Re: weight fluctuations

moonlights

Gold Member
I've read a couple of people recently upset at having 'gained' a couple of pounds overnight (and it often seems to happen near weigh day to be doubly frustrating!) or gaining a lot on their period.

Welll the thing, I think, to remember is that you physically can't gain weight overnight. Obviously if you load up on water or eat a heavy meal that can show on the scales for a little bit but it's not an actual gain, it's a fluctuation. It's why you usually weigh a little more after a day's eating than before it. Fluctuations are why the best time to weigh is first thing in the morning, as the weight (not calories) of your intake can fluctuate over a day.

Weight can fluctuate because you've exercised and your muscles are holding onto some water to heal. Because you've eaten something that's making you retain water. For mysterious hormonal reasons - and we are not only affected by hormones at TOTM they're on a constant cycle. Loads of reasons.

ACTUAL GAIN happens when you eat over your maintenance calories for a sustained period. If you ate 100 cals over your maintenance cals every day for a month you might gain a pound. If you ate 500 cals over every day for a week you might.

But unless you eat 3000+ calories over in one day, and haven't been under any other days to compensate for it, you're not gaining a pound overnight. If you have a blow out you can always compensate by eating less for a few days.

So think about it this way. You can show gains for all the reasons listed above, but unless you're very seriously dehydrated your scales can't show you as weighing less than you actually do. So if your scales show you as 12st 5 one day and 12 st 8 the next, the first figure is your true weight. Just stay motivated, up your water, eat right and your body will let go of whatever fluctuation is showing the gain xx
 
thanks for this, this morning my weight have gone up and down by 3lbs, and its weigh in day :( I dont know why I do it to myself I should just weigh once a week
 
The way I think of it is the body isnt only made up of fat, so an increase on the scales doesnt always equal an increase in body fat - it could be muscle, water or whatever else we have going on in there ;-)
 
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