda07
    lalinda07 Posts: 2 Member
    So glade i am not the only one ugh
  • DaveProsser
    DaveProsser Posts: 1 Member
    Same happens to me
This discussion has been closed.

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