If weight loss is your goal, then just like with any goal, it's obviously important to track your progress, and even more obviously to track your progress in your weight-loss journey you're going to need to step on the scales and weigh yourself, which can often turn the bathroom scales from a handy measuring device to an instrument of torture, that can make or break your day in an instant.
With my clients who's goal is weight loss I recommend they weigh themselves daily. I like to see how their bodies react to various factors, like training, sleep, stress, hydration and macronutrient intake, as well as looking at weekly/monthly averages as opposed to days in isolation. Plus, research seems to suggest that daily weigh-ins lead to greater weight loss.
This study found that those who weighed daily for six months lost, on average 13 more pounds than those who weighed less frequently.
The problem with daily weigh-ins is that if you don't understand the factors that lead to weight fluctuations it can do more harm than good. I've received countless panicked text/emails/calls from clients wanting to know how the cold of possibly gained 2kg overnight after a solid week of losing weight.
When you see that scale moving in the wrong direction despite you doing everything right it can make you want to give up, or launch your scales out the window, but in most cases there are perfectly reasonable explanations as to why your weight went up. Knowing why your weight fluctuates will give you the power to remain calm on your "off days" and understand your body better and how it's likely to react to certain factors.
What It Actually Takes To Gain Fat
Don't worry about physics and the laws of thermodynamics, when the number on your scales goes up, all logic goes out the window, along with scales, however, it's important to remember that we lose and gain fat relatively slowly
To gain 1–3 pounds of fat would require 3500–10,500 calories over what you burn each week, which equates to a 500–1500 calorie surplus per day.
Of course it is possible to eat that much, but if you're following a diet, and/or being mindful of what you're eating and drinking, it's unlikely, so when you see the scales jump overnight, you can rest assured that fat gain isn't the culprit, so what is happening?
Glycogen
The majority of carbohydrates that we eat are converted to glucose, which is sugar and glycogen is the body's stored form of glucose. Glycogen is stored in your liver and muscles, and is notorious for messing with your weight, for each gram of carbohydrates that you consume, you can expect to hold on to 3-4 times that in water weight alone. So lets say that last night you had a lasagne for you dinner, which contained more carbs than you might normally consume, you're probably going to end up weighing more in the morning, not because of the calories, but because your body is holding more glycogen and water, the same phenomenon also works in the opposite direction when going low-carb.
Sodium and Water
Our body weight isn't just muscle and fat, it includes the amount of fat, muscle, bones, organs, and fluid we carry and we tend to forget the amount of fluid in our bodies can vary greatly from one day to the next.
If you’ve ever weighed yourself after a big night of drinking, you may be shocked to see your weight lower in the morning. Unfortunately it's unlikely that your all-night dancing has caused you to lose weight, and the more reasonable explantation is that your overnight weight loss is because you’re dehydrated.
You'll often also notice that when you've had a particularly salty meal, the excess salt will cause your body to retain water in an effort to maintain your bodies electrolyte balance. If you've woken up with a bigger number than expected on the scales, ask yourself if you consumed more salt than usual the day before.
If you regularly consume a lot of sodium, it wont make a difference, but let's assume you eat around 1,500mg of sodium per day, but yesterday you had around 6,000mg, that would be enough of an increase from your usual levels of sodium consumption to result in a weight spike from increased water retention, due to increased sodium intake.
Stomach Contents
Another factor when it comes to weight gain, which is often overlooked is the amount of food in your stomach, so anything left undigested or digested, but still sitting in your stomach can cause a spike in your weight. Did you eat later at night?
Did you weigh yourself earlier in the morning than usual?
The amount of time since your last meal will make a difference.
I advise my clients to weigh first thing in the morning without clothes after using the bathroom. The idea is to weigh in the same semi-dehydrated state from day to day, however that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s always under the same conditions, but we're trying to at least keep everything that we have control over standardised. Stress and Cortisol
Cortisol is a hormone produced by the adrenal glands in response to stress. It helps regulate many functions in the body, including blood sugar levels, immune system response, and metabolism. Cortisol is often referred to as the "stress hormone" because it is released in response to stressors such as physical or emotional stress. It plays an important role in the body, but high levels of cortisol over a prolonged period can have negative effects on health.
You guessed it, cortisol can also cause water retention (through cross-reactivity with the aldosterone receptor), meaning that elevated levels can mask fat loss. Exercise and dieting also increase cortisol, typically a larger calorie deficit and more total exercise (mainly cardio) can increase levels of cortisol to the point that weight loss can become erratic and unpredictable
Things like a lack of sleep, big lifestyle stresses, and injuries can also raise cortisol.
What can you do about it? Try to resolve the stress. If you’re training super hard, eating low calories, and not losing weight, try adding more rest days and see what happens. Make sleep a priority and try minimise external stressors in life, or find ways that can help make your stress more manageable.
How to Manage the Stress of Weight Fluctuations Try to remember that your weight from one day to the next means far less than your overall trend. Luckily, there are several great apps that take the guesswork out of whether your weight is trending up, down, or staying the same, the one I recommend is HAPPY SCALE. While weighing daily can be a frustrating task, once you understand the factors involved, you will quickly understand how and why your body is responding in the way that it is You may notice you’re especially sensitive to sodium or that eating later at night causes the scale to go up the next day.
Most women can expect to see a spike in weight around their monthly period.
A tough workout can also cause an increase.
Knowledge is power, and the scale is just one data point.
You can always use other progress indicators like measurements, photos, and how your clothes feel on days when the scale is not your friend.
Play the long game when it comes to weight loss and the next time the scale jumps up overnight, tell yourself there’s no way you gained fat that quickly and happily move on with your day.
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