When you just have to trust the process

[SpiffyGirl]

I have been losing weight slowly but steadily 1 to  1.5lbs a week, then today the scale says I have gained 2lb  , I am obviously a bit peeved.

There is no way I have overeaten or underexercised enough to gain 2lbs in a week.

I check my steps and they are averaging in the past week just under 10k and over 10k in the month.

My calories are averaging about 300 cals under for the day.

Then I think about the good side, my resting heart rate is dropping steadily, I don't get as out of breath, I am feeling better, I can see I am getting smaller.

I guess I just have to trust the process and continue on

[WendyB]

Yes you do need to trust it. It could be as simple as something you ate the day before. Like to much salt?

Dont expect to lose weekly as it wont happen. Im sure it will be off next week. Hang in there!

[JohnRi]

Hi Spiffy,

Weight loss is never linear.  IE some weeks you lose more than others, and sometimes you gain.  I've told many people on here the scale is the absolute worse way to judge fitness.  It's a demon, that can demoralize you in a second.  You see that 2 lbs gain, and you are like what the hell?  I did a 5k a few months ago, ended up walking over 12 miles that day, over 25,000 steps.  I drank a ton of water, and ate about 700 more calories than I do normally...  The next day I was 2.5 lbs heavier!!!  WTH? 

First your best bet is to look at weekly averages not day to day weight.  Secondly, the number doesn't mean much.  I've lost 58 lbs over the last 7 months.  I've had weeks where it went up for 5 days..  Then back down for 3 weeks... 

There are so many factors that can do this.  And you have one more that I don't.  Water gain due to your monthly cycle.  I'm certainly not going to ask or discuss that with you, but keep in mind that's a factor for you.  Other factors include how much sodium you've had recently which causes water retention, to home much you pass in the bathroom. 

So just ignore the scale.  It's nearly worthless.  Then there is the dreaded you added muscle to your body.  Unless you have a Aria scale or one of the others that measure fat % you won't know that.

So a better way to judge is how are your clothes fitting?  Get a clothing tape measure and tape your measurements weekly. 

So there are much better ways to judge how you are doing than the scale!

And this really is the real indicator "Then I think about the good side, my resting heart rate is dropping steadily, I don't get as out of breath, I am feeling better, I can see I am getting smaller."

"I guess I just have to trust the process and continue on" and yes you will!

Bottom line, ignore it, and keep active.  Sooner or later if you do that, the scale will go down...

[Baltoscott]

I've got you beat.   I weigh myself daily and today I'm plus 4 lbs and I did a 35 mile bike ride yesterday.  

It IS a process and daily/weekly weight fluctuations are normal.  Keep tracking what you eat and trust how you feel.

Thanks for posting. 

[SpiffyGirl]

Thank you guys for the encouragement I am not down hearted honestly.

Got back on the scales having eaten breakfast had a cup of coffee and it was lighter by over a lb think it might need new batteries or replacing.

[sandy2212]

just keep going, be worth it in the end, one day at a time.

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@SpiffyGirl wrote:

I have been losing weight slowly but steadily 1 to  1.5lbs a week, then today the scale says I have gained 2lb  , I am obviously a bit peeved.

There is no way I have overeaten or underexercised enough to gain 2lbs in a week.

I check my steps and they are averaging in the past week just under 10k and over 10k in the month.

My calories are averaging about 300 cals under for the day.

Then I think about the good side, my resting heart rate is dropping steadily, I don't get as out of breath, I am feeling better, I can see I am getting smaller.

I guess I just have to trust the process and continue on

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just keep saying one day at a time, you will get there

[Raelcvn]

I step on the scales daily to make sure I'm not having reactions to what I'm eating. It takes 3500 calories to gain or lose a pound. Sudden weight gain indicates bloating. Water retention is one of my first signs a food doesn't agree with me. Food journals are imperative as someone else posted, it could be a food from a day or two before.

[FitBeforeFifty]

This is a post I wrote a couple of years agao on another forum. I thought it might be helpful here:

When we all start weighing ourselves, it is easy to get too focused on the daily weigh in. Our weight fluctuates naturally day to day, morning to night etc... Unfortunately, this is not common knowledge. If you don't understand this natural fluctuation, you'll become frustrated when you wake up one day and see a 2 pound "weight gain". It's not easy to track your calories accurately. It's not easy to get up early or otherwise take time out of your busy schedule to hit the gym. You've sacrificed, probably made some progress for a few days or weeks and now suddenly you've gained weight !!!

