I have just recently lost almost 50 pounds, and on Sunday I was happy to see that I finally got down to 129 and got out of the 30s! Tuesday when I woke up I was back at 131.5 so I exercised twice yesterday and drank a lot of water hoping it was water weight, but today I still weigh in at 131.5! How long does it take for water weight to be lost? When will I be able to tell if this is an actual weight gain or just a fluctuation?
Water weight can depend a lot on carbohydrate intake. Water weight after a few days of low carbohydrate eating may be several pounds less than after a few days of carbohydrate loading, for example.
Another cause of weight gain is muscle gain. If you have been exercising, you may be building muscle. Since muscle is dense, it can add weight even if your body fat remains the same (or decreases). If this is the case, don't worry, because added muscle is healthy. Measuring body fat percentage or a proxy like waist size is often indicated to determine whether weight gain or loss is fat or muscle.
For women, another possible cause of weight gain is pregnancy.
depends. if you drink alot of water right 4-6 hours before bed, it will still likely be finishing it's cycle through your body, and you won't be able to urinate it all out at that time before you step on the scale. i used to abuse diuretics before i realised that.
It's definitely hard to tell for sure! I find that I often fluctuate a little bit in weight, even if I feel the exact same size. I definitely notice a difference if I've been eating more carbs. I usually hold a little more water weight when eating more carbs than usual. I think I have a mild gluten sensitivity, and I know I get bloated from certain breads and grains, so I mostly eat protein, fruits, and veggies. Also, drinking some herbal green tea may help with extra water weight if that's the case. Definitely watch your sodium too! Too much salt or too many processed foods can cause you to hold in that water weight too.
