[LittleMissMotivation]

Weird question.. But do muscles retain water? I've walked 13 and some miles in the past two days and supposedly burned about 2/3 of a pound just by the calories spent walking.

I haven't ate much either, and I would have thought that anything I would have ate would have been negated by the walking for the most part. (example: yesterday I just had a little bit of shrimp and cabbage for lunch and for dinner I had some minestrone soup and a roll. I only drink water or Crystal Lite, and the day before I just had a banana for breakfast, little bowl of rice and chickpeas for lunch and some shrimp and cabbage for dinner)

Funny thing is, my weight is up like 3 or 4 pounds and it's really putting a damper on my weight-loss excitement. I have a nagging suspicion it could be my legs are holding on to water because they're a LITTLE bit sore, or maybe it's near TOM but I feel that just passed recently. (I don't keep track)

Grr!

[mandalinn82]

Well, TOM would have to do with it, but yeah, if you work a muscle to the point where it is sore, it will retain a bit of water until it stops being sore. Or, at least, mine do!

[scgirl32]

Also, depending on how long you've been working out at a high intensity and how long you've gone by eating so little, your body could be reacting by hoarding the little bit of energy (food) that you give it.

[Scenestealer]

Also remember that weight doesn't come off instantly. Let's say you worked out for hours and actually burned 3500 calories (a pound). You're not going to see that loss immediately - it takes a bit to show up. How long it takes is anyone's guess - I haven't found a definitive answer to that question yet.

[LittleMissMotivation]

I started my first day and walked about 8 miles, and yesterday I walked almost 6, total of like 13.42 or something.. (forget, it's on my ticker)

So I just started, and my legs aren't THAT sore (a little duck walking last night about an hour after, but in the morning I'm fine)..

But it might be because I just started?

[BlueToBlue]

My muscles definitely retain a lot of water, sometimes 2 or 3 pounds, when they are sore. But water retention can be impacted by so many different things that sometimes it's hard to tell what the cause is. Ibuprofen makes me retain water. I was on a medication for acid reflux that I think made me retain water. Salty foods make me retain water (I swear, I once gained 3 lbs from a single bowl of miso soup). TOM makes me retain water. Eating anything off plan makes me retain water.

So long as my eating is on plan, then I know I haven't gained weight and I try not to freak out about it. It is discouraging, but you just have to keep at it.

Also, I'd give any change in diet a week or two to show up on the scale. Changes in exercise without a change in diet can take a lot longer to show up on the scale.

[navywife022506]

Right before you work out, you need to eat something with some calories in it. I always weigh less before my work out.