Can't wrap my head around this. Maybe someone can explain.

ndmain1977
ndmain1977 Posts: 69 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I keep reading that you need to weigh yourself in the morning, so for the last week that's what I've been doing.

For the last couple of nights though, just to see what would happen, I've weighed myself right before going to bed, and then first thing in the morning. Generally, there is a 1 and a half, to 2 pound difference. For instance, when I went to bed last night, scale said: 201.4, and first thing in the morning: 198.8.

That's been the norm for the last few nights (since Monday).

Can someone explain to me how there is that big of a difference between the weight the night before, and the weight the next morning when all I've done is slept for 6 to 8 hours??

I mean, I pee when I first get up,but I can't imagine I'm holding a pound or more of urine in my body when I do.

Replies

  • cordianet
    cordianet Posts: 534 Member
    On a simple level, as you're sleeping, your body is burning calories to keep you alive and recuperate from the day's activity. Think of it like a car. Just because you're sitting at a stop light, does not mean you're not burning fuel. As the fuel burns, there is less of it in the tank, thus your "tank" weighs less. (But in all honestly a fair amount of it is urine...)
  • susannamarie
    susannamarie Posts: 2,148 Member
    It's not just urine either. I've played with it (weighing) myself and the urine only accounts for MAYBE .2.
  • michellekicks
    michellekicks Posts: 3,624 Member
    You're exhaling out water... and possibly sweating too.
  • Werglum
    Werglum Posts: 378 Member
    They say you can lose 2 litres of liquid a night - I don't like to think about where it goes!!
  • Cold_Steel
    Cold_Steel Posts: 897 Member
    Ive seen 3-5 lb differences a few times since I started this whole thing a year ago.

    Metabolizing and the urination in the morning probably helps...
  • kooky_kiz
    kooky_kiz Posts: 22 Member
    I am breastfeeding and I lose 3 pounds a night.
  • unapologeticallyemma
    unapologeticallyemma Posts: 134 Member
    on top of the burning cals over night thing...
    water and food are heavy... you eat/drink at night... you sleep digest it and pass it
  • michellekicks
    michellekicks Posts: 3,624 Member
    on top of the burning cals over night thing...
    water and food are heavy... you eat/drink at night... you sleep digest it and pass it

    You poop in your sleep?! :laugh:
  • alexveksler
    alexveksler Posts: 409 Member
    Y'all remember those stupid diets they advertized on TV? Take the pill and lose weight while you sleeping? :) They lead people to believe exactly based on this concept.

    Anyway, good that you are weighing yourself every morning. Keep doing it and record every single day. And if you record precisely everything you put in your mouth during the day, this can help you with diet analysis by running various reports.
  • KansasRain
    KansasRain Posts: 65
    well part of it is because your body is breaking down your food further, but for me i usually only lose .5-1 pound over night...i am scale obsessed and check my weight 10 times a day so i know how my body works. if i am more then 2 pounds heavier at night then i was in the morning then i know i wont be losing any weight however if im 1 pound heavier or less then i know i will lose .5-1 pound by morning because my body usually burns off about 1.5 pounds over night.
  • ndmain1977
    ndmain1977 Posts: 69 Member
    Thanks for the answers, I had not thought of most of the things you guys had said. Of course, i doubt breast feeding is causing me to lose any weight overnight... but science can do some incredible things nowadays, so who am I to say? :laugh:
  • cbencau
    cbencau Posts: 3
    Years ago my brother explained to me (I'm not sure where he learned it) a large portion of the metabolic wastes are exhaled, having been converted to CO2, O2 or other gases.

    From Wikipedia:
    "By mass, human cells consist of 65–90% water (H2O). Oxygen therefore contributes a majority of a human body's mass. Almost 99% of the mass of the human body is made up of the six elements oxygen, carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, calcium, and phosphorus."
  • amivox
    amivox Posts: 441 Member
    digestion
  • Lea_8D
    Lea_8D Posts: 106 Member
    Here ya go:
    http://health.howstuffworks.com/wellness/diet-fitness/weight-loss/question227.htm
  • nheilweil
    nheilweil Posts: 82 Member
    Weird how much water we respirate/sweat off overnight, I was wondering about that as well.

    As a side note, if your scale shows your body fat, measuring yourself in the morning after you wake up and pee is the most consistent, however, because home scales measure your body fat using a small electrical current and you are the most dehydrated when you first wake up, it also will show a higher body fat % compared to later in the day. In other words, your weight will be the lowest and your body fat measurement will be the highest. What's important though is that they are the most consistent so you can see trends!

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