Weird Phenomenon....

naughtoj

naughtoj

Cathlete
Ok. Holidays have come and gone, but I must admit my workouts have been much more sporadic and my eating not-so-clean.

What is such a pisser though, is I have actually LOST weight. Now, I am still lifting somewhat frequently so it is not muscle loss at this point. I have been eating horrible stuff like popcorn and ice cream for dinner!! Two meals per day, big!!! Anyway, usually I eat about 5-6 times per day, more healthy choices.

I also noticed that when I went a whole week without working out, my weight drops significantly. Do you guys think this is because your muscles swell and uptake more water when they are recovering from strength training? I spend 350 days per year sore in some part of my body and really attributed the loss of weight to maybe my muscles calming down!!! I also "feel" thinner, and my clothes seem to fit better!!

My friends who work out with me take breaks from exercising much more often than me and are always asking me why they seem to lose weight after taking a few weeks off. They end up wondering why they bother to work out in the first place! Assuming you don't start losing muscle for a while, what would this weight loss be attributed to? I never know what to tell them. Defies logic.

My total calories MAY (I can't believe it, but..) have been lower, and I got a cold, which says my nutrition wasn't too great. So maybe that was it. Anyone else experience this????

Janice
 
Hi Janice, before Christmas week I went to my doctor for my allergy (and newly diagnosed asthma) check and found out I was 111 pounds. The nurse was surprised when I jumped up and down in glee. I explained to her that I've been trying to gain weight and that it has taken me about a year to work up to 111 lbs. from 98. Anyway, when I got back from vacation in which I binged to my heart's content, I got on the scale -- which I normally don't do -- and found out I had lost 2 lbs. That was on the 29th of December. Today I went on the scale again and saw that I've lost another pound. I have no idea what is happening. In my week away I must have eaten twice more than I should have EVERY meal, without considering how much fat I was ingesting. Hey, all in the spirit of the season.:) I'm sure I haven't lost muscle. I don't believe my metabolism is THAT fast. Now I'm wondering if those lost 3 lbs. was merely water weight. But then I drink lots of water. Yesterday I finished three bottles of Ozarka while sitting on my butt, reading a book. Just when I think I know so much more about exercise, nutrition and my body, I'm also realizing how much more I DON'T understand.:)

Pinky
 
All I can say is I wish this phenomenon was contagious and you would pass it on this way!!!!

Hopefull
 
All I know is that has happened to me many times. I cannot rely on it because If I keep that up I will lose definition and eventually start to gain weight. I think that you work your muscle a lot and that there is a lot of water retention going on. When you stop for awhile the water leaves for a few days and (I usually show more definition for a couple of days and lose weight) Then it becomes some kind of battle to get back in sync? Im not sure what this is caused from but I know it happens. Maybe it is just tricking our bodies
Diane Sue
 
Diane, what you're saying actually makes sense to me. I have been strength training pretty hard the last two months and when the scale reached 111 lbs., I believed I'd gained muscle. So it's a bummer to find out 3 lbs. of it was most probably just water.:-( I'm a hardgainer, so 3 lbs. to me is a lot. I'm hoping to gain it back soon, but in solid form this time.

Pinky
 
This happens to me too. When I don't work out for a few days, or a week, I get thinner. I think it's some sort of puffiness I lose. The puffiness comes from working out hard, especially strength work. It is nice to look thinner, but I do lose fitness, so I get right back to working out as soon as possible.
 
>It is nice to look thinner, but I do lose
>fitness, so I get right back to working out as soon as
>possible.

Yes!:7 I stopped working out for a little over a week and immediately, I had to lower my weights by up to 5 lbs. when I did PS. And I do look like I've shrunk... gone back to my usual "skinnyness". I read that your body always goes back to where it's comfortable, and mine is comfortable being more or less 100 lbs. I have to keep reminding myself that this is not about just gaining weight on my part, but mainly getting stronger and keeping healthy. Nonetheless, it's a bummer.

Pinky
 
Thanks for all your thoughts on this. It is nice to know though that no one on this forum quit working out because of it!!! Very Educated People here!!! I am working out again, so bring on the water weight I guess!!:)

Janice
 
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