Weird Weight Loss Pattern

You're scale isn't that immediate. It doesn't record if you were a good boy.  It records your exact mass at that second in time which is impacted by all sorts of things including how much water you are retaining, the last time you pooed, how long it took to digest your last meal, and hundreds of other factors you have no control over and aren't aware of.

For example, yesterday I volunteered at a race. I was running around, dancing to music, bending down to pick up water bottles and take timing chips off ankles (I did 200 squats!) for about 6 hours. I burned 2200+ calories for the day and only ate 1700. I've been eating at about a 250 calorie a day deficit for a while actually which means I'll lose an average of .5 a pound a week in the long run.

OTOH today I was up 1.5 pounds.

I wasn't surprised to be up though. My glutes are killing me because I did the equivelant of 300 squats. When you work your muscles like that, they break down and when your body repairs all those little tears, you retain water. In two days I'll be back down and maybe even the .5 I probably did lose this week may actually show up on the scale. Assuming I don't eat Chinese food or start pooing at night instead of in the morning. Or maybe it will show up next week as a 1 pound loss.

I don't really care because I'm not really trying that hard to lose right now but when I was trying to get to goal and still didn't trust that I'd stay there, these fluctuations sometimes drove me mad.

My loss seems to have a 3 steps forward, 1 (sometimes 2) step back pattern to it. Mildly frustrating, but thankfully I recognize the pattern.

I have a "shift and drop" pattern. I think many do but it varies from person to person and that it can really mess with your head if you do not know your own pattern.

Mine:

I drop inches but not pounds... or pounds but not inches... I have had a 3 week stall post-op, etc., (that was a genuine stall across multiple scales, etc.) and what makes me chuckle is my pattern matches out to how I lost -pre-op. I am just seeing it more consistent, and without being able to "stop" as easily.

When I am dropping inches my weight will bounce up a few  lbs (even up to 5-10 lbs) and then level out to where I was... Followed by a massive plummet on my loss week.

This is a huge part of why I am not a scales girl but rather a tape measure and photos girl. Those are what show me where I truly am. I am not getting my knickers in a twist when I bounce up 5 lbs if I have lost 1/2 inch off each thigh, 1/2 inch off my waist, and an inch around my shoulders.

I say over and over that scales are not my "friend" and that I do not rely upon on... Mainly because it is nothing for me to go up 2 lbs in 4 hrs (that was a giggle and a lot of fluids + dinner) and this weekend I truly found out my inherent fluid levels and the true impact they have upon me when I was very ill. Lost 6 lbs in 3 1/2 hrs (yes I sought medical attention... My left cheek is still sore from the zofran shot, and I was put on gastrolyte or gatorade for 2 days but I am "ok" now).

 

Wow! Glad you are feeling better.

Thank you. It was a real shock to the system... But I am worlds better now.

Since you and I both document everything but in different ways... I took a pic with my cell phone late Sunday so I could recall just how crappy I looked (matched how I felt) because I photo document EVERYTHING. *chuckle* I may have to make sure it never sees the light of day.