Weight loss fluctuations

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Geektastic

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#185579 28-Nov-2015 00:09

Got on the scales Monday. Great result.

Got on the scales today, having not exceeded 1800 calories on any day this week or walked less than 9.1km per day on any day and GAINED 1.1kg.

How does that happen?! A few points of a KG I could put down to any number of things, but over 1 seems like a lot.

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Ultimate Geek

#1436486 28-Nov-2015 00:42

The obvious question are you withholding anything solid? Just let it go!

The human body is mostly water. So weight can vary a lot with hydration.

But, if you are exercising, then weight loss isn't even important.

Muscle weighs more than fat.

gzt

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#1436493 28-Nov-2015 01:18

It is hot. 1 litre of water is 1kg. Good marks for hydration there ; ).

jmh

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#1436557 28-Nov-2015 07:09

Because weight is a lot more complex than simple energy balance theory (calories-in calories-out) would have you believe. Could be a number of things, but the likely culprit is water retention. This could be caused by changes in the type of food you eat. For example, your body retains more water if you eat a high carbohydrate diet. If you've been eating more sugar/starch type food in the last week, even if the calories are the same, you will retain more water. If you cut those out and replace them with nuts and cheese, for example you will lose the water and thus the kgs..

There are other things that cause weight gain that don't involve calories, but if it's just a one-week blip, it's probably not worth worrying about.

tdgeek

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#1436560 28-Nov-2015 07:26

JWR:
The obvious question are you withholding anything solid? Just let it go!

The human body is mostly water. So weight can vary a lot with hydration.

But, if you are exercising, then weight loss isn't even important.

Muscle weighs more than fat.

Yep. OP could keep track of weight, and also keep track of measurements. If the measurements are going well, trimmer, tighter, but weight is holding or up a bit, you've just replied lighter flabby fat with smaller tighter muscle.

MikeB4

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#1436565 28-Nov-2015 07:42

I have found that you should weigh yourself once a week or once a fortnight at the same time of day. Weight will always vary from day to day and at different times of the day.

Jase2985

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#1436567 28-Nov-2015 07:47

best time to weigh yourself is straight after you have gotten up in the morning and after you have gone to the toilet, and before you have anything to eat and drink. This should give you the most consistent results. nothing extra in your body.

anything you eat or drink during the day only sets to alter the reading

Batman

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#1436569 28-Nov-2015 07:49

Have you peed and taken a dump yet?

On the serious note: it is possible one's weight is genetically hard wired. Not to say it can't be changed by hard work, but without hard work it will stay where it tends to. Or even drift up. No pain, no gain.

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timmmay

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#1436571 28-Nov-2015 07:59

Always weigh yourself first thing in the morning, after ablutions. Your weight fluctuates, maybe because of what you eat, maybe because salt alters water retention, maybe because of cosmic rays. Just accept it, so long as the trend is in the direction you want, no problem.

Batman

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#1436578 28-Nov-2015 08:16

random weight fluctuation is due 100% to changes in body water. we are about 60% water by weight. in a 100kg man that's 60kgs worth of water. 1% fluctuation in water content will change the naked body's weight by 600g.

scuwp

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#1436580 28-Nov-2015 08:27

Above, also your consumer grade scales probably have a +/- accuracy variation. I have yet to find a model that if not accurate, is at least consistent.

Lazy is such an ugly word, I prefer to call it selective participation

Batman

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#1436924 28-Nov-2015 15:49

Just came across a viral post. This is how to lose weight. Hard work.

timmmay

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#1436942 28-Nov-2015 16:15

I once lost around 30kg in 3-4 months by doing the Atkins diet and exercising every day (lots of weights, some cardio) - ten years ago. I lost weight so fast that I had to wear thermal underwear (top and bottom) in my air conditioned office because my body was used to a lot more insulation (fat) that I now had. I had to buy new clothes three times before I got down to my ideal weight.

Geektastic

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#1437045 28-Nov-2015 22:39

timmmay: I once lost around 30kg in 3-4 months by doing the Atkins diet and exercising every day (lots of weights, some cardio) - ten years ago. I lost weight so fast that I had to wear thermal underwear (top and bottom) in my air conditioned office because my body was used to a lot more insulation (fat) that I now had. I had to buy new clothes three times before I got down to my ideal weight.

Wow - since you're so not overweight now that is an encouraging story!!

Geektastic

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#1437046 28-Nov-2015 22:42

I suspect that you are all correct.

I also take quite a smorgasbord of medication for blood pressure control and so on, as it is critical to maintain it due to the unrepaired part of my aortic dissection. Many of those medications have the effect of increasing water storage - although one of them is specifically meant to decrease that too!

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#1437051 28-Nov-2015 23:09

Have you asked your doctor to get it stented? Gone are the days of needing surgical repair.

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