"If you are exercising and eating right, don't be discouraged by a small gain on the scale. Fluctuations are perfectly normal. Expect them to happen and take them in stride. It's a matter of mind over scale." - excerpt from Why the Scale Lies
One great debate in the weight loss world is to weigh (daily) or not to weigh. Of course, most of us want to weigh periodically to track progress. I believe that an official weigh in once a week on the same day each week at approximately the same time of day is the most accurate way to gauge weight loss.
I don't typically get on the scale mid-week. My official Weight Watchers weigh in day is Tuesday. I give it my best effort to stop at the center in the morning before I eat breakfast.
During the week I watch a few tell-tale signs that help keep me off the scale: is my ring easy to spin? how do my pants feel? This week my ring is spinning quite easily and my smallest pair of size 14 dress pants buttoned comfortably. I figured these were good signs for my weigh in tomorrow.
Unfortunately, I decided to sneak a peak at the scale tonight. It's registering me at 179 (and it's faithfully been very close to WW.) I couldn't have gained FIVE pounds of fat in a week. That's impossible...technically to gain 5 pounds I would have had to eat about 129 Reese's Peanut Butter Eggs.
Could I "gain" five pounds from another source? Absolutely! The two leading culprits of weight fluctuations are water retention and timing.
Keep in mind every body is different. I heard WW members all the time say "I don't eat popcorn 2 days before weigh in." or "If I want Chinese food I have to eat it the night after weigh in so I have a week to flush my system." Honestly, I don't go to those extremes. The point is that sodium can cause water retention which in turn shows a "gain" on the scale. Sodium is found in nearly all processed foods - some soft drinks and pudding cups hide more sodium than a handful of salted nuts.
The other reason the scale might be up is timing. Do you normally weigh in in the morning before you eat? In the privacy of your own home without clothes? As I stated before, I weigh in in the morning (usually) in business casual work clothes. Each week I try to wear the same style of outfit and remove my jewelry to get the most accurate weight I can. Time of day, eating or not eating and clothing can all affect the number on the scale.
If I know that I have done my part for the week including tracking, following the good health guidelines and exercise, I don't let the scale bother me. Sometimes life (work) happens and I can't weigh in in the morning. Sometimes my body decides to hold onto water to counterbalance a sodium laden meal. Heck, sometimes I just end up constipated the night before weigh in.
The bottom line is: Our weight fluctuates daily, even hourly. Numerous factors play into it. If you get a number on the scale that isn't quite what you expected, keep your chin up. A little blip on the radar is very minor when you look at the journey as a whole. Try something different the next week; if you ate out the day before your weigh in, try to avoid restaurants a few days prior, or increase your water intake. In the end, I do what I need to do to keep living a happy and healthy lifestyle.
The scale will follow eventually.
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