So Discouraged....

Hi everyone,

I'm somewhat new here (started last week).  I'm 25 years old, 5' 8.5," WAS around 140 lbs, and I've already lost around 50 lbs since this February.  Last night, I went out to dinner with my dad (I've sworn off eating out as a general rule in order to continue my weight loss), and this morning when I weighed myself, I had gained 4 lbs.  :(  Now, I know it's probably water weight, but I hate to think I've undone the last two or three weeks of weight loss simply by eating out once in a great while.  Also, I know I'll be spending the next few days trying to get back down where I was, which will be impossible since my mother-in-law already made plans with me to take me out to lunch at Cheesecake Factory of all places on Wednesday.  It's really discouraging to know that, even if I do manage to lose the 4 lbs of water weight by tomorrow, I'm going to gain it right back (and even more, maybe) overnight tomorrow.  I feel like I'm never going to see my weight drop below 140 lbs at this rate...

Sigh.

could be all the salt they use?

dont get discouraged, drink lots of water and go for a good walk today it will make you feel better.

nothing wrong with the occasional dinner out.

Yeah, the upage in the scale in going out with your dad was probably due to a high sodium content that you always get in food in restaurants.  They salt everything, probably to cover the bland tastes.

Higher sodium = water retention = higher weight on the scale. 

But you are right, it is water weight.  Keep drinking your daily water and you should be fine.

As for the cheesecake place, why not have a talk with your mom-in-law to let her know the troubles with losing weight you have been having and how you are trying to put yourself on the right path, and how going to this place will not help you.

Tell her you want to spend time with her, but you would greatly appreciate going to a place with more healthy choices.

Then, order 1 cheese cake for dessert and split it between the two of you =)

I feel its very important to have good communication between you and your family about your plans.  Skipping it means isolating yourself, which is not good.  You need to have support from all sides and get everyone on board with it.

You've gotten some great responses, so I'd just like to say; I'm in the same boat! I'm considerably shorter than you are, but I can never get below 120 anymore it seems. And Sunday we had a potluck at the church; I'm still carrying around 4 extra pounds. Darn salty foods!

So I've been being extra careful with my calorie count, sodium, and water intake. It shouldn't take too long for it to recede, I've just always been a little sensitive to sodium, and I haven't gotten much liquid lately since I don't drink tapwater and our large jugs of water for our watercooler haven't been delivered yet. Oh sure, everyone else can just drink orange juice and milk by the gallon, just poor Lindsay is up a dry creek and stuck in the mud!

Awww I know how you feel. :(  Sometimes I think that I just have to LOOK at something salty and I retain two pounds of water!

But listen, even though it's discouraging, don't let it get you down too much.  Just drink lots of water to help your body lose what it's retaining, and then keep drinking it to help prevent the same thing from happening when you go out later this week. 

In anticipation of going to Cheesecake Factory, for the next couple of days, add a little extra on to your workouts, or a little extra time at any exercise that you do.  For me, anyway, I always feel a little less guilty knowing that I burned some extra calories, so I can enjoy myself a little more when I do go out.  Also, does Cheesecake Factory have their nutritional info online?  If so, you can always check it out ahead of time and that way you can plan your calories and know what to order so you can possibly work in a slice of that cheesecake! ;)

And finally, going out with loved ones is always time well spent.  The occasional splurge at a restaurant is just one of those "life" things that are bound to happen every once in a while.  Enjoy it, and know that the water retention is only a minor setback and you just have to get back on track the next day.

Thank you for everyone's thoughtful responses!  It probably WAS the sodium, dang it.  I mean, on Sunday, I ate about 3x as many calories as I usually do, but I ate at home and we cook with very little salt, so I noted no weight change overnight. 

I have talked to my family about all this weight loss, but at this point, they've all been pulling me aside to give me "the talk" about how I'm "too skinny now."  I'm assuming I look lighter than I actually am simply because I exercise so much and I'm made of mostly muscle. :P

Still, it's frustrating because no one else in my family has a weight problem, but we all love to eat out.  I can't tell you how many times I've avoided spending time with my family this summer simply because I know they're going to eat out at Cheesecake Factory or something.  It's made me really lonely and isolated (and it's made me look bad), and I'm tired of it. 

The worst part is, I really like eating out and having the "whole experience" of eating all the things I like.  In either case, I'm going to stick to my usual routine today of running about 6.5 miles on the treadmill for 50 minutes and eating 1200 calories with lots of water.  It saddens me that it probably won't make a difference in light of tomorrow (It's going to be near-impossible to avoid eating all that yummy food at Cheesecake Factory), but I guess I'll just deal with the consequences....

Thank you all for your help!

Relax, don't panic -- in order for you to have gained the four pounds just from that meal you would have had to consume 14,000 (yes, that's thousands) calories over what you burned off.  Even the Cheesecake Factory (mmm, Shrimp BLT (bad, bad, bad!)) can't do that for you. 

You've got to look at the long term -- it probably was mostly water, just like everyone said.

 Congradulations on a 50 pound weight loss.  What a wonderful accomplishment.  One you should not overlook in the short term of one or two times when you ate something you rarely do.  You have found ways of losing weight which have worked for you.  Stay on the course you have mapped off.  You note that it is probably water weight/sodium and temporary. Don't get discouraged. Enjoy the times you spent with the people you were with.  The memories you make with them are what is really permanent.  Take Care 

water, water, water!

Maybe @ the cheesecake factory, split your dish with her, or eat only half of yours and save the rest for later...or just dump in trash when home.  Ask for sauces/dressings on the side.  Oh..and water! lol

Your doing amazing! try not to fret too much, it's not the scale that defines us.  You know you are in a better place, by taking care of your body and becoming healthier every day.  Water/sodium weight is a part of life and unfortuneately we can not change that. I'm sure those measely lbs will come right off. Best of wishes!

The dreaded cheeseckae factory--with almost no healthy options.  The new "Weight Management" salads aren't bad, and if you only consume half, you'll still be under 300 calories regardless of which one you order.  I generally just order a "chicken ceasar salad" and then have them hold everything but the lettuce and chicken (which I ask be grilled without oil) and get a serving of salsa to use as dressing.  I eat about half the chicken it comes with, use all the salsa and count it as around 200 calories.