Don't Understand

Don't Understand
Sep 09 2007 05:16 Edit | Delete

I am on a STRICT 1200 cal/day diet exercising weight /arobic combined 1.5 hr/day.  I take in less than 1000mg sodium each day.  I drink 2 plus litres of water daily.  I weigh each morning at 0500 on a new Detecto balance bar scale.  One morning I might weigh 237 and the next 240 then the following morning back down to 238 then the next morning back up to 240.

Why would weight vary or increase to this extent in a 24 hour period?

 

The types of foods you eat - not just your sodium intake - influence the amount of water your body retains.  So do hormones, stress and many other factors.  This is why people say it is better to weigh only once a week.

First of all, Steve59, are you a guy? (I'm guess so based on the name STEVE59). If so, you should not be eating less than 1500 calories a day without doctor's supervision, but you probably need more.

There are a number of things that effect weight. Salt is the biggest. Eat a high-salt diet today and you'll jump up tommorow. Drink lots of water tommorow and you should be OK the next day. The more salt you eat, generally, the higher your blood pressure (so be careful if you have blood pressure problems) and the higher your weight.

Also, it's just generally the weight of food in you. If you demolish a 2 lb. bag full of carrots, then you might maybe get 200-300 calories in, but that's still two pounds of MASS in your stomach that needs to pass through.

Also, as joji mentioned, hormones, stress and other factors.

I agree with joji's advice to weight once a week, maybe twice. Or be prepared, if you're going to weight every day, to see alot of up and down.

I agree with the prior posts.  I'm also glad you have this kind of scale to weigh on. It's okay to weigh in every day, accept that variations are part of the process.  The more you watch the variations, the more you get comfortable with them. You know if you see some weird increase, it will correct in a day or two.  Also a sudden drop is also likely to be dehydration, it too is not real... unless it "sticks" for a few days.  Keep good records of your weigh-ins... if you can, mark them on a graph. You can average your weigh-ins for the week to see if you are making progress, or try for at least one new low weight per week.  Your graph will look like a mountain range going downwards.

Excellent thoughts and input from all...Thank you.

I was a daily weigher until I realized how much energy and stress I was putting into trying to understand each and every fluctuation, (kind of sounds like you're at that point now).  If you keep with the plan you described, the trend will be that you will lose weight.  I hadn't weighed in several weeks -- though once a week is probably good -- and I just experienced an 11 pound loss!  That has inspired me to keep going and stick to my plan, without the stress of trying to figure out each daily weight up or down.

It sounds like you're doing the right thing.  Keep it up!   

 

Eat a bit more...also, watch the overall trend from a week or a month, not an individual day.  I like to weigh daily just so I can log it, but I don't fuss if I'm up a pound or two since I know it will come down at least even by the end of the week.