While technically you may have gained 2 lbs, you didn't gain 2 lbs of fat in a day or two. There are several things that can contribute to this type of sudden weight gain. I don't claim to be an expert on all of the reasons for fluid retention. I am, however, an expert at watching my weight fluctuate day to day, morning to night. I'll try to cover some of the most common contributors to weight fluctuation below, but the most important thing to recognize is that these sudden weight gains are typically temporary weight gains.

A change in your exercise routine
Maybe you just started exercising or maybe you just increased the intensity or duration. If you are sore, you have some inflammation and thus some added fluid retention. Even if you aren't sore, as you adapt to an exercise program your muscles adapt by storing glycogen as a means of providing fuel for your workouts. With each gram of glycogen comes 3 grams of water. 2 cups of water is a pound. The bottom line is that it's easy to pack on an extra 2 or 3 pounds in water.

This is an example of what happened to my weight when I changed my lifting routine to include squats and deadlifts. It took several weeks for my weight to stabalize:

Mild dehydration
Maybe you are like me and don't drink enough water on the weekends. Maybe you were feeling really good about your progress and decided to reward yourself with a nice dinner out with some wine. The next morning you realize you've completely erased your progress over the last couple of weeks. The first thing to recognize is that unless you ate 7000 calories over your budget on your night out, you didn't gain 2 lbs of fat. Restaurant meals are packed with sodium. I have seen conflicting information as to whether or not increased sodium actually causes fluid retention. This seems to be commonly accepted, however, but I've seen some studies suggest it isn't true. I do know, however, that alcohol consumption will induce some mild dehydration and your body reacts by retaining fluid. Once again, the bottom line is that if you properly hydrate yourself for a couple of days your body will release the extra fluid.

Normal cycles (morning vs. night, Monday vs. Friday)
Weigh yourself at the same time everyday. I weigh 2 lbs more when I go to bed than I do when I wake up. If I weigh myself at the gym with my clothes on after lunch, I might weigh 6 lbs more than I did a few hours earlier. I prefer to weigh myself each morning, without clothes after my morning pee

If you look at my weight chart over the 9 months I was losing weight, you'll see a nice smooth graph downward. If, however, you look at my weight fluctuations over a 2 week period, it is quite erratic:



If you look at the (black) trend line in the chart, however, you'll see my weight is on a nice slope downward. This might be difficult to notice or appreciate if you are only paying attention to the gain/loss numbers day to day.

Try to see through the short term fluctuations, take a long term view, commit to the process and the results will follow.

There are quite a few tools out there that will automatically show the trend line but I personally just use excel because I'm a data freak.

[SunsetRunner]

I think weighing yourself first thing in the morning after going to the toilet is best, naked of course, those jeans etc make all the difference

Like you said, what you eat/drink and how much will change your weight throughout the day not to mention sweat and toilet breaks

[NanaPatti]

Just remember Muscle weighs more than fat.

[FitBeforeFifty]

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@NanaPatti wrote:

Just remember Muscle weighs more than fat.

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While it is true that muscle weighs more than fat by volume, it is very difficult to gain enough muscle to offset fat loss if you are trying to lose 1 or 2 lbs per week. Even under ideal conditions, the maximum muscle gain is about 1 - 2 pounds per month and that would require eating at a surplus and following very strict weight training protocol.

In short, people don't fail to lose weight because they are gaining a lot of muscle.

[emili]

I get the same way when I step on and it says more than I expected- but then I think back to what I ate and it almost always comes back to salt. I drink a bit more, salt a bit less and the next day all is right with the world. glad you are taking it in stride.

[emili]

as for the muscle weighs more-  one pound of muscle - weighs exactly the same as one pound of fat. the difference is in the composition- so even though it weighs the same- it looks smaller, tighter. just needed to add my two cents there - pet peeve of mine. 

[Baltoscott]

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@emili wrote:

as for the muscle weighs more-  one pound of muscle - weighs exactly the same as one pound of fat. the difference is in the composition- so even though it weighs the same- it looks smaller, tighter. just needed to add my two cents there - pet peeve of mine. 

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Lol @emili -- reminds me of my granddad tricking me as a kid when he asked me what weighs more a pound of lead or a pound of feathers? 

[emili]

@Baltoscott lol..exactly

[TiffVanek]

Just a tip... Muscle does not weigh more than fat. A pound of muscle weighs the same as a pound of fat, They are both 1 pound. Muscle just takes up less space. This is a misconception that is rampant and should be corrected if seen.