First off, people often want to quit because they feel like they are failing. There are no failures, only experiences. There are no mistakes, only lessons.
Yes, this advice is on the verge of “cheesy” — but it’s accurate. Every plateau/fluctuation you experience can be used to guide future decisions.
Most importantly, it is 100% normal and expected. And each new plateau/fluctuation will likely be longer than the previous one. This is a good thing. After all, the end-goal is indeed to fluctuate or plateau at your desired weight.
Key points:
- Glycogen plays an outsized role in short-term weight fluctuations.
- Going on and off low-carb diets
- It takes a few days for body weight to stabilize after any major shift in diet or exercise.
- The food you ate and Salt & water intake
I’ve lost count of how many clients have stepped on the scale and lost their minds when they gained weight overnight—usually two or three pounds, but sometimes as much as six.
What’s going on here? Can you really gain and lose so much weight in so little time? If we’re talking about pounds of fat and lean tissue, the answer, is no.
On the other hand, if we’re talking about scale weight, it’s not just possible, it’s probable, especially for clients who climb on and fall off the diet truck.
Let’s look at why it happens, and how you can think about it rationally.
I’d like to address the external problem first…the scale.
The Problem With The Scale, It Doesn’t Give You The Big Picture:
If you’re tracking your weight, then you usually step on the scale first thing in the morning, right after using the toilet but before eating or drinking anything. That way you’re always weighing your body when it’s in a mildly dehydrated condition.
But that doesn’t mean it’s the same mildly dehydrated condition from one day to the next. The body’s fluid level can change dramatically, for two primary reasons.
- Your digestive system hasn’t had time to process all the foods you ate
- All that excess sodium has caused your body to hold on to excess water in order to keep your electrolytes in balance.
Your body will sort out both problems in time. The food will go through the usual channels and leave your body at one end or the other.
The extra water is also temporary in a healthy person like you, thanks to a complex process involving your kidneys, your brain’s third ventricle, and the renin-angiotensin system (1, 2).
Second, what happens internally when you eat:
When you eat, that food has to be digested, absorbed, and transferred. Depending what you ate and it’s composition will determine the length of this process.
One of the KEY POINTS listed in the beginning was of how glycogen plays a role in weight fluctuation. Here’s what that means:
Each gram of glycogen—the stored carbohydrates in the muscles and liver—is accompanied by three to four grams of water. If you make severe cuts to dietary carbs, you’re going to store less glycogen, which means your muscles will also hold less water.
Initially, when starting a diet or weight loss program you will see a decent loss up front then the progress slows down. Well, what you initially lost was a lot of water weight leading to dehydration, feeling sluggish, in a fog, low energy, cravings, etc. Continue for too long and you break.
What can you do to get ahead of that?
Keep fluids the same while increasing minerals.
- A good place to start is increasing vegetables to 4-5 servings per day and 1-2 servings of fruits a day. This will provide your body with the nutrition, minerals, and glycogen your body needs to store.
Mid-day weight fluctuations
What happens during the day? S*** happens, obviously, or doesn’t happen. Either way, bowel movements affect your scale weight, as well as how much you drink (fluid balance)
In Summary:
The only way to know whether it’s working is to be both consistent and patient. Consistency with weighing, consistent with carb intake, consistent with workouts, and patient enough to see meaningful results.
And if you are not able to stick to the plan for more than a few days at a time? At least you’ll be able to explain those sudden weight fluctuations.
Mike T. Nelson, PhD, MSME, CSCS, CISSN, is a research fanatic who specializes in metabolic flexibility, as well as an online trainer, adjunct professor, presenter, kite boarder, and (somewhat incongruously) heavy-metal enthusiast
Dr. John Berardi, PhD, CSCS is co-founder of Precision Nutrition who specializes in Exercise Physiology and Nutrient Biochemistry. He has worked with over 50,000 clients from all different levels, beginners to Olympic athletes. He is an adviser to Apple, Equinox, Nike, and Titleist.
References
1. Roumelioti ME, Glew RH, Khitan ZJ, Rondon-Berrios H, Argyropoulos CP, Malhotra D, et al. Fluid balance concepts in medicine: Principles and practice. World journal of nephrology. 2018;7(1):1-28.
2. Szczepanska-Sadowska E, Czarzasta K, Cudnoch-Jedrzejewska A. Dysregulation of the Renin-Angiotensin System and the Vasopressinergic System Interactions in Cardiovascular Disorders. Current hypertension reports. 2018;20(3):19.
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