[Ashley829]

I am just getting over a 2 week nasty cold. So I did not work out for the past 2 weeks, BUT it didn't affect my appetite so I have been eating like normal. At the start of my sickness I was 135 and weighing at 135 the whole first week. Last week I started to see the scale more at 134 in the mornings and this weekend it was at 133. This morning it was at 132 which is my lowest weight yet so I am pretty confused as I haven't worked out at all, plus this weekend I didn't eat the best. Friday I had a whole burrito bol from Chipotle, Saturday I ate out but got shrimp and rice, Sunday we went to Cicis and I ate 3 small pieces of pizza, salad, one breadstick and a cinnamon bun (oops) and then yesterday I got a multi-grain pasta dish from Bertuccis and had one and a half rolls.

So imagine my surprise at seeing 132 on the scale this morning. I weigh myself naked every morning because I am trying to understand how what I eat/do affects my body and weight, but this doesn't make sense to me. My husband thinks maybe it's because I am losing muscle since I haven't been working out, but I've heard that muscle doesn't actually affect your weight, it's just more dense than fat. So could anyone give some insight as to how I could lose weight this way?

Thankfully this cold is gone so I am getting back to working out today , but I want to know if this is actual weight loss or if it's a trick and the weight will come back when I get back into working out.

[Emme]

I am glad you are feeling better!! I know for me, I always drop a few pounds when I am sick even if I eat like a maniac, but it always ends up coming right back. No clue why. Hopefully yours will be off for good, though!

[LindseyLou]

I'm just taking a guess....but sometimes I notice that when I eat more calories by body "lets go" of some weight it's been holding onto for a while. For example, for weeks I was hovering around 147-148 (about to go nuts! ) and this last week I started eating a little more calories (extra 100-200) and I lost about 3 pounds. I wouldn't think you would be losing muscle after not working out for a week, but I'm no expert. (I hope that's not the case!)

[Ashley829]

Originally Posted by LindseyLou

I'm just taking a guess....but sometimes I notice that when I eat more calories by body "lets go" of some weight it's been holding onto for a while. For example, for weeks I was hovering around 147-148 (about to go nuts! ) and this last week I started eating a little more calories (extra 100-200) and I lost about 3 pounds. I wouldn't think you would be losing muscle after not working out for a week, but I'm no expert. (I hope that's not the case!)

I was wondering this too because I read before that if you mix up your calorie intake it can help you lose weight, something like your body works harder to get rid of the extra calories or something?

Thanks to both of you for the input though! It's been two years of research and trial and error and I'm still working to really understand my body and fitness and weight loss

[MzJuicyD]

The calorie intake thing is true. When I was sick I didnt work out for about 4 days but I ate (a little more than I normally do). I still droped 5 pounds that week but i had gained a pound the next week. All in all it was still more of a loss than a gain. I dont understand this crazy science lol

[berryblondeboys]

It's making me believe more and more to eat for hunger, not for a specific calorie amount. Some days I eat 1200 calories, others 1800 (for weight maintenance at my current weight, I could eat around 2200 calories and not lose without exercise). And it's interesting how the body is hungry at different levels day to day, even though you are doing the same things. Last Friday and Saturday I ate 1184 and 1241 calories. I didn't go to bed hungry - even though I even walked for 5 hours (slowly with children at a zoo) that day. Yesterday I was HUNGRY (still walking about 4 hours at a Children's museum) and I ate 1800 calories and was hungry when I went to bed. 1200 to 1800 is a whole good size meal difference, but our bodies are not machines. It's all rather interesting!

[katy trail]

i almost always gain when i'm sick, i constantly am munching. sometimes, i can control it- lots of hot tea, high fiber homemade soups for that insane appetite i 'think' i have. it's really just phlem messing with my head. if i control it and i'm lucky, i stay the same. it's very common to lose a lot of water when we're sick too. it's so easy to get dehydrated. so the weight that 'comes right back' was just water anyway.

[Heather]

Well, I think we have to remember that our weight is... complicated. Muscle definitely can affect your weight, but women don't build it quickly. I doubt you lost 3 pounds of muscle. Given that most of our body is water weight, it may likely be that your water weight shifted. Our muscles retain water when we work out, so it may be you lost the retained water. You may gain the weight back when you work out again. Or you may not be retaining as much water because you aren't eating salty foods... or... who knows!

But you can't freak out over the pounds lost or the pounds gained. Our body weights naturally fluctuate for all sorts of reasons. Just keep to your plan and see how your clothes fit in a few weeks...

Good luck and feel better!

[QuilterInVA]

It can take a week or 2 for the scale to reflect poor eating choices.

[Rana]

The other thing that may have happened is that by not exercising for those days/weeks, your body shed the water retention in your muscles.

Exercising, especially hard exercising, will make your body retain water in your muscles for repair. By take an unexpected break, your body has finished re-healing itself and shed the water.

I've read often that there should be scheduled breaks from hard exercise for that reason. I travel every once in a while, so those are my "breaks".

[LTs girl]

I am not an expert.....but maybe your body was getting used to the routine. So shaking things up may have shocked your body.
I lose when I am sick because the medication I take dries me out. No matter how much I drink, I am still thirsty. So it may be water weight. Give it a couple of days to even out and see where you are. Fingers crossed that it was fat loss.

[dorothy52]

Muscle vs. Fat: Clearing Up the Misconception

Common sense tells us a pound of muscle and a pound of fat have to weigh the same, but they do differ in density. This means if you look at five pounds of muscle and five pounds of fat side by side, the fat takes up more volume, or space, than the muscle. That’s important when you’re on a diet and part of your goal is the lean look of muscle, not the flabby look of fat.

[Heather]

Here's a great picture of the difference in size of 5 pounds of fat vs 5 pounds of muscle
http://www.3fatchicks.com/forum/atta...22-muscles.jpg

[gagalu]

Originally Posted by Heather

Here's a great picture of the difference in size of 5 pounds of fat vs 5 pounds of muscle
http://www.3fatchicks.com/forum/atta...22-muscles.jpg

geeeeez

seeing things like this really makes me glad i'm losing weight the hard way instead of the druggie way like one of my friends did lmao

[ERHR]

I had a similar situation. I was pretty sick a week and a half ago and didn't work out for about a week. I actually tried to increase my calorie intake by a couple hundred calories per day during that time. In the week after I got sick I dropped 3 lbs when usually I only lose 1-2 lbs and I had the same thoughts you did about why that would happen. So far I haven't gained any of the weight back and am still losing at about my usual rate even though I've just barely added back the workouts. I do feel a bit weaker but not incredibly so. I doubt I did much for your confusion but I just wanted you to know that your body isn't alone in this behavior!