Swelling and water weight

chatter27
chatter27 Posts: 121
in Motivation and Support
This past week I weighed in and gained 5lbs, very discouraging and disheartening. I thought it was due to me gaining muscle because I switched my workout routine which is more intense. I know my eating habits aren't good and I am in the process of working on that as well, but last night I went for a long walk with my husband and I noticed towards the end I was quite swollen. I am thinking I am just retaining a lot of water weight now. What can I do to get rid of the water weight and how can I reduce the swelling? I would hate to be like this all summer long.

Replies

  • XXXMinnieXXX
    XXXMinnieXXX Posts: 3,459 Member
    Heat can do that sometimes. When i start a new exercise water i always retain lots of water... I have come to accept it now and know after a few weeks it will all even out and i will usually get a good loss. Give it a few weeks and it should all change... x
  • jcubesmommy
    jcubesmommy Posts: 35
    I weigh myself every day and i have noticed that after working out (whether I eat healthfully or not) the next day I tend to weigh more... dont know why
  • mkmarasch
    mkmarasch Posts: 26 Member
    I am experiencing the same thing, but at least the retention I experience during exercise seems to be temporary. Once I cool down, after about an hour, I notice my hands and feet are back to normal and it usually involves a trip to the bathroom. The advice I have seen is cut back on the sodium. I've also been looking into consuming natural diuretics, like cucumbers, etc. I would love to read some more information and advice.

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  • AJ_Pete
    AJ_Pete Posts: 863 Member
    Eat fresh veggies (I love raw cucumbers and peppers), drink water or green tea (real green tea, not Arizona) and limit your sodium. I used to have all kinds of issues with sodium and water retention, but I limit my sodium to 1400 mg (most days I barely hit 900mg) per day and I feel sooooo much better.

    Best of luck!
  • lbaileyjohannsen
    lbaileyjohannsen Posts: 133 Member
    Make sure to drink TONS of water everyday, track and reduce your sodium intake by eating less processed food and staying away from the salt shaker (I try stay below 1800 mg a day), and keep on working out. The bloating will take care of itself if you do these three things consistently. Some people are just really salt sensitive. If I ingest a lot of salt in one day, immediately my body begins to retain water. The next day, I just drink tons of water and pee all that sodium out! And don't forget--one teaspoon of salt has over 2300 mg of sodium. Your body needs under 100 mg a day to survive.
  • saragato
    saragato Posts: 1,154
    If you upped your workout, you will retain some water until your body gets used to it. The weather can also affect your swelling. If it's warm or hot where you are, just being outside can cause ankles and fingers to swell up.

    As for your eating, try setting your diary to track potassium and sodium. You want your potassium intake to be higher than your sodium intake and it should help with the swelling/water weight as well. And not to beat a dead horse but remember to drink lots of water. Not water with MIO or Crystal Light in it, not tea, just water. It'll help your muscles recover just as much as protein and potassium will.
  • Capt_Apollo
    Capt_Apollo Posts: 9,026 Member
    This past week I weighed in and gained 5lbs, very discouraging and disheartening. I thought it was due to me gaining muscle because I switched my workout routine which is more intense. I know my eating habits aren't good and I am in the process of working on that as well, but last night I went for a long walk with my husband and I noticed towards the end I was quite swollen. I am thinking I am just retaining a lot of water weight now. What can I do to get rid of the water weight and how can I reduce the swelling? I would hate to be like this all summer long.
    This past week I weighed in and gained 5lbs, very discouraging and disheartening. I know my eating habits aren't good and I am in the process of working on that as well, but last night I went for a long walk with my husband and I noticed towards the end I was quite swollen. I am thinking I am just retaining a lot of water weight now. I would hate to be like this all summer long.

    I know my eating habits aren't good and I am in the process of working on that as well, but last night I went for a long walk with my husband and I noticed towards the end I was quite swollen.
    I know my eating habits aren't good and I am in the process of working on that.
    I know my eating habits aren't good
  • alladream
    alladream Posts: 261 Member
    Wheat products make me swell, so avoiding them helps me, and I tend to swell anyhow due to having gotten electrocuted a few years back (really), so I take herbal anti-inflammatories three times a day, which help a lot: quercitin, vitamin c, bromelain, turmeric, boswellia, that stuff--and of course drink bunches of water, and I avoid chemicals in foods etc.
  • statickey
    statickey Posts: 309 Member
    Yea I would say eat some fruit, like watermelon, it'll help you urinate more and drink a lot of water.
  • jackieatx
    jackieatx Posts: 578 Member
    Um, how often do you go to the bathroom? I have similar issues and i have to make sure I cut back on cheese and dairy, started eating more fiber, and drink tons of water. Some of us are just more prone to swelling and bloating.
  • SarahC75
    SarahC75 Posts: 45
    I weigh myself every day and i have noticed that after working out (whether I eat healthfully or not) the next day I tend to weigh more... dont know why
    http://www.livestrong.com/article/406332-do-muscles-retain-water-after-a-new-exercise-program/

    I'm having a lot of trouble myself at the minute with water retention :( I've recently returned to work where I can be stood, for up to 11 hours a day. I'm giving it a week or 2 to see if it settles down, if not, it looks like it will be a trip to the Dr's. It's very uncomfortable :(
    The Warm (Laughable from the UK tbh ....) weather doesn't help. Roll on the winter I say!
  • MissTattoo
    MissTattoo Posts: 1,203 Member
    You didn't gain 5 fat pounds in a week unless you ate WAY over your maintenance. You didn't gain muscle weight either. A pound of muscle and a pound of fat weight the same. Muscle is less dense though so you can look smaller without losing a pound.

    Please repeat the above to yourself a billion times.
  • AJ_Pete
    AJ_Pete Posts: 863 Member
    This past week I weighed in and gained 5lbs, very discouraging and disheartening. I thought it was due to me gaining muscle because I switched my workout routine which is more intense. I know my eating habits aren't good and I am in the process of working on that as well, but last night I went for a long walk with my husband and I noticed towards the end I was quite swollen. I am thinking I am just retaining a lot of water weight now. What can I do to get rid of the water weight and how can I reduce the swelling? I would hate to be like this all summer long.
    This past week I weighed in and gained 5lbs, very discouraging and disheartening. I know my eating habits aren't good and I am in the process of working on that as well, but last night I went for a long walk with my husband and I noticed towards the end I was quite swollen. I am thinking I am just retaining a lot of water weight now. I would hate to be like this all summer long.

    I know my eating habits aren't good and I am in the process of working on that as well, but last night I went for a long walk with my husband and I noticed towards the end I was quite swollen.
    I know my eating habits aren't good and I am in the process of working on that.
    I know my eating habits aren't good


    I think I love you.
  • Capt_Apollo
    Capt_Apollo Posts: 9,026 Member

    I think I love you.

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  • brneydgrlie
    brneydgrlie Posts: 464 Member
    This past week I weighed in and gained 5lbs, very discouraging and disheartening. I thought it was due to me gaining muscle because I switched my workout routine which is more intense. I know my eating habits aren't good and I am in the process of working on that as well, but last night I went for a long walk with my husband and I noticed towards the end I was quite swollen. I am thinking I am just retaining a lot of water weight now. What can I do to get rid of the water weight and how can I reduce the swelling? I would hate to be like this all summer long.

    When you are building muscle - especially with a new workout or an increase in intensity - you will retain water. Working out causes tiny micro-tears in the fibers of the muscle. Water retention is part of the body's way of repairing those tiny tears. Because of this, you do NOT want to take any diuretics, as this would be counterproductive. Once your body starts to adjust to the new routine, it will balance out.

    I know it sounds backwards, but the body will also retain water when it is dehydrated. So to get the body to release the water, you actually have to drink more water. If you have been experiencing record high temperatures, like most of the country has, it may be just your body's way of telling you to drink more.
  • supplemama
    supplemama Posts: 1,956 Member
    I used to have a big problem with swelling and water retention because I loved salty food so much. I started looking at the labels on everything and not eating any food that was over 8% RDA of sodium. That cut down my salt intake big time. I also started using the low-sodium version of things I liked, for example soy sauce, and then reducing my intake of those things even further. For example my family really loves tofu stir fry so we would have it once a week. Very high-salt meal. So now I use low-sodium soy sauce when I make it and we only have it once a month. Another example would be red beans and rice. Rather than make the processed box version, I make it from scratch.

    The difference between this summer and the previous summers is amazing! I now never have swelling in my legs and ankles. And you know, I don't even miss all that salt I used to eat. My taste buds have adapted, and I couldn't be happier.
  • chatter27
    chatter27 Posts: 121
    Um, how often do you go to the bathroom? I have similar issues and i have to make sure I cut back on cheese and dairy, started eating more fiber, and drink tons of water. Some of us are just more prone to swelling and bloating.

    I use the bathroom quite frequently. I don't intake a lot of dairy or cheese, but I will admit I need to pick up my water and fiber intake again.
  • chatter27
    chatter27 Posts: 121
    Thanks everyone for your advice, I do appreciate it. I will keep a closer eye on my sodium intake and start increasing my water intake again.

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