This weight thing is one giant headache. Step on the scale. Hold your breath. Who knows what is going to happen once you look down. The scale is one nasty mofo who enjoys playing with our emotions. However, we shouldn’t allow a number to determine our emotional well-being. The scale is a poor indicator of progress the majority of the time. Do yourself and your psyche a favor and hide the scale in the closet. Here are some reasons why your weight fluctuates on a roller coaster that the scale can’t account for.
Stress and Hormones
Silent, but deadly is the definition of stress. Poor sleep habits, not enough calories consumed, low activity levels, and the day-to-day grind plays a pivotal role in managing stress. The chief hormone that is thrown out of whack is cortisol (aka…the stress hormone). Cortisol naturally releases in response to emotional or physical stress. As with anything in life, too much and then problems arrive on the scene. High levels of cortisol wreaks havoc on your life, puts the stop sign on fat loss and blows you up like a hot air balloon.
Carbs
Before you get any crazy ideas and decide to avoid carbs like the bubonic plague, realize carbs are essential to proper functioning on a daily basis. Carbs are vital for optimal brain functioning. Going low carb (lame) is likely to lead to decreased thyroid output (bye bye metabolism), elevated cortisol levels, decreased testosterone (not cool), shoddy immune system, and sluggishness. Yes, carbs do add extra weight to you at times. They’re stored as glycogen, which brings in three times the amount of water. Hence, leading to extra water weight. After a hard workout and refueling with some rice or potatoes, pay no attention if you’re heavier the next day.
Strength training
It’s normal for resistance training, especially for beginners to cause slight gains on the scale. Anytime you go for a training session, you’re causing tons of microscopic tears among your muscle fibers. These tears are a necessary part of the process of building muscle. You break down your muscles and supply them with nutrients, and they come back stronger the next time. Have you ever been sore a couple days after a strength training session? These micro tears were the reason, which lead you to experiencing delayed onset muscle soreness. These micro tears cause muscle damage leading to inflamed and swollen muscles on the worked area. Those tears are going to lead to your body triggering an immune response, which happens anytime your body receives damage. To help with inflammation, your body is going to retain water to help deal with the tears and help repair.
Micronutrients
One of the biggest causes of bloating is due to a sudden influx of micronutrients, specifically sodium. We all have varying levels of how much sodium we need. Sodium causing water retention comes down to how much we normally consume on a daily basis. If you’re one who normally manages their sodium intake, but goes out for pasta one night, expect to be a little bloated the next morning.
How much food is currently in your belly
What you eat and the amounts eaten on a daily basis play a huge role in your day-to-day weight. Going on a liquid diet (bad idea) with nothing but protein shakes will have you weighing less than if you choose to ingest animal protein. However, if on a liquid diet, then you’re missing valuable minerals and vitamins, which animal proteins can provide. Lastly, if you decide to drink buckets and buckets of water, expect your weight to increase, it has to hangout somewhere for the time being.
Constipation
It’s only natural that we talk about poop. A lack of fluids and/or fiber will leave you struggling when it comes toilet time. If your body isn’t eliminating fecal matter on a consistent basis, then that food is making a residence in your intestines and colon, which will cause temporary weight gain(and discomfort). Avoid this problem by exercising, staying hydrated, and eating nutrient dense foods.
Dehydration
Dehydration happens when our bodies lack essential fluids. When you’re dehydrated, salt is going to be retained in the body. Excess salt causes extra fluid in the tissues, hence the increase in weight. Increasing your water intake increases urine production. Therefore, the extra salt camping in your tissues is removed through urine over time eliminating bloating.
