Weight Watchers Freak Out

[Callie]

I've been doing pretty well on WW, having lost 8 pounds. Somehow in 24 hours I put on 8 pounds. I was 242 the morning, and next morning i was 250 and now another day later and it still hasn't changed Could this just be extra water I'm holding? I didn't eat anything massive like a buffet. Did enjoy some Chicken Fingers and Baked Fries but didn't go over my weekly points.

 

[bumbershoot]

There's almost nothing it could be but water and/or the bulk of unusual food.

To gain a pound in fat requires something like 3500 EXTRA calories, beyond your WW points which are designed to make you *lose*. So you'd need to eat enough points to maintain and then go that far beyond. Times 8. I don't think you did that.

The other option is that your scale is wrong. Are the batteries getting old? Can you weigh a bag of something with a known weight, or hand weights or something, to see if there's something obviously wrong with it? Did someone in the household drop it and not tell you?


Is it "time of month"? That could be a reason for bigtime water gain.

 

[ohMom]

my thoughts are water and/or your normal fluctuation range.

keep working the plan! you will probably get a visit from the Woosh Fairy and it will flush out as quick as it came.

 

[HootDad]

I'm really surprised this was not the first response... weigh yourself once a week! Do it once a week, same day, same time of the day and at the same point of your schedule (e.g. if you weigh yourself before you eat always do, etc.) While admittedly 8 pounds seems like a bit much, it is true that your weight can fluctuate throughout the week. I know it's hard (and sometimes I'm tempted too), but part of the WW plan is to only weigh yourself once a week and track that weight.

 

[Ariel484]

I'm really surprised this was not the first response... weigh yourself once a week! Do it once a week, same day, same time of the day and at the same point of your schedule (e.g. if you weigh yourself before you eat always do, etc.) While admittedly 8 pounds seems like a bit much, it is true that your weight can fluctuate throughout the week. I know it's hard (and sometimes I'm tempted too), but part of the WW plan is to only weigh yourself once a week and track that weight.

I'd also add to use the same SCALE. My scale at home is consistently 1-2 pounds less than the WW scale.

 

[HootDad]

I'd also add to use the same SCALE. My scale at home is consistently 1-2 pounds less than the WW scale.

Thanks, Ariel, 100% true

 

[disneymom2one]

I mostly lurk (won the BL summer challenge a couple of years ago) but I wanted to say that I DO weigh myself every day. It's the only way I can keep accountable to myself. My scale even goes on vacation. I've lost 101 pounds in the past couple years that way (okay along with a few other major life changes). I weigh myself at the same every time every day.

The big "But" to that is I try not to get too caught up in the daily numbers. I use an Excel spreadsheet to track the weight. I have some extra columns - average daily loss, 7 day loss, 30 day loss. Those are the numbers I pay more attention to.

For me, daily tracking works. I just could never wait a week to weigh myself - I need that daily check. YMMV (as always).

 

[bumbershoot]

I'm really surprised this was not the first response... weigh yourself once a week! .....part of the WW plan is to only weigh yourself once a week and track that weight.

It wasn't in the first response because I weigh myself every day! It's not the plan to ONLY weigh yourself once a week, the plan is that on WI days you weigh and track that weight. I've never heard guidance to not ever weigh more often. In fact, many Lifetime members weigh every day.

Now, if you're going to freak out about the fluctuations that's one thing. But the OP doesn't sound like she's freaking out and is going to dump everything; it's a nervous question, that's all. 8 lbs would freak me out, too! And I tend to laugh at the fluctuations, thinking they are amusing. And I don't change what I'm doing, either, I just like to know. I type it into my "notes" section of the Food tracker, so I can look back and see where I was the week before, or the month, or 3 months, etc. It's interesting to me.


OP, is it gone yet? Did you figure out what caused it?

 

[keahgirl8]

It wasn't in the first response because I weigh myself every day! It's not the plan to ONLY weigh yourself once a week, the plan is that on WI days you weigh and track that weight. I've never heard guidance to not ever weigh more often. In fact, many Lifetime members weigh every day.

Now, if you're going to freak out about the fluctuations that's one thing. But the OP doesn't sound like she's freaking out and is going to dump everything; it's a nervous question, that's all. 8 lbs would freak me out, too! And I tend to laugh at the fluctuations, thinking they are amusing. And I don't change what I'm doing, either, I just like to know. I type it into my "notes" section of the Food tracker, so I can look back and see where I was the week before, or the month, or 3 months, etc. It's interesting to me.

OP, is it gone yet? Did you figure out what caused it?

Yes. What she said! I don't always weigh every day, but I do weigh at least a few times a week. I don't think it hurts unless you obsess over it. If you have a gain, check ourself to see if you are doing anything wrong. If not, wait it out, watch points and water, and see what happens. I think you'll find that you usually drop a larger number the next week.

 

[keahgirl8]

I've been doing pretty well on WW, having lost 8 pounds. Somehow in 24 hours I put on 8 pounds. I was 242 the morning, and next morning i was 250 and now another day later and it still hasn't changed Could this just be extra water I'm holding? I didn't eat anything massive like a buffet. Did enjoy some Chicken Fingers and Baked Fries but didn't go over my weekly points.

After I posted, I was re-reading this. Was there a lot of sodium in the chicken and fries?

 

[jessc79]

This happened to me a few weeks ago. I thought I'd gained 11 lbs after my vacation and I was so discouraged that I wanted to quit. When I weighed in a week later I had lost another 1.6. So don't worry!! Keep up the good work!